I looked into her manic eyes while the hate poured out of me. Never again would I love her. Never again would I trust her. She was nothing to me now.

A FEW DAYS PRIOR…

“Oh, Thomas, I can’t wait for us to be married!” exclaimed Charlotte.

I smiled at her from across the sitting room while she looked up from the book she was reading by the fire. So much love and excitement surround her; she would be the perfect bride. In only a matter of a few days, I was going to be able to marry the love of my life. Life would be wonderful with her in it permanently; us living under one roof starting something completely new and foreign. We would only have to worry about each other and, hopefully, the family we will rear together.

As a man, I shouldn’t think this way but life had been quite hard on us both before we had met each other. There were things that we both wanted to escape and hopefully never have to face again. The past would be in the past; we could be happy forever more with this new life.

I got up from my desk and crossed the short distance over the Oriental rug to plant a kiss upon her forehead. A little sigh escaped her perfect mouth when my lips made contact. We stayed that way for a while; me inhaling the rose scent from her auburn hair while I buried my face into it and her leaning into me.

“Darling, I cannot wait either. You shall be a beautiful bride, the envy of the entire town in only a matter of a few short days,” I murmured.

“Do you really think so, Thomas?” I could hear the doubt in her voice; she hardly ever spoke highly of herself. Just another thing that I adored about her.

I knelt down in front of her so that she could look into my eyes as I spoke to her.

“Oh of course, my dear. All the ladies will wish to be you up there and all the men will wish that they were marrying you, instead of I.”

Her steel blue eyes bore straight into me. They were the eyes that should belong to a strong man who has seen too much through life, not a woman who could appear so fragile even though she had brought herself up from the ashes. Her eyes were that of a soldier.

“Thomas, you know that the only reason that those people will be looking at me is because I am marrying a very wealthy man. They think I’m only marrying you to take your money.” She sighed at the idea.

“Charlotte, my dear, that is such an absurd thing to host in one’s mind. They obviously don’t see the love that we have for each other,” I hissed and then proceeded in a more of a joking tone, “Or they are quite jealous that you’re marrying such a handsome gentleman with grand stature to boot.”

Charlotte rolled her eyes at me.

“I will have to smack your bottom for showing such sass,” I murmured. There was a smile pulling at the edge of my lips even though I was trying to be serious.

“Thomas! Don’t say such things,” she gasped, “Your servants might hear, or worse, your sister.”

With the mention of my sister, I rose from the rug and straightened my waistcoat with a frown. I looked around the room; scanning the books on their shelves, the useless knick-knacks that cluttered in between, my desk covered in papers of all kinds, and then the glowing fire that was to my left. I did my best to keep my eyes averted from Charlotte; I feared that she would see the hurt and anger in them.

I turned to face the fire as the silence stretched on between us. Any mention of my sister would always bring any conversation to a halt. That woman would forever be an open wound in my life that I could never get rid of, no matter how many times I tried to close and forget it.

There was a slight rustling behind me and I saw from the corner of my eye that Charlotte had gotten up from her chair. She was a beautiful sight in her dark blue dress that thankfully didn’t have a large bustle to it. She knew how I despised them; although, she did own a few lovely gowns that had them but rarely wore them because of me.

She walked up beside me and laid a hand upon my forearm. “I didn’t mean to upset you, dear.”

“You know how she makes me feel,” I spat, pulling my arm back.

She drew back her hand slowly to her side and pain flashed across her face. “My apologies, Thomas.”

I walked off to my desk, leaving her by the fire with no response. I had no words for her at moment; not with the thoughts and feelings of my sister all around me. I was liable to say something hurtful. While at my desk, I straightened the papers ever so slightly and signed a few documents that I had left before getting up earlier. I could feel the tip of my pen creak as I pressed down angrily to sign my name, which caused the ink to bleed.

A few more silent minutes passed with me at the desk and her at the fire place still. She had her arms wrapped around her middle while she looked into the fire. The lovely moment we had shared was now broken and will probably be something we would remember for quite some time.

Damn my sister, ruining all things that I touched.

My hand went to my pocket and pulled out the pocket-watch sitting in it and then a vial from my breast pocket. Before checking the time, I quickly snorted the white substance from the glass tube to try to calm myself. I then put vial back in its rightful place while looking at the watch face.

