They slowly entered Mrs. Lovett's pie shop; Mr. Todd becoming increasingly careful to not jostle her in any agonizing way. Once they reached the main living area, he carefully helped her to the couch where she slowly laid down on her stomach. He almost felt as if he were putting a sleepy child to bed.
The fire burning in the hearth illuminated her body, highlighting her accumulated injuries from the evening. The now rusty brown bloodstains and vivid red burns contrasted heavily against her snowy skin. Her breathing slowed as her eyes closed, trying to relax. Her weary body and mind so desperately needed the rest.
"I'm going to get something to bandage that back of yours. I'll be right back," Sweeney said slowly, still unable to bring himself to look into her eyes. He left the room and went to get a bed sheet as a makeshift bandage.
Mrs. Lovett watched him exit the room, and was left alone with her thoughts and pain. What, exactly, was going on? His unstableness scared her so much. He was a danger to be around, and could transition from being merely a sullen barber to a bloodthirsty murderer in less than a heartbeat.
She just… couldn't understand what had made Mr. Todd spare her life like that. She had lied to him; she had hurt him so badly… And she had seen firsthand how easily he took the lives of innocent people; she witnessed the ruthless revenge he harbored against his enemies…
But the way he was caring for her now reminded her of how it had been fifteen years before.
Whenever she had obtained a burn from that bloody oven, or accidentally cut one of her fingers, Benjamin Barker would always come to her aid. He had always been there if she needed stitching up…
She then remembered all the pleasant, sunny afternoons they had spent chatting together in the dining room about anything and everything under the sun while Lucy did her shopping. Mrs. Lovett had always been full of amusing stories from her customers and passers-by in the marketplace; her laughter always complementing them in the perfect way. Her eyes had sparkled and her teeth flashed as she smiled back then…
And Benjamin had always laughed right along with her, his eyes dancing with mirth to match her own. They really had been friends at one point. But the sound of her own laughter seemed so far away now; distantly echoing through her past…
Mr. Todd returned, breaking Mrs. Lovett away from her memories and back into the present. He had a clean, white bed sheet, a bowl of water and a small rag in his hands. He set these things down on the coffee table, and expertly began to cut up the sheet with his razor to make appropriate bandages. She had slowly arisen into a sitting position at his presence, and he carried the pile of ripped fabric over to the couch, sitting behind her.
He immediately began to loosen her corset, and Mrs. Lovett's breath caught in her lungs when she realized what he was doing. She knew it was just to put on her bandage, but… she couldn't help but smile a little.
Once the singed corset was completely removed; her broken, porcelain skin fully exposed, he began to wrap her torso. His hands were steady and sure, and only faltered slightly when he reached her chest. His touch became more delicate; carefully avoiding direct contact with her breasts.
She stopped breathing completely as she felt his fingers lightly feather over her breasts, and as he continued wrapping he could feel her heartbeat intensify as the bandage was secured.
Mr. Todd looked away from her bandaged back as it rose and fell with her every breath; he had accomplished his task. He then moistened the rag, feeling the cool water slide pleasantly through his hands, completely mesmerized by its caressing smoothness.
Mrs. Lovett turned towards him, needing to look into his eyes and somehow thank him for so tenderly caring for her… But her eyes suddenly clenched shut; the burns on her back sending a rush of pain rampaging through her senses. Just when she had thought the pain couldn't get any worse…
She brought her head to her hands, doubled over and using every ounce of willpower she had to stop herself from completely breaking down in her current state of anguish. She bit down excruciatingly hard on her lip, determined not to show weakness in front of Mr. Todd. But as small beads of blood fell from her lips, a small cry escaped from her throat. She realized that her back had merely been numb before as the true level of pain from the injury overthrew her body.
Mr. Todd turned back towards Mrs. Lovett, seeing a small, red bead fall from her lips. He then withdrew his hands from the bowl and draped the cool, moist cloth around her neck. Her breathing instantaneously became less labored, and her shaking fingers went up to take the cloth from her nape as she slowly sat up.
