111 West End

Chapter Twenty-Four: The Way Out

The Doctor

It started as a sparkle next to the grandfather clock, in the darkest part of the house. For two centuries, Arthur waited for the light to appear. And now it was here he felt afraid. The children watched with wonder as the spark grew large enough to swallow them whole and they felt only peace.

Arthur turned and walked along the hall. He slowly climbed the stairs, strolled along the gallery, and into the bedroom. He stood in his favourite spot by the window. Above him, the sun rose over 111 West End. Below him, the garden swarmed with police dressed in white overalls. Sifting through the soil by the pond, they meticulously bagged up evidence and frayed pieces of clothing. Arthur sighed. Thanks to him and the children the police had found Natalie, Georgie was safe, and the house was finally free of Ben Goldman.

"Come with us, Arthur," Emma said, threading her small fingers through his.

Arthur looked down at her perfect face. "This is my home," he whispered. It was the only home he could recall.

"But your home is with us." Her bottom lip trembled with emotion.

"We will not leave without you." Joseph tapped the window with his fingernail.

Arthur's soul ached as he studied the boy's youthful face. How he wished he could've saved them. What would they have become if he had not failed as a doctor?

"You must go, children. The light is here for you."

Joseph frowned at Arthur and shook his head. "You still do not understand?"

"Understand what?"

"The light has always been here. You just could not see it."

"Then why did you not go?"

"Because of you. We would not leave without you. And you could not leave until you made peace with your past. Until you realised what we always knew. Our deaths were not your fault, it was our time."

Arthur gripped the window frame as his knees weakened and his head swam. How had he not seen? He had no control over such things. He had done his best, and that was all anyone could do. Arthur watched as Nick Reynolds arrived, his face full of distress, fear, and panic. This was life at its worst. "What is on the other side?"

The boy stopped tapping and smiled at him. "I do not know. But I would like to find out."

Arthur's gaze drifted from Joseph to Emma and back to the window. This world was not for the dead. He had seen and experienced more than enough. Arthur smiled in return. "I would like to find out, too."

Emma was the first to step into the light, and Joseph followed. With a last glance over his shoulder, Arthur left 111 West End.

*

Ben Goldman wandered the vast rooms of 111 West End in solitude. He often stood by the window in the master bedroom, watching as the seasons changed. Envious of the world beyond the grey stone walls, and the living who came and went as the years passed. 111 West End was his house. It would always be his house, but never his home. Ben tapped his fingernail against the glass. A tick he developed soon after his death.

Tap... Tap... Tap.

111 West End is not a quiet house. 111 West End is not a peaceful house.

*

Autor note:

Hi,

Thank you so much for reading my spooky story and I really hope you've enjoyed it. I've had so much fun writing, 111 West End, I'm quite sad it's finished.

Thanks again, Lottie x