The Bridge Between Worlds
Chapter One

Hiring a private investigator was the best decision Regina had ever made in her adult life. She would never force herself onto anyone, but this was important. This meeting would alter the course of her existence. Or it wouldn’t. It would depend on how the meeting went.

It took the investigator three months to collect the appropriate information. Regina knew not to get her hopes up, but she had waited her entire life for this day. There was a gaping hole in her chest. A hole she hoped to fill. But when the investigator returned, the hole seemed to grow bigger.

Regina was at a corner table. She had a full view of the bar, the entrance door, and the other tables. Rousseau’s would not be her location of choice, but she had to admit the place had a certain charm. There was wood everywhere. It gave the bar a rustic sort of feel. The bar stools were metal with black leather cushions. Neon lights of different colors decorated the walls and windows. Lamps were spread throughout the space, lighting the large room with yellow, dim lighting.

Regina pulled her black hair back, clipping it at the top of her head in a long ponytail. It rested on her shoulder like a shiny raven. She huffed at the single, rogue strand. It wasn’t long enough to stay clipped with the rest of her mane, but not short enough to be considered bangs. She glanced at her wristwatch. The seconds ticked by in slow motion.

“Excuse me?”

The gentle, shy voice caught Regina by surprise. But when she looked up and saw the young woman from the pictures standing next to her table, her heart pounded.

“Victoria,” Regina said, rising to her feet. “I’m Regina, we spoke on the phone . . . Um . . .”

She was wary but accustomed to people eyeing her strangely.

“Forgive me for staring,” the green-eyed girl with auburn hair, untying her floral scarf. “But you look so much like . . . Like her.”

Regina was not oblivious to the tears welling in Victoria’s eyes. Her heart pounded further, throbbing with empathy.

“I was worried you might think me a freak,” Regina joked as she offered the other woman the empty seat. “I don’t look like most people.”

“No, but you look like m-my . . . Like our mother.”

Victoria dropped her things on the table, pulling herself together as she sat down. Regina maintained a smile.

“You said you had some questions,” Victoria cleared her throat, a soft smile spreading across her face. “I don’t know how well I can answer them, but I will certainly try.”

“Yes,” Regina sighed and returned to her seat. “I do have some questions. And feel free to give me yours, I’m sure you have questions too.”

“Okay.”

“Right, well . . . I guess I should approach the elephant in the room. Just how much do I look like her? I’ve always known that I look like someone, but I assumed I looked like my father.”

Victoria nodded, “You have Mom’s eyes. Maybe darker, but the shape and personality are there. Her hair was browner, but the texture and style are similar. But she liked keeping it in curls and she had paler skin.”

“She was beautiful. Were you close?”

“Very close. All three of us. Dad was like a big brother and a best friend too.”

Regina smiled, “I take it you look like him?”

“I do. Here, I have a picture.”

Victoria opened her purse and rummaged around. Her smile was sad as she brought out the photograph. She held out the item, pointing to the middle-aged man with ginger hair.

“I can see why she married him,” Regina whispered, nodding. “You do look like him. If you don’t mind me asking . . .”

“You want to know how they were killed.”

“Yes, well . . . I mean . . . The PI did give me the file, but it didn’t feel right to read it without meeting you first.”

Regina reached into the bag she had under the table. Producing the manila folder and placing it on the tabletop. She pushed it toward Victoria, who stared at it with glistening eyes.

“We were leaving a movie,” she whispered, her cheeks growing red as the tears finally spilled out. “A comedy in the late afternoon. It was our best family outing. I heard the squealing of tires first. Everything happened . . . Happened so fast. Dad grabbed me and threw me aside. Shots were fired and they were gone before I even stood up.”

Regina stood from her spot and moved around the table. She scooted onto the bench and wrapped her arms around Victoria. It was a natural reaction. The sobbing young woman leaned into the embrace, wrapping her own arms around Regina’s waist.

They remained this way for several minutes. But even after Victoria was composed, Regina remained on the same bench. Their conversation branched from dreary topics to more cheerful ones.

“Tell me about your adopted parents,” said Victoria as a server left them their drinks. “Have you been with them since the beginning? Did you get passed around?”

“I was passed around until I was six,” Regina explained, stirring her honey tea. “When I was introduced to the Andrews, they were so kind and welcoming. I never knew what it felt like to be wanted or loved until I met them. They were looking to adopt and wanted to foster me first to see if I was a good fit. They later told me that they knew from the moment they laid eyes on me.”

Victoria smiled, “Sounds like a dream,” she said, glancing at the clock on her phone. “Wow, the time has flown. I have a shift in twenty minutes. What are the odds of us getting together again?”

Regina grinned, pleased she wasn’t the one to bring it up.

“Name the day and I will make it work,” she said, nodding. “Can I ask one last question?”

“Have at it.”

“Would she have wanted to meet me?”

Victoria’s expression grew soft, but her smile never faded.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Mom wanted to meet you. I know she had only one regret, but I never asked because it hurt her too much. Now I know what she was referring to.”

