Chapter 80 - What For?

Laura was ready to accept defeat that there is no chance that she can get inside that cave to pay her last respect to Luke's coffin. Maybe it's the best thing to do. Just accept that Luke is already dead. It's time to move on and focused on her impending wedding to Cooper.

Rebecca looked at her. "Hmm... let's talk about the mysterious guy residing in the mirror. When was the last time he appeared in front of you?"​​

"The last time I remembered... he left a rose in my pillow... that was last week," Laura answered.

"Can you summon him? Do you have a special connection to each other? Did that mysterious guy hurt or harm you in any way?" Rebecca asked.

Laura shook her head. "No, I can't summon him. He just appeared anytime he like, especially if there's a mirror in my room. We don't have a special connection to each other. He never hurt or harm me, on the contrary, he is gentle and loving," she explained.

"Hmm, looks like you attracted a powerful being. He may be Luke's spirit still wandering around this earth, unable to let go of you. Or it could be another entity that we don't know about yet. The thing that got me curious is his affinity to the mirror. What is in the mirror that gives him the ability to manifest in front of you?" Rebecca wondered aloud.

"That mysterious guy can also put me to sleep and weaken my body. He is powerful!" Laura added.

Then all of a sudden, Rebecca remembered that Luke was clutching an antique mirror while on the verge of dying and he mentioned to his brother that the mirror should be included in his coffin. Now that she remembered about the mirror, she doesn't want to tell Laura about it. "I'm interested to see the mysterious guy in the mirror!" she declared.

Laura looked at Rebecca's face. There was much eagerness shining in her eyes. "But he doesn't appear in my room every day!" she replied.

"Hmm, then why don't you discard the cover you put in the mirror in your room. Make him enter your room freely!" Rebecca said casually.

Laura's eyes widened. "That's the last thing I would do. I've been relieved that he no longer pester me lately. Why would I give him the chance to disturb my peace of mind again?" she protested.

Rebecca smiled. "If that mysterious entity residing in the mirror is determined to become part of your world, then sooner or later, he will come back for you. Why don't you seduce him so that we can capture him? This way, he won't pester you anymore," she suggested.

Laura lifted an eyebrow. Her mouth set in a hard line.

Rebecca saw the myriad of emotions flashing in Laura's eyes. "Do you want to get rid of that entity once and for all? He could be Luke's spirit, or he can be another. We should question his real identity if we have a chance to see him," she said.

Laura was confused. Then she spoke. "Do you have a way how to capture the mysterious entity?" she asked.

"I don't have right now. But I'm planning to visit a soothsayer and asked for an item that can capture a wandering spirit and imprisoned him for eternity," Rebecca replied. "First, we need to know who is this spirit that is disturbing your peace of mind. And what is his purpose in choosing you as his victim?" she added.

Laura was also curious. "I agree to your suggestion but...he might appear when you are not around," she said.

"That's not a problem, my dear. I will ask Graven to stay in his father's mansion for a week. I will sleep in your room every night. This way, I will be able to see the mysterious guy residing in the mirror," Rebecca offered.

"That's a brilliant idea! I'll agree to it. Now you have to convince Graven that you will sleep in my room for this week," Laura said.

Rebecca shook her head. "Nah, not so fast, my dear! You're so excited. I still need to travel to the next town to meet my soothsayer friend, and asked for a piece of advice on what to do with the mysterious entity inhabiting the mirror," she responded.

"Ah, okay. Just tell me when you're ready. You are welcome to sleep in my bed for one week," Laura said with a smile.

"Good! I will never refuse your offer," Rebecca said merrily. She rose to her feet. "I'll take my leave now. As always, it's been a pleasure talking to you, dear. I learned a lot from you!" she said in a casual tone.

Laura smiled. "Me too. Thank you for telling me everything. Some of my questions and confusions were finally laid to rest. I hope you can help me in discovering the identity of this mysterious guy in the mirror," she said with a wistful tone in her voice.

