We both walk around to the front of the house, Maida’s struggling, hunched over and wheezing, I hold her up, her arm around my shoulders. We walk down the driveway, turning off towards the barn, the snow has eased and I can finally see where I’m going.

“Where are Agnes and the rest of the staff.” Maida mumbles.

“I have no idea. Hopefully somewhere safe. We can’t worry about that right now. We need to get into town.”

I see Luke’s pickup in the distance and we trudge through the snow towards it, I open the driver’s side door for Maida and help her get inside, she scoots over and I get in after her. “You’re going to have to drive.” Maida says, trying to put on her seatbelt, I lean over and help her. I slam the door shut and feel around for the keys, they’re still in the ignition, Luke forgot to take them with him. A stroke of luck. It takes a couple of tries before the engine finally roars to life. I keep looking around me, worried Luke will pop up out of nowhere, like escaping him was just a dream and it’s not over yet. Imagining we're in a horror movie, The Ridgemont Butcher coming back again and again. I'd expected to feel better at this point but I feel angry and betrayed, still unable to process why my mother would do what she did.

I put the car into drive and slowly move forward, barely able to see through the windscreen. We make it to the driveway, I can see the house aglow, Maida’s slumped over against the passenger's side door, getting worse with time. I wipe the windscreen with the back of my glove and peer out, flames have reached the second storey, the house is a burning orange light in a sea of black, framed by lightly falling snow. Bittersweet memories rush through my mind. All the good times and the bad. Times spent with my father, brother and mother. Family and friends, parties, funerals, in the end a place of hopelessness and fear. All the feelings I have for this house, all of the things it represents. Both a prison and a sanctuary, but now just a wreck, a place for tourists to visit, the Ridgemont Butcher's final resting place. We turn a corner and the house is out of view, I see the wrought iron gates up ahead, we turn onto the road and I say goodbye to my home one final time, never to return.

As we turn into Main Street, a sense of relief washes over me, it feels like it's finally over, we're safe. The street is still dark, only a few buildings are lit up, the police station being one of them. I park directly in front and get Maida out of the car, helping her to walk up the steps and go inside.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“My friend needs help!” I yell. An officer gets up from his desk, helping me put Maida down in a seat, and then goes to call a doctor. Maida’s getting worse by the minute. Michael walks through the front doors about ten minutes later, looking disheveled. He glances at me, his face tinged with sleep, his brow furrowed, suddenly recognising the two people sitting in front of him, he rushes over. “What the hell happened here?” He asks.

“It’s kind of a long story.” I say.

“I’ve got time.”

He helps Maida first and then looks over at me, I tell him I feel fine but he won't take no for an answer. He tells Maida she might have some broken ribs but other than that he thinks she's just exhausted and dehydrated, the officer gets her some food and water. Her more gruesome wounds aren’t as bad as they look. He cleans and bandages them after the officer takes some photos. We try to explain what happened and he writes it down. After some snacks Maida perks up and tells us her side of the story. Luke had taken her back to the garden shed, he'd asked her questions and beaten her up, my mother eventually joining him later that night. They'd both been in there with her when everyone else was searching for her on the grounds, moving her into the basement of the house while everyone was busy. She said she'd seen people around but hadn't been able to call out for help. She hadn't told them anything, I'm amazed at how brave she was. I tell him my side of things and say the last we saw of Luke or my mother was in the house but we don't know what happened after that. The officer assures us the police will try their best to locate them both.

My brother sits next to me and Maida and I spend the remainder of the night telling him the whole story, the last week, the morgue, everything. At first he doesn’t believe us but Maida backs me up.

“How long do you have left?” Michael says, leaning back in his seat. Maida's had some pain killers and has fallen asleep in the chair next to me, leaning against my shoulder.

“I wish I knew. I guess the house is gone.”

“Good riddance, that place was cursed. Don’t worry, you can both come stay with me and Chelsea. Is Agnes okay?”

“I don’t know. I hope so.”

The hours pass, every time I look out the window it gets a little bit lighter. The stars disappear and get replaced by a glowing sun. The daylight makes me feel better, it'll be harder for my mother to hide. The police tell us to go home, we wake Maida up and begin the short walk to Michael's house, walking on either side of her. The snow has stopped falling and the wind has ceased but it’s still cold, it's quiet and peaceful, the sun rising in front of us. As we walk the lights start to switch back on, the town coming back to life. I feel lighter, elated, free. It’s all coming to an end, I know that now, I can sense it.

We figured it out.

“What are you so happy about?” Michael asks, nudging me with his elbow.

"Nothing." I say. I look over at my brother and my friend. I owe them so much, I wish I had the right words to express how thankful I was, how lucky I felt to know them and how much I’d miss them when I was gone.