In the Aftermath: Burning of the Dawn

by Coleman Thompson

  “Thirty-four.” He said, looking back to Clarissa.

  Clarissa replied with a smiling sigh, and then with actual words. “That is impressive. Even more than I was expecting.”

  “You’ve never left Pennsylvania have you?” Daniel asked abruptly.

  “Excuse me?” Clarissa snapped subtly.

  “You see, I’m thinkin’ you want to go west, but you’re hesitant. The Sayona frighten you, but you’ve learned to look for signs of their presence and to avoid them. Something else is keeping you here. I know what it is, too.”

  “Yes, avoiding people like you.”

  “In your case, yeah, I’m sure you aim to avoid everybody. But there are far worse people out there than me. When I left Cincinnati I didn’t go east, not at first; I hadn’t killed anyone at that point either. I went west just like a lot of other people, but I didn’t make it very far. Raiders, robbers, rapists, marauders, murderers: they’re everywhere… tiptoeing in and around the Sayona’s hunting grounds; picking off anything during the day that the monsters don’t get at night. By the time I reached the border of Illinois I had killed more than two dozen people – forced to. I knew the closer I got to the Mississippi the worse it would get for me, so I came back.”

  “For someone who’s so anxious to die, you do put up a hell of a fight to survive. Assuming that whole Cincinnati story isn’t complete bullshit.”

  “All I ask for is a small say in the matter. I don’t want to feed any Sayona, or have some murdering lowlife take everything that I’ve fought for.”

  “What makes you think I’m not a murdering lowlife?”

  “Well, you haven’t murdered me yet, for one. Also, your daughters – they revere you. They love you dearly. If they believed you were evil they wouldn’t act that way.”

  “Maybe they fear me.”

  “No, they don’t fear you. If they did they wouldn’t argue with you, or question some of your decisions. You said you’ve killed a few people yourself; did your daughters witness any of these deaths?”

  It was Clarissa who looked away this time. She leaned her head back against the wall as if she was tired, which she was, but she also did not fancy answering Daniel’s questions. She stared at the ceiling for a moment as she sat quietly. Soon enough, she made her reply: “They’ve witnessed all of them.”

  “They seem to have taken it well.” Daniel added. “As if they know you did it for good reasons; that you did it to protect them. You’re a good woman, Mrs. Hannigan; you’re daughters know this.”

  Clarissa smiled as she looked back to Daniel; it was not a comforting sight. She responded with, “Are you ashamed that you’ve killed so many people?”

  “Yeah, sure, that’s not something to be proud of. I’m not sayin’ they didn’t deserve to die – they were horrible people… I’d just rather someone else had done it instead of me.”

  “I don’t feel any shame over the people I’ve killed.” Clarissa stated stoically. “In fact, when I think back on killing them, I feel contentment, and even a little joy. I’m glad they’re dead and I’m glad I’m the one who killed them.”

  Daniel wasn’t sure how to react to Clarissa’s disturbing revelation. He assumed that maybe she was lying or exaggerating in an attempt to intimidate him. Actually, he was certain it was at least partially done in an attempt to intimidate him, but he was not so sure about the lying or exaggerating aspect. She seemed to be speaking honestly. If it was intimidation she was trying for then the shotgun currently resting across her lap would be far more effective than any words. Luckily, Clarissa spoke again, saving Daniel from having to come up with some kind of retort.

  “It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting:” She preached as she gazed majestically at the shotgun in her lap. “For that is the end of all men.”

  “Is that biblical?” Daniel asked. “Don’t let my name fool you; my Bible studies are severely lacking.”

  “Yeah, it’s biblical.”

  “Are you Catholic?”

  “I am, when it suits me.” Clarissa looked away from her gun and back to Daniel. “That was the Old Testament I was quoting.”

  “There’s a Catholic church here in town, if you’re interested in visiting it.” Daniel added, happy to steer the conversation further away from killing and death. “It’s called Saint Anthony’s, I think.”

  “Saint Anthony, huh? Well, isn’t that fitting.”

