Dawn bled into the horizon, the sky a canvas of fading sunset hues. Elizabeth sat on a bench outside the town's police station, a forgotten sandwich clutched in her hand, now cold and unappetizing. Her expression, a carefully constructed mask of indifference, concealed a turmoil of emotions.
'Feels good spending your last moments with something you love,' she mused, her fingers tracing the sandwich's edges as if it were a cherished keepsake.
Her stomach growled, a stark reminder of her physical needs, but this moment felt too significant to be marred by hunger. 'I haven't done anything with my life, and this is how it's going to end,' she lamented internally.
"Hello, Miss."
A police officer, his uniform crisp and authoritative, approached her with a concerned gaze. His hair, a shade of dirty blonde, appeared almost singed by the sun.
Elizabeth, clad in a simple sweater and her worn sneakers, had spent the previous week frantically attempting to complete her bucket list, with only one item out of twelve crossed off. Her hair was hastily thrown up, a practical style she favored.
The officer drew closer.
"You've been staring blankly for quite some time, and it's raising some concern." His tone was measured, polite yet firm, but Elizabeth bristled at being addressed in such a manner during what she considered her final moments.
"Concern? Officer, benches are placed here for sitting. As a citizen, I believe I have the right to do so."
She was surprised by her own defiance. 'Well, I'm in my final moments, consequences will have to wait for my next life,' she thought wryly.
Her expression remained impassive, a skill honed since childhood. Finally, it was proving useful.
The officer seemed unfazed by her retort, his concern deepening. His hand instinctively rested on his trouser belt, near the walkie-talkie clipped to his uniform. She knew he likely wore a body camera.
"Ma'am, I can see you're troubled, and I'm here to help. I just need you to tell me what's wrong. You're safe here."
Elizabeth scoffed, causing the officer to frown. The station, ironically, was the most dangerous place for her to be, she was about to die by their hands.
"Nothing, officer. I had a moody day. I just need a few minutes to clear my head."
The officer nodded, unconvinced. He held a coffee cup, which Elizabeth hadn't noticed until now. It was likely what drew his attention to her.
"Alright, Miss," he said. "If you need anything, I'm just a few steps away." He turned and walked off, leaving Elizabeth's gaze to linger on his well-defined ass.
Damn.
So much left on her bucket list, experiences she would now never have.
She sighed, a wave of regret washing over her. 'I wish life could have been more favorable to me. I could have been happy-'
She shook her head violently, banishing the intrusive thoughts. With a deliberate exhale, she rose from the bench, clutching the sandwich tightly, and headed toward the station.
The first person she saw upon entering the gate was the officer from earlier, engrossed in conversation with a female officer—or perhaps flirting, though Elizabeth didn't bother to observe closely.
The officer, whose name tag identified him as Aaron, excused himself and approached her.
"Finally agreed you have a problem?"
Elizabeth knew his tone was polite, but she imagined a smug smile playing on his lips. She suppressed the urge to punch him.
"Everybody's got a problem, officer."
Officer Aaron raised an eyebrow, studying her intently. "You look really pale," he observed. "Let's get you to the hospital."
Elizabeth shook her head in refusal. "I need to see the deputy."
Officer Aaron frowned but nodded, gesturing for her to follow him into the station.
Elizabeth was led to a waiting room with a desk and two chairs. She sat down, and a middle-aged man, about 5'7", entered, wearing a suit. Deputy Smith, a man known for his honor and dignity.
Elizabeth stood to show respect but paused, noticing a flicker of recognition in the deputy's eyes.
"I remember you," Deputy Smith said, approaching the vacant seat, two officers behind him, including Aaron. "You're the little girl from the tornado storm incident." He sat down, placing his hands on the desk.
"That was a long time ago, how do you still recognize me?"
"The heart-shaped mark on your cheek. It's unbelievable how such a tremendous event left a perfectly drawn mark on your face. It almost seems hand-drawn." He paused, allowing the moment to pass. "What's the matter, child?"
The walls she had carefully constructed crumbled. Her shaky hands caught the Deputy's attention, and he reached out to hold them, but Elizabeth recoiled.
"You can't…"
Deputy Smith tilted his head, gesturing for the officers to leave.
In a softer tone, he asked again, "Tell me what's wrong."
Elizabeth could still see the love he had for her mother in his eyes.
"I have the disease."
The silence that followed was deafening.
"How did you know?" A crack appeared in his voice.
"For the past two weeks, I've been having memories of possessing different bodies. It's not a coincidence that I wake up with marks on my palm." She held out her hand, displaying her palm. It had tiny, dull strokes that could easily be dismissed, but she knew each stroke appeared every time she slept.
