Madness

chapter 11 strangers (part 1)

Elena;s watchful eyes were dowsed with an unearthly grey. An unheard-of murderer ate away at her soul. It was following her. As she stood in the train station, she felt her mind plummet beyond a darkness which couldn't be measured. It was following her.

She could feel it, Fake-Elena or whatever it was. A snickering of leaves, sinister undertones or the scraping against her skull. She could feel herself melting into a soundless oblivion. Sadness. That's all she could sense. No longer was her mind swamped with chaotic feelings, dragged down with negative motions. She would describe her sadness like death by a thousand paper cuts, for every time she remembered it was another cut to her damaged mind.

She missed Frank more than she thought she would. Perhaps now, she finally realised she would not see him again. Not even Violet flicked through her mind. Would he be relieved to have finally gotten rid of me? Did he read the note or is he still asleep? She thought, limply.

Leaning against a wall, she clung to her frail figure, hopelessly. Getting home would be a struggle, especially by train. Sighing, Elena felt many wary eyes glance at her. I must look half dead. I feel like it. It wouldn't be too bad, dying...

Rubbing her arms, she swallowed. Why did she feel so cold and empty? Even with the snow slashing at her face, she felt dry. Drier than usual. Killing Violet was supposed to fill the void. …It did for a bit. How many more do I have to kill? I can't live my life like this.

A sharp thought became vivid in her mind. Slowly, she raised her hand to her hair. Was she still falling apart? Snatching a few strands of head from her head, Elena tightened her grip excepting them to breakdown into leaves. To her amazement and slight horror, it didn't.

I must kill to live.

The very thought numbed her mind. She couldn't yet somehow, she enjoyed it. She had loved every moment of killing Violet and relished it. Elena saw something in Violet, something that reminded her of herself. Perhaps that's why it felt so relieving, to rid of something so poisonous and hopeless.

A dark groan clattered in the brittle air. Disordered and muddled, she glanced up.

"Oops," she muttered, underneath her expelled breaths.

 Giving away to reality, she hurried into the train. Pulling her hood over her face, she slipped through the back entrance, unnoticed. She snuck around way too much lately, but she felt invisible. She felt colourless, muted and much more now that the snow was unable to hide her monstrous face.

Pressing her face against the icy window, Elena watched her breaths grow on the glass before vanishing like the dreams of the blind.

"Cold isn't it?"Her voice was so gentle that it took Elena a moment to realise the words had been aimed at her.

In return, she mumbled a quick yes.

"Snowing in England at this time of the year! Really quite peculiar isn't it?" A sudden aged tone was pronounced in a strong Scottish accent, wearied but undamaged.

Slowly, Elena shifted her gaze to the woman. Beside her was not an old woman you would not pity with a frail figure and huge, empty eyes. Instead there was something about her posture and colourful scarf that told her that she could run an army kitchen even if given half a chance.

"Yeah, it is," she smiled, emotionlessly.

"Aren't you cold?" Her clear blue eyes swept over Elena's jeans and thin shirt.

Shrugging, Elena mentally sighed. If this woman's here to stay it's going to be a hell of a ride.

A moment of silence passed over the carriage. Darkness fell over them as the train clattered noisily, underground.