1. Sage
1
SAGE
“ T hanks for letting me stay with you,” Sage said, unlocking her car and depositing Squash, her old chihuahua (wrapped in a pink blanket) onto the front seat. The old girl did a rather ungraceful step over the console to her passenger seat (ever the passenger princess) and flopped down on the blanket. Poor thing.
“Of course.” Tavy gave Sage another hug. “You sure you don’t want to stay another few days?”
Sage sighed and looked out onto the well-manicured lawn of Tavy’s mini-mansion. She thought of George’s house and the chaotic lawn of weeds, crumbling flower boxes, and overgrown bushes.
“No, I better get home,” Sage said. “It’s time.” And she couldn’t impose on Tavy’s family any longer. It just felt weird. And Squash, the chihuahua who really had no business being alive at her age, liked the old house with the massive fireplace and creaking stairs. It was her home too .
Tavy nodded in understanding. She was always empathetic like that. “Call me if you need anything.”
“Will do.” But she wouldn’t. Sage was the suffer-in-silence type. No need to bother anyone with her problems.
The drive to the outskirts of town would take her fifteen minutes max. It was a small road leading to the edge of the small town where a row of houses over a century old backed up to old oak trees and forest. Her neighbors were far away because the houses were made back when people cared about things like privacy and space.
Sage had planned to use the drive as a “meditation moment” or whatever Tavy’s toxic positivity parents had encouraged her to do. “It will give you a moment to calm your mind, push the sadness away, and breathe in your new life,” they had said.
As if grief was that simple.
As if the human mind could simply shut off.
Still, it was worth a shot. She nearly closed her eyes before realizing that despite knowing the road to her home like the back of her hand, it was best not to test that theory completely.
Her phone rang. Well, that meditation moment was short-lived.
“Hey girl,” Lily said. “How are you holding up?”
“As good as can be expected,” Sage said. “How are you?” It seemed like the right thing to ask. It was clearly the opening Lily needed.
“Pretty good. We've been busy with marketing your appearance at the competition. I don't want to push you, but do you have any idea when we can expect you back on your regular streaming schedule? Jared made some social media posts. They don't explain much, just that you had a death in the family and are taking some time away from streaming to attend the funeral and be with family sort of thing.”
Jared was her social media manager and he loved drama. It made creating content easier, apparently. To be fair, he had grown all of her social media platforms quite a bit over the last few months despite writing stupid captions. What does “Cap, no printer” even mean?
Sage let out a long sigh and rubbed her temple before turning down the long country road. “I think I'll be back sooner than later. I need to get into the rhythm of things again.”
“No pressure,” Lily said in a voice that conveyed that, actually yes, there was a lot of pressure to get it together.
Lily was the owner of LilyTech, a tech company that specialized in creating gaming accessories and set-ups for women. Sage, being on the smaller side, was a great asset to the marketing team. She used all of their gear and controllers, with specifications for women's hands. The new boost in sales at LilyTech could be attributed to Sage's recent streaming success. Lily had taken a risk by sponsoring the young gamer with a low subscriber numbers and it had totally paid off. Sage knew it too. And Sage felt like she owed the company for taking that chance on her. Plus, she really did want to get back into a rhythm of life. Death had a funny way of interrupting things.
“No. I want to get back into it. The algorithm will appreciate it, and to be honest, I could use the mental break. And I want to get better for the competition,” Sage said.
“Glad to hear it.”
Sage couldn't blame Lily. She had a business to run after all. And Sage, despite considering Lily a sort of friend, knew she was ultimately a marketing tool for the company and Lily needed to get her ROI.
“Now,” Lily said, putting on her business voice. “Let's chat about that stalker.”
Sage huffed (because Lily wouldn’t be able to see her roll her eyes in protest). “You're giving that guy too much credit.”
“We take your safety seriously,” Lily said.
Sage also knew it would make for good headlines. LilyTech would write articles and post about how one of their female gamers was being targeted by rogue fans and appeal to women's rights everywhere. Sage couldn't blame them. It was a good marketing tactic, especially because it was true.
