Joshua
“I didn’t taint it at all. It was already ravaged by your heinous acts when you killed her. It wasn’t me who tainted this house, but a demon—a killer like you.” After saying that, I walked back to my room quickly. I was glad I had moved from our bedroom to another room. I couldn’t bear the sight of her. This was the very first time words like these had slipped out of my mouth. For months I had been blaming and hating her for killing my daughter, Elle.
Lying down on my bed, all I could do was feel my words wandering in my mind. I had let my hatred for her slip through my words for the very first time. I remembered the shock and disbelief in her eyes after my words. Her face was filled with unbearable pain, but it was all fake. She was pretending to be sad, shocked, and in pain, acting like she was the victim, but she wasn’t. I was the real victim because I had lost my loving Elle while Eunice had gotten rid of her to get her freedom back. Had Elle been that much of a burden to her that she would kill her, take her life away? I had asked her again and again if she was ready to have this responsibility. Was she ready for it? She had said she was, that she was happy, but where had that happiness gone? Why hadn’t I been able to see the demon behind her beautiful face? Was I so blinded by love, or was it that she changed for the worse?
All these questions swirled through my mind. I looked over at the photo of Elle on the side table. She looked so happy in her purple dress with that small bunny in her hands. She loved it a lot; I had bought that for her, for my princess. Our sweet memories together were growing dimmer in my mind. Her smile, her giggles, her laughter, her voice. Eunice had taken that all away from me. With her gone, I was left empty and void.
I still remember the day I lost her.
I had forgotten an important file at home, and I really had no one to pick it up. The only way left was either to call Eunice to bring it or go myself. Eunice already had so much on her plate with Elle that I didn’t want to bother her with my work. I couldn’t ask her to get it for me, but if I went myself, it would take double the time and I would have to miss the meeting for which I needed the file. I had to ask Eunice to bring that file to me even though I didn’t want to. I quickly called home.
“Hello?” Eunice said.
“Hey, honey, it’s me. I really need your help right now,” I said quickly.
“What is it, Joshua?” Her voice was sweet.
I could hear Elle’s laughter in the background.
“There’s a red file in my study with W.C. written on it. I need it; could you bring it here for me?” I shouldn’t have forgotten it at home.
“You want it right now, Joshua?” she asked. “Can’t you have someone pick it up? I’m a little busy,” she added.
“I really don’t have anyone, Eunice, and even if I found someone, it would take double the time to get it to the office,” I pleaded, wishing she would agree to do it.
“And where am I supposed to leave Elle, Joshua? I can’t leave her at home unattended. She’s just two; I hope you remember that,” she complained.
“Please call Tara and have her watch Elle. Just please don’t bring her with you; I don’t want you distracted while driving,” I said, worry taking over me.
“I’m not calling Tara. She’s not coming back here,” she said hatefully.
“Just this once, Eunice, set your hatred aside and call her. I really need that file. Please, honey.”
“I’ll do it myself. I’ll bring you that file soon, and I’ll bring Elle with me,” she said with a sigh.
“Okay, just be careful. Elle is big distraction while driving,” I said, trying to make her see my point.
“I will drive carefully. Bye, Joshua.”
Saying that, she hung up. All I could do was pray she would get here soon.
As time passed, I waited for her to come to the office with my file. Thirty minutes passed. The drive was only twenty minutes long. The meeting was going to start in the next ten minutes, and she wasn’t here yet. I made my way downstairs in the hope of seeing her car pull up.
“Where are you, Eunice?” I asked myself.
Five more minutes passed and there was no sign of her. I was growing impatient. Where was Eunice? My phone started ringing in my pocket. I quickly took it out and saw Eunice’s name flashing on the screen. I quickly answered the call while bombarding her with questions.
“Where are you, Eunice? How long will it take you to get here? It’s only a twenty-minute drive, honey. Please tell me you’re close,” I asked in hopes that she was nearby.
“Sir, this is the police,” a man said from the other end.
I was confused, as I once again looked at the name on the screen. It said Eunice.