Victoria stood and gathered her things. Someone shouted from across the bar. She grumbled and waved her hand at them, turning to Regina with a final smile.

“Call me any time,” she said, nodding. “I’m free every weekend. Maybe you can come over sometime. I do have the house to myself. We can throw a party.”

Regina snorted, “I’m not much of the party type,” she smiled, shrugging. “But I would really like that very much.”

Victoria smiled, nodding as she glanced toward the bar.

“I’m going to be really personal,” she whispered, glancing back at Regina. “The only reason I started working here in the first place is that Dad was good friends with the owner.”

Regina took the bus home. People were leaving work. Party-goers were filling the streets. Cheering and shouting as they pounded their fists on the side of the bus. Regina groaned, closing her eyes as she tried to block out the obnoxious noises. She hated passing through New Orleans. It was usual behavior, but was it truly necessary?

Her phone rang in her purse. She dug around until her fingers came in contact with the vibrating hunk of plastic. Regina did not own a smartphone. She couldn’t, in her life, figure it out when her parents gave her one for her seventeenth birthday.

“Hello?” she answered the call, holding the phone in her left hand while clinging to the pole with the other.

“Hi, sweetheart,” came the voice of her adopted mother. “I hope I’m not catching you at a bad time.”

“No, I’m just on the bus, heading home.”

“How was your meeting? Did she show up?”

“She did. It was great, really great. Victoria is wonderful.”

“Oh, I’m so glad! You need a win after the previous letdown . . . I’m sorry the P.I. didn’t find her, Hun. I would have loved to meet her as well.”

Regina sighed and whispered, “Yeah, that was a major letdown. But I think getting to know Victoria will help me fill in the blanks. You always taught me to never stay stuck in the past. What’s done is done. There is always tomorrow and the days after that.”

“Right,” her mother sighed, “Well, I will let you go. Stay safe, I am looking forward to visiting with you soon.”

“I am, too. I promise I will work it out.”

Upon ending the call and returning the phone to her purse, Regina happened to meet the gaze of an elder man. Gray-haired, turning white around a huge bald spot on the top of his head. He wore a peculiar expression. His eyes bore into hers. She looked away, uncomfortable. She allowed a moment to pass before peeking at him again. He remained staring at her.

“Take a picture,” she flashed him a smile. “It’ll last longer.”

He grunted, shooting her with a vulgar adjective. One she had blotted from her mind and always imagined a loud bleep whenever the came up in conversation. Regina continued smiling, not bothered by the blow. Back in high school, a situation like this would have knocked her down. But not anymore. Her confidence was better now.

When Regina arrived at her apartment, she was suffering from one of her regular headaches. She had them on, almost, a daily basis. She had been fine until this point. She ate her needed calories. She remained hydrated all day. Why was she having a headache now?

Prior to being adopted, Regina had been fine. She had a strong immune system and was rarely sick. Her adoptive parents took her to several doctors when the headaches started happening at the age of fourteen. None of those doctors ever gave a proper diagnosis. All they could do was recommend daily medications, but those did nothing to help. All Regina could do was drag herself to bed and wait it out. The pain never allowed her to sleep peacefully, but over time her pain tolerance grew high.

Before Regina could truly call it a night, there were things she needed to get done. She was normally a very organized woman, but today she had left in a hurry. Dirty dishes were in the kitchen sink. Clean laundry that needed folding.

Regina removed her shoes and her coat, dropping her keys into the bowl on the table at the door. She hung her coat in the closet and stuffed her shoes in as well. Despite the pounding throb in her head, she made her way around her habitat. The dirty dishes were placed into the electronic washer. The clothing was either returned to the dresser drawers or hung in the bedroom closet.

An hour later, Regina changed into a pair of soft, light purple sweatpants and a large, plain-white T-shirt, and went into the bathroom to make a bowl of cold water. It wasn’t a miracle-working tactic, but the cool cloth helped. She left her hand under the cold, running water. Her other hand rested against the sink for support. Her vision blurred and the walls swirled together.

Regina felt her legs grow weak and her body began to sway. A ringing filled her ears. She cried out, softly; grabbing her head with both hands. She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to block out the light, which was above her mirror. The ringing grew louder as she fell to her knees. It was like a giant elephant was pushing down on her head with its entire weight, forcing her into the wooden floors.

She tried to calm her breathing, and ease her mind. But the pounding in her head seemed to become more intense. Her body felt heavy and weak. Regina had never had such pain before. This was stronger than any of the headaches she’d had in her life.

“Get yourself to bed,” she said to herself, crawling across the floor on hands and knees. She didn’t dare open her eyes, but deep inside she wanted to. Behind her eyelids, there was a strange, eerie darkness. It was not the same as simply keeping her eyes closed. This was different.

Eyes were staring at her. Deep blue and sinister.

Regina blinked several times and the eyes disappeared. There was nothing she could do to fight off the pain. But she made it to her bed and curled in on herself.

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