14. The Angel’s Decree
Madam Gray
She couched under her duvet. Every now and then, she did that. And yes, she was frightened. Terror still found its way to creep into her mind, sending nerves down her spine. She shivered and grasped. The place was as quiet as dead. She had turned off the lights, locked the window and shut the door. Alone on her bed, she quivered and sobbed.
Her instinct was getting stronger and she could feel it. It was fear that kept her hiding. It was secret that she was concealing. She knew her doom would come soon. It was just a matter of time when she met her death.
In the morning, she received a letter, though it was perfectly a prank and yet it was enough to drive her mad. The moment she cut open the letter, she froze. Someone who loathed her must have written that because on it written was:
Madam Gray,
She’s finding you. She’s after you. And you know who she is.
She knew, indeed. Everyone in the town was talking about her. She was Margorie Walker, the dead girl who had recurred. And it was not simply dread and panic. There were rumors. Rumors about her. Many knew she had returned to watch people die. Some stated that she came with a list of dead while some insisted only certain people could see her. Yet, one thing was certain about Margorie- she only claimed sinners’ life.
She had sinned. That’s why she was scared. It was not the only reason though. Some of her companions had perished mysteriously also. Sir Mitchell and Madam Ali were both victims.
Locking herself in the room, she read the letter over and over again. Each time she revised it, the more horrified she got.
“This is not going to work…” She quivered. Hiding could not keep Margorie from coming, so she was informed. There were not any possible ways to avoid the girl, in fact.
“Margorie comes when she wants to see you.” Someone told her. “And when she comes, it’s your end.”
Tears trickled down her face. She had cheated and lied. She had deliberately put others to suffer and death. Games she had played with her buddies were immoral and brutal. Murder had once been her pleasure pastime. Now, she was the one being wanted, chased and killed soon. For the first time in her life, she felt guilty. Just because she was afraid of death herself.
Just when she thought there was no way out, an idea hit her.
“No…there’s someone who can help.” She muttered. “He MUST help…”
Hanzel
The storm was coming and he knew it. He could feel the wind and the air. Soon, typhoon would strike the village and nothing was going to stop it, just like nothing could stop him from finding her.
Ever since Detective Carter’s death, he had been carrying on wtih his journey. Each time an bizarre death occurred somewhere, he would flee to that place to try to reach her. Yet, she never appeared before him.
With increasing number of deaths in the town, people were getting more and more alarmed. What amused him was that plenty of them did not care about the death, neither did they fear. They, in fact, started worshipping Margorie as their goddess, for she had come to claim sinners’ life. As for the sinners, they were most definitely the criminals and- the noble. Everything just seemed to be unraveled when Margorie arrived. Every single crime a man had ever committed was revealed. People died for reasons. For being cruel and sinful. Still, nothing about these mattered to him. He only wished to see her. And to be with her. Forever.
He strolled along the green moors. Wind was exceptionally strong at night. Coldness did not make him tremble. Even until the day all his limbs went lame, he would be searching and yearning for her. Even if the whole world turned against her, he would still be there for her. Time flew and yet, his love for her never changed.
The church was coming in sight. It was the only shelter he could seek. The priest, Father Moore would be there. He was kind enough to offer him any help and needs, for they used to be very close friends back when he still went to church regularly.
He used to go there for Sunday prayer with Margorie even though she practically didn’t believe in God or anything. She often told him. “There’s nothing such as God.” It was her motto. But he was glad because even when she found going to church meaningless, she still tagged along with him. At least, it proved she did care. She was aware of and concerned about his existence.
As he drew nearer, light inside the church was beaming out brightly. The door was wide open and a few people were gathering around. He scurried to find out more, only to see a bunch of noble ladies and gentlemen in the church, circling the priest.
“You must find way to help us.” Someone said.
“Yes, how much do you want? We’ll give you all our fortunes!”
“If only you can drive her away!”
“You must know how to do that! To kill that beast!”
