Chapter 23

She did in fact look as if all spirit had disappeared from her body. Pale and cold, the bruises on her skin thus prominent that it looked rather frighting. Jack had his eyes locked on her lifeless body, with only the slow movement of her chest going up and down that gave away that she was still alive. Poison; the word alone sounded ludicrous.

"It sounds as if we are stuck in the middle ages… We live in the goddamn twentieth century. " He had growled into the open air. Everyone was too shocked to respond. Yet Rose was alive, for now at least, and that was all that mattered.

Jack held her hand for as long as he could, stared at her sleeping frame until he could no longer resist his own need for rest. It was the scariest thing to do so; leaving her alone. Only one second without him being near could mean the end. All he wanted was to protect her. Forever.

Anna placed a gentle hand on his shoulder which he couldn't ignore. "Go to bed, Jack." It was more an order than a simple piece of advice.

Eventually, he let go and headed slowly towards the corridor. A shadow appeared in the darkness. Her head resting in her lap, the sound of sobs echoing between the walls. Mrs. Dubois was a small and delicate person, yet her sadness and pain were thus grand that it could simply not be ignored. Sitting on the bottom of the staircase she looked up, shocked by his sudden appearance.

"Pardon, monsieur, I did not see you there." She spoke with a trembling voice.

"Jack, remember?" He sat down beside her, "Are you all right?"

She shook her head heavily. "Non," she mumbled, "I need to go back home tomorrow. But I know that when I go back my husband will lock me up as well. Oh I am so frightened I don't know what to do."

Jack could see the utter panic in her eyes and his heart ached for this woman. He could not allow her to return to that man. All he needed to be was to be punished for his horrific actions.

"And what if you stay here?"

"Oh Jack, in my heart I wish I could, but I have nothing here. He will eventually find me and what about the children! Yes, I know they are not mine, but I've cared for them for all their lives and I can't leave them with that man!"

"I am going to help you, Mrs. Dubois. You've helped me and therefore I am not going to let you down."

Slowly but surely, her sorrowful expression started to disappear. Yes, she thought to herself, she trusted this man enough to be able to help her. His determination was inspiring, she thought to herself. Only, was he strong enough to conquer her husband. The man was the walking definition of all that was evil. Mr. Dubois turned her head to face him.

"If you are going to help me, Jack," she then said, "you might as well call me Lucille."

"I am going to help you, Lucille." He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, gave her a reassuring smile and headed up to his room. Closing the door behind him he immediately fell onto the bed and closed his eyes.

In the early hours of the morning, Jack tiptoed back to the living room where he poked his head around the corner and checked on her still sleeping body. As time kept passing by, Jack's concern grew stronger. Rose was still laying there, her body quiet as ever. He kneeled beside her and gently stroked her cheek. Even his touch didn't seem to stir her.

"I don't know where you are now, Rose, but I'll be here," He whispered thus softly as if he was even afraid to wake her up, "It won't take long before I get back. We just have to figure it all out. We are going to set it right. For you." Intertwining her cold fingers with his, he kissed them gently. Footsteps could be heard behind him and when he turned around, Lucille was already waiting. Sleep had not granted her, he could see it from a distance. With an exhausted complexion, her dull eyes looked at him. Following her into the cold of the starting day, Lucille stopped, sighed deeply before moving forward again and stepped into the car. She kept staring into distance, trying to ignore her fear of what was about to come.

After a while, Jack had finally managed to start the motor and took a seat beside her. Placing his hands on the steering wheel, Lucille noticed the unsteadiness of his whole being. He looked exhausted and in a state of pure mental pain. Lucille could sense it in silence, yet perhaps it was because she was feeling just the same.

From the moment she laid eyes on her husband, her body told her that something was off. Nonetheless, she needed safety and security. The man was a friend of her father anyway. Despite giving him the benefit of the doubt, she slowly started to live in a state of stress. Being unable to give him what she was meant to do Mr. Dubois started to punish her both mentally and physically. Lucille was on the verge of being thrown on the street when another curse, or perhaps saviour entered their lives. Mildred was the ending as well as the start of a nightmare. Still, Lucille had a roof above her head and that was the best she could wish for.

As the car stopped right in front of the house, Lucile swiftly let out a soft prayer before Jack helped her out of the vehicle. Observing her home from the outside, something was not as It usually was. A shiver ran down her spine.

"You can wait here." She turned around to face Jack.

He shook his head. "Absolutely not," he responded, "I am not letting you be alone with that man."

Ignoring his statement, she quickly opened the door and peeked her head inside.

"Mon Dieu!" Lucille gasped after a moment of silence and covered her face in her hands. "The house is completely empty." She forced her way inside. There was nothing. Sheets had been draped over the large furniture and everything else was gone. You could hear a pin drop, a frightening sensation.

