All Alone

All Alone

"Oh, I'm so sorry. Nothing can be as difficult as losing your own mother."

“I can't understand why she would go to such tragic extremes..."

"Suicide..." Zachariah put his arm around Rebekka.

Rebekka looked at her friends with teary eyes and started sobbing again. Katherine looked at her friend, tears starting to run down her cheeks.

"Oh Rebekka, Please don't cry. Your mother wouldn't want you to feel so down. She doesn't want you to be miserable."

Judith took out a few tissues, handing them to her friend.

"First it was my father, and now it's my mother. Why… why would they leave me alone like this?"

Zachariah took Rebekka into his arms and held her tight. He swayed with her back and forth, trying to comfort her.

"Rebekka, I care so much about you. You are not alone. You have me, and you always will. Judith and Katherine are your best friends. You can always go to them for help. We all love you. Your parents loved you... I know it's hard to believe, for they have committed a selfish act, but they do love you. Rebekka, everything happens for a reason."

Rebekka looked up at her handsome friend, and admired him. "I know I have all of you... It's just... where will I go now?"

For a while, the old church was consumed by an eerie dreadful silence. Rebekka looked at the closed casket where her mother’s body rested. She ran to the casket, almost tripping on her long lace skirt. She laid her arms on it, and cried harder than she ever cried before.

"Oh mother! Don't leave me alone! I can't bear to live without you. You were my comfort, you were everything to me. How could you leave? How could you?!" Rebekka cried out. She collapsed to the old stone floor of the dreary church.

"Rebekka!" Zachariah screamed out.

He ran to her body on the floor and sat down. He laid her head down in his lap as he stared into her beautiful, pale face. She was sweating and strands of her long auburn hair fell into her face. He gently pulled them back and saw blood starting to drip down her face. Zachariah gasped and looked around. He realized that Rebekka had hit her head when she fell. He took off his shirt and tied it around her head, trying to stop the bleeding from the large wound. A tear ran down Zachariah's cheek.

He brought his head near hers as he whispered into her ear, "Rebekka, Please Rebekka wake up. Please don't leave me. I don't want you to leave me. I need you in my life... you mean everything to me."

He kissed her cheek and picked her up. He laid her down on the bench and covered her with his coat. After staring down at her he walked to the front of the church and sat down.

"Dear God, Please heal Rebekka. If she dies, I shall die along with her. She will take my heart with her to the shallow depths of the dark grave. Please God, Have mercy."

Judith came up behind Zachariah and put her hand on his shoulder. "She will be fine. There is nothing we can do but pray." Judith knelt down next to her friend, and prayed.

As Judith and Zachariah prayed, Katherine sat down next to Rebekka.

Katherine buried her face into her own hands and cried. Rebekka's mother, Abigale, was like a mother to Katherine. Katherine's own mother was executed for practicing witchcraft. Nobody believed that she actually did such practices, but the king did not like the people in the village of Theodosia. He wanted each and every one of them banished, or worse, dead. The townspeople had often united their word and power against their king; therefore he resented them for trying to overthrow him.

Rebekka's mother stepped in and raised Katherine after she had become an orphan. King Zedock disliked that idea, and therefore disliked Abigale. When King Zedock tried to kidnap Abigale so he could murder her, her husband Mordecai saved her. King Zedock couldn't do anything about it, or the entire country would have found out what evil he's capable of. Since that day, King Zedock had vowed to destroy them, to destroy everyone.

Katherine looked up as she heard strangled cries. She looked over at Rebekka and saw her thrashing around, her hands grasping her neck. Katherine looked confused at what she was seeing, but then she moved quickly, grabbing hold of Rebekka's arms. She called for Zachariah and Judith, in which they came running. Zachariah held Rebekka and whispered for her to calm down. She awoke a dazed look in her large brown eyes. Zachariah, Judith, and Katherine looked at Rebekka, wanting her to explain herself to them.

"What's wrong Rebekka? You seemed as if you were trying to strangle yourself... against your own will; if that makes any sense at all." Katherine was worried about her friend; she didn't want anything to happen to her.

Rebekka seemed confused, but she started to explain that she was having a dream. "It's... it's as if I were being choked. Someone was trying to kill me. At the same time, it wasn't me they were trying to kill. It's as if I was in the body of someone else... It's quite odd. It just feels as if there was... a message of some sort behind what I just experienced.”

