666

A glint,some distorted images and an impenetrable ache.

My eyelids gradually opened up, with the melancholy sound of raindrops crashing the window pane. My head was still in a daze,while I stared the ceiling,nonchalantly.Sicily is

accustomed to receive scorching heat during the months of July, the sudden arrival of rainfall was both unorthodox and eerily haunting.With an unsure state of mind, I peeped towards my left. '11 July 2011, 06:06 PM', flashed the clock on the side of the table. I let out a sigh and turned by head to the other side.

A corpse! A decaying corpse right next to me,lying on my bed. My eyes were unable to move from the sight,while I became numb. The room was disheveled, as if it was ransacked.Petrified, I strutted my way away from the corpse. The room was filled with the nauseating smell of its decomposition. The long hair, the nails and protruding chest, affirmed that the corpse was indeed of a lady. A tong of scissors rummaged across its stomach,while there were bloodstains spread across the sheets. Out of sheer horror, I crawled and stumbled my way out of the bed.

I couldn't fathom the courage to stand and sat next to the bed,frantically catching a glimpse of the distorted ambiance. The armchair was lying upside-down,the mirror was broken,torn curtain pieces were spread across the carpet,while the door was open. All the while, the thunder was exploding, and so was my pounding heart. A series of questions were flooding my mind. 'What, When, Where, How! This has to be a nightmare.' Unfortunately, all of this was a sad reality.

While I tried to lift myself,a pen from the corner of the table rolled over towards me. It was Eric's pen! Eric,where was he? Eric Longbottom was my husband for 10 years,we've been living together from the past 14 years. Eric must know what had happened, who did it and the corpse! I tried screaming his name, but to my dismay,my voice was shivering and what came out was a mere whisper. After three futile attempts, I finally screamed my lungs out. All that came back was an unassuming silence.

Where was Eric? I tried recollecting my thoughts about the past events but there weren't any memories of how I landed up here,the corpse or much about where Eric was. I stuttered yet again to stand up,but finally managed to. Tiptoed my way out of the room and began searching for him. Visibly scared, I ran around the house to find him or even a trace of his whereabouts. The call didn't connect and persistent cries for his name went unanswered. The only place left was the attic,which was connected to our bedroom. The thought of witnessing the place yet again,sent shivers down my spine.

With a heavy heart, and traces of tears and horror,I advanced to the room yet again. The inanimate objects were lying there, the wind was blowing ferociously and the corpse was still there, undisturbed.I ran towards the stairs,stumbled but managed to reach the attic. The scene in front of me was harrowing. Books scattered around in a haphazard manner,broken lamp and gore red bloodstains on carpet leading to the staircase.Something grotesque and wicked has happened in this house!

In a panicked state of mind, I frantically placed numerous phone calls to Eric, all in vain. I tried to reassure myself about Eric's well-being;the body lying in the bedroom,although unidentifiable,was definitely a female corpse.Unable to comprehend the chaos, I sat in the kitchen in monotony. Suddenly,I saw a dusty note penned in Eric's handwriting on the refrigerator, which read-'I am heading to Mr. Kavinsky's residence for lunch, reach there as soon as you are done with work.' Finally, a clue! Eric was at Mr. Kavinsky's place.

I immediately grabbed my raincoat and brisked out of the house. All this while, I was thinking to myself,'I need to inform Eric,maybe he knows.I need to inform Eric.'Mr. Kavinsky's residence was located at Lane Number.666, a fifteen minutes journey from ours.As I stepped out of the house to start this harrowing journey,the clouds started pouring. In an agitated state of mind, I ran towards my destination,all this while, hoping that it was just a terrible nightmare.

There was no petrichor around,the pungent smell of the decaying corpse was still a strong memory. There was an unknown corpse lying next to me on my bed,Eric was missing and my heart was pounding. I reached Mr. Kavinsky's house and rang the bell,over and over again.Nobody answered back.Anxious and on the verge of a major catastrophe, I finally decided to break through. Through a small creak in the wall, I managed to reach the lawn. There was Mrs. Kavinsky, sitting on a bench,attending a phone call.She looked in my direction, but without any notice of me, she drifted her eyes away and proceeded with the call.

"Oh Amber, what a terrible week it has been. Mikasa and Eric are no more."she remarked.

Eric Longbottom,my husband for ten years.

Mikasa Longbottom,my name.

"They were supposed to reach our place on 8th July for lunch,but they didn't. A fight broke out between the two over Eric's alleged affair with his co-worker. Mikasa couldn't handle the brunt of his infidelity and murdered him ruthlessly. She then proceeded to kill herself too. What a sad ending to a rather jolly couple. Both of their corpses have been discovered,just now.", were her last words which reached my ears. I collapsed near the bench,while the clouds roared over me.How was it possible even in the direst of circumstances! I am alive, standing right infront of her, yet she isn't answering me and proclaiming that I'm dead. Mrs. Kavinsky went back in,while I sat there,empty.

Out of nowhere, a pair of long and cold hands landed on my shoulders.Then,it occurred to me like an unprecedented flashback of what happened on the 8th July,2011;my doom.

8th July,2011

I was busy looking for a book in the attic when I accidentally scattered Eric's bookmarks. In the process of assembling them, I saw a few messages engraved on them. Curiously, I tried reading them and found heartfelt exchanges between two lovers. Horridly, out of the two handwriting,one was of Eric, while the other wasn't mine. Taken aback, I called him up the attic while he was about to leave for Mr. Kavinsky's place. Upon seeing those bookmarks, his entire face was left horrified,as if his biggest secret has been caught. I demanded an explanation but he couldn't contemplate one.Ultimately, after a heated exchange he revealed to me, how he had been cheating for the last 7 months with a co-worker named 'Becky'. I crumbled to the floor,while he continued his saga. Then, my eyes landed on a tong of scissors. I kept staring at them,until the time I finally picked them up. I slammed the scissors right across his abdomen and pulled them out, like I was demonically possessed. I saw him die as my tears rolled over. I picked up his corpse, dragged it across the staircase and buried him in the lawn. It all felt like a satanic ritual, while he died when I smashed the scissors into him; I died the moment he affirmed his desertion. I ran towards the room, rummaged it out of inconsolable pain and ended my life with the same tong of scissors.

After this moment of self-realization, I understood that the corpse lying on the bed was indeed mine. I was dead, three days back. Rather, I've already murdered my husband cold-blooded, and went on to take my own life. I looked towards my shoulder to find one of the hands clutching on to me. As I looked up, I saw a scythe-wielding figure, dressed in a black robe, holding up an umbrella over my head. It slowly reached down towards my ears and whispered,

"All dark souls return back in time,when will you?"