Before I Wake

Part 17

"If you did not kill her. Who did?" I am met with nothing but silence. Turning toward my husband I see that he has not heard me. Let us try this again.

"If you had not killed my beloved servant. Then who did?" His eyes trail back to mine and they are dark in color. This is most unusual. Nobody I have come across has eyes pitch black. No one it seems but the creature I am now married to.

I was a fool. I should have never went looking for him. I should have never rejected the men my father wanted me to betroth. I should have never sent that first letter. 

I should have just stayed home with my father and my servant. The good lord knows had I done so she would still be here. I should have let my father select my husband. This was foolish to think I could do this on my own.

Now, I have no where to turn and nobody to turn toward. There is not a soul for several miles.

"My dear, come back into the house. There is much to discuss. I shall explain everything. I do apologize for you having witnessed such a horrid sight. It is not ladylike of you to see. It is also not ladylike for you to not have listened to me." 

His voice is not the way it was before. It is rough, dangerous even. I am unsure if this is the man I married. He is in several ways very different from how he acted only this morning. 

That seems like a lifetime ago. Already this day has gone from hopeful to terrible and I fear it is not over. 

I can not seem to look him in the eyes. All I wish is to sit in this tree alone. All I wish is to figure out these truths from the lies. 

I say these things yet at the same time find myself being led toward the base of the tree by the man that I am not sure I can trust. I am not even sure he is human. Are any of them? 

I know there is a reason I can see them. The dead that is. There is more around these grounds than once believed. They all appear to be sitting in the trees. They are watching. Some of them are men. Some of them are women. I even see children. All of them dead. They all have this haunted look about them. It clearly says they are not welcome here but they can not leave.

He jumps off of the last branch toward the ground. Then turns toward me. I am about to let him catch me when I glance over toward the closest tree near. It seems to be a willow and spot a young deceased boy hidden among the shadow. 

There is something recognizable about the child. I see that he is blind, his hair is pitch black but there appears to be clotted blood along the left side. It is as if he was struck by a blunt object until he departed from this life. He holds a finger to his lips in a way to silence me. This child does not appear to be an older than the age of nine. 

He is dressed in black mourning clothes. Just like the woman from the chapel. Unlike the woman however I do not feel a connection. Perhaps it is because I do not know this child. It appears he died long before the turn of the century. Perhaps in the Victorian time. 

"To what are thee looking at miss?" I turn toward the speaker and find myself staring into eyes almost pitch black as my husbands. Then just as quickly they appear to take color once more. 

"I thought I had seen something catch my eye over by the other tree. The willow." Immediately something tells me I should not have said a thing. I see her jaw set stiff and her eyes grow dark once more. Although not as dark as they were before. 

"Tis nothing miss. Come let us get you inside the house. You must be faint after your excitement today." Something also tells me not to go back into the house. Something shall happen to me if I do not keep up appearances. Something also shall happen to me because of my actions.