“Oh, please,” He heard Father Moore reply. “Calm down, ladies and gentlemen.”
“How on earth can we calm down when a demon is out there trying to kill us?”
“She’s coming for us!”
“Yes, she is coming for you!” Unable to withstand any more of these cowards’ talking, he stood out and yelled. “Margorie will come for whoever causes others pain!”
“Who’re you?” A man asked.
“Hanzel!” Father Moore exclaimed, rushing out of the crowd to reach him.
“Good evening, Father Moore.” Hanzel grinned.
“What? I can’t believe this!” Madam Gray howled. “Hanzel! I heard about him! He’s her accomplice!”
“How dare you let this demon boy in?!” People began to roar in anger.
“Stop it!” Father Moore bawled. “Hanzel is not a demon!”
“And neither is Margorie!” Hanzel bellowed. “She’s an angel! She helps the good and condemns the bad like you!”
“Father Moore,” Suddenly, a lady stepped forward and stated. “You should know well what you have to do. By the way, this church is Watsons’ property. We can claim this land whenever we want.”
“Oh, yes.” Following Madam Watson, a man claimed. “The orphanage is subsidized by the Clarks. They are my friends. If you refuse to help us, those orphans will be straying in the street by no time!”
“How…” Flabbergasted, Father Moore didn’t know what to say. These people were apparently using their authority and wealth to threaten him. It was abhorrent and utterly despicable.
“You guys never learn!” Hanzel shrieked. “Margorie comes for you because you people only think of yourself, deprive others of their right and put them into suffering for your own sakes! You’re irredeemably selfish and malicious, the true devils in life form!”
“Do say whatever you want, jerk.”
“We don’t care. Father Moore is going to help us no matter what.”
“Or else,” Madam Gray smiled. “This town is nothing without us. We’re the rich. We conquer all.”
“That’s right. Only with our help, the country succeeds.”
“So, Father Moore, deal or not?”
Father Moore
So, it was settled. He was left with no choice but to obey their commands. The rich always ruled regardless any circumstances. To protect the civil rights, his performance was compulsory. Despite Hanzel’s objection, he had to summon the girl.
She was no evil, indeed. As far as he was concerned, she was, in fact, a fallen angel caught in eternal adversity. To summon her wasn’t a challenge, but to irritate her was as easy as breaking a glass. She had her own intentions though. She didn’t simply comply with her master’s orders but had come with extra personal purposes of which he had not a single idea.
Still, the future lay as unpredictable as could be. What she might do to them would be unexpected. Opposition wasn’t the right thing to do, for the rich would definitely threaten him by all means. They were very good at menacing people with their power or with the poor’s rights in their hands anyway. Declining their requests would just make matters worse. The boy loved her, of course, so he was the first to reje
ct. However, it was a struggle between passion and sense. He yearned to see her but couldn’t bear to see her suffer. What Hanzel still hadn’t realized was that Margorie was no longer the girl she once had been. He knew she had changed. However, his guilt of failing to protect her once kept him bearing in mind her existence was fragile and uncertain.
“People make mistakes.” Father Moore closed his eyes and muttered. “May God forgive my sins…”
So long as he lived, he would remember his crime this night. The ceremony was held right inside the church. The steps were simple enough but the intentions were perfectly unpardonable. To summon a fallen angel was one of the most perilous and offensive religious act. One does not simply call upon a demon when he is in fact faithful to God at the same time.
“You don’t mess around with demons.” One of the seniors once told him. “God has its way to punish and condemn them.”
That was true. Demons only lived in hell, though some might have escaped to fool around in human world. As for fallen angels, their minds were even harder to reach. They almost lived within the boundaries between two worlds. They lingered in between the abandoned faith and the forbidden desire. Their existence often changed the lives of many.
