Love, Lies, and Insanity

He Was Here

My eyes creaked open with the light streaming across my face. I felt Mr. Todd shift beside me. I can't explain what I felt towards him, but maybe some things are better not described.

"Morning, love." I said. I didn't feel bad for waking him, we had a long day ahead of us. He just groaned and laid there refusing to get up. He reminded me so much of little Toby.

I slipped my dress back on and began fixing my hair. "What are we gonna tell Mrs. Lovett?" I asked as Mr. Todd laid there with his arm over his eyes, to stop the light from trying to wake him. "We can't tell her we got arrested. We sure as hell can't tell her we spent the night in a cell room together. She always thinks the worst of things" Mr. Todd smirked at my comment.

"Get up!" The guard yelled. "You are being released. We have found the murderer of Mr. Leonardo Peterson. You may go." Oh thank God.

Mr. Todd was very quick to get up after the guard had opened the cell door. We walked out and saw as the guards were tackling a man to the ground. Then I saw the little girl. I tugged Mr. T's shirt telling him to stop.

"Hello, Darling." I said with a sweet smile. "Where are your parents?"

"My mummy left me at the workhouse, and she said she would get me someday." This girl was like me and what Toby's life could've been. The thought of keeping that poor, innocent girl in the workhouse made me shiver as I recalled the years I spent there. Every grueling hour until I was 16. It was a life of poverty I had escaped from, but when I look back, I think of Kira. I missed her. Every hour was slightly better when I had her by my side. Where was she after 15 years?

"Where are you going now?" I asked.

"Mr. Peterson told me if he were to ever not be here, that I should be kept by that man." She pointed at a tall man, with grey hair, a clean and shaven chin, and that face that haunts my nightmares even today. How was I to explain to this little girl that that man was an awful person? I couldn't just take her with us, Mrs. Lovett would have my head.

As I glared at the horrid man, and idea popped into my head. "Listen to me carefully" The small girl nodded her head. "Tonight at 8pm, I want you to meet me outside of 186 fleet street. There will be many people and many lights. Don't look at a single one, come straight through the front door and to the counter. Do you understand?"

"Yes ma'am" She timidly replied.

"I don't mean to scare you, but do whatever it takes. I want to make sure you are alright."

Mr. Todd grabbed my arm and pulled me back up to face him, "What the hell do you think you're doing"

"I'll tell you later, we need to get home."

We rushed through the gate to see the world just the way we had left it, vermin everywhere.

We slowly found our way into the meat pie shop to find that no one was home. "Mrs. Lovett! Toby!" I yelled hoping someone would hear me. "What if they went out searching for us!" My mind was going a million directions at once as panic filled my head, my worries became more evident. Mr. Todd grabbed my shoulders and shook me to bring me back to reality.

"They'll be back" And just on cue Mrs. Lovett and Toby walked through the door with bags of food.

"Where the hell have you two been?" She asked as she placed down the food and put her hands on her hips. She was irritated with us. I looked at Mr. Todd for guidance on what to tell her. He looked back at me just as clueless as I was. Neither of us seemed to be very good liars. "And why are you in the same clothes you were in yesterday." Her eyes widened at the thought of where we could've been. "You didn't-"