21:19 Oct 08 2010
Times Read: 986
Short Story submission for the nifty Contest. And Yes, I did get bored and make a book cover. I'm just nerdy like that.
Ugh, I hate this time of year. Everywhere I look there is always someone, or should I say something, there. Even when I don’t see them I can feel them and hear them. If I try to ignore them they come and brush against me, leaving me feeling tainted and, in most cases, angry. They think they have a right to just barge into my life. I know, I know they are just looking for help. I guess they are just easier to take it out on since they don’t argue back.
You’ll have to excuse me for a moment. It seems that I’ve lost my manners in the midst of my rant and ramblings. Let me introduce myself before you write me off as ‘that crazy girl’. My name is Skye Lynn Heartsong. Yes, my parents were hippies before you ask. It’s a common question so I’ve learned not to get offended by it. If you can’t tell by my previous ramblings then let me just clear it up that yes I lead a very, very interesting, to say the least, sort of life. But I guess if my life wasn’t that interesting you probably wouldn’t be reading my story, huh?
My life was pretty normal until three years ago when I was in a fatal car crash. I was legally dead for 5 minutes. Just as the doctor started to say, “There is nothing more we can do” my eyes flew open and I took a breath. They deemed me the ‘medical miracle’. That nickname got old very fast.
While I was in the hospital I kept seeing random people walking the halls. Which is pretty normal, right? Well, I thought it was normal until I woke up to an old woman sitting next to my hospital bed. She looked like the sweet old grandmotherly type. She smiled at me with her loving grandmother smile; a smile that was so genuine that it made her bright blue eyes sparkle like jewels.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“Oh I am just visiting a friend. I seen you on the other side of the curtain and you just looked so lonely and well, broken. I had to come over and just spread some cheer your way.”
I looked down at my body. It seemed like ever place I looked there was a cast, a bruise or a scratch that was starting to heal. I looked at her and gave her a small laugh and a smile. There was just something about her, I couldn’t explain it. Happiness and love just poured from her. I felt better just being in her presence.
She stayed and she talked with me for what seemed like hours. During that time I could actually feel some of the pain I was in start to decrease. Then all of a sudden I had an overwhelming feeling that it would all be okay.
‘Oh deary me! I’ve kept you up long enough. It looks like you’re about to fall asleep mid sentence. That’s what happens when an old woman gets to rambling”, she said with a chuckle. She then patted my hand and told me she enjoyed our chat and had to get going before it got dark out. I told her good bye and how much I enjoyed her as she shuffled to the door. A few minutes later a nurse came in to check my chart, and boy did I get a surprise.
“Do you know who that elderly woman was that was in her? She was so nice and I didn’t get her name”. This earned me a look of ‘oh my goodness are you crazy’ from the nurse.
“Sorry darlin’ I didn’t see any old lady in here. You’ve been alone for the whole day. Well, besides the nurses peeking in and checking on you. It’s probably just a side effect of that pain medicine you’re on. I’ve seen it happen before.”
I just shook my head,” Yeah, you’re probably right.”
So at that point I realized that I could see dead people. And I mean really, really see them. It’s not like in the movies. I really wish it was. They seem to be so much easier to deal with in movies. You tell them to go away, that it’s neither the time nor the place, and they understand and venture on their way; in real life not so much. They’ll just stick right next to you until you feel like you could just scream.
And around fall and Halloween it gets ten times worse than normal. When the leaves start to fall and people start putting out pumpkins my anxiety increases into the stratosphere. Nothing can feel weirder than having an entourage of dead people following you around everywhere. Now you know why I seem to be a little on edge right about now.
My parents do know, but we don’t talk about it. It’s my little ‘quirk’ or ‘gift’ as they call it. They act like they are accepting of it, but really I can see through them. I think it scares them more than anything. Course it is funny when I say something and mom starts eyeing up the liquor cabinet so she can have a reason to forget the moment that just passed.
They’ve tried to get me to keep it a big secret, but I’ve actually made a pretty good living off of this strange quirk I have. I travel around doing lectures, assist in paranormal investigations and sometimes I’ve been known to help ease the pain of a person whose lost a love one. I enjoy what I do and I’ve met some wonderful people in my endeavors. I wouldn’t change my work, or quirk, for all the money in the world. How rare is it that you hear that line when someone is talking about their job?
