"delicately layered and immediately engrossing" -- Jen Knox, author of
Musical Chairs and
To Begin Again.
"a powerful tale that keeps the reader riveted" -- Ken Weene author of
Memoirs From the Asylum,
Tales From the Dew Drop Inne, and
Widow's Walk.
"a profound and poignant narrative" -- DM Denton author of
A House Near Luccoli,
A Friendship with Flowers, and
The Snow White Gift.
"a compelling supernatural thriller" -- Patrick S Lafferty author of
Anno Domina,
Thinking Out of the Box, and
Miller Time
PROLOGUE
Stuart and Hannah sat in the audience of a small community theater in Springfield, Vermont, examining the set of
A Doll’s House while they waited for the performance to begin. Paige was cast as Nora.
“Isn’t that picture odd?” Stuart whispered to Hannah, referring to the Asian-looking painting on the set. It did not belong to late-eighteen-hundreds Norway by any standard. “I’d like to have a closer look.”
“If we stay after the show’s over, there might be a chance we could go up on the stage. I’ll ask Paige.”
Stuart’s wife, Jamie, was also an actress, and when rehearsal and performance schedules prevented Paige and Jamie from attending each other’s shows, their significant others often went together. Jamie was currently in rehearsal for a production of
The Drowsy Chaperone, so here they were.
The non-acting partners enjoyed their arrangement. Hannah had known Stuart and Jamie for years; before Paige, she’d been the tag-along friend, but had always felt welcome— more by Stuart than by Jamie.
The lights dimmed then slowly came up again. There was no curtain in this theater, so this was the signal that the performance was about to begin. Paige came out on stage, a dominant figure as always due to her red-orange hair. She set down the presents she was carrying and crossed to a Christmas tree on the far end of the stage. She started to add ornaments when Torvald Helmer, her character’s husband, joined her on the set.
There was no doubt Paige was the star as she made Nora’s transition from naïve to inured believable. Still Hannah could not stop thinking about the odd Asian painting, so out of place on the set.
When the play was over, while the cast was being congratulated by fans, Hannah asked her girlfriend if she and Stuart might look at the set up close. Paige took hold of Hannah’s hand and led them both up onto the stage.
Hannah and Stuart went straight to the Asian painting, which was a watercolor depicting a scene that was, they thought, taking place in China. There were a number of people dressed in the types of robes associated with ancient times in that country who were watching what, at first glance, appeared to Hannah to be a film; a closer look revealed that behind the screen men were holding objects up to cast shadows It was a form of puppet theater.
“What is this?” Hannah asked Paige.
“It’s been the talk of the cast. No one knows why it was included on the set, but you have to admit it’s fascinating. I suppose it draws attention because it seems out of place, but I wouldn’t want it taken away. There’s something warm about it.”
“Warm?” Stuart asked.
Paige shrugged. “Hard to say why. None of us saw it prior to tech week, so nobody was prepared. Some board member wanted it hung here. I heard he’s a history buff. Anyway, he’s got money so it’s hard to say no. But enough about the set. Tell me what you thought of the show.”
“I’m sorry,” Hannah said, turning to Paige to hug her again. “You were fabulous. I can’t say that enough.”
“Were local models used for this?” Stuart asked, still focused on the painting. “Some of these people look familiar. This young girl in blue, for example, where’d they get her?”
Paige pulled away from Hannah, laughing a little and shaking her head. “I have no idea where or when that painting was done. I know what you mean, though. There’s a man in it I thought might be someone I used to know. I think it’s the way he’s standing, with his shoulders hunched forward. I had a teacher who used to do that, but he wasn’t Asian.”
“Do you two want to go out for coffee?” Hannah offered. Paige agreed, but Stuart begged off; he needed to pick up his daughter, Starr, from his parents.
***
Their happy mood turned gloomy as Paige was pulled for running a light almost as soon as they started to drive toward downtown Springfield.
“It’s not fair,” Paige said. “I swear someone’s out to get me.” “It’s just a ticket.”
“No, it’s more than that.”
Hannah tried to convince Paige she was being paranoid, but later the words would seem prophetic.
***
The next night Paige’s performance was as spectacular as it had been on opening night.
By the following weekend, the show was canceled. Paige was dead.
The Serpent's Tale by Ariana Franklin