“It is time that you went home, my love,” I spoke while clicking the watch shut and placing it back home.

“Yes, I believe so,” she sighed. She was still looking into the fire.

I walked over to her in a few short strides and turned her around to face me. I placed a kiss lightly on her cheek. “Let us forget these last few awful moments. They need not to fester our minds while we are soon to be married.” I placed another kiss on the opposite cheek.

She gave me a slight smile and then nodded in response. I led her out of the sitting room and into the foyer. There she waited while I went to fetch someone to take her home in the carriage. As I was starting to return to Charlotte with a slight smile on my face, my heart dropped.

“Hello brother, dear.”

My smile slid to a grimace. “Hello, sister. How are you this evening?”She glided over to me from the stairs in her large bustling peach skirt. Her ebony hair tied up in a chignon with peach ribbons wound through it.

“I am faring well now, thank you,” she said with a coy smile. “I see that Charlotte is leaving for the evening. What a pity.” She placed her cool hands upon my wrists and dragged them to her mouth for a few kisses.

I swallowed my disgust and quickly pulled my hands behind my back when she was through. I only nodded to her in response.

“Even more of a pity that you are to marry her quite soon. Only tomorrow separates you now, does it not?” She was looking at me with something that resembled sorrow and anger. Again, she only received a nod in response. I could not utter any words to her for she knew that I would lash out in anger. She always took pride in getting me to rise up to challenge her.

She circled me while she spoke her next words coolly. “On that cruel day, you will be taken from me forever. Such a dreadful thought to have. My loving and handsome brother will no longer be in my embrace. No longer here for me to be able to love. You know she won’t love you like I always have. She is a horrid little dote, that woman you claim to love. A hideous beast that only wants you for your money and to crush you under her boot.”

“I will not hear this, Mary. We’ve discussed this. I will not have you say such things to me or to anyone else. You are rightfully mental for the way you speak about us marrying. I’m through with you.” The words came out of me with all the fire that raged in hell.

Mary stopped in front of me and looked at me with such hatred. “I hope she destroys you so that I can have you back. My love will fix you. It always has.” The last words were spoken in a hiss. She then started to lean in to kiss me but I backed off.

“No, Mary. All you have done is destroy me.” With that, I walked off towards Charlotte.

Anger pooled off of me in masses. When I reached Charlotte, she looked at me as if she knew what had just transpired with my sister. I tried to give her a meaningful smile, but the feelings of dread and hatred were back. I knew that she somewhat understood, but it was not fair to her to have another moment spoiled by my sister.

“I will see you on our wedding day, my love,” I whispered into her ear before giving her a kiss good-bye.

“It will be a lovely day and then we can begin our life away from these hauntings.” She then kissed my cheek and walked out the front door to the carriage that awaited her.

I waited for the carriage to leave my sight before heading up to the second floor to my room. Upon entering, I quickly locked the door knowing full well what would be soon following me. Outside the door I could hear light footsteps and then fabric shifting against the floor as if someone had stopped at the frame. There was a slight scratching sound at the door as though there was a hand caressing the wood with up and down strokes, letting their nails drag as they went. A few minutes passed before it stopped and there were steps leading away from the door; the next few days couldn’t pass fast enough.

THE WEDDING DAY

It was a few minutes before I was to head out onto the gazebo out behind the manor. The day had finally come; life was going to be anew. Yesterday had passed at a painfully slow pace, with only work to occupy me. Thankfully, Mary had stayed out of sight the entire day, thus causing the day to be a bit smoother. She wasn’t even in sight today and I hoped that it would stay that way. I did not need her to stain this day.

“Thomas, it’s time,” said the pastor ducking his head into my dressing room.

“Good,” I replied with a curt nod. I quickly straightened my bow-tie once again. I then reached into my pocket to take ahold of the vial of white powder. My eyes lingered on the substance, wondering if I would need to take another dosage before heading out to the gazebo. I decided it was best to go ahead and take some, and then I proceeded to grab my cane while leaving my room.

Or would have left if I had not been stopped by two brusque men at the doorway. They looked me over as I took a small step back into the room as to not run right into them.

“Hello, gentlemen, may I help you?”

“Are you Thomas Kirkland?”

“Yes, who needs to know?”