  “How so?”

  “If I’m remembering my schoolgirl days correctly, Saint Anthony is the patron saint of lost things.” Clarissa replied complacently. It was fitting indeed: literally for Clarissa and figuratively for Daniel.

  Vita and Maria finished their showering and soon returned to the downstairs accommodations. Both girls were lively and in good spirits. They sat on the floor near their mother and took to drying their long hair, which was still dripping wet. They had changed into much lighter clothing – Maria into sweatpants and Vita into mesh shorts. Both of the girls were wearing T-shirts that were once used for their former middle-school gym class. Clarissa wasn’t especially satisfied with her daughters’ choices of attire, but Daniel seemed to show no more interest in the girls now than he had before – not at first anyway. After they sat down with their mother he looked from daughter to daughter with an odd expression of perplexity. He soon voiced the matter.

  “Okay,” Daniel said in a drawn-out tone. “Who is who exactly?”

  “Vita…” Vita spoke, pointing to herself. She then pointed to her sister and stated, “Not Vita.” Being that they had changed out of their former clothing, Daniel could not tell the twins apart.

  “I was wondering,” Maria spoke while wringing out her hair. “What’s your last name?”

  “Holloway.” Daniel answered.

  “Mr. Daniel Holloway – got it.” Maria replied.

  “Mama, why don’t you take a shower?” Vita both inquired and encouraged. “The water is so nice… you’ll feel almost civilized again.”

  “She’s right, mama.” Maria added. “You should have one, too.”

  “I don’t think so.” Clarissa responded. Her daughters knew why. Clarissa would adore a shower of her own; her daughters looked so shiny and fresh, but in order to do so it would mean she would either have to leave Daniel alone with her daughters, or take him with her into the bathroom. Clarissa found neither option appealing.

  “Your girls are right,” Daniel, too, aimed to encourage. “The pantry in the kitchen is more than capable of holding me. It’ll be dark soon anyway, so you might as well close me in for the night right now and have a little bit of relax time with your daughters. There’s the bathroom down the hall here; you’ll be able to hear everything.”

  What Daniel offered was sound; Clarissa could not find anything to argue with other than the fact that she was letting her guard down. Both of her daughters were more than happy to take up sentry duties, although neither of them liked the idea of locking Daniel in the kitchen pantry. He had earned their trust, for the most part, and even though it was his idea to begin with, Vita and Maria were ashamed at the notion of holding him prisoner inside of his own home – a home he did not hesitate to open up to them. Clarissa would have it no other way, however, and Daniel backed her decision.

  Clarissa quickly, but thoroughly, looked over the pantry (even though Vita had examined it earlier) to make sure nothing was in there with which Daniel could potentially use to break out and do harm. It seemed safe enough. Clarissa backed away and Daniel went in. He took one of the flashlights from the shelves and then sat down quietly on the floor of the pantry. As Clarissa stepped forward to close the door, she felt something exceedingly uncomfortable. The pangs of guilt were not just felt by her daughters now; she felt them, too, for once. Before she closed the door, Clarissa spoke to Daniel.

  “Do you need anything?” She asked in a tone that almost showed signs of compassion.

  “No, thank you,” Daniel replied. “I’ll be fine for the nigh
t. You and your girls should sleep in the storeroom. It’s very unlikely the Sayona will come to town and even less likely that they’ll find this house, and even if they do they’ll never find that storeroom. Just close the door and keep the lights off after dark. You’ll be safe, I promise.”

  “We’ll do that,” answered Clarissa. As she was about to shut the door, Vita appeared behind her.

  “What about you?” Vita gruffly implored to Daniel. “What if the Sayona come? If they get in the house they’ll go right for this door. You won’t stand a chance.”

  “I’ll be okay, Vita.” Daniel spoke, attempting to pacify her worries. “The Sayona have never come anywhere near this house.”

  Vita ran off into the living room to retrieve an item from amongst her belongings. She acquired the item and returned to the pantry door. Vita had obtained her knife. She removed it from its sheath and threw it down in front of Daniel.

