by Rick Kueber
Theo found himself present as the man, bare-handedly, murdered three innocent people, and he watched as the beast left the man's body and flung him out of the window as he was shot by the attending guard. He followed the entity through the wall and into the adjacent room where it had intended the final murder to occur. Inside of that room was a young woman, driven to madness by fear and grief. The beast reached for her, but was unable to physically touch her. It was a conundrum to the demon and to Theo, how this woman could remain untouchable, and yet be so obviously weak and mentally unstable.
This young woman, Madison, could feel the evil presence and had heard the commotion and gunshot in the next room. Reaching up to the neckline of her dreary gown, her fingers found the silver necklace and the moonstone pendant that hung from it. To Theo this stone glowed with an inner radiance and he could feel its power. The beast could evidently feel it too, and with a howl of displeasure, it dispersed into a hundred slivers of evil and overtook nearly the entire residence, one by one. If it could not have her, it would surround her with evil and make her life a living hell until it found a way to end her and take over her soul.
Theo reached out to Madison, but she cowered away, which astounded him. How could she possibly see him? They were existing in different times and dimensions.
“It is mine.” She wept quietly, clinging to the pendant around her neck. “It was a gift... she gave it to me... when I'm dead, I will return it to her.”
“Can you hear me? Can you see me?” was all that Theo could manage to get out, but there was no answer. He placed his hand on her reluctant shoulder and was given a vision within a vision... a flash back through time.
Madison was just a child of eleven or twelve. She sat crying, frightened that her parents and the church would find out that she had been able to see ghosts and spirits, as long as she could remember. They had only just moved to this small town to avoid persecution after she had been called out for her oddities in their home town. In their eyes she would be labeled as a devil worshiper or a witch, and be an outcast, or even killed for something that she had no control over. Theo thought of how cruel the people in this world could be, and it hadn't changed. People were persecuted for the color of their skin, their sexual orientation, and even their appearance; none of which is truly in their control. When narrow-minded people had influence over others, the ignorance and intolerance only grew.
He watched as a little blonde headed girl, a year or two younger than Madison walked past him and approached the crying girl. The girl's clothes were dirty and disheveled. Her bare feet gave the impression that she rarely wore shoes, and perhaps didn't even own any. In spite of her desperate appearance, she held her closed hand out to Madison.
“Here, take this. I think it’s magic... maybe it can protect you.” The tiny voice said. “It's beautiful...” Madison choked out as she took a silver necklace from the girl. The white moonstone pendant glistened in the sunlight and a rainbow of colors appeared. It truly did feel as if it held some power of good, as if it were infused with some white magic.
“The preacher man had it blessed when my momma died, and father said it would protect me. I wore it for a little while, but I think it made him sad. I think it made him think of mama, so I hid it away and told him I lost it. I got a good beatin' for that, but it was better than seeing him so sad.” The cotton topped girl said as Madison put the necklace on.
The two girls giggled and played a clapping game to a rhyme they made up as they played. “Two little girls, So cute and nice,
Met their death, In fire and ice.
For a hundred years, They played in hell,
With tortured souls, Where angles fell.
When the dead girls cried, The living came...”
“Come on now girl. Get over here now. We gotta get home.” The girl's Father appeared and stopped the song short.
“I have to go.” The blonde girl'seyes grew open wide as Madison hid the treasured necklace.
“Thank you for your kindness.” Madison said. “I will cherish it, and I will cherish you, friend. What is your name?” The little girl looked over her shoulder to Theo, her icy blue eyes pierced his soul in a moment of clarity. She turned back to young Madison and said, “I am Ashley, but you can call me Ash.”
“I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Ash. My name is...” Before she could finish her sentence, Theo felt himself being pulled through time and space calling out “Nooooooooo!” knowing there were more pieces to the puzzle he could have discovered if he had only been able to stay in that dream world. He felt his world shaking, and was awakened by Hilary, shaking his shoulder.
“Hey buddy, time to wake up. I'm making some breakfast.” She said to Theo, who rubbed his eyes, returning to reality.
