The nightmare is the same as always. In it, I’m in a dark room, unable to move, talk, or do anything, even breathe. The breathing tubes attached to my body do the job of breathing for me. All I can do is lay there immobile in terror as a mentally deranged Charlotte advances on me with a poison-filled syringe. As always, I wake up screaming before she plunges the needle into me in the dream.
The room I’m in is dark, but I know where I am. I’m in a bed in a room at Sebastian’s house. I hadn’t wanted to be alone after the ceremony earlier in the day, and his wife, Carol had understood. In fact, she was the one who had urged me to at least, stay over for the night. Thankfully, my screaming did not wake anyone in the house, but I know that sleep won’t come again, at least, not for a while, so I get out of bed and pad silently out of the room.The house feels very familiar to me, which is not a surprise, because once upon a time, I had been a joint owner of this house and had lived with Sebastian, to whom I was engaged in it, but that time seems so distant now. The house is now in Carol’s name because Sebastian had bought it for her in a desperate bid to get me out of their lives. I can’t blame him though. I had been constituting such a nuisance to them that it is even a wonder that they forgave me at all. Surprisingly, I don’t feel any jealousy toward them any longer, which is such a huge relief. All I want is to be normal again, but it seems that that is too much to ask for. Sebastian and I have a lot of history, but I want to remain friends with him, despite everything that has happened.The house is silent as I step out into the cool night breeze, and although everything in me kicks against it, I head over to the garden, which I had once loved, but now, didn’t even like anymore. I wrap my robe more tightly around me, looking around me at the deserted and partially lit garden instinctively. I would never forget that God-awful day for as long as I live.I remember the party that had been held in the house that night all too well. It had been held at my insistence for Mr. James, Sebastian’s uncle, who had once loved me as though I were his own daughter but had suddenly begun to be very hostile towards me. I organized the whole thing as a way to mend fences between us and try to get him to like me back because I knew how much Sebastian loved his uncle.I can remember putting some makeup back on my face after the crying bout that I had had because of my fight with Mr. James, who was totally unimpressed with his party. I remember the unnerving feeling that I had of being watched … a shadow approaching in the dimly lit garden and someone placing a piece of cloth over my face before I can even draw a breath to scream. I can also remember my futile struggles as whoever it was, held me tightly and pressed the cloth firmly over my nose for minutes while communicating with someone else who was working with him. I remember feeling fainter and fainter as the minutes passed, and my struggles lessen.Willing the awful memories back, I glance around again, but it is a futile effort. Being in the garden where it had all happened brought the memories back, whether I want to remember them or not. I had blacked out that day, and woken up Charlotte’s captive, remaining so for a long time, and almost dying at the end, if not for Carol’s intervention.Tears blur my eyes, but I wipe at them angrily and draw in a deep, ragged breath. Then I light the cigarette that I brought outside with me and take a few drags. I had been such a mess when I first got out of the hospital, but nowadays, I like to think that I’m much better and stronger, but apparently, I’m not, and the reason for my relapse was right there inside the house at this very moment. It is no wonder that I had the nightmare again after almost a month of freedom.As I stand there, I realize that I’m not alone in the garden. Someone is there in the shadows watching me silently. I know it as surely as I know that Charlotte is in prison. I don’t know how I know that there’s someone there, but I just know. I consider screaming off my head to alert the household. I refuse to be taken again.“Hello, Jessica.” A deep voice says from behind me. I whirl around, my right hand flying to my throat as I stare at him … the very reason for the nightmare I had just had. I relax a bit as soon as I see his tall frame, but from the way he is looking at me, he can probably tell that he has scared me very badly.“I’m sorry for scaring you. I didn’t mean to.” Charles says, looking like he meant it. I stare at him with ill-concealed hatred, his apology not appeasing me in the slightest.“Why are you following me?” I ask him rudely, unable to stop staring at him and thinking about how much he looked like his dead sister.