  “That’s all you need to kill a Sayona, right?” Vita posed her question, but did not wait for an answer. She returned to the living room, indignantly.

  Daniel took the large knife by the blade and held the handle out to Clarissa. She did not take it. Instead, she spoke, “No, keep it.” She had an urge to say something else, to thank him for the kindness he had shown to her daughters today, and to her as well. The urge soon passed, however, and Clarissa said nothing. She closed the pantry door and slid the bolt to firmly lock it. Maria stood nearby.

  “This isn’t right, momma.” She stated.

  “I know,” Clarissa replied, sympathetically. “But he’ll be okay.”

  Clarissa acquired a couple of towels and a few rags from upstairs. She didn’t want to use the bathroom up there because it was too far away from her daughters. She was conscious of how upset the twins were at the way Daniel was being treated, but she also knew that they would never even consider letting him out behind her back. Clarissa had no fear of her daughters disobeying her on this night; she simply wanted to be close to them. Calling her guarded or paranoid would not be a stretch… she would probably even take it as a compliment.

  The bathroom downstairs had a much smaller window to the outside world; because of this it was also much darker. Clarissa required, and acquired, the lantern used earlier to explore the downstairs bedrooms. This bathroom contained a bathtub and shower combination; Clarissa preferred baths. It would be at least another hour before dark, so there was no need for her to rush. She plugged the drain and switched on the steel faucet. The marble bath was clean and the water was clear, or so it appeared to be with the lighting she had. She undressed as the bath continued to fill. She and her daughters often washed, but it had been a very long time since any of them had bathed. Sometimes Clarissa would let Vita and Maria bathe in a creek or a calm river, but she never joined them. She remained the ever vigilant lookout.

  The water in the bath was cool to the touch. Clarissa turned off the water and stepped into the tub. The water rose around her as she lowered herself in. It was a strange feeling at first, but as her body adjusted to the chill of the water she began to relax. She laid back into the bathtub, letting her hair fully submerge. It felt nice.

  In the living room, Vita and Maria had begun making a pallet on the storeroom floor with blankets acquired from upstairs. The sleeping quarters would be a little cramped with both girls and their mother, but it looked to be comfortable enough for the night. They had definitely slept in worse.

  “We didn’t give Daniel any blankets, or food, or water, or anything.” Vita mumbled, still piqued over the state of Daniel’s current accommodations.

  “Mom asked him if he wanted anything.” Maria muttered back. “He said he didn’t”

  “Still isn’t right.”

  “What’d you expect? Did you really think she was just going to let him roam freely around the house while we sleep?”

  “Why not? It’s not like she sleeps at night anyway.” Vita answered as she put down the last of the blankets. “I’ll be right back, I’m gonna talk to him for a second.”

  Maria made a halfhearted attempt to reason with her sister, but it was predictably in vain. Vita walked into the kitchen and dropped to her knees close to the pantry door. She then lightly tapped on it with her fingernails. Daniel was lying flat on his back with his knees folded against the wall. It was not a comfortable position and he was silently chastising himself for not bringing a blanket with him so he would at least have something somewhat soft to shield him from the turbulent floor. Nevertheless, he was content. It would be a long night for him, but he hoped that Clarissa and her daughters would get some kind of peace, at least for tonight. He was certain that they would be leaving tomorrow. Daniel didn’t like that idea, but there was nothing he could do about it, other than give them as much as they could carry and hope for the best. Clarissa was a proven survivor; Daniel did not doubt her abilities. Still, everybody gets a dose of bad luck eventually. He hoped above all hope that the Hannigans’ would not be fatal. He then heard Vita’s tapping.

  “Hello? Can you hear me, Daniel?” She spoke softly through the door.

  “Yes,” he replied in equal tone. “Which one of you is this?”

  “It’s Vita,” she replied. “Are you okay in there?”

  “I’ve never been better, darlin’. Don’t worry about me.”

