Two Little Orphans Part 2 to 4 - A Short Story

Written in 2021 | Rewritten in 2024 | 4,109 words

The story you are about to read is a “vomit draft.” This means that it is in its rawest form of writing and has no professional editing done whatsoever. But I welcome any corrections, grammatical or otherwise, you may find.

PART II 

A loud banging on the door jolted Tom awake. He opened his eyes only to shield them again with his pillow. He vaguely remembered lots of wine from the night before. His throbbing head, a clue he was right. The banging continued and Helen nudged his shoulder. He let one eye out from under his pillow and saw that she was in a similar position, shielding her eyes from a bright light. Where could it be coming from? 

Tom looked past his wife and saw the curtains drawn, revealing nothing but white outside. The clock on her nightstand read a quarter past nine in the morning, which clinched it. They were hungover. 

“Can you get that, honey?” Helen asked him, pulling the sheet back over her head. 

“Oh, no you don’t,” he said and pulled the sheet off the bed. “You got us drunk, so you’re coming downstairs with me.” She groaned and he couldn’t help how cute she sounded, so he crawled over her and closed the curtains, shrouding them in darkness so they could both open their eyes again. She grabbed around his neck to pull him down for a kiss, but the banging continues. 

“Who on Earth could that be? We don’t know anyone out here.” 

Tom hopped off the bed and put on the clothes he wore the night before. Helen grumpily rolled out of bed and did the same, following behind him as they padded out of their bedroom barefoot. He yanked the front door open to reveal a sea of white. When they covered their eyes from the view of snow, looking down, they saw two children on their doorstep. 

They pushed past Helen and Tom into the house, their arms wrapped around each other, trying to keep warm. Helen rushed over to them, concerned they could freeze to death. Tom peeked outside and looked in both directions. There was no car in sight, nor did he see footprints that lead to their door. 

“Tom, close that damn door. You’re letting the cold in,” Helen shouted at him. He did as she asked, a strange expression on his face. “What is it?” 

“Nothing,” he said. 

“Okay, children, what do you think you’re doing out there in this weather with no coats on? You’ll catch your death. Tom, get some blankets from the bathroom, would you,” Helen ordered, and directed the two children towards the couch where the fire had died down to a flickering flame. She threw some logs on it and grabbed a poker to get it back to where it was last night. “Let’s start with introductions. My name’s Helen.” 

“My name’s Mary, and this is my younger brother, William. I call him Willie.” The boy put a thumb in his mouth and didn’t say a word. 

“Well, Mary and William, I don’t know how you got here, but your mother must be worried sick.” 

William turned away with a shrug. “I’m sure she is, miss. We were out...chasing a deer away when we must’ve gotten lost. I’m sure she’ll be here looking for us in no time,” Mary said. 

Tom returned with some towels and clothes for Mary and William to change into. He handed them to Helen, who smiled sweetly at him. 

“If your mother has any chance of getting through that snow, I’ll have to dig her a path. Maybe I’ll dig out the car too while I’m out there,” Tom said, and signaled for his wife to follow him so he could talk to her. 

“You two change into these, you can use the bathroom right over there,” Helen said, and followed Tom into the kitchen area. “What is it?” she whispered. 

“There are no footprints outside,” he said. 

“So, what?” 

“Well, how did they get here? And did you see their feet? Those shoes they’re wearing should be soaked through with snow. They look dry as a bone.” 

“What are you saying? You don’t think they’re the ones haunting this cabin, do you?” 

“Now, that’s not fair. You know as well as I do that ghosts aren’t real. I just think something is very strange about them. Do me a favor and keep an eye on them. I’ll try to be quick as I can.” Tom pulled out his cell phone and cursed under his breath. “Damn it. No cell service.” He tried the radio, and all they heard was static. “Check the landline.”  