When men had stalkers, they were more like crazy fans. When women had stalkers they were dangerous. Unfortunately, the police didn't think so.
“You're just saying that because that's what the cop said.” Sage slowed the car to let a group of bike riders pedal across the road, cringing at the obscenely short biker shorts that left so very little to the imagination.
Sage had tuned out Lily’s lecture (still scarred by the thighs so blindingly white she might be forced to test the theory of driving home blind) but she jumped back into the conversation when Lily went on a verbal rampage about the hypocrisy of the detective in charge.
The detective filing her report was a piece of work. He had looked at Sage and said—with all the energy of a moose stuck in the mud, “It’s just a piece of paper with words on it. If I filed a complaint for every hate comment, I’d run out of trees.”
But it was more than some words on a page. And it wasn’t just a comment here or there. It was a letter taped to her car. One slipped under a hotel room door during a conference. They were graphic and intense messages from a “fan.” Sage was nervous that this “fan” may very well end up on her doorstep one day. The police didn't take Sage seriously, commenting on how her line of work put her in a vulnerable position. Like it was her fault.
“I hired a security company,” Lily said.
“Not this again,” Sage said. It wasn't the first time they talked about this.
“Unfortunately,” Lily said in a way that indicated it was not actually unfortunate at all. “It wasn’t a question. And, as your boss, I outrank you here. The last letter was outright vile. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night knowing that this guy, somehow, knows where you live.”
That was the most eerie part. The last letter had been taped to her mailbox. He had been standing in front of her house. Her home.
The walls were closing in. “The last letter was a few weeks ago, and I haven't been at the house for a week. I'm sure everything is fine. It's more than likely some 12-year-old kid who gets off on scaring people. I probably even played a match against him and that's what started it all. ”
Lily wouldn't let it go. “You might be right, but you could also be wrong. I hired a security team. It’s my cousin’s company actually. They do a lot of protection work, mostly government employees. They are above this type of situation but they’re willing to help me out.”
“Seriously,” Sage said. “I'm fine. I really want to focus on streaming, diving back into the game, and getting ready for the competition. You said so yourself, it would be good to get my face out there more. Plus, you want me to test the new headset before the competition anyway. My subscribers will want to see that.”
“Yes,” Lily said , clearly exasperated. “You can do all of that with extra security at your place.”
Sage turned down her driveway slowing over the gravel and eventually coming to a halt in front of the house. Sage’s stomach flipped. Her blood ran cold and goosebumps ran up her spine. “Actually Lily, security sounds like a fantastic idea.”
“Is that sarcasm? Why the sudden change?” Lily couldn’t keep the excitement from her voice.
Sage stared at the two broken windows. “Because I think somebody broke into my house.”
A s it turned out, someone did break into the house. The cops were called, and there really wasn't much for them to do after Sage discovered that nothing was actually missing. They took down the report of a busted door, a broken window (courtesy of a brick with crude messages written in red letters all over it), and a ransacked cabinet. They commented that she should get some cameras (obviously she was going to do that now) and then the authorities left as quickly as they came.
Lily called back, hours later, and informed Sage that security was sending an agent overnight who would be there first thing in the morning. Lily offered to pay for a hotel for the night and highly encouraged her to do so. But in the end, Sage just wanted to lay in her own bed, in her own space, in the house that felt closest to a home she’d ever had.
And that's exactly what she did. Sage and Squash made the trek upstairs to their space—tea in hand for Sage, a peanut butter treat for Squash—and settled into the plush blankets and lit the most citrusy-smelling candle possible. She didn't sleep much, or at all, really. Squash had lost her marbles—and hearing—years ago and had no idea of the looming danger and was able to sleep so peacefully that Sage had to check that she was still breathing—twice.
Despite the air of unease, Sage was still relieved to be home. Even with the letters and break-in, she could finally relax a little. Breathe for a moment. And that's when the tears came. The past week had been an emotional roller coaster. She let herself be sad, cuddled in bed, listening to the sound of the popping candle and a snoring Squash.