Zachariah looked at Rebekka. "Dear... You've had a long day. You need to get some rest. You hit your head, and that probably caused something to go off that made you have that dream." Rebekka looked up at Zachariah. She felt happy inside that he had called her dear, but why? It's not as if she had feelings for him, or did she? She didn't want to think about it because the only thing on her mind was the dream. She knew it was trying to tell her something, something that would change everything, but what is it?

Zachariah took Rebekka's hand and helped her up. "Shall we? We must go to my mothers. She has prepared a meal for all of us. I will walk with you to your home, and help you pack your belongings. Judith said she wants you and Katherine to spend the night at her home. Her mother and father would not mind.”

Katherine looked at Rebekka, and smiled at her. Katherine had lost a mother, twice. Her biological mother and the woman who'd raised her, the woman she'd grown to call her own mother.

They walked out of the church, Zachariah wrapping his arms around Rebekka, trying to shield her from the bitter coldness of the wind. The sun had already set, and it was dark enough to hinder one’s visibility. Judith tripped a couple times, but she giggled at herself. It made Katherine laugh, and soon enough they all joined in on the laughter.

They reached Rebekka's home, and they all entered. Katherine and Judith went into one room to pack up Katherine's clothing and other necessary belongings. Zachariah followed Rebekka. Rebekka did not know that she had company in her bedroom, until she felt arms around her waist pulling her close. She was surprised, but then she saw that it was Zachariah. She turned around and stared into his green eyes. His green eyes, she always found peace in them. She looked into them and all her problems momentarily disappeared.

"You're not supposed to be in my bedroom..." She was cut off by a kiss that Zachariah placed onto her soft pink lips. She closed her eyes for a minute and let herself fall into Zachariah's arms. She got a hold of herself and pushed herself away from him. She looked down at the floor, her cheeks turning bright red.

Zachariah laughed, but then fell quiet. "I'm sorry"

Rebekka looked up at him. "It's okay. Why did you do it?"

Zachariah looked at Rebekka’s fragile body, "I fell in love with your beauty the moment I saw you. I fell in love with your inner being the moment I was blessed, blessed to have you in my life. I've loved you for so long... I couldn't say anything. It is an inappropriate act to express my feelings to such a lady as you. Being with you today just proved to me how strong you are. You are the most amazing creature God has ever placed on this earth. You brighten up anyone's life, just by showing a smile. You are the sun in my life. You are my source of energy that I need to live through my days."

Rebekka's eyes filled with tears, and she felt overjoyed, yet her heart felt heavy. "Oh, Zachariah! I had not the least idea that you felt this way! You amaze me. You've kept this secret to yourself for so long. I can't believe it..."

She didn't know what to say. She jumped into his arms and kissed his lips. She wrapped her arms around him; she knew it would make him happy. That is what she wanted. He had made her happy throughout the years; she thought the least she can do is give him an affectionate hug.

Zachariah held her close to his body, never wanting to let her go. He kissed her lips, her cheeks, her neck, and her earlobes. "I love you" he whispered into her ear. "I love you more than life itself."

Rebekka gazed into his eyes. She didn't know whether she could say it or not.

"One day, One day I shall love you. I promise that to you Zachariah."

Zachariah smiled and kissed her. Before they could go any further, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Rebekka pushed herself off of Zachariah and went to open the door. Katherine stared at the two of them, her eyes filled with tears.

"Katherine? What's the matter?" Rebekka's voice cracked, for she felt guilty. She knew that Katherine liked Zachariah. With that in mind, she was afraid of the words that Katherine might utter.

"I was wondering if you had an extra bag." Katherine said, looking suspiciously at both of them. Rebekka turned around and took a sack off her bed.

"Here you go" She handed it to her, her hand trembling.

Katherine walked away after closing the door to Rebekka’s bedroom.

Rebekka explained to Zachariah why she was worried. Zachariah's cheeks turned red. "That is a shame. You are the only woman for me. She will never have me." he told her.

He placed his hand on her cheek and kissed her lips, laying her back onto her bed. He lay on top of her as he kissed her madly, passionately. He had been craving her for so long, so long. He finally has her, and he wanted to show her he loved her. He lifted her shirt, tossing it gently onto the floor. He brought his head down, kissing her near her breasts.

"Zachariah, we shouldn't do this. We are only seventeen. We can not do this outside of marriage."

"Then I shall marry you!" Zachariah beamed happily.

