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Daniel Crowe had no idea what time it was, or if time even existed where he was. It was consistently dark and damp. The last thing he remembered was collapsing thankfully onto the couch that he could see dimly in the unnatural light of the cave, or the cellar. Or whatever it was. After what felt like days of walking and searching, he finally found the one soft spot in all the hard rockiness of his environment. It has served him well. Daniel was rested. But he also felt sweaty and cold at the same time. The couch reeked of something unidentified unpleasantness, and the odor had penetrated his hair and his clothes. As he pulled a hand through his dark mop of hair, he recoiled at its greasiness. He was also aware of needing coffee even more than he needed food.
But first things first. Daniel stood up and stretched his 6-foot frame to its full, considerable height. There were people to save. He had lost the little blond ghost man somewhere along the way. The woman had stopped screaming before he found her. He listened. A small space of extreme quiet was followed by the unsettling sound of a crying baby. The echoing wail was far away. It sounded familiar. But they wouldn't find him. Not here. Surely not here.
Talitha Crowe rocked her child.
"Shhh, honey. Mommy knows."
Poor child, she thought. Being in this dark place could not help his mood. It certainly didn't help hers. The cat had vanished around a corner, and she couldn't find it. Christopher had kept up his calls of "Cha, cha" for a while and then stopped. Now he was obviously tired. She had to look for Daniel. And for little Michael.
"Look, Christopher, we're going to find Daddy. Just be patient for a little while, alright?"
The baby groaned a little in reply, and a rank odor was added to the already unpleasant cave smell. He needed a fresh nappy. Talitha panicked a little. She never thought of the baby's needs before coming in here. There was no choice. Feeling like a traitor, Talitha turned around to find the stepladder and the trap door.
"Daniel?" she called as she turned. "Can you hear me?"
Her voice echoed, and she thought she heard a shuffle close by, but there was nothing else.
"Daniel! I'm going home for a while. I'll be back. Daniel!"
As the sound died, Christopher began to cry again. This drowned all other sounds, and Talitha gave up straining her ears. She continued her search.
The ghost of the little man told Daniel some of the strange story. Olivia was the woman's name. She saved a young woman who was daily being burned to death by her husband. The husband had some sort of breakdown. They were both ghosts acting out a scene from years, perhaps decades, ago. Daniel had to save them. He didn't quite understand why it seemed so important, but his compulsion grew with every step he took. He had to save Olivia, and also the man. Then he could find Midnight and get out of this hell.
But finding them was complicated. He had heard Olivia a couple of times since he first came down here. Horrible screams shook the cave walls. It was the stuff of nightmares. But she remained teasingly out of sight, as if she didn't want to be found.
Daniel thought he heard something - refreshingly unlike screams. He looked back. A woman's voice was calling from far away. He thought he heard his name, but he couldn't be sure.
"Better hurry," he told Midnight, who had just come in. The cat was rubbing against Daniel's legs. He picked her up.
"Did you see Mommy?" he asked the cat uncomfortably.
Midnight licked Daniel's stubble with her gruff tongue. The effect was like sandpaper, and yet also comforting to both man and beast.
Daniel heard something again. A man called a name. The daily routine had started.
"Maxiiiii!" called the voice. "I just want to save you Maxi..."
A woman was crying. She seemed closer than previously, and Daniel began to hope that he could actually do something for her. He ran in the direction of the sound.
Talitha was beginning to panic more than just slightly. Surely she should have found the stepladder by now. She had been walking for ages, and Christopher was increasingly cranky and heavy. She stroked his blond curls and crooned comfort to the child, but it was hard to keep the fear out of her voice. In the dim light Talitha could make out something in the distance. It looked like a type of seat. She approached and saw a pink couch, very much out of place in the rest of the surroundings. She lay the child down on the gaudy thing. The surface appeared unnaturally warm, as if someone had been sitting in it. Or sleeping on it.
"Daniel?" she asked, hopeful.
The only answer was a deathly silence. Christopher broke it by wriggling and crying where he lay.
"Don't worry babe, Mommy'll make a plan."
As Talitha undid the clasp of her son's nappy, the combined odors of the couch and the nappy nearly overwhelmed her. Pursing her lips and trying not to breathe, she cleaned the child's mess as well as she could, and folded the nappy carefully. She stuck it in the corner of the room as far from the couch as she could. Talitha was wearing a loose shirt over a T-shirt. She took this off and bound it around the child in the shape of a makeshift nappy. Now there was just a flimsy T-shirt between her and the damp, cold air.
"This will have to do, Christopher. Sorry."
