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» CHAPTER NINE: A TRUTHFUL STORY «

Kevin felt dizzy and sick. He could hardly hold himself upright as he felt the blood rushing to his head. Not a word was muttered from his quivering mouth, he just stood there in shock. He kept his eyes locked on Brian, studying him, wondering. Soon, Brian collapsed to the sandy floor and tears overflowed from his pale blue eyes. His hands hid his red face and he shook with his heavy cry.

"You’re the only one who’s ever known..." Brian said hoarsely through his misery.

"I don’t understand...you, you..." Kevin finally sputtered out the first words that came through his confused mind.

"Yes, yes, I killed him...I killed him!" Brian screamed like a maniac.

Kevin knelt down beside Brian, "Why? Please, I’ve been so confused since I’ve arrived here..."

Brian pushed Kevin away, coldly, "Why should I confess everything to you? You’re just like him. Just like him! You’ll only laugh at me, I should kill you too, you’re almost just as bad,"

"I don’t understand, but I do know one thing. I have been the kindest I can be to you, Brian, and I don’t know why I deserve to die,"

"You don’t know what it was like for me!" Brian yelled in anger, finally arising, his face stained with tears.

"Please, tell me, it’ll be for your own good,"

"I can’t. I just can’t,"

"Listen I have so many pieces of the puzzle, all you’ve got to do is put them together for me...please, please tell me everything."

"What do you want to know?"

"I said...everything,"

"It’s a long story..."

"Well, we’ve got a long time...start from the beginning,"

"When my mother became a servant here, she brought me along. My mother was Sarah, the one you saw in the picture. I was only about eight, but I helped around the house myself. I was such good friends with the girls, I always have been. I remember Mr. Halliwell. He was a very large man with reddish hair and very tiny, colorless eyes. His voice was husky and most of the time slurred from the bottles and bottles of alcohol he would drink. I didn’t find about how he would yell and scream and even once and a while hit Ms. Halliwell and Melanie, until I had been there a few years. But it killed me to see them hurt. I wondered why he never did anything to harm Geri, I figured she just kept well out of the way and was basically his favorite, as with many people." Brian paused, trying to dig into Kevin’s mind to reveal his thoughts.

"Please, please go on..."

"The east wing, was the part of the house we all used to live, before Mr. Halliwell’s death. That’s why I never wanted you in there, it held so many secrets--"

"I know...I know. I did go into one of the rooms, I didn’t tell you that. I was wrong, but I found some letters. They were all addressed to many different women. One really caught my attention, it was to "Sarah", that’s your mother’s name I knew, it mentioned you in there--"

"Yes, I know, I often re-read those dreadful letters, almost every week. That was Mr. Halliwell’s room you went into...nobody but me has been in there in quite awhile. Anyways, Mr. Halliwell was a womanizer. He was the devil, I swear to this day. Every weekend he made a habit of bringing a different woman down to the cottage on the beach, the one I never told you to go into, the one that was mentioned in most of the letters. All the girls just thought he would go off for business, but they never knew. This is exactly what you did, betrayed the one you were supposed to be committed to. That is the one thing about you two I cannot stand, and you both cheated two people I really cared about," Brian waited for a response from Kevin, but he didn’t answer, "Do you remember when I said I hated my mother?"

Kevin nodded, "Yes, but I cannot see why..."

"I didn’t really hate her until...until the worst happened. She became very passionate with Mr. Halliwell. He stopped bringing different women down to the cottage, just her, and only her. I found out about it, being a servant you know a lot, you see a lot. But I would never dare say a thing, I was so intimidated by Mr. Halliwell and I thought that no one would ever believe me. I thought they might even send me away, which was the last thing I ever wanted. Then, one day my mother didn’t return to the manor, just Mr. Halliwell. He killed her. He killed her with that very knife you saw yourself in the cottage. Why he killed her I’ll never really know, perhaps she decided that she didn’t want to see him anymore and so he just killed her. But that’s not the main thing that pushed me over the edge, she really deserved to be punished in some way for her sin," Brian paused again.