“Please don’t tell me she got a ticket,” I said.
“Sir, the driver of this car got into an accident with a two-year-old in the backseat. They both have been rushed to a nearby hospital. We called you because your number was saved on the driver’s phone under the name Husband.”
The breath was knocked out of me. My mind was unable to process all of this.
“Wh-what?” I stuttered.
She was supposed to drive carefully.
“Sir…sir? Are you there?” the policeman asked.
“Where…are they?” I asked with my breaking voice.
My whole world was just shook up. Eunice, my love, was hurt; my baby girl Elle was hurt. Why was this happening?
“They have been rushed to the All-Needs Hospital. They both are in bad shape, sir. It would be best if you rush there immediately,” the policeman said.
“Yes, I’ll be there soon.”
After saying that, I hung up. I didn’t care about taking my car. Stopping a cab, I asked him to rush it to the hospital. Seeing my worry, the cab driver drove the car as fast as he could.
The entire way there, I prayed that they both were fine. I prayed for them to be safe. I couldn’t lose them, neither my wife nor my child. I just wanted to go back in time and make sure that I remembered my file in the morning. I wanted to take back my call asking Eunice to bring it to my office. They were my life, and without them I was nothing. All of what I had worked for was nothing. They were all I had, and I couldn’t lose them, not now and not in the future. I didn’t even feel the tears running down my cheeks.
Within ten minutes, I reached the hospital. After quickly paying the driver, I rushed inside to the reception area.
“Hello, my wife and daughter just came in here. They…they were in a…a car accident. My daughter is just two years old,” I said while wiping my tears.
“They have been moved to the operating room on the first floor. Take the elevator, you’ll get there faster,” she said, with a concerned expression.
I made a run towards the elevator, pressing the button as hard as I could. As soon as it came, I pushed the button for the first floor frantically, in hopes that I would go faster. I asked how to get to the ER and then made a run for it.
“Please be all right,” I prayed to God on my way there.
Two police officers stood outside the operating room. Hearing my footsteps, both of them turned towards me.
“You are Mr. Morris, right?” one of them asked.
Wiping away my tears, I nodded.
“How…are they?” I stuttered.
I had lost the ability to speak clearly.
“Both of them were in bad condition. They were rushed to the emergency room as soon as they got here. The doctors are doing their best to save them. They both lost a lot of blood. We’re still trying to find the reason for the accident. There weren’t any other cars involved. It might be because of something on the road or anything else, sir. We can’t tell you anything more,” the police officer said; however, this was irrelevant to me.
All I wished to know was how my daughter and wife were doing. I just wanted to see the smiles back on their faces. Nodding my head, I let them know I understood. A blanket of silence fell over us. I felt deeply worried because I had no idea what state they were in. I was scared. I wanted to know something, anything. Unwanted tears kept on coming, but I didn’t care at all if anyone saw me crying. I wanted a way to release this horrific pain I was feeling.
Time passed while I looked at the hanging clock nearby. Five minutes turned to ten, then to twenty, and then to more. Thirty minutes passed as I stood there with the two police officers, hoping for any news from them. The phone in my pocket kept on ringing, and after a while, I switched it off. I needed no one but my two girls. The door opened for the first time since I arrived. A hope ignited within me that they would bring me good news, that they would tell me they were both fine and healthy. I looked at the doctor, who was in his early thirties to forties, with nothing but a blank expression on his face.
“Are you a part of their family?” he blankly asked.
“I am,” I replied.
“Sir,” he paused before continuing, “we are sorry to tell you this, but we weren’t able to save your daughter. Your wife is still in critical condition. Your daughter had her lung punctured in the crash. There was too much internal bleeding. Most of the damage had already been done when she came here. We are really sorry for your loss,” he said, placing his hand on my shoulder and then walking away.
