Unwound

by Yolanda Olson

  thinking a little differently than most. It’s not her fault that she’s a genius. She can’t help it you know? Anyway Ember was also the

  one that gave me the idea of making these puppets because she

  had a group of friends with her that would torture my sister and it made me realize that they never thought on their own,” I glanced

  at him out of the corner of my eye. Now I understand why Winter

  had become so frantic when she had heard his voice in the cabin.

  He was looking lovingly at Ember, “I preserved her body. She

  died young and I knew that it would be good for London to be

  able to take out some of her frustrations on Ember’s body. So the

  Ember you see here is actually the Ember that bullied my poor

  little sister as a child.”

  My mind was beginning to spin. Now I knew why he wasn’t

  afraid of her. Now I knew why he had tested my strength and my

  wits. So she would know how to best fight me off. He had been

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  watching me like an experiment.

  “Roan’s story is much simpler,” he said glancing at her.

  “Roan was the name of a boy that I loved. He told me he loved

  me back but it was a cruel joke really. All his friends had dared

  him to play along with my affection for him. One night they had

  told him to invite me out and we went to a cliff overlooking the

  town. I leaned over and kissed him, which he returned before the

  door opened and I was pulled out. His friends beat me viciously

  that night and left me broken on that mountain top. I decided as I lay there broken that I would never love again. No boy or girl

  would ever feel my affection again. So because Ember and Roan

  were two of the most evil humans I had ever met, that is how

  these two got their names. Ember kept her name I guess you

  could say,” he said with a chuckle as he put a hand carefully

  against the entry wound on my torso.

  “There were many girls that tried to win my affections and

  many that I wanted to love. Females seem gentler than males in

  the world of love and I wanted to experience something

  meaningful, but I promised myself never again, you know?” He

  said as he placed a worn leather strap in my mouth. “Bite down,

  Caelum. I’ll try to be as quick as I can.”

  I did as I was told and stared straight at the ceiling. I knew

  the pain that would come next; I could only hope I was still

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  somewhat immune to it.

  “Anyway, I clearly broke that promise to myself when I first

  laid eyes on you. I couldn’t help it. What I didn’t know though

  until you told me was that London had made you. I knew I

  shouldn’t have left her alone, but after she burned out mother’s

  factory down gathering tools to make you, I knew she would need

  to figure things out for herself.”

  It all made sense to me then. Morrison was the mother of

  London and Edison. I should have known when he told me it

  helped to be the son of a seamstress but I wasn't thinking clearly then. I should have also known of Edison's treachery when Winter

  was scared of the voice in the cabin and insisted that we leave.

  Was Morrison hiding in this place of hell as well? Why had

  Edison been so keen on helping me destroy London if he had

  every intention of caring for her?

  "Now, I know I said that Ember was the first one I made," he continued as he finally removed the weapon from my torso and

  began to stitch me up, "but honestly, it was little London who was the first. See, she wound up killing herself because of all the

  teasing and I felt like my world had been taken from me."

  I felt something wet land on my chest and realized that he had

  tears falling as he spoke of London's death.

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  "There, all better," he said as he placed the final stitch in place.

  "You can release him now," he commanded Ember and Roan.

  They let go of my legs and arms and Edison continued his story.

  "Our mother was distraught over her death, but not as badly as I was. For years London had been my sole companion and I

  refused to lose her. I had always been a technical genius and I

  knew certain things about the human anatomy, so I experimented

  with Ember before I finally figured out how to bring London back

  to life. So in all honesty, when London screamed that she's "one", she was telling you here number. She was the first one created.

  Then Ember even though her number isn't two. It's eight one two,

  the night that London died."

  "Please let him go!" Winter shrieked from where she stood.

  I turned slightly to be able to see her still standing in front of the mirror paralyzed. I wondered why she hadn't moved to help

  me when I saw the reason.

