This story is titled “Beyond the Blue Door, Part 2”, as it is a companion piece to Helena Puumala’s original story “Beyond the Blue Door”. In that story, the teenage girl Jennie takes refuge from domestic abuse in a perhaps illusory, perhaps supernatural, world that she has discovered that exists beyond a hidden blue door in an old farmhouse. The story can be interpreted in many ways – the Blue Door may represent a psychological escape mechanism for a traumatized youth, or it may represent a transition to a hopeful alternative reality. The conclusion to the story may be read either way.

Part 2 of Jennie’s story tends to the latter interpretation and expands on it by introducing new characters and a new framework for the action. This also opens up the opportunity for the character of Jennie to be explored in a new direction, within which she can exercise a more active role, in concert with the other new characters. It also explores some different perspectives on the nature of good and evil, as well as the potential for love in even the most harrowing of circumstances.

The story stands on its own, but it is perhaps best read after reading Part 1. Together, the two stories clock in at about 20,000 words. Independently, they are each about 10,000 words.