司氏姐妹 第四章：燈滅了

第四章：燈滅了

摩根讓她的紅色短發在舞池上跳躍。一上高中她就開始剪短頭髮並染色，她非常討厭自己經常被錯認為瑪麗。 「你以為人家會注意到，我有藍色的眼睛而你卻是褐色的，」瑪麗戲說著，把她妹妹的頭扣在裝滿紅色染料的水槽里。 她知道，摩根很想改變自己的形象。當她從水槽里抬起頭，她的頭髮變成一個象閃耀著紅色火焰的拖把。後來，她的姐妹們注意到，她的頭髮還會繼續生長出紅色。

慶祝儀式在沒發生任何意外事件下順利過去了，但摩根知道，法媽仍保持著一隻警惕的眼睛盯著她。而她的眼睛卻盯著藍家小伙托尼，他在學校比她高一級。燭光搖曳，摩根發現托尼偷看了她一眼，然後迅速移開他的眼睛。她拿了一杯飲料，開始走過草坪。

瑪拉和格雷厄姆已悄悄溜走。 從瑪拉邁下車的那一刻到開始第一支舞曲， 在幾個小時的眾人挑剔的目光注視下，瑪拉的姐妹和母親能夠想象她為什么想要享用一下單獨與丈夫一起的時光。婚禮儀式在老城區的教堂舉行。這是一個美麗的夏日，瑪拉要求打開門窗讓陽光照進教堂。人們擠在教堂門口，排在樓梯上。當司家婚車趕到時，一種沉默和緊張的寂靜降臨到人群中，母親們在小聲的讓子女們不要出聲，朋友們拍拍朋友的肩膀，通知大家新娘的到來。瑪拉展示出親切的笑容，走出車門，她的絲袍被風吹起，在她身邊盤旋。她的姐妹們，身著金黃色禮服，跟著她出來。最後出來的是司法媽，為了這個儀式她放棄了她的黑色長外套，換上了灰色禮服，她抬起她的胳膊肘，伸向瑪拉。司家沒有父親，顯然法媽要扮演父親的角色把她的大女兒交給新郎。

全鎮的人頭都跟隨著瑪拉長長的黑發和飄然的腳步同步移動，在瑪拉被帶到司儀台上后， 法媽悄悄地在人群中消失了。在走向司儀台上的路上，法媽沒有微笑一次。在新郎新娘交換誓言后，小米娜開始在第一排的座位上流鼻涕打噴嚏，她拉拉瑪麗的裙子。瑪麗噓了她一下，把妹妹的臉擦乾淨，接著她的注意力又回到了瑪拉身上。在過道那邊的一排座位上，站著市長亨特和他的妻子，他們穿著一塵不染的西裝和禮服，臉上掛著完美恰當的微笑。整個鎮是如此全神貫注，一種興奮交雜著恐懼的氣氛，在整個房間振盪。

當宣布新郎新娘結成夫妻之後，就象窗戶仿佛剛剛被打開，空氣變得輕鬆很多。每個人都嘆了一口氣，隨著新婚夫婦從教堂前門象水一樣流出。

儀式后的招待會設在鎮會堂旁邊的花園。客人們從玫瑰花和百合花叢中走到一塊小草坪。草坪雖小，但能奇迹般地輕松地舉行這個聚會。草坪中心是一個大帳篷，在兩個角落放著蛋糕和酒吧。一個噴泉噴射著香檳酒，當瑪拉和格雷厄姆切開蛋糕，大家可以看到，在白雲一樣的奶油下面，蛋糕裡面蓬蓬鬆鬆，顯得像金子一樣發光，像棉花糖一樣放在舌頭上就會溶解。法媽在對面角落裡的佔據了一個位置，在那裡她可以看到一切，在招待會開始后她一直沒有移動。她掃描著花園在尋找瑪拉。她看到米娜和瑪麗在跳舞，摩根摸著藍家小伙的領帶，臉上掛著隱隱的微笑。法媽在想，這一刻，她的女兒是否正在告訴她的新婚丈夫她娘家的真相。