Confused, Jack followed her and took in the reality of the situation. "Jesus Christ." He gasped. He headed over towards the window closest to him and drew open the curtains. Everything looked spotless, as if the house had been abandoned not longer than a day. There was both an eeriness as well as a calmness about the situation. Still keeping his pocket knife in his hands, he called out a hard and firm hello. No response. Slowly but surely, the two entered every room, only to be greeted with abandonment.

"They took everything, Jack." Lucille suddenly stood behind him, "there is nothing left." Tears started to roll down her eyes. She wasn't sad, but relieved. For the very first time in ages, she finally had the feeling she was being freed from the hell she had been living in. "He is gone. He is really gone."

"Are you sure about that?"

"I want to be sure of it. I need to otherwise I cannot live in peace." She turned her back towards him again and headed back up the stairs. Like a whirlwind she burst into every room and was welcomed by emptiness. There was only one bedroom left. No one had been inside of it ever since they locked her up. The floor creaked underneath Lucille's feet and she held her breath when she saw what her husband had done to the place. On the wall, freshly painted, rested the mark of the Devil. Candles where scattered around. As Lucille headed towards her closet she noticed that beads and jewels had been ripped off Rose's elaborate dresses and her jewellery boxes were empty. Her heart felt heavy. A few moments later she felt Jack's shadow standing behind her.

"They took all of her expensive belongings and left what is of no use." She mumbled.

"Let's take everything what is still left," he responded after a moment of silence, "I don't want anything left inside of this dungeon, or whatever you like to call it."

Obeying his order, they quickly scanned through the place. As Jack held her dresses close to his chest, he could smell her soft delicate scent. He recognised them; one worn the day she arrived at his old grandfather's estate. There was even the gown he had almost torn off her body that evening in the library. It took him longer than he had expected. Every item washed a wave of emotions over him. About half an hour later, they were finally done.

"I think I am going to walk back." Lucille announced as they stood in front of the motor car. Having put everything inside, Jack closed the door and looked at her.

"Are you sure about that?"

Lucille nodded her head. "Yes. I need the fresh air to clear my mind. I need to find out what I am going to do next for I just came to the conclusion that I have nothing left no more." She chuckled slightly, yet Jack could see that she was utterly distressed.

"All right," Jack said, "but if you're not back within an hour, I am going to look for you." He then placed his pocketknife into her hands, "Just in case."

Lucille thanked him and slowly headed towards the meadow. Jack watched her until she was completely out of sight.

Like a ghost, her personal belongings haunted his journey back towards the house. Her scent was everywhere, her voice echoed through his mind as if she was singing siren song. Lost within the torment of his own thoughts, Jack almost drove past Anna's place. He could drive forever without knowing where to go. And he almost did.

After a few minutes, as he parked in front of Anna's red door, he quickly glanced through the window to see any form of life. But it looked empty and quiet. Afraid to wake her up, he withdrew from making his presence known and walked straight towards the living room. If sitting next to her sleeping body would be it for the rest of his life, he couldn't think of a better way to grow old. He would be together with her and that was all he ever longed for. As he slowly approached her heart stopped.

The couch was empty and the house sounded more silent than ever. Within seconds, his ultimate nightmare seemed to have turned into reality. "Rose?" He spoke out loud. Nothing. It looked as if no one had stayed in here at all.

"Anna?!" He then called the mistress of the house. Also no response. A curse fell from his lips and he fell into a state of pure panic. Slamming the door behind him, he stamped through the hallway and rushed towards the kitchen. As he turned his head around the corner, Jack almost felt he was going to faint from what he saw. She was awake. She was alive. Rose was sitting behind the kitchen table and wrapped in an endless amount of blankets. She was leaning slightly forward, her hands wrapped around a cup of tea. "I can't do it." She whispered to Anna who was sitting closely next to her.

"Yes you can, Rose." She answered and helped her put the cup against her lips. Rose's hands were trembling heavily. Suddenly, both women became aware of the shadow not far away from them. Looking up, Rose let out a deep breath and almost let her tea fall onto the wooden table.

"Hi." She said and he swore he could see a faint smile appear on her face.

"Hi." He breathed and took a step closer. Anna grabbed the drink out of Rose's hands before disaster could strike and nodded, leaving the two of them alone. It was both a relief as well as horrifying sensation to see her sitting in front of him. She was real, in every way possible."How are you feeling?"

"Surprisingly all right. Only, barely have any feeling in my body."

"The doctor said that would be normal." He was suddenly beside her and as he kneeled down, their eyes met. Rose forgot her numbness; looking into his eyes made her feel everything again and all at once. Then she looked down, afraid that the love she still had for him would make her forget to be rational.

