Page 95 of Nobody Wants Me
I hold a glass of soda in my hands.There was no way I was drinking a single drop of alcohol.I had made that vow, and I was sticking to it.So, I took a sip and looked at the piece of artwork.It was a landscape, and there was a scribble on the side, and I couldn’t make out the artist.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”The Beast asked.
“Yeah, it is.Where did you get it?”
“A man on a beach in Italy,” he said.
This surprised me.
“I don’t know if he was going to be a great artist someday.I liked it.Some of his artwork was shit, but this was good.I liked it.”
I nodded because I didn’t know the first thing about art.I tended to make some of my artwork.I made small hanging quilts that changed depending on the season.
“I know you hate me being here and what this means, but I appreciate you coming,” he said.
This made me turn to him.“It’s not your fault?”
There was silence and then he said something I wasn’t expecting.
“I miss her.”
Now I couldn’t look away from him.
“I surprise you, I know.I surprise myself.”He held a drink in his hand and it had dark liquid inside.
“I would give anything for her to be by my side today,” he said.“Sharing this with her.”
“You would share this?”
“Yes.She is a good woman, a strong woman, and we’d make a good team.”
I felt the burn in my throat.“Excuse me.”
Moving away from him, I don’t know where I’m going, but then I make my way into one of the private rooms, and it appears to be a library, and I feel so sick.I’m trying to ...live.
She would have made one hell of a Brigadier.
This library is freaky as fuck.I don’t like it, and as I look around, I see several pieces of artwork has been removed.
I don’t know why this bothers me, and as I spin around, I notice a mirror.Floor-to-ceiling one that is looking out over the whole room.My reflection is there, clear as day.I’m wearing one of Victor’s favorite red dresses.It was one I had made in a bias cut, and it did make me nervous to wear it as I did not have a tight stomach, but I managed to pull this off.It didn’t look too bad, and for that, I was thankful.
Just then, I saw a movement behind me.It wasn’t quite moving, and it was in the shadow and I turned to look toward the sound.It moved slowly, and as it came out of the shadows, I saw it was covered in dirt and blood.The sight before me was horrifying, and then it looked at me, and even as I stared back, I knew.The Butcher was standing in front of me.It was her eye.There was only one I could see staring back to me.One side of her face was swollen.The shock of seeing her terrified me.
“Help me.”Her voice didn’t sound the same and yet it did.
She fell to the floor and as she did, I let out a scream.I yelled at the top of my lungs for help, and I went straight to The Butcher.She was on the floor, and I didn’t know what to touch.
She was covered in dirt but I also saw the cuts and bruises, and as she collapsed, her mouth had fallen open.Teeth were missing.
The door to the library sprang open, and The Beast charged in, along with Victor, Ivan, Slavik, Andrei, and Peter.They all came in with weapons in their hands, and I held onto my friend.Her pulse felt weak.
“It’s her,” I said.“It’s The Butcher.”
They looked at me a little taken aback, and I had to look down to wonder if I was imagining it, but she was there in my arms.
Seconds passed, then minutes.
Then, everyone sprang into action.Ivan was there, and he went to take her from me, but I held her tightly.Tears of joy and sadness and pain exploded inside me.