***Hilary*** Of the four of us, Hilary was the only one who had any difficulty falling asleep. To avoid tossing and turning and possibly waking Mike, she headed downstairs to the kitchen and snatched a cold bottle of beer from the fridge. Taking the beer and her cigarettes outside, she took a seat on one of the loungers on the rear deck. Her home was just a few miles from the infirmary, but the drizzling rain had missed it. With a grinding snap, her Bic took flame and with a deep draw, she lit her cigarette. Holding it between her lips, she laid her lighter on the table next to her and with a grunt and a twist, her beer was opened.
The air was crisp and cool, but still noticeably warmer than it had been inside the old Infirmary. She sipped at her beer, thinking she wouldn't have to worry about it getting warm. The thought gave her a chill, but also made her smile as she took another deep drag and the smoke billowed from her shivering lips. While she slowly drank her beer, the night air caused her necklace to grow cold. She took it in her hand and crushed out her cigarette with the other hand.
Pulling the necklace over her head, she looked at it in the dim dusk-to-dawn light that filtered over from the front side of her home. It was a beautiful stone pendulum on a leather cord. Hilary had used it at times to connect with the spiritual world, but after tonight, her desire to be close to the other side was shaken. Placing the pendulum carefully on the table next to the half empty beer, she gazed up to the sky watching the clouds part and reveal a few brilliant stars. She took it as a sign that she should not abandon her passion and her gift. Hilary had been able to, at times, see and communicate with those who had passed.
While she watched the stars, she drifted off for a while. Her sleep, unsurprisingly, turned to dreams. Similar to Theo, she found herself inside of the Infirmary when it was still young and filled with life, twisted and tormented as it may have been. It was late evening, and many people passed by her in the hallways. None seemed to hold any special significance to Hilary until two male orderlies rushed by, their arms interlocking on either side with the arms of a young woman with coal black hair... Madison. Though no one seemed to pay notice to Hilary's presence, the two orderlies looked directly at her with eyes as cold and pale blue as the moonlight on the snow just outside the windows.
She followed them through the fourth floor of the infirmary and watched as they dragged her, against her will into the bathing therapy room. The men stripped the gown from her pale body, and forcefully picked her up and dunked her naked body into a large steel tub of icy water, going so far as to even push her head completely under the water while she struggled. Gasping as her face broke the surface of the water, the men cackled and dunked her once again. Her struggling and screaming combined with the icy waters drained her energy. When the men pulled her from the tub, she shivered and collapsed onto the floor. One of the men picked her up by grabbing her around her waist and placed her on a table against the far wall of the room. While the other man held the door closed, the first had his way with young Madison, sexually assaulting her in a very unpleasant and degrading way.
When he had finished, the men picked her completely up, and dunked her several times in a scalding hot tub of water just next to the ice bath. The second man took his turn, raping the poor gir
l, and while she was nearly lifeless from spending all of her energy, Hilary could feel the horrors of emotion that filled her mind. Madison could not believe this was happening to her, or that this was what her life had become. Maddie's emotions were as clear to Hilary as if she could read her mind, and Maddie was feeling that somehow she had deserved this treatment, and maybe worse.
Unable to look away, Hilary watched as the ritual abuse and the 'hot and cold therapy' were repeated until the woman was all but dead. When they had finished, the cruelty continued. One of the men grabbed her gown and was about to begin dressing her when an evil grin grew across his face, exposing his crooked and yellowed teeth. He dunked the gown into the icy tub and the slid it over her dripping and tangled hair. They pulled her arms through the sleeve holes and proceeded to walk her, stumbling, back to her fourth floor apartment, where she was locked in for the night.
Hilary entered the room and watched as the men threw her to the floor and left her there, soaking wet. They grabbed up the blanket and locked the door behind them. Their voices and footsteps trailed off down the hall. Hilary wanted to comfort the poor girl, but was merely an observer from a different plane of existence. Maddie was weak and used up, but she managed to drag herself into the bed. A metallic rattle and accompanying squeaking groan came from a small radiant heater near the window and filled the small room.
