Children of Eternity Omnibus Page 11

  The first challenge became finding a place to put everyone. The babies they decided to lay two-across on pallets in a corner they dubbed “the nursery.” As soon as one of the babies cried, the others woke up and followed suit, filling the dormitory with noise. With no food or diapers and little water, Samantha and Prudence could do nothing for the babies when they cried except rock them and whisper encouragement.

  As for Helena, Phyllis, and the other new toddlers, Samantha and Prudence gathered them in an opposite corner, where the children sniffled and whimpered for their missing parents. “I know you miss your parents very much and I know they miss you the same,” Samantha began, “but they’ve gone away for a long time. In the meantime, they’ve asked Prudence and I to take care of you. We’re going to make sure nothing bad happens to you until they come back.”

  “I want Mommy!” Helena wailed, her chubby face turning red.

  “I know you do,” Prudence said. She hugged the child close, stroking her hair. “She’s going to be back very soon, I promise. Until then you have to be a brave girl. That’s what Mommy would want. Can you do that for her?”

  Helena nodded and said something muffled by Prudence’s shoulder. “Everything is going to turn out fine. Don’t worry your pretty head about it,” Prudence said.

  Samantha and Prudence did what they could to find clothes for the toddlers, but they didn’t have enough to go around. This meant most of them still had to shuffle around in their old clothes, though Samantha did manage to find Helena something dry to wear. She recoiled with surprise when the little girl hugged her as Samantha put her down for a nap. “Oh, thank you.”

  “You aren’t going to leave us, are you?” she asked.

  “No, of course not. No one is going to leave you again. Now close your eyes and go to sleep. When you wake up I’ll be right here.” Helena did as she was told and before long was happily sucking on her thumb. Samantha watched her sleep for a minute, regretting anything bad she’d ever thought about Helena.

  Samantha found Prudence in the dining room then, trying to clean up some of the mess. She wore rags over her hands to keep from touching any of the spilt gruel. Prudence looked up from her work, her lower lip trembling as she tried to keep from crying. “This is so horrible,” she said. “Those poor children. Do you think he’s done this before? To all of us?”

  “I think so.” Samantha thought back to the dreams she’d had since waking up in Eternity. “I know he did it to me.”

  “But why? Why is he doing this?”

  “I wish I knew.” Samantha looked over to where they’d left Miss Brigham. “Maybe we can find out.” She sat Miss Brigham upright and shook the girl until her eyes opened. “I want you to promise me you won’t scream when I take this gag off. If you do, something very bad will happen. Do you understand?”

  Miss Brigham nodded, her eyes wide with fear. Samantha removed the gag from her mouth and Prudence gave her a share of their remaining water. “Oh, thank you. That gag tasted so dreadful. I don’t think I shall ever get that taste out of my mouth. Perhaps now you can untie my hands and feet before the reverend finds out what you’ve done and you all get in terrible trouble for harming a poor girl only trying to do her job—”

  Samantha slapped Miss Brigham across the face. She hated to do it, but they didn’t have time to listen to the girl’s ravings. “We’re going to ask you some questions and you’re going to answer them. If you don’t—” Samantha raised her hand to illustrate her point. Miss Brigham flinched and nodded her understanding. “Good. Now, how long have you been here?”

  “I woke up here this morning. The reverend was sitting by my bed. What a wonderful way to face your first day in a new place. He’s so terribly handsome. I always thought ministers were old, grouchy people, but he’s so handsome and nice. I can’t wait until I marry him—” Samantha cut her off by raising a hand to strike again.

  “If you got here this morning, then where were you before?”

  “I’m not sure where I was before today, but I’m certain it was somewhere very far away and very unpleasant.”

  “What about your parents? Your family? Isn’t someone out there looking for you?”