They walked closely together towards me in odd unison. The casual looks of their clothing told me that they were not here to congratulate me on my soon to be nuptials. I could feel the adrenaline start to pump into my veins.

“How can I help you?” I asked once again more aggressively as they reached about two feet from me.

“Quiet now, sir. All will be okay, just relax,” one of them said in a patronizing soothing tone.

“What do you mean that this will all be okay? I demand to know what is going on.”

I was still backing up from them but now the back of my knees had bumped into the vanity.

“What is the meaning of this?” They were now a foot from me. One of them was eyeing the cane that I had still gripped in my hand. “Back off,” I growled, shaking the black enameled stick their way.

They reached for me simultaneously, tearing the can quickly from my hands; I did my best to fend them off although, my attempts were no match against them. These men were the size of barn doors and had muscle to match.They grabbed both of my arms and kept talking to me as if I was child. I struggled against them to try to get free; again, quite a failure.

“I’m so glad you found my brother!” I heard sniffling behind the men. The voice turned my veins into ice, which only caused me to struggle even more. Mary.

“I was so afraid that you wouldn’t be able to find him,” sounds of sobbing, “He has been quite unwell as of late. I’ve done my best to help him through the years but it seems I just haven’t been able to give him what he needs.”

No, this could not be happening. She could not be doing this to me. Not to her beloved.

“Mary, you bitch!” I exclaimed.

I felt a massive hand pound the back of my head, bringing me to my knees. “Don’t speak to the lady that way,” one of them growled.

“Oh it’s quite alright. He has always been that way with me. My poor brother.” There were genuine tears streaming down her cheeks.

I struggled enough to look her straight in the eyes. My hair had fallen into my eyes but I was heaving so much from fighting the men that I was able to blow some of it out of my face to glare.

“Mary, call this off! What you are doing is wrong and you know it.”

She only shook her head at me. Rage poured through me even more.

“Dammit Mary, stop this! Stop this for your dear brother. Please, I love you.” I said this with as much of sincerity as I could muster.

Mary’s response was only that of more tears and telling the men to sedate me. This only caused me to struggle even more in their grasp.There was no way in hell this could be happening.

I looked into her manic eyes while the hate seethed from me. Never again would I love her. Never again would I trust her. She was nothing to me now.

The last thought before the needle went into me was that I hoped to seek my revenge upon her one day.

THE ASYLUM

Screaming and yelling filled the air everywhere you turned in this place. Every single turn that was made, there was someone who was screaming or yelling into the void. No one paid any mind to it for they were normal happenings like a fly buzzing around rotten food; unpleasant but was bound to happen. Anyone who was silent, they were deemed as the truly insane and I guess that is what category I fell under after a while. I lost count after the electric chair.

The first day, I yelled all day until my voice went hoarse. I was not meant for this place, I did not belong. The second day, I yelled every now and then because no one would listen to a word I had to say. I was utterly frustrated and enraged. The third, fourth, and fifth day, I pleaded with all my sanity to any and every orderly to listen to me so that I could get out of here. My efforts got me nowhere; unless you counted me being strapped to an electric chair on the fifth day. I don’t remember the rest of that day, and the sixth day went by in a haze.

I have been in this place for what I’m guessing is five months now and anywhere from one to three times a week, depending on my behavior, I receive some kind of treatment for my “illness.” The treatment is either having leeches latched to my head and body, or being strapped to the electric chair. When I was first strapped to that chair, I felt a new sense of dread wash over me. I remember trying to fight against them because I had heard “electricity will pass through your body.” What did they mean that “electricity would pass through me”; I knew from many scientific articles that electricity had the ability of burning people. My screams came back and I started to thrash as they secured my hands, feet, and then strapped my head to the metal cap. They silenced me by putting a piece of leather between my teeth and strapping it tightly underneath my chin to where I couldn’t move my tongue against the hide. After that, all I remember is someone counting down; sweat beading down my face; and then a sharp pain hitting the top of my skull and my body seizing. The day after, I have a hazy memory of finding myself sitting on the floor in the music room with a horrific burning pain all throughout my body. From the sore throat and no voice that followed for three days afterwards, I gathered that had started to scream then because I was sure that they had fried my skin.

