I'm back like I promised :D. This chapter was a WHOLE beast but I hope that it has been worth the wait. We're really nearing the end now! I plan to have this story completed by Halloween to properly feed the readers that come around for the spooky month haha.
Filtering in through the curtains, the moonlight cast onto Victor's face awoke him early the next morning.
He stretched, turning his face away from the window. Glancing at the clock on the wall, Victor saw that there was still about two hours until dawn. He already hadn't slept much, feeling a mix of nervousness and excitement for the wedding to come. The nerves quickly resurfaced however, coming to a point where Victor was fully awake.
Turning in bed, he rested his eyes on a sleeping Emily. When Victor had come home the evening prior after his talk with Charles, he had to convince her to stop fretting over the wedding dress and come to bed. She had been able to perfectly renew the dress so that it gleamed ivory once more and no longer consisted of tears and torn fabric. It looked unrecognizable to the dress Victor has come to know her in. Despite this, Emily had kept fussing over small details she felt needed to be perfected.
"It's gorgeous darling, just like you," he had said, leaning down to kiss her on the cheek.
Sighing, she had bitten her bottom lip. "I just want everything to be perfect."
"It already is."
Victor was certain she would have worked on the dress the whole night if he hadn't led her to bed. Dawn came early in the winter, so he knew they needed all the sleep they could get before the big day. They had gotten a little distracted before officially settling in for the night, but it fortunately had assisted in tiring them further.
His face flushed at the memory. They were still learning and he was still an awfully blundering person, but he couldn't have imagined anything more amazing. Shaking his head to erase the thoughts before he got too consumed in them, he turned his attention towards the suit hanging in the corner.
While he had never seen eye to eye with his mother, he had to admit that she was extremely gifted when it came to fashion and decoration. Nell had picked out a rather expensive and flashy plum colored silk suit. A little too flamboyant for Victor's taste, but he had to respect that she had gone for a darker color that was more befitting for his personality. The quality of the fabric would also do well for holding up in the Land of the Dead.
"Are you awake, darling?" Emily suddenly whispered next to him, causing him to jerk in surprise.
During his time thus far in the Land of the Dead, Victor had learned that the dead, well, slept like the dead. Emily was no exception, making this not the first time that he had been caught off guard by her when they had slept together. She never stirred or made any noise to hint that she had awoken.
He looked over at her, seeing her pretty brown eyes staring up at him. "Y-yes."
Emily giggled, reaching down to grab his hand. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."
Pulling her in closer, Victor buried his face into her soft hair. After everything that they had been through, it almost felt unreal that he was now finally going to marry her. Their first wedding attempt had gone by so quickly that he hadn't the time to process any of it. That whole night had felt like a dream he would find that by morning he had woken up from. But in just a few hours, they would be united for the rest of eternity.
"Emily," Victor whispered softly, a buried curiosity coming to the surface. "Why me?"
She was silent for a moment, pondering his question.
"Well…before Barkis, I had such hopes and dreams about falling in love and finding my prince charming. He pretended to have all the qualities I had only ever been able to imagine. But after my death, I felt so unwanted. I had some anger from the betrayal, but mostly I was just…defeated. I thought, how worthless must I be that someone could ever do such a thing? Did others just look at me and see my possessions?"
She went quiet for a moment, collecting her thoughts.
"I still had my dream of finding someone who would love me the same way that I loved him. It just had turned into a dream that felt like a pure fantasy. I wanted it, more than anything…but I never truly believed that it would ever come true."
She sniffled. Victor pulled back to look at her and saw tears starting to pool in her eyes. Cupping her face, he leaned down to kiss her temple.
"When I finally started coming out of my grave a bit more," she continued, resting her head against his chest. "I thought that maybe I could find someone downstairs. I gave up pretty quickly however. Either all the men were already betrothed or they had no romantic inkling in them at all. It's extremely uncommon for a couple to be united for the first time after death." Emily frowned. "I understand why, but it still seems sad and unfair to me."
