Buried in Sunshine (29 page)

Emma backs away slowly as she collapses against
the wall. She sits there, motionless, staring at the body and
watching the blood flow down into the drain for hours. More time
passes, Emma loses track. Her mind begins to wander. She does not
know what her father was doing—however she somehow knows that this
was not the first time. She does not know why she is aware this
day. She has very little memory of the past few months.

Her mother rushes to Emma.

“I’ve been looking for you everywhere,” Sarah
says as she runs over and scoops up Emma in her arms. “Are you
hurt?” She asks as she searches Emma’s body for any cuts.

“What happened to your dress?” Her mother asks
as she runs a hand along Emma’s leg. She can see that there is some
bruising and that her panties are torn and pulled down.

Emma points to the dead man on the table. “He
was attacking me—“

“Stephen…?” Emma’s mother whispers as she places
a hand over Emma’s eyes and enters the room. “Where did you find
that knife?”

“Beneath the bed,” Emma answers calmly. “I was
hiding.”

“Has this happened before?” Her mother asks as a
tone of horror fills her voice.

“I don’t remember.”

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” her mother says as
she carries her away.

“Emma…” A voice breaks through. “Emma…it’s time
to wake up.”

Emma’s eyes wearily open as she is faced by
Elizabeth—the sun necklace hangs around her neck. She looks a
little healthier today; there are no dark circles beneath her eyes.
“What time is it?”

“It’s nearly morning,” Alexis says as she places
her hand into Emma’s and helps her up from the stone slab. “What
are you doing down here?”

“It was me,” Emma whispers as she faces Alexis.
She looks around the room and sees no sign of Hope, Justine, or
Ethan. “I was the one that killed our stepfather.”

“That’s why I could never remember that day?”
Alexis asks as she continues to help Emma off of the table. “Only
you knew…you just didn’t remember until now…”

“You have to forgive yourself,” Elizabeth says
as she places a hand upon Emma’s shoulder. “Who knows how long it
would have gone on if you hadn’t stopped him?”

“Did you have any memory of that?” Alexis asks
as she turns to Elizabeth.

“Not until just now,” Elizabeth says meekly as
she backs away. “Sometimes I can feel things that Emma can.”

“Why was that something only you knew?” Alexis
asks as she looks confused. Then she begins to piece together the
pieces. “You…You came back to save me that day. Then you left and
let me return. Why didn’t you just stay?”

“I don’t know…” Emma whispers. She is still
attempting to come to accept the idea that it was not her mother,
nor Brian, but herself—she was the one that killed Stephen
Langford. “I always felt strange about this room—ever since I was
brought back six days ago—I just thought it was that I had found
the cord I used down her. I didn’t know it was something else.”

“You did what you had to do,” Alexis says as she
nods and places her arm around Emma. “There was no guilt in what
you did.”

“I felt like I did something wrong,” Emma says
as she shakes her head. “I did not realize what he had done to you
so many times…”

“To all of us,” Alexis says as she grabs
Elizabeth’s hand and draws her close. “Now we are whole—now we know
the truth. I’m ready to leave.”

“Hey,” Ethan says as he and Justine hold hands
with Hope as they round the corner. “Sorry about last night.”

“Its fine,” Emma says as she nods.

“I caught him up to speed,” Justine says as she
looks sadly down to Hope.

“What are we doing?” Hope asks as she looks up
to Justine with bright eyes.

“I’ll take her from here,” Alexis says as she
nods to Justine, who looks to be on the verge of tears once more.
She takes Hope’s hand and kneels down next to her. “There’s a
tunnel—just past the wall a little ways from here. We’re going to
walk the tunnel until we reach the sunlight.”

“We’re going home,” Hope says as she looks to
the floor and kicks at a piece of broken concrete with her bare
foot. “Aren’t we…?”

Justine begins to cry as she can no longer choke
back her tears. “You are…”

“Is it ending for everyone?” Hope asks as she
turns to Emma. “You promised you’d try and stop this…”

“We are the way,” Elizabeth says as she kneels
down and brushes a stray piece of golden hair away from Hope’s
eyes. “When we go home, everyone will be safe.”