Course after you’ve read about my experience you’d think that would all change. Call me crazy, as most have, but you’ll see why it didn’t.
She could barely make out anything in the darkness. She had to rely on her other senses to figure out where she was at. She smelled the damp and mustiness of a room that was old and not lived in. There was also a trace of what smelled like old urine underlining the damp, musty smell. She could feel the cold bite into her skin. She moved her hands out in front of her and started to feel around. She could feel the dirt and grit that covered the walls and she guided herself through the darkness.
After a couple of steps a lantern suddenly switched on. She shielded her eyes from the brightness that blinded her. Her breath caught in her throat as her heart started to race. She heard heavy footsteps cross the wooden floor and then the feel of someone brush against her. She dropped her arm from her eyes and forced herself against the wall to make herself invisible. She heard the man say something.
She stuttered,” Wha... wha... What did you say?” That’s when she realized she really was invisible. He didn’t know she was there. It was like she was watching a movie that was being shot around her. She gathered her composure and looked around. She noticed she was in what appeared to be an old bedroom. There was what was left of an old dresser, a side table and metal bed frame with a dirty, grungy, nasty thin mattress on it.
And then she saw her. The girl was bound and gagged on the floor only dressed in what appeared to be a men’s over sized shirt. She was filthy; covered in stuff only God knew. Parts of her skin were raw and bleeding from where she struggled to break free. Skye tried to get a look at the girls face, but she couldn’t. The girl cowered in the corner, her face towards the wall. Then suddenly a blood curtailing scream emerged from the girl’s lips.
Skye bolted upright in bed. Sweat clung to her; she was shaking, breathing hard and her heart raced as she struggled to free herself from the blanket that was tightly wrapped around her. She finally broke free and click on her bedside lamp. As soon as the soft buttery color of the light washed the room she felt herself start to steady.
“What the hell was that about?” she asked herself. Shaking her head she looked over at the clock on her nightstand. It was only six o’ clock in the morning. She groaned and knew she couldn’t go back to sleep.
Getting up she mumbled to herself,” Might as well start the day seeing as I do have a lecture to do at ten this morning.”
Skye showered, threw on her robe and headed to the kitchen to start some coffee. There was something nagging her about the dream she had. Firstly, she had a feeling it wasn’t a dream at all. It was way too real. She could still smell the dampness of the room, taste the grit in the air and see the horrible surroundings. Secondly, something about the girl seemed really, really familiar. It felt like she knew her. No not
felt like she knew her, she
did know her; she just couldn’t tell who it was because the girls face was to the floor the whole time.
Skye tried to shake the foreboding feeling that seeped into her bones, but she just couldn’t. She looked up at the clock and seen it was eight. Finishing the remains of her coffee she set the mug in the sink and headed into her room to figure out what to wear. Maybe she could do some errands before the lecture.
Once ready she checked herself in the mirror. Her makeup was on; she was dressed and ready to go. She grabbed her keys and headed out the front door into the crisp fall day.
He was starting to know her routine by heart. It gave him a tingle of excitement. A smile started to part his lips as he watched her leave her house. He couldn’t help but notice her voluptuous figure as she walked out to the car. For a few moments he became mesmerized by her deep red curly hair blowing in the small bursts of wind. And then suddenly she whipped her head around as though she heard something. He sucked in a breath and held it. Her green eyes glistened in the sun. They looked like freshly polished emeralds. Content that she was alone she slid into the front seat. He heard the engine roar to life and then the crunch of gravel beneath the tires as she started to pull out from her driveway. Oh sweet Skye, you are such a beautiful woman, he thought to himself. Too bad God told me you must die for your wicked ways.
Skye flung her purse into the chair and made way to the couch. She flopped down and groaned loudly. The lecture had been an absolute nightmare; just horrible. It seemed like all that was there were skeptics, religious fanatics and people who just wanted to make a name for themselves. Normally she could handle the skeptics. She enjoyed answering their questions because it kept her on her toes. And more often than not she could make them squirm in their chair with some odd piece of information she could give the person. Even most time the religious fanatics were fun to talk with, but today not so much. She could only hear she was going to hell or tainted by the devil so many times before it just got so old and tiresome.
