La Façade des Plumes

Chapter X - "...buried in the snow."

November 30th, 11:33 am

The thick snow had thawed after two days since the spontaneous storm had ended. The air, however, remained at its chilly temperature. All around the cemetery, funerals were held for the 40 people that lost their lives on November 19th. 10 were adults, the other 30 were children. Multiple priests from different religions circulated through the yard, praying for each family. All but one.

The family circled the brown casket, staring at it with deep sorrow. Both parents of Mia and Jonathan, embracing each other, wiping the other one's tears. Aunts and uncles from each side of the family, all comforting each other. Including the cousins, regardless if they were close or despised each other. However, the fellow students stood silent, distancing themselves from the others. One student, in particular, Mark, stared at the casket as tears silently rolled down his cheeks. Anna stared at the crowd, studying everyone around her as the heat from their breaths blurred their faces. Her head rested upon Talva's shoulder, feeling her tears drip onto her face.

Eventually, the Cemetery grew quieter as families began to leave, as the bodies were lowered to their final resting place. Finally, their family was alone, but even they began to wither away.

One by one, they placed a white rose upon the casket before they dragged themselves back to their cars, leaving only Anna and Talva. Talva straightened her head, wiping her nose as her hand rubbed Anna's back, "It's time to go," she whispered. Anna remained silent, staring into nothingness. Lacing her hand within Anna's fingers, she began walking away only to find Anna's refusal to move. "Ann," she whispered once more only for her to pull her hand away. Dropping her hand, Talva sighed, "I'll go get the car." Talva rubbed her back once again before leaving a small kiss on her cheek.

Anna listened as her footsteps faded to silence. Her eye makeup traveled down her cheeks, leaving black trails on her cheeks. "Handkerchief?" he asked, holding it beside her face. Confused, she shifted her gaze to Ubel's calming face before accepting it, "Thank you," she smiled. "No problem," he replied, pocketing his hands.

The two fell into an awkward silence, staring off in opposite directions. "So, what brings you here?" Anna asked softly. "Oddly, I can't think of a good reason. I just felt I needed to come."

"I can understand that, especially since you were the one who comforted her after..."

Anna fell silent before Ubel's eyes fell to the rose tucked into her cross arms. "I see you haven't put your rose down," he commented. "Hah, yeah, I'm working on it," she replied wiping the snot from her nose. Again, they fell silent, staring down at the brown casket. "Lieutenant, may I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Have you...ever felt like everything was being ripped away from you?"

Ubel sighed deeply, "Yes."

"What happened? If I may ask?"

"I used to be married and had children, two sons," he said solemnly, staring down at the gold band around his ring finger. "What happened?"

"I came home one day, and she was laying in a pool of her blood while my oldest, who was eight at the time, stared in horror."

"Suicide?" Ubel inhaled deeply, "Murder."

Anna looked down, "Did you ever catch who did it?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"Whatever happened to your sons?"

"After my wife died, I fell into a spiral of depression and agony. Eventually, the state took them from me, for I was unfit to raise them. I guess I'm here because... when I was there... when I held her... I felt like a father again." Anna looked up to Ubel's solemn face, placing her hand on his shoulder, making him look back at her. "I can tell you're a good man, I'm sure you'll reunite with them one day," Anna smiled. Ubel placed his hand over hers, gently squeezing it, "Thank you."

Anna nodded her head before they both returned to silence, staring at the casket. He sighed, "Do you ever wonder if it was the same man?... Same knife?" Anna froze, looking up to him in confusion, "My father killed my mother with a beer bottle," she stated.

"Oh, God, yes," he breathed, covering his eyes with his palm, "Forgive me for the insensitivity."

"No...you're...fine..." she replied, looking down at the grass as her mind became overwhelmed with questions.

Suddenly, the sound of a car horn erupted through the air, gaining her attention. She looked up, only to see Talva waving at her. Turning around, she stared at the dents in the wet grass that showed where he once stood. She searched around, however, Ubel was nowhere to be seen.

Looking back toward the casket, something caught her eye. Amongst the pile of white roses, a singular Purple Hyacinth. The car horn went off again, interrupting the questions that formed in her head. Anna hovered her rose over the Hyacinth, conflicted on whether to put it down. She stared down at the unique flower, tilting her head in confusion. Finally, Talva's hand gently grabbed the rose from Anna's, placing it beside the Hyacinth.

She watched from afar, longing to scream her name. It wasn't long until both women disappeared into the car before they began to drive away. "Kid," Bryan whispered, placing his hand on her shoulder, "it's time to go."

"Will I ever move on?" she asked. "That's up to you to decide," he replied.

Quietly, she turned to him, looking solemnly into his eyes. "I'm sorry," he said softly. Hand in hand, they walked away. They all walked away, unaware that they would all return to uncover the secrets buried in the snow.