"What?" Kevin pushed him farther.

"I...I cannot tell you, you’ll think me so stupid..." Brian’s eyes watered again.

"Please, Brian..."

"Mr. Halliwell and I had a talk one day in the cottage, it was his idea. He was half-drunk when we talked. He told me that I’d be next to be lying at the bottom of the ocean if I ever told a single soul about any of what had happened. Then he pretended to be friendly with me, asking me questions about my life, I answered every question as briefly as I could, just wanting so badly to get out of there. Then he told me something that still haunts me, something that I will never forget. It was like driving a stake right through my heart. It was right before I left and he stood there chuckling then said ‘You think that I’ll never bring another soul down here...well you’re wrong, there will be many others.’ Then he said that...that his next would be Geri. Geri, his own daughter! He told me he was going to bring Geri down to the cottage and there was nothing I could do to stop him. I remember him laughing again, as if he found the whole situation hilarious, I didn’t. I started to cry, tears dripping down endlessly. I then realized he never loved Geri as a daughter, but in a different, sinful way, it hurt me so badly. He never hit or abused Geri because he looked at her as one of his ‘other women’. But, the last thing I ever wanted him to do was hurt Geri. Who knows what he would have done to her, I was so afraid, but all I could do was stand there and cry and cry. Then Mr. Halliwell saw right through me, saw the secret I had kept since I was so young." Brian was interrupted.

"That you favored Geri yourself?" Kevin guessed, using his former knowledge.

"No, no, I didn’t just ‘favor’ her...I had been dreadfully in love. I would have died for Geri, done anything, I loved her with all my heart. She completed me, and through my eyes, she was perfect. She was my desire, God did I love her...and I still do. It cannot be changed. Anyways, when Mr. Halliwell uncovered my secret, he laughed at me again and said ‘You think that you could have Geri? Ha! Why would she want you? You’re nothing but a servant boy, a poor little servant boy!’ Then I realized that he was right, he’d brought me down to reality...I had no chance with Geri. But I could still protect her, I never wanted a soul to hurt her. So I took my chances then, and took advantage that Mr. Halliwell was half-drunk at the time. I knew about that knife that was laying in the drawer. I rushed over there and shuffled through the mounds of paper hiding it. I remember shaking and trembling as I grasped it in my hands, it was so strange knowing that devil of a man had killed my mother with that very same knife. But it sent a rush of power up my spine and I was intimidated to do it. To do what I had wanted to do for so long. That look on his face still haunts me, it was cold and icy, and a bit surprised. But, he laughed. He roared with laughter as if he knew he would still win. Which he did. He might be dead now, but he’s still won. I didn’t know that when I dug the knife into him. I didn’t know that it still wouldn’t turn out alright, as I dragged him to the ocean. Yes, I did make it look as though he had drown. But, like I said, he had won. I had no one to tell. If I ever told I would probably be sent away and charged with murder. Besides, no one would believe me if I told them the reasons why I did what I did..." Brian stopped again, letting tears flow endlessly. Through his sorrow, Brian tried to speak, "I...I...just d-don’t know...know...don’t know what to, to do..."

"Brian, oh my...I had no idea..." Kevin muttered, he wanted to reach out to Brian, he looked so helpless.

"You think I’m crazy...I am...I know I am, I should be locked away in an asylum somewhere...oh god, I’ll be haunted with it for life!"

"Brian, you’ve...you’ve got to tell someone else...or something..."

"And what? Tell them that I killed him because I was in love with Geri? She probably already thinks I’m a fool..."

"You could leave that bit out, he did kill your mother and threaten to pursue his own daughter,"

"I can’t...can’t tell anyone. And neither will you!" Brian ordered fiercely.

For once, a tear formed on Kevin’s eye, "You know, Brian, I’m sorry for you...very sorry. I had no idea anything was like this for you. I had no idea that it must kill you to know that...that I was Geri’s fiancee. I’m ever so sorry. Please forgive me for anything I’ve done to trouble you even more."

Brian shook his head, "No, forgive me..."

chapter 10
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