From what I have been told by some of the other lucid, at least I hoped they were, patients is that they will pass the electricity through you at least four times in short to long bursts the first time they take you in. Any time after that, they will only give you one burst, but it was painful enough that you still spend the rest of the day in a haze or having zero recollection. The second time they took me back, I screamed so loud that a large orderly hit me across the jaw hard enough to render me unconscious until they passed the electricity through my body. That was the last time I ever screamed when taken back for “normal” electric treatment.

When they started giving me the leech treatments, I squirmed non-stop. The doctor placed the leeches across my forehead, under my eyes and ears, on my temples, and put two at the base of my skull. Every time they latched on I felt their teeth sink into my flesh and then tiny little draws. Compared to the chair, I would have taken the leeches every single day for hours on end just to be deemed “fixed.” I was lucky, sort of, because I only had to be taken to the chair once every couple of weeks and that was all due to my “good behavior.”

After that first week, I stayed quiet and roamed around the building. Only the suicidal or overly violent patients would be solely confined to their rooms; everyone else was free to roam and scream around the building. Occasionally I spoke to some of the other lucid and quiet patients; we played games, spoke of times before imprisonment, and shared of what we hoped would come to us when we’re “cured.”

But five months was hard on someone who didn’t belong among the truly insane and inept. Often I found myself wondering if I would ever make it out of here, worried that my mind was slipping as the days passed. There were times that I caught myself mumbling while in my room; those were usually the days that were the worst and all I wanted to do was scream like the rest of the patients. Frustration, impatience, and being treated wrong starts to wear on a sane man.

Today was a bad day, a very bad day. I was sitting in a corner of my white washed padded room. My body was rocking back and forth as I rubbed my face against the rough spun cloth that was part of the padding. I had a new type of electric treatment in which they put a small metal cap to my left temple. Luckily, they only used one burst of electricity against it but unluckily it had been so painful that it caused me to scream at the top of my lungs when it was over. An orderly punched me repeatedly until I quieted in a heap of blood and tears. There was even the smell of what I assumed was my burned hair, possibly skin.

So here I was trying to rub the still stinging pain away from my face. With every rock I pressed harder and with every other rock I rubbed my hand across my white wool clad knees. My hands were slightly numb, even after a few hours.

I started to think about Mary, how I hoped that she was riddled with guilt for what she had done to me. She had finally ruined my life completely. I had lost Charlotte, my home, my business, and now I feared I had started to lose my sanity. All was out of my control due to her. I was wrongly accused for something that I never had a say in. Mary pinned things on me that were her own doing; things that I had hid in the dark to protect us, her.

If I were to ever get out of this place, I was going to right these wrongs. That is if people would believe a “crazy” man.

“Bitch…insane life ruining…bitch…” I muttered.

I pressed my temple harder against the wall and rubbed fiercely. I could no longer feel the side of my face but I knew that if I stopped, the pain would come back.

“The pain…needs…to stop...”

My hands pushed down harder on my knees; there was barely any feeling in them still. I hoped that the numbness was now from pressing and rubbing them too hard.

“Thomas?” said a quiet voice behind me.

I didn’t turn to face whoever it was for I feared all the pain would come back into my head.

“I…can’t…feel…the pain,” I muttered.

“What did you say, Thomas?” The voice was closer to me now. It sounded as though it belonged to one of the nurses that usually came to check on me. She was kind to everyone, but I think she had a soft heart for me because she seemed to believe I truly didn’t belong here. It was unlikely though; she was paid to make everyone feel sane.

“Thomas, dear, I need you to look at me. I have some news for you,” she said timidly.

I continued to keep rocking and rubbing my head. “Can’t…look…”

There was a slight shadow cast down in front of me which meant she was not standing beside me. She then knelt down beside me and took one of my hands. I jerked back a little bit from her warm touch because I didn’t think that I had any feeling back in my hands. I looked into her eyes and noticed that I had stopped rocking, except my head was still pressed hard against the wall.

“Oh Thomas, what have you been doing?” Her voice was full of concern.

My physical appearance must have been much worse than I had thought. The left side of my face was probably burnt off or there was a hole in the side of my head now. With cautious ease, the nurse reached out to take my face in her hands and she clicked her tongue.

“You’ve rubbed the left side completely raw and, my word, you’ve left some blood on the wall. Look at your poor face.”

I must have looked bewildered because I felt her hands tighten around my face. “It’s okay, easy clean up. Don’t be worried, you’re still quite handsome.”There was a small smile on her face, which somehow comforted me. I couldn’t really produce a smile back for her but I slightly nodded in her hands.

