You are dead.

Do not argue.

The mirror shows it.

The glass is cracked.

A web of white lines spreads from your left eye to your right cheek.

You look into the shard.

Your face is there.

But it is not yours.

It is a stranger’s face.

It wears a smile you never learned.

It holds a knife you never bought.

"Who are you?" you ask.

The voice is not yours.

It is smooth.

It is cold.

It is the voice of the man in the alley.

The man who died last night.

"Get out," the face says.

You reach for the door.

The handle is rusted.

It sticks.

You pull.

It will not move.

The room smells of copper.

And rot.

And old, sweet bread.

You know that smell.

You made it this morning.

Before the change.

Before the blood.

You remember the oven.

The heat.

The yeast rising.

It was so simple.

So quiet.

Now the air is thick.

It presses against your skin.

It tastes of iron.

You look at your hands.

They are stained.

Red.

Not paint.

Not juice.

Blood.

Dried.

Cracked.

Like the mirror.

Like the earth after a drought.

You try to wash them.

The faucet is dry.

The pipes are silent.

The city outside is silent.

No cars.

No sirens.

No birds.

Just the wind.

Whistling through the broken windows.

This is a trick.

You tell yourself.

A hallucination.

A fever dream.

You are Margaret Holloway.

You are forty years old.

You live in this flat in London.

You bake bread for the neighbors.

You are kind.

You are gentle.

You are not a killer.

But the mirror does not care for your memories.

It shows you the truth.

It shows you the knife.

In your hand.

You drop it.

It clatters on the floor.

The sound is loud.

Too loud.

It echoes in the empty room.

It shakes the dust from the ceiling.

You back away.

Your heart hammers.

A bird in a cage.

A trapped thing.

You look at the window.

The glass is gone.

Only the frame remains.

The rain comes in.

Cold.

Dark.

It soaks your dress.

You shiver.

Not from the cold.

From the fear.

From the knowledge.

You did this.

You remember now.

The alley.

The man.

He looked at you.

He smiled.

It was the same smile as the face in the mirror.

You hit him.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

You did not stop.

You wanted to stop.

But your hands would not obey.

They were not your hands.

They were his.

You took his coat.

You took his name.

You took his life.

And now you are wearing it.

Like a skin that fits too tight.

The rain intensifies.

It pools on the floor.

It reaches your feet.

It rises.

Slowly.

Inevitably.

You stand still.

You cannot run.

Where would you go?

To the police?

To the priest?

To God?

They are all gone.

They have abandoned you.

Or perhaps you abandoned them.

Perhaps you chose this.

Perhaps you wanted to be someone else.

Someone dangerous.

Someone free.

Freedom.

Is that what you wanted?

To break the rules?

To shatter the glass?

To kill the monster?

But the monster was you.

It was always you.

The bread.

The sweet, rising yeast.

It was not food.

It was poison.

You fed it to them.

You fed it to yourself.

And now you are full.

Sick.

Drowning in your own making.

The water rises to your ankles.

It is cold.

It bites.

You look at the mirror again.

The face is gone.

The glass is clean.

But the crack remains.

It is a scar.

A permanent mark.

You look at your hands.

They are clean.

The blood is gone.

Washed away by the rain.

But the stain remains.

Under the skin.

In the bone.

In the soul.

You are not Margaret Holloway.

You are the stranger.

You are the man in the alley.

You are the killer.

And you are free.

Is that not what you wanted?

To be unbound?

To be pure?

To be empty?

You are empty now.

Hollow.

Like a bell.

Like a drum.

Like the city outside.

Silent.

Dead.

Waiting.

You take a step.

Into the water.

It rises to your knees.

It rises to your waist.

It rises to your chest.

You do not scream.

You do not cry.

You breathe.

Slowly.

Deeply.

The water covers your mouth.

Your nose.

Your eyes.

The darkness takes you.

The cold takes you.

The peace takes you.

You are still.

You are one.

You are nothing.

And that is enough.

The rain stops.

The silence returns.

The room is dry.

The floor is bare.

The mirror is broken.

The knife is gone.

The blood is gone.

You are gone.

Or are you?

You open your eyes.

You are in your bed.

The sun is shining.

The birds are singing.

The city is waking up.

You sit up.

You look at your hands.

They are clean.

You look at the mirror.

It is whole.

Your face is yours.

Margaret Holloway.

You are alive.

You are safe.

You are free.

You smile.

It is a strange smile.

Cold.

Smooth.

Like the man in the alley.

You get up.

You go to the kitchen.

You take out the flour.

The yeast.

The water.

You mix them.

You knead the dough.

It rises.

It is sweet.

It is alive.

You bake it.

You cut it.

You eat it.

It tastes of ash.

It tastes of blood.

It tastes of freedom.

You wipe your mouth.

You look in the mirror.

The face is yours.

But the eyes are not.

They are empty.

They are deep.

They are waiting.

You pick up the knife.

You hold it tight.

You walk to the door.

You open it.

The city is there.

The people are there.

They are walking.

They are talking.

They are alive.

You step out.

You join them.

You are one of them.

You are no one.

You are everything.

And you are free.

The price is high.

The cost is soul.

But you paid it.

You paid it with blood.

You paid it with fear.

You paid it with life.

And now you have this.

This emptiness.

This silence.

This peace.

Is it worth it?

You do not answer.

You do not need to.

You know.

You have always known.

The door is closed behind you.

The lock is silent.

The key is gone.

You walk into the crowd.

You disappear.

You are lost.

You are found.

You are free.

The bread is warm.

The knife is sharp.

The mirror is cracked.

You are dead.

And alive.

And free.

And alone.

And together.

And everything.

And nothing.

The end.

The beginning.

The middle.

The silence.

The noise.

The breath.

The stop.

The start.

The end.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

You are here.

You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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You are gone.

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