The Undying

The Undying
Victoria and Charlie

There was once a little girl who was playing in the woods behind her victorian home. It was late in the afternoon and night would soon fall. As the little girl walked down the dirt path, the leaves crackled under her feet as she got farther and farther away from home. She was too busy looking down at the tracks her shoes left in the wet, soft dirt to notice where she was going. When she finally looked up she realized she had stumbled upon the ruins of an old, grand home. The ruins were charred as if the house had been burnt down, but the girl knew it was once beautiful by looking at what was left. There were remains of two columns, tall and intricate, reaching for the sky. The steps and posts were delicately carved, and the walls of the home were crumbling. She walked around the house, and into the garden behind it. Two great stone lions flanked each entrance, darkened and eroded from rain and dirt. The stone path was eroded, but covered in a white powder that looked like ashes. In fact, the whole garden was covered by ash, looking as if snow had just fallen. As the girl bends down to touch a flower frozen by ashes, she sees something move out of the corner of her eye. As she’s turning around, she hears a dog bark and a woman yelling. With her heart racing, the girl runs out of the garden and down the dirt path back home.
    The next day the girl returns to the garden, determined to find out what happened to the home. But as she is approaching she sees a woman in a white dress looking in the opposite direction.
    “Ello, Miss? Is this yer home?”
But the woman only smiled, without looking in the little girls direction.
    “Why are ye wearin a wedding dress?”
The woman glided over and sat upon a stone bench. She motioned the girl to sit with her. The girl walked over, the ground changed from dirt to stone. She was now standing in the center of the garden. She sat with the woman, who asked, “If your courteous, would ya loike ta hear a stoury? Whoy don't I tell a stoury, that’ll be noice rouight?” The girl nodded.
    “Moi names’s Janice, Janice Knottingham, and Oi used ta look a lot loike you. With the little dresses n wot not. But then… Oi met him. The one, Louie Sorcio. He wos gorgeous, wit his slick back black hair n his brown eyes. Its loike it was yestaday dat he proposed. Of course Oi said yes, looky here,” The apparition showed the girl a large, cracked, diamond ring. “Although moi stuck-up parents nevah loiked im’; saying e was a swindler troyin ta git ma money or wotevah’, I neva listened. He was perfect! … Oi do miss im’. Is just not fair. Loike Oi didn't deserve to be wed. Moi stupid self had ta go in die the day after...didn't even get to say “good morning” to im’,” the woman paused, her gaze drifted away, but she then sprung up and blurted, “Oh but wot a joiyfull day moi weddin was. Moi dress was dazzling, the cake was enormous, Louie was of course as handsome as eva. He was so sweet, he made sure every little thoing was perfect. He got the flowas’, he mixed the drinks, he bought the cake, and he even brought doves… DOVES for croyin’ ouut loud. Ahh, I remember the cakes vanilla frosting. The champagne, well actually the champagne tasted a little off, but everything was just...just perfect. Like moi darling Louie."
    The woman stared off into the distance, her hands were clasped together and pressing on her chest. The little girl gazed at the apparition and asked, "How did you say you died?"
    "In moi sleep...authorities said Oi was poisoned r sumfin'," responded the star struck bride.
    "So this guy Louie, what did he do after you...you know?"
    "Oi doun't really know. It pains me still that Oi could neva foind im' afta' da wedding...he just went up and disappeared. He musta been hartbroken.
    The girl's brow furrowed in thought, "Did they ever figure out who poisoned you?"
    "Nope," said the woman, "Oi read in tha news that they were neva able to foind the crook, said that he'd book it out of London the noight after."
    "So he poisoned you on the day of your wedding, you died after you got married, and Louie disappeared without a trace?"
    "Yes."
    "Lady I think Louie is your murderer."
    "Wot! That's is preposterous! Why would you eva say such a thoing, Louie was purfect!" blurted the apparition.
    "Just hear me out, k." The woman settled and the girl continued, "your rich and Louie was poor. Of course he wanted to marry you! But if he was the only person in charge of all the wedding stuff, then who else could've done it?"
    "Well...uh...no. no."
    "And! And, the police said that they could find the murderer because he disappeared...sound familiar?"
    "Oh-oh god!" The woman fell silent, tears streamed from her face but then floated upward. She slammed her fist on the stone bench. "That conniving weasel! I-I feel so...I hate...I-I." The woman paused and looked at the girl. She said softly, "thank you"
    The woman floated into the air and wiped the tears from her face, smiled, and waved slowly at the girl, who was just bewildered be everything that was going on right now. She then began to dissolve into a cloud of glowing stars which drifted slowly up to the clouds.
END

Jules Winnfield

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."

       

Out of habit I recite these words, as I point my gun at the man in front of me. "Trust me," I say to the man who is trying to rob me, "you don't wanna go through with this." I watch his face as he slowly realizes I will not back down, and then he turns back and runs a different way from where he came. I pick up my wallet from the ground, laughing to myself at how ridiculous it was. Twice in one day, I thought. I am the shepherd, I am the righteous man, maybe that shit is the truth. I used to think that I was the righteous man who carried out vengeance to those Marcellus Wallace ordered me to. That I was doing the right thing by killing and retrieving whatever he wanted. My life was spared twice today. And in my line of work, that must mean something. Maybe God is looking out for me, despite all the crazy stuff I've done.
Today's activities left me wondering, If I really was either the righteous man, the shepherd, or the evil man. How does one separate good men from bad? I used to think that since I was disposing of the evil men, that made me better than them. But what if God is out there? What if he is looking out for me? Watching me make my mistakes, killing these men, reciting the Bible as if it were my own. Vincent didn't understand that I couldn't find the answer, not while still working for Marcellus.


I stopped running when my lungs started burning and my legs began to give out. Making sure he didn't follow me, I started heading home. I pulled my hood up and tucked my gun underneath my shirt into the waistband of my jeans, trying my best to blend in. I was so stupid thinking that I could just take someone on like that. Even more stupid of me to not realize who I was trying to rob, Jules Winnfield. How ironic, I thought. I had wanted to steal a couple hundred bucks to start paying Marcellus back, and give me some more time to stall. But the man I had planned on robbing worked for him. No doubt he will go tell Marcellus, and then Marcellus will send even more men after me. As I turned onto my street, I couldn't help but feel something was off. There were more people out than usual, mostly unfamiliar faces. I shrug it off and think it's just me being paranoid.


"Yo Marcellus, I had a little run in with a friend of yours. I'm on my way now to clean this mess up."
I hang up right as I'm approaching this "friends" street. I can see Marcellus already sent a few men, whom I recognized were walking on the sidewalks or sitting on benches looking right at home. I parked my car farther down the street, just in case he recognized who I was. It doesn't take me long to walk a few blocks and reach his house. Breaking in is no problem either. I make sure I'm home alone before going and waiting for my friend to arrive.