  The eyes in the mirror blinking and the smile starting to

  manifest. I should have known from the first time I met her since

  I didn't have much of a reason to trust her. It was Jett. She was the mirror holding Winter hostage where she stood as the scene

  before us unfolded.

  "What's up, Junk Heap?" she asked casually as she stepped 179

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  out of the mirror still holding on to Winter. "You really fell for that 'we can all change line' didn't you?"

  "Silence Jett, there's no reason to taunt him. He's already in a compromising enough situation," Edison said to her.

  Jett immediately sulked and looked away as she tightened her

  grip on Winter.

  "Get to your feet Caelum," Edison commanded as he put one of my arms around his shoulder and helped me up.

  As I got to my feet I looked into his eyes and he turned away.

  He must have been able to see the hurt in my face from his

  betrayal. I looked over at London who was still perched in her

  chair watching us with manic eyes.

  Killing London wouldn't change anything. I'd have to kill Jett,

  Ember, Roan, and Edison first.

  "Please understand," Edison began, "I never meant for any of this to happen I just wanted my sister back. I made Ember and

  Roan after London, but I never expected her to make you or the

  others. I just wanted to hurt the ones who hurt me and bring my

  sister back to life."

  "Where's the white haired girl?" I asked staring directly at London.

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  She began to giggle and rock back and forth so I knew that the

  Xandy girl had to be close but I couldn't see her.

  "I'm laying in the ashes as always," came a voice. I turned and looked at the fireplace in time to see a pair of eyes open then

  close again.

  "Xandy doesn't talk much," Edison said thoughtfully.

  "I wasn't speaking to you," I said to him harshly.

  "Jett speaks for me," the voice came again as I watched

  Xandy rise from the ashes yet manage to still look completely

  immaculate as if she hadn't been laying in soot and the parts of

  others. She walked over to Winter and with clawlike hands she

  ran a finger down the side of her face. Winter squirmed as Jett

  held her tightly and Xandy dug a little deeper tearing the flesh

  from the side of Winter's face.

  "Leave her alone!" I shouted making my way to them just as Roan and Ember stood in front of me.

  Xandy turned and looked at me with larg
e, doe like eyes and

  blank stare. Then she looked past me for a moment to Edison. I

  turned to face him as well and saw that he had his arms around

  London sitting on the chair arm and nodded.

  For the first time Xandy smiled as she turned her attention

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  back to Winter and dug her claws into her body and lifted her

  from Jett's grasp. Winter screamed out in pain as Xandy lifted her higher and higher.

  "Caelum," she whispered as she took her last breath.

  I hadn't been able to help her because as Xandy took her from

  Jett, she, Ember, and Roan had converged upon me like a group

  of vultures holding me in place while Winter died in front of me.

  I fell to my knees feeling helpless and felt the tears flowing

  from Jared's eye. One of my very best friends was torn to pieces

  in front of me and I couldn't save her. How then would I be able

  to avenge her?

  In a moment of sheer rage I was able to get back to my feet

  and get the three of them off of me. Roan was the first to die. I

  grabbed her head and ripped it clean off of her body and as Ember

  watched in fear I punched a hole through her chest and ripped out

  her heart and threw it viciously in Jett's face to distract her. It worked, as she squirmed and swatted the heart away from her, I

  grabbed her by her arms and rammed her repeatedly into the wall

  until the fragile parts of her shattered into a million small pieces.

  "Three down," I said looking Xandy in the eyes.

  She didn't look worried or concerned instead she held my

  gaze for a moment then turned her attention back to Edison.

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  "No. Don't touch him," he said sternly.

  "Spare me the pity," I seethed at him. "Everything you've said to me or felt for me was a lie. It was all a ploy to make sure I

  wasn't strong enough to kill London, what you didn't count on

  was me being able to dispose of your toys so quickly. I swear to

  you, for Winter and Jared, everyone in this room will die tonight."

  "I don't think so Caelum," he said moving away from London.

