I met a young lady the other night.
She and I are supposed to go out this evening, but I may have to cancel, because my eyes have been bothering me really bad lately.
On top of that, I’ve been having nightmares again.
They slowed down for a bit, but then they started again the other night.
It was the witch again.
The first time I saw her, she was a young woman reading from her twisted spell book.
She wanted to stop, but once the book took a hold of her, there was no letting go until the spell she was looking for found her.
The next time I saw her, her face was wicked and gaunt, with big eyes that sunk into her head and greying skin that hung from her face. She approached a boy as he walked home late one night, her horrid face hidden from him under a dark hood. With a crackling voice she asked, “Have you ever seen a kidney?” and when he answered “No” she replied, “I’ll show you yours.” and she ripped her hand into his body and rummaged around until she found what she was looking for; a kidney wet and warm for her to swallow for her vile spell.
The next time I saw her, she was eating a man’s liver; she plucked it out of his body while he screamed and she swallowed it whole. Before she did her dark work she had asked him a question too, “Have you even seen a liver?” to which he replied “No.” and she offered to show him his before she relieved him of it.
Time passed before I saw the witch in my dreams again.
Then came the night I heard her cracking voice ask “Have you ever seen a heart?”. The woman tried to run when she saw the witch’s face, but the witch’s arms were too long and she grabbed and dragged the woman back. “Yes! Yes, I’ve seen a heart!” she screamed! The witch just laughed, “Would you like to see yours?” and pulled the pumping heart from the woman’s chest and swallowed it whole.
I’ve decided it’s worse to just sit here ruminating over old dreams, so I put in some eye drops, get myself ready, and go out to spend some time with a pretty girl. We go to the Harvest Carnival that’s here for the week. Lots of people in costumes and something about that makes me uncomfortable. Especially the person in the black robe that keeps following us. Everywhere we go I see them, but their face is never clear.
I’m feeling more and more uneasy.
I have an idea.
“Hey, let’s go on a ride. Do you like the ferries wheel?”
“Sure, let’s go!”
The line is a bit long, but it feels open and safe with so many people around. While we wait we exchange stories of battle scars. She tells me of the car accident where she lost her sister, and I tell her of the surgeries that saved my sight.
Up on the slow spinning ride, I can see the robed figure still lurking. I thought I’d feel better up here, but now I feel like a sitting duck.
“Are you okay? You look a bit sick.”
I appreciate her concern, but it also makes me feel embarrassed that I’ve become so visibly worried. So I lie.
“I’m fine. Must be the corndog.”
“Well hopefully we don’t have to take you to the doctor. I hate doctors. Doctors murdered my sister.”
“I thought you said it was a car crash.”
“The crash was the catalyst. It was the harvesting that followed that killed her. She wanted to live, but they said so did the others. So they lied and said she was a donor. But she’ll return soon. That is a promise.”
I feel immensely sick. I want off this ride!
I feel frozen now as her gaze is fixed upon me and I can see myself reflected in her stare.
She smiles.
“Hmm… Have you ever seen such beautiful eyes?”
Art and story by Daniel J. James