“I’m happy,” Hope says as she frees herself from
Alexis’s hand and runs over and hugs Justine tightly. “You’re safe
now. Thank you for painting with me. I was so happy.”

“I was happier than I have been in a long time,”
Justine says as she wipes away her tears and smiles at the young
girl. “You’re so brave.”

“Will it hurt?”

“Of course not,” Alexis says as she takes Hope’s
hand. “We’re going to go together.”

“Walk with us to the hallway?” Elizabeth asks as
she looks to the small group.

“Of course,” Emma says.

“That’s why we are here,” Justine adds.

“I’m with you,” Ethan says as his eyes narrow
sadly as he looks away. He has not been exactly in the loop with
what was going on—but it looks as though the weight of the
sacrifice of the three is finally hitting him quite hard. “Of
course, I’m with you.”

In silence the group walks down the corridors of
the basement until they reach the hallway. They carefully step over
the broken pieces of brick and enter into the hot red bricked
corridor. Ethan shines his flashlight ahead to lead the way.

As Emma can make out the faint grey light of the
coming dawn, she feels a sense of completion, a strange
contentment. She may not have understood the point of the journey,
but she is glad that she has made it. She is happy that she never
gave up and continued to follow the answers—to make connections
with the other versions of herself. These past six days may have
been difficult, but they made her feel more alive than ever
before—they made her feel truly real. As they reach close to the
end of the tunnel, Alexis turns back to Emma and smiles. Emma looks
to Elizabeth, just as Ethan’s flashlight shines against the back of
her head.

“Wait…” Emma says softly as she reaches her hand
forward and grabs onto Elizabeth’s hand.

“What is it?” Elizabeth asks, confused.

“Your head…” Emma whispers. “You have an injury
to the back of your head.”

“It’s healed up,” Elizabeth says as she reaches
behind her head and touches upon the scabbed up spot that lies just
beneath her hair.

Emma reaches to the back of her own head. There
is no wound, no scar—there is nothing. It is the same with Alexis.
“We have to stop.”

“We don’t have time,” Alexis says as she begins
to pull Hope along with her.

“Just give me a moment,” Emma says as she looks
to Elizabeth. Emma closes her eyes. She has a brief memory of
pulling someone up from the bathroom floor. She remembers forcing
someone into the room. It was Emma, not Elizabeth. Emma’s mind
wheels wildly as she attempts to reconnect thoughts of the last six
days. She remembers Hope saying that she had power—maybe she was
the most powerful one. Emma begins to realize, she may not be the
real Emma.

“Do you remember the first day we met?” Emma
asks as she grips Elizabeth’s hands and prevents her from moving
onward.

“Of course,” Elizabeth whispers.

“Why did you choose the name Elizabeth…?” Emma
asks.

“I couldn’t really remember who I was. When I
asked your name, you said your name was Emma…” Elizabeth says as
she pauses as though attempting to remember. “I chose…Elizabeth
because there was…something I read in the therapist’s office.
Something about the seven stages of grief, it was written by an
Elizabeth…Elizabeth Kubler-Ross…”

“What does this matter?” Alexis asks as she
points to the glowing sky at the end of the staircase to the
greenhouse. “We’re running out of time.”

“Stay here,” Emma says to Elizabeth.

“No…” Elizabeth says as she shakes her head.
“I’m meant to go—“

“You only believe that because I took over—I was
strongest. I’m not real. I’m one of the three. You were real all
along; you just convinced yourself that you weren’t. You believed
you weren’t real because I believed so fiercely that I was the real
one. I followed your will…it’s you—you are the one that is meant to
stay.”

“I’m going,” Elizabeth says as she begins to
walk away. “You’re not making any sense—I was the weakest of all of
you.”

“You’ll remember who you are.” Emma says as she
releases Elizabeth’s hand.

“Take care of her,” Emma says as quickly hugs
Justine and then kisses Ethan on the cheek. “Both of you…take care
of her—she’s the real Emma.”

“I hate to do this to you,” Emma says as she
places her hand upon Elizabeth’s back. “Stop…”

Elizabeth freezes in place.

“I don’t understand,” Justine pleads as she
attempts to run forward to stop Emma from leaving.

