Glass Walls

Chapter 19

I run towards the room Olivia is in and stop dead in my tracks. I stand in the doorway as my daughter, covered in blood and barbed wire, stands next to her deceased mother.

What happened to my daughter....?

Glass sticks from Olivia's skin and she's still bleeding.
The room is covered in blood that can only be hers. It pains me to see my daughter in this state. How is she alive?

And how is Elizabeth here? She broke the mirror. That was the last one.

"Daddy, look who I found." Olivia says. She sounds like a child, but there's an edge to her voice. Something is wrong.
"Daddy aren't you happy? Aren't you happy to see mommy? She came to see us. She fixed me all up and now she's here to live with us!"

Olivia's smile stretches from ear to ear. It's the smile of a maniac. I can feel the tears in my eyes. She frowns.
"Why aren't you happy? Mommy came all this way to see me and you. Say hello."
I don't say a word, I can't possibly. What has she done to Olivia? How is she still able to breathe? Why is she acting like this?
"Daddy that's not nice. You keep ignoring me and mommy. She's done so much for us. Look I'm fixed up. Mommy said I can't die now. Look!" She grabs a length of wire and rips it from her. Blood flies and the wire yanks hunks of flesh off.

She pulls most of the wires from her and walks towards me. She's holding something in her hand and she's not trying to hide it. It's a shard of glass. She grips it so tight that blood drips from her palm and down her fingertips. I have no weapons on me.

But I don't need a weapon to hurt Olivia, I would never do that. I would hurt this twisted Elizabeth. This wasn't the woman I married, this was something evil.
I can't stay up here much longer. Something's wrong with Olivia and I need to get rid of Elizabeth. I run.

My whole body is on edge. I run to the kitchen and everything is a mess. The house had shaken so much that the cupboards hang open. Plates and silverware litter the floor.
"Dad come back here! It's not nice to run away!" her voice echoes from upstairs.
I scramble around looking for a knife. I can hear her running in the hall and then her footsteps dashing down the stairs. 
I find a butter knife. I wish I had something better but I'm out of time. She runs towards me with the glass raised above her head. Before she gets a chance to stab me I push her down with force. She hits the floor and I can hear the wind being knocked out of her. I run by and as I'm about to go upstairs I see her.

Elizabeth stands on the bottom step with a grin on her face. She holds out her arms for a hug but I know better. I lunge at her and stab her in the chest. The knife doesn't go very far so I quickly pull it out and stab her eye. She doesn't even flinch.
I watch in horror as her wounds heal before my very eyes. She laughs at my failed attempt.

I hear Olivia coming from behind me. I see her from the corner of my eye a little too late. She jumps onto my back and stabs me in the shoulder. I throw her off but she gets back up much quicker than I expected. As she goes for another attack I try and dodge her. Just when I think she got me I realize she missed, but not entirely.

I see the glass stuck inside Elizabeth's stomach. Black liquid oozes from the wound. Olivia pulls the glass from her.
"Mom..mom I'm sorry. Please don't leave."
Elizabeth clutches at her stab wound. She groans in agony and loses her balance. She falls onto the stairs.

"Mom please don't leave! I'm sorry I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to I promise! Just don't leave! I'll be a better daughter I swear!" she begs. Her pleading doesn't seem to phase her mom. She lies there staring at her stomach watching the life leave her body. She makes a gurgling noise and spits up black blood.
Without warning her body freezes over and she explodes into a million tiny bits of glass.

It covers the stairs and floor like a thin sheet of snow. Olivia reaches out to scoop up some of it but it starts to fade away. She sits with a sorrowfully expression as we watch the glass disappear. I notice the walls begin to repair themselves.
The lights no longer flicker. The sky lights up with sunshine.

It's over.

"Dad."
I look over at Olivia. She's gasping for air and her body trembles. She holds onto the banister but ultimately falls over.
"Olivia!" I rush to her side. Her injuries start bleeding again. I hold her in my arms.
Blood stains my clothes. "No.." I whisper.
I stroke her hair trying to comfort her. She looks up at me with the most innocent face. She looks scared and it doesn't help that I'm crying.
"D-dad.." she fights for another breath, "I d-don't want t-to die.."

"It's gonna be ok. Just hold on." I tell her. I dial 911 as fast as I can. As I'm on the phone I hear Olivia choking. My heart shatters as she throws up blood all over herself.
I finish the call and I pray they come as soon as possible. I can't lose my daughter, I can't. She's my entire world. I've watched her grow up and to watch her die in my arms is something I never thought I would have to experience.
"I don't w-want to d-die. I d-don't want t-to." She repeats it over and over.

"Liv, stop. Just please stop. Don't use up all your energy on saying that. Breathe." I say.
But she doesn't stop.
"I don't want to d-die...I don't..w-want to..I.."
She goes silent. Her eyes are glassy and stare straight up at the ceiling.
"Olivia?!? Honey stay with me! Olivia!"