She didn't want pity, and she certainly didn't want the look on the Deputy's face—a mixture of helplessness and defeat.
"There's no cure. You know that, right?" His voice was thick with sadness.
Elizabeth knew he would be sad because she was the only living memory of her mother and family, whom he loved dearly. She was an exact copy of her mother.
"I know." Her mind was made up, but she was still scared.
"It's almost dawn, and I don't want you sleeping anytime soon," he added, forcing a laugh as if to lighten the tension. "I should get them to start the fire."
Elizabeth gulped, her throat constricting. Her death was today, and it would be by burning.
She already knew this.
Having the nightshade disease could only be undone by death by burning.
Deputy Smith rose and walked through the door, presumably to initiate the fire-making process.
According to the newspapers, there had been a surge of people with nightshade disease and an unacceptable number of deaths. Typically, those with nightshade disease would subject their family to the same fate, but she was the last of her family.
What if this was a bad decision?
"What am I doing?" she whispered, feeling fear for the first time that evening. "I… I have to leave."
The door closed behind Deputy Smith. Elizabeth stood and approached the door, confirming her fears. it was locked.
She knocked. "I think it's locked!"
"Yes, you can't go outside for now, ma'am," Aaron's voice responded.
Her heart raced. This was happening, there was no turning back. Clearly, she hadn't thought this through before coming to the station.
Elizabeth exhaled shakily and leaned against the wall, staring at her sandwich on the desk, begging to be eaten. Clenching her fist, she tilted her head back and slammed it against the wall.
The force made her dizzy, but it would do.
She stumbled back to her chair, rested her head on the desk, and reached for her sandwich.
She heard a noise outside. "She's sleeping, we need to hurry up!"
However, sleep came quickly, her head spinning.
_________
A rosy scent permeated the air as a lady lay in bed, dressed in a fine, silky nightgown, seemingly melting into the softness of her cotton mattress and silky bedsheets.
However, she was struggling with herself, a silent battle unnoticed by the man beside her, whose relaxed smile suggested a pleasurable evening.
The struggle ceased.
A dim light filtered through the room, the moon the only source of brightness.
The lady rose from the mattress, seemingly devoid of a soul, her eyes vacant. She walked around to her husband, her leg hitting a jug absentmindedly. The noise woke her husband.
"It's late, woman, you can call the maids if you need something." His sleepy, husky voice filled the room. It was Mayor Adams.
His wife, Lady Hira, approached him and he couldn't help but open his eyes. He couldn't see her face clearly, but judging from the aura he felt, something was wrong.
"You don't seem yourself-" he began, but she grabbed him by the neck with a strong grip. "SECURI-" his attempts to free himself were futile.
She kissed him, shoving her tongue into his mouth in a steaming, passionate embrace.
She broke off the kiss, noticing he had turned pale. She released his face, and Mayor Adams fell lifeless onto the bed.
A security guard walked in.
"I heard you call, sir-" The head security stood stunned at the scene before him. His eyes left the mayor's body and rose to Lady Hira. Her lifeless eyes and aura told him what was wrong.
Instantly, he ran off.
Perhaps from realization, Lady Hira blinked, regaining consciousness. For the first time since the disease, Elizabeth felt awareness inside another body.
Where is this place? she wondered, looking at the unfamiliar environment. Her eyes scanned the dimly lit room.
Soon, they fell on Mayor Adams.
"Oh My-" she slapped her hand over her mouth.
He's dead.
She needed to leave immediately!
Her eyes darted to the window. Knowing it was the Mayor's residence, his house was a five-story mansion. She wouldn't survive a fall. But she had to.
She stepped close to the window, peering out to assess the distance-
"If you fall, you'll die." A voice came from the shadows of the room.
Elizabeth had never been so startled. She almost tripped over the window frame. It was dark, so she couldn't see who it was.
"I didn't do it on purpose, I swear!" Elizabeth's heart pounded, almost bursting from her chest.
The voice chuckled richly. "It's never on purpose."
"This will never happen again, I promise, just let me go, please."
From the direction of his voice, Elizabeth could tell he was sitting down. The smell of cigarettes reached her nose.
"That's not my problem now, eh?" Elizabeth heard a little tapping, probably dusting off his cigarette. "My question is… how'd you gain consciousness inside the body?"
Elizabeth hadn't had time to consider that yet. She just wanted to be safe first.
The man continued. "And how'd you get here?" he said. "There's a lot of concoctions around the mansion to prevent your kind from entering."
She wasn't about to respond when she clearly didn't know the answer. But then something clicked, and she asked, "Why didn't you stop me?"
"That wouldn't be fun now, would it?" he said with a chuckle. "Security will be here in about five minutes. You can choose to follow me or jump."