Victor had learned that those who remained present in the Land of the Dead for long stretches of time were often those who had some sort of unfinished business related to the Land of the Living. Either a tragic death or a connection to someone still living. While it wasn't uncommon for some to simply arrive and be unready to properly pass on, those people typically didn't stick around for an extended amount of time.
"So finding you was a complete miracle from above," Emily breathed contentedly. "For years, no one even came close to my final resting place. But then one day, I felt the presence of someone standing right over me. When I saw who it was…it almost felt like a sign. I mean, how could such a coincidence happen?"
It had felt like fate to Victor as well. He at times wondered if the reason he had been so drawn and comfortable in the forest, despite his general anxieties and fears, such as the dark, were due to somehow sensing that Emily was there, watching over him.
"The more I started watching you when you would visit the old oak tree, the more I fell in love with you. You were gentle, smart, and a passionate creative, just like I was. I could tell that you came from money by the way you dressed and the materials you carried around, but I loved that those things didn't seem to matter to you."
"I didn't really have a whole lot that mattered to me until I met you," Victor admitted.
Glancing up at him with a small smile, she pulled herself up until her lips locked with his. Blushing, Victor kissed her back, feeling his fingers tangle into her hair. The room started to spin slightly, so he closed his eyes to prevent himself from getting too light headed.
He wasn't sure if he would ever get used to this. She seemed to take his breath away just as much as she did when he first laid eyes on her.
Emily's eyes drifted away from him for a second before quickly widening. She shot up in bed, leaving a dazed Victor behind.
"Oh! Has that much time passed already? We need to start getting ready! There's only a little bit over an hour before we have to leave!"
Rushing behind the folding dressing screen, Emily quickly changed into a simple day dress. To not raise suspicion, they had agreed that she would get dressed in her wedding attire once at their ceremony location. Additionally, Emily didn't want him to see her dressed up before the ceremony.
Hauling the bag off the dresser that contained her dress and accessories, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek before rushing out the door.
Unlike before, the two didn't really have anyone to help them get ready for the ceremony. Due to the recent drama caused by Victoria and Julian's escape attempt, Victoria was unable to get away to help Emily get ready. Neither Victor nor Emily had even attempted to ask her for such a favor, with everything Victoria was going through as of late.
The wedding was kept relatively a secret, meaning Nell was also unable to provide any assistance. She was completely unaware that the two were getting married that morning. Victor had preferred to keep his death and the dramatics that that would bring out of the spotlight. Additionally, they had no idea how others might react to the news, especially Pastor Galswells. Victor wasn't about to take a chance on having anyone try to stop the wedding like last time.
Thinking of his mother made Victor swiftly get up from bed and grab everything he needed before he headed out. Nell could return any minute now from the trip to the asylum and he did not want to be anywhere near her when she did.
Victor double checked that he had the small vial of the Wine of Ages that the Elders had given him before he had left the Land of the Dead. From seeing Lord Barkis' drink the same wine just weeks earlier, Victor knew that his death would come quickly once the drink passed his lips. He took a ribbon from one of the dresser drawers and tied it tightly around the top of the bottle. Creating a loop, he pulled it over his head so that the poison was safely secured around his neck.
As he neatly folded his wedding suit into his bag, he took one last look out the window towards the main house. This would be the last time he would ever be here. Besides his excursions to the nearby forest to be alone and study the surrounding nature, Victor had spent the majority of his life within the grounds of the Van Dort estate.
Despite the way his mother had treated him over the years, he still felt guilty for tricking her and leaving her childless. He had managed to help in improving their reputation these past few days, though the drama from the Everglots had offered a hand in taking the public's eye off of the Van Dorts. Victor worried his asylum stay may have ruined all of that. There was no way the news hadn't made its way all over town by now.
He looked at the time. Maybe there was still some time to make everything alright again. He owed it to his father, if anything.
Pulling the bag over his shoulder, Victor promptly made his way to the town's center. It was on the way to the agreed meeting place they had made with Pastor Louis. If his knowledge from studying the Town Criers usual daily rounds over the years was correct, then he should be just over…
Victor's eyes made contact with a very wide eyed man standing on the other side of the town center.
