“There’s no way they’re gonna be on time” I told Morgan on my way to grab me a beer from the fridge.
She giggled. “It’s the first time they come up here, don’t be hard on ‘em”.
We were in the cabin we had bought four years ago just after our wedding. It has a beautiful open kitchen and living room design, a big modern stone fireplace and a nice design beige coach with a small coffee table in front. Basically, the perfect combination of modernity and coziness kind of cabin.
It was Morgan’s birthday and I had invited our old group of high school friends. We ended up losing contact when we all moved to different states and haven’t seen each other for about five years.
“After all this time, it is our fault for trusting them to be on time” I joked.
“I know, you know how they are” she looked at me and laughed, she had just finished cooking. “Well, dinner’s ready so I hope that they don’t get here late ‘cause I’m starving”.
She was happy about the reunion and was eager to see her friends after all this time. Although, I had noticed during the day that Morgan had been a little bit distraught about it, like when she got slightly startled when I mentioned Emily earlier.
Nine minutes had passed since eight o’clock and no one had arrived yet, as usual. There were only a few minutes of daylight left. I was standing by the kitchen counter sipping my beer and Morgan had just sinked into the sofa and was reading while we waited for our friends to come.
“Is everything okay between Em and you?” I asked, approaching her.
She stopped reading, her gaze left her book and met my eyes. “Yeah, why?” She said, casually. Too casually.
“I feel like you are not being honest with me right know, aren’t you?”.
Now it was the fireplace that welcomed her gaze.
She sighed, a bit upset. “I know, sorry. It’s just that… you know, after that, I’ve felt like she’s never been her again. I think she lost a lot in what happened and… and she just isn’t the same person” She stuttered with the last part.
“I don’t even know how will I feel when I see h-“
Her words were interrupted by loud knocks on the door.
“Of course you had to buy a shack in the middle of fucking nowhere”. It was Cains’ voice at the other side of the door.
I told Morgan to just be calm and natural, if not for her at least for me. I didn’t want our friends reunion to quickly go south because of our past. I just wanted to have a good old time as we’ve had countless times before.
“C’mon man we’re freezing out here, open up!” Said Cain, letting out a chuckle.
I laughed and went to open the door. Standing on the little elevated porch were Cain and Emily, both as stunning as they had always been. He was tall, had dark brown eyes and black hair with a Hollywood smile. She was tall as well, almost as him, with piercing light blue eyes and wavy dark walnut hair.
My gaze met Cains’ and for a moment, for a millisecond, I swear that it was like we were in that damned chapel all over again. I tried to quickly shake off the memory.
“Cain, where the hell have you been come here man” I let out with a bit of sorrowness before reaching out to give him a hug.
I could see that he felt something similar because of the look he gave me. I noticed then that he didn’t look as sharp as he always did.
He chuckled. “Ah, lots of places y’know, we’ve been busy traveling across the States and… oh, by the way, happy birthday Morgan!” He answered.
My wife smiled “Thanks, It’s nice to have you guys here for the occasion”.
“Please come in, y’all have beers in the fridge if you want”. I offered.
I saw my wife’s face immediately change after the greetings. I felt bad for her, she clearly wasn’t having the time of her life and I think that she didn’t expect to feel the way she did in that exact moment. I didn’t see her actually sad or upset but sensed a feeling of uneasiness in her.
We all sit around the table and made small talk about our current lives until the rest of our friends got to the cabin. I could see Morgan thinking of how cold the food was going to be if the rest didn’t appear soon.
“So… traveling across the States huh?” I said to get the conversation going.
Cain gave Emily a look, then he pointed his finger to me while chuckling. “Hey I know what you’re thinking” He said. “Don’t laugh, it was Em’s idea at first I swear”. I was about to lose it, I knew Cain wouldn’t have settled for a life like this one.
“Yeah… well, I guess I’m to blame for this one” said Emily between giggles.
“Damn right it was Em’s idea, there’s no way this fucker woke up one day and thought: fuck it, gonna visit my own country” I said, pointing at my friend and trying to light up the ambient a little. Luckily, they all laughed and I could sense the tension release.
A few minutes later Blair arrived. We greeted each other and Morgan guided her to the table after helping with her coat. We were all settled and started with our plates. The small talk didn’t last for long and soon we were all eating in silence.
“If nobody is talking that means the food’s good right?” Let Blair out. Trying to break the awkwardness that was building up. She despised empty silences.
“That’s what they say” I answered with my mouth full of mac’n’cheese.
“Chicken’s amazing actually. I’m sure Shawn’s the artist behind this masterpiece” Said Cain, obviously joking between laughs.
I went to tell Cain that it was obviously Morgan who had cooked it but noticed that she was staring at her plate while she ate, actually everyone was now. -What in the hell- I thought. She hadn’t spoke a word since we sat to eat and now she seemed a bit distressed about something. She was fidgeting with her spoon and her eyes moved like as if she was trying to look up but was too embarrassed to do so. She wanted to stop staring at her plate but somehow couldn’t. It was then when I looked up at Emily and immediately regretted it. I swear to God that I felt a million chills come down my spine like millions of nails scratching a blackboard.
