We Don't Talk to Edith Thompson Part 4

Ch 4: Sweet Revenge

September 30th, 2025-7:45 PM

She just... stared at me like she had nothing to do with my hospitalization, as if she were an innocent bystander who watched me. Protected me from... what exactly? Seizures? Flashbacks? Mystical powers?

I cleared my throat, coughing hoarsely. God, my throat was so dry.

"M-mom?" I asked, holding her hand. Silently begging.

"Oh, honey, your throat sounds awful!" She gasped, turning to leave. "Let me get you something to drink. I'll be back!"

No, no! Don't leave me alone with her! I wanted to scream, but I couldn't. My mom had already left.

Leaving me alone with her.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. I knew she went to get a drink for me, which I greatly appreciated, but how freaking long could it take to do that?

Her smile widened. "You saw everything, didn't you?" Edith whispered, a sinister satisfaction present in her tone. "All the pain and prejudice?"

Oh God, it was real! I thought I was hallucinating!

Swallowing harshly, I nodded. "So you did this-" I gestured to the IV machine and hospital bed. "To me?" Was it on purpose? For ignoring her presence for weeks?

Edith's wicked smile disappeared, leaving a thin frown. Her eyes were full of ‌heavy emotion. Regret perhaps?

"It was an accident. I haven't shown anyone those passed-down memories before. I'm sorry for harming you, Suzy." She muttered, bowing her head solemnly.

Well, now I felt like a complete bitch. Edith's body wasn't projecting an aggressive or ominous aura. She seemed to be sincerely upset. And she stayed by my side. For what it's worth.

Sighing, I replied, "It's okay, Edith." She raised her head with a hopeful look on her face. "Just...don't do...that again, alright?"

She nodded rapidly, a shy smile spreading across her face. "I'm glad that someone got to see them besides me."

"Why?" I questioned, curious about what she meant. The 'memories' she showed me were absolutely horrible, and more to the point, they didn't involve her. "They aren't yours."

"They're my great-great-great-grandmother's," Edith admitted, sadness lacing her voice. "Then her daughter, my great-great-grandmother Agnes. She escaped from here after killing several people, including her rapist. She managed to travel a few states over, to what would be called Bangor, Maine. Unfortunately, she was pregnant."

So the Thompson family left, then eventually came back? Why would they return after so much pain and suffering?

"Why'd they come back?" I inquired, eager to get as much information as possible.

She shrugged. "I don't know. My mother was the one who did it. She worked at a paint factory, but there was a fire in 2006. The news said it was a chemical leak accident, but it wasn't. And she didn't survive."

Wait, that was... nineteen years ago! Also, didn't the news say there weren't any casualties? Why would they make something like that up? What does she mean it wasn't an accident? I'm so confused!

"Um, Edith, how old are you?" I asked, feeling nervous. Why was she still in high school if she's at least twenty? Shouldn't she be in college by now?

Edith shook her head. "You're asking the wrong questions. Again." She got up from her chair, leaned close to my face, and whispered, "Don't worry. I won't hurt you again."

Then she vanished. In the blink of an eye. As if she were never there to begin with.

Mom returned with a plastic cup full of ice water. "Sorry it took so long! There was-" She noticed that I was alone. "Oh, did your friend leave?"

"Yeah, for now," I mumbled, feeling uneasy. I accepted the cup and took a few mouthfuls. The cold fluids felt heavenly.

While Edith may be gone, I didn't get all the answers I had hoped for. Like, I still don't know what Edith is. She was human, for sure, but what special abilities did she have? Is it passed down like the memories, or did she seek revenge? No clue! And now, I may never know.

October 30th, 2025-10:30 AM

The next month flew by with no incident. I was discharged one day after my crazy episode. The doctor said it was the strangest thing he's ever seen. Almost like my body was being attacked on a cellular level, then suddenly recovered. It was bizarre. Mom was given a list of specialists for me to see, a prescription for anti-seizure medication, and orders to "rest as much as possible."

Mom became super protective after that. Watching over me like a hawk. It was nice to have more attention from her, but ultimately unwarranted. I knew that the episode wouldn't happen again because Edith said so. And she seemed to be a woman of her word.

Also, she disappeared.

Yeah, it was weird. Since we last spoke at the hospital, nobody had seen her. Not that they care to acknowledge her existence, but still. I asked Sabrina about it. She was super carefree about it.

I guess she would be. Her great-great-great-great-grandfather was the reason Edith's family suffered so much.

She said, "Don't worry! The freak will show up for the Halloween celebration tomorrow. She always does."

"Does she disappear a lot?" I asked, even more curious.

"Nope. First time." She chirped, flipping through pictures on her phone. "OMG, this costume is so cute! We should go grab it from the mall for Eric and me!"

She showed me a picture of a sexy Dorothy and 'muscleman" Cowardly Lion. I pitied Eric; he's going to be humiliated.

"Come on!" Sabrina squealed, pulling me down the hallway, outside of the school. It's a good thing we had a half-day.

Which brought me to now. I hadn't been to Liberty Tree Mall very much, too busy with school and Mom's whacky behavior, but shopping was usually fun, right?

For an hour, Sabrina and I go through racks. I don't know why, though she reserved the costumes she wanted. Until she found it and squealed. What was it with her and the damn squealing? She was not a kid or a mouse.

Just shut up already!

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her. Edith Thompson was standing near a stack of unfolded clothes. Staring at me, a wicked smile spread across her thin lips.

Oh no, what was she doing?

The outfit Sabrina was holding, a sexy red riding hood, melted. The material morphed into a sticky, sweet-smelling glob and fell from her hands onto the floor.

Sabrina shrieked, stomping her feet like a child throwing a tantrum. Frantically trying to remove the sticky mess from her hands. Suddenly, a swarm of rats appeared. From under the floors, glass doors, windows, vents, and inside the clothing racks.

Customers, employees, and everyone else panicked. Rushing out of the store, knocking things over, and screaming bloody murder. Sabrina, Edith, and I are all that was left inside.

I was frozen in fear, not sure if I should run away or stand still and try to avoid the scattering little vermin. I glanced at Edith, hoping she had an answer. She winked.

Sabrina cried as rats crawled all over her, scratching and biting at the sticky mess on and around her.

Without thinking, I shouted, "Stop it!" at Edith.

She frowned, shaking her head in disappointment. Then, poof! Gone.

Shortly after, the rats retreated, but not before taking a chunk out of Sabrina's left calf. Blood sputtered everywhere as she wailed in agony, thrashing around, spreading the mess everywhere.

Jesus Christ, stop moving!

Quickly, I grabbed a thick pair of leggings, ripped them, and wrapped them around her oozing injury. On the way out, we "purchased" three costumes. A Medicinal Wench for me, Town Whore for Sabrina, and Town Founder for Eric. She complained the entire way to the emergency room, but I didn't dare think anything bad.

Who knows what Edith might do next?

Disclaimer:

This is a work of fiction. All characters, names, places, and incidents are fictitious and the product of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, organizations, or events are entirely coincidental.

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