Hilary began to see Maddie's breath as the room grew colder. The young woman shivered uncontrollably and curled her soaking wet body into a fetal position. Hilary found herself outside, peering in through the fourth story window. She could see the sheet beneath Madison beginning to soak through as the window began to frost over from the inside. When she could see nothing but frost through the glass, she was jolted to reality.
Nearly two hours had passed and she was nearly freezing, having fallen asleep in the deck chair. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes and rubbing warmth into her exposed arms, she rushed to the warm refuge of her home and slipped quietly back into bed for a few more hours of dreamless sleep.
***Mike*** Having worked that day, Mike fell into a sound sleep the moment his head hit the pillow, but like the rest of us, his sleep was plagued with unsettling dreams. As a rule, it was quite unusual for Mike to have otherworldly revelations and dreams, but this night would prove to be the exception, and not the rule.
The sunlight filtered through the thick, light gray, winter clouds. A frozen mist hung heavy in the air and shrouded the world in mystery. Mike stood outside of the infirmary, on this cold and snowy morning, watching as two men were digging feverishly into the frozen ground. Standing beside where the men dug, was a ghastly apparition of a woman with raven black hair, knotted and tangled. Bits of flesh ripped from her exposed body, leaving reddish-blackened splotches scattered about her left side. Hollow black eyes exuded sadness. Looking on, he watched as the men stopped using the shovels and began to dig at the earth with garden rakes and eventually with glove covered hands.
The ghostly woman faded into the mist, disappearing altogether. He watched as the men pulled a body, wrapped in mud stained sheets, from the ground and carried it to a nearby horse drawn wagon. Thick leather straps with black iron connecting rings and embellishments harnessed the two brown and white steeds to the black, short-sided wagon. The apparition materialized on the far side of the horses, just as the men heaved the cadaver into the back of the cart. The horses began to snort and stomp the ground wildly, as if they had been spooked by a snake, cougar, or some other predator. The two men grabbed the reins and tried to calm the horses. One of the men passed right through the ghastly form of the woman, and her form faded again, seemingly becoming wisps of fog in the breeze. A calm came over the horses and they quieted their spirits.
One of the young men scaled the side of the wagon and sat, flat legged, next to the lifeless corpse. Mounting the driver’s seat, the other man took the reins in his hands, tipped his hat toward the Infirmary, and popped the horses on their hind quarters with the leather straps, making a “click-click” sound with his mouth. The horses started off very slowly down the Infirmary drive and made a nearly hairpin left turn onto the main road. Another tap with the reigns and the team broke into a slow trot.
Unexpectedly, just before they vanished out of sight, the nightmarish specter of the woman appeared on the road directly in front of the horses. The iron-shod hooves dug deep into the frozen road, stopping so abruptly that the strong snap-rings broke free from the wooden connecting shafts, allowing the wagon to roll forcefully into the rear of the horses. Now terrified, the horses reared up and twisted wildly, bucking and kicking in a frantic frenzy. The rear hooves of one horse kicked upward on the wagon, tipping it backward. The young man and the bedraggled corpse banged against the end gate, busting through it. The man tumbled hard onto the road slamming his head hard against its surface. The weathered wrappings tore free and the cadaver pummeled onto the young man, as the desiccated face and black tangled hair of the corpse slammed into him, face to morbid face.
The splintered harness shaft dug into the side of the other mare, painfully tearing its flesh, and caused it to bolt deliriously. In the chaos of the moment, the ankle of the driver had become tangled in the leather strap of the reins. Screaming feverishly, the driver was dragged nearly a mile down the road, until his boot finally came off freeing him from the torturous ride.
The man from the back of the wagon, the rider, yelled out, throwing the decomposing body from on top of him, and scuffling to his feet, he shook all over, as if he could shake the death and fear from him. He watched as his friend, the driver, was brutally dragged down the snow covered roadway. His first instinct was to run after him, to help his friend, but he had only taken a few steps when, suddenly, a dark fog rolled out from the infirmary, and surrounded the rider, whirling around him like a dust-devil of black ribbons. His focus immediately shifted to the cadaver lying, sprawled out, in the middle of the road and he was mindlessly driven to it.
