Judgment in Glass

Chapter 4 - The Mirror

Rafina walked faster. She had just bought some Chinese takeout for the whole family. It was easier to spend money when she knew that the end of the month promised her greater than average commissions. Never mind that she had to accept some blood money for it. Ha! Who would have known that she would be taking money from Dragomir Kulic? She used to give him her extra lunch, the ones she did not want to eat. How the world had undoubtedly gone upside down, Rafina thought bitterly. The cousin of her father’s murderer was not someone she should be dealing with. The commission, however, was very much welcome. No, it was necessary. She just had to swallow her pride.

The young sales clerk was not in a rush to get home, though. The new antique shop was calling to her. Somehow, her mind was only focused on a few things that day: Dragomir Kulic, his purchases, her commissions, and the new shop.

In front of the glossy black and gold door, Rafina regretted buying takeout first. The smell of shrimp-fried rice was pretty intense. Add that to the fact that she was wearing black jeans and a black polo shirt, and she felt too shabby for the shop. It was a different experience from when she was a teenager who wore simpler clothes on purpose. She thought she was cool, getting a rise from her affluent community. They still considered her part of the society, though. Now, she was just, well, poor.

Rafina tentatively opened the door to the shop. As she did, she felt a blast of cold air. Wow. The air conditioning system was pretty strong. She went in, feeling awkward at carrying a plastic takeout bag with one hand, while a ratty messenger bag was slung on one shoulder.

The place was gorgeous; if you like stores where you could potentially rack up hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage if you ever stumble against one of its sections. There was so much glass. While they sold antiques, everything seemed shiny. She was half expecting dusty and creaky-looking furniture.

Instead, what did she get? She got a whole store full of glass cases shinier than the ones at Fortuna’s. There were all kinds of displays, from full knight armor to old watches. At least, there were no leather goods and gold jewelry like the ones that they were selling. Rafina trod the aisles carefully, afraid to jostle some objects. She could not afford to be paying for some expensive stuff.

“Good evening, young lady,” said an elderly, distinguished voice.

“Good evening, uh, sir,” Rafina replied, turning in the direction of the voice.

There stood an old man, perhaps around eighty (ninety-ish?), in a suit and cravat. He was not much taller than her, and he had a full head of grey hair.

“How may I help you?” he asked, his voice kind and modulated. It felt like he was not straining himself, but she could hear him clearly at perhaps around ten yards away. As if reading her mind, he started strolling towards her.

“I am not sure. I guess the place got me curious and curioser,” Rafina replied.

The old man chuckled at that.

“So, the name was just right? Would you like me to be the rabbit to your Alice?”

The young woman smiled at that. She liked this old dude.

“I guess. I do not have a lot of money, as you can tell, but I just had to come inside.”

“You were not always lacking,” he said. “and you will not stay lacking.”

Rafina’s eyes widened at that.

“Are you a fortune-teller, Mr…?” she asked, her voice in genuine awe. At least, she wanted to believe him.

“Tarus. My name is Fierro Tarus,” he said, offering his hand.

Rafina reached out and wondered at how smooth the hand was in most places but still callous in some.

“Nice meeting you, Mr. Tarus. My name is Serafina Todd.”

“Come here. I know what you want. Or at least, I have a suspicion about what you may want.”

She followed, excited and willing. The ancient-looking man brought her to a section of antique mirrors and clocks. Huh?

“I am afraid we don’t have any space for such fancy grandfather clocks. As for mirrors, I barely look at myself nowadays,” she said.

“Look again. Is there anything there that at least calls out your name?”

Rafina frowned at that. How could anything be calling her name? When she lifted her eyes to the wall in front of her, suddenly she realized what he meant.

There was a mirror, a regular rectangular one. It was not as big as the others, but the gold trimming was ornate. It seemed to show carvings of people writhing in pain. How could she see all that? She did not know why she suddenly had the urge to buy the mirror. She did not need it, and it was probably something she could not afford. It was gold!