法媽想，她本應該支持她的女兒。但她不知道市長和他的家人對這個婚配的真正感覺。在宣布訂婚時，他們和自己一樣感到很驚訝，在驚奇和興奮之間的某一刻，法媽還看到了一絲奇怪的東西在市長的眼裡閃爍。

在這以後他們整個家庭就只有笑容。他們帶著禮物拜訪了司家，並邀請司家女兒們到市長官邸晚餐。拒絕碰任何有關婚禮事情的法媽很高興看到格雷厄姆的母親提出她會策划整個婚禮。在晚餐結束后，大家的關係稍微熱咯了一些，法媽才說，她可以幫助提供婚禮的食品。

她在這個問題上想了一會，這才意識到，儘管亨特的妻子（她叫什么名字？法媽沒有費心記住它，因為這個女人是如此缺乏個性）與各位市議會成員跳了一圈舞，卻不見市長蹤影。 或許他也厭倦了長期在公眾的視線之下，現在躲在某個陰影的地方休息。法媽試圖對她的新親家打開她的心扉。有一刻，她感到一種同情的嘆息。 她覺得市長能不徹底阻止這個婚配是一種慷慨。也許瑪拉是對的，也許這將標志著司家一個新時代的開始。

在帳篷的另一邊，摩根已經開始與藍托尼旋起舞步。燭光搖曳。她的胳膊纏著他的脖子，她把他的耳朵拉向她的嘴。

「不覺得......」她說，「神奇嗎？」

托尼把雙手放在她的腰上。

「給我看看，」他說。

「什么？」

「給我看看你的魔術。」

「走狗」！

摩根一把把他推開。她的胸口因憤怒而起伏，她的臉頰通紅就象她火紅的頭髮。托尼倒在地上，在他的身體砸在地板上的那一刻， 整個花園變得一團漆黑， 就像一個巨型的蠟燭一下熄滅。

客人們亂抓亂叫，絆作一團，匯成一股雜鬧的喧囂在空中回蕩。突然，一個女人的尖叫把喧囂的空氣打成碎片，她的哀號穿進每個人的脊骨。

燈光突然再次閃亮。法媽悄然移到摩根身邊，抓起她的手臂，看著周圍尋找尖叫聲的來源。藍家小伙拐著他的腳。客人們 沉默不語地互相看著。突然，又一聲尖叫划破花園上空，比第一次更尖銳和可怕：

「兇手！」

Chapter 4: Lights Out

Morgan tossed her short red hair on the dance floor. She had cut and dyed it at the start of high school, sick of the constant confusion between her and Marie. 「You』d think they』d notice that I have blue eyes and you have brown,」 Marie had said as she dunked her sister』s head in the sink and smeared the red dye into her hair. Morgan was looking for a change in image anyhow, she knew. When she lifted her head up her hair was a mop of bright red flames. Later, only her sisters noticed that her hair continued to grow out red.

The ceremony had passed without incident, but Morgan knew that Fa was still keeping one eye fixed on her. She had her eyes fixed on the Lane boy, Tony, who was a year above her in school. The candles flickered, and Morgan caught Tony looking at her and then quickly skit his eyes away. She grabbed a drink and started to make her way across the lawn.

Mara and Graham had slipped away. After being under public scrutiny for hours, from the minute Mara stepped out of the car to the first dance, Mara』s sisters and mother could imagine why she would want to spend a moment alone with her husband. The wedding ceremony had been held in the old town church. It was a beautiful summer day, and Mara had requested that the windows and doors be opened to let in the sun. People spilled out of the front doors of the church, lining up on the steps. When the Switch car arrived, a silent, nervous stillness fell over the crowd as mothers hushed their children and friends tapped friends』 shoulders to notify them of the bride』s arrival. Mara put on her warmest smile and stepped out, her silk gown taken up by the wind and swirled around her. Her sisters, dressed in gold, followed her out. Finally, Fa Switch, who had forgone her long black coat for the occasion and put on a gray dress, lifted her elbow and offered it to Mara. With no father in the family, it was assumed that Fa would be giving her eldest daughter away.