She was the only one that wasn’t looking at her plate. She sat very still, her body leant towards Morgan at an unnatural angle over the table. Her cold blue eyes were fixed on my wife and her lips moved like she was saying something quietly but fast. It was such a faint whisper I couldn’t make out what she was saying. It was a bizarre scene. I then placed my hand on top of my wife’s and, this is hard to describe… then it was like if she just, I don’t know, came back? I saw the life come back to her body, I don’t really know how to explain it better.
When I stared back at Emily she was peacefully eating and for an instant I thought I had imagined it all for some reason. Then she looked up straight at me and gave me the most thin, smooth, terrifying, souless grin I’ve ever seen. I gathered all my logical power to try and explain to my own self what the fuck had just happened. I wasn’t sure if anybody else had seen anything, but passiveness and lack of reaction answered my first questions.
My mind was racing. I suddenly started remembering memories I’ve thought of lost and, to be completely honest, I wished they remained that way. A deep feeling of regret hurting my chest thinking about this whole meeting. The cluster of emotions and thoughts made me space out for some seconds and I tried hard to get focused on the situation again. I had forgotten I was still holding my wife’s hand.
“Hey babe, are you okay?” I stuttered. She was slightly shaking.
“I- Yes… Em - Emily’s dead” My wife said in the verge of tears and almost like a whisper. She was looking straight into my eyes.
I was beyond confused at this point. I was just letting information fall into pieces in my mind while I processed shocking revelations right in front of my eyes.
“Wh- what? Why? Em is right here babe what are you saying?”
“No, don’t you see it?” Said Morgan. She had rotated her body to face me now and was speaking in a neutral tone now, all emotion drained off her face. She put emphasis on the last word.
I looked at her. “Wha-“ My question was answered as soon as I placed my eyes on Emily, or on what I thought was gonna be Emily. A dark entity was seating where Emily just sat moments ago at my own house. I won’t ever forget the uneasiness I felt in that moment. It was like feeling all the dread and fear I’ve ever felt and will feel in my life all at once.
At this moment I knew. Sooner or later our past was going to catch us up and this was the day. Now I had all the fresh memories from that chapel racing in my mind. All the sensations, all the emotions that I felt that day, all the crying… I reckon it could have been seconds till I was going to pass out.
I don’t know where I got the energy from but I got up from the table and excused me and my wife. I quickly took Morgan to our dorm and slammed the door shut.
“Morgan you know what is happening right?” I whispered.
She was facing the door. I could see that she was practically sobbing now and slightly shaking her head.
“It’s happening again…” She was barely whispering. “But I don’t know what is it this time. I think it’s more powerful. I told you that’s not Em anymore, she died at the chapel and you all now it” Her tone was getting louder.
“She fucking died in there and YOU ALL KNOW IT” She was yelling at that point. The ones in the table could hear her clearly.
Her voice started to get deep and chorussy, she was facing the closed door giving her back to me.
Her voiced returned to hers for a slight moment “Don’t let h-“ She seemed to be struggling to say something.
It changed again. “Memento mori, certa more”. Then she collapsed to the ground.
She was unconscious. I yelled for help and seconds after Cain and Blair entered the room, almost breaking the door.
“What happened? What the hell did you do to her? Are you nuts?” Cain shouted.
That hurt me a bit to be honest. “I didn’t do anything you fucker, I was trying to calm her down ‘cause she was yelling, you heard her right? Then she collapsed on her own”.
Emily rushed past everyone and insisted on taking Morgan to bed. The moment Em touched Morgans arm she woke up with the most terrified look on her eyes and, fuck, the scream… I had never heard my wife scream like that until that day. It’s a sound it’s gonna be with me forever now and I wish every day that I could stop hearing it, but I just can’t.
“Alright that’s it fuck it, you guys gotta go. Now” I firmly said. The situation was starting to overcome me.
“ We need to get her to a hospital Shawn , Cain and I can get her to one, don’t worry” Said Em.
“ Yeah man, it’s only a forty five minute drive from here”.
For a moment I thought of it. Then I got Emily away from my wife and told her and Cain to go home.
“You’ve got to go home guys. I’m being serious”. I was starting to get nervous. “She just needs some rest now, no hospitals. I’ll take care”. I continued.
They didn’t take it well, but I didn’t care at that moment. I asked Blair to stay with us because, in all truth, I didn’t know where to start with all of this and I thought that any kind of help would be welcomed. When Em and Cain exited the door I found myself beaten and exhausted.
I needed a drink.
“Blair” I say while sipping my recently poured bourbon. My friend is now standing right in front of me with her arms crossed. I’m letting the coach pillows caress my body.
“Shawn you have a lot of explaining to do” She says. I have to point out that she didn’t seem over worried about the whole ordeal when she spoke. “What did just happen?”.
“It’s a fucking long story hun” I tell her.
“I’ve got time”. And she’s right, I’ve just asked her to stay with us and she doesn’t even know the whole story.
“Alright Blair” I say while downing my glass of bourbon “You’ll wish you never asked trust me”. I was starting to get a bit tipsy.
“Does Burnsville Coal Mines sound familiar to you?”