The Forest

Chapter 31

"Explain" I say to the women as my confusion and curiosity rises. "I want to know your name" I demand from her.

"You'll know soon enough" she replies and boiling anger seeps through me.

We both continued watching as they all released hands and smiled at each other. The woman's face had fear written all over it. Her eyes screamed for help, but no one noticed the cry from her eyes. Who was this women? Why did this man feel she has sinned?

All of the guests hug William, thanking him for inviting them over. Everyone left except for the women. She leaned against the wall. She began to tremble as the last guest leaves. She must live here I thought. They must be connected somehow.

"Kimberly...you must listen to me..I don't have much time left to give you, sweetheart. You must come clean" he says to her and I store that name in my head as well as William's. Kimberly. She must be his wife.

"I don't know what you're talking about" she replies hesitantly.

"Admit to your adultery. God will forgive you. I will forgive you" he says reassuringly.

She remains quiet.

"I know you cheated on me..with that man. I know what you've done. Tell me when I was in prison, were you not lonely?"

"If I said that I would be lying, but that doesn't mean I would hurt you"

"So you're admitting that the love of another man and comfort of another man did not sound pleasing to you when I was absent?" he probs at her

"No. I am not admitting that. I was waiting for you. We both were" she answers and I shake my head at the word "we". Who was this we? I saw no one else around.

"You're lying to me...that tongue is evil"

"I promise you I am only telling the truth..your head, it's conjuring up things in your mind. You're not thinking clearly. You were in a bad place and now that time has gone and passed. Don't hold on to the fears. I am only here for you...and only you" she pleads to him, but he does not look convinced.

It was beginning to become dark outside. The streets were becoming quieter and an uncomfortable quiet rose over us. It was the discomforting feeling I was used to, but I knew what was going to happen next was not going to be pleasant.

"I am going to help you..you just need to be closer to God. It'll help save you. I am only doing this because I love you" he says with a smile. He walks over to the kitchen table. He picks up an object that I could not see. He seems to slip it into his back pocket without her realizing.

"What do you mean?" she asks so innocently.

He walks over to give her a hug. He wraps his arms around her tightly. We slowly see one of his hands reaching for his back pocket and a knife is in his possession.

I feel the urge to stop him or yell to get her attention, but I knew that we could not be seen or heard or even felt. Suzanne grabs my arm and covered her face into my shoulder.

He stabbed her in the back several times. She screamed in pain so loudly if there were people near by they could hear it instantly. Instead there was no one. The woman we were following to watch this event...her eyes were filled with pure anger watching this event in her life unfold. She watched herself die. Why did she bring us here? Why did she show us this?

The woman's body drops to the floor. Suddenly I hear rapid breathing from the staircase. A young boy, around the age of four, had seen the event unfold with his own eyes.

I started to feel something was wrong. The child looked too familiar. His face...his eyes..they resembled someone I knew. I just didn't understand how it could be possible.

"That is- it's Jasper, but how?" Suzanne asks

The woman, now known as the ghost of Kimberly, finally speaks to us, "I'm his biological mother"

We both stared in disbelief. How could this be true?

We followed her as William carried her lifeless body into the backyard. He took a shovel with him and proceeded to walk into the forest. At this time there was no fence. Nothing to fear. Yet.

He began digging and when he finally reached deep enough for his liking he laid her body in the dirt. He began throwing the piles of dirt he had dug up on top of her. He kissed his two fingers and placed them on top of the dirt that now covered Kimberly's body.

"For months I was gone. People searched for me. They never would suspect that the preacher, and born again christian, would kill his own wife. He was abusive. He was placed in jail the first time for assaulting his mother. I did cheat on him...but I wanted to leave him. I wanted my son and I to have a better life. As soon as he was released early and on good behavior I had no choice but to go back to him. He would try to hurt us if I left. I may have been with another man, but that does not mean I deserved to die" she explains to us and I feel sympathy toward her. She has suffered greatly.

"Please...I'm sorry for all these things that happened to you, but..how are you Jasper's mother?"

She sighs, "William was thrown back in prison again. My body was found in the forest after a suspicious police officer wanted to cover all possible places my body could be. All the evidence linked to him, but a month before this happened William went on a killing spree. They nicknamed him, before they found out his true identity, the "Cross Killer". He murdered people who he believed were committing sins and he would leave a cross on the victim's head with their own blood." She continues, "Jasper was left alone at a very young age. He was adopted by your family Suzanne. They requested that they change his name from Ben to Jasper and take the last name of his new family so no one knew of the connection between him and his father"

"How come my father has never mentioned this..or my mother?" Suzanne asks angrily.

"They didn't want to scare you. They didn't want you to know your new brother was the son of a killer"