"What? No!" Rebekka said, louder than she wanted to. "No... Not yet... I, we need more time. My mom, she just ..." She choked on the words she was unable to communicate.

"I'm sorry. My beloved, I did not mean to upset you. Dear, I love you. I never want to hurt you." He said, staring down, feeling embarrassed. "...I want you though. I need you so bad."

Rebekka looked into his eyes and kissed his lips once more. "I want you too. It isn't right however. I shall not commit a sin. Not even in the name of love."

With those words, she realized that she did love Zachariah. She knew that Zachariah just came to that conclusion as well.

"Oh God! Thank you Lord! You love me Rebekka! My dear Rebekka! Oh, how I love you!" He held her tight. He kissed her lips.

"I am so-" He was cut off suddenly by a loud scream. Zachariah got off Rebekka and they both rushed to the door. They ran out of the bedroom and saw blood all over one side of the wall, near the fireplace and seating arrangements.

Rebekka started to scream, her hands on either side of her face. "Good Lord! What has happened here?" She screamed.

She fell to the floor, crying, as she placed her head between her legs as she rocked herself steadily back and forth. She has seen to much death, so much death. Zachariah was afraid it would affect her mental state. However, he couldn't help but gasp at what he saw.

Judith's body was pinned against the wall, knives sticking through her body and into the wall; Countless knives running down the middle of her body. Katherine was against the opposite wall, her sack in her hand. She had a look of terror on her face. She was obviously terrified and shocked speechless. She stared at her friend, her dead friend that had never betrayed her through there years of friendship.

"Oh God!" She ran out of the room and in a minute Zachariah and Rebekka could hear sounds of vomiting. Rebekka looked up and stared at her friend, her eyes turning bloodshot red from all the tears that she instantly began crying. She got up and ran out of the house. She started screaming, she was acting insane. Zachariah ran out after her. He held her by the shoulders and shook her until she stopped screaming. She suddenly became calm and all life escaped her body. He picked her up her limp body and carried her into the house.

________________________________________

Villagers exited Elijah and Lorraine's home. Elijah and Lorraine were not over the shock of losing their only daughter.

Rebekka grasped Zachariah's hand tightly as she talked to her best friends mourning parents. "I... I don't know what to say. We were in separate rooms packing so we can come spend the night here. I heard someone scream, and I ran out of my bedroom and there was Judith..." Rebekka wiped tears away. Zachariah finished her sentence.

"We saw Katherine’s shock and complete terror. She had just entered the main sitting room where Judith was waiting for all of us, and she finds Judith the way she was. We were all standing there in shock. We didn't know what to think or do."

Katherine hugged Lorraine. "I'm so sorry." She cried

"I was with her in the room, but I left for only a moment. Only one moment. If I hadn't left she wouldn't be gone." Rebekka patted Katherine's back.

"You are not at fault Katherine. Do not blame yourself. There was no wrong doing on your part." Elijah told her. His voice was strong, very masculine. Yet all the strength in the world could not hide the pain and confusion caused by his daughter’s unexpected and unexplained death.

"I will find who did this to my Judith. They shall be punished by God in the after life, but for right now, they shall face my fury." Elijah said.

Lorraine put her arm around her husband. "You say no such thing. God will deal with the sinners as he wishes. You just pray your daughter is at peace."

Rebekka continued to cry. She buried her face into Zachariah's shoulder. Judith's parents reminded her so much of her own. She remembered how religious they had been, how caring they were. She just didn't understand why they would commit the biggest sin of all. It just didn't fit together. She felt there was a missing piece, a piece that has been disconnected from this entire ordeal. Even through the murder of her best friend, and the suicide of her mother, Rebekka was incapable of diminishing the memory of her fanatic dream in the church.

"I'm sorry." She told everyone. She walked out of the room. She wanted to be alone.

Rebekka fell asleep. For a while everything was fine, until she had The Dream again. She was strangling herself without even knowing it. No one was around to stop her as she dreamt.

She was lying in her bed, where her husband used to sleep before he killed himself. She felt strong hands grab her by the neck, not letting any air pass through. She was choking and nobody was there to help her. She was going to die. She was struggling hard to get away, but she eventually gave up. She started to see the white light. She saw her late husbands face, she knew she was going to be with him so she let her death happen. She let the murderer murder her. The murderer eased the grip but then took a pillow and put it over her face. This death was not going to look like a murder after all.