"I still can't wrap my hand around everything. And then you being here. I—" Their eyes met again, "Jack, are you crying?"

"I'll be fine." He tried to smile through his pain. Still with her hands trembling, she lifted one up and placed it gently on his cheek. Wiping his tears away with her thumb she tried the smile with him. Within seconds Rose realised that a gentle touch wasn't enough. How badly she wanted to kiss those tears away, but she knew she couldn't. If she gave in to her desires, hell fire would start burning again. He was not and would never be hers. "I'll truly be fine, Rose." He put his hands onto hers and squeezed it gently.

"I still can't believe Violet agreed with you visiting me for I don't believe she came with you, right? I have never received a response to my letter I sent them." Jack took a deep breath, removed himself from her touch and lifted both his hands up in the air. There was nothing to be seen and it was just that that made Rose's stomach drop. "Where… Where is your ring?" She finally managed to ask.

"There is no ring. There never was a ring, not on my hand anyway."

"I don't understand, Jack."

"There never was a wedding, Rose. We called it off last minute. We both knew it wasn't right." A long silence followed after his confession which, to him, felt as if the world had become slightly lighter. Yet, Rose remained quiet. Was she about to fall into his arms and kiss him like she had wanted to all this time? Was this the start of something beautiful?

Nothing happened but the fact that she only turned paler than she already was. There was nothing she could do.

"I am sorry," Jack suddenly apologised, "I shouldn't have told you so soon."

"No," she shook her head, "It's just that…" before she could finish her sentence, Anna appeared again.

"I am sorry to disturb you, cherie," Anna said, "but the doctor is here to see you."

"Merci, Anna." Rose looked up and saw the old man appear. She could not recall he had been here before. Everything felt like a blur, her memories gone with the winds. Control was lost over every aspect of her life and now here they were; three people looking down at her fragile sate. Within seconds Jack's touch could be felt gently on her waist and she felt as if she was going to explode.

"Let's get you to bed." He spoke softly and escorted her back to the couch. Rose sat down and glanced at his face. She believed there were still tears in his eyes. "Are you comfortable like this?" He asked and she nodded her head one more. Then Jack remained standing with his arms crossed.

"You can wait outside, monsieur." The doctor told him as if he had forgotten the previous time.

"Oh but you won't even notice that I am here." He lifted his arms up in a defensive manner.

"Are you her husband?"

Jack remained quiet before eventually mumbling an almost inaudible no

"Then you can wait outside." The doctor pointed his finger towards the door.

"I'll be fine, Jack." Rose whispered, "truly." She kept her eyes locked onto him until he was completely out of sight. Anna took a seat next to her and smiled to reassure her.

"I am just going to check if your wounds are properly healing. If you will unbutton your nightdress.

"Yes." She said, only within seconds she noticed that also this was a task impossible to complete. Rose wanted to scream in frustration, but before she could do so, Anna's hands moved towards her chest, opened the small buttons and carefully pulled the fabric over her shoulders, exposing her bare skin. Her body did not look her own and Rose bit her lip harshly.

"Oh, Cherie," Anna gasped, "What have they done to you." The woman felt herself getting nauseous and had to look away. Everything was a perfect mixture of blue and purple. Cuts had been stitched up with only slight remains of dried up blood covering it.

"You've been very lucky, mademoiselle." The doctor simply stated.

Rose sighed, "Yes, very lucky."

"I mean it, mademoiselle. I can tell from your physical state that you wouldn't have survived if you had stayed in there for much longer."

"Monsieur, s'il vous plaît." Anna stood up and covered up Rose's bare body, "The poor girl has had enough."

"Pardon," he quickly apologised, "I was just observing and stating the obvious." He took hold of his trunk. "If you take these pills; two a day for a week, you'll be on top of it in no time. And make sure to drink enough water and tea."

Rose could manage to let out a small thank you before watching him walk out. Taking hold of her medicine she shook the bottle before almost throwing it onto the floor. All the bruises and scratches, she couldn't care less about them. It was the mental torment that had left the biggest scars. His shadow hovering over her with his harsh that he screamed against his skin. She could see still the Devil's mark being drawn onto the wall. They told her it was her. Meredith told her she deserved it. Then, that one night, he had woken her up from her state of unconsciousness and dragged her down the stairs. Her body slid through the mud.

"This is it." He had told her as he tied her down onto the wooden bed, "This is the end. This is where he is going to get you. Le Diable."

"I think it is best for you to take some rest, cherie." Anna told her and brought her back to reality. She then stared at her, taking in all of her noticeable pain. "And please don't take the doctor's statement so seriously. He has always been a rude man. You are a strong woman, Rose."

"As of right now, I don't quite know how strong I am. Perhaps I wasn't meant to be taken out of there. I should've died. I should die."