Family Ties

Hilary breathed a sigh of relief as she turned off her car and leaned back into her seat. The drive had been tedious and treacherous at some points. But it was sure to be worth the trip. The remote mountain cabin was quaint and cozy, a favourite amongst locals and tourists.

Tearing her eyes off the cabin, she gazed at the lush greenery. Despite the beauty, a sadness hung in the air. She was not staying at the remote, isolated cabin for pleasure.

With a sigh, she slipped off her seat belt and stepped out of the car. She drew in a deep breath of fresh air as she stretched. She spent another moment just gazing around her surroundings before she turned to the passenger side of her car. Where her sister sat.

“We’re back, Emily,” Hilary said lovingly as she opened her door and reached in to grab her sister and to settle in the crook of her arm.

Her sister rested within an urn. Only ashes and memories reminding her of her once vibrant life.

It was all such a tragic accident. They had been hiking for Dakria’s birthday, along the mountain paths she loved so much. She had stood at the edge of a cliff, an overlook trying to take a selfie to celebrate the moment.

But she fell.

She fell at least five-hundred meters. She fell so far. Striking every rock and boulder. Every branch and tree root. And Hilary could only watch in abstract horror, unable to do anything. Her sister’s dying scream continued to ring in her ears.

An accident. Such a terrible accident. She tripped. She fell. She died. Her body was so badly damaged. Only the talents of the morgue allowed for a final farewell at her funeral. Before the flames of cremation took her for good.

Hilary readjusted her hold on her precious sister’s ashes as she made her way toward the cabin. The very same cabin they had stayed in for Dakria’s birthday. Yet, as she approached, she noticed that there was a dead black bird rotting away at the front stoop. She immediately frowned at the sight, annoyed that it was left for her to deal with.

“I’ll get rid of it later,” she said to herself, trying her best to ignore a strange, creepy feeling that settled in the pit of her stomach.

Black birds had some ominous symbolism, after all.

As she opened the door, tears prickled along her lashes as she stepped over the threshold. The cabin was quiet and empty. She could still remember her sister’s excited behaviour during a previous visit. So excited to walk the mountain trails she loved so much.

Her sister’s love of the wilderness was the only reason why Hilary had returned to the cabin. To scatter her ashes along the paths she loved so much.

“There we are,” she said as she carefully placed the ashes upon the small kitchen table, “safe and sound.”

There was no response, of course. She had hoped for one, somehow. But the urn remained silent, as did the cabin itself. Hilary wiped her eyes as she turned to step out of the cabin once more, to gather her luggage and belongings.

She had numerous suitcases with her. She planned on staying for a couple of days and nights. To celebrate her sister’s life on her own. She needed to be alone for a while. To grieve proper without someone chiding in or offering their own empty reassurance.

To be eighteen years old and to lose her older sister. There was no comfort that could ease that pain and the confusion she felt.

It took her a few minutes to lug her belongings into the cabin, piling them just inside the door with a groan of annoyance. With the cabin so remote, she had to bring her own food and water. A generator was her only source of energy, but she was more than content with working by firelight. Candles and lanterns dotted around the cabin and a large fire place to offer warmth during the cold nights.

Hilary felt a sense of normalcy as she pottered around the kitchen, setting things away. She popped out the backdoor to gather some firewood, in preparation for a cold night and readied to cook herself some dinner. As she stood at the kitchen sink, she gazed out the window. And toward the tall, shear cliff towering in the distance. The same cliff that took her sister.

“What was she thinking?” Hilary muttered to herself.

Dakria had always been a bit selfish and flighty. She had to be to put herself at such risks to take a selfie on the edge of a cliff and made her own sister watch in horror as she fell.

“No, no remembering that,” Hilary drew in a deep breath as she pushed aside her tears. She had cried so much over the last few weeks, yet they still fell.

How much more tears did she had left to shed?

“Gotta keep busy.”

The sky soon began to darken which was unsurprising as it was late afternoon when she finally arrived, and Hilary busied herself with getting herself a simple dinner and to prepare the fire. She wasn’t as good at starting a fire like her sister was, so it took her a few minutes, with blacken ash covering her hands and anything she touched.

“Yay, did it,” she cheered softly when the flames finally took flight, taking over the newspaper and wood.

“Ok, now candles,” she said aloud.

The fireplace granted her enough light, but she felt better to have a few lanterns and torches for her to carry around should she need to venture outside.

Grabbing the lighter, she stood up and paced around the cabin, lighting each lantern she came across, and the cabin was soon bathed in a gentle orange glow.

With the sun about to set, she grabbed a blanket from the couch and slipped outside. The cabin had a small balcony just out back, positioned to view across the valley below. An absolutely beautiful sight.

Before her sister dragged her along for a hike, Hilary had to admit that she never really gave the wild outdoors much thought. But as she sat on a seat on the balcony, a thick blanket around her shoulders, she felt that she understood her sister better.

“I still can’t believe you’re gone…”

As the sky lit up in an array of orange and pinks, she noted how quiet everything was. There were the sounds of fluttering leaves and of bird calls in the distance, but there were none of the noises a city girl like her was used to.

She tugged the blanket closer, a feeling of loneliness bringing tears to her eyes once more.

Yet, that silence was broken when a short tune from her phone alerted her of a message.

She had forgotten to turn it off earlier and she regretted it further when she saw she had a couple of new texts, one from her mother and the other from her cousin, a woman about her age who was rude and cruel to her in private, but oh-so sweet in public.

And naturally, the text she sent was cruel, her cousin accusing her of faking her mourning. “You never cared about your sister before. Why now?”

Tears threatened to fall once more as she deleted the text and blocked her cousin’s number. That was sure to cause a scandal as her cousin was such a drama farmer. Always lying, always accusing others of things she had done herself.

Her mother’s text also brought a sense of unease. “Do you have your sister’s ashes?” Short and to the point with an accusatory tone.

Hilary grimaced. She had taken her sister’s ashes without her mother’s knowledge. Her mother wanted to keep Emily hidden away on the mantle piece, but Hilary knew her sister’s soul would be more at ease dancing on the winds in the mountains she cherished.

So, she lied. “No, why?” she texted back.

Hilary didn’t wait for a response, though. She sighed as she shut off her phone and pushed herself to her feet. The coolness of night was starting to creep in. It would do her no good to catch a cold while attempting to give her sister the sendoff she deserved.

As she moved toward the entrance, she paused when she noticed something on the railing. Another black bird. Dead for days, by appearance. Feathers dry and flaky, the body a hollow husk. She stared at it for a moment longer than necessary before she snapped her gaze away and quickly retreated inside.

Something about that bird and the first made her feel greatly uneasy.