Rebekka struggling in real life as she saw the details of the dream happen. She observed everything that was occurring to the person in the dream, but was unable to stop it from happening to her.

She was dead. She stopped struggling. Although she was dead, it's as if she was standing over her body. She watched as the stranger took out a knife and cut the veins in her wrists. The murderer was making this look like a suicide. Her wrists being cut was a much too familiar memory. Her husband had committed suicide that way. And then it hit her. She realized that her husband’s death was not a suicide after all! Somebody had murdered her husband, just as they had murdered her. Now, no one will ever know it was a murder. She had to stay so she could find a way for the truth to come out.

Zachariah ran into the room. He grabbed Rebekka's hands and stopped her from choking herself again.

"Rebekka! Rebekka! Stop this right now!" Zachariah was screaming at her. He was so worried, he didn't mean to scream, but he felt as if he had to so he could get her attention.

Rebekka's eyes snapped open and she was struggling, gasping for air. She felt as if she stopped breathing for moments before Zachariah came into the room.

"Zachariah! I know! I know what happened!"

"What are you talking about?" Zachariah exclaimed.

"My parents! They didn't commit suicide! They were murdered! Somebody planned to make it look as if a suicide was committed. Somebody murdered them! Somebody murdered Judith. Someone is murdering everyone I love!" She just realized that what she was saying was the truth, and that’s what was going on. She became worried and she started crying.

"You must be careful. Someone might want to cause you harm. You must promise me you shall be careful. Don't trust anyone."

Zachariah looked at the girl he loved, the girl that he thought he once knew. That girl is gone. Zachariah didn't want to hear what she had to say anymore. He felt it was too much to take. His friend was just murdered, and now this. He couldn't stand seeing the one he loved act this way. He wanted to get away from her, as much as it would hurt her, he felt he had to do it. He looked at her one last time as he got up. He walked out of the door without a word. Rebekka was so confused at what was going on. She got up and ran out of the door to follow her love. "Zachariah?" No reply. The house was pitch black. There was nobody in sight. She started to become worried.

"Katherine?"

No one. Rebekka walked slowly back into the room she was in. She knew there were candles in there. She lit a candle and walked back out into the main room. She didn't walk long enough before she kicked something hard. She kept walking, thinking it must have been a table of some sort. She walked into the next room. As she entered, she kicked something hard again. This time she looked down. She saw eyeballs staring up at her, the candle reflecting in them. There was a dagger in the body of Lorraine. It had gone through her heart, and her own hands were around the handle.

"No... Not a suicide... No...” Rebekka lost her voice for a moment.

She cried for a few minutes, but she knew she had to move, someone was killing everyone she loved. She came to the realization that it was a body that she had stumbled upon earlier. She walked back to look at who it was. She was hesitant, after all, who wants to see a dead body? She accidentally hit the body again. She lowered the candle low enough to see the face, but to her surprise, there was no head on the body.

"Oh My God!” She screamed! "Zachariah! I need you! Where are you?!?! Oh dear God."

She backed away from the body, backed away until she hit a wall. She leaned against it sobbing. She slid down against the wall until she was about to be sitting, but instead of sitting on the floor, she sat on something round. She jumped up and walked backwards, sobbing. She knelt down and sobbed, crying harder and harder, as she realized she was alone in a home full of dead, murdered bodies.

"Dear God, Please keep Zachariah safe. Please don't let anything happen to him. If someone shall die, let it be me."

She set the candle down and wrapped her arms around herself. She was suddenly cold, as if it was caused by Lorraine and Elijah's uneased spirits. She walked out of the room, and walked outside. She had stumbled on Judith's dead family. They were murdered. All of them.

"Zachariah. Where are you? Why did you leave me?" She asked to no one.

She chocked on more of her own tears. This time the tears were not tears of fear, they were tears of hurt, tears of betrayal, tears of pain. Zachariah left her. Where did he go? Where did Katherine go? Why are they both gone together? She knew deep down they must be somewhere together. She didn't want to believe it.

For hours she walked along the dirt road, just walked and looked at the sky. She knew her parents were up in heaven. She knew everyone she loved was there. She wished she was dead, just so she would not feel the pain of betrayal.

She walked to her home. That was the only place where she could be safe. She entered the house and went straight to her parent’s bedroom. She sat on the floor and looked at their bed. They died on there, she thought to herself. They died in this bed... someone killed my parents in their bed, in this bed. Who was this person? She vowed to find out. She vowed to find out who it was. She was sure whoever did it killed Judith and her parents as well. She arose, and walked slowly to her bedroom.

