“This is pleasant,” She said absent-mindedly to the corpse. “I’m sure that you never thought you’d die in a church like this. What a nice surprise it must have been for you. Now,” She looked at Louis’ body. “Would this be considered your funeral?”
Barbara grunted as she waited for Louis to respond.
“Of course, you’re not talking. I suppose that’s to be expected. I’ll have to make the decisions, then. How odd. Mother would never allow me to go to a funeral.” Barbara chuckled wildly. “Well, then, this isn’t your funeral. It’s your…” She thought for a moment. “What are they called, then? Your wake! Yes, it’s your wake. Do your people have wakes? I wonder.”
Barbara frowned. “Oh, but if it’s to be your wake, we’ll need people to come and look at you. That won’t do.”
She looked around the cathedral. “I suppose there are already people here.” She pointed to a large polychrome, wax-covered figure of a saint with glass eyes which sparkled in the dim light. “There’s one.”
“Who are you?” She called out.
Naturally, the figure didn’t respond.
“Are you rude or simply grieving?”
Barbara sighed. “Don’t try to tell me that it’s because you’re just a figure. Figures talk. I’ve seen it. My brother is a figure. Not exactly the same thing as you are, but he’s a figure of sorts. A puppet of wood is the same as a statue, more or less. But, I suppose that the difference is that my brother is a puppet who lives in a man’s body. It’s very complicated.”
She turned her attention back to Louis’ lifeless body. “I wonder if you’d come back to life if you had another spirit in you—like my brother.” She thought about that for a moment, but then, her head began to ache.
“No, I can’t consider that further.” Barbara shivered, rubbing her temples. “Still, someone should come here to mourn you. I never got to mourn, you know. I never had the chance to mourn my father, nor, really, my mother. I’ve lost other people, too, of course, but they’re not dead. Just lost. Well, God knows where Arthur is.”
“You’ve lost him, too.” A voice said from the rear of the sanctuary.
Barbara looked up, her eyes catching a glimpse of a statue of the Virgin Mary.
“Oh, so, you talk, too?” Barbara grinned maniacally. “What wisdom do you have for me, Virgin?”
The voice laughed. “Barbara Allen, I ain’t no Virgin.”
That’s when Barbara noticed that Iolanthe Evangeline had come into the sanctuary.
“Oh, it’s you.” Barbara frowned.
“Yes, Barbara.” Iolanthe said softly.
“What do you know of Arthur?”
“He’s dying. If not dead already.” Iolanthe responded. “The Yellow Jack.”
Barbara nodded slowly. “That’s for the best.”
“So, you’re a widow.” Iolanthe grinned.
“Yes.” Barbara sighed. “I wonder if this man had a wife. He’s dead, you see.”
“I can see that.” Iolanthe answered. “You’ve done well.”
“So you came to applaud me?” Barbara asled.
“No. I’ve come to help you.”
“How so?”
“Your brother is on his way. Charles has brought the baby to him and told him all about what happened here.”
“I don’t wish to see Julian.”
“I didn’t think you would,” Iolanthe smiled. “That’s why I’ve come.”
“I don’t really think you came to help me.” Barbara scowled.
“I did, Barbara.” Iolanthe said firmly.
“Well, then, what shall we do with him?” Barbara pointed to Louis’ body. “We can’t leave him here for Julian to find.”
“We should bring him home.” Iolanthe replied.
“I don’t have a home.” Barbara snarled.
“Not your home. His home. He’s Marie’s kin, is he not?”
“Yes.” Barbara shrugged.
“Then, we should bring him to Marie.” Iolanthe answered plainly. “You see, there’s already another corpse there.”
“Who?”
“Nellie.” Iolanthe smiled.
“Did she die in the fire?” Barbara asked.
“No.” Iolanthe laughed. “I took care of her before I left.”
“Oh.” Barbara replied blankly. “That was smart.”
“Wasn’t it?” Iolanthe whispered.
“So, this man and Nellie can be together? How nice. It would be terrible to be dead alone.”
“Well, that’s what I was thinkin’.” Iolanthe lied.
“They can be nice and peaceful together.” Barbara nodded.
“We can make other people nice and peaceful, Barbara. Together, you and I. Now that you know how, it shouldn’t be hard.”
“So, we’d be doing something good?” Barbara asked.
“Infinitely good!” Iolanthe said cheerfully. “We can bring peace to all those who have hurt us. Wouldn’t that be the utmost kindness?”
“Yes,” Barbara replied brightly. “I think it would.”
Did you miss Chapters 1-306? If so, you can read them here.
2 comments:
Brilliant mad scene! But is she really mad? How well you have her talking to the statues around her!
Thank you, Dashwood. You raise an interesting question. Barbara is quite clever. Perhaps there's more to her "madness" than first appears. Or, perhaps she's simply, finally, lost it.
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