relationship so she could discover Rebecca’s true motive. The final step would have been traveling back to the moment she and Irving became enemies, changing the past to end her vengeance before it began. The thought of what she might have returned home to if the plan succeeded filled her with such regret, it stung to even think about it. If she could have managed to block Rebecca’s treacherous path before it reached her parents, then she might have had a father and mother—together and alive . But now, without the key … it was too late.
A knock sounded at the door.
“Come in,” Michele called listlessly.
Her grandparents stepped into the room, Walter carrying a bulky black camcorder that looked like something out of an eighties movie.
“Hi,” she greeted them, fixing a smile on her face. She’d already decided against telling them about the stolen key. Knowing Dorothy’s mental state was dangling by a thread, she feared this information would send her over the edge. Michele also suspected that if her grandparents knew she no longer had thekey’s power and protection, they would likely ship her off to hide out as far from Manhattan as possible. Bleak as things looked, Michele couldn’t leave New York. She couldn’t go anywhere as long as Rebecca was still after her family. She owed it to her parents, her grandparents, and herself to end the fight once and for all. But … how could she possibly manage that without the key, when only four days remained before Rebecca reached her full human form?
“How are you holding up, dear?” Dorothy asked, sitting beside her on the couch.
“I’m okay. How about you guys? What are you up to with that vintage video camera?”
Her grandparents exchanged a glance.
“It was your mother’s,” Dorothy said.
Michele’s mouth fell open.
“Marion and Irving met in a photography class. They both loved taking pictures and filming short movies,” Walter explained, smiling sadly at the memory. “Irving seemed especially fascinated by the technology. The two of them liked to use the house and the grounds as a backdrop for their short films.” He drew a deep breath. “We couldn’t bring ourselves to touch Marion’s room after she left, but once a year had gone by, we finally let the housekeeper in and she found Marion’s camcorder. We tried to send it to her, but Marion returned every package and letter we sent, unopened. Irving had left by then, and she was no longer speaking to us. There was a tape inside the camera, but we … we couldn’t bring ourselves to watch. It would have been too painful.”
Michele sat bolt upright. “Wait—are you saying there’sfootage of my parents together? And I can watch it?” In that moment, all the fear and frustration of the day evaporated. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been so excited. “I get to actually see my dad as a real person, not just an old photograph? And Mom—I get to see Mom again!”
“I suppose we should have told you about it sooner,” Dorothy admitted. “We assumed it might be difficult for you too. But now that you know everything … well, we thought it might be the right time.”
Michele reached for the camcorder, smiling tremulously. “Getting to see my parents together, even if it’s just on video—it means everything to me. Thank you so much.”
Walter flipped open the small LCD display screen on the camcorder before handing it over. “The tape is from the early nineties, and we don’t have the right cables for it to play on any of the TV screens in the house, but you can watch it right here on the camera. I charged it while you were at school, so all you have to do is press Play.”
Michele gazed reverently at the camcorder in her hands. Even though she had never seen it until now, a rush of nostalgia flooded through her as she held the antiquated gadget. It was clearly a relic of happier, simpler times. Michele could almost feel her mother’s presence inside
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