She did have a fun time afterwards though. A group stuck around to talk to her after the lecture and invited her out to dine with them. At first she was kind of reluctant. But then as she spent a few minutes talking to them she realized that they seemed like a fun group and was looking forward to going out and forgetting about the horrible time she had.
Skye flipped on the TV for a few minutes and realized there was nothing she wanted to watch. It was 11 pm and she could feel the sleepless night before, and the long day she had, catching up with her. Skye stretched, let out a huge yawn and made her way to the bedroom.
She got changed and fell into bed. As she laid there she felt the foreboding feeling enter her bones again. Just as she sent up a silent prayer to not have any more visions she fell into a fitful slumber.
The smell assaulted her nose. That’s the only way she realized where she was at. The darkness crept over the room like a puddle of spreading ink. Closing her eyes she strained to hear even the smallest sounds, but all she could hear was the thundering silence. Then all of a sudden she felt him. The man she encountered last time. Her skin pimpled and fear shot though every ounce of her body. She knew she wasn’t in the same place as last time, his footsteps confirming that as they thumped across what sounded like hard packed dirt.
Just like last time she pushed herself against the wall as far as she could; bracing herself for the moment when he flipped on a light. She knew that he wouldn’t know that she was there. That it was just like stepping into a one way mirror; being able to see everything going on in the room but them not knowing who stands behind the glass watching and waiting for a slipup.
Within a few moments of him entering the space she detected a soft glow of light through her tightly closed eyes.
After struggling with her inner fear she finally opened her eyes only to be confronted with her worst fears. It was worst than last time. This time she was in an old basement; one that was just dug into the earth. The walls and floor were nothing more than hard packed dirt. The ceiling being held up by old wooden timbers that looked as though they could crumble and break at any second.
As she looked to the left she noticed there was a work bench against the far wall. The tools that adorned the area shimmered in the glow from the oil lamp. Her mind started to wander towards horrible images that the tools were used for. She quickly did a mental shake and began to look around again.
Then she saw her. She could barely look at the grisly image before her. The girl was in a Vitruvian Man pose; her legs somewhat spread eagle, her arms just barely over her shoulders. Skye then noticed the rusty chains and mechanism that shackled the girl to the wall.
She stood directly in front of the girl and fully took her in. The girl was extremely thin from lack of food and water. The clothes that she once wore were nothing more than tattered shards of cloth draped over sporadic areas of her body. She was cake with dirt, grime and probably things that Skye didn’t want to know. Skye noticed the girl’s nails broken off at the quick from digging the wall and fighting to break free of the chains. She had a gut feeling that she’d met this girl before; just knew that she was someone really close to her, but every time she tried took look at the girl’s face it turned into a fuzzy blur. Almost as though someone had voided her of color and put a piece of frosted glass over that area.
Just then the girl let out a horrible mewling sound.
Skye whipped her head around just in time to see a metal tool fly at the wall. She quickly moved over to the wall again bracing for what was going to happen next. She saw the man rush towards the girl. Skye noticed that his face looked exactly the same way the girls did when she looked at it. She couldn’t make out any distinguishing features at all. It was nothing more than a fuzzy space above his shoulders.
His mouth opened and he began to scream at the girl. The screaming was louder than normal. It was so loud that Skye had to cover her ears. It felt almost as it was being amplified as it entered into her ear canals. It was just not right. Course nothing about this was right. She began to shake as she pressed her hands harder and harder over her ears. It felt like evil incarnate was pouring into her body with each word that flew from his lips. She could feel the evilness just emanate from him.
If hell was missing its devil than she was sure she found him in the basement of this old place.
Skye could feel herself start to lose consciousness, her body pitching forward heading towards the ground. She tried to brace herself for the fall.
Skye hit the bedroom floor with such force her teeth felt as though they were going to rattle out of her head. Her eyes flew open and she quickly took in her surroundings. She was in her own bedroom, granted she was staring up at her bed rather than in it, but she was in her own room.