"Sure! I will help you. I found it interesting to capture something like him, so mysterious and powerful!" Rebecca said. "See you later!" she said and exited the room in a hurry.

Laura lay her body down in the bed. Recalling everything in her mind what she had known about Luke so far. She wanted to see the cave and see his coffin but after learning that the cave was inhabited by venomous snakes she got scared.

She stared at the ceiling of the room for a long time. The mystery of Luke's identity was finally revealed to her. She has to thank Rebecca again and again for her mind-blowing revelations.

She closed her eyes for a few seconds.

Then she remembered what Rebecca told her. It's possible that the owner of the body that she had made love with is Graven but driven by Luke's spirit?

Should she believe it? Should she believe that Luke's body is already dead but his spirit still alive and messing up with her sanity?

How can she look at Graven in the eyes now, knowing that they shared a physical and intimate moment between them? Does Graven know about it? Or Luke's spirit was able to take control of his twin brother's mind and body completely during those times?

And what is the connection between Luke's spirit and the mysterious shapeshifter? Are they separate entities or belong to only one?

Dang! She's getting confused! She can feel a headache coming her way. She always undergoes painful headaches if she kept analyzing things too much.

Argh! She should stop thinking about Luke and that mysterious guy in the mirror!

She needs to rest her mind.

She starts counting from 1 to 100 and put her mind to rest by not thinking of anything. She needs to sleep for at least one hour to relax her mind and ward off the headache away.

~

Meanwhile, on the balcony.

Rebecca's face brightened like a bulb while telling Graven about her theory. "We should go back to the cave and check the status of your twin brother," she suggested.

Graven brows furrowed in confusion. "What for-? He's already dead."

"Yeah, that's what we know. But what if his body didn't decompose or shall we say his body decomposed already but his spirit lives on? I have this strong suspicion that the mysterious guy residing in the mirror is Luke's wandering soul," she said animatedly.

A deep frown appeared on Graven's forehead. "Huh? What mysterious guy living in the mirror that you are talking about here?" he asked in confusion.

"Ah, sorry. I was excited that I forgot to tell you about the interesting news! Laura confessed that a mysterious entity came out of the mirror and used Luke's image to trick her. That mysterious entity copied yours - Luke's image every time he made an appearance in Laura's room. It happened several times in her bedroom in her hometown. That's why she resorted to covering all the mirrors in the bedroom. She never told anyone about her secret. I'm the only one that she trusted with this secret!" Rebecca explained.

Graven's eyes widened in surprised and shock. "Did that mysterious being hurt her?" he asked worriedly.

Rebecca shook her head. "No. Laura told me that the being was gentle and loving and never hurt her even once. Just that she is afraid of him, that's why she never wanted him to appear in her room again. She wants the mysterious being to disappear from her life completely," she said.

"What makes you think that the guy in the mirror and my twin brother Luke is one being only?" he asked.

"Because the guy in the mirror is harmless and adores her! That's what Laura told me," Rebecca answered. "We should return Laura to your father's mansion and set forth on a journey towards the cave so that we can check the coffin and see if your twin brother was resurrected or not," she proposed.

"We're going back to the mansion tomorrow morning," Graven spoke.

"I know. There should be no more delay this time," Rebecca murmured.

Graven looked at the excited expression on Rebecca's face. "You look excited to go back to the cave? Why is that?" he asked.

Rebecca smiled and looked at him. "Why can't I? If Luke got resurrected, I'm sure you will be happy to welcome your twin brother again. Am I right?"

Graven nodded his head. "Of course, I'll be happy. I want my beloved brother back! But it's too early to celebrate. We don't know yet what's going on in that cave," he said, not sharing Rebecca's enthusiasm.

"That's why we're going back there to check the status of his body inside the coffin!" Rebecca said enthusiastically.

"Whatever," Graven said and rose to his feet. "I'm going to my room," he said and left Rebecca alone on the balcony.

Rebecca stayed on the balcony for a while, enjoying the wonderful weather outside.

A few minutes later, she left the balcony and went to her room.