by Amy Cross
"Cut her throat," says Thomas Parkinson, grabbing my neck and holding my head back. Other hands grab the rest of my body, clutching clumsily onto my arms and legs so as to hold me in place.
"I am so sorry, Victoria," Albert says, with tears in his eyes. "I tried to save you, but I was too weak. I do not know when, exactly, Satan entered your soul, but I should never have allowed myself to be blinded by your beauty. Please do not think that I consider myself blameless in this matter. For the rest of my life, I shall mourn the fact that I was unable to wipe away the evil in your heart." He lays the tip of the blade against my neck, before moving it down to my left breast. "I will try to ensure that there is not much pain," he continues. "However, I feel that the only way to do this is to cut out your heart and pour salt upon it, even as it still beats." He adds a little more pressure to the knife, and the very tip of the blade perforates my skin, causing a drop of blood to dribble down the curve of my breast.
"Albert, don't do this!" I sob, struggling to get free as tears roll down my cheeks. I simply cannot believe that after everything I have been through, I am to die at the hands of the man I love.
"Dear Lord," Albert says, staring at me, "forgive me for what I am about to do. Judge not your faithful servant, and we beg of you to ensure that your child is taken into your flock and forgiven for all earthly sins. I beseech you to extend your forgiveness for these grave errors, and to recognize that your child was merely confused and misled. Show her -"
"Enough!" Dr. Collings shouts. "Do it!"
"Amen," Albert says. He pauses for a moment, and then he pulls the knife away, turns to Dr. Collings, and plunges the blade directly into his face.
I watch as Dr. Collings staggers back. The knife has gone in through his left eye and is now buried up to the hilt. He starts to fall, but some of the others manage to catch him.
"Run!" Albert hisses at me, with tears in his eyes. "Victoria, run! Go to Florence! I will meet you there, I promise! Just go!"
My heart is beating wildly as I watch Dr. Collings being lowered to the ground.
"Victoria! Go!" Albert says, pulling me away from the other men.
"What about you?" I ask breathlessly. "I must stay with you!"
He shakes his head. "I can deal with this, my dear, but only if you are already gone. Do not stop. Do not look back. Just go to Florence and wait for me there!"
I stare at him for a moment. "I love you," I say finally.
"And I you," he replies. "Go!"
Without another pause, I turn and start running. I half expect to be caught and dragged back by one of the men, but after I have been running for a few minutes I realize that perhaps I am to get away after all. Eventually I permit myself to slow and glance back over my shoulder, and I see that there is no-one behind me. Glancing around, I see the dawn light shining through the mist that floats between the trees. Alone and naked, I feel overcome for a moment, as if I cannot possibly keep going. I want, more than anything, to go back and find Albert, to make sure he is okay, but he gave me an order to reach safety and I am determined to obey my husband's word. Looking down, I see the small cut on my breast where the knife briefly dipped into my skin. With a heavy heart, I continue running barefoot through the forest, heading for the faraway town of Florence.
Chapter Five
Today
Hurrying out into the dark corridor, I try to stay calm. My heart is pounding and I can feel sheer, cold panic in my gut, but I keep telling myself that there's no reason to be scared. For one thing, a skeleton can't hurt anyone; for another, I know that wherever he is, Bill is nearby and I just have to go and find him. He's most likely still in the building, so I just have to stay calm. Fumbling along the pitch-black corridor, I carefully find the top of the stairs and start slowly making my way down to the reception area of the hotel.
"Bill!" I shout, trying not to sound like I'm scared. I wait a moment, but there's no reply. "Bill!" I shout a little louder, reminding myself that there's no need to be afraid. I'm just experiencing a perfectly normal, totally natural autonomic response to a shocking moment, but I'm a grown woman and I can hold myself together rather than collapsing into a screaming mess. "Bill!" I shout for a third time as I reach the bottom of the stairs. At least down here, there's a little moonlight so that I can see where I'm going, but after a moment I notice a human figure on the floor. Running over, I kneel down, convinced that Bill has had some kind of accident. However, when I roll him over, I see that it's not Bill at all; it's a dead male with horrific burns over his entire body. Recoiling, I crawl away until I'm over by the wall.
"Bill!" I scream, unable to contain myself any longer. "Bill!"
I wait.
Nothing.
Deciding I have to get out of the building, I stand up and hurry over to the door. At the last moment, I glance back at the burned body and see to my shock that his eyes are open. I swear to God, those same eyes were closed a moment ago. Still, that's a perfect example of how the mind can play tricks on you when you're in a stressful situation. I stumble out into the town square, but I'm starting to get seriously worried about Bill. I can understand why he might have gone off to look around, but I don't get why he wouldn't have heard me calling him.
"Bill!" I shout at the top of my voice, as I run to the center of the square. Glancing around, I see nothing but dark, looming buildings. I feel a slight cramp in my stomach as I hurry toward the street that I think leads back toward the truck, but after a moment I spot a nearby door hanging open. "Bill!" I call out, figuring that maybe he's out here somewhere. There's no reply, but this time I hear a noise from somewhere inside the dark little building. Without a second thought, I take a step into the building, before realizing that I can't see a thing. I call out for him yet again, but he doesn't respond, so I run around the outside and try to see in through the windows. After a moment, I spot something in one of the rooms; it takes a moment before I see that it's a coffin with the lid open, and the rotten body of a human figure can be made out in the moonlight.