My daughter was dead. My beautiful baby girl, Elle, was no more. She was gone, taken away from me. I would never see her smiling face ever again; I would never listen to her laugh or her giggle again. I would never play with her or tuck her into bed again. She was gone. There was a heart-wrenching pain inside me. I wanted to cry out, numb myself, do anything to stop this pain, this agony. I wanted her back, I wanted my baby. I would have given anything to bring her back. I would have even made a deal with the devil to bring her back.
A painful scream escaped my lips as I let my pain out. She was gone, my baby was gone, and I couldn’t do anything about it. One after another, painful sobs came from my mouth. I didn’t know how to stop this pain. How could I stop my heart from bleeding? We couldn’t save your daughter. Your wife is in critical condition. The doctor’s words kept swirling in my head. They couldn’t save her. My wife Eunice was still in bad condition.
A new anger coursed through my body. I asked her to not to bring Elle. I pleaded with her, told her not to bring her. She should have called Tara and let her babysit, but she didn’t. She didn’t call her; she took the risk of bringing her. She was the reason my Elle was gone. She killed her. She had killed our daughter, my daughter. She was a killer, a murderer. She was a monster, an evil voice inside my head shouted. Gone was my child and my love was the one who had taken her away.
That day I grew numb, cold, and empty. There was nothing left in me besides emptiness. She had killed my baby. I walked out of there with the little energy left in me. I had nothing left. I no longer cared for Eunice. She was dead to me the moment the doctor informed me Elle was gone. She was to blame for Elle’s death. I was all alone in this world now. I had no wife.
As time passed, I let my empty heart fill with hatred for her, for my wife. I never went to the hospital for her. She was nothing to me. With a heavy heart, I was able to look at my baby’s dead body. A long gash covered one side of her face. She laid there lifeless, and I couldn’t do anything to bring her back. I felt like the most miserable man on earth. Her death had killed me, the loving and kind person in me.
I didn’t care what happened to Eunice. I remember her friend bringing her back to the house. She was weak, but I did nothing for her. I could hear her cries in my empty house, but I didn’t care. This was all her doing. I saw her working in the house everyday like nothing had happened. She used to work all day, and then cry herself to sleep. My mind decided she was a killer. She was evil; she had done this for some sick reason. Was it because I loved Elle more than her? Or was it because Elle was a burden on her? The days went on, and I decided that she did it for her freedom, to get rid of the burden out of jealousy for my love for my child. She had done this so she could have all my love. I didn’t want to see her face.
One whole month passed, and I grew tired of the pain that grew in my heart in my daughter’s absence. I drank to numb my mind and heart, but it didn’t work. I worked hard, but that didn’t even help me any. I never talked to Eunice; I didn’t even see her face. I came in too late and left too early on many days, or I would crash in a hotel. I hated her, and this hatred was growing in me. I wanted a release, and that was when I chose a new way to release the emotion in me. Sex, lust, using women, whoring around was the method I chose.
I still remember how it all started. A tall brunette threw herself at me in a small bar where I drank late at night. She was not beautiful, but not too bad. She flirted with me and kept on taking shots with me. I still didn’t have any intention of doing anything with her, but when I stood up, she clung to my arm and whispered, “Want to have some fun?” That pissed me off; there could never be any fun in my life.
That night I took her to a cheap hotel and roughly had my way with her. She didn’t complain, and I let all of my hatred for Eunice and pain out. After that, it became a habit. I started screwing women I met in bars and my office staff. They never complained because they were always in for it. I felt bad for using them, but they were after nothing but sex or my money, so I used them. Anne became one of my regulars. She was just like the others, after my money and attention. She threw herself at me, and I used her. I didn’t love anyone anymore. They were all meant to be used by me so I could release my pent-up emotions of hatred and anger, and soon it also became a way to hurt Eunice. I used it as a way to wound her and show her I never cared. I knew she knew all about it, and it gave me a sickening pleasure to know she was in pain. Anne was her friend, and that was why I kept her so close. Now she would know the bitter feeling of betrayal I felt when she killed my daughter. I wanted to break what was left of her, and after what I did in this house with Anne, I was sure my purpose succeeded. I had finally inflicted pain on her beyond her limits, and this was just the start to completely shatter her…