Perfect.
"Master Van Dort?" the Town Crier questioned incredulously, scratching his head in confusion. "I know you were in town late last night, but I thought you were taken to the asylum? Have you returned already?"
"Oh–yes, I was. Pastor Galswells apparently thought he could accomplish bringing further misfortune onto my family by convincing them I needed to be sent there. They realized it was all a mistake once I got there and let me leave." Victor shrugged.
"Blimey!" the Town Crier exclaimed, looking towards the direction of the Church as if Pastor Galswells would arise to counter such a claim.
"Indeed."
The Town Crier stared off to the side as he processed this information. Glancing at his bell, he slowly raised it above his head to make the announcement.
"HEAR YE HEAR YE! VICTOR VAN DORT HAS RETURNED FROM ASYLUM. THE OBTAINMENT WAS RULED TO BE UNJUST. PASTOR GALSWELLS REVEALED TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ASYLUM CALL ON MASTER VAN DORT."
Feeling satisfied with the Town Criers statement, Victor made his way through the narrow streets of the town. As he passed by the various workers setting up shop for the day, he was able to hear some of their opinions regarding the breaking news.
"The old man needs to give it a rest already. He's the one who is unable to protect us. Instead, he's just trying to blame it all on Master Van Dort."
"You're absolutely right. I mean, Master Van Dort wasn't even in town when his father disappeared! It makes me wonder…maybe Galswells is the one meddling with the dead here."
"Precisely! And isn't it just odd that William Van Dort disappears for those few minutes after the Pastor had been harassing him every day for a fortnight? Seems suspicious to me."
"That man has always given me the most unsettling feeling anyways. I wouldn't be surprised."
Another group down the street appeared to have a similar opinion.
"I mean, the dead suddenly all appear and make their way to his church. From what I heard, he was the one who caused Victor to run out of the wedding rehearsal with the Everglots. Maybe he is cursing the Van Dorts."
"But why? I can't think of a reason for him to do such a thing."
"Who knows? The Pastor has always been odd and a bit of a recluse…"
That was the majority of what Victor heard as he made his way to the edge of town. They had decided to have the ceremony in his fathers on-site office, which was located nearby the Van Dort shop. It was the nicest place Victor could think of that wouldn't draw them too much unnecessary attention and most importantly, they would be uninterrupted there since his father was gone.
He saw the family shop come into view and made a left down River Street. When he had spoken to Charles the night prior, Victor had mentioned that he would be preparing for the ceremony by himself. Charles had proposed that he could help get Victor ready for the wedding and Victor had accepted his offer. Even though Victor hadn't known any of the men who had done him up for the wedding in the Land of the Dead the last time, their welcoming and caring nature had made Victor feel instantly comfortable. Charles gave Victor a similar feeling, so the idea of spending the time with him rather than alone was quite inviting.
Victor also knew how important this was to Emily, which made it even more imperative that he look his best for her.
Charles was waiting for him outside. Since Emily needed to get ready in the office, they had decided on using the place Charles was staying. Greeting him with a small wave, Victor followed Charles upstairs to the small apartment.
"So," Charles said as they got settled in front of the mirror. "Are you feeling nervous yet?"
"A l-little," Victor admitted, buttoning up the vest of his suit. "I've been so preoccupied that I have hardly had time to even think about the ceremony itself."
Helping Victor into his suit jacket, Charles nodded in understanding. "I can only imagine. That Pastor of yours sure has put your family through quite the ordeal. To the point that he would even get in the way of your wedding…" He shook his head in disgust. "You shouldn't have even had to go out of your way to get a different priest from another town."
Victor sighed, taking his tie from his bag. "It certainly has been stressful, but I am relieved that everything will finally go according to plan soon."
Charles paused for a moment, seeming to ponder over how to properly articulate what he was going to say next.
"I apologize if this is too personal to ask–you don't have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable," Charles started. "That is the last thing I want to impose upon you before your wedding day. However, I can't help but be curious as an outsider. When they say you fell in love with a corpse…did you really? Even Victoria seemed to be under the impression that the dead really had walked the earth."
