Rebekah's Refuge Read online

  “Release her.” Frederick spoke coldly, and Rebekah felt his hand grip her other arm protectively. He was trembling, but his hand gave her support.

  Doris laughed. “I’m growing bored with you, young man. You’re more of a bother than I anticipated.” She raised her hand. “Sister,” she instructed. “Silence him.”

  Rebekah heard the grass rustle. Someone was approaching her and Frederick. She smelled the familiar scent and heard the familiar song, although the song had changed. It was similar to the one she had always heard but decidedly more frightening in tone, resembling the cry of seagulls on a wind-tossed sea during a winter storm. “Mother?” she whispered.

  Mother’s sharp intake of breath filled Rebekah with hope. Was it possible Mother recognized her? Rebekah listened to the discordant song that emanated from Mother, a song of utter desolation. She cried out when she heard Frederick gasp in pain. Rebekah knew that Mother had touched him, that her changed nature would produce an evil plant that would poison him or worse. She remembered Mother’s own words from long ago. “Whatever emotion you let into your heart will determine what you create. Egaphia created us to reflect his glory. Norns, just as humans, have the ability to love and hate. Hatred will change the song you sing, and poison will grow as a result. Love is what needs to rule your heart, the love Egaphia has planted there. Sing the song of love, and beauty will grow.”

  Rebekah had to make Mother remember that song. She had to stop this poison from spreading. She opened her mouth and began to sing, her voice a pathetic squeak.

  “Grow, Grow. Egaphia waits

  For flowers of love that we shall create.

  Spread, spread throughout the land

  Bringing life and joy that is grand.”

  As Rebekah sang, she heard Doris laughing with contempt. “Fool. They cannot hear you. They listen only to me.”

  Then, above the laughter, she heard it; a feeble response. She heard Mother’s voice first, a voice weak but discernible. The stench of poison lessened slightly, and Rebekah felt her hair respond to the song.

  Rebekah heard a tremulous voice join her and Mother. Martha’s voice! A human was singing with the norns, and her voice lent Rebekah strength. Her own voice gained volume as her confidence increased. The Song of Creation began to swell around her, the song that resembled a wild summer storm sweeping across a desert. Rebekah allowed the melody to take control, to carry her along its wild but glorious path. She realized that she had never been alone, that Egaphia’s song had always held her in its powerful embrace. The song was her refuge, and she had never been abandoned.

  “No!” Doris wailed in pain. She lunged at Rebekah, but the girl felt the power of creation surging through her, a river of liquid gold that rushed through her hair, leaving a trail of beauty in its wake. The joy of creation held Doris’s poisonous hatred at bay. Soon, the stench of poison vanished as the norns allowed the emotion of love to bring healing to their hair.

  “Doris! You have to help me!” A male voice filled the grounds, a voice that Rebekah knew only too well. Terror seized her. Charles had returned.

  Chapter 17

  Charles stumbled through the orphanage gate, his heart hammering. Desperation ruled his every movement. Angela had been unresponsive this morning. No movement whatsoever! He had been a fool to wait so long to obtain another sacrifice.

  He came to a sudden halt as he saw the strange tableau before him. His sacrifices stood arrayed upon the orphanage grounds, their mouths open as music flowed around him. A young girl stood in their midst, her melodic soprano notes soaring above the others as she led the joyful chorus.

  Doris stood on the orphanage steps, her face ashen with pain and fear. Quickly approaching her, Charles spoke harshly. “What’s the meaning of this? When they left my house, they were practically dead. You said that once you healed them, they would be returned to their families.”

  Doris sneered at him. “Are they not healed just as I promised? Have they not regained their strength? You of all people should know that a lie is easily spoken. I have no time for you, man. Do you realize you played right into my hands? You paid me to tell you where norns lived in order that you might obtain ‘sacrifices’ for your beloved wife.” She spat the word sacrifice with utter contempt. “You speak so flippantly of sacrifices, you fool, yet you have no regard for those who suffer.” She smiled, an expression horrible to see. “The Bind Weed Project that had such good intentions! It robbed me of dignity, of a child!” Her voice rose, and she began to sob, the sound of a gale in a storm-tossed sea.

  Charles reached toward her, his head bowed in shame. She glared at him with contempt.

  “Y-You have to help me as you’ve always done!” Charles finally said, his voice nearly breaking with strain. “My wife’s dying! Don’t you understand? I’ve paid you exorbitant sums to compensate you for your pain. The Bind Weed Project was a mistake. I withdrew my support when I realized the norns were suffering. I have tried to make amends. When you came to me with an offer to help, I was so desperate. I have to save—”

  “Yes,” Doris said musingly. “Odd, wasn’t it, that I offered my help so readily, especially considering your crimes? Humans are so very gullible. Your desperation made you so malleable. Indeed you’ve paid me,” Doris continued. “And you will pay me even more. When the project ended, I made my way in the world, seeking to find a place within it. I made myself strong. I established an orphanage on the very grounds where the Bind Weed Project occurred.” She gestured to the grounds surrounding her. “An orphanage established through funds you gave me. You will continue to pay me as will many others. If I am refused, the plague will strike again.” She laughed. “Well, something similar to the plague will strike. Next time, it will be worse.”

