The Window

A whistle in the wind as the trees shake outside my window. I feel the breeze as my heart picks up, awoken from my sleep in fear, a sweat coating my skin as I throw the sheets off.

The inkling of a presence is felt and my voice chokes up as I open my mouth. "Who- who's there?" A branch snaps outside my window. I'm on my feet and rushing towards it and there on the ground is the remnants but the person or animal is gone.

I feel myself ease as I step back, unable to fall asleep. 

The next nights are without a sound and blissfully I’m comforted by the peace the country brings. “Veronica…” A whisper, my name as I’m jolted awake, wondering if my mother must have flown in through the night. 

“Who’s there?” I ask again but no one answers and yet again I walk to the window, looking around as the tree looks empty and the ground barren of everything except that branch. I walk away, knowing now that I must be hallucinating but why does it feel like I’m not? 

The night is unsettling but I eventually head downstairs and start my day. The food is tasteless and work is useless but that night I locked my window tight and turned off all the lights as the silly glowing stars lit up, courtesy of a friend who helped me move in. 

I’m now laying in bed, my eyes open wide but eventually I start to drift until a breeze is cast over my face. “Veronica.” A whisper is in my ear and my body jolts again and suddenly my room disappears. 

The shadow is gone and I see my mother is here as a beeping irritates my ears as my eyes are cast upon a brightly lit room. “What, where am I?” I ask groggily and my mother rushes forward, her hair more gray than the last time I saw her and wrinkles deeply etched as I sit up in bed. “You’ve, you’ve been gone for ten years.” She says and suddenly I take a mirror from my bed side and 30 is suddenly 40 as I remember nothing but the person who lurked in the shadows of my mind. 

Who was it? I ponder as my mother looks me over and I try to remember my memories but even child hood ones are jumbled and messy.

"Mother, how am I here?"

"You don't remember the divorce, Jamie?" She asks and the shadow surfaces inside my mind.

“He did this to you.” 

“Who?” 

“Your husband.” 

"Husband?"

"Well ex-husband and after the divorce he started to stalk you, to make your life a living hell and one night he went too far and a neighbor called the police and you had a head injury that left you in a coma."

"Really?"

I ask as my vision starts to blur and my eyes are closing and suddenly in front of me is Jamie, the shadow from my dreams.

"You always dream about leaving."

Jamie says curiously and I feel the needles in my arm and hear the beeping louder than before. "I've had you for ten years and still you believe in escape." "I'll need to further my testing, to change your memories until you start to love me again."

"This, this is real?"

"You'll die here, with me Veronica."