The Guide

A tawny owl with white on its face and chest was perched upon the high branch of a naked oak, the leaves dead and gone since the first snowfall of winter. The owl’s large golden eyes searched in the darkness, watching. Waiting.

A black carriage rolled up along the gravel drive to the small, secluded cabin just outside the village. The door to the carriage opened and a figure dressed in a black suit holding a large brown suitcase stepped out onto the gravel. Before affixing his top hat upon his head, the man turned, his eyes meeting the owl’s.

The gentleman stood still for a moment, considering the creature in its stillness and absurdity before the creak of the door to the cabin drew his attention.

“Doctor, thank you for coming at such a late hour. My wife…”

The doctor waved his gloved hand and allowed himself into the home, pushing past the young man who appeared to have aged beyond his years in the light of the fireplace.

“An owl sits outside your home, Mister Barnaby. I will do my best to help your wife, though, I cannot promise death will not take her.” His tone was neither grim nor condescending, just matter-of-fact.

As the doctor moved through the home and into the room where the young Mrs. Barnaby lay in bed, the husband followed. Before stepping foot into the door way, the doctor opened up his case and wrapped a white linen cloth about his mouth and nose.

The young man put a hand upon the doctor’s shoulder. “Doctor Smith, I don’t understand what you mean by this owl nonsense, I just want my wife back. She is in a delicate situation.” His voice dropped a bit at the last part.

The doctor shrugged him off. “Sir, science cannot be trifled with and if your wife is in a delicate condition with the sickness she has contracted, I cannot guarantee either will make it out alive. Now, please allow me to do my job.”

Mr. Barnaby’s brown eyes appeared troubled. The doctor could see the conflict within the man and turned to talk to him.

“I will insure your wife will be comfortable.”

The young man could only nod his head before allowing the doctor to enter the room. Mrs. Barnaby’s brow sheened with sweat as her brows knit together in pain. Her breathing was halting and uneven.

Doctor Smith rolled up his sleeves before stepping over to the window. He pushed the rafters open, allowing the cold winter wind into the room. Once again, his eyes met the deep round eyes set in the white heart-shaped face of the owl. He felt he and the owl were at war with one another in that moment where the doctor was the one trying to save lives and this owl was looking to take their spirits.

The owl tilted its head and ruffled its feathers as it settled in wait upon the tree branch just outside the woman’s room. Doctor Smith shook his head before looking at the young woman laying on her deathbed. He could see her breathing ease a degree, though he knew the battle was only beginning.

Doctor Smith examined her, watching each pained breath before taking out a small glass container full of leeches. He set the glass to the side before taking ahold of her wrist, pressing his fingers to the base. He counted each beat against the pads of his two fingers as he watched the second hand on his pocket watch tick until it reached the sixty second mark. Her respirations were quick and uneven.

He tried not to think of the owl waiting outside as he applied three leeches strategically to the inside of each of the woman’s arms. As he allowed the leeches to take blood for a few minutes, he did an examination to confirm the woman’s delicate condition. He pressed around her belly, noticing how the slight roundness was not firm as he would expect.

Recognizing what was occurring, he removed the leeches, replacing them in the glass container. He looked down at the young woman, her dark hair splayed over the pillow and her skin as pale as the sheet over her body. Doctor Smith knew that she would not survive in that moment.

The husband walked in and knelt beside his wife’s bedside, clasping her hand in his. Doctor Smith finished packing up his things before turning to watch the young woman and her husband.

“Do you know what is wrong with her, doctor?” The husband asked, his choked voice breaking the still silence in the room. “Is there anything you can do for her or our baby?”

Doctor Smith could only shake his head as he looked at the young man’s eyes. “I am sorry, Barnaby. Your wife is bleeding inside her body and I suspect she has contracted an infection from whatever is causing the bleeding.” He paused with a sigh before placing his hand on the man’s shoulder. “She will no longer be in any pain.”

As he said the words, the owl watched as the woman’s soul left her body with her last breath, a smaller following hers. Neither human could see them as their spirits floated out through the open shaft. Outside of the home, the woman’s soul took on the same shape as her mortal body, and in her arms was the baby that had been growing in her womb.

The owl looked upon them, yet to them he appeared as a man in white with kind eyes. He only extended his arms before speaking. “Follow me and you will suffer no more pain or suffering.”

The woman smiled softly and nodded. Then the owl took flight into the sky, the spirits following him into the shining light of eternity.