“What was…the news…you had to tell me,” I asked cautiously while looking into her eyes.

They were a warm blue, which made me think of my lovely Charlotte. Oh how I missed looking into her soldier eyes. When would I ever be able to look into them again? Would she even still love me if I ever got out? She probably has already moved on to someone better, someone who didn’t have a manic sister that wanted to ruin everyone’s life around her. Charlotte deserved so much better. She deserved happiness that I would never truly be able to give to her because of Mary; I was not her happy ending, I was just another destructive path.

“Thomas, dear, they are letting you go today,” the nurse said in a warm tone. Her smile had grown broad.

I was afraid I had truly gone mad because I had sworn she just said I was to be released.

“Pardon me…” I mumbled. My body had started to shake and rock once again.

“They are releasing you today. You’re free to go home.”

LATER THAT DAY…

The carriage shook as it bumped along the path. In no time I would be arriving back to Kirkland Manor, a place that I had longed for a while trapped in that asylum for five months. I was hoping that it would feel like a safe and loving place after all I had went through, but I doubted that feeling would come until I took care of one festering issue. It was time to be rid of the pain in my side. Mary would be taken care of properly and I was going to see to it personally.

I looked out the window with a sneer and thought back on my final moments at the asylum as I continued on the journey home. I could remember collapsing in the nurse’s arms and crying until I couldn’t breathe, muttering over and over “this can’t be true.” It was a true miracle that I had been released today. When I had walked out into the lobby of the building, I was greeted by no one. There was not a single person there to hug me, congratulate me for being released, or even to explain why I had been released. Only the nurse who had told me the news had stood by my side, she didn’t even know why, only that the doctors sought fit for my release. So I had then walked out of Hell with my wedding tux on and began my journey home.

I had slightly wished that I had another set of clothes upon my back because my wedding tux didn’t seem fitting for what I was going to be doing when I got home. The wedding tux was a part of another life that I would never be able to get back to. It symbolized a freedom that I had been robbed of, a freedom that was with the woman I loved; who I am sure was off with another bloke by now.

I grimaced at the thought. I was never meant to have true happiness; happiness was never a card for me to hold in my miserable life. It was possible that I would be forever bound to a woman that I could never truly love and to revel in misery and self-loathing until the day I died. Today, though, was possibly going to be the day I could at least get rid of that retched beast so that I could live a miserable life alone.

The carriage came to an abrupt halt and I looked out the window to see that we had arrived at Kirkland Manor. She stood in all of her dark glory against the blue sky and green fields. Two stories of dark masonry, large paned windows, gargoyles, and five short stairs leading to two large black wooden doors awaited me.

“Welcome home, sir. I’m sure that you are happy to fully cured and to be back home,” said the orderly that had brought me here. He had my door open before I even had the chance to think of stepping out. I nodded to him in thanks and stepped out onto the wet stone that led to the front door.

Slowly I walked down the path with my back straight, the cane in my right hand clacked against the stone with every other step. When I got to the door, I padded my breast pocket to feel that my vial of powder was still there. I looked behind me to see that the carriage was still waiting at the gate like I had requested but the orderly was not in sight; I didn’t muchly care if he saw me snort the substance or not. After feeling my nerves lock up from the medicine, I turned back to the door, ran my hand through my hair, and opened the door with gusto.

As I entered the foyer, I saw that everything was the same except there were black sheets of fabric over the mirrors and the grandfather clock. Mary apparently thought it was good to have the house go into mourning while I was away, as if I were dead. I’m surprised the servants had gone along with her plan, but then again, they wouldn’t know any better.

Soon enough, soon enough they will know.

I made my way to the study where I could hear a couple of voices conversing. I slide my cane up into the palm of my hand as I neared the cracked door and leaned into the frame slightly to hear who it was.

“Oh honey, it will be alright. It’s just another bad day, I promise, you’ll get through this,” cooed a familiar sinister voice. My skin crawled hearing Mary speak; not even the slight calming sensation from the cocaine could keep my nerves locked down when she spoke. Whoever she was speaking to was crying, for I could hear their loud sniffles and a couple of choked sobs.

