The Unknown

Chapter 10

She stood at the top of the stairs in the doorway laughing. Her familiar silhouette loomed in the doorway once more as it always had. Her laughter seemed to shake the whole house, the room was spinning.

Her next movement was her hands disappearing into her inside jacket pocket. It was small and square shaped. She pulled something out of it and held it between her fingers.

Thud.

I looked to the left of her where the front door would be. All her concentration was on the small items in her hands.

Thud.

She was still laughing, trying to strike the two items together.

Crack.

The sound of the front door being broken into stopped her laughter. Her head shot the the general direction of the front door. She stopped striking and clutched the items. The scent of matches wafted down in my direction.

Multiple foot steps entered into the kitchen. The presence of others were comforting in this lonely home.

"Mrs. Maybella Sage, you must come with us. You musn't escape from us again. You need your medicine, dear." One of the psychiatric nurses appeared in view of the kitchen doorway behind her.

"Escape?" My lips questioned the word in an incoherent whisper.

I looked over the nurse who had just spoken. He was dressed in all white. His figure glowed. The sense of hope and protection had come to me.

"NO! They don't work, you fools!" She screamed at them. Her voice boomed and was thrown in my direction, causing my head to pound.

She reached behind her back to grab a vase of flowers and threw it in their direction. The visible male nurse fell to the floor. The vase shattered upon impact and knocked him out. One of the two doctors went to his aid and began to drag him out of view.

I struggled to sit up, trying to get a better view of the rest of the doctors and nurses.

The female nurse of the three reached for Maybella's wrist, but Maybella snatched it back in time to stop from being caught. She pulled out a match and struck it quickly, lighting it. Again, the nurse grabbed her wrist, but this time, she threw the match in my direction.

Upon immediate contact with the ground, it burst into flames, chasing me down the steps. I sat there frozen in fear like a deer in the headlights.
The heat grew closer and closer.

Everything slowed down.

I watched the two available nurses tie her hands around her back. She struggled and thrashed their arms. All she could do was strive to break free and let out a blood curdling scream when she was injected with anesthesia.

Then the doctor saw the flames coming down the steps. In panick, he shut the door to prevent it from getting to them. I looked up at him with pleading eyes to help me. His gaze met mine seconds before the door was completely shut. Sympathy was the last I sense of human contact I felt when I was locked in the room of flames.

The flames were at the bottom of the steps, but inches in front of me. I scrambled to my feet and ran into the closet, shutting the door behind me. I sat down with my back against one of the two small corners. The feeling of being in the closet at this time was soothing. It was my protection.

The heat was unbearable and I struggled to breathe. I placed a hand over my mouth to try to keep any of the smoke from getting into my lungs.

My vision began to fade.

Then everything went black . . .

- - -

I stood there just looking at my body. A small cry escaped from my throat when I dropped to my knees.

I was dead.

"I'm so sorry," V said, placing her hand on my shoulder. Her hand was cold. I could feel the fear and confusion in her body flow to mine.

Tears began to streak down from my face. It all came to me. The flash back of my death.

But it was so long ago.

Centuries ago.

And I was still here.

I crawled into the closet on my hands and knees. Pieces of the familiar glass greeted my palms.

I sat next to my corpse and touched my arm. The warmth still felt present. I drew my hand back, shocked.

I sat there staring, still trying to process what I had just discovered.
I traced my scars with my finger on my corpse.

"Would you like a proper burial?" J asked, breaking the silence of my reunion.

Without another word, I nodded.

- - -

V and J stood there, hesitant to pour the dirt they freshly dug up back into the hole, with me in it.

I give a reassuring nod and they looked at each other. Satisfaction spread across their faces.

There were no goodbyes. No hugs. Just them filling their shovels with fresh unearthed soil.

The dirt was heavy and cold. I just laid there looking up at them, clutching my corpse. I closed my eyes.

I didn't feel the dirt being dumped on me anymore.

I didn't feel the corpse in my arms.

I didn't feel the earth around me.

It was pure bliss. . .