After Mara had been taken to the altar, the heads of the town moving synchronously to follow her long black hair and floating steps, Fa disappeared into the crowd. During the walk up, Fa had not smiled once. As the couple exchanged their vows, little Mina started to sniffle in the first pew and tugged on the bottom of Marie』s dress. Marie shushed her, wiping her little sister』s face instantly dry, and turned her attention back to Mara. In the pew across the aisle, Mayor Hunter and his wife stood in their immaculate suit and dress with perfectly appropriate smiles drawn across their faces. The town was rapt; an air of excitement, tinged with fear, vibrated through the room.

When husband and wife were proclaimed, the air lightened as if the windows had just been opened. Everyone heaved a breath of relief and streamed out of the front doors of the church after the newlyweds, pouring out like water.

The reception was in the garden next to town hall. Guests entered to rose bushes and lilies and a patch of lawn that, though small, miraculously held the entire party with ease. In the center was a large tent with the cake and bar in one corner. A fountain sparkled with champagne, and when Mara and Graham cut into the cake, everyone could see that underneath the cloud-white frosting was a fluffy interior that seemed to shine like gold, and dissolved like flakes of fluffed sugar on the tongue. Fa had staked out a spot in the opposite corner where she could see everything at the start of the reception and didn』t move from it. She scanned the garden for Mara. She saw only Marie dancing with Mina, and Morgan fingering the Lane boy』s tie, a sideways smile on her face. Fa wondered if her daughter was, at this moment, telling her newlywed husband the truth about his in-laws.

Fa supposed she must be supportive of her daughter. But she could not help wondering about the mayor and his family, how they truly felt about the match. When the engagement was announced, they had been as surprised as herself, and in the moment between surprise and delight, Fa had thought she saw a flicker of something strange in the mayor』s eyes.

Afterwards the family was nothing but smiles. They visited the Switch house with presents and invited the girls to the mayor』s residence for dinner. Fa, refusing to touch anything related to the wedding, was glad to see Graham』s mother offer to plan the entire event. At the end of the dinner, having warmed up to the family a bit, she said that she could provide the food.

She thought on the issue more, and then realized that though the Hunter wife (what was her name? Fa had not bothered to learn it, the woman was so devoid of personality) was dancing her way through the city council members, the mayor was nowhere to be seen. Perhpas he, too, was tired of being in the public eye, resting somewhere in the shadows. Fa tried to open her mind to her new in-laws. For a moment, she felt a sigh of empathy. It was generous, she supposed, for the mayor to not prohibit the match outright. Perhaps Mara was right, perhaps this would mark the start of a new era for the Switch family.

On the far side of the tent, Morgan had started to swirl and step with Tony Lane. The candles flickered. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his ear to her mouth.

「Doesn』t this feel…」 she said, 「magical?」

Tony put his hands on her waist.

「Show me,」 he said.

「What?」

「Show me some magic.」

「Tool!」

Morgan pushed him away. Her chest heaved in anger, and her cheeks flared the red of her hair. Tony fell to the ground, and in the moment that his body hit the floor, the garden went as pitch black as if a giant candle had been pinched out.

A collective clamor sounded in the air as guests stumbled over each other and grabbed for something to hold onto. Then, a woman』s sharp scream broke the air into pieces, a wail that shook everyone to the spine.

The lights flickered back on. Fa had moved soundlessly over to Morgan and was grabbing her by the arm, looking around for the source of the scream. The Lane boy scrambled to his feet. The guests looked at each other in silence. Then, a second scream pierced the garden, louder and more terrifying than the first:

「Murderer!」