Victor was unsure of how to respond, remaining quiet as Charles adjusted Victor's tie to the proper length. He wasn't surprised that the question had come up. It was actually a little stunning that it hadn't come up sooner, but then again Charles wasn't like the others from Victor's town. He was polite and considerate, unlikely to bring up a topic that might upset or offend another.
Charles shook his head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked. It is none of my business."
"No, it's alright. I just…it's confusing to me too." Victor thought carefully about his next words. "I d-don't know what happened to me. I guess it was the stress of my arranged m-marriage to Victoria. Everything was going by so quickly and people kept pulling me in so many different directions. I…I wanted to make my own choices and follow my own happiness."
Victor knew it didn't really answer the question Charles had asked. Luckily, Charles didn't press him further on it.
"Victoria also said you weren't ready to die," Charles said.
"I've spent my whole life not really living. I've realized I can't be that way anymore. I'm in love with life more than ever now, after everything."
Victor of course didn't mention that he was more so referring to his afterlife.
"You know, Victor." Charles parted Victor's hair with a comb and smoothed it out. "When I first arrived in town, others said the same. About you going your own way, that is. They said it with scorn, though I couldn't help but find it anything other than admirable. I've let others dictate my own life before and have never come to happiness because of it. Maybe it's not what others like, but we only get one life. We deserve to reach out and take what we want to fulfill ourselves."
"I've been thinking the same as of late," Victor commented quietly. "I do feel troubled by any burden I may have caused anyone." He fidgeted with the ring box that contained his wedding band before slipping it into his pocket. "But I know I shouldn't feel guilt over choosing my own path in life rather than following what others have attempted to force upon me."
"You've made me realize that as well," Charles nodded. "Maybe this whole time, I haven't been fighting for myself enough. I always tried to take the easier way out, worried about how others could negatively impact my own path. Though, seeing you and your fiance has given me hope that I can change my life for the better as well. I have to thank you for that, Victor."
A grandfather clock in the corner of the room announced the start of a new hour. Victor peered at the window and saw the very first few rays of light peak out from the horizon.
"I think that's your cue to get moving along," Charles smiled. He stared at Victor's reflection in the mirror. "Everything satisfactory to you?"
Victor studied his appearance. Charles was apparently gifted in doing one's hair, and had styled Victor's into a sleek pompadour. Despite Victor's artistic skills, he had never been able to get his hair to sit in any sort of way that didn't look partially messy. His father was equally incompetent at it, which had led to Nell always fixing both of them up every morning.
Despite the unhelpfulness his father likely would have had, Victor still wished his father was there to help him get ready for his wedding. His fathers presence was one of the only things Victor would mourn once he became a permanent resident of the Land of the Dead.
When it was time to leave, Charles insisted on escorting Victor to the shop so Victor didn't have to be there by himself before the wedding. Charles was a little surprised to hear that not even Victor's parents would be there for the ceremony, but he was mostly understanding.
"You do seem to be more of the shy and private type," Charles chuckled.
When they arrived at his father's office, Victor discovered that Emily had taken it upon herself to decorate the space. She had arranged the room with flowers and had moved the furniture around so that it looked more fit for a wedding ceremony. The desk remained in the same place towards the back of the room, covered in a sheet so that it represented an altar. She had placed some candles and blue rose petals throughout, adding color to the plain gray of the office.
Pastor Louis was standing in front of the table, laying out some books and papers.
"Good morning," Pastor Louis greeted. "We can get started whenever you are ready."
"I'm ready. Where's Em-Elizabeth?" Victor stuttered, glancing outside the door.
"She's in the powder room," Pastor Louis answered, now setting out the candles and the wine. "She didn't want you to see her until the ceremony started. I'll go let her know that you are ready. Do you have the rings?"
"Oh–yes." Victor pulled out both rings from their boxes and placed them on the table as Pastor Louis exited the room.
"I guess this is where I take my leave now," Charles said to Victor, holding out his hand. "It's been a pleasure to get to know you. Hopefully we can cross paths again sometime soon." He smiled.