  "I loved you and I still do. That wasn't a lie and it hurts me that you think that. However, I never feared London because I know

  how harmless he really is. Yes, you killing those three so quickly was a surprise and it shows me how far you have progressed, but

  I can't allow you to hurt my sister. We could live here you know,

  the three of us. I can program London to never hurt you again and

  you could stay here with me. It would be a beautiful life. I

  promise there would be no more nightmares and no more harm or

  pain, just tell me that's what you want too and I can make it

  happen."

  I stood there hiding my disbelief in what he was suggesting.

  He wanted me to let London live when she had been the cause of

  so many deaths of those that really cared for me and be a happy

  family together. Edison came closer and put his hands on either

  side of my face. Gently he pulled my face closer to his and placed his lips softly against mine.

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  I made my move and heard him grunt in surprise. I pulled

  myself away from him and looked into his huge, surprised eyes as

  he looked down. I had done to him what London had done to me.

  The rotary cutter was sticking out of his body, handle deep with

  blood rushing out of the wound.

  "I want you all to die," I said as he crumpled to his knees.

  "But -- I -- Caelum," he gasped out as he put his hands on the handle attempting to pull it out.

  I raised my eyes to London who was staring at me in surprise

  and fear. I had just mortally wounded her creator and now she

  was next.

  "London," he said in labored breath, "Run little sister. Run."

  He fell to the floor in front of me and I looked down watching

  the blood pool around him and the lifeless look in his eyes. For a moment I felt my heart hurting at something so beautiful dying so

  tragically but it was what I wanted and I had accomplished it. I

  turned my attention away from Edison to London just in time to

  see her leap out of the window.

  "NO!" I shouted as I ran toward the window in time to see her run at inhuman speeds off of the property and disappear into the

  woods.

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  I was about to leap out the window after her when I turned

  around looking frantically for a weapon and noticed the journal,

  my journal in the chair where she and Edison had sat. I ran over

  to it and flipped through it until I found the pages that gave

  detailed explanations of how to sustain me and collapsed in relief onto the chair.

  I had more time now. I would be able to restore myself and

  avenge my fallen friends and myself. I would have more time to

  find and dispose of London.

  Letting out a sigh of relief, I looked over at Edison's body

  only to find that it wasn't there anymore. I was confused for a

  moment until on the far end of the room I saw Xandy with Edison

  over her shoulder give me a deadly stare before she too, leapt

  from one of the windows and disappeared with Edison's body into

  the wilderness.

  "Caelum?" a voice asked timidly.

  I looked at the door I had barricaded so well and saw Cassara

  standing there looking at me curiously.

  "Is she dead yet?" she asked.

  "No. She got away. But most of them are dead and I have the

  book. Let's burn this place to the ground and get ready to finish

  this once and for all," I said to her as I rose from the chair.

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  I glanced over at Winter's torn body tossed aside like one of

  London's unfinished projects and my heart hurt for her. I picked

  up the ravaged beauty and asked Cassara to clear the main work

  table and to place one of the unused cloths on it. I wouldn't leave Winter laying on the ground like that.

  I placed her gently in the middle of the table and crossed her

  fragile, small arms over her chest and ran my hands over her hair.

  Behind me I heard Cassara sniffle quietly as I leaned down and

  gave Winter a gently kiss on her lips. I knew it was a sign of

  affection now and I needed her to know that I did care for her. I

  vainly hoped she would feel it in some way.

  After I had decided that she was properly cared for now,

  Cassara and I began to place kindling around her and throughout

  the house. I went back into the room where Winter lay in pieces

  and after pouring some kind of strong smelling liquid on the floor around her, I lit a match letting it fall to the ground.

  From outside we watched as the fire that would engulf

  London's only home and our place of torture raged into an

  uncontrollable inferno.

  Cassara put her head on my shoulder as we stood there and in

  that moment, I became more determined than ever that London

  Blackhouse would be dead soon enough.

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ends