What these people here did not realize was that Margorie was no demons. She was a fallen angel. She couldn’t possibly be killed by a simple performance that might have effect on a demon. Somehow, her mind was connected to the God. Though her mission was unclear and her identity vague, he was certain she came with an honorable reason. Her doing was nothing but deed.
“Don’t do that, Father Moore.” Hanzel grabbed his hand and begged. “You are going to kill Margorie, aren’t you?”
Father Moore just stared at the boy. Poor boy, he thought. He had never once rested in peace ever since the girl died. He was still blaming himself for her death, which in fact was never his mistake.
“Life comes and life goes.” Father Moore muttered. “Let God decide it all.”
He could tell Hanzel understood his words. He was passionate and crazy about her but he was not that stubborn. He knew it was fate. Her death must mean something.
“Tonight,” Father Moore announced. “The devils WILL die and people SHALL live!”
Everyone cheered and applauded. Little did they understand the meaning behind his line.
The fire was lit and spells were spoken. Darkness enveloped the place and fear struck the minds. Nothing more. The night was long. The moon was high up in the cloudless sky. The darkest night in the year. The best time to perform a summoning ceremony.
It was just…never did they expect they would be interrupted. Out of sudden, the door swung open. They thought it was the wind but what they saw was even more astonishing.
A bunch of town people were gathering around at the church, each roaring with anger. Stunned, the noble backed away. Apparently, the villagers had come to protest against their doing.
“Did you call them?” Father Moore turned to Hanzel, who just spouted and looked away.
“You can’t kill her!” Someone screeched.
“We’ve all seen her deeds! The ones she killed all deserve death!”
“Yes! She helped us kill Prince Eugène!”
“And Madam Hernandez!”
“Earl Beaumont as well!”
“All these people were meant to suffer!”
“Yes! You noble just fear death because you always torment the others!”
“Right! All the false execution, slavery and killing games you have played will serve as the evidence! Margorie will come for you!”
More and more protestors joined in and the crowd was in total mess. It had gradually turned into a battle between rich and poor.
All the slaves, servants and exploited peasants came to howl and bawl at their masters. The noble was furious. Seeing that many were standing against them, they began to panic.
“Don’t worry, they’re dead after tonight.” Madam Watson shrieked.
Sir Dowell suddenly pulled out a gun from his suit and shot at the crowd.
BANG! The victim fell back immediately and bled.
The group went silent as blood spread everywhere.
“Hush and leave or I’ll shoot again!” Sir Dowell commanded, holding up the gun in the air.
“Oh my goodness!” Father Moore couldn’t stand it anymore. He squeezed through the crowd and right to the fallen man, whom everyone surrounded. “How dare you let blood spill in such a holy place!”
“This is no holy place!” The noble man shouted. “Go back to the ceremony, Father Moore or I’ll kill everyone who comes in the way!”
“Yes, that’s right!” Madam Gray bellowed. “Remember our deal!”
“How could you be so cruel and heartless?” Hanzel screamed.
And then, the crowd went mad again. Despite being shot, they pushed themselves into the church. A few more noble men pulled out their guns and triggered the pistols. The church was suddenly filled with deafening shooting sounds and whimpers. The walls were stained red and the benches were ripped apart, detached from the ground. People rushed into the church in clumps and only blood could be seen spilling everywhere. Whines could be heard but determination was felt. The town had been enduring the evil act of the noble for a long time. Having been maltreated and discriminated for so long, they finally allowed themselves to retain some virtues and courage to fight against the cruel.
He had never expected to live a day to see this. People slaughtering each other. People forgetting God’s existence. People losing their mind to redeem their faults.
“Is this….” Father Moore stuttered. “One of her missions?”
Somewhere, somewhere in this church……he was sure she was present. She would be standing in one corner, crossing her arms and witnessing the entire scene. She would be smiling as people who adored her fought against those who despised her. Maybe this was all she wanted.