Victor shook his hand. "Of course. Thank you for everything. We wouldn't have been able to do it without you."
The door to the office opened. Emily drifted into the room behind Pastor Louis, causing Victor's breath to get caught in his throat.
Her dress featured the same structure that it had before, only now her arms and shoulders were covered with delicate sleeves that ended in a point. The torn slit in the skirt of the dress had been sewn up and now swept elegantly behind her. The train had been cut down by about a foot and now had small pearly beads running along the swirls in its design. Her almost opaque veil hung over her face, obscuring it.
Victor slowly approached her, taking her velvety hands into his.
"You look beautiful," he breathed, leaning in closer to her.
She giggled sweetly. "Thank you," she whispered back.
Victor couldn't help but just stand there and take in her beauty. The euphoria at the reality that in just a few minutes, they would be united forever, was almost impossible to even consider. It swept away any nervousness he may have possibly had that morning and made him not want to delay their marriage for even a second more.
Just as he was about to guide her over to the altar, his eyes connected with someone behind her.
No…
He wrapped his arms protectively around Emily, shooting daggers at the unwelcomed guest.
Pastor Galswells was standing by the door, glaring down at them.
How could he have possibly known they were here? Dawn had only barely begun to break. They had decided the location of the ceremony with Pastor Louis just last night. It was impossible that he could have learned of it, let alone so quickly.
He must have been spying on us, Victor thought.
If that was the case…did he know that "Elizabeth" was actually Emily?
"I'd heard about this new woman you were involved with." The old man clicked his tongue. "Your mother couldn't help but blather to her friends about your new engagement and the fact that you had a new pastor brought in to wed you two. I knew you were up to trouble when I heard the Crier give that announcement about you so early."
So that was what caused him to come searching for Victor at such an hour.
Victor marched across the room to face him. "Well, you weren't going to wed us. I have done nothing wrong and have only been involved with the living since being here. My personal relationships are none of your concern."
"You think I trust your word after everything you've been involved in, Master Van Dort?"
"This is utterly ridiculous!" Charles confronted Pastor Galswells, stepping in front of Victor. "You need to stop this insistent meddling! You have absolutely no right to ban them from getting married. Isn't this a good turn of events? You've been obsessed with getting Victor away from all that death nonsense, haven't you? Well, he's doing that right now!"
Pastor Galswells pointed his staff at them. "You know nothing of the situation. The last I saw of Victor Van Dort, he was still completely possessed by that corpse bride. He's been a defiant, reckless man ever since the wedding rehearsal at the Everglots. Am I really supposed to believe that he has made such a sudden change of heart?" He slammed the end of his staff down onto the floor. "No, he's up to some sort of trickery!"
"And what trick would he be committing?" Charles spat back. "What would marrying some other woman accomplish if he was still in love with the corpse bride? He hasn't even spoken of her the entire time he has been back in town."
Pastor Galswells stepped forward, straightening himself up so that he towered even further above Charles. "You lack the ability to sense the supernatural. I've had my suspicions. Just standing in this room is proving them to be true in some form. I can sense a deep presence of dark magic within this room and I refuse to allow such sin to continue in this town!"
Dark magic? Was that what the spell the Elders had done for Emily considered? So long as she and William both returned to their rightful places in time, Victor didn't understand how the magic could be seen as such. The Land of the Dead's rules and magic didn't apply to that of the living.
But maybe taking Victor's father down to the Land of the Dead did.
Victor waved a hand to brush off Pastor Galswells' concerns. His father had consented to the spell and would shortly return to the Land of the Living perfectly fine. It didn't matter what the Pastor saw it as. They were doing it for love and that was something that Victor could never be convinced was "dark".
"What you think is of no interest to me," Victor said. "Elizabeth is not even from this town. We will be moving away from here after we're wed." He grabbed Emily's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "You'll never have to see or worry about me ever again."
Pastor Galswells turned to address Pastor Louis. "As a fellow Pastor, I am insisting that you do not unite these two in marriage. Victor Van Dort can not be trusted. Miss Beckwith's safety can not be guaranteed with this man."