“Don’t…” Emma whispers as she turns and smiles,
although her eyes look saddened. A single tear falls from her eyes
and shines in the dim grey light.

“Emma?” Ethan asks, confused.

“Stay…” Emma commands with a whisper as she
begins to run hand in hand with the others.

As they reach the staircase. Emma pauses as the
first beam of light shines between the trees and illuminates a
golden path set out in front of the three.

“It could have been you,” Alexis says as she
shakes her head. “You could have stayed.”

“This is what we were made to do—this is our
fate,” Emma says as she nods confidently and takes a step onto the
golden path. “We’re not real.”

“You certainly had me fooled,” Alexis says as
she looks back once to the staircase. “I’m sorry you didn’t
know.”

“It’s okay,” Emma whispers. “I’m ready.”

“Let’s go home,” Hope says as she looks up to
her companions and smiles.

Hand in hand the three walk along the golden
path as it leads through the woods. Dark clouds gather, but they
dare not stray into the path that leads from the sun. They form a
perfect circle of glowing orange wisps around the sun. As they walk
on they begin to rise into the air. Emma points down to a pack of
white deer running through the trees as Hope giggles at the sight.
As they take one step further, they are spirited away and shot off
into the sky.

Darkness fills their view as they enter into the
void. The three fly to the brilliant glowing sphere. When they
land, they are met with the shimmering globe.

“What is this place?” Hope asks as she places a
hand curiously against the strange bluish glowing light.

“This is the end,” Emma says as she tightens her
grip on Hope’s hand and steps into the light.

As they continue into the shimmering light, the
electric hum begins to grow in their ears. Finally, the come face
to face with the masked nude girl that bears their resemblance. She
is just as Emma remembers—her eyes are unmoving, always gazing off
ahead. Her face in contorted into a strange grin. She is tilted
forward, her arms and legs bound against a wall by chains. In the
dim blue light that waxes and wanes in brightness, Emma steps
forward.

“We’re here,” Emma says to the figure.

“Who is this?” Alexis asks.

“I am the ending,” the voice resounds in their
heads. “I am Sol—I am your creator and your destroyer. I see that
you have accepted you who truly are—the one that calls itself
Emma.”

“I have,” Emma says aloud. She still does not
understand completely how she came to believe that she was the true
Emma. It does explain a lot—why she did not have all of the
memories. In some strange way, it made sense that the seemingly
weakest of the four would be the real one.

“If I had not brought her back…?” Emma asks.

“Everything would have ended.” The voice
answers.

“Why did you keep this knowledge from her?”
Alexis asks, her voice sounds angry.

“If she did not believe she was real—what
incentive did she have to strive to live?” The voice booms back
causing the three great pains. “If there was no reason to try, she
would not have completed her task. Believing that she was the true
Emma gave her the courage to unravel the past and bring you all
together—to make you whole.”

“You tricked her—“

“I understand,” Emma says as she stops Alexis’s
anger. “Thank you for giving me purpose, and life. What little it
was, I do appreciate it. I am glad that I could help the real Emma
become herself again.”

“What happens now?” Hope asks.

“Now is the time that one of you must take my
place.” The voice replies in a softer, less painful tone.

“Can I ask one last question?” Emma asks as she
steps forward and comes face to face with the figure.

“I will permit you one last question,” the voice
softly replies.

“Did you intend for this to end this way—was
this all part of your plan? I know you say you care not for life,
but you went through such great pains to help someone who felt as
lost as you do.”

“Do you remember that you once called me
cruel?”

“I do…” Emma admits.

“I am neither cruel nor kind—I simply am.”

“I will take—“Emma begins.

“I will take your place,” Alexis says, cutting
of Emma from volunteering her commitment.

“I accept,” the voice softly replies.

“You don’t understand,” Emma says as she reaches
for Alexis’s hand. “This is…forever.”

“You’ve gotten us this far,” Alexis says as she
nods. “Let me finish it. Let me do something important.”

“I don’t understand,” Hope says as she watches
Alexis reach out to the statuesque form. “Aren’t we all going home
together?”

“Emma will take care of you home now,” Alexis
says as her fingertips touch the cold skin of the form. “Goodbye...
I will miss you both. I will remember you both—always.”