Helen picked up the receiver of the phone attached to the wall and shook her head. “No dial tone.” Tom’s face turned pale. “I don’t know what you’re so worried about. I’m sure they just got lost like they said, and their mother will be here any minute looking for them. Now go. I’ll start making some breakfast. By the time you’re done, we’ll be sitting down to eat just the two of us. I’m sure of it.” She gave him a warm smile which made him feel a little better, till he saw the two children emerge from the bathroom, hand in hand, dressed in his clothes, and his expression changed to a serious one. 

“I mean it, Helen. Keep an eye on them. I’ll be back before you know it. If you need me, just tap on the window,” he said. He looked out the kitchen window, and there it was, a large mound where their car should be, but was now completely buried under snow. 

Once Tom was outside, Helen clasped her hands together and tried to push out of her mind the worried expression he had on his face. The last thing she wanted to do was worry Mary and William. 

“Are you two hungry? You must be. How about some bacon and eggs?” 

William licked his lips, and Mary rubbed her belly. For the first time, Helen noticed just how thin and frail they were, as if they hadn’t been fed properly for years. 

Helen put a pan on the stove and started scrambling half a dozen eggs in a large bowl. 

“How long will you be staying here, miss?” Mary asked. 

“Another week, I think. You two and your mom live up here in the mountains?” Mary nodded. “How lucky you two are. Tom and I live in the city.” 

“What’s a city?” Mary asked. 

Helen poured the whipped eggs into the hot pan and furrowed her eyebrows at Mary. How could she not know what a city was? “A city is just a place with a lot of tall buildings, almost no trees, millions of people.” 

“That sounds like a sad place,” Mary said. “You should stay here. We have deer and rabbits.” 

Outside, Tom shoveled a path as quickly as he could, starting at the front door, and making his way to the driver's side of their car. Helen couldn’t see him, but she saw snow flying through the air as she forked the eggs and got another pan to fry up some bacon. 

“Well, Tom has a job in the city, you see. So, we can’t stay.” 

“Do you have a job in the city?” Mary asked. 

“No, I don’t have a job.” 

Mary walked over to a nearby cupboard and stood on tiptoe to bring down three plates. Helen thought it odd that Mary knew exactly where the plates were. Then William appeared beside her, pulled open a drawer, and took out three sets of utensils. 

“You’re gonna burn the eggs, mother,” Mary said. 

Helen looked down at the eggs and quickly turned off the burner. With the bacon done as well, she brought over the pan of eggs and divided it equally on the three plates, forgetting to leave some for Tom who labored tirelessly outside. She did the same with the bacon as the three of them sat down to eat. 

With Helen’s last forkful of eggs, the landline phone rang, and she dropped her fork onto her plate. The children didn’t seem startled by it at all and just kept eating. Helen pushed her chair back and approached the phone. She picked it up slowly and brought the receiver to her ear. 

“Hello?” 

“What do you think you’re doing with my children? They're mine, do you understand? And I’m coming to get them.” 

Helen put the receiver back and returned to the table in silence. 

“Who was that?” Mary asked. 

Helen looked at her with terror on her face. That voice. It didn’t sound human. It sounded...like something else… “That was your mother,” she said in a soft voice, trying to stay calm. William stood up quickly, causing his chair to tip backwards. He ran around the room, shaking, looking for a place to hide. “What’s wrong with him?” Helen asked, but she didn’t need an answer. She knew. He was as terrified as she was. 

Tom wiped his brow and tossed the shovel aside onto a bank of snow. The car was completely dug out now. He quickly opened the door and sat in the driver’s seat, said a brief prayer and put the key in the ignition. It roared back to life. He cranked the heat as high as it would go and adjusted the rearview mirror, more out of habit than anything else. It was then he saw her, leaning against a large willow tree he hadn’t noticed before. She waved at him, her long dark hair and black clothes blowing in the wind. 