“I wasn’t. I was in the garden and I saw you come in, so I figured I’d ask if you’re okay.”“I’m not okay, thanks to you and your face that looks so much like that of your sister. I’ll be okay if I never see your face or anything that will remind me of your crazy sister ever again.” I spit at him.“I understand. I’m sorry that you feel that way, but I can assure you that I’m nothing like my sister, Jessica. I’m very sorry for all that she did to you.”“Sorry just doesn’t cut it. Maybe if you didn’t look like a taller, masculine version of her, I wouldn’t be so sickened by you. I understand that it is not your fault that you look the way you do, but it is also not my fault for being traumatized. It's just the way things are. As it stands, being with you in the same room or space scares the living daylights out of me. Please, I beg of you, avoid me from now henceforth. I’ll do the same with you.”“Alright. I’ll try to do as you’ve asked. Once again, I’m sorry for everything that you went through, and I truly hope that you heal from it. Goodnight, Jessica.” Charles says solemnly and turns to leave. I watch him go, feeling a little bad at the way I had spoken to him. It isn't his fault that his sister is a maniac.Everyone tells me that he is nothing like Charlotte, and I can see the truth of that in his eyes, which although they’re the same color and shape as Charlotte’s, hold a kindness and intelligence that I’m not sure Charlotte’s ever produced a measure of. Still, I’m not interested in being his friend and would be very much relieved if I never see his handsome face again.I wake up early later that morning and go jogging in a bid to clear my head. Unsurprisingly, the remainder of my night had been horrible, and now, there were dark circles beneath my eyes, but the crisp morning air helped to revive me a bit. Soon, I was in a better mood than I had been in the previous night.However, my good mood soon disappeared when I heard the sound of running footsteps behind me. I whirl around, already in a defensive mood, not that I would have been able to do anything if a predator was coming up to me. My ordeal in the hands of Charlotte had left me skinny to the point of emaciation, and I hadn’t gained much in terms of weight since then. In summary, I am as light as a feather, so to speak. My mood plunges more when I realize that it is Charles who is running behind me.“What the hell is your problem? Has your family not tortured me enough? First, it was your father, then your sister, and now, you? What did I ever do to all of you?” I snap at him without so much
“Hello, Jessica,” Charles says quietly, staring at me with his green eyes, his expression unreadable. I have never seen that shade of startling green eyes before. I wonder if he is wearing contacts but quickly decide that it is none of my business.“I’m beginning to think that you and your sister have quite a lot in common. You’re both crazy stalkers.” I say to him, noting that his expression does not change in the slightest.“Actually, Charlotte and I are nothing alike, but I can see why you would think that. I’m not following you though. I have every right to be here, you see, as the company that organized this crew belongs to Sebastian and me. I own the majority of the shares, in fact. However, I can’t say the same about you, Jessica. What are you doing here?” He asks in the same gentle tone that I’m fast coming to hate. He is clearly one of those people who rarely ever get angry, no matter how far you pushed them.“I was invited by this guy called Maxwell.”“That’s good. You’ll lo
At first, I don’t see anything suspicious in the dark water, not even ripples, which is not surprising because it is raining, and because there are waves. I chalk up what I thought I had heard to the fact that I’m tired as hell and obviously imagining things. Or maybe I’m going crazy too. Crazy seems to be in my family’s DNA.I’m about to turn away and go back to my cabin to finally get some shuteye when I hear it! The gurgle of water as a pale face emerges from it and a loud gasp as whoever was in the water sucked in huge gulps of air, before being submerged again. Pale, skinny arms flail above the water as the person struggled to remain afloat, but it is very clear that whoever it is cannot swim.The wind has picked up now, and even though I know it is most likely a futile effort, and that no one was likely to hear me over the screaming of the wind, I yell at the top of my voice for help. The face appears again, and to my horror, I realize that it is Jessica who is in the water. I c