“Do you like that one, Miss Todd?” asked Mr. Tarus.

“Um, no. It just -,” Rafina faltered.

“Called on you? Didn’t it?”

“I don’t have money to pay for that, Mr. Tarus. I am just a salesgirl who bought some Chinese takeout for my family.”

“But you like it,” he insisted.

“I guess I do. What is not to like? All of your antiques are, ehem, pretty compelling. But that one caught my attention.”

“It’s calling you.”

“Sir, even if it is. I cannot answer the call. I am broke.”

“You can have it.”

“No. That looks like it could cost thousands of dollars!”

“You are right, of course. I know you have an eye for good things.”

Rafina was quiet. She thought that there must be a trick there somewhere. The offer was too good to be true. Then, she saw Mr. Tarus taking the mirror from the wall. Without looking back to her again, he started wrapping it in with a manila sheet. Something was not quite right, she thought.

“Mr. Tarus. I – I don’t know what to say. Thank you. I cannot give you anything worth the price.”

The old man just smiled. A certain angle had placed a part of his face in shadow. For a moment, Rafina thought that he was snarling at her. It couldn’t be.

“Does anyone help you around here at all?” she finally asked.

“Well, tomorrow, a young man and an older woman would be here to help me out,” he said. His face was again kindly. Rafina thought that she must have been imagining things earlier. Mr. Tarus handed her the mirror. She had to shift her bag and takeout so that she could hold it properly.

The mirror measured two feet by three feet. It was heavy, but a slight adjustment made it feel somehow easier to carry.

“Thanks again, Mr. Tarus.”

“You are very much welcome, my dear,” he said.

The old man even helped me get out of the store by opening the glass door. As soon as I was out in the crisp evening air, I spied three women rushing to get inside the store. It was going to be a busier night for Mr. Tarus, it seemed. But why did it feel like the women were there outside all along? That they were waiting for Rafina to leave the shop? She shook her head at where her thoughts were going. She could barely move her wrist to check the time, but she knew that it was getting late, perhaps even almost 8.

When she got home, her sisters were already making do with some soup. Still, their eyes lit up as soon as they saw – and smelled! - her takeout. The two rushed towards Rafina, who spied their mother sitting on the couch. Mrs. Lena Todd looked exhausted but somehow sober.

“Hi mom, look, I got some dinner,” she said with fake cheer.

“Thank you, Rafi,” her mom mumbled, but she did start reaching out for one of the takeout containers.

“You’re welcome, mom. By the way, those are your favorites. Seafood party!”

“Oh, that’s wonderful. What is the occasion? Can we afford these?”

Rafina could tell that her mother was very much sober. Her heart twisted a little, but it also bloomed with hope.

“Yes, we can. I got a good sale today. Someone bought thousands of dollars worth of jewelry.”

“Wow. Do we know this person?”

Rafina hesitated. Though she knew that Dragomir might not be directly involved in her father’s death, she still hated him, okay, maybe a little. Her mother would feel worse. She might even relapse into her moments of despair.

“No, I don’t think so, mom. It seems that he was just passing through and thought that he would buy jewelry for his girlfriend.”

“Lucky girl! I was once that girl not too long ago,” she sighed wistfully. Then, she went to dig into her shrimp party meal.

Francesca and Theresa were also busy eating their dumplings and noodles. Rafina felt so tired. She still had to find a place for her mirror. She shared a small room with her sisters. The two settled on a double-deck while she had a single bed across them. The mirror would be the fanciest thing they owned now.

Suddenly, Rafina noticed an envelope placed between two of the window slits. She went towards it, still holding the mirror in her left armpit. She rested the mirror between her legs as she opened the small brown envelope. She gasped softly as she saw the plain gold necklace that Dragomir had just bought earlier.

The note said, “This is for you, Miss Todd. Keep it safe.”