Poison.

Chapter Five.

I had no clue what to do anymore. I started to wonder if it was even Scarlet's father who shot her. Why would a man burn down his own home? It just didn't add up right. But who would have the desire to try to murder Scarlet, and burn her house down? I just stood on the corner of the street, staring. The flames were redder than my melted fingertips, and the house was charring blacker and blacker by the second. The walls and ceiling were all caving in on eachother, and I scanned my eyes through the street, looking for someone to blame.

No one was to be found. In fact, I couldn't find anyone anywhere. As the wind blew, the fire grew larger and larger, spreading from house to house, and all I could do was watch the destruction. When I finally broke eye contact with the fire, I bolted home for help.

I burst through the door and jolted up the stairs. I flung open my parents' bedroom door to tell them about the fire. After a minute of standing in the doorway, I finally realized that they were gone. No one was there. No one was anywhere. Not in my room, not in my house, not in my neighbourhood, not anywhere! I had to check the hospital.

When I arrived at the Emergency Room entrance, the whole place seemed vacated. I ran back into Scarlet's room, and she was gone, too. The whole town was gone. So why was I still there?

When I left the hospital every house in the neighbourhood was gone. burned to the ground without a flame in sight. I glanced down at my watch. It didn't look the same as it did before I went to bed last night. There was a large button upon the top of the brass lid that once covered the clock itself. I pressed down on the button and jumped back as a whole little wind compass came out of the small watch. The arrow pointed north. I turned. West. Once again. South. East. North again.

This new device around my wrist was nice and all, but it didn't tell me the date or time at all. It was useless for its purpose. Since all of the houses were gone, I ran through properties to get to where my house once was. When I counted it out & found it, There was a small empty lot where my home once was.

In the dead center it the lot there was something shiny. Quite big, actually. I moved closer and closer to it until I was standing dead over it, looking down at it It was a large brass birdcage. I kneeled down. There was a note in it. The note had a small card with had "Colton" written across it in some pretty damn good calligraphy. As I went to open the cage up, I realized that I had a dilemma on my hands. The cage was locked. Where could I find the key?

The watch! I thought. I mean, they were both possesions of mine made from brass in which I didn't know existed until this day. I pressed the button once more and searched the whole design and nothing shown. I was a bit stressed. I reached into my pocket to get a cigarette but I seemed to be lacking. Not even my lighter. I did feel something, though. I pulled it out of my pocket. A little brass key.

I quickly slipped the key into the lock, closed my eyes and turned it. The door opened. I frantically opened up the door and snatched the note out. I scanned over the card. "Colton. For you." It read. I pulled on the ribbon and it came loose and fell into my hands. I unrolled the paper, which, to my surprise, contained no words. There was a drawing of a bird. Not an ordinary bird, though. It looked like a raven, or a crow, perhaps. It had gears for eyes with clocks as the pupils and broken wings. It looked as if it were attempting to fly, but it was unable. Written across the back of the paper lightly was a poem. It read:

"Sing to me before I go

because you could never know

when my broken wings will make me fall

Play me something nice & sweet

Play it to me on repeat

Until night comes, and death makes it's call."