Planning the climax was harder than normal, because this is the original by Lovecraft in modern days not much related to the movie, but the location where it plays out will be similar to "Bride", though not the same. This chapter is the end of this fun yet horrific tale, so I hope you enjoyed every bit of it. :D

Chapter Fourteen

Salvation

I clutched onto Herbert, fearing for Dawn's life. I worried that he'd kill her before we could get to her, but the rational part of my brain said that he wouldn't because he LOVED me too much. I wasn't a young woman much anymore who didn't know how to think about certain things, and that one night of us together taught me enough. He was in love with me all this time but never told me; I knew it all along, and it made me ill. I loved Herbert West, and this was Eric's first and only chance now to break us apart for the officially final time.

"Herbert, we have to go to her," I said, drawing back to look up at him.

"I know, but we can't just go in there," he answered. "We have to prepare ourselves and then means to fly over there. I trust you have your pistol with you?" His eyes twinkled with mischief.

"You know I do," I answered, smiling a little through my tears. "But I need to arm you, and I need to call the hospital to tell them I am sick. And if they mention Dawn to me, I'll say that they ought to mark her as well, since we all know she never misses out unless it's an absolute emergency." And this was an absolute emergency. I had another life who meant near and dear to me to rescue with my husband whom she would meet finally.

~o~

I booked us both a flight by night, and we would be in Ottawa before morning. No one would be at the site we both knew Clapham-Lee would be, with Dawn and his zombies which had originally been made by Herbert's hand. On the plane, in first class so we had only each other, I leaned in close to him, feeling safer than before. We spoke in whispers the whole time; he told me more of his terrible experiences where Eric would force him to make more batches of re-agent, stealing from hospitals around and always moving to avoid capture. I never took Eric to care for this, but now I saw that beyond death had made him even more insane than before; he was planning to use all our years of hard work and set about the world making more monsters. But first, that meant getting me by his side and getting Herbert out of the picture. But what would happen to Dawn then?

"I'm sorry, Barbara," he whispered, nuzzling his lips into my hair. "You were right about the thing with parts. All this time, and being half-dead, half-alive nearly caused me to lose you. I thought I would never see you again, the only woman I thought I would never have taken from me."

He was apologizing to me, finally admitting I was right all these years. I never thought I would hear those words from him, and I would have found it hard to believe. But Herbert was anything but a liar or leader on a false sense of security. "I forgive you," I told him, reaching up to cup his chin and bring him down for another kiss. After all of this was over, I had no idea how we were going to explain to the police or anyone where he'd been all this time. I wanted us to start over and live a normal life, ask the hospital to let him back in amongst their staff; I couldn't imagine the great Herbert West sitting cooped in the house all day with not much to do.

When our plane touched down, we found ourselves in the place we were in three years ago - and where the horror took place and followed us back a long way home. And where we would return to the past.

Not far from the abandoned wreck of the hospital where we served during the war - and went beyond simply re-animating the dead - was one of many old army bunkers which had always been used during both World Wars and during the Cold War. They were used not only during cases of tornados, but also for storage and as command centers, and harboring all the weapons. We'd been there for our own cases of weaponry when the chances arose. When the hospital was bombed and everyone retreated, the station was abandoned, so the weapons and everything had to be inside still...if Eric hadn't touched anything.

Standing out here in our borrowed jeep was foreboding to my senses; I didn't know about Herbert, though, but I knew he didn't enjoy being here either. The entrance in that vast hill of rock and earth was dark and beckoning us to trouble awaiting for us both. Herbert had been driving; he did remarkably well for someone who hadn't driven a vehicle in a year. He was the first out and then helped me out. We approached the entrance, pulling out our weapons and approaching as though we were members of the FBI or CSI, or somewhere. We said nothing to each other as we approached the opened doorway; they knew we were coming and made it easy for us...but we both knew it wouldn't be easy to escape.

"So, you find Dawn and get out of here," I whispered to my husband, "and I look for Eric."

He shook his head; this was part of the plan we still couldn't agree on. "Darling, if we activate the bomb and you're not out in time..."