“Shit. Shit. Shit”, Skye said out loud as she rubbed her head trying to relieve some of the pain from hitting the floor. “What the hell is this all about!!?” She felt her eyes brim with tears. She couldn’t shake the feeling of fear, frustration, and uselessness. She didn’t know why she was having all these nighttime visions. She’d never had them before and she didn’t want them now. Her body swelled with the feeling of wanting to just throw and all out tantrum. She stifled the feeling and hoisted herself off the floor. She needed to figure why she was having them, but she didn’t know where to start and how to go about it. Hell, she wasn’t even sure if they were in real time, the past or the future.
Skye shook her head and mumbled to herself,” Nothing you can do about it now. Might as well get some of the house work done you’ve been putting off, lazy bones.”
He watched her as she scrubbed the floor in her ratty clothes. Some curls falling loose from her high pony tail as she scrubbed with such vigor he thought she would rub the finish off the old kitchen floor. She looked up at the ceiling and with a rubber gloved hand, wiped the sweat that was forming on her brow.
God how long had he watched her? He couldn’t remember if it was minutes, hours or days. He just knew that he was becoming fixated on a woman that was an abomination; a woman who was different in the eyes of God. A woman who would meet her end the way it should be met. God would understand his need to watch her, his need to admire her beauty and body. As long as the mission was carried out what did the in between matter? It didn’t. He knew that he would kill her, that she would beg him for mercy and forgiveness. He felt the excitement start to sizzle through his blood stream; the excitement of the hunt and the do-good feeling of a mission that was bestowed upon him by someone so high and powerful.
He knew that the tainted one didn’t know who he was. She didn’t know that he had been following her and watching her for months. He would be his life that she didn’t even realize he was in every lecture that she’d given over the past few months. How could she? He sat at the back and blended in so he would never call attention to himself.
He remembered his first time he went to one of her idiotic lectures. He could remember the anger and rage that boiled in him. He just wanted to run up to the podium and feel his hand make contact against her flesh as he yelled that she was nothing more than a fake a fraud and that God would punish her for her evil ways and lies. But on the outside he smiled his handsome smile and shook his head just like some of the fools around him. They were just like sheep! They went along with everything she said. Even the ones that claimed were devoted to God and tried to out her had that small flicker of belief in their eyes. Betrayers! How dare they have betrayal in their hearts!
They were nothing more than scum, just like his mother. His evil mother that turned her face away from God after she claimed to have all these bs visions and hear people talk to her that wasn’t there. She finally landed into a mental facility when he was 17. It was where she deserved to be. She was another abomination in the world.
He clenched his fists and brought himself back to the moment of now. The moment of watching the sweet Skye clean her way through the house. He licked his lips in anticipation of what was to come.
Goodbye for now my sweet. I’ll see you soon, he said in his mind as he quickly and quietly turned and left his hiding spot.
Skye felt the hairs rise on the back of her neck as she moved from room to room cleaning. She felt eyes on her, watching her, admiring her and invading her. She walked over to the living room window and looked outside. She saw a flock of birds quickly fly from one of the trees in the front yard. There you go, Skye, she thought to herself; letting the invisible boogey man get to you.
She could have kicked herself. She hadn’t even been this skittish when she was a little girl and afraid of the dark. She knew what it was though. It was those damn dreams, or was it visions, that she was having. They left her feeling horrible; like all the life was sucked from her. She swore if she closed her eyes she would be right back there. That she’d smell the same stagnant air, hearing the same horrible mewling sounds of the girl and trying to fight the fear that erupted in her body when she heard his footsteps echo against the walls.
Stop it! Just damn well stop it right now, Skye! You are going to drive yourself crazy. Well, crazier than what you already are. You need to just forget all this junk and all this vision crap. It’s just nightmares. It’s nothing. It’s damn nothing! Skye continued to chastise herself as she threw the gloves in the sink and made way to the bathroom to take a shower.
