Page 3 of Saved By the Headless Horseman
The seamstress suggests adding padding to certain areas of my body, and my mother agrees.The two make a plan in hushed tones about where to add volume and where to add color to my face to give the appearance of health.Their voices fade into the background as I stare out my window.The cold, gray sky adds more raindrops to the glass.
Sometimes, I think I can see him.Whether it is a vivid memory or pure hallucination, I cannot be certain.There will be a certain shape to the clouds that will remind me of his smile.At night, I can hear his soft voice whispering in my ear.I can feel the phantom touches of his fingers along my skin, only for my hands to be greeted by nothingness.
This pain will end soon.I hope that wherever my soul goes, he will already be waiting for me.Our reunion will be as sweet as I’ve imagined it to be a hundred times.Tomorrow will be my final sunrise.At dusk, I will marry Earl Bram—the man who took everything from me.
With my last breath, I will say my wedding vows, and then it will all be over.Death beckons me into its waiting embrace, and I shall not deny the two of us any longer.
2
THE HEADLESS HORSEMAN
The first day was agony.
His pain was intense enough to blight his sight and steal his breath.The fire had ravaged his body, leaving behind blistered skin and broken bones.What he had once been was gone.His memories were faded—only brief snippets of visions and the whisper of voices.They beseeched him to remember who he was.Each one that followed was weaker, a fragment of a forgotten dream.
Who he had once been was sacrificed to the being he became.A creature spawned inside that forsaken world.His only motivation was to inflict pain and suffering on the world that had been cruel to him.
At first, when he tried to stand, his legs would buckle and snap.The muscles and tendons would grow slowly back together.Bone would reform and become hardened.As he lay wallowing in his pain, the vision became clearer.It was on the fifth day that he remembered where he was.
TheWhispering Woods—the last place he had set foot before?—
More staggering pain had rocked through him.This time it wasn't just physical.Memories came rushing back in a tangled jumble.Each one more devastating than the last.He saw what he had had.How he had come so close to getting everything before it all was ripped away.
He was merely a shivering husk where his body should be.Pain lacerated it from every angle.He was alone in the dark forest.In those dark hours, he only thought of one thing, even if it brought him more pain to do so.He couldn’t help himself; he never could.
It was at least a week before he was able to rise on new legs.They supported him this time, and he stumbled through the dimly lit woods.Tripping over overgrown roots and sliding on leaf litter, he finally made his way to a stream.
The first glimpse of his reflection nearly stopped his heart.The truth of what he had become was too much to bear.That is when he screamed and screamed.The happiness of having his voice back was short-lived.The sight of him now was a gruesome one.
He was a monster—an unholy legend.
Madness set in next; that was the only explanation.As his power grew, he began to understand this new form and the magic it brought.Every day that passed, his determination grew.His memories were back, and he remembered everything.He spent weeks understanding what was done to him.It had been one final kindness to be given this form so that he might impart his revenge on those responsible.
He was a thing of myth and shadow.Those stories meant to frighten young children would now be his weapon.Each day he remembered, and each day he made plans.Determined to get revenge on the ones who cursed him with this existence.It was clear what had brought him back—the rage and need for revenge.He would see justice served to all of them.
Wandering through the forest, he came upon a large glowing pumpkin.He nearly laughed at fate’s cruel joke.Lifting it from the ground, he placed it upon his bare shoulders.Green fire kindled and spread, forging eye and mouth holes.Snapping flames spilt from the openings, and he could see with shocking clarity.
He laughed again, though nothing was amusing.He had become the very beast he had been sent to kill.The imprint of the knife in his back lingered like a phantom pain.
The moon glowed above him, reminding him of her.He quickly shook himself.She was just as guilty as the rest of them.Even if his heart still beat for her, he could not deny her treachery—the part she played in all of this.His plan had to be decisive and quick.
What was certain was that they would all meet their demise at his hand.He would ensure that each one suffered the way that he had in the end, all but her.
For her, he had something far more painful in mind.He would take his time with her, ensuring she felt as hopeless as he did at the end.She would confess her betrayal, and then—and only then—would he give her the relief she sought.
In death.
3
SCARLETT
Gray water batters the rocky shore below.
Large swells hit the sides of the cliffs with loud, thunderous claps.Overhead, heavy rain clouds pollute the sky.The sun will not appear for this union today.
Jagged rocks stretch up between the waves like fingers, urging me towards them.The only thing preventing me from jumping into their outstretched hands is my father’s iron grip on my arm.Dressed in his finery, the golden buttons of his jacket sparkle.His leather shoes have been meticulously polished.Earl Richard will always be a vain man.His unrelenting conceit drips from every line of his body.
My mother remains on my other side as stiff as a board.There is a paleness in her cheeks that I haven’t seen in some time.Her steely blue eyes remain forward as she stays silent.There are no words of encouragement to be bestowed on her only daughter’s wedding day.No discussion of what to expect inside my wedding bed.Though there was no need for that, Earl Bram was not receiving the virgin bride he was promised.
