Merry Murderesses

    Merry Murderesses



The night was dark and cold as the wind screeched and howled through the sky and the lightning flashed like a blinking lantern in the night. The rain pounded on the roof of an old cabin on the outskirts of a small town, making it look as if it would topple over at any moment. It was an ugly cabin, the wood was faded and chipped, the fence was broken. The old lantern was cracked and the porch chair was uneven. But the inside of the cabin was a whole other story, all the rooms were dark and quiet except for the living room where the fireplace was ablaze and an old woman was sitting in an old rocking chair.

She rocked back and forth, a quilt on her lap as she sewed a pair of wool socks. She had been sitting there for hours, lost in her thoughts and the movement of the thread and pin in her hand. Normally she loved to sew, but tonight tragedy had struck, her darling niece and her family had been found dead in their farm house just a few days ago with many valuable possessions missing like money and jewelry. The killer still had not been found.

And so the woman sat in her chair and continued to sew as she mourned her loss, till she heard a quiet knock on the front door. The women looked up and stared at the door before slowly raising from the chair, making sure to neatly fold the quilt on the seat and place the half done wool socks on the table, and starting to walk forward. When she reached the door and looked through the peephole standing on the porch was young girl.

She looked like she was in her early twenties and was wearing a long hooded cloak that was covering her head, and was looking down to the ground. For some reason the old women was slightly unnerved by the girl, something about her wasn’t quite right, and yet against her better judgement she found herself opening the door. The girl looked up, and the old woman clenched the handle a little tighter, the young women looked so much like her darling niece. Both had dark black hair and piercing emerald eyes and they were both as thin as a twig. Really the only clear difference was the the young girls pale skin and the light freckles that dusted her cheeks. A loud thunder erupted from the sky and both women jumped. Quickly the old woman let go of the door and stepped toward the girl, ushering her inside.

“My goodness, dear, whatever are you doing outside in such a storm!” The old woman cried practically dragging the girl into the cabin “Quick, come inside and sit near the fire.”

Before the girl could utter a single word, she was plopped down on the sofa, her soaking wet cloak was gone and she was covered in quilts. The old woman felt her forehead and got more quilts before going to fetch the young girl some tea, all the while the young girl silently sat and watched. As the old woman brought the two cups of tea into the room, placing one on the table in front of the girl and taking the other with her and settling back into her rocking chair she finally calmed down and tried to start a conversation with the young girl.

“Now darling, tell me whatever were you doing out there!” the old woman exclaimed, though it lacked the edge of panic it had earlier “It’s far to cold for a delicate little dame like you to be outside.”

The girl looked nervously at the old woman and reached down to rearrange her skirt to cover her now exposed calf, and the old woman found herself feeling a strange suspicion of the girl. She wasn't quite...right.

“I...i had been on my way back to the houses i had rented when the storm hit, i was already far from town and I saw your cabin” she murmured, another boom of thunder sounded making the girl flinch. The old woman looked out the window and shook her head, placing her cup down.

“Well then i suppose you’ll have to be staying here, hmm?” the old woman muttered, it was more of a statement than a question, and she continued to speak. “I have a spare bedroom upstairs and plenty of quilts and pillows. I might have some old nightdresses that might fit you. The room might be a bit small though”

“Th-that's okay...thank you, thank you very much” the girl responded with a small smile which the old woman warmly returned, but with some hesitation. Something was wrong with this girl, but what was it? she seemed perfectly normal and yet the women couldn't help but feel that she was hiding something, but what could it be? The old woman shook away those thoughts, she was just a young girl.

“Well then, tell me about your self child.” the old woman said “I won’t have a stranger staying under my roof!” she let out a short laugh, but it was more like a cackle. The girl look about nervously as if she had something to hide, before beginning to speak in a hushed voice.

“um, well i’m a singer at the Ear Inn across town” she said

“Really now, i bet you're a lovely singer. In fact i used to be quite the canary back in the day too!” the old woman exclaimed. The young girl smiled shyly.

And so the young girl and old woman chatted and gossiped with each other for hours upon hours, and the old woman laughed at her early suspicions. She was just a young girl. Sure, the girl was slightly awkward, but she was shy. She was completely normal, if not a bit simple, the old woman thought. That is until she noticed it.

The old woman and girl had been talking for hours and had decided to finally call it a night, So the old woman went to make the girls bed, while the girl went to change into one of the old woman's old nightdresses. When the old woman brought the girl to the room she noticed it. At first she simply thought she was seeing things, it couldn't be, could it? But when the girl lifted her arm and her sleeve slipped down her wrist there was no denying what was there. A beautiful black and silver bracelet sat on her wrist with a sparkling blood red emerald. The old woman felt her heart skip a beat.

“W-what is that?” The old woman stuttered, shakily pointing at the girls wrist.

The girl looked down and paled before trying to pull her sleeve to cover the bracelet to no avail. The nervousness that the girl had first shown resurfaced and she quietly replied.

“I-it’s just a bracelet, miss” she replied

The old woman continued to stare at the bracelet, shock and even fear evident in her features. She rapidly excused herself and rushed down stairs, when she finally reached the bottom of the stairs she collapsed into her chair. It couldn't be, it just wasn't possible. She started to hyperventilate as she continued to deny the possibility that the girl..! She couldn't even imagine it. Why would that sweet seemingly innocent young girl do such a thing? It just couldn't be.

But then she thought back to the bracelet, her bracelet, and hot anger started to fill her and her denial disappeared. She stood as if in a trance and walked to the back door, and stepped outside, though the storm had still not ceased and stopped.

The bracelet, it’s simple but elegant shape, smooth to the touch. It’s dark colors, alluring and beautiful, and though it was worn and cheap, it was priceless. She looked around, as if searching, but for what? What could possibly fix this? What could fix this loss and pain in her heart? This weird feeling of betrayal, had it all been a lie? She had help this girl and though they had barely known each other, she had liked the girl. But she had loved them more.

She looked down and saw it, a rusty old ax lying against a pile of firewood, her eyes narrowed. It wasn't her bracelet.

                                                           ************

         She was sitting on a stool looking out the window when she entered, a somber and guilty expression on her face. She did not acknowledge the old woman’s presence, she did not question her intention, for she knew what it was, she knew her fate. She knew she deserved it. So when the woman moved forward she did not shake in fear, When she gripped the ax she did not plead, and when the ax was raised she did not scream. She slowly raised her hand to her wrist, removed the bracelet and placed it, with great care on the window sill, and continued to stare out the window up at the stars.

“I’m so sorry” She whispered, and her voice did not waver, though the guilt and sorrow in it

was clear. She deserved this.

         She swung the ax.

                                                           *************

         The old woman sat in her old rocking chair as she sewed a pair of wool socks. She rocked back and forth, a small smile on her lips, and a beautiful black and silver bracelet sat on her wrist with a sparkling blood red emerald. She started to giggle, and she started to laugh, and soon an insane sounding cackle filled the house.

                             Oh Revenge’, What Could be Sweeter?