“My dear, I will be right here with you like I have been. You know that I will take care of you no matter what and you are always welcome to stay here. I know it’s hard; it’s hard on me too.” There was fake sincerity in her voice; I had heard the same tone when she came to have me taken away.

The other person sniffed a couple of times and I could hear them draw in a breath before they spoke, as if that one breath was giving them all the strength in the world.

“Oh Mary, sweet Mary, thank you so much. I’m so sorry for coming over here once again crying endlessly. I know that you just wanted to have a nice cup of tea and a chat, but it’s just so hard coming here. I can’t stop thinking about poor Thomas in that awful place…I never knew he…”

My back straightened when I recognized the other voice; the other person was my dear soldier Charlotte. Her voice had cracked at the end of her last sentence before she fell into tears once again. My heart broke for her. It was not fair that Mary had caught her in these webs of lies and to keep torturing her with the idea of me being insane. Charlotte never knew the truth about Mary; she only knew that I had utter disdain for my hateful sister and wanted to be rid of her. I was sure in her despair on our wedding day that she would have believe anything that anyone told her, especially me being a mad man who needed to be locked away.

“Charlotte, dear, there there. It’s quite alright. No one knew that Thomas would crack the way he did in those last couple of days. He had seemed so sane and at peace within the year that you had known him, even on his bad days. But the stress of the wedding and moving away must have been the final straw for him,” Mary cooed. There was a slight patting sound as if she was physically consoling Charlotte.

“I want to see him terribly, Mary,” Charlotte sobbed.

“I know, sweetie, as do I. The doctors say that it is best that we don’t, they say his condition is getting worse…”

My blood boiled while listening to her lies. I could no longer stand in the hall listening to Mary spin her web even larger. Before she could go on with her sinister words, I rolled my shoulders back and I marched straight into the study. The door bounced off the wall, which caused the two to look my way with startling looks.

“Thomas!” Charlotte screamed. Her face had gone pale with shock, but she quickly ran to embrace me. I wrapped my arms around her and laid my face on the top of her head as she shook while crying. Her hair smelled of the lovely rose scent that I adored. My heart melted with happiness to have her back on my arms, my life; I was happy that she had not forsaken me after all for another man. I needed this woman in my life, she was my only happiness.

I looked up from Charlotte and saw Mary still standing beside her chair. Her face had drained of all color, her mouth was slightly ajar, and her eyes burned with all the rage and passion of hell. Her loving nightmare had returned.

“Thomas…it’s so nice to see you…” she stammered.

“Likewise, Mary.” My eyes narrowed whilst they bored into her.

Charlotte finally got a hold of herself and looked up at me. I tore my eyes from the heathen and looked down at Charlotte with adoration. There were still tears flowing from her eyes but she smiled at me in a way that I would never forget. I stroked my thumbs across her cheeks to rid some of the tears, kissed her forehead, and leaned into her ear to whisper a few words. After I was through with my words with her, I kissed her once again and coaxed her to leave the room.

I strode a couple of steps closer to Mary and spoke to her in a sarcastic tone.

“Did you honestly think that your little plan would work?”

No response from her still agape mouth.

“You thought, dear sister, by pinning all of your misgivings upon me would get you the happy ending you always searched for? Hmm?” I was now circling her as I spoke. She uttered something barely audible in response.

“What was that? I didn’t quite hear you. You know, I’ve grown slightly deaf now from having to listen to blood curdling screams day in and day out for the past five months. You will really need to speak up for me.”

She took a deep breath before speaking once again. “I said…I said...yes…”

“Yes, what?”

“Yes, I did think I was going to get away with it.”

“Oh really? And why is that? Because you’re so damned cunning and no one could honestly dispute whatever you say? Oh dear sister, how you have been so wrong. Your misgivings have finally caught up to you and now you’ll have to pay for them.”

I had stopped my circling and was standing right in front of her now. Her eyes shone with unshed tears but the fire still burned in them. There was a manic look on her face that I had seen before time and time again. It was a face she displayed when she knew she had been caught doing something she was to never to be doing and it was the face of her true nature. And with that face, she muttered something under her breath.

“What was that? Honestly, Mary, speak the hell up and tell me everything. It is only you and I, after all.”

