The Corruption of Innocence

Chapter 6

Little Amy lay screaming on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, a crowd of people surrounding her. Alice Watcher ran through the crowd and helped her to her feet and gave her back to her parents who carried her away.

"You tell that bloody ghost to leave children alone!" the father shouted back at Alice as they carried the girl away. Alice stood frozen at the stairs as the crowd began to melt away and then, with a turn of anger, stormed up the stairs.

"Jack!" she yelled, barging into the attic room. The little ghost boy sat on the bed like always, feet dangling, singing to himself.

"Hi Alice," he said cheerfully.

"Can't you leave them alone?"

"You know I can't. It's my revenge."

Alice looked helplessly around and then back at Jack, whose smile had faded.

"You think they don't deserve it?" he whispered.

"Of course they don't Jack, they're children. Enough is enough, you've had your fun."

Jack screamed in anger, before vanishing.

Then, that night, he returned to Oliver to continue the story.

Nathaniel Edgar  September 23rd, 1856 – October 17th ,1865   Rest in Peace

Laying down the red roses, Jack took an unsteady breath and knelt at the grave of his little brother. It had been a while since he'd visited the grave and his mother had told him to go and pay his respects. Jack had wanted Alice to join him, but she was too mad after the incident with the little girl. She was outraged that Jack had confessed to the act of violence so boldly and without remorse and wanted to have some space away from him for a while.

Buried in the graveyard near to Nathaniel were Jack's aunties and uncles, Mary and Peter Scott, and Chloe and Gabriel Utterson. Jack's paternal grandparents Anne and Richard Watcher were buried in Kent where they lived, whilst his maternal grandparents, whom he'd inherited the Boar's Head Inn from, Margaret and Walter Bracey, were buried in Salisbury Cathedral, as Margaret had been a well-known poet and Walter a vicar in the cathedral.

Also buried in the graveyard was Philip Device's uncle David, who had been a robber in Salisbury. November 20th marked the anniversary of his death by hanging, and Philip had come to Chippenham Cemetery by order of his mother to lay flowers.

Looking to his left, Philip saw Jack Edgar knelt, as he was, by a grave, weeping quietly. Philip wasn't weeping, he couldn't weep, that wasn't the way he'd been made. He'd been made tough, out of stone. Weeping was for babies.

Upon catching sight of Philip Device staring back at him, Jack stopped weeping and felt anger come over him. The boy had stolen his bike and beaten him up. He didn't know anything about Jack. He knew nothing at all.

Philip stood up and began walking towards Jack, who stood up quickly and moved closer to his brother's grave.

"Hi," Philip said cheerfully.

"Go away, why are you here?" was the reply.

"I didn't mean to scare you, sorry."

Philip's voice was suspiciously soft and sounded younger, like Jack's. But Jack was no fool. "Don't try and be nice to me, you creep. I'm not scared of you, now go away and don't come near my brother's grave."

"I was only wondering if you wanted to come with me to get your bike back."

"No way, you'll trap and kill me, you creep! I'm not an idiot!"