“Hello, Sandy,” Maggie greeted with a smile upon entering.
This lady seems to know who she is, but Sandy is having a hard time recalling where she saw her from.
“Hello, good evening. I’m sorry, I don’t remember where I know you from.”
“That’s fine. It’s the first time you’ll be meeting me, after all.”
That made sense, but something still wasn’t clear. “The first time? So how come you know my name then?”
“I know it from your brother.”
Of course, she should have known, its no wonder she couldn’t make out having seen her face here. “So, you’re his guest, I suppose?”
“Yes, I am.”
“You must be new in the night shadow pack then, because I haven’t seen your face there before, either.”
“Yes. I just recently moved there from my former pack.”
“How then did you become so close to my brother that you’re accompanying him around now?”
Maggie smiled, ignoring her snappiness. “It’s a long story, but I only accompanied your brother here to talk to you. I was hoping to be able to convince you to help him.”
“If that’s why you came, then I’m sorry to inform you that you’ve only wasted your time. I will not be accompanying you or my brother back home.”
“So, you’d rather that spirit takes him away instead? You’d rather he dies because of it?”
“If it wanted to kill my brother, it would have done so since. As for whatever form of mind torture Walden is getting now, he deserves it well enough.”
“Wait… I thought Walden said you didn’t believe a word of what he said, how come you know of the spirit’s mind games then?”
Sandy tried to hide it but she failed, as after examining the guilt written on her face, Maggie gasped, “so you knew about this before!!! You knew he wasn’t crazy, and you made it seem as if.”
“He deserves it, Maggie! You might not understand, but you were not there the day he killed Conor! You don’t know my griefs! You don’t know the pains I felt! My heart was shattered so uncontrollably, I thought I would even die from the ache! I still feel it, even after a year has passed, and yet I don’t think I’ll ever be able to recover from it.”
Maggie shook her head, “this isn’t the way to speak, Sandy. I might not have been there when your lover was killed, but I do know the similar pain of losing someone who you loved with all your heart. At that moment, it would feel as if you can never love another person just as much, and it’s true.”
Sandy didn’t know when the tears started escaping her eyes. “I begged my brother that day. I told him of my love for Conor, I tried to let him know that my lover had me as an alibi, when Walden heard… He knew the truth. He knew that I would never lie to cover up someone else’s crimes, but yet, hearing of our love only made Walden want to carry on so quickly with the execution, believing the false accusations made against Conor right away without any investigations on his part.”
“Sandy, I am so sorry for what happened that day. I am not trying to justify any actions your brother made by killing the man you love.”
“Then why are you on his side? Why did you agree to come here to help him talk to me? Why didn’t you just live him to wallow in the misery he created for himself?”
“Because everyone makes mistakes, and everyone deserves a second chance, Sandy, including your brother. No matter what he’s done in the past. It can still be forgiven.”
Sniffs, “I don’t know… I don’t think I will ever be able to.”
“Of course, you can, you can take it one step at a time, and as for the one you lost, I can totally relate it to the time I lost my Jeremy. Believe me, dear, you will cry, especially the times you feel the loneliness of that person no longer being there. You feel as if no one will ever be able to fill that space he once used to occupy in your life, and it might be true. It hurts so much to think of that, but also believe me when I say that things will get better.”
“Thank you, Maggie. I’m sorry for the one you lost, it must have been difficult for you and your daughter then.”
“It was difficult, but it did become better for me and my baby afterwards. A lot has happened since then, and it’s not all roses now, but I guarantee that things are way better than how they used to be before.”
Sandy then asked her a different question. “Are you the one that wants to help Walden perform the ritual?”
She nodded, “Yes, I am.”
“I thought so. If you are, then I think that there’s something you should know.”
Maggie rose her brow, “something I should know? What is it?”
“Conor has also been appearing to me every night.”
She gasped at the realization, “really???? How come you haven’t said anything about this since?”
“I don’t know… Maybe it’s because it’s a different experience for me than what Walden is facing. He appears to me in pleasant ways, not scary at all. It reminds me of the times when he was still alive, when we were still lovers.”
“Sandy, I now understand your reluctance for wanting to help your brother but please, you have to reconsider, especially now that you’ve told me this. That is not your lover, Sandy! I’ve forgotten what my psychic guardian used to call it… But it releases different sides of itself based on its intentions for the being it wants to haunt. It must have sent it’s evil, revenge-seeking side to your brother, and then it’s loving, peaceful side to you.”
Sandy nodded, “I know. I know it wasn’t Conor, and that’s the only reason why I told you, because I am willing to help my brother, not for any reason, but to set Conor free. I think I’m ready to stop fantasizing on the things that will never be as they once were.”
“Thank you for this decision, Sandy. You’ve not just done your brother good, but also yourself.”