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“Don’t take what’s mine!” Mariang screeched.
I thought I was prepared for freaky. I mean, I’ve seen every episode of the X-Files at least once – twice if the Smoking Man made an appearance. But nothing Bruce Campbell or David Duchovny tried to prepare me for compared to the translucent shape of Mariang. Her once serene face was twisted in malice that looked unnatural on the beautiful ballerina. She had holes in her blue-white skin now that looked like leprosy, and her eyes were glaring at me with boiling rage.
I held up shaking hands to show her I wasn’t about to take anything that belonged to her.
Except her finger. She got me there.
“Hey, Mariang. You look great. You and Danny decide to move out on your own?” I tried to be conversational to hide my terror, but I knew it was a bad act. My hands were shaking as I sat up and leaned against the wall she’d thrown me into.
Mariang was levitating five inches off the ground, which made her rage seem all the more terrifying. “This is our house, not yours! You’re trying to steal Danny away from me!”
“No!” Danny shouted, somehow crawling towards me through his haze of pain, and collapsing twice on his face along the way. “Don’t hurt her. October just came to visit. I thought you’d be happy to see her again.”
The force of Mariang’s shrill screams shook my insides, reverberating agony of all sorts through my chest. “I don’t want to see her! Did I ask you to bring her here? When were you making phone calls without me? Who else have you been calling?”
This wasn’t Mariang. This was a woman possessed. The real Mariang would be horrified to hear such cruel and possessive words coming out of her mouth. I fumbled around in the dim light for my knife, but it was too far away.
“Then she’ll leave right now. I thought you’d like to see your family, but if you don’t, they can go. Go on, October.” He jerked his head toward the door and lowered his voice. “This is my fight. I won’t see you die like this.”
“I won’t see you die at all,” I argued, seeing Von inching toward Mariang from behind. “I need her finger, Danny.”
“Give me more time to fix her. I just need more time.”
“She won’t give you more time! Don’t you get that? You’re going to die in here if we don’t get you out.”
Mariang moved from floating in the entryway to standing in front of us, towering over us with her diminutive form, arms akimbo. “Danny’s not going anywhere. You want a finger?” She reached down and grabbed his cast aside shirt, using it to shield her hand from the silver as she bent to pick up my knife. “I’ll give you a finger.”
She turned on a dime and whirled on Von, slashing him across the chest and ignoring my scream. Then she jerked Danny forward with such surprising strength, I couldn’t make sense of it all. She dragged Danny so he was face-down on the floor, flattened his hand to the ground and brought the knife down hard on his pinky finger.
I’m not sure whose howls were louder – the three of us were all losing our minds. Mariang smiled darkly as she tossed Danny’s pinky finger at me, smacking me in the cheek with it. Disgust and horror rang through my body. Without a doubt, I knew that no matter how much time we gave Danny, he would never be able to reason with the unstable spirit he’d brought back. My heart broke for Danny. He’d given up everything to save her, and now he was donating his own body parts to the cause.
It was enough.
Though Von was injured, something ferocious rallied in him at the sight of his little brother so thoroughly destroyed. He ignored his bleeding chest and lunged for Mariang, tackling her to the ground.
I rolled Danny’s little finger in the hem of the forgotten shirt next to my balisong blade, and ran to Danny’s side, using the filthy material to stem the bleeding from his hand. He yelled his agony into the floor, not paying attention to my pat down. I shoved my hand into the front pocket of his jeans and pulled out a plastic bag with a zip seal. I didn’t need any light to tell me I’d found Mariang’s rotting finger.
“Von, the lighter!” I shouted into the chaos.
Von was wrestling the dainty Mariang on the floor – and losing. I tossed my conscience aside completely and ran over to the fray, catching her jaw with my boot. “I’m sorry!” I cried as my sweet ballerina went flying backwards. “Von, the lighter!”
Von’s hands were unsteady as he fumbled in the pocket of his jeans for the gold rectangle we needed to end the madness. I ran to Danny to act as sentry for my brother and flipped open the lighter, clicking up the flame. The dancing yellow and white heat clung to the plastic. I rested the carnage on the floor, lighting all four corners of the bag in hopes it would burn before Mariang could rally.
Von stood to his feet, tears in his eyes and a knife in his hand. “I love you, little sister. It’s time to rest now.” He shot forward, but she was ready, throwing him off of her as if he was merely the family pet – nothing more than a nuisance. She hissed at the small nick Von’s silver blade had managed to cut into her arm.
I silently urged the flame on, holding the lighter to the finger through the plastic to speed things along.
Mariang screeched, and the sound had a metallic bite to it as she flew at Von.
I saw the fear in his eyes that was mingled with agony at having to play such an instrumental role in his sister’s ending. I saw the unending craze of malice in her expression as her fingers wrapped around his neck, choking the man I loved above all others.
“No!” I didn’t think it through; I simply acted. With my balisong blade clutched in my hand, I charged Mariang, wrapping my arm around her throat and jerking her backward. Finn’s blade protected me once more – his love for me extending well past his shortened lifespan. I sacrificed what was left of my youth and plunged the dagger into Mariang’s heart through her back.
I closed my eyes as my bearings and my soul crumbled at Mariang’s dainty cry. It sounded too human, too distressed. I would’ve done anything to save her if she was actually alive. I realized that no matter what distractions and barriers separated me from Von, I had no limits when it came to him. I would stab my sister in the back if it would help him breathe easier.
I was the worst kind of person.
I stumbled back in horror at what I’d done, dropping the knife to the floor with a clatter as I ran out the door. I didn’t know how far I had to go to outrun myself, but I knew I couldn’t face my actions.
So I ran, leaving Von to clean up my mess as Mariang’s severed finger burned away.