  Snip! Snip! Snip! Doris screamed as a pair of scissors cut away her dark, golden hair. Weakness tore through her as her scalp screamed in agony. Martha stood before her, her face pale, and her eyes filled with tears.

  “You’ll hurt no one else,” Martha said. “I’m sorry for what you’ve endured, Doris, but that gives you no right to hurt others. You’re hurting norns as well as humans.” She held up the braid, and everyone watched in mute horror as it crumbled into ash, the dark strands melting into a useless lump. “You’re destroying yourself. There’s a refugee sanctuary for norns affected by the Bind Weed Project. You can go there, and they’ll help—”

  “I’ve always helped myself,” Doris said. Though she trembled, she still stood upright. “I’ll continue to be strong, and I’ll take from those who took from me.”

  Martha sighed sadly. She frowned as Rebekah approached her, groping to find Doris’s hand. “Maybe I can help her hear the song,” Rebekah said softly.

  Martha gazed at the kind norn. Rebekah was so like Laura, so willing to help others. She thought of Doris’s story of the infant who had been taken from her. Swallowing, she gazed at Doris, who refused to meet her eyes. “Doris, you need help to hear what once was precious to you. Won’t you listen to the song? You might find what you’ve been missing in more ways than one.”

  Doris lowered her head, bestowing upon Martha a look of contempt. She did not glance at Rebekah’s face and clenched her trembling hands into fists so as not to reach toward the proffered hand. Martha watched as Doris crumpled to the ground.

  Rebekah blinked tears from her eyes. “She hurt Mother,” she said, her voice trembling.

  “Yes,” Martha said sadly. “She’s hurt so many, but no one more than herself.” Martha trembled as she thought of her own pain. Humans and norns were not so very different, after all. “I’m sorry, Rebekah. If someone does not want to listen, you cannot make them.”

  Rebekah nodded. “What will happen to her?”

  Martha embraced Rebekah tightly. “I don’t know,” she said honestly, “but she will be taken care of.”

  Rebekah frowned and walked back toward Mother. As she did so, she smelled the cloying odor of peppermint, and she shuddered as she remembered that Charles s
till stood in their midst. She trembled as she thought of all that he had done to hurt her kind. But, Egaphia’s song still soared within her, and she remembered the desperation in Charles’s voice. She knew that true creation could only occur if one learned to love not only the kind but the cruel as well. Was not everyone a garden? Did the fruits of love and hatred not grow within everyone, norn and human alike? And, if that were so, then perhaps the fruit tended the most was the fruit that would truly grow. Perhaps hatred could be overcome through Egaphia’s love. Swallowing, Rebekah addressed Charles. “Your wife’s dying?”

  Charles turned toward the soft voice. The young norn who had been leading the others in song wore a look of concern. “Where is she?”

  Charles blinked in confusion. “Sh-She’s at home.” He studied the norn closely. “You’re the norn I wanted, the one whose mother came in your place.”

  Tabitha approached Charles, her features carved from stone. “My daughter offers her help, for she has a kind heart. You deserve no help.”

  Charles nodded. He was shaking. “My wife’s done nothing wrong,” he whispered. “I-I know I deserve punishment, but she doesn’t. Why did this sickness happened to her and not me? I-I have tried so very hard to help her. I can do nothing. I-I’m sorry.” He began to weep, a sound of utter desolation.

  Tabitha clenched her fists and glared at her captor. Then she turned to Rebekah, seeing in her daughter’s face a reflection of her sister, the woman who had given to others even when it caused her pain. Tabitha moaned and bowed her head in shame. “I will come with my daughter to help your wife.” She turned to the six other norns assembled. “Someone needs our help,” she said. “Will all of you come?”

  The norns glanced at each other and finally nodded. “Will we find our families after this?” one of them asked.

  “Yes,” Tabitha said firmly. She glared at Charles. “Won’t they?”

  Charles’s mind reeled in shock. “Y-Yes,” he stammered. “You have my word.” He trembled as a police officer approached him.

  “We’ll escort you to your home,” the officer informed Charles. “Once we determine what’s going on, you’ll have a lot of explaining to do.”

  Charles suddenly felt more weary than he ever had before, but the feeling was oddly peaceful. Was it possible that Angela would survive, that norns working together in a group could heal her? And, how could help be offered to him after all he had done? He glanced up at the officer’s expectant face. “Yes,” he said softly. “I know.”

  “Father.” Frederick approached Charles, his face pale. “Why did you never tell me?”

  Charles gazed at his son, tears streaming down his cheeks. “Because I was ashamed,” he said. “You’re kind, Frederick. You told me once that you weren’t a saint.” He smiled wanly. “I look at you, and I have hope. Perhaps I did something right.”

  Frederick blinked tears from his own eyes. He reached for his father’s hand. “We’ve kept so many secrets,” he said softly. “Come, Father. I have some explaining to do myself.”

