The Strongest Curse Master

Seeing Mandy and Danny off, Ace then headed toward the Lansky manor to meet with Janice and Delores, seeking their assistance.

Arriving at the manor, Ace found Janice and Elinor sitting on the patio, enjoying mocktails and watching Lilith as she played by the flower bed with a few dead insects, birds, and reptiles. It seemed she was enacting a scene from the Doctor Druid comic book; obviously, she was playing the role of the Doctor Druid.

Noticing Ace's arrival, Lilith ran over, yelling, "Ace, is Doctor Druid here?"

"If she were here, wouldn't you have sensed her presence?" Ace said, patting Lilith's head and heading towards the patio, while the zombie insects, birds, and reptiles marched behind them.

"Yeah, I would have," Lilith said dejectedly before returning to her game while the zombie's behind her mimiced her sadness.

"Ace, what's up with Mandy? I asked her to join us, but she snubbed me, saying she has work. You know one of the reasons I moved her here was to spend more time with my bestie," Janice asked Ace, sipping on her mocktail as he neared the patio.

"Yeah, about that. Mandy knows you lied to her face about why you guys are actually her and what actually happened this morning. She's really mad at you and Delores," Ace answered, wanting to help patch up his little aunt's friendship.

"What? How is that even possible—You told her! You asshole, how could you? What were you thinking, dragging Mandy into the 'World of Curses'?" Janice took a moment to figure it out; when she did, she threw her mocktail away, jumped to her feet, and grabbed Ace by his collar.

"Calm down, Mandy has no idea about the 'World of Curses.' But she does know that I, you, Delores, your entire family even, share a common secret, which could be a danger to her and the rest of my family if they were to learn about—" Ace tried to explain, but Janice cut in furiously, asking, "Why the fuck would you tell that to the most nosy person in your family? You do know what she used to do for a living and how she was able to become so successful at it? Not to mention, you made it more intriguing and alluring for her by just sharing hints and bits about the biggest mystery for the mortals. Nothing is going to stop her from trying to solve this mystery."

"Hey, I know Mandy. She would never do anything that would put our family in danger. Besides, I had to let someone in my family know, and Mandy is the only one who treats me like an adult, a responsible and capable adult," Ace defended his position, but it wasn't enough for Janice. She glared at him, yelling, "You dumbass, which is why this is much worse than it could have been. Knowing her, she'll want to make sure her favorite nephew is safe and not in harm's way. You should have thought this through. Fuck, we need to find her soon before she gets herself into trouble trying to make sure your dumbass is safe."

"Hey, Janice, calm down. Mandy won't do any such thing—" Before Ace could finish, an agitated Janice asked, "How do you know that? Can you guarantee it?"

"Yes, I can guarantee it because my IT team is monitoring her every action in real time. I am always aware of where she is and what she is doing. Not just her; I keep tabs on every member of my family. From what I've gathered so far, Mandy has her hands full with the new agribusiness our family will be starting right here in town," Ace guaranteed Janice that Mandy wouldn't do anything stupid with the little information he had hinted about his sudden changes and wealth while he added the last part to assure everyone listening that he wasn't some kind of pervert who was stalking his aunt.

"That's creepy, but tell me where Mandy is right now. I need to go meet her right away and make sure she won't let her curiosity and love for you get the better of her and end up doing something we'll all regret. Tell me where she is right now," Janice demanded of Ace, wanting to check on Mandy to ensure everything was as Ace had assured her.

"Sure, but promise me you won't tell her anything about the 'World of Curses,' regardless of how hard she tries to drill it out of you. I'm not kidding; she'll guilt you into singing like a parrot. I need to know that you won't crumble to her tactics. Knowing her, it wouldn't surprise me if she rejected your invitation to freak you out and to get you to do her bidding. Because you and I are the only links she knows and can trust to help her learn about the worlds we live in. This might be her trap, and you might be walking right into it. Look at you; you're barely able to pull yourself together. Geez, I didn't know you valued Mandy's friendship that much," Ace tried to calm Janice down and persuade her against going to meet Mandy when she wasn't in control of her emotions and could easily be influenced by Mandy to give her the information she needed.

Listening to Ace, Janice slowly began to see past her desperation of losing Mandy as a friend and see the bigger picture: that Mandy was working her, using her friendship and abandonment issues to influence her into unwittingly and willingly doing her bidding.

"That bitch! I can't believe she would abuse my feelings for her like that," Janice cursed, realizing Mandy's trap. Then, shaking her head, she added, "Delores was right; I understand it now. If you love someone, don't let them know how much you love them, because over time they begin to take that love for granted and might not hesitate to abuse it. Those words are easily misunderstood but so profound."

"Really? You're going to listen to the nonsense of someone who has been single and friendless their entire life? You can't learn from her twisted ideologies. If you do, just like her, you'll be single and friendless for the rest of your life," Ace said, taken aback by Janice's adoption of Delores's ideology. To some extent, Delores's take on relationships didn't surprise him; it perfectly described Delores. But he didn't think one cold shoulder from Mandy would send Janice spiraling into following Delores's twisted ideologies because those were the best ways to distance oneself from everyone and to live a very lonely life.

"But isn't she right? Mandy is only able to use my love for her against me because she knows how much her friendship means to me," Janice said, taking this ordeal completely out of proportion. Making Ace regret coming to Janice seeking assistance.

"She isn't using your love for her against you; she's just trying to use your love for her as leverage to get you to open up to her. It's like children throwing a fit or holding their breath to get their parents to buy them a toy or let them watch their favorite late-night cartoons. It's as simple as that.

"A child wouldn't do the same in front of strangers because they know that stranger won't care what happens to them. Mandy's actions are the same. There's no need for you to interpret it any other way." Ace tried his best to help Janice understand that Mandy's actions, though a bit overboard, weren't as criminal as she was making them out to be in her head, influenced by Delores's relationship rules.

"Then she could have just asked! Why did she have to pull this stunt?" Janice asked, trying to understand Mandy's actions, but she was finding it hard to forgive her for this.

"Well, maybe for the same reasons you lied to her about matters regarding the 'World of Curses.' Aside from the obvious reason, somewhere deep down in your heart, you were afraid that if Mandy knew the real you, she might be afraid or, worse, disgusted by you. Similarly, Mandy was afraid that you might not answer her and try to lie your way out of having to answer her," Ace patiently explained to Janice, witnessing firsthand how the fear of being betrayed by someone you care for could make them act foolishly and ignore the obvious. Even someone as smart as Janice immediately assumed the worst at just the notion of being used by her friend. So much so that she had to be lectured on relationships from someone half her age.

"Janice, Ace is right. If you listen to Aunt Delores, you'll remain single and friendless for the rest of your lives. Mandy doesn't seem like a person who would hurt her friend without a reason. You should sit down and talk with her before you jump to conclusions and go ballistic," Elinor advised Janice. As the fourth person witnessing this, she could see a clear picture of what was going on. Like all the direct-line descendants, Janice had a great deal of trust and abandonment issues, and she was currently projecting these on Mandy. Those were the side effects of being born into a large family.