Moving in a trance-like state, he trudged over to the body. Grabbing the woman's leg, he drug her off of the road, and into the drainage ditch, filled with pale shoots of long dead winter wheat and weeds, and driven snow. He rolled her corpse into the lowest part of the ditch, and nearly animalistic, began to scratch and claw at the drifted snow, covering her body entirely from sight. His energy nearly spent, he crawled back to the road and collapsed, as the swirling ribbons of dark fog retreated back to the Infirmary, having served their cruel purpose. Mike watched as the rider lay there, and just beyond, the apparition of the woman appeared in the ditch, standing next to her own snow covered cadaver. It was a fair distance, but Mike could feel her pain and sorrow, and even thought this spirit seemed to be crying, and calling out for attention and help, with arms outstretched. While he gazed directly at her, the snow began to fall harder, with more and bigger flakes, until the scene had become a near white out.
“Mike... you awake?” A voice called and he was shaken back to reality.
“Huh? Yeah... I guess so.” He grumbled still half asleep. “You hungry?” The voice was now easily recognized as his wife, Hilary. “I'm going to cook breakfast for everybody.”
“Yeah, sure... give me a minute to wake up and get dressed.” He said, rubbing his eyes and wanting to pull the covers over his head. “If it's cold when you come down, it's your own fault... I tried to get you up.” Hilary nudged at him.
“I'm coming.” He said, less groggy, but more grumpy. “Hey!... I gotta tell you about this freaky dream I had last night.”
“Oh yeah?” Hilary looked at him curiously. “I had a bad dream last night too. What was yours about?” “Not right now...remind me later and I'll tell you all about it. Man was it messed up.” He said sitting up on the edge of the bed and throwing the covers off. Mike drew in a deep breath through his nose and smelled a heavenly aroma. “Coffee?”
“I already have a pot brewing” Hilary smiled as she passed through the doorway and turned to head down the stairs to the kitchen. “There
might be a cup left, if you come down quick enough.”
*** I was drawn to the kitchen by the metallic clatter of pans as Hilary began to prepare breakfast. Soon the popping sound of bacon and its salty, smoky aroma filled the room. The scents and sounds of a long overdue meal had aroused Theo as well. Sleepy eyed, Mike, Theo, and I gathered around the oak dining table. Hilary laid out a serving bowl of biscuits, a plate full of bacon, and served up scrambled eggs onto each plate. The aroma was heavenly, and the scent of slightly stronger than normal coffee topped off the perfect meal to awaken to.
After a few mumbled, yet heartfelt 'Thank you's, the table went silent, except for the clinking sound of forks on plates, slurping coffees and moans of delight.. Our mouths and bellies were stuffed with a morning feast we hadn't expected, but so desperately needed. About half way through the meal, Hilary broke the silence.
“So, what about that 'freaky dream' you had Mike?” She said, glancing sideways at him and taking another bite from one of her bacon strips.
“Oh yeah...I almost forgot.” A look of being deep in thought came over his face. “Huh...” “Go on, I want to hear this.” I coaxed him on, wondering if he had a similar dream to mine. I didn't plan on sharing my dream, but I was curious about his.
“Strange...” He said slowly, racking his brain to remember. “Well... was it about the infirmary?” Hilary finally asked. I caught Theo's head jerk toward Hilary as she mentioned it, and then turn straight away to Mike.
“Well, hell! I can't remember.” Mike's frustration was obvious. “I don't think it was about the infirmary, but I just can’t freakin' remember.” He took a few more bites. “All I remember is that it was so real, and so weird. Damn... well, if I remember it, I'll let you know.”
We finished up the meal, not leaving any left overs whatsoever. We helped clear the table as Hilary rinsed the dishes and loaded the dishwasher, while Mike started a second pot of coffee. We all enjoyed a second round of java while we rehashed the night's events.