As quickly as the pain had come, it went away. She unwrapped the fabric, cool drops of water penetrating the fabric of her dress. She pressed it to her face, wiping away the dirt and blood from the bake house.
Mr. Todd strenuously stared at the silver bowl of water, not wanting to look at or think about Mrs. Lovett at all. He couldn't understand why he felt so compelled to take care of her. Perhaps it was simply because without her, his revenge wouldn't be possible... yes, that must be it. And yet... whenever she was around, the demons of his past seemed to fade away, and he almost felt... human again. And he wasn't sure whether to love or hate her for it.
As she finished dabbing at her lips, leaving a small curve of crimson on the dirty cotton, she again focused her attentions onto Mr. Todd. She deeply inhaled, and then slowly lowered her hand onto his shoulder. He turned and moved his head closer to hers, but never directly looking her in the eye. Her eyes drank in the sight of his now unsoiled face as though she had been deprived of looking at it for years. She was trying to locate every tiny hint of emotion in every crevice of his handsome features, trying to gauge what he was feeling…
She slowly inched closer to him until finally she placed a light kiss; full of sweetness onto his forehead. And as she pulled away, Mr. Todd's colorless skin was still tingling from where her lips had touched him. He immediately stood up and turned around to face her, not feeling comfortable under her sudden sign of affection. She stared at him for a while with her great, doe eyes, reading him like a book.
"I jus'… I jus' wanted to thank you, Mr. T. You… you 'ave showed me mo' mercy tonigh' than I deserve," she whispered, glancing down at his worn-out shoes.
He quickly averted his gaze to the blaze in the fireplace, the flames reflected in his cold, black eyes. He was now regretting helping her; for sparing her existence. He knew somewhere in his subconscious she had done only what she had thought was best, but… now his Lucy was lying dead in the bake house. Her blood still remained on his hands. He had thought he had spent the past fifteen years in waiting, but he now knew he had spent them in vain.
The flames seemed to be absorbed through his eyes and channeled directly into his fury. Faster than Mrs. Lovett could react, he had whipped out his razor and was again pressing it to her neck. She sat completely motionless, not having the chance to react to his brashness.
"You really are a bloody wonder, Mrs. Lovett," Mr. Todd growled at her, obstructing his typically smooth intonation. His teeth were clenched together in resentment for her and for himself, knowing he still couldn't kill her tonight.
"But keep in mind, my dear," he said as he enhanced his hold upon her using his other hand, "While I did indeed spare your trivial, insignificant life, remember… I can take it away just as easily." He glared at her for one more instant before storming angrily out of the room.
Mrs. Lovett remained at a standstill, her eyes quivering in the firelight as tears welled up within them. She shakily exhaled and gazed up at the ceiling, almost as if she were staring up at God, demanding a reason for all the appalling experiences she had been put through after sundown. She shook her head as her eyes flitted back to the fire. She knew, no matter how much she didn't want to admit it to herself, that life couldn't continue like this…
She felt her heart swell with joy and misery as the knowledge washed over her that she couldn't, and wouldn't love that… that insufferable demon anymore. It would be difficult, she knew, but… this one-sided love affair had really begun to take its toll on her. She would remain his business associate and proprietor only. It would take vast amounts of time for her to carry out, but…
Her blood encrusted lips quivered into a smile as she realized… she could be free. After fifteen years of being entrapped by the memories of Benjamin Barker, she could finally be released from the iron bars of her own heart. It was almost sick, the amount of euphoria and adrenaline flooding through her every vein in that moment.
She all but leapt to her feet at the realization that the authorities would be poking around tomorrow in search of the Beadle and Judge Turpin. In a complete blur of elation she gathered her cleaning supplies, and started ascending the staircase to Mr. Todd's barber shop. She knew he wouldn't be up there, and those bloodstains needed to vanish before morning…
She threw open the door, the bell above the entrance chiming to announce her entrance. Her poor Albert's chair was soaked and surrounded with blood; and it was also gruesomely splattered on the large window implanted in the roof.