"Herbert, we'll do what we have to," I interrupted, knowing well. "In case something happens to me, get Dawn away as far as you can." I looked up at him and smiled. "I believed in you from the beginning, Herbert, in spite of everything that went wrong, so I know you'll take care of Dawn for me." He opened his mouth to protest, but I lowered my weapon and brought my free hand up to his face and down to mine for a kiss of luck. I might have meant what I said, but I really wanted to get out alive with my husband and our sort-of-adopted daughter whom he deserved to meet.

~o~

It was like walking down a tunnel that had no end. I knew I couldn't slow down and watch out for danger every time; Herbert and I had parted awhile before, him going to the right as I chose the left, and I have to say that I don't think I was as scared as I was before, but that didn't erase the thought of the possible fate I would meet. The bunker had several hallways, and I was going to scout every one until I saw the man I was looking for.

At the end of the hall, I saw two horribly mismatched figures - now two more coming in, and blocking my way, snarling as they approached me, but I raised my gun and fired them all once in the head, shooting them dead again to the ground. The lights didn't even flicker overhead as I was expecting, but I was ready for them to go out and draw my mini flashlight, small as it was.

There was a doorway against the wall to my left, and I recognized it as the main control center. I thought I detected HIM there, but there was only one way to find out - reaching over and slowly turning the knob, I suddenly stopped at the sound of his voice.

"You came at the perfect timing, Barbara."

The door closed behind me, but it didn't lock. He was alone, surrounded only by machinery and control panels, marking it as though we were in a science fiction movie combined with horror. He was facing me, dark-haired as I remembered, but a different face altogether which was still handsome. I felt like I was Belle and he was Gaston; comparing real life to an animated fairytale adaptation was really ridiculous. I stepped further in; I'd hid my weapon deep in the confides of my dress from his eyes before I came in.

"You're alone, good," he noted with a smile. "Now it's just you and me before the party finishes its course."

I burst out laughing, my heart beginning to pick up its pace. I had no idea if it was because I was beginning to get braver with each second now that I was once more in the presence of the man who ordered my husband taken from me, or if I was actually still very afraid and had no idea. Either way, I had a few tricks now up my sleeve I knew I could use to distract him as long as Herbert found Dawn and they set up the bombs somewhere, and however they dodged those things out in the halls. I stepped forward towards the man with a different face. "Just how long do you estimate it will end?" I asked, careful not to get my husband in trouble.

Eric chuckled as he looked me over. "It will be awhile, before I make the decision to order my 'men' to rejoin. I thought it would make things...easier," he purred. "I left your precious student somewhere else from here, but if I told you, it would spoil the surprise. Which means your...husband is gonna be taking his time. Gives US plenty of time alone, my love."

I decided to play this particular card against him. "How long have you...loved me, Eric?" I asked, my heart beating faster as I began to undo the back of the keyhole neck of my dress. His eyes flashed.

"Long since we were children, Barbara. I always have, never stopped thinking about you, since I was married. But you were always on my mind, and it was you and that madman." He hissed angrily, and I paused where I was; my neckline was halfway down to exposing my breasts to him. "It sickened me that you chose a psychopath over me...but no matter." That smile was back. "I don't care if you changed or not; you will always be the Barbara I knew when I was a younger man."

If he were wholly alive again, if he were the same man I knew before he died and was brought back, I would have been less disgusted than I was now. He didn't know that I wasn't that girl anymore, didn't care either even if he did know. Death changed everything in time. I didn't realized I'd let my top drop to show both my breasts to him until he spoke again. "Now that's a delectable sight I haven't seen since our time together."

"And it will be the last time you will."

I spun around; neither of us had heard the door open. "Herbert!" I quickly fixed my top back into place and started for him before Eric grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer to him. I struggled, but he was stronger than I was.

"I don't think so, West," he rasped. "She's mine now."

"We set a bomb in the hallway, and it will go off in five minutes if you don't give me my wife this instant," Herbert growled, brandishing his pistol, motioning Dawn to get behind him. She looked from behind his shoulder, face twitching as though trying not to cry. Being kidnapped had done a number on the poor girl that it broke my heart.

