Destiny

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. Cassie let out a small gasp and stared at the glimmering light in awe. This was it! This was THE moment! This was HER moment!

Cassie never understood why she was so attracted to and constantly frequented Cormier Woods. Located in the heart of Blackstone River Valley, laid an 175 acre open space preserve. Surrounded by lush trees, the winding river, various hiking trails, and of course the historic 18th century colonial farm complex. On this complex, there were several log cabins flanked by oak, pine and sycamore trees. It was rustic, haunting and beautiful all at once.

From the very first moment her adoptive parents brought her to these woods, she knew she would never be the same. Cassandra felt a sense of belonging. A sense of yearning. A sense of duty. Was it destiny? Was it fate? Was it some longing for a past life? She never knew the reasons why. She just felt whole. She felt the most home there, most like herself.

Every weekend for the past 5 years, Cassie would pack her backpack full of water, snacks, a flashlight, books and bike her way into Cormier Woods. She would spend the mornings exploring and hiking through the various trails. The afternoons, eating lunch and reading near the riverbanks. And in the early evenings, she would explore the farm complex. She always left the complex for the evenings. This was her routine day in and day out. And it finally happened.

When that candle light flickered on, Cassie’s whole world finally made sense. She took a deep breath, exhaled and slowly made her way up the dirt walkway. The stairs creaked under her weight. She pushed open the door and made her way inside. Pointing her flashlight into the darkness, she could make out the dust covered and scarcely furnished cabin. The nauseating smell of moss, mold, mildew and the unmistakable smell of burnt charcoal filled the air. Cassie took a moment to compose herself before heading straight to the dimly lit candle.

The candle danced in the darkness, flickering and swaying back and forth. It was the most hypnotic of ballets. Cassie reached out to grab it, when she heard small footsteps behind her. Cassie turned around and saw a small child dressed in all black. To her horror, the child croaked, “Hello Cassandra…welcome home”. Frozen in terror, Cassie gawked at the child in front of her. The more she stared, she realized it was a little girl no more than 5 years old. The girl’s flesh was deep red, scarred and blistered to the point of unrecognition. Just staring at her was painful. The stench was awful. At that moment, she realized it wasn’t charcoal she initially smelled, but burnt flesh.

In a raspy voice, the child spoke again “I said welcome home…do you not remember me? What happened here?” Cassie slowly shook her head back and forth. She could not utter a single word. The child grinned, the charred flesh hung off her grin like tattered curtains. “Well let me remind you sweet sister…this was our home…is our home. You promised me you would return when it was time! It’s time now! You’re my sister Cassandra and you were a witch. I was not…but they burned me anyway. I suffered because of you. I burned because of you!”

Cassie was dumbstruck. All she could do was shake her head back and forth. She finally let out a small, “Noooo, that’s not me…it wasn’t me”. The little girl scoffed and inched her way closer “Why do you think you kept coming back here Cassie…it’s your guilt! You left me home all alone! It’s your guilt! You left me to die! It’s your guilt and your burden. And you’re finally here to make it right”. Cassie stared in disbelief, “How do I make it right?” The little girl laughed, “Simple…by doing unto them as they did to me