I glance down at the unconscious woman in my arms, not knowing what on earth to do. I’m just thankful that I was smart and aware enough to take the life vests for both of us before jumping into the water after Jessica, otherwise, I don’t know what would have become of us both.I make sure to have a firm grip on her with one hand so that she would not drift away from me, while I fumble in my pocket for my phone with the other. It is drenched in water, but it is still working. I try to connect to the wifi of the ship, but I don’t hold out much hope because even while on board, the connectivity is really poor, not to talk of when the ship is so far away. As expected, there is no signal, so I give up trying.“Someone will soon notice that we’re not on the ship, and they will eventually realize that we must have fallen overboard.” I think to myself, beginning to swim in the direction that the ship had gone, and dragging Jessica, who was blissfully unconscious with me. It is a good thing th
JESSICAI’ve been awake for a very long time, but I pretend not to be awake. For one thing, I’m beyond pissed at this impossible situation in which I find myself. For another, I don’t want to have to talk to Charles. He had saved my life, but then, it was because of him I found myself in this situation in the first place. Hopefully, help will come soon, and immediately it does, I’ll go home as soon as the opportunity presents itself and forget all about this unfortunate adventure.Finally, I’m tired of pretending to be unconscious, so I decide to give up the act. Still, it takes a while for Charles to notice that my eyes are open. When he notices, I see the surprise on his face and can tell that I startled him, something that amuses me to no end, but I carefully keep the amusement from my face.He opens his mouth to say something, shifting a little as he does so. I spy a tree branch or something of the sort bobbing close to him in the waves and yell out a warning for him to watch out,
“Well, you don’t deny it then? So, how are you going to accomplish it? Are you going to drown me in the sea? Or perhaps, you’re going to strangle me with those large hands of yours. You’re a doctor if I remember correctly, aren’t you? Do you have the same drug-filled needles your sister was going to use to finish me off in your pockets right now? Is that what you’re going to use to do the job? Who knows, it's very possible that you were the one who told her the combination of drugs to kill me slowly and in an unnoticeable manner. Well, you don't have to worry about how you’re going to do it because nature will help you do the job sooner rather than later. We’ll die out here, no thanks to you!” Jessica spits, full of righteous indignation, and looking for all the world like a spoilt brat. I immediately chide myself for thinking such a thing and try to allay her fears, because I know she is lashing out at me to keep her fear at bay.“I have no desire to do any of those things or harm yo
SAMANTHAFor the third time in a row, the call goes unanswered on the other end. I’m not surprised in the least bit, but I’m more than a little irritated. Jessica is a changed person, who is no different from a hermit now, but even then, it irks me when she refuses to take my calls. We had once been best friends, and I like to think that we still are, so I don’t appreciate her shutting me out of her life the way she’s been doing these past few years.I understand that she’s scarred, but I miss her being in my life, and I won’t stop trying to get her out of her shell. I try her number again, but still, she doesn’t answer the phone.“You look disturbed.” My boyfriend, Tom, whom I’m fast getting tired of, says from where he is lying down on my bed, as naked as the day that he was born. I glance at him impatiently before replying.“It’s nothing, really, and put on some clothes, for chrissakes.”“You weren’t complaining some minutes ago.” He points out, leering at me in a way that annoys me
JESSICAIt doesn’t take long after Charles leaves for me to begin to feel very alone, and even afraid. I don’t know if this island is big enough to get lost on, or if there are any harmful animals like snakes and whatnot, and I sure as hell do not want to be left alone. What if something bites me? Besides, there is safety in numbers. I’m too proud to go after him though. Let him go away if he wants to. It’s going to be his cup of tea if help comes while he is off doing God knows what and probably getting bitten or eaten up by whatever animals there are out there.By late evening, he’s still not back, and that is when I begin to work myself up into a frenzy. I absolutely hate the dark, but even worse, I hate sleeping in it alone. Any company, even Charles,’ is beginning to look heavenly. I mold myself to a tree and count to a thousand, after which I count to two thousand, but he does not come back. Tears of worry, terror, and frustration begin to pour down my cheeks.“Damn him! Damn hi