Grumbling to herself she stripped off her clothes and threw them in the hamper, took her hair down from the pony tail and stepped into the shower. Her mind was still reeling with thoughts of the images. No matter how many times she yelled at herself she couldn’t help but keep bringing the images to the forefront of her mind. She knew there was some reason why she was having them, but she couldn’t figure out why.
She turned on the faucet and fiddled with the hot and cold trying to get it just right. Just when it was the perfect temp she walked into the spray, closed her eyes and let the water beat down over the top of her head. She felt her muscles start to relax and her mind start to slow down.
Then all of a sudden the smell of earth and decay seeped into her nose. She knew she wasn’t back at the old house. She could only see certain flashes of what was going on. Almost like watching a movie and the image keeps going in and out. She saw the man at the work bench. He was constructing some kind of device. It looked like some sort of wheel. She couldn’t make it out. She squinted, but the image started to rapidly fade away.
Skye opened her eyes and familiarized herself with where she was. She knew she was sitting on the floor in the shower, arms wrapped around her and shaking so hard she could hear the sound of her teeth chattering. She took a few moments, gathered her thoughts, stood up and quickly finished her shower.
A towel wrapped around her she padded through the dark house. She wasn’t sure how long she was in the vision for but it seemed like hours. When she had started to shower the sun was still high above the earth and light was cascading through the windows in the living room. Now it looked as though someone turned the sun off with a quick flick of a switch.
As soon as her eyes were adjusted to the darkness, she moved through the house and checked to make sure all the doors and windows were locked. It didn’t matter how hard she tried she couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. At each window she took a moment and peered into the darkness. She didn’t see anyone, but she surely felt them.
After making sure all the windows were locked Skye decided the best thing to do was get some sleep. Well, at least try to get some sleep. She had a feeling she probably wouldn’t be sleeping much, but what harm could it do. Maybe she’d read a few chapters in her favorite book and get lost in the world of magic and make believe.
Looking through her drawer she found her favorite old sleeping t-shirt, threw it on and snuggled into the warm comfort of her bed.
He watched her sink into the bed. He smiled to himself and licked his lips. Images of what he would like to do to her in that bed flashed in his mind. He physically shook himself to clear the images from his mind. He couldn’t get off track tonight. He had to stay focused. Tonight would be very special. Tonight was the night.
He adjusted the high powered night vision binoculars. He could make out her face just as clear as he was standing next to her; which he would be in a short amount of time. Her eyes flickered back and forth under the closed lids; her jaw slacked as she breathed deeply in and out. The only light in the room was from the tiny book light that ended up on the floor as she rolled over in her sleep.
He jumped down from his hidden perch and made way towards a back window. He took out his glass cutting took and with a swift motion had a hole cut in the window, the glass removed, the latch unhooked and the window up.
After waiting for a few moments to make sure she was still asleep, he quickly and quietly entered the house. The only sounds he could hear were the soft snoring coming from her room. He wanted to go through her house just to satisfy his curiosity; to see how she lived, how she kept it and just small things that made her tick. Oh how much did he want to just bind her up and then lay in her bed drinking in the scent of her? He wanted it so bad, but knew it was not the time. He would have to stash that desire deep down so he’d forget about it.
As silent as a mouse he made his way into her bedroom. Taking a few moments he stared at her. He could tell that she was in a peaceful slumber. The corners of her mouth twitch with a slight smile. As he watched her he pulled out the small bottle of chloroform he had wrapped in a cloth. With steady hands he soaked the cloth and placed it over Skye’s face. He seen her eyes flicker open and felt her start to fight. He clamped his hand over her mouth and nose harder, making her breathe in the sweet scent. Her eyes started to flutter and her body relaxed.
He stroked her hair softly and whispered,” that’s right my sweet little abomination, sleep deeply, it’s almost over”. Then he hoisted her over his shoulder and left the house feeling more excited than he had in a long, long time.
Ugh, that smell again, Skye thought. I must be in that vision again. She opened her eyes, but it was pitch black. She felt the soft brush of fabric on her face and realized that she was blind folded. Her heart started to beat faster and faster, fear snaked through her body and sweat began to bead up on her skin. She tried to get up off the floor, but she couldn’t move; she was bound tightly. Just like, Oh God no, it couldn’t be, just like the girl she seen in her vision. But it wasn’t just any girl. Oh God that girl. That girl was her.
