Chapter 18
Aislyn’s color had still looked good when Aaron returned from the field. The pale tones he’d noted earlier had been replaced by the rosy cheeks he hadn’t seen in weeks. She had wanted to get up and fix dinner, but he insisted she stay in bed and rest. He’d managed to catch a rabbit that afternoon, so he threw together a stew which wasn’t half bad.
He’d gone about his evening routine as normal so that Aislyn wouldn’t suspect anything, but his mind kept returning to what Kian was asking him to do. Imagining himself standing in his friends’ home, preparing to end his wife was too much for him. He had no idea how he was going to do it. By the time midnight rolled around, his stomach was cramping and his palms were sweaty. Realizing he had no choice but to follow through with his promise, he took one more glance at the sleeping face of his own angelic wife, slipped out of bed, and got dressed, praying that, by the time he reached the O’Braonain residence, Kian would have changed his mind.
Kian was standing outside in the moonlight when Aaron approached, the cross clutched in his hand. “You came,” he exclaimed, a look of relief washing over his face. “Thank you, Aaron. I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you are willing to go through with this.”
Without being too dismissive of his feelings, Aaron nodded and asked, “Are you certain you want me to do this, Kian?”
“Yes,” he replied. “I know it is what must be done.”
“What if… what if you’re wrong?”
“I’m not. Don’t you feel it, Aaron? That anxious feeling, like your skin is on fire from the inside?”
He did feel it. In fact, as he had made his way over, the closer he got to the house, the more he began to feel the exact same reaction Kian had described earlier. With a nod, he said, “It’s just… there’s no going back.”
Kian looked him in the eye and said, “I know this is what we need to do.”
Aaron took the cross out of his friend’s hand and approached the front door. He was familiar with the home and not only knew where the bed was located but he knew that Shannon slept on the left side of the cot she shared with her husband. This would be the last time she ever lay her head to rest there.
All day, he’d been thinking about where to place the stake, how hard to press, whether he should raise it above his head or position it first. In the end, he hoped his instincts would take over and he would end her as painlessly as possible.
He opened the door, careful not to make it creak, and looking over his shoulder, he realized from the way he lingered in the yard Kian wasn’t even coming in. He had tears streaming down his cheeks, and Aaron knew this couldn’t be easy for him.
The sound of Shannon’s breathing filled the small space. The closer he got to the bed, the more he felt it in his gut. It was a stirring deep within him like nothing he’d ever experienced before. One look at her now not-so-familiar face let him know for certain this was not the Shannon they had known before.
She lay on her back, which made it much easier. Her arms were folded across her midsection, as if she were already in a coffin. With one last glance over his shoulder at Kian, whose frame filled the doorway, he placed the cross just over her chest, near where her heart would be, and with a silent prayer, plunged the wooden stake down into her chest.
As soon as the silver hit her flesh, Shannon’s eyes flew open. She inhaled deeply, and her arms shot straight out, as if she was falling and trying to catch herself. With the weight of Aaron on the cross, she couldn’t move, and as the silver drew the energy from her body, she let out a bloodcurdling scream, far more powerful and high-pitched than the previous ones they had heard. This one was heart-wrenching as well; unlike the filthy monsters on the ridge, this woman had been his friend.
A few moments later, the shriek died away, and Aaron found himself still holding the wooden stake, but it was positioned over a pile of ashes. Shannon was gone.
Kian flew into the room, sending the door slamming into the wall behind it. He was sobbing now. Kneeling next to the bed, he cried out for his wife. “Shannon!” he yelled into the night. “Oh, God! Why?” Shannon!”
In an attempt to comfort his friend, Aaron placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder, but Kian knocked it away. “Leave,” he said, his eyes narrowed.
Aaron was shocked. While he’d expected Kian to be upset, he never thought he would direct his anger at his best friend. Kian had asked him to do this after all. But seeing that he meant the command, Aaron backed to the door, hopeful that he would come around the next day and forgive him. He made his way home, realizing he was still clutching the stake. Deciding it would be best to put it somewhere for safekeeping, in case Kian asked for it back, he placed it in a hole in a tree and stopped at the well to wash his hands before he made his way back inside.
Aislyn was still sleeping peacefully, and he was able to slip back into bed beside her, but he knew he would get no rest that night. He understood that what he had done needed to be executed, but it didn’t make it any easier. The thought of losing Kian over it was almost more than he could bear. How could he continue this journey without the only other person who knew what it felt like to realize you really don’t know yourself at all?
