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The Curse of Time Excerpt | Blog Tour

Happy weekend all! Today I come to you with an excerpt of The Curse of Time by M.J. Mallon! Hope you enjoy.

Better than you do,
The mirror knows your secrets,
Laughter is hollow,
Unless we are free to live,
Beyond our own reflection.

I remembered seeing Esme shortly after she had vanished from school, when Dad disappeared, two years ago. The memories of that day flooded into me so much that I’d thought I had been hallucinating. Poor Esme. When I saw her reflection staring at me in the mirror, the first thing I did to acknowledge her presence was to grab a flannel and try to wipe her away. Some welcoming! Except, she wasn’t a reflection she existed. When she spoke, I almost fell over in shock. felt the need to unravel the mystery of my father’s disappearance. Somehow, I knew it all began with Esme, a captured victim of a curse who lived in the mirrors of our house and kept out a watchful eye. I could see her but Mum couldn’t. As far as I could tell, neither could Dad. That suited me because Esme was my secret.

‘Hey, stop that,’ she scolded, ‘I don’t need a shower, you’re making me all smeary.’ I stepped back and stumbled in surprise. This was crazy. Bizarre. Extraordinary, how could this be happening? At that moment, I felt like I had tumbled into a Dr Who mystery. Who else had such a dysfunctional family – a disappearing Dad, an accomplished vanishing cat, a cranky Mum, and now, a girl who lived in mirrors for a best friend? No one!

I recognised Esme, as a girl from my school, who’d vanished with no explanation, who then turned up as a permanent fixture in my mirror. I struggled with this reality, and closed my eyes, willing her away. My hands shook. I couldn’t take much more of this craziness.

When I opened my eyes, she hadn’t moved an inch. I fumed, shaking my head in disbelief. She scowled at me as if I’d captured her and put her there myself like I’d made it my habit to be her jailer. I stumbled down the stairs and ran through the house checking each mirror. She appeared in all of them – every single one. My thoughts swirled like a nightmare where I had the image of a scowling Esme staring at me with a look of disdain on her face.

I didn’t know what else to do so, so I spoke to her, it took a great effort, but I acknowledged her existence, even though this whole situation was mental. ‘Esme. What are you doing hanging out in the mirrors in my house? How can this even be?’ This didn’t go down well, and instead of replying, she hammered on the mirror, screamed, and then collapsed in a corner, crying.

I couldn’t help but wonder if whatever was happening to my family had reached beyond us and touched others.

Esme answered when she’d got over the shock of seeing me. ‘I can’t tell you how I got here. I’m compelled to keep that a secret. All I can say is that I’m trapped and can’t get out. Whereas you can walk out the door, but you won’t be free until you find the cottage.’ Esme smiled. Her blonde hair caught the reflections from the morning light hitting the mirror leaving a shiny spot on the wall behind me. I gazed at her face and saw that her eyes held the truth: in the sadness, she couldn’t hide.

What are you all reading this weekend?