  “Okay… I just wanted to say goodnight, and thank you. Thanks for letting us stay here and for feeding us and everything. I know my mom’s kind of domineering sometimes, but we’ve been through a lot with other people and she doesn’t trust anyone anymore. She’s not a bad person though, and you’ve been really nice to her today even when she wasn’t nice to you… anyway, thanks again.”

  “You’re welcome, and thank you. You ladies definitely made my day a lot more fascinating than I was expecting. I’m glad I met you all. Now, you should go, Miss Vita, before we both get into trouble with your mama.”

  “Okay, I will. Goodnight, Daniel.” Vita bid her farewell with an unseen smile and returned to the living room.

  Clarissa gleamed a slight smile herself as she cupped handfuls of water onto her face. She had heard everything that was said between Vita and Daniel, even in their low tones. The wall between the bathroom and the pantry was very thin. Clarissa reached forward and pulled out the drain plug. She stood from her place in the bath and turned on the shower for a quick rinse. Once she was finished with her swift shower, she went about wringing the water out of her hair. Clarissa had left the bathroom door ajar. Her daughters had remained quiet for a little while, but quietness was not in their nature. By the time Clarissa had begun to dry herself, Vita and Maria had begun conversing with one another again.

  Soon mother Hannigan emerged from the bathroom—damp and lustrous—wrapped in a long, blue towel. Her daughters were still sulky, but their moodiness had begun to fade. They might have inherited their mother’s short temper, but they lacked her stalwart and spiteful nature. Both girls were glad to see their mother looking more radiant and refreshed. Clarissa was glad to feel it as well. Her daughters were right: the shower was wonderful and Clarissa felt almost civilized for the first time in a long time. She removed her towel and changed into the light clothing that her daughters had obtained for her earlier. She then approached Vita and Maria who were sitting near the storeroom door. Clarissa kneeled down beside them.

  “I snapped at you girls a few times today, especially you Maria, and it was harsh – too harsh.” Clarissa spoke in an act of contrition. “I regret it, very much. I really hate apologies, but I owe you both one, so…”

  “It’s all right, mama.” Maria responded. “I probably deserved it.”

  “Yeah, probably.” Clarissa retorted, jocosely. “But that doesn’t mean I enjoyed doing it.”

  “It’s been a strange day,” spoke Vita. “More so than usual, and a lot more interesting.”

  “A little too interesting for my liking,” Clarissa replied. “Don’t worry about Daniel; he’ll be fine tonight. First thing in the morning w
e ‘ll let him out.”

  “Are we leaving tomorrow?” Vita asked.

  “Yes, we are,” Clarissa answered. “Not right away though; we’ll pack a few things first, Daniel said we could… then you girls can say goodbye if you want to.”

  Vita’s countenance exuded disappointment and a bit of sorrow, but she knew there really wasn’t any other choice. “It’s probably for the better,” she soon stated. “We’re just a burden to him here anyway; he’ll do better without us around.” There were some twinges of defeatism in Vita’s statements, but she honestly believed in what she said. However, she kept her opinions silent regarding how well she and her mother and sister would fair without Daniel.

  The house was dimmer now as the sun began its inexorable decent. In preparation for nightfall, the Hannigans began clearing out the living room space of any signs of human existence. Daniel’s weapon stash was moved into the storeroom along with clothing, rags, and towels used by the Hannigans. Lastly, the Hannigans themselves were moved into the storeroom. The door was heavy (being that there was a bookcase attached to it), but Clarissa had no difficulty in handling it. With a little bit of effort, she sealed herself and her daughters inside the crowded storeroom. They had the lantern with them, but it would not stay on for much longer. Even though the quarters were tight, the girls had made a decent pallet that would prove more than adequate for the night. When the lantern was finally switched off, the whole storeroom was covered in complete darkness. Soon Vita and Maria slept soundly. Clarissa normally did not sleep at night, but on this night she did. Maybe it was the safety of the storeroom, or maybe her lengthy nap earlier had only left her more tired. Whatever the reason, Clarissa slept again – and again she revisited and relived her memories within her dreams.