“Their mother,” he said out loud, more a statement than a question, and quickly jumped out the car, leaving the car door wide open. He ran, shouting and waving towards where he saw the figure. His eyes trained to the ground to keep his balance as he trudged through the knee-high snow. When he reached the tree, there was no one there. He looked back to the car, then down at the prints his boots left behind him. He saw no other tracks, but how was that possible, he saw her standing right where he stood now. Glancing back at the tree, he noticed the sun shining on something buried in the snow about a foot away. He hunched over and used his hands, brushing snow aside to reveal a headstone that read: A MOTHER IN LIFE / A WITCH IN DEATH. 

He repeated the words, looked back at the cabin, and his eyes widened. “They couldn’t be,” he reasoned with himself, and shook the very idea out of his mind. He saw them and left his wife alone with them. They were real. Then he noticed the car door left open and trudged back, trying to push the headstone and what it said out of his mind. It was time to leave, and he wouldn’t wait around any longer. As he slammed the car door shut, he heard a sound overhead he’d never heard before. 

His eyes locked onto the roof, but it was too late. An avalanche of snow pinned him against the car, covered from head to boot, leaving one hand exposed. 

---

PART III 

“What was that?” Helen asked the two children who now sat on the couch in the living room, pretending they hadn’t heard a sound. 

“What was what, mother?” Mary asked. 

The memory of the phone call and how the voice sounded so unreal was still on Helen’s mind as she paced the floor. Where was Tom? She glanced out the window but was distracted by the radio. Her head turned back to see Mary had switched it on and she sighed with relief, till she remembered the radio hadn’t worked earlier. 

“It’s so quiet in here. Can we listen to some music?” 

“...And now for our local weather.” 

“No, wait, I want to hear this,” Helen said, before Mary changed the dial. 

“Thanks, Bill. I have just received word that the road up the mountain is nearly cleared and should be open within the hour. Crew—” 

Mary switched the radio off and folded her arms in a pout. “Boring,” she said. “If we can’t listen to music, then let’s play a game.” 

The roads are almost clear. Helen rushed to the door to tell Tom the good news, but Mary and William blocked her way. 

“You can’t go out there,” Mary said. 

“Why not?” 

“She’s here,” William said, pointing to the kitchen window.  

Helen’s heart raced so loudly she could hear it in her ears. Her breathing quickened as she walked towards the window. Outside, she saw the car had been completely dug out, except for a mound against the driver’s side. Then she saw it, Tom’s wedding band shimmering against the morning sun, sticking out from that mound of snow. Helen looked back at the car. Someone in the passenger seat was leaning over to the driver’s side. She watched, helpless, as they turned the car off and removed the keys. When they sat up, a chill ran down Helen’s spine. It was a woman with long dark hair and dark clothes. The figure in the car faced Helen, held up the keys and waved them at her with an evil grin on their face. Then the power went out in the house. 

“We told you,” Mary said. 

“Who are you?” Helen asked, backing away from the window and the two children who were smiling at her with grins that matched the woman in the car. 

“Don’t you recognize us, mother? You called us here. Don’t you remember?” Mary placed the journal Helen had hidden under the couch cushion on the kitchen table and slid it across to her. Helen grabbed it before it hit the floor. 

“It worked? But...this isn’t what I wanted...Where did you come from?” 

A knock on the door made Helen drop the journal to the floor. Her hands shook as she looked around the kitchen for something to defend herself. 

“We’ll protect you, mother.” Mary and William grabbed for her hands but she pulled away from them in terror. The knocking on the door grew louder. 

“Don’t worry, mother. She can’t get in here.” 

Helen grabbed the frying pan she used to cook breakfast on the stove. It wasn’t huge, but it was all she could get her hands on and still keep a safe distance from the children who seemed to force her towards the front door. 

“Just tell her to go away and we’ll be your children forever. Isn’t that what you want?” 

Helen couldn’t find her voice to scream, she was so terrified. The clothes the children wore had disappeared before her eyes and were replaced by what they had on when she found them on the doorstep. Old clothes covered in dirt. Their eyes transformed to dark circles and their skin a tinge of blue, as if they were freezing to death right before her eyes. 