The closer she reached her bedroom, the more tears streamed down her flushed cheeks. She was in there with Zachariah. It seemed ages ago, although it had only been a few days. She entered her bedroom, and it was really dark in there. She took out a candle and lit it, but for some reason it would not light. She heard something behind her. She turned around, and just then she felt something hard hit her forehead. It hit the previous wound from when she collapsed in the church. She dropped to the ground.

Hours later, she awoke to the sound of two voices arguing. One female, one male.

"Zachariah? Is that you?"

"Be quiet.” The female voice said.

Rebekka was confused. "KATHERINE?!"

"Yes. It's me. I am here with your beloved Zachariah."

Rebekka's heart sank deeper in pain. She couldn't believe Zachariah would be in her bedroom, with Katherine. Katherine, her best friend. Why would she do that to her? Katherine lit some candles, and to Rebekka's surprise Zachariah was tied up. She saw he was bleeding from his head. She gasped and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Oh God! Zachariah! What happened?! I thought you left me! Oh, it was horrible. I don't want to be without you. Why did you leave? Why?”

Zachariah looked at the floor. He didn't want to tell her that he had enough of what she had to say. He didn't want to say that to her. He loved her, and he promised he would never hurt her.

"Rebekka. You were my friend. But you betrayed me. Ever since my mother was executed, I grew to hate you. I grew to hate Judith. You both had your parents. Your mothers would cook you your warm, homemade meals. Your fathers loved your mothers. My father beat my mother. He didn't love her. The day he died was the happiest moment of my life. Then my mother was accused of witchcraft. You and your family had the nerve to take me in. You would act like a happy family. It angered me. I killed your father first. I made it look like a suicide, just so I can add some confusion to your life. I saw how much it had hurt you. I decided to kill your mother next, and I made that look like a suicide..."

Rebekka knew that her parents were never sinners; they would have never committed suicide. My dreams, they were telling me the truth, she thought to herself.

"You bitch. You deserve all the misery you got in life. You're evil. You are pure evil. People like you are going to burn in the pits of hell!"

"You shouldn't speak such language. After all, your mother wouldn't approve of it." Now Katherine was just trying to torture Rebekka.

"I killed Judith. She annoyed me, the way she always tried to be there for you. She was never there for me. I was sick and tired of her. I killed her and I am admitting it. I killed her parents. They tried to take the place of my parents. I can't let anyone act as if they are my mother." Katherine said, tears pushing through the hatred in her eyes.

Rebekka felt sorry for Katherine. She felt sorry for the fact that she had gone insane. She was sick. She needed some sort of help.

"I killed them when Zachariah went to check on you, his beloved. It made me sick. He left the room without you. It surprised me. I hit him in the head when I saw that he was about to scream. I dragged him here; I dragged him to the place where I heard him kiss you, where I heard him confess his love to you; the place where he wanted to make love to you."

Katherine stood up and took out a dagger. She went behind Zachariah and put it near his neck. "I'm going to kill him. He hurt me. You hurt me." She pressed the dagger against his neck.

"No! Don’t do it! Please! Please!”

"Oh God Nooo!!" Rebekka wailed into the dark night as she watched Katherine decapitate Zachariah's body.

"Don't... be... sad... I Love...” Zachariah uttered to Rebekka before his brutal execution.

Rebekka screamed louder then she had ever screamed before. Her eyes filled with rage. She grabbed a hold of Katherine's arms and shook her.

"You fucking bitch! You bitch! You bitch!" She repeated it over and over.

She kicked Katherine. Katherine fell to the ground, the dagger falling out of her reach. Rebekka grabbed for it and held it in her hand.

"You killed everyone I loved. I Hate You!" She screamed.

With that final exchange of words, she stabbed Katherine. She stabbed her over and over. One time for everyone she's ever killed. Finally, she stabbed her once more, for herself. Rebekka was dead on the inside, and it was Katherine who did that to her. She left Katherine lying in her own blood. Rebekka looked at what she had done and she sat there, staring in horror. She started crying.

"Dear God. Please forgive me." The last words Rebekka said, before thrusting the dagger through her own heart. She fell to the ground, next to Zachariah's body, the man she loved, the man that loved her. She didn't die instantly, although she wanted to. Even though she was All Alone at that moment, she knew she was going to be with Zachariah in the heavens above.