  “I wish there were, but I’m afraid not. I’m an orphan, you see. My parents died when I was a very small girl. I can remember them a little bit. My mother had such lovely dark hair. Not as dark as yours, more of a brown, but I remember it was so shiny and soft. I used to wish I could sleep in her hair at night. What a wonderful bed that would make, so soft and warm and how comforting to have my mother right there next to me if I had a bad dream. My father was very plump and he had a long beard down to his waist, a red one like my hair. His whiskers tickled when he picked me up to kiss me. That’s really all I can remember about them. I don’t remember any brothers or sisters. How sad. I should really like to have a lot of brothers and sisters. When you have siblings you never have to worry about having someone to talk to because there’s always someone around. Don’t you think so?”

  “So if you came here from far away, who sent for you?”

  “Why, what a silly question. The reverend sent for me. He needed someone to help him take care of the children. You can’t expect that Mr. Pryde to do it, can you? Not that I have anything personal against Mr. Pryde because I hardly know him, but he doesn’t seem like the type at all you want raising children. He’s so snarly and quick-tempered. And he has those dogs with him all the time. Not that I have anything against dogs either, but they are not very clean. They’re always tracking mud around. You can’t have children playing with filthy dogs all the time or they’d need a dozen baths a day. That would be so much work and their skin—” Samantha slapped her across the face again, this time not quite as hard. Still, tears came to Miss Brigham’s face. “You are such a wicked thing, Samantha Young. I don’t like you one bit. It’s so awfully rude to slap a body who’s only trying to answer your questions. If you’re going to slap me for answering your silly questions I don’t think I shall answer any more.”

  Samantha considered slapping the teenager again, but thought better of it. She went over to Prudence and whispered instructions into her ear. Then Prudence knelt down beside Miss Brigham, wiping her tears away while Samantha glowered at them from nearby, arms folded over her chest. “I’m sorry, Miss Brigham,” Prudence said. “My friend and I are only trying to find out what’s going on here. You see, those children you saw this morning were about the same age as Samantha and I last night. Do you know anything about what the reverend gave them?”

  “No and I think you must be mistaken. I clearly heard the reverend say I wouldn’t find any children over three here. He didn’t say anything about mean-spirited girls punching me and tying me up and slapping me.”

  “Think about it very carefully, Miss Brigham. Did he tell you anything about why he needed you to care for the children?”

  “He said their parents had all gone away and he needed some help raising them according to God’s way. I could never forget anything Reverend Crane said. He’s so wonderful and kind.”

  “Did he say where the parents went?”

  Miss Brigham hesitated until Samantha charged forward to grab her by the front of her dress. “He said they went to Hell with all the other heathens and sinners. They’re gone, but he’s going to save the souls of their children. He’s such a wonderful man to want to save other people’s children—”

  Samantha slapped Miss Brigham across the face, this time with actual menace. She threw Miss Brigham to the ground and continued slapping her and shouting, “How dare you! He killed them. He killed their parents and he tried to kill us. You stupid twit—”

  Prudence pulled Samantha off and quickly stuffed the gag back into Miss Brigham’s mouth. Samantha fought against Prudence for a moment, until the terror on Miss Brigham’s face eased her rage. “I’m sorry to lose my temper like that.”

  “I’m sure he didn’t kill your parents Samantha. They’re still out there looking for you.”


  “No they aren’t,” Samantha said. She sat down at a table, burying her face in her hands. “They’re dead.”

  Prudence joined her at the table, her lip twitching again as she fought against crying. “How could he do this? How could a man of God be so cold-blooded?”

  “I don’t know, but I think it’s time we put a stop to it.”

  “Us? We can’t. We’re too little.”

  “Then you stay here and watch the children. I’ll find out what he’s been doing and stop him somehow.” Samantha stood up and started towards the front door.

  Prudence stopped her before she could open the door. “You can’t do this alone. I’ll go with you.”

  “It’s nice of you to offer, but someone needs to stay here with the children. And I can do this better on my own.”

  “Rebecca can watch the children. Please, Samantha, I can’t let you do this alone. You’ll be killed.”

  “All right, you can come with me.” They went back to the bedroom to tell Rebecca to watch the babies and under no circumstances to let Miss Brigham out of the dining room.