When hours ticked by and it was clear the only one getting sleep would be Squash, Sage got up for another mug of tea. She puttered around the house and did a quick clean. The house smelled like home. Like a little bit of rain and pine, some dust, old books, and citrus. Probably because she had her favorite pink lemonade candle in every corner of the house. If the old, creaking wood ever ignited, the house would go up in flames, smelling a lot like a county fair lemonade stand.
Sage dusted and started to box up some of George’s things and put them in his room. She couldn’t bear to pack up the chess game they had been playing though. George was a fanatic and insisted on teaching Sage, and, despite her grumbling, she grew to enjoy the game even though she was abjectly terrible at it.
“Why’d you move the knight?” George had asked her during their last complete game.
Sage had shrugged. “He seemed sad to be missing the action. Plus, the horse is pretty.”
He’d snapped up her knight two moves later.
“How can you be so strategic in your shooter game and yet so scatter-brained with chess?” George had asked.
Sage had only laughed and made another terrible move.
Now Sage looked at the chess set and frowned. She gathered the remains of George’s life from when he had gotten sick—his medications, electric blanket, and water bottles, and put them in his room. She wouldn’t dare touch anything inside his space. Not yet. Not for years. There was no need. The house was plenty spacious and had two guest rooms on the first floor anyway. Her room and her office were upstairs. George instead the ladies of the house get the top floor for privacy. And Sage was the only lady.
And Squash.
It was around two in the morning when Sage decided she had done enough tidying. The house really did feel like hers. George had an eclectic collection of knickknacks, but it was tasteful. He was an antiques dealer, buying and selling rare paintings, vases, and clocks.
The house felt lived in and loved. It was a little moody but it felt like it could be the setting of some mystery novel. Antiques hid everywhere, along with cozy blankets—George and Squash both hated being cold—and the art was eclectic. Once George had come home from a walk smiling wide as he presented Sage with the newest piece to add to the mosaic on the wall.
“What on earth is that?” Sage had asked.
“Couldn’t tell you,” George had said. “The artist was on the street corner, using what I have to assume was illegally obtained spray paint considering he looked to be about thirteen. Neat, huh?”
“It’s giving me a migraine but I can’t stop staring at it,” Sage said.
“Art,” said George. “One of life’s greatest mysteries.”
Speaking of mysteries, she turned her attention to the broken glass by the front door. She had left that task for last. Maybe it was subconscious, but to clean it up meant the problem was over. And as much as Sage wanted the issue to be resolved, she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was still some monster lurking in the darkness.
Lily had said the security team in the morning setting up the cameras would also fix the window.
“Get yourself together,” Sage scolded herself. Squash looked at her from her spot on the couch. “I’m not scared,” she told the dog as she taped cardboard over the open window. Squash looked unconvinced. But to be fair, Squash, in her old age, looked more like a potato than anything else.
The fatigue was trying to settle in Sage’s bones, but she kept herself busy with sweeping up the glass and glaring at the woods. She squinted at the tree line behind the house. Every branch waving in the wind may as well have been a person trying to get her attention.
Still uneasy, Sage did the one thing that helped her escape this world: she joined another.
Headset on, mic at the ready, Squash in her lap, and a cup of tea by her side, she was ready to log in to her corner of the internet. Her Twitch stream slowly and steadily gained new subscribers and her retention was off the charts. Sage tried not to get too excited, but she had been almost able to make streaming her full-time income, but now that George had left her the house, it was actually doable. She might even be able to start a little savings account. And deal with taxes. She wasn’t sure how that was going to work now, but that was a problem for another day.
As soon as she went live, Lily sent her a text.
LILY: Good to see you getting back to your old self.
Sage rambled like she always did when she played. She explained what she was doing and when the chat asked to see Squash, she was more than happy to lift the old pup from her curled-up spot on her lap in front of the camera, where the chat went wild. Squash had unintentionally become a huge part of Sage’s brand .
She played Welkin Wall until dawn came and chased the shadows and monsters away.