Then she heard it. The same sounds she heard when she was an outsider looking in. They were footsteps; his footsteps. Just when she didn’t think she could take it anymore she let out a bloodcurdling scream and lost herself into the dark oblivion.
God, couldn’t she just shut the hell up! She was such a pain in the ass. He knew he’d have to keep her somewhat sedated. If she screamed like that all the time someone was bound to hear her. And God did not want his master plan interrupted.
He was thankful he stumbled onto a website where you could send money and they would ship you whatever you needed discreetly with no questions asked. It didn’t matter if law enforcement busted the guy who ran the site, he would never be found out. He had the product shipped two towns over and the P.O. Box he had registered was in a false name. And he never used his own computer to search for the website. He wanted to thank who ever decided to bring public libraries into the age of electronics and cyber space.
They were smart, but he, he was brilliant. He chucked to himself as he left Skye nothing more than a heap on the floor and returned to working on his device in the basement.
After a few hours of working in the basement, man realized that something was missing. For a moment he couldn’t place his finger on it and then all of a sudden it hit him. It was her that was missing. She should be down her with him, a part of the process, basking in his brilliance and just there to watch as the magical moment takes place.
He looked over at the far wall and a smile spread across his face. The rusty chains hung from another mechanism he made. The chains that would bind the arms could be pulled taunt and released by flipping a switch on the side of a wooden box. The chains that were draped on the floor could also be pulled taunt and released in the same way. The only difference was instead of using the top switch you’d have to use the switch at the bottom.
He couldn’t wait any longer. He flew up the stairs and into the bedroom where Skye waited. Once in the room he flung her over his shoulder. It was much easier this time. She had lost weight from not eating or drinking anything. She was nothing more than a bag of bones now. There was no effort at all as he hurried back down the stairs and then chained her to the wall.
Once she was chained to the wall her removed her blind fold. He hadn’t sedated her in quite a few hours so she should be somewhat coherent soon. She’ll be able to enjoy her last moments; or at least he would anyway.
He stepped back and just stared at her for a moment. He could see the skin start to sag from her body because she had lost so much weight. Her beautiful red hair was now dirty and dull. It was so dirty that it looked almost brown in the darkness. He noticed that the filth clung to her skin in cakes and clumps and that her shirt once whole was now just nothing more but tattered rags. Even though she was filthy, disheveled and nasty she was still beautiful.
Her seen her eyes start to flicker and become alert. He could tell she barely had enough strength to keep her head up.
“Greetings, Skye. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Andrew James Franklin and you, my dear, are the next abomination to die per God’s will.”
Skye took in the man that was in front of her. He was tall and husky. He had dark hair that looked black in the darkness. His eyes were the color of aged whiskey. He was sexy in a rugged way, but he was clearly very, very disturbed. She had seen him before. He’d been coming to her lectures for the last few months and always sat at the very back of the room. She noticed him a few times and wondered about him but always wrote him off as one of the skeptics or one of the people who came and was obsessed. She never would have guess it’s wasn’t an obsession with the topic that kept him coming back; No, it was the obsession of her.
She lifted her head up and their eyes met. In that instant she knew that nothing she did or say would change his mind. She was certain that she was going to die.
Over the next few days he worked on his device. He felt her eyes bore into his back as he nailed, hammered and sawed wood. He was positive she knew she was going to die. He thought the least he could do was explain as to why when he was done. He would explain everything to her. He also wanted to see the flicker of amazement that flashed in her eyes as she realized just how brilliant he was to pull all this off; and just how special he was that God had bestowed upon him, The Chosen One, a mission of great importance. He felt the desire rising in his blood again. This time more forceful than the last, but he shoved the feeling away and continued with the final steps it took to finish his beautiful masterpiece.
Later into the evening of the next day he finally finished. He was so excited he could barely contain himself.
“Skye! Wake up!” He yelled at her. When she didn’t open her eyes right away he raised his hand and smacked her hard across the face. Her eyes flew open and she glared with a hatred that burned. He did nothing more than laugh at her.