“Please, mother, don’t kill us again.” 

Helen held up the frying pan with one hand and grabbed the handle of the front door with the other. She shook so violently she could hardly maintain a firm grip on either. Somehow, she yanked the door open and with a blood-curdling scream threw the frying pan out the door. 

“Whoa! Hey, lady. What’s your issue?” A man with long dark hair ducked his head just as the frying pan sailed past him. Helen took one look at him, chuckled for a second, then collapsed into his arms. “Hey, Lou, she’s fainted.” 

“Fainted?” Lou said. “Well, get her inside and help me with this guy, Pete. I think he’s still breathing.” 

Pete laid Helen down onto the couch and left her there to help Lou dig out Tom from under the snow. 

“Typical of city folk,” Pete said. “They come out here thinking they can handle the elements and look at them. One’s a scared rabbit and the other causes an avalanche. My guess is he slammed the door shut.” 

Lou nodded his head in agreement. Once Tom was finally freed, yet out cold, Lou stood up, put his hands on his hips, and declared, “morons.” 

“I better call the doc to come up here right away. Make sure his injuries aren’t worse,” Pete said. 

---

PART IV 

“You must sit down, Mrs. Miller. You’ve suffered a terrible shock,” Dr. Palmer said, urging Helen to sit back on the couch. 

“Helen, the doctor is right,” Tom said through a thermometer sticking out of his mouth. 

“But you’re not hearing me. Where are the children? Where is the woman who came to take them away?” Helen said frantically, looking around the room for a sign, any sign that there were two children in the cabin with her. Tom was no help as his memory of the events that took place that morning were hazy. He didn’t even recall why he was outside attempting to dig the car out, but it’s what his wife said he was doing when the snow fell on top of him. 

“Pete assures me when you threw the frying pan at him, then fainted, that there was no one in the cabin but you. Maybe you dreamt it,” Dr. Palmer suggested. But there was something about the way he fished for an answer that made Helen realize he believed what she said. 

“Or maybe Lou drinks? Or maybe they hid because he scared them and they ran away when he left me here alone on the couch, fainted.” 

Dr. Palmer looked sternly at Helen. She had gone too far with her accusations and knew it. “I don’t think it’s fair to say that about a man you don’t even know who just saved your husband’s life.” 

“You’re right, doctor, I’m sorry,” Helen said, and sat down beside her husband. Dr. Palmer pulled the thermometer from Tom’s mouth and read it. 

“Good, Mr. Miller. Your temperature has gone up slightly. But I’d wait a few hours before attempting to get up or go anywhere.” 

“No need to worry about that, doc. I’m staying put,” Tom said, and laid back onto the couch. Helen looked at him wide-eyed. She hoped they would leave as soon as the doctor left. “There is one thing I wanted to ask you, doc. You’ve lived in this town a long time, I bet?” 

“Sure have,” Dr. Palmer said, and threw his things into his bag. “But I gather that isn’t your question?” 

“Not exactly. Now, I don’t quite remember the events that led me outside, but I remember seeing a headstone out there. Something about a witch?” Tom said. 

“A witch?” Helen gasped. “Why didn’t you say anything before to me about it?” 

“If you recall, dear, I was stuck under snow. I kinda had other things on my mind till now. I’m lucky to be alive.” Helen nodded curtly and smiled. 

“Oh, you found that, did you? Well, no need to worry about it. And don’t believe the gossip in town about this cabin being haunted. There is no truth to the rumor, and its pure coincidence—” 

“What is?” Helen asked, “What’s pure coincidence?” 

“Well, that no couple has ever stayed here for more than a night. How long did you folks say you’ve been staying here?” 

“A week,” Tom said. 

“There you are then,” Dr. Palmer said. He slapped his knees and got to his feet, bag in hand. “I’ll be on my way. You remember what I said, stay off your feet for a while. You could experience moments of dizziness.” 