Stumbling back, I take a deep breath and try to regather my composure. I have to stay calm and make sure that I don't let a series of startling images overwhelm my senses. There's a rational explanation for everything I've seen, even if right now I have no idea what that explanation might involve. The more pressing matter is the fact that I can't find Bill anywhere.
"Bill!" I shout. I listen to the night air, desperate for some sign that he's coming, but all I hear is silence. Turning, I run along the street, figuring that my best bet is to go and lock myself in the truck. At least that way, I know Bill won't have too much trouble finding me. After a couple of minutes, I reach the end of the street and emerge at the edge of the town, but I don't see the truck anywhere. I've clearly become disorientated, but I figure all I need to do is stay at the edge of the forest and work my way around the perimeter until I find the spot where we parked the truck.
"Bill!" I call out again as I stumble across the muddy ground. At the last moment, I suddenly pull up as I realize I'm about to tumble into some kind of pit. I look down and see what appears to be an empty grave. Seeing movement in the corner of my eye, I look over at the town and spot a figure up ahead, standing in the darkness. At first, I assume it must be Bill, but then I see that there are others standing nearby, all of them shrouded in darkness. Panicking, I turn and run into the forest, determined to find somewhere to hide. We assumed that Devil's Briar was abandoned, but now I'm starting to think that perhaps we were wrong. I figure I need to take cover out here and wait until morning, and then I should be able to get a better idea of what's happening. A moment later, however, I trip and land hard on the ground.
Hauling myself up, I look straight ahead and see that I'm right next to what appears to be a large pile of human bones. There are half a dozen skulls staring back at me in the moonlight, and my mind immediately goes blank. I have a strong memory of some other moment, and I feel like I've seen these same bones before. Just for a moment, I remember standing
here in the daylight, with Ed and another man. I experience a vivid flashback to a day that can't possibly have happened.
"Let's not make too many assumptions," Ed is saying in the flashback. "We don't know that these people were from Devil's Briar. Even if they were, there's still the question of where everyone else went."
"If these were the only survivors," the other man says, "perhaps they stayed behind for a reason. Perhaps the others went to get help, and they left the old and the sick."
"It's possible," Ed says, peering at something on the ground. "There's a bible here," he continues after a moment.
"There's another one over here," the other man adds. "Make that three."
"A group of people, huddled just outside the town, clutching bibles," Ed continues. "Anyone got any idea what might have happened here?"
Sitting back, I find myself once more alone in the darkness as the memory fades. I scramble to my feet and run further into the forest, but I come to a halt as I find myself faced with yet another skeleton. This one has a large knife sticking out of its face, with the blade embedded in the left eye socket. Nearby, yet another skeleton is partially hidden in some kind of cloth sack. I turn to run, but I see a figure walking nearby; a naked woman, stumbling between the trees, she doesn't seem to notice me as she hurries away from the town. Fearing that the whole forest is full of these visions, I turn and run back toward Devil's Briar, determined to find Bill.
Eventually I emerge in a small clearing and to my relief I spot the truck parked nearby. I run over and climb in, pulling the door shut and hitting the locks. Finally, I sit and take a series of deep breaths, determined to calm down and work out what just happened. I'm a calm, rational person, and I don't believe in ghosts. Still, over the past few minutes I've seen things that have sent my heart-rate soaring. All I want is to find Bill and get out of here. I stare out the window and see the town up ahead, and I try to decide what to do next. Earlier, I called Bill's name out over and over again, and there was still no sign of him. Devil's Briar isn't very big, so I don't get how he could not have heard me. I reach into the glove-box and pull out the keys to the truck. At least I can get out of here if necessary, although first I need to find Bill.
I don't manage to sleep at all. I just sit in the truck all night, staring at the town and hoping that eventually Bill will come and find me. Eventually the horizon starts to lighten, and I watch as night becomes day. After a while, I realize that it's now or never, so I get out of the truck and start walking toward the town. I know it's crazy, but the place seems far less creepy now that there's better light. I can't help wondering if maybe the events of last night were just some kind of feverish dream. After all, Bill keeps reminding me that the pregnancy is playing havoc with my body, and maybe he's right? Maybe all that happened last night was that I panicked and started imagining things in the dark.
I wander the streets of Devil's Briar, afraid to call out Bill's name. For as long as I keep quiet, I can tell myself that he'll be here somewhere; if I call for him and he doesn't reply, I'll have to face the very real prospect that he has vanished. While I can't even begin to understand how a man could disappear in a place like this, I'm starting to wonder if perhaps he was taken by a wild animal of some description. It's not inconceivable that a bear, or a pack of wolves, might have entered the town during the night and dragged him away. While that isn't a very likely explanation, it's at least possible and - right now - it's the only thing that makes sense.
