Till Death Do Us Part

The night is wonderful. The moon is full and the stars are dancing all through the sky. There is a faint sound of crickets in the background. This is the perfect night for a wedding.

The voices of the guests are getting fainter and fainter as I get further away from the venue. As I said tonight is perfect for a wedding. At least it would be if it was love that got me here.

I have to get away. My life depends on it. The sound of someone behind me gets louder as I plan my full escape. I look behind me and there are 3 tall men chasing after me. I turn my head to face look in front of me again and I begin to pick up my pace.

I am running as fast as I can. However, trust me that is not easy. I am in 6 inch bejeweled heels and a long ball gown styled dress. The men keep getting closer. I need to figure out what to do.

The streets are nearly empty. The only light is the light of the moon. This is making difficult to see. As I approach the park I realize that there must be somewhere to hide from the men. I do not have long before they catch me so I must think quickly.

I quickly turn right leading me to the tables. As I run past them flashes of my not so distant past flood my brain. We met here at this very spot. He was so tall and handsome. This is where he asked my name and for a date. This is where I first well in love with a man I thought would be my forever.

Tears begin to role down my cheek. There is no time for this I must keep running, they will be here any moment. A tree branch falls right in front of me. There behind that tree maybe I can hide there and think of something.

NO! That would not work. I hid there once when he and I came for a walk. This is where he first kissed me. In that spot he told me his name. In that spot I officially knew Andrew, or so I thought.

I need to get out of this park there is no where safe to hide from them. I hear them. They are not far from me. I must keep moving. As I run towards the end of the park I see a young man walking a young lady home. A flash of Andrew and I crosses my mind. We would take midnight strolls whenever the moon was full.

We would hold hands and I would sometimes dance in the rain. One of the men grabs at me. He almost got me. I managed to get out of his reach just in time. I have to stop thinking of Andrew. After all he is the reason that I am in this mess.

It feels like I have been running for ages. Why are they after me? It is just a wedding. I look back at the men and shout at them "What do you want from me?" I begin to hear laughter. It sounds demonic.

There is a little spot just a mile up the road. There is a small house just past the gap in the trees. Maybe if I can get there I will be safe for the night. Then in the morning I can go to the police.

~1 mile later~

I guess being with him did have one good thing about it. He is the reason I know about this place. It was his mother's childhood home. I haven't much time before they notice where I darted to.

I just hope they give up soon. All of this because I fell for a man that never existed. "Honey, won't you come out?" His voice carried through the trees. How did he find me? I have to keep moving there is no time to waste.

"Sweetie, do you remember our first trip here?" I do remember. It was the night he introduced me to his mother. This house, these woods, this was were he proposed to me. If only I knew then what I know now. I would have never said yes to him.

"Rose, my love, please come out. I promise nothing bad will happen to you. I love you so much. Please just come back to me." His voice sounds so pure at first.

"Get away from me you monster!" I shout as I run further into the woods. "Rose, please don't do this. I am not the bad guy here." His voice is becoming more harsh as he tries to defend himself.

That voice causes a flash of sorrow and torment. "I cannot marry you Andrew. You are a monster! You got rid of her. You got rid of Annabelle." I grip my stomach as I fall to the ground.

A tear caresses my cheek. I have to keep going, for Annabelle. "You know I had to. If I didn't they would have. You know now that what happened was only to protect her." I may have believed him if he had not began to laugh at the end of his excuse.

"You got rid of her because she was not a boy. You did this not anyone else." I look up and realize that I am no longer in the woods. Somehow during all of this I am back at the wedding. This cannot be happening.

How am I back here? Why am I here? I have to try again. I cannot stop now. I need to find her. I need to find Annabelle. The sound of footsteps are growing louder. I turn around and... CRACK! Everything went dark.

I jump up and look around. I am in bed Andrew is next to me and Annabelle greets me with a hug. "Good morning mommy! Are you okay? I think you were having a bad dream."