  “Do you have to go?” Rebecca asked.

  “I’m afraid so. The reverend has done some very bad things and someone needs to make him stop,” Samantha said. She put an arm around Rebecca’s shoulders. “You’re a big girl now and I know you can handle this. I’m counting on you.”

  “I won’t let you down,” Rebecca said. Samantha hugged her one last time and then said goodbye to Wendell and the others. On her way out, she paused at Helena’s bed, where the little girl still slept peacefully with her thumb in her mouth. Samantha hated to break her promise, but made a new one: no child in Eternity would ever wake up again wondering who she was or from where she came.

  Chapter 25: The Chase

  When night descended, Samantha opened the dining room door a crack. Right away she heard one of Pryde’s dogs growling nearby. “How are we going to get past them?” Prudence asked.

  Samantha considered their options. They didn’t have any food to offer the dogs as a bribe. They could try splitting up, but Pryde had more than enough animals to track the two of them down. And with the other doors and windows barricaded they didn’t have any other way of getting outside.

  Samantha’s eyes fell on Miss Brigham and a plan formed in her mind. She untied Miss Brigham’s hands and feet, but left the gag in her mouth. “You’re going to get us out of here. Tell Mr. Pryde you’re taking us to see the reverend. If you try to betray us, I’ll make sure you never see daylight again. Do you understand?”

  Miss Brigham nodded, so Samantha removed the gag from her mouth. “You don’t have to be such a brute,” Miss Brigham said. “It’s so unbecoming for a girl your age to act this way. It’s unbecoming for any girl to act this way. It’s not your fault, I suppose. You weren’t raised properly. You don’t have any idea how a lady should conduct yourself. Well, I can tell you it isn’t by threatening people and slapping them whenever the mood strikes you. You should learn from your friend, here. She conducts herself with grace instead of like a savage.”

  Prudence interposed herself between Samantha and Miss Brigham before the former could slap the latter. “Stop arguing, both of you. There are more important things at stake here,” Prudence said. She helped Miss Brigham to her feet, who in an unladylike way stuck her tongue out at Samantha.

  Samantha followed behind Miss Brigham and Prudence, wishing she had a weapon of some kind in case things went wrong. The dogs began growling from the shadows as soon as they stepped foot outside the dining room. “Oh my, those beasts sound so terrifying. Can’t we wait to do this in the morning?”

  “Call for Mr. Pryde,” Samantha hissed.

  “Yes, of course. Mr. Pryde? Are you there? It’s Molly Brigham. Would you mind calling off these dogs of yours?”

  Pryde appeared out of the darkness like a ghost. He touched Miss Brigham’s acne-scarred cheek with one hand. “You’re looking mighty pretty now,” he said, following it with a chuckle that sounded like dry leaves rustling.

  Miss Brigham swatted his hand away. “Now really, I’ve had quite enough of people manhandling me today. I am not a piece of meat to be poked and prodded at will.”

  “What are you three doing out here?”

  “If you must know, I am taking these two heathens to visit the reverend. Please let us pass unmolested by these infernal creatures of yours,” Miss Brigham said.

  “I’ll take them. You go back inside and play house.”

  Samantha’s muscles stiffened as she readied to fight her way out should it come to that. Before she could try to say something, Miss Brigham responded for them. “I am perfectly capable of taking them on my own. I don’t know what I did to deserve such abuse heaped upon me like this. I’ve made a dreadful mistake coming here. I expected to come here and take care of sweet, innocent babies and all I’ve found are foul-tempered little girls and a bully with a pack of mangy dogs.” Miss Brigham crossed her arms and rooted herself where she stood. “Mr. Pryde, I will take these girls and what’s more I will make sure Reverend Crane knows what an odious person you truly are. You can kill me if you like, but I’m sure the reverend would be terribly disappointed to need a new caretaker after only one day.”

  Pryde responded by cupping Miss Brigham’s jaw in one hand and beginning to squeeze. “Speak to me like that again, girl, and there won’t be enough of you left to feed my dogs. Get out of my sight.”