"Well, good. Because this is the moment I've waited for, then. But it's not something you tell someone right away until the moment is right." I managed to turn my head around and looked at him. What was he implying? Did he mean that he wanted to die this way?! As though reading my mind, he smirked down at me. "I've been dead for three years, sweetheart. It hasn't been as fun as it should have been. Conquering death is a wonderful dream for every doctor, including you and your husband. But it's a dream that will never be realized. I know you realized it, Barbara. And you must do the same now, Herbert." He looked up at him once more.

"It's a fool's hope, and being on the run and hiding from the world. I knew from my original headless appearance that I would be called a freak, and now with how I am now. The world will never know about us, and not only that, I wanted to spend the last day of this world with you," he whispered, turning me around to look at him, then spun me around so his back faced Herbert. "It's blissful to know I won't go up with this place alone. It'll be with you, the woman I love and finally shared one happy night with when her husband turned into a monster - and with the monster himself who took my head, as well as the orphan who is so much like her teacher."

A single gunshot rang throughout the whole room, and blood splattered on my face. I think I screamed and fell to the floor, but I knew I was scrambling away from the fallen corpse of Eric Moreland Clapham-Lee, making away around so I was in front of my husband and in his arms.

"Oh, Herbert," I sobbed, desiring his hold more than ever. He returned it with a tighter squeeze around my torso. "You killed him."

"I did it for you," he answered. "Necessary. And no less than he deserved for marking me as the monster," he fumed.

An extra pair of arms - Dawn's - joined around us for a group hug, before she announced it. "Can we get out of here now? The bomb goes off in three minutes."

~o~

We were outside in time for the bunker to blow up from the inside right behind us, the leftover impact knocking us both on our stomachs and to the ground. The ground rumbled beneath us. Herbert had told me the other monsters inside were locked in the intel room, which was where he'd found Dawn, and together they'd locked them all in there, since the door - like every other in the bunker - was powerful enough to keep them secured.

I looked up from the grassless ground with Herbert and Dawn, seeing the smoke coming out from the entrance. From the outside, in general, bunkers prevented explosions outside from injuring the senses and physical damage to the people inside. But their vulnerability was powerful explosives. I learned all of this from my service during the war, but that was beside the point. We were all alive, and the monsters of our past were buried where they should be.

"Herbert," I said, finally able to catch my breath. My lungs hurt a little from running, but the oxygen was returning. "I forgot to ask...the work?"

He looked at me and laughed. "You know, I haven't seen it since I escaped the crypt, now that you asked me. For all I know, it's buried there, and no one will ever find it...or maybe if they do, it will be after the dust from our bones will be gone. Either way, it's not my problem anymore."

"So, you're Dr. Herbert West." We both turned to look at Dawn. "Everyone thought you were dead."

He smiled at her. "They'll might as well continue to think that until I go back to them. But that also requires an excuse as to why the long absence." His smile faded, and he sighed, standing and dusting himself off. "But I think I'll worry about that for later." He looked down at me and smiled; I felt myself shrink and heat in both my flesh and blood like I first had when we were both students at the Miskatonic University Medical School in Arkham. "The most important thing in the world is right here in front of me." I let myself be kissed by him, in front of poor Dawn who muttered the word please and started her way for the jeep, which seated three people.

I gently broke the kiss. "Let's go home, darling," I whispered, laughing when he agreed and picked me up like he did after we were married, and brought me to the vehicle so we could get the hell out of here and go home to rebuild our lives that didn't involve the dead and a long-gone green serum. I was ready for that, and to finally start the family I always wanted, which included myself, my loving husband Dr. Herbert West, and our new daughter Dawn who was so much like myself when I was that age.

Our story ends here, and while it was a tale of macabre and seemingly inescapable fear of the unknown, it was all conquered even if death couldn't be. But in the end, I had everything I ever wanted, and it was a family which was almost destroyed by a life of secrecy and death. In the end, Herbert West, Re-Animator, achieved his own salvation so he would have the happy ending he deserved with me.

Whoo, I'm glad I finally finished. :D This was worth the challenge, and I'm happy with how it came out. Now that my latest Re-Animator story is out of the way, up next is a cherished Weyoun (Star Trek: Deep Space 9) story which I invented with my dear friend Windblazer Prime, so any fans of Jeffrey Combs, please look for that when the time comes for a put up. :D I don't know when it will be completed and published, but not too long.