“My Sweet Skye now is the time I am going to explain to you my mission and what role you play. You see one day God spoke to me. He gave me a mission, a very special mission, and the mission is to dispose of the ones he called abominations; ones that were touched by the dark one, by the devil. At first I wasn’t sure what he meant and then I stumbled upon one of your lectures; one of your stupid, idiotic lectures!” The anger started to flow freely from him. He could see the fear and amazement in her eyes in that moment. It made his excitement grow and he became more animated. “That’s when I knew what God what talking about. I knew that
you had to be one of the abominations. You’re talk off all that seeing the dead, talking with the dead, it’s nothing but devil speak! It’s nothing more than the devil using your tongue to spout off all his vile garbage!”
Suddenly he whipped around and rushed to his pride and joy.
“I am sure you are wondering what this is? Beautiful, isn’t it? Some people would call it a torture device; I on the other hand, call it a work of art and sacrifice.” A cold smile spread across his chapped lips. “You see this motor down here is on a timer. This timer is set up to cause the wheel to spin for however long I’ve set it for. And you’ll notice that attached to the wheel is a structure that resembles the pose you are in now,” he looked up at her and noticed she had started to pass out,” LOOK AT ME WHEN I AM TALKING TO YOU! DO NOT IGNORE ME! YOU WILL MAKE ME ANGYER THAN WHAT I ALREADY AM!” Her head flew up and her eyes focused back onto him. “There that’s better. Now as I was saying, this structure right here resembles the position that you are in at the moment. One arm will be strapped here, the other one here, one leg here and the other leg right over here. What did you say? Oh the holes? Ah, yes the holes! These are quite amazing if I do say so myself. Now if you’ll take notice there is another motor on this side. And this motor controls what comes out of the holes. Now what comes out of the holes you ask? Here let me show you.” With a quick motion he shoved a sharp metal spike through one of the holes that were drilled in the cross like structure. “Now see these are also on timers. And what these beauties will do is gradually push against your flesh. Every hour they will go deeper into your body until they are fully through you and out the other side! That way you have time to repent for all the evil you’ve spread in this world, all the things the devil used your tongue to say and all the vileness you’ve tainted people with. You’re soul will be cleansed and God will receive you with open arms and love; he told me so just last night. And I bet you are wondering what will become of your blood? Well, that’s easy enough to tell you. It will go back into the earth that God created. So you’ll always be a part of his divine invention. How beautiful is that. Hmm? Now what do you say, let’s let the repenting commence!”
Andrew moved over towards Skye and could tell that she had given up completely. He was happy for this. By her giving up she knew she was in the wrong, that she was touched by the devil, and that she needed to repent for every wrong thing she did. He unshackled her from the wall and dragged her over to the device.
He bound her in tightly and then put a gag over her mouth. He flipped the switches and heard the groaning of the gears.
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” He laughed and walked up the stairs only to be followed by the mottled sounds of bloodcurdling screams.
A few weeks later a body was reported outside one of the local churches. A priest was going out to clean the statue of Jesus like he does every morning. And that’s when he stumbled upon her. He thought at first she was a woman seeking guidance by praying in front of the statue. And then he moved closer and noticed the blood smears on the girls white gown. Gripped in her hand she held a crumpled note. The note said:
Forgive me father for I have sinned, but do not to worry because I was redeemed by the Chosen one. And now I am forever within your grace and divine love.
The priest crossed himself and hurried in to call 911.
Sitting on the bench was the ghostly presence of the girl that inhabited the body before her. Tears brimmed in her eyes, but she blinked them back. If only she would have put her visions together. If only she wouldn’t have ran from those in the shadows that tried to talk to her. Maybe they were trying to warn her, to help her. There were so many ifs she couldn’t think of them all.
Maybe, she thought to herself, maybe I can find someone who had the gifts I did. Maybe they will listen to me. She hoped that in her new journey she’d find someone that can sense her and most importantly do something she didn’t do; take a moment to just listen.
And with that final thought in her mind she silently, and without disturbing anything around her, stood up and walked away from the bench and the body she once resided in.
COMMENTS
-