aged and brittle, thinned to reveal the scalp below. A tube in her nose and a mask covering her face provided oxygen. The staccato beep of machinery droned in the background. I watched her, horrified with myself because I was actually contemplating murder.
“I can’t,” I whispered.
“You have to, baby. I can’t do it for you or I would.” He ran his knuckles over my cheek, softly. “I explained this Alyssa, it’s the best way.”
He did explain, in the car on the way here. I already knew if I did nothing at all that someone would die, but he went on to suggest an alternative plan. It was a sort of loophole other witches had discovered on the rare occasions they were forced into this predicament. That…loophole is what brought us here. We were in a hospice. The woman lying on the bed before me was in her eighties and days, possibly hours from death.
“I can’t ,” I whispered again.
“Alyssa, she’s in pain. Nothing will save her now, you can feel it. Her family is praying for a quick death. It will happen, and will happen soon. If you give her peace, it will restore the balance and save another innocent life. Someone out there will die before their time, otherwise. A person who would have had years ahead of them, possibly someone with children or family who need them.”
God, I hated that he made sense. It was easy to justify this course of action in my mind. Mark was right, this woman was dying anyway, that much I could feel. All I would be doing is relieving hours or possibly days of suffering. Regardless, it still felt wrong. I looked at Mark’s expression and knew this situation was killing him. He wanted to take this responsibility from me, but like me, he had no choice. And, I had the distinct feeling he was troubled for other reasons he wasn’t mentioning, but I’d worry about that later.
“What do I do?”
“Do you remember when you funneled energy into Colin after he died?”
“Yes.”
“It’s the same thing, but instead of taking energy from outside and pushing into someone, you’ll be drawing the energy from her and releasing it.”
I stepped close to the bed, laid my hand over her forehead, and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I’m so sorry.”
I backed up to stand and her eyes suddenly snapped open and locked onto mine. I’d been struggling with what I had to do before I had to actually face her, now it was impossible. There was no way I could do this with her staring at me. No way. Turning to leave, I was surprised when she grabbed onto my arm with a grip I hadn’t expected from her frail body.
Cocking my head back so I could look at her, I focused on her steady grey gaze. Even if I was unable to feel her life slipping away, I could see in her eyes she was dying. The whites were almost completely yellow and bloodshot, and the color of her irises was a grey so dull and unnatural, it looked like she’d already passed.
A shiver raced down my spine when she whispered , “Please.”
It was the only word she voiced, but her eyes said so much more. Do it , they begged. Somehow she knew why I was here and she wanted this, desperately.
“I can’t,” I whispered in a broken voice.
“Please.” Though she spoke only one word, it cost her. She winced in pain and my heart cracked a little. Even such a simple thing as a whispered word caused her discomfort. That’s when I knew I was going to go through with this. I nodded my head, answering the silent plea I saw in her eyes. She sighed as if relieved, smiled, and closed her eyes again. It was almost as if she realized how difficult this was for me while she watched.
I leaned back down and said in a low voice, “I hope you find peace.” Placing my hand on her forehead, I concentrated on drawing the energy from her. It took only seconds before I felt the last spark of life escape her. It was easier than I thought it would be, the act itself. The guilt was another matter.
As we drove away from the hospice, the biting
“I can’t,” I whispered.
“You have to, baby. I can’t do it for you or I would.” He ran his knuckles over my cheek, softly. “I explained this Alyssa, it’s the best way.”
He did explain, in the car on the way here. I already knew if I did nothing at all that someone would die, but he went on to suggest an alternative plan. It was a sort of loophole other witches had discovered on the rare occasions they were forced into this predicament. That…loophole is what brought us here. We were in a hospice. The woman lying on the bed before me was in her eighties and days, possibly hours from death.
“I can’t ,” I whispered again.
“Alyssa, she’s in pain. Nothing will save her now, you can feel it. Her family is praying for a quick death. It will happen, and will happen soon. If you give her peace, it will restore the balance and save another innocent life. Someone out there will die before their time, otherwise. A person who would have had years ahead of them, possibly someone with children or family who need them.”
God, I hated that he made sense. It was easy to justify this course of action in my mind. Mark was right, this woman was dying anyway, that much I could feel. All I would be doing is relieving hours or possibly days of suffering. Regardless, it still felt wrong. I looked at Mark’s expression and knew this situation was killing him. He wanted to take this responsibility from me, but like me, he had no choice. And, I had the distinct feeling he was troubled for other reasons he wasn’t mentioning, but I’d worry about that later.
“What do I do?”
“Do you remember when you funneled energy into Colin after he died?”
“Yes.”
“It’s the same thing, but instead of taking energy from outside and pushing into someone, you’ll be drawing the energy from her and releasing it.”
I stepped close to the bed, laid my hand over her forehead, and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I’m so sorry.”
I backed up to stand and her eyes suddenly snapped open and locked onto mine. I’d been struggling with what I had to do before I had to actually face her, now it was impossible. There was no way I could do this with her staring at me. No way. Turning to leave, I was surprised when she grabbed onto my arm with a grip I hadn’t expected from her frail body.
Cocking my head back so I could look at her, I focused on her steady grey gaze. Even if I was unable to feel her life slipping away, I could see in her eyes she was dying. The whites were almost completely yellow and bloodshot, and the color of her irises was a grey so dull and unnatural, it looked like she’d already passed.
A shiver raced down my spine when she whispered , “Please.”
It was the only word she voiced, but her eyes said so much more. Do it , they begged. Somehow she knew why I was here and she wanted this, desperately.
“I can’t,” I whispered in a broken voice.
“Please.” Though she spoke only one word, it cost her. She winced in pain and my heart cracked a little. Even such a simple thing as a whispered word caused her discomfort. That’s when I knew I was going to go through with this. I nodded my head, answering the silent plea I saw in her eyes. She sighed as if relieved, smiled, and closed her eyes again. It was almost as if she realized how difficult this was for me while she watched.
I leaned back down and said in a low voice, “I hope you find peace.” Placing my hand on her forehead, I concentrated on drawing the energy from her. It took only seconds before I felt the last spark of life escape her. It was easier than I thought it would be, the act itself. The guilt was another matter.
As we drove away from the hospice, the biting
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