She had always been a weird girl after all. When Hanzel used to bring her to church, she never looked enthusiastic. She just tagged along. She had this odd habit of watching people though, so he heard. Whenever she passed by, people wouldn’t dare glance into her eyes. Once, he did so and he regretted it. Her eyes were full of mysteries and secrets. It was not terror that he felt after looking into her eyes. But- guilt. Her eyes somehow reminded him of every little thing he had done, especially the mistakes. It might be the reason why everybody in the town seemed to detest her. Her eyes reflected everyone’s sins. History called it THE GOLDEN EYES. Only certain ones hand-chosen by God was privileged to possess them and yet, her specialty became the main cause of her death.
“NO!” Someone screamed.
Everybody started twisting their body at once. The fighting stopped and all the weapons were dropped to the ground.
“I can’t move!” Someone cried.
“It’s her!”
The door slammed shut as the fire on the candles were lit once more. At the end of the hall stood a girl. She was wearing the same old black outfit, with a smile on her face. The shadows caught her dark feathery wings on the wall. Her eyes sparkled in dimness.
“Margorie…” He muttered.
“Long time no see, Father Moore.” Margorie grinned. “You went into pretty much trouble to summon me, didn’t you?”
“Margorie!” Sir Dowell shouted, lifting his arm and pointing the gun at her.
“No!” Hanzel shouted.
The gun fired with a rumbling sound but the bullet went past Margoire, striking on the wall.
Stunned, Sir Dowell held back.
The girl didn’t seem to feel any pain at all. She just smiled and in a flash moment, pulled out a piece of yellowish parchment.
“Sir Dowell, the landlord of Ginger village, 38 year old, the owner of Magnificent Hills.” She began to read. “Have craze about torturing his own servants, especially hanging them up in the ceiling and whipping them. Hate children. Murdered a total of 20 kids in record. A frequent customer to THE HOUSE. Is the devil of
cruelty taken in human form.”
“Huh?”
“You.” Margorie looked up from the parchment and gazed into his eyes. “are proved guilty.”
Just then, Sir Dowell’s wrist curled in a horrifying manner. The gun he held in his hand turned to point at his own face. Shivering, fear filled his mind and tears welled up in his eyes.
“No…” He stammered.
“Bang!” Margorie laughed. With one shoot, the bullet penetrated his face and came out from the other side of his head. His cranium broke into fragments right away.
On seeing this, everyone screamed.
“Nice.” Margorie smiled. “I like screams. Whenever one screams, it means he’s scared. And when one’s scared, he knows he’s going to face something bad.”
“What do you want?” Madam Gray cried out in tears.
“Me?” Margorie raised her brows. “I want nothing from you. I’m just doing my job. What an occasion to meet you people on such a beautiful night. I wouldn’t have dreamt of killing my murderer. Tonight, the sinned ones will think everything is real but tomorrow, you can tell it’s just a nightmare from which you will never wake up.”
“NO!” As Madam Gray screamed, Margorie lifted one of her fingers and next the woman fell onto the ground struggling.
“I….can’t breathe…” Madam Gray put her hands around her neck, strangling herself to death.
“You shouldn’t be surprised about that, Madam Gray.” Margorie said plainly. “After all, this is how you killed your first born child, whom you think, was a handicap.”
It was mad. Everything happening was mad. It took only a few seconds for Madam Watson, Sir Gerard and Madam Jacksons to lie dead on the ground. As for the sinners that remained, it was just a matter of time that death counted down to them. There was no escape. Just as Father Moore had expected, the ceremony would finally turn into a feast of justice and punishment. Margorie was a fallen angel, here to fetch the living devils home. There was no way to kill her, for behind those demonic powers and feathery wings, heaven’s light was enclosing her body. A light which stood out in the dark. She was using the demonic powers to accomplish a job of an angel.
To him, the scene was always more like a dream than reality. He couldn’t remember how many people he had watched dying in front of him before he succumbed to dizziness and nausea. As he fainted, he could only do one thing- Pray to the God for it to end fast.