Pastor Louis shifted nervously in place. "I had heard the rumor of a man falling in love with a corpse. I hadn't realized that it was this gentleman here that they were speaking of…" He stared at Victor with a newfound apprehension.
Pulling back her veil from her face, Emily looked over to Victor with concern.
"I trust Victor completely," Emily pleaded to Pastor Louis, clasping her hands together. "He is the most gentle man I have ever met. Please, all we want is to be together."
Pastor Louis looked back and forth between the couple and Pastor Galswells. Victor knew that what they had told him about Pastor Galswells mental state must be on his mind. He was obviously unsure of what to believe.
With three against one however, Victor was confident that they could persuade him. Emily casted him a look of understanding and nodded in silent agreement to the plan.
"I think the situation is being made into a melodrama," Emily said. "We-"
A loud bang startled them from behind, cutting off Emily's words. Before Victor was able to see the source of the noise, Emily's hand reached out and clung onto his shirt. He looked down at her in horror.
Crimson red had begun to trace its way around her corset, pooling into the crevices of the lace. Clutching her stomach in surprise, Emily stared in disbelief at the blood dripping onto her fingers.
"Emily!" Victor screamed, catching her in his arms.
"You liars!" Charles bellowed from behind them. Turning to discover the source of the attack, Victor encountered Charles standing there, staring them down with pitch black eyes full of rage. A small gun glistened within his hands.
Victor gaped at him in shock. Was it a mistake? Had he meant to target Pastor Galswells?
"What have you done?" Victor yelled at him.
"You two think I'm a fool, don't you? That is not Elizabeth Beckwith," Charles growled in reply. "You had me trek all the way to another town for this ruse. Did you really think that no one would recognize her?"
Shaking his head in confusion, Victor turned his attention back to Emily. If she bled out, if she died like this…
He took a handkerchief from his pocket and pressed it firmly to the bullet wound. Tearing off his tie, he wrapped it tightly around her waist to hold the handkerchief in place. There was no time left–they had to commence the ceremony now.
"Pastor Louis! You must allow us to complete our vows," Victor said to the man desperately, no longer caring about the need for secrecy. "If we don't-"
The pop of another gunshot whirled past his ears. Quickly turning back to face Charles, his friend now had his gun pointed at Pastor Louis.
The pastor dropped, gripping the right side of his chest. On his knees, he painfully gave Victor one last look before losing consciousness and hitting the floor.
Victor screamed at Charles in desperation. "What are you doing? Why?"
"Oh, don't worry Victor. I have plenty more," Charles said as he loaded up another bullet.
It didn't make any sense. Why was Charles attacking them? Just moments before, he had been fighting for Victor. How could he recognize Emily? Even if he had heard the stories that had traveled out of town, there should be no way he would be able to know what she looked like, especially in her human form.
Unless…
"You knew Emily when she was alive?" Victor stuttered.
It wasn't a stretch that she would be recognized. It was the reason that they had tried to hide her from view of the town for the most part. Emily had been a well known woman from a wealthy family before her death. Even those from other towns had heard of her.
Emily's hand tightened around his wrist. "I don't know who he is," she choked. "I've never seen him before."
"Let's stop the confusion." Charles scowled, now pointing the gun at Victor. "They might have caught me before I delivered my final blow to you back in the Northern Ruins, but did you really think sending me to the Ashes of Exile would ever stop me from coming back? Think I would just forget everything you took from me?"
"That's i-impossible," Victor trembled, dread seeping into him.
"Is it?" Barkis cocked his head, the only resemblance of his past self showing in his facial expressions. "You two have done a similar trick."
"No Elder of Magic would ever perform such a spell for someone like you," Emily rebuked, coughing up bits of blood.
Victor applied even more pressure to the wound. Depending on the bullet and the structure of her corset, Barkis may have avoided puncturing an organ. Either way, there was no way they would be able to wed at this point, with both Pastor Louis and Emily injured. Victor wasn't taking any chances on Emily bleeding out before they made it back to the Land of the Dead.