She cleared her throat. “That’s all I ever wanted, was you and I. You and I to live until the end of our days, living happily and loving one another. We are meant for one another, Thomas. I did what I did so that we could have that happily ever after together.” Tears finally fell from eyes that looked so much like my own, dark and green. “But you had to go and ruin it!”

“No, Mary, you had to go and ruin it. You have ruined everything for years. When mother and father died, I took care of you and loved you the way a brother could, but you have soiled every little thing I have done for you. I have covered all of your crimes; from petty thievery, to the house burning to the countless murders you saw fit for “justice.” You want to talk about ruining things, look at everything you have done.”

“I did all those things for us, Thomas…”

“No, you did them for yourself. You were never content with me having my own life away from you. You never let me live a happy life with friends or to even court other women. You have done enough, Mary. You have tied me down for too long.”

Mary shed more tears from the words I spoke. I felt no remorse for her, she had burned everything to ashes and there was no way to repair it all now. She had to pay for what she did.

“I love you, Thomas, and I know you love me too. I know by the way you used to hold me at night, dote on me, and kiss me every day. We’ve always loved each other more than anyone else could love us; even more than mother and father had loved us. We have been connected since birth, when we shared space inside of mother. Our love is like no other.”She stepped closer to me and laid her hands upon my arms. Her hands squeezed as she tried to drag me closer to her. I knew this trick well; she wanted to distract me with her adoration and for me to forget all the hateful things that were said. She had done this many times through our lives and it always ended with a kiss; but it was not going to be that way today.

I jerked my arms away from her and slashed my cane through the air between us to ward her off.

“No, Mary! This is not how things shall be anymore! There is no longer a “you and I.” There hasn’t been for years, you have been delusional. I haven’t loved you in that manner in so long, it isn’t right!”

“It is right!” she screamed. “It is the only right thing in this cruel and maddening world!”

I shook my head, “No, Mary, you are the cruel and mad one, not the world. This is over.”

Mary began to scream and ran towards me with her hands outstretched. I caught her wrists in my palms and shook her. She was still screaming at me, her words a string of incoherent nonsense. I did my best to calm her but there was no use, she had finally broken apart. Such a sad sight, she was. The one person in this world that I shared countless things with, had been orphaned with, the person that I had even loved once to where I thought I would spend the rest of my days with her, was now a broken mess that could never be fixed or to have her happily ever after. She had brought this upon herself.

After what felt like hours, Mary was weeping on the floor when Charlotte walked back in the study to tell me that the orderly was ready to take her away. A small part of me didn’t want to send her to that evil place but it was the only right place to put her now. For years I had contemplated on putting her away, but I had heard of countless horror stories of how awful it was for women. Now, it was going to be her new home, her new hellish kingdom to rule over and to be far away from me. The festering wound in my side was now being dowsed.

“Goodbye, Mary, my once beloved sister. You will receive better care than I could ever give to you,” I murmured, looking down at her bent body.

She glared at me. “Go to hell, Thomas.”

“I was already there, dear sister, you sent me there, remember?”

I winked at her and turned my back on her for what I hoped would be forever. As I began to walk out of the doors to escort the orderly in, I hear a scream and a rushing sound. Mary was dashing towards Charlotte with outstretched claws and a pure look of insanity on her face. I quickly reacted and swung my cane in the air, striking Mary across the face with the silver handle. A sharp crack entered the air and then she crumpled to the ground with blood pooling onto the floor from her mouth. I bent over her body to make sure she was still alive and found that she was in fact living; almost a shame, honestly.

The orderly then came into the room, following the noise of her screams. He made no comment on her current state while picking her up to take her out of the manor. I walked behind him to make sure in fact that she stayed unconscious and was put into the carriage. The man settled her body on the floor of the box and then shut and locked the door behind her. This is the last I would see my sister, crumpled unconscious while being put away; I had no remorse over the thoughts. I thanked the man for his kind services before they departed.

I made my way back to the front gate where Charlotte stood and put my arm around her. We watched the carriage leave until it was nothing but a black dot in the distance. When it finally vanished, I turned to my beloved with a slight sinister smile. I drew her closer to me, buried my face into her rose scented hair, and began to chuckle.

I was going to finally have my happy ending. Me, a man of little sanity, and hardly owning a “normal” life, and having the love of my life finally, was going to know the sense of joy after all of this time. No self-loathing, no misery, no hideous past to ruin the future. Only happiness was in the wake for us.