Forever Love | Xavier Thorpe

Chapter 5

"I thought nothing scared me, but that was before I stared into the eyes of Joseph Crackstone and saw my ancestor Constance Addams fight against him... and lost. Wednesday and I don't believe in heaven or hell, but we do believe in revenge. We usually serve it warm with a side of pain, but we've never faced an adversary cast in bronze. There's always a first."

"Thank you. It is my honour to celebrate our town's history and Jericho's noble forefather, Joseph Crackstone. Now, he believed that with a happy heart and an open ear, there was nothing our town couldn't achieve. So together as one, our community and our friends at Nevermore Academy, we've built a monument to celebrate his memory. Now, may the spirit of Joseph Crackstone be memorialized for eternity." Mayor Walked said, as he showed off the new Joseph Crackstone statue in the town centre.

The band stood (and sat) next to the new statue and played a peppy arrangement of "Don't Stop" by Fleetwood Mac. Wednesday was not happy about this... especially since Blair kept teasing her. Wednesday nodded to Blair who nodded back.

She looked to at the gunpowder behind the bleachers. "Incendia." She whispered. A flame sparked at the beginning and made its way to the state filled with gasoline that Thing had pulled earlier. The statue exploded, instantly everyone ran from the scene, terrified, Xavier tackled Blair to the ground covering her... protecting her. Wednesday remained seated, she drew out agitated notes and started playing intense arrangement of Vivaldi's 'Winter' as sirens played in the background.

"Why did you tackle me?" Blair asked Xavier and he covered her.

"I heard the explosion and I just thought of you. I had to get to you. It was like..." Xavier trailed off.

"... An instinct." Blair stated. Xavier looked at her and nodded. He was feeling the first things she had. They had an instinct to find each other. But what did that mean?

***

After the disastrous statue revealing (which in Blair's opinion went successful), Principal Weems called the Addams twins to her office, believing they had something to do with it. "That was a disaster. The mayor is furious! I've lost count of the angry phone calls, emails, and people in the town, alumni and parents. They want answers and so do I."

"I would lead the inquisition, but I left my thumbscrews and rack at home." Blair said sarcastically.

"Miss Addams... you're already on thin ice. Wafer-thin ice." Weems threatened.

"I swear on my late scorpion's soul, my hands are clean." Wednesday said, truthfully.

"I may not have hard evidence, but I see you. You're a trouble magnet."

"If trouble means standing up to lies, decades of discrimination, centuries of treating outcasts like second- class citizens or worse..." Blair said as she stood up and walked toward Weems, Wednesday alongside her.

"What are you talking about?" Weems asked.

"Jericho." Blair crossed her arms as Wednesday continued.

"Why does this town even have an Outreach Day? Don't you know its real history with outcasts? The actual story of Joseph Crackstone?"

"I do. To an extent." Weems shrugged.

"Then why be complicit in its cover up?" Blair asked.

"Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it." Wednesday stated.

"That's where you and I differ. Where you see doom, I see opportunity. Maybe this is a chance to rewrite the wrongs, to start a new chapter in the normie-outcast relations." Weems explained.

"Nothing has changed since Crackstone. They still hate us. Only now they sugarcoat it with platitudes and smiles. If you're unwilling to fight for truth..." Blair said before she had been interrupted by Weems.

"You don't think I want the truth? Of course, I do. But the world isn't always black and white. There are shades of grey."

"Maybe for you. But it's either they write our story or we do. You can't have it both ways." Wednesday said.

Weems looked at the twins and released an exasperated sigh. "You're exhausting."

"I know." The twins synced.

"Goodnight, Miss Addams. But you should know... I don't tire easily."

***

Once again, Wednesday sat at the desk clacking on the typewriter keys while Blair relaxes on her bed and draws to her heart's content, Wednesday had asked her to draw images for her book as they had done before with Wednesday's previous books.

"Too much?" Enid asked as she held up an extremely colourful top to the twins.

Wednesday's eyes widen and sighed. "I feel like you just napalmed me, Enid."

"So glad I have my date with Ajax tonight. Get my mind off that trainwreck of an afternoon. I literally think I have PTSD. I didn't even get to do my dance routine." Enid rambled.

"What a tragedy." Blair said sarcastically, not once moving her eyes from her sketchpad.

"What kind of twisted psycho would want to sabotage such a life-affirming event?" Enid asked, Blair and Wednesday glanced at each other.

"You're going to be late." Wednesday stated and she started typing on the typewriter.

"Wish me luck."

"If he breaks your heart, we'll nail-gun his." The twins said in unison. Enid waved goodnight to the twins and left.

"You've made an emotional attachment to her." Blair said to Wednesday.

"You've made one with Xavier." Wednesday responded, not denying the statement.

"I don't believe in mandatory volunteer work, sugar-coated history, or happy endings, but most of all... I don't believe in coincidences." Wednesday said out loud. "To paraphrase Agatha Christie, one coincidence is just a coincidence, two are a clue..."

"...and three are proof." Blair finished.

Wednesday stopped typing and turned to look at her sister. "Rowan's drawing of us and Crackstone happens sometime in the future. Goody Addams' warnings about Crackstone were in the past. And the monster is here in the present. Three coincidences that we know are connected."

Blair sat up straight, put her sketchpad down and looked at her sister. "That monster could be anyone." She said. "The sheriff thinks they only exist behind the walls of this school." She stood up and walked to their side of the window and simply watched the environment. "The truth is, there are monsters everywhere. And sometimes the monsters we least suspect are the most dangerous. They don't need teeth and claws to terrify. They hide in the shadows until no one is looking. And then they strike."

"But we're looking now. And we won't stop until we find the truth." Wednesday stated as she joined her sister's side.