"Dearil!" Victor called, looking around frantically for the bird. He saw him perched on a tree right outside the window. Running to the other side of the room, Victor pushed up the window and shouted at him.
"She needs to switch back!"
Lazily flapping his way down from the branch, he glided over to Barkis and came to rest on his shoulder. Upon seeing him up close, Victor realized that it wasn't Dearil at all. It was a much larger bird than Dearil–not even a crow. The body was also ever so slightly translucent.
"In the Ashes of Exile, I met him." Barkis pointed to the large black bird. "He offered to grant me my wish."
"A Hell Raven," Emily gasped, holding her torso in pain.
"What?" Victor questioned, hurrying back to her.
"I read about them," she wheezed. "In that book I showed you. They escort the dead from purgatory to hell. One can also make a deal with them."
"One's soul in exchange." Barkis rolled his eyes. "A small price to pay for the gift of rebirth and revenge."
"What is the point of killing me?" Victor argued. "That's why we're here anyways. Did you just want the satisfaction of doing it on your own? So much so that you would trade your soul?"
"There is that. But you deserve worse." Barkis narrowed his eyes. "I knew killing you in the Land of the Dead would cause your soul to perish. I realized that that's no fun."
Victor seethed in fury, but ignored him. Though his hands were drenched in Emily's blood, the applied pressure worked at slowing down some of the bloodshed. He could still see that they didn't have much time, which wouldn't have mattered if Dearil had been there to switch Emily and William back.
Where was that damned bird?
"It's a shame, really," Barkis went on. "All I wanted was the little whores money. She wasn't even your problem, yet you just had to play the hero and save Miss Victoria as well. You could have prevented all of this." He waved his gun towards Emily. "All you had to do was mind your own business."
"Victoria didn't even have any money," Victor said through gritted teeth.
"Oh, I know." Barkis smiled. "But she knew people who did."
Victor shook his head. How could Barkis not see that everything that had happened to him had been brought upon by himself?
"If all you wanted was the money, why bother with "revenge"? On top of that, "revenge" for being foolish and causing your own misfortune. You convinced the Everglots to let you marry Victoria when they didn't have any money. You were the one who so carelessly drank wine that was placed next to a very obvious bottle of poison," Victor sneered.
Barkis silently glared at him, adjusting his hair out of his face.
'"You know, when the Hell Raven informed me of your whereabouts, I was surprised to hear that you were back in the Land of the Living." Barkis pushed the bird off of his shoulder. "But I figured they had returned you here to let you heal, since they couldn't have you dying down in that hell hole." He smirked wickedly. "Especially with no doctors down there."
He took a step forward towards them. Victor cast him a warning look and hunched protectively over Emily.
"Then I thought, maybe this is better." Barkis grinned threateningly. "If I killed you up here, I could do whatever I wanted to your body. Tear it to shreds and separate all the parts. Your poor little soul would have to spend the rest of eternity bound to your grave."
Victor thought of Paul and how his head had to be carried by a bunch of roaches. Had that been what had happened to his body? If bodies were mutilated so badly after death, were they unable to physically exist in the Land of the Dead? Unable to move or speak?
"At first I just wanted to kill you and make you suffer. I had planned on simply getting you alone and dismembering you," Barkis said casually. "Calling for the asylum seemed like a good way to take that town's constant spying off of you."
Victor pressed a palm to his head. How could he have been so obtuse? A random stranger from out of town caring about him? Those in the town hadn't even cared about him throughout his life.
"But then you learned of our engagement," Victor exhaled, quickly figuring out Barkis' pathetic plan. "You wanted to wait until after the wedding to kill me, so you could court Elizabeth and get my family's money as well."
"Well, you told me you were engaged to a Beckwith of all people."
"After all this, after everything…you still just want the money?" Victor contested in disgust.
"How could you possibly ever understand? You had everything handed to you growing up. A mansion, money, food–whatever you wanted. I wasn't born with the same luxuries. You didn't even need a dowry from Miss Everglot when you were betrothed to her."