  The police officers observed Doris’s prone form. She was beginning to stir. “As for this creature,” one of the officers said, “she must come with me.” He cuffed her hands behind her back. “The orphans cannot be left alone. I’ll inform the precinct that we need someone to come and stay with them.“

  Martha approached the officers, her face wearing a concerned expression. “Is it necessary to cuff her?”

  “Yes,” the officer said firmly. Then his face softened. “She’ll be treated with respect.”

  Martha nodded. “I’ll stay with the children,” she said. “I’ll make certain they are cared for.”

  The officer nodded. “Come then,” he said to the others. “We’d best be going.”

  Chapter 18

  Angela floated in a dark pool. Tendrils of weeds undulated around her. Gleefully, they ate, latching onto her body like grotesque leeches. They burrowed within her like maggots, sucking with hungry mouths. Angela screamed in agony. Where was Charles? Why did he not come?

  ***

  The group assembled outside Charles’s house stood in a circle, humans and norns standing together. “She cannot be healed.”

  Charles gasped. “You said—“

  Tabitha shook her head sadly. “She’s in misery,” she said. “She’s rotting from within. How long has she had the plague?”

  Charles bowed his head. “Ten years,” he whispered.

  “We can bring her peace and ease her pain,” Tabitha said. “She’ll simply fall asleep.”

  Charles shook his head. “I have to save her. I—“

  “Mother, I can—“

  “No!” Tabitha gripped Rebekah’s hand. She was shaking. “If you give him your hair, you’ll weaken. You’ll destroy yourself. Why do you think I came here in the first place, Rebekah? I named you for my sister. Rebekah gave everything to others. She was as kind as you.” Tabitha swallowed the sadness that threatened to choke her. She embraced Rebekah tightly. “Sometimes, we have to do what we can. Some illnesses cannot be cured.”

  There was a long silence. “Rebekah?” Charles whispered. “Your sister’s name was Rebekah?” He stared at Tabitha and her daughter. He suddenly saw their features clearly. The mother’s face was the spitting image of Rebekah. He moaned in pain, the sound of a wounded animal, and sank to his knees. He stared at the girl’s innocent face and beautiful hair. Slowly, he rose and approached the lead policeman. “My son and I must go to my wife,” he said heavily. “Please allow us to do that. Then you can do what you like with me. I must hold her and bring her comfort.” He stared at the officer with pleading, tear-filled eyes.

  After a moment, the officer nodded. “We’ll accompany both of you, but we’ll wait outside your wife’s room to allow you both some privacy.”

  Charles bowed his head in gratitude. He turned and addressed the norns. “Ease her pain,” he managed to whisper. “Please.”

  Charles stumbled toward the house. Frederick walked beside his father. The officers walked on either side of them to prevent them from falling.

  Where was that beautiful music coming from? Angela gasped in relief as her pain lessened. The hungry maggots were no longer gnawing her innards. She was suddenly able to open her eyes. “Charles?” she whispered.

  “I’m here, sweetheart.” Charles knelt by the bed, his hands trembling as he reached toward Angela. “I’m so sorry, Angela. I’ve failed you in every way.” He clutched her fevered hand.

  Angela blinked at him. “You’ve never failed me, Charles,” she whispered. “You and Frederick are the only reasons I’ve wanted to live.” She managed a wan smile.

  “I’m here too, Mother.” Frederick approached the bed and gripped his mother’s hand. He allowed his tears to flow. “Is there anything you need?”

  Angela managed a wan smile. “I’m so tired.”

  Charles nodded. “Then sleep, darling. I’ll lie down beside you.” He watched as Angela’s eyes closed. Tenderly, he patted her fevered cheek and lay down beside her, enfolding her into his arms. Frederick gazed at his mother and father for a moment. Then he bent and kissed his mother’s cheek. “I love you,” he whispered. He shuffled from the room

  Outside, the beautiful melody soared as the norns sang. Charles wept even as he relaxed. He had fought so very long, and now the fight was no longer his. The song spoke to his heart, reminding him that perhaps there was more to this world than pain. He gazed at Angela’s peaceful face. She looked so content, almost ethereal, as if a veil had been removed and she was seeing clearly for the first time.

  The words of the song entered Charles’s mind:

  Grow, grow, Egaphia waits

  For flowers of love that we shall create.

  Spread, spread throughout the land

  Bringing life and joy that is grand.

  When the officers entered the room, they gently led Charles away, relieved by the man’s calm demeanor. His wife lay upon the bed, her face peaceful in death.

>   Outside, the grounds were a riot of color as numerous vegetables and flowers swayed and sent forth their fragrances. Charles surveyed the norns who had eased his wife’s pain. “Thank you,” he whispered. He gestured to the beautiful garden his grounds had become. “All of these flowers and vegetables serve purposes that only you know,” he said. “Please use them to help others. I’m so sorry.” He turned to Tabitha and Rebekah. “I arranged for your sister’s burial.” He pointed to a house behind a picket fence. “Her grave lies where her garden once stood. Please know that I will always be grateful to her.” He allowed the officers to lead him away.

  Epilogue

  Seven years Later…

  “The magic ladies! They’re here! They’re here!” Periwinkle Terrace rang with jubilant laughter as children surged around Rebekah and Tabitha.