Dresden Home
December 4, 7.30 a.m.
The family sat round the big kitchen table. Dee, Nick, William and Susan. Breakfast was spread right across the table — cereals, fruits, toast. A ceramic pot sat in the centre full of hot bacon and eggs. A low rise of steam was visible just over the rim. The children were eating in silence, their heads bent down to their food. Nick tried to smile. Such a beautiful family. Perfect. If only it wasn’t all a dream.
Endings are always hard, reflected Nick, as he watched his family eat. The end was coming because it had to. He had to end it. He had to get rid of Sebastian.
Dee was picking again. She always picked. What was it with Dee and food? She never enjoyed it. It was a constant struggle. Nick sat without eating. He was listening to the clinking of stainless steel on the china plates and bowls. The clinking always irritated him.
Dee had read the latest profile released by the NYPD. She’d seen the cleaned-up photograph they were publishing of the killer. She noticed that the four days had been taken out. She kind of recognized the man in the picture and she knew that Nick hadn’t come back until nearly half past one that morning. But it still seemed to be a story that she could close like a book. She still couldn’t believe that the killer might be her husband. The paper was lying face down on the couch.
Nick looked up slowly.
‘Can’t you two stop scratching your plates,’ Dee said quietly.
The two children tried to eat quietly. Nick was not looking good. He was dark and brooding. He’d showered for over an hour when he got home. Dee had been scared all night long. And now they could all feel the atmosphere. They had grown to fear it.
‘Why don’t you go and relax and watch the TV news or something,’ Dee suggested.
‘You want rid of me?’ asked Nick.
‘No, I don’t want rid of you. I just thought you might be more comfortable.’
‘Stop eating,’ Nick said. His voice was too serious to ignore. His children both stopped and looked up. They were waiting now. What would happen? What would he do next?
‘I got something to say,’ said Nick. He didn’t know what it was, he just felt there was something. Something he needed to do. ‘I love you all, you know that? But I gotta go somewhere. I gotta do something. I love you.’
The headache came as usual with the suddenness of a shaft of sunlight from behind a cloud. It shot through his mind and his head screamed with pain.
They all looked at him closely.
‘I think Sebastian’s here. You got to go. You all got to get out of here.’
When they stayed frozen, he struggled to stand, but the pain knocked him sideways. He stumbled, pulling the table and dinner plates to the floor.
Dee’s eyes widened. ‘Nick, what’s wrong?’ She rushed over. Nick was prostrate, his hands pressing against his temples. The children came close. Susan was looking terrified, but William hugged his father.
‘Speak, Nick. Is it a stroke? Should I call an ambulance?’
Nick’s eyes closed and his head shifted suddenly. The pain had gone. Clarity again. Beautiful clarity. Bethany Hummel had been put back in the glass cage. He couldn’t hear her screaming any more, or Chloe. There was just beautiful silence.
‘Nick? Nick? Should I call an ambulance? What’s wrong?’
But it was Sebastian’s eyes that turned to hers. ‘Frontal lobe atrophy, Dee. That’s what the neurologists say. Brain is not quite what it should be. It’s kind of broken. Been broken a long time.’
‘Nick.’
‘Thing is,’ his eyes rose to the three of them, ‘Daddy’s going away now.’
‘What?’ asked Dee. ‘What do you mean?’
‘He’s got something to finish. He’s got to go and sort this thing out.’
Sebastian stood and picked up William, who was still hugging his neck.
‘What do you mean, Nick?’
‘Come here, darling,’ he said to Susan. She approached him and he picked her up, too.
‘Nick, I’m not sure what to do…’
He held the two children and smiled at Dee. For an instant he looked like her husband again. ‘The thing is… I’m here to protect you. I want to know you’re all looked after, you know. I said I’d look after you all, didn’t I? Made you all that promise. He’s just got to go away.’
‘Who has?’
‘Got to just disappear for a while,’ said Sebastian. ‘You won’t even miss him.’
Dee took a step towards him. She didn’t like this at all. ‘I think the children should go upstairs. Let them go. Daddy and Mummy need to talk.’
Sebastian smiled and hugged the two children closer. ‘I’m going to give these two a bath, then we can talk. We need to talk, Dee. A long, long talk. I got a lot to say.’
‘They don’t need a bath. It’s morning, Nick. Listen to me, you’re not thinking right.’
‘I need to put my hands in some clean water, Dee.’
‘Leave the children down here.’
‘Do you two want a bath?’
They both nodded furiously. Anything different was fun, right!
‘Maybe you should sit down. I can take them up. Please, Nick. I’ll look after them. You rest.’
‘Hey, you two beauties, should we have a water fight or do you want Mummy to bath you?’
‘Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!’ the children cawed.
‘You have a rest, Dee. We can talk all day. I’m not going in to work.’
She knew from the look in his eyes that there was nothing to be done. She watched them go. Susan and William looked over their father’s shoulder and waved, their faces excited.
She listened to him tramp up the stairs. She heard the water rushing into the bath. She stood there panicking. What should she do? The image of William held down by the neck kept recurring. She needed help, advice, support… something. She dialed 911 as she listened to the sound of the water running.
‘Come on, come on, come on,’ she whispered. Her hand went into the drawer for a knife. Her hand trembled, the blade flickering in the light.
‘911, what’s your emergency?’
‘It’s my husband… He’s acting real strange.’
‘Are you in danger?’
‘I don’t know. We might be.’
‘Has he attacked you or threatened you?’
‘I don’t think so. I don’t know.’
‘What’s your name?’
‘Dee Dresden.’
Just then, she heard a splash from the bathroom, followed by laughter. She breathed in. Perhaps she was going mad. Perhaps she was the one with frontal lobe atrophy, whatever that was.
‘I think… maybe… maybe I’m just paranoid.’
‘Has he hurt you before, miss?’
‘No. Yes. He’s frightened us before. He gets these moods.’ She paused. Did she say or didn’t she? What should she do? Suddenly she broke. ‘He held William down. Yes! He nearly broke his arm. He’s seven years old.’
‘Does he have the children with him now, Mrs Dresden?’
‘Yes.’
‘Where are they?’
‘What?’
‘Where are your children?’
‘In the bath…’
‘Can you ascertain that your children are safe?’
‘I don’t know. God! I don’t know. I think he’s the man you’re all looking for. I think he’s the killer. The American Devil. Help us!’
Just then, there was another big splash. This time the splashing continued, but without any laughter. More splashing. Then it stopped and there was silence. No screams or shrieks. Nothing. She held her breath. Her hand gripped the carving knife and she dropped the phone.
She darted up the stairs. The bathroom door was ajar. Still no noise. No noise at all. Her lips were trembling with fear. My children, my little babies. What’s happened to my children?
She pushed open the door and entered the bathroom. She saw him. His sleeves were rolled up and he was leaning over the bath, his hands under the water. The water was quite still. She saw her children’s faces under the surface. They were staring out, motionless, their eyes wide open.
All at once, both children burst from the water and gulped air. ‘How many seconds, Dad?’
‘Nearly forty. A house record!’ Nick turned to Dee. ‘What’s up, Dee? You look scared half to death.’ He smiled at her.
‘Nothing,’ she said, hiding the knife behind her back. ‘Just wonder if you want me to take over, is all.’