"So countless women deserve to be murdered because you weren't born into wealth?" Victor countered.
"Yes!" Barkis slammed a fist into the wall. "They are all a bunch of frivolous and shallow wenches! They don't care about anything or anyone else. My fathers best man promised us an arranged marriage to his daughter. I would have been set for life!" Barkis scoffed. "But she didn't see a poor peasant like me as good enough. She left me and broke off our engagement. I realized that if I wanted that life, I'd have to obtain it for myself."
"By cheating others out of it?"
"Oh, don't act like you rich folks don't do exactly that!"
A loud commotion from outside caught their attention. The sound of a door slamming echoed into the room and then the door to the office abruptly flew open, revealing Victoria and Julian. Scanning the room, Victoria's eyes fell onto Barkis. She pulled a musket from behind her back and pointed it at him.
Barkis ducked as she shot at him, grabbing Victor's arm and shoving him against his body. Wrapping an arm around Victor's chest to use him as a shield, Barkis drew his gun up to Victor's head.
"Shoot one more round and I'll kill him," Barkis warned. He then looked down at Emily. "And her too."
Victoria lowered her musket slightly and whispered something to Julian, not taking her eyes off of Barkis. Julian shook his head and she began to aim.
Dearil flew in from behind them and dived towards Barkis. Taking notice, Barkis swiftly twisted the gun towards the bird and shot at him. Dearil let out a pained squawk, crashing to the ground.
Victoria took advantage of the movement, taking another shot at Barkis. It narrowly missed him and he ducked his head behind Victor's back, returning the gun back to Victor's temple. "You'll have to shoot him first to get to me!" Barkis snarled. "And by then he'll be dead."
"You're going to kill them no matter what," Julian countered. "That has been your plan this whole time."
Barkis straightened himself to face them again. "That's true," he admitted, removing the gun from Victor's head and pointing it at Julian. "How about we bargain for each other's lives instead?"
"No!" Victoria screamed, placing herself in front of Julian.
"I have no interest in killing either of you." Barkis rolled his eyes. "So just give me the gun and leave."
Victoria hesitated for a moment before finally placing the musket on the ground and sliding it towards Barkis. She shot Victor an apologetic glance.
Barkis kicked the gun further away with his foot. "Now then, why don't-"
Before Barkis could finish his sentence, Victor felt Barkis' weight suddenly fall on top of him. His grip on Victor loosed so that Victor was able to slide out from his grasp. Ready to attack, he pushed Barkis off of him and watched in confusion as Barkis fell to the ground with a thud. The gun fell from his hand and clattered to the ground.
Standing over Barkis was Pastor Galswells, holding his staff high over his head.
Victor stared at him, astounded. Having no time to process the scene before him, he rushed back over to Emily. She was still conscious, though her face was concerningly pale
"I was wrong," Pastor Galswells snapped at Barkis. "The abominable immorality I felt wasn't coming from Victor. It's been reeking from you. The sins you've committed are insurmountable."
Barkis brought both hands to his head and clutched his feathery black hair in agony.
"You really think I care about any of that?" Barkis winced, starting to get himself back up. "I've already traded off my soul." He reached for the gun again.
Victor attempted to knock it away from him but he wasn't fast enough. Barkis snatched the gun away from him and now pointed it at Pastor Galswells.
"Do I have to kill you too now?" Barkis groaned in annoyance. "Do you all not understand that I have no problem at all with killing you-"
His words were cut off by an exploding bullet piercing into his neck. He looked down, flabbergasted by the attack. Blood squirted from his neck and he tried to stop the stream by clutching his hands to the wound.
Spinning on his heels, Victor found Emily with Victoria's musket in her hands as she strained to hold herself up. Once she saw that she had hit Barkis, she dropped the gun and collapsed back onto the floor.
Failing to stop the pace of the bleeding, Barkis slumped to the ground, his body now covered in his own blood. The image of Charles began to dissipate from him, fluttering off from his body in hundreds and hundreds of black feathers. After all of the feathers fell from him and settled on the ground, only the unmoving corpse of Lord Barkis Bittern remained.