Madeline

Epilogue

I felt something cool nudging my face gently and I heard a faint whining sound. I was alive.

Opening my eyes, the sun's rays nearly blinded me and I was aware that I was outside lying on the bank of the river. My body felt numb and I could not move, but something pawed at my arm and I saw that it was Heathcliff. I forced myself to raise an arm, and place it around him, using his body to help me sit upright. I saw that my arms had several deep lacerations with shards of glass embedded within. My clothes were damp from the river and my lips were raw and chapped from the icy wind that seemed to come from all directions. Several inches of snow rested upon the frozen ground, but the sky above was clear and crisp.

As my memory returned to the events of the night before, I looked up towards the house immediately as I attempted to stagger to my feet.

But it was not there.

There was nothing left but charred remains, hints of ash were still floating in the air, the wind carrying them around the estate. Only a semblance of the structure remained intact. It seemed as if the manor had collapsed on itself in the end. Stone, lumber, and broken glass surrounded the ground.

May all the memories turn to nothing but ash.

Recalling Arthur's words, I buried my face into white fur and wept. Horrid screams soon filled the air and I knew they were mine, but I could not stop myself. Eventually my vision began to grow black once more and I fell into a dark oblivion.

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A week later I awoke in a hospital in London. I had been told that Alice had been the one who had found me. I had been in and out of consciousness for days, a fever ravaging my body. I also suffered from minor injuries I had received when I had escaped the fire. Several burns were left to heal on the backs of my legs, I had broken my wrist, and one of the lacerations upon my arm was going to leave me with a great scar or at least that was what one of the doctors had said. I scarcely listened to the world around me.

I told them nothing of Madeline or the horrific events that surrounded her. All that I had said was the house had caught fire in the middle of the night and I had barely managed to escape. No one would believe the true tale. There was no other witness. Except Alice.

She came to me the morning before. She was dressed completely in black, everything from her gown to her gloves, it was a color I had rarely seen her in. Her face was pale and gaunt, her eyes were ringed red and seemed nearly hollow, and her hair was hidden beneath a dark bonnet. She sat at my bedside, looking uncertain of what to say.

"George brought me to say goodbye to you for a time," she referred to her brother as she spoke, her voice betraying her sorrow and weariness, "I cannot stay for long, but I told him I had to see you before I left."

I did not know what words to speak, for I knew that I had no words of comfort to offer her. I could not tell her that Arthur had died in peace for he hadn't. Nor could I tell her of the crime that he had committed. I knew she was unaware of what he had done, and I would not be the one to tell her of it. Her heart had already broken and I would not be the cause of more harm. I knew the truth would surely kill her. So I remained silent, words that could not be spoken raced about in my mind.

"I wanted to tell you that I...I," her voice wavered as tears slipped from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks, "That I cared for him very much. I know it is an improper thing to say and I know it is not right, but I..."

"I know." I managed to speak, finishing the sentence she could not, she stared at me with a look of shock, that quickly melted to a bitter expression of relief. "He also knew and he also never loved Madeline. There was only one that truly held his heart, ever since we were children." As I gazed at her, she smiled faintly even as she wiped away her tears with her gloved hand.

"Before I left that night..." she paused for a moment as she relived the memory that would haunt her the rest of her days, as they surely would mine, "what I meant is he told me once that wishes rarely come true. But that night he said that he wished for me to find the happiness that he never could and that I had always been his wish." As she continued to wipe at her eyes, she stared at me, "I cannot explain what happened that night or why she came back. I know I will never understand why but I will do my best to move on from this and be happy, that way his wish will come true."

Before she could say anything more, I drew her into my arms and held her until her tears stopped minutes later. A gentle grunting noise at the door was what pulled her away as she composed herself. A tall, lanky boy of no more than seventeen with dark gold hair stood at the doorway of the room, staring at the ground looking uncomfortable. It was her brother.

"Goodbye for now Matthew," she spoke as she straightened her bonnet, "We shall see each other again. I also shall leave this with you. I found it outside when I found you." She placed a small paper wrapped package upon the table by my side.

She then took her leave, casting one last glance at the door before she left. Something that had not been there when she had arrived had returned to her. The light in her eyes.

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I chose to alienate myself from the other patients and requested a private room for the remainder of my stay. The only other being in my presence was Heathcliff. It had taken much persuading to convince the nurses to allow him to stay, but they must have took pity upon me for they soon acquiesced.

It was nearing midnight and I could not sleep, but sat instead with closed eyes, Heathcliff lying upon the ground at my side. Faint music began to play. At first I thought the source was coming from one of the other rooms, perhaps being used to calm another patient, but it only grew louder, the source coming from the room I was in. My eyes flashed open, and Heathcliff's low grows filled the space as I soon recognized the haunting melody that I had grown to hate.

The music came to an end as I spotted the source. The simply wrapped package that Alice had left me the day before lay on the bedside table. I grabbed it and tore at the paper almost violently. Soon the music box rested in my open palms. I could do nothing but stare at it. The polished carvings seemed to shine brighter beneath the lamplight as the chimes once more began to play.

No longer did Madeline's ghost haunt me, but instead the ghost of her memory. With all the strength I possessed, I flung it to the ground where it smashed into pieces. A final echo of laughter, her's, danced off of the walls. With the destruction of the box, perhaps I had destroyed what remained of her. The laughter soon died and the night once more grew silent. Silent as an empty tomb.

FIN

That is the end of this story. I hope everyone who has read this has enjoyed it. This has been one of the first stories I have ever completed and I hope to continue writing even more. Once again thank you to everyone who has read this, commented, voted and added this story to their library. I truly appreciate it. -The_Queenbee