Eventually I reach the town square, and to my surprise I see a figure standing by the large metal cross. My first instinct is to rush toward him, but after a moment I realize that he's not wearing the same clothes as Bill. Whereas Bill should be wearing jeans and a shirt, this man is wearing some kind of dark suit. I stare at him, and he slowly turns and smiles, and I finally see that it is Bill after all.
"Where the hell have you been?" I shout, running over to him. "What the hell are you wearing?"
He stares at me, looking completely shocked.
"Bill?" I say, as I get closer to him. "What are you doing?"
"I..." He pauses. "I made it."
"Made what?"
He takes a deep breath. It's almost as if he's in shock. "This must be..." He looks up at the cross. "If Victoria..."
"Are you okay?" I ask. "Who's Victoria?"
"She's my..." He pauses for a moment, and finally he smiles. "Paula?"
"Uh-huh."
He turns and looks around at the buildings that surround the town square. "It all looks so..." He glances back at me. "We have to destroy the cross. We have to complete the loop."
"What are you talking about?" I ask. It's weird, but Bill seems so different, almost as if I barely even know him. All I care about is getting out of here; once we're away from Devil's Briar, we can start to go through all the events systematically and work out exactly what happened.
"There's... there's dynamite in the truck," he says, stumbling over his words a little. "Not much, but probably enough. Come on, we have to get it." He turns to walk away, but then he stops and looks back to me. "I know this won't make much sense right now, Paula, but I've missed you. You've got no idea where I've been, but trust me, I've learned so much. All we have to do is close the loop and then we can start picking it apart. I got the first part of the experiment right, and now I just have to make sure the second part goes according to plan."
"I don't have a clue what you're talking about," I say, "but we have to get out of here."
"As soon as we've got the dynamite and destroyed this thing," he says, glancing up at the cross once again before turning and running toward one of the nearby streets. I hurry after him, but the cramp in my stomach is getting worse. Eventually I have to pause by one of the shops, leaning against the wall as the pain gets stronger. I take a series of deep breaths, determined to get my mind together, but I can't help wondering if something's wrong with the baby. By the time the pain has subsided, Bill is on his way back from the truck, carrying a crate of dynamite.
"You can't be serious," I say.
"Trust me," he replies with a smile. "I've been waiting my whole life for this moment." He hurries past, and I have no choice but to follow. Whatever's going on, it seems almost as if Bill has lost his mind. I figure I just have to make sure I get him back in the truck, and away from this place, and hopefully we can start to put everything straight. I have no idea what's happening here at Devil's Briar, but I need to get us both away from this place. I don't know if Bill has lost his mind, but I can't think of any other way to explain his behavior. As I catch up to him, I find that he has already started to set the dynamite around the base of the cross.
"Bill..." I say, terrified that there might be an explosion at any moment.
"Just one moment," he says, grinning as he finishes laying out the dynamite. "I'm ready. After all these years, I'm finally ready to finish what I started. Victoria was supposed to do it, but she made a terrible mistake. So it's down to us." He turns to me and smiles. "Okay, Paula. This is where it's going to start getting a little complicated."
Chapter Six
1925
Having wandered through the forest for hours, I'm starting to think that perhaps I will never reach Florence. Granted, the town is many miles from Devil's Briar, and I was expecting to walk for at least a day, but I am beginning to lose my sense of direction. I have been trying to judge my course according to the position of the sun, but slowly I am losing even this option; I do not know whether it is through tiredness, or hunger, but I feel as if it is getting harder and harder to concentrate. For all I know, I might even have begun to accidentally walk back toward Devil's Briar.
"And even if you reach Florence," says a familiar voice nearby, "what will you do then?"
Turning, I see my uncle standing a few meters away. I am no fool, though; having once believed that my uncle was returning from the grave, and having then been shown his rotten and discolored corpse, I know full well that he is gone forever. The image bef
ore me must be a part of my imagination, yet he looks so real; it is almost as if I could reach out and touch him, but the human mind is a powerful thing and I am clearly hallucinating.
"How do you think the people of Florence will react to a naked woman wandering into their midst, Victoria?" He pauses for a moment. "How do you think they'll react when they learn who you are, and what you did to Devil's Briar?"
"I was only trying to complete your work," I say, my voice harsh and dry after walking for so long.
"That's not how they'll see it," he replies. "They'll see a heretic. They'll see a sinful woman, flagrantly baring her sexuality. They'll see someone who has destroyed one community, causing the deaths of many people, and who has come to destroy another. Do you really think they'll welcome you with open arms? You saw how the people of Devil's Briar reacted to you in the end. You'll face the same thing wherever you go, Victoria. I'm sorry, but you can no longer run."
"Albert says -"
"Do you really believe Albert will come for you?" he continues, laughing. "Albert would have said anything to get you to leave. Even now, he's organizing the survivors to start rebuilding the town." He smiles. "I once thought Albert Caster was a fool, Victoria, but now I see that he is indeed a wise man. He knew full well that you would never survive the walk to Florence, but he sent you out here anyway. He loved you, and he could not bear to see you die right in front of him, so he sent you on a journey that would protect him from having to witness the moment of your passing."
