A sister and a brother go back to their childhood home to destroy the supernatural mirror they believe killed their parents. Kaylie acquires the large mirror that used to hang in her father's study and brings it back to her childhood home with plans to destroy it. As kids, Kaylie and her brother Tim were traumatized by the death of their parents Alan and Marie, Kaylie believing that it was the mirror that did it. Alan killed Marie, and then attempted to kill the kids. Alan was shot by Tim and was sent to a psych hospital.
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Tim, now released from the hospital, reunites with Kaylie, who takes him back to the house. She has set-up an organized plan to prove that the mirror possesses supernatural powers that drove her parents to madness. Tim thinks his sister is crazy, but lets her continue with her experiment. Kaylie says that all of the mirror's past owners have killed others and died horrible deaths themselves. The mirror can control what people see and can play tricks on you. It also drains the life force off of living things around it and it can manipulate your senses. When they were kids, Tim and Kaylie observed their father slowly changing into a different person. They also saw a strange woman with him in the study. Their mother also succumbed to hallucinations brought on by the mirror. The mirror cannot be damaged by direct human contact, thus hitting it, throwing something at it etc. won't destroy it. Kaylie has rigged a mechanical axe that is connected to a timer. If it isn't reset at the proper hour, it will swoop down and land directly in front of the mirror, shattering it.
In the house, both Tim and Kaylie are plagued with visions of the past and scary illusions. After one incident, the siblings run out of the house, only to see themselves through the window, staring at the mirror. Kaylie also bites into an apple, but the mirror shows her bleeding mouth, making her believe she bit into a light bulb. The past victims of the mirror also come to life and threaten them. Kaylie, seeing that strange woman appear again stabs her, but later realizes that she has stabbed her boyfriend Michael, who dropped by to check in on them.
They get a clearer picture of what really happened during the days leading up to their parents' murders and during the night itself. Their mother was possessed by an entity that led her to assault her children, triggering Alan to hurt her and trap her in the bedroom for days. Marie breaks free and runs after the children, they fight her off, Alan then shoots her. Tim is able to grab the gun and shoots his dad.
Both past and present events meld into that very night. Adult Kaylie and Tim re-live the moments. In a hallucination, Kaylie sees her mother in the mirror and tries to hug her. In present day, Tim is in the study, and the axe swings, with Kaylie in between it and the mirror. Kaylie is killed.
Officers arrive and take Tim away, believing he murdered his sister in cold-blood. He looks back and sees the ghosts of all the victims, including his family staring out from the mirror.
Best part of story, including ending:
You root for Kaylie as she carefully explains the details of her plans, and you believe that she will triumph over this evil force that murdered her parents.
Best scene in story:
When Kaylie talks to the mirror back at the auction house, provoking it.
Opinion about the main character:
Kaylie has gutts and I admire her for taking matters into her own hands, determined to prove that her theory is correct. Only, she underestimated the powers of the mirror, which led to her death.