“Wait a minute,” Helen said, and blocked the front of from doctor, preventing him from leaving. “What about that witch's headstone? Who was she?” 

“Helen, let it go, please,” Tom pleaded. 

“I want to know.” 

Dr. Palmer sat back down and sighed. “Well, you must understand, back then being accused of practicing in witchcraft was not uncommon. False accusations were also not uncommon. In this very cabin lived a single woman who kept to herself. But as you can see by the size of this place, it’s large enough for a family and therefore a family was forced upon her. Two young children to be exact.” 

“You mean she had to take them in?” Tom asked. Helen covered her mouth to stop herself from speaking as she hung on every word. 

“The town believed she practiced in witchcraft. Spells and potions and things. Which was why she kept to herself most of the time. The town felt sorry for the children. But they needed a place to stay, and there was no one who could take them. It wasn’t long before they were found on the side of the road early one morning.” 

“What happened to them?” Tom asked. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” Helen said. “They froze to death trying to get away from that woman. Probably looking for their real mother or someone who would care for them as much as a real mother should.” 

Tom and the doctor looked at Helen, surprised at the passion in her voice. 

Dr. Palmer continued, “The town blamed themselves for what happened. They got together and tried her on the spot. Her crime was spending too much time working on spells and potions and neglecting her duties of looking after the two children left in her care. The punishment in those days was death by hanging.” Helen drew in a deep breath and held it as he spoke the next words. “It was on one of those tree limbs where they did it. Then they buried her right there as well.” 

“What about the children? What became of their bodies?” 

“Why do you want to know that?” Tom asked, a hint of concern for his wife. 

“Curiosity,” she said with a shrug. 

“Buried where they were found, on the side of the road, not too far from this cabin as a matter of fact. Well, I’ll be off then,” he said, grabbing his bag and making for the door before Helen could stop him again. Just before he crossed the threshold, he turned to them and said, “Mrs. Miller, if you can drive, I would strongly suggest packing up your things and leaving. I find the further away you get from a place like this, the better. I don’t even know why it’s still on the market as a vacation home…” 

Dr. Palmer’s voice trailed off as he closed the door behind him and continued to mumble to himself all the way to his car and down the driveway on the road. 

Helen got to her feet and went right into the bedroom. It was time to pack. She knew how to drive, even though Tom hardly ever let her drive their new car. She would not let him win this argument.  

Tom remained stretched out on the couch, listening to the sounds of his wife pack their things. He wanted to stop her and make her rest. Clearly, she wasn’t in her right mind, still frantic from the events of the day that she imagined. But he had to admit, even he wanted to get out of that cabin. Knowing he could’ve died under that avalanche of snow put a lot of things into perspective for him; like the fact that he wanted to live! 

Helen rolled two suitcases out of the bedroom and looked around the living room for anything that belonged to them she may have forgotten to pack. 

“Tom, we’re leaving, and I don’t want any arguments. I’m driving.” 

“You won’t get any from me. Just help me to my feet, would ya? The room is spinning a bit.” 

Helen grabbed him around the waist, and he wrapped an arm around her neck. She hoisted him to his feet and propped him up against the wall by the front door to help him on with his coat and walked him to the passenger side of the car. Pete and Lou were kind enough to not only extract Tom from the snow, but they also cleared it away from the car so they could safely drive out when they were ready to leave. 

As Helen loaded up the suitcases in the back of the car, Tom pushed back his seat so he could sleep. The last thing he wanted was for his dizziness to cause him to get carsick on the road. 

“Do you mind if I put on the radio?” Helen asked her husband as she fastened her seatbelt and started the car. 

“As long as you don’t mind if I sleep?” 

Helen turned on the radio and tuned it to a talk radio station, turning the volume down low so as not to disturb him. She then adjusted the rearview mirror so she could see the backseat better. 

“Fasten your seatbelts,” she said to Mary and William, while Tom snored loudly.

THE END