Berceuse for The Suffering (Complete)

12. {The Shaman}

Present day

Minerva slowly rose from her position on the floor, her eyes never leaving the young woman growling on the bed. Tension hung heavy in the air, and Linda's question seemed to break the silence like fragile glass.

"What's happening?" she asked, her eyes already threatening to shed tears.

With a determination that seemed to exude from every pore, Minerva ignored Linda. She strode toward Martin and firmly grasped his arm, her voice booming with commanding authority. "Let her take her course," she declared, her eyes ablaze with a fierce intensity.

Martin bowed his head in acquiescence, his voice barely audible as he whispered his assent. But Linda, with a sudden burst of emotion, cried out in protest and charged towards Minerva, tearing her grip away from her beloved husband's arm. "You are not turning my child into a murderer!" she screamed, her words ringing with the fury of a lioness defending her cub.

Minerva's lips curled into a wicked smile as she taunted Linda, "She already is, or have you forgotten?" With a threatening demeanor, she advanced toward the young woman on the bed, her posture radiating malevolence. "You caused this, Linda," she hissed. "You have to let her go."

Linda met Minerva's gaze with defiance and screamed, "My daughter is not a murderer! I would rather die than lose her again. Get out of here, you evil witch! We don't need you!" She pointed a finger at the open door. "Leave!"

Minerva chuckled. "I'm the only person who can help you. I will not leave this house. It was you and your husband who came to me and brought this to my attention. I cannot allow an Akatimbuk to linger in this realm any longer than it had."

"My daughter stayed with you for almost two decades, and there was nothing you could do. What made you think I'd listen to any of your--"

"That's because you lied!" Minerva spat. The old woman walked toward Linda, her feet dragging and her eyes almost predatory. "You lied about the host! You said she was here," the old woman accused. She clicked her tongue and then began circling Linda. "If I had known that the host was gone and that you have skewed the mind of the other, then I never would have taken her back then. We could have started with her course, assisted her, and put an end to all this."

"Shut up," Linda yelled.

"Your selfishness and weakness destroyed your chance of having your daughter back. You're a murderer," the old woman whispered as she leaned close to Linda's ear.

"I am not!" Linda screamed. She frantically glanced at her husband and then at Lyli.

"What is she talking about, Linda?" Martin asked.

"I...I accidentally killed one. But I wanted to keep the sane one. I...You already know that, Martin!"

Minerva snickered and then looked at Martin. "You have been consumed by confusion and the need to find a solution. You left your wife alone with her," she said as she pointed a finger at Lyli. "Your wife's desperation for things to return to normal had skewed the mind of the other. Every day she would tell Lyli that nothing happened. She would convince her that everything, every scene, every memory she had was nothing but a dream. She skewed the other until it lost its purpose and walked the earth with nothing but fragmented memories, thoughts that it couldn't understand, emotions it wondered if it should have, and a need to do something it couldn't quite recall what."

Martin, confused as he was, turned to his wife and asked, "What did you do, Linda? What is this? What have I missed?"

Linda fell to the floor. She wailed and pounded at the floorboards. She grabbed a lock of her hair and tugged on it. Then she snapped her head up and locked eyes with her husband.