"Ugh. All that blood," she muttered to herself as she took in the vast amount of blood. She winced as she lowered herself to the floorboards, but she shook away the slight twinge of pain and began to scrub the blood away, pouring the bleach she kept up in his parlor onto the floor as she went.
She almost felt relieved to be cleaning and washing things up; making them like new again. No matter what the circumstances, she always felt most comfortable falling back onto her most basic instincts.
Mr. Todd was kneeling by the earthly remains of his wife, the mortal constraints of time and space not even beginning to register in his uneasy mind. How had Lucy allowed herself to fall so far? She had always been quiet, and preferred to observe the bustling world around her from the window they had had in their bedroom.
But he had always felt she was so strong; the only reason he remained sane from the trials the unforgiving city of London offered him. He knew he couldn't even begin to understand what she had gone through after being violated by the revolting Judge, but… she had then just left Johanna to fend for herself. His eyes narrowed with anger and frustration at himself… and at Lucy. He was just… so livid that she had abandoned their daughter like that; just given up all hope. She had lost all faith in the fact that he would someday return for her and Johanna, their beautiful Johanna…
She had lost so much trust in the human race and in her own existance that she had wanted to take her own life. She had let her past blind her from seeing that her daughter still relied on her to survive.
He pounded his fists into the relentless stone floor, scraping away a bit of skin from his knuckles as a cry of rage emerged from his throat. He detested himself for even thinking such things of her; for disgracing her memory this way. But deep in his heart he knew that… that all of it was true; Mrs. Lovett hadn't lied…
He glanced once more at her lifeless face, his lips drawn up into a slight smile as recollections of her washed over him. Of her smiling and laughing, bringing him joy on the nights they spent together watching their newborn daughter peacefully sleep... He hesitated before he placed a kiss onto her icy lips, full of memories and love for the past they had so happily shared together.
He then took her body tenderly into his arms and carried her over to the oven. The door was still standing open, and he took one more desperate look at her beautiful, flawless face; one last glance into his past before he put her into the oven, watching her body swiftly being engulfed in the flames.
He quickly averted his eyes from her now blazing corpse, and his gaze fell upon the bodies of Turpin and the Beadle. He dragged their bodies simultaneously closer to the oven, his face painted with an expression of disgust as he observed their lifeless features.
Once there was no evidence of his beautiful wife left in the oven, he heaved the carcass of the Beadle into the fire, which was followed closely by the body of the Judge. He smiled as the flames engulfing their corpses danced in his eyes, the knowledge sweeping over him that his past was, at long last, completely avenged. The world was finally rid of the malevolent Judge Turpin. He smiled, observing his life-long foes discentegrate in the flames before bolting the oven door securely shut.
He turned around to face the bake house, now a horrific sight. He surveyed all the blood everywhere, which looked like something from the most dreadful of nightmares… And the realization that the law would be there tomorrow in search of the Beadle and Judge Turpin settled over him like a black veil.
He immediately began to cleanse the bake house of the evidence of his victims with the large tubs of water Mrs. Lovett kept at hand; thankful he had disposed of all the other carcasses the evening before. And he washed away the abundance of blood, his head completely void of all other thoughts.
After all the difficult deliberating he had done that evening, it felt… pleasant to think of nothing but the blood running down into the depths of the sewers.
I'd just like to thank everyone for reading this! And I apologize; this chapter was a bit slow in my opinion. Things will pick up considerably in the next chapter. And also, I haven't forgotten about Toby!
Now that summer's officially here, chapters should be coming more frequently. I love getting feedback; reviews are what keep me movivated! wink wink nudge nudge Thanks so much to the people who have favorited/alerted this story, by the way. It makes me feel all speshul inside. :)
SNOOGINS