The Atonement of a Writer

27. The Empire's Inferno

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~*~

Lilianne Marineau had done it.

After suffering through a few years of college as a business student, the novel she'd never stopped working on, The Empire's Inferno, was finally published. It sold better than she'd expected, and now, she was finally moving out of the dreary apartment she'd been suffering in and into a decent, quaint house with actual bedrooms.

Her little brother had called her a week ago to congratulate her. Lili smiled fondly at the thought of Lukas. He had grown to be quite the man, despite being spoilt rotten by their parents as a child. He was currently at a good university studying computer science.

She did a little dance in the privacy of her bedroom, pajamas hanging comfortably from her body. Finally. She was out of that cramped space, and had room to move her muscles. Her published book was set neatly on the shelf, small but proud after years of slaving over it.

Lili had almost stopped working on it at one point, when she had been stuck on a chapter. But then she had remembered what someone once told her--they had said not to give up, which for some reason stuck with her. They were simple words, ones she could've said all on her own, but for some unknown reason, they were quite motivating, coming from that person.

Who was the one to tell her that again? Lili frowned, trying to remember. It was fuzzy, so it must've happened a long time ago.

Anyway, in the end, she had decided to just skip that part and continued writing. Afterwards, she'd gone back and to her surprise, she was free from that writer's block. She hadn't regretted it since. She wondered briefly what would have happened if, at that point, she'd decided to give up. Probably not where she was now.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Lili sighed. Unfortunately, she'd been expecting it.

She opened the door to find her mother on the other side. "Hello, Mom."

Lili had often been told she and her mother looked alike. She had grown up hoping she wouldn't be like her.

Her mother sniffed at her half-hearted greeting and stepped into the house, looking around with no small amount of interest. "Well, at least that book of gibberish was useful for something."

Lili sighed for the second time in a half a minute, which happened often around her mother. "Thank you for asking, Mom. I'm doing really well."

Mrs. Marineau scowled at her. "Don't give me that tone, young lady. Now that you finally have a house of your own, when are you going to get married?"

"I don't even have a boyfriend."

"Well then when are you going to get one? You won't stay twenty six forever, you know. When I was your age..."As she talked, Mrs. Marineau sat herself down on Lili's couch.

Lili tuned her out as she began her tirade again. This happened every time they talked. Honestly, one would think it was impressive for someone her age to own a house already--but no.

"...Has Lukas been by yet?" And of course, at some point, she always brought up Lukas, her pride and joy. Lili and Lukas had already reached a point where they could use their mother's unconditional love for Lukas to their advantage. Still, it was annoying.

"No, he's at school, remember? He's already called, though." Lili offered her a cup of tea. She took it absent-mindedly.

"Hmm, of course. And I expect that after he graduates, he'll be able to find a high-paying job and stay in it." She shot Lili a glare at that.

Lili sighed yet again. Her mother still hadn't forgiven her for quitting her job at a large corporate company to finish editing her book. She didn't bother to respond--she would never understand anyway. There was no way Lili could realistically juggle a daytime job plus writing--her student days were nightmarish enough.

So she took a shot, and thankfully, it worked. Her book actually sold, and along with her little savings, she could finally move.

"You know, if you're not going to get married, you should get back to work," Mrs. Marineau told her.

"How is that even connected?" Her mother's brain amazed even Lili sometimes, and she spent eighteen years with that woman.

"You think money is endless? How are you going to maintain your lifestyle if you don't get to work?"

Lili didn't even bother to tell her she was planning on becoming a full-time author. Instead, she asked, "...And how would getting married help me?"

Mrs. Marineau looked at her like she was stupid. "Marry rich, of course. That's what I did."

Lili grimaced. That was a little too much information. How could she say that with a straight face? "So...how's Dad?"

She shrugged, as if she couldn't care less what her husband did when she couldn't see--monitor--him. "He says he's at work. But with men, you never know."

That...was not what she meant. If possible, she made the idea of getting married even less tempting for Lili. "As long as he keeps giving you money, right?"

It was meant to be sarcastic, but of course it just went right over her mother's head. She nodded seriously. "Of course."

And so for the next hour, Lili stayed there with a fixed smile on her face. After a while, it got tiring, so she made an excuse and kicked her mother out of the house.

Needless to say, Lili didn't have a good relationship with her parents.

After making sure she was really gone, Lili flopped down onto the bed with a sigh. Her phone buzzed. What now?

To her relief, it was just her editor. She had texted her one word: Sequel?

Lili felt a grin forming on her lips. Quickly, she texted back, sequel.

She already had a vague idea about where she wanted it to go. What if she told the story of someone else in that universe--someone on the wrong side of the law?

It could be an individual with some kind of forbidden power, she thought happily. Perhaps it could be the "mysterious person" from the end of her book? Readers had been asking her who he was, but obviously, not one to plan that far ahead, she had no idea.

Just then, a sudden dull pain in her head caused her to wince. Was it from stress? She had been very busy with the move lately, not to mention that conversation she just had with her dear mother.

She took some painkillers, but the pain persisted, to the point where she was groaning and clutching her head in her bed. What was going on?

Something flashed through her head. Something was flickering. Was it fire? Why was she suddenly thinking of fire? Something was crushing her...she couldn't breathe...memories relentlessly poured itself into her brain, pain taking over every fiber of her being.

Just as sudden, the pain was gone. She sat up with a gasp, cold sweat pouring.

She remembered.