The child did not respond. He was sleeping. Talitha decided that this was not a bad idea, and lay down next to her son on the rank couch, cuddling in to him as close as possible. She fell asleep instantly.
Their appearance was sudden, like a revelation. The man was slightly overweight, and there was a mad glint in his light eyes. He was holding a box of matches. The woman - Olivia, he supposed - was bound to a stake surrounded by layers of wood. She was very thin. Her auburn hair hung in untidy knots to her shoulders. Her face was stained with tears and soot and pain.
"Steve, please," she pleaded. "Please. I'm not Maxi. Maxi is dead. I am Olivia."
The man she called Steve looked at her. Daniel was frozen in fascination.
"Oh, Maxi," said Steve with a sympathetic look. "I am so sorry, but this is the only way to save you. "
Steve struck a match and Olivia began to scream in anticipated pain.
"Shhh," said Steve as he let the match fall, and the whole place was filled with flaming light and Olivia's pain.
Daniel ran to the flames. Steve blocked his way. The ghost was as solid as any living, substantially sized human being.
"What are you doing?" Steve asked Daniel.
"I'm saving Olivia! Get out of my way!"
Talitha woke up. She thought she had heard screams. Christopher was crying, and it was again difficult to distinguish other sounds. The mother picked up her son and cradled him.
"It's okay, honey. We'll find a way out."
A way out. What about Daniel? Talitha uncomfortably wondered if she would come back in here if she did find a way out. Christopher needed to be fed, and Talitha felt her own pangs of hunger very distinctly. Fear and doubt were close companions to the hunger in her stomach. What about Michael? She had no answers. And she did not care to think beyond the next step, which was to find a way out. Talitha called Daniel's name a few times, without really expecting an answer.
Something nagged at Daniel's mind, like a phone ringing far away. He could not respond. He was busy. He pushed the oafish Steve into the flames, and the ghost ignited instantly, joining in Olivia's screams.
After a moment's hesitation, Daniel ran into the flames, and lifted what was left of Olivia with the stake, carrying her out of the fire. As soon as he was clear of the heat and the flames, the fire extinguished itself as if it was drawn into the floor of the cave. There was no sign of either ashes or the remains of Steve. Olivia's stake vanished in a similar way.
She looked bad. Her flesh had roasted and the skin was pealing away in crispy strips. What remained of her hair and clothes were burned into her flesh. Daniel wasn't sure if she was still alive. Then she suddenly breathed. Her eyes opened and she began to scream.
"It's okay," said Daniel, trying to soothe her. "You're okay. It's over."
He rocked her until her horror and her screams abated. She seemed to fall asleep in his arms. Daniel felt movement under his hands, and realized that it was Olivia's flesh restoring itself. She began to glimmer, and as she healed, the ghost of Anton appeared.
"You did it," he said.
Olivia opened her eyes when she heard Anton speak. The ghost kneeled at her side. Olivia smiled.
"You did it," she said. "You saved me."
"Daniel saved you."
They smiled at each other, and they both vanished. Midnight came in and Daniel petted his cat.
When she came into the room with the couch for the third time, Talitha began to cry. She held her child and pressed her face into his chubby shoulder.
"Mama," said Christopher. "Cha, cha."
Talitha sat down on the couch.
"Oh, baby," she told the boy. "We are so lost."
"Cha," said Christopher.
Midnight sprang onto the couch next to Talitha and began to purr. Then the woman felt the warmth of a strong hand on her shoulder. She looked up, not believing her eyes. All the agony of the months without him vanished in a single look from those dark eyes.
"Daniel."
"Talitha, I came to show you the way home," he said.
Talitha stood and collapsed into her husband's arms.
"I thought I'd never see you again," she sighed, tears of joy streaming from her eyes.
She felt his body stiffen against hers, and drew away.
"Daniel?"
"Talitha, I cannot come with you."
"What?"
"I need to stay."
"But..."
"There are still people who need me. I saved Olivia, but there are Michael and Stella."
"Michael. Have you seen him?"
"I need to stay, Talitha. Get your child home. Clean him. Have something to eat."
"My child, but Daniel...he's your child too."
Daniel didn't respond. He became transparent, and was gone. Midnight followed him.
"Daniel... Daniel!!" Talitha shouted, but the silence was deafening.
"Mama," said Christopher. Talitha felt the need for tears, and for mourning, but instead stood up and began walking. She found the stepladder in the next room. How could she have missed it? Taking a tight hold of her son, Talitha began to climb.
©2003 StoriesByEmail.com
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