  Miss Brigham said nothing, hurrying away down the path towards the reverend’s house. She rubbed her jaw and took a few test bites of air. Samantha hoped Pryde had done enough damage that they wouldn’t have to hear any more of Miss Brigham’s prattling. “That vile man!” Miss Brigham shouted, dashing Samantha’s hopes. “The audacity of him calling me ‘girl’ and making light of my acne. Really, I don’t know why Reverend Crane can’t find better help. An ape has more courtesy.”

  As Miss Brigham continued to rant about Pryde, Samantha grabbed a sturdy branch hanging down and tore it free. She took a couple practice swings with the club, judging it heavy enough to serve as a primitive weapon. For a final test, she used it on the back of Miss Brigham’s head, just hard enough to stun the teenager in the middle of a sentence. Miss Brigham wobbled for a moment and then collapsed to the ground.

  “Why did you do that?” Prudence asked.

  “We can’t have her following us around,” Samantha said. With the pair of pants and gag they’d used earlier, Samantha bound Miss Brigham to a nearby log and stuffed the gag back into her mouth. “We’ll come back for her later.”

  Prudence looked skeptical about this, but didn’t say anything. They continued down the path towards the reverend’s house. “What do we look for when we get there?” Prudence asked.

  “I’m not sure. Some kind of potions or powders, I guess. Something he could have mixed into the gruel.”

  “But aren’t potions and powders witchcraft? Wouldn’t that make the reverend a heathen?”

  “People aren’t always what they seem. Like the reverend said in church, evil can take all kinds of forms.”

  “Reverend Crane can’t be evil. There has to be an explanation for this.”

  “How can you still think that?” Samantha said. She turned around and put both hands on Prudence’s shoulders. “He killed your parents. He killed at least three of the children. He turned most of the others into babies. And you saw what he did to Miss Brigham. How can you still think he’s innocent?”

  “You don’t understand. He’s been like a father to me. There must be a reason for him to act this way.”

  “I knew I shouldn’t have let you come along.”

  “I—” A growl from the trees interrupted their argument. One of Pryde’s dogs leapt out from the brush, knocking Prudence over. Samantha swung her club, hitting the dog in the side of the head, but it didn’t seem to notice. The beast snapped at Prudence’s throat and raked its claws across her dress. Samantha hit it again in the head, knocking the dog off.
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  “Get out of here. I’ll hold it off!” Samantha said. The dog turned its attention to her, nipping at the end of the club.

  Prudence gave Samantha a long look and then bolted as fast as her chubby legs could carry her. Samantha, meanwhile, swung the club once more; this time the dog jumped back to avoid the attack. Its jaws grabbed Samantha’s arm, teeth sinking into her flesh. Her scream echoed through the night air. When the beast let go, Samantha bolted into the forest.

  She couldn’t see anything in the dark, branches lashing against her face as hard as the reverend’s whip. Still she kept running, the dog charging through the brush behind her and gaining fast. When she risked looking back, she saw the monster’s yellow eyes glowing with rage.

  She burst through the trees and tumbled down a bank onto the beach along the sea. The waves roared as they pounded into the shore. Samantha froze with indecision, her knees weakening at the sight of the roiling water. She looked back and saw Pryde’s dog at the edge of the trees, readying itself to leap down and finish her.

  With no other way of escape, Samantha ran into the water and paddled as hard as she could. Her feeble strokes did nothing against the current and soon she was exhausted. Waves plunged her down into darkness and then flung her into the air like a cork escaping a bottle. The current tore her away from the shore, carrying her out into open water. The last thing she heard was the mournful howl of Pryde’s dog.

  Chapter 26: In God’s House

  Once again Samantha found herself waking up in an unfamiliar room. This time Reverend Crane sat on a chair next to the bed she lay on. The moment she saw his face, Samantha sat up in bed and looked for a mirror. “What did you do to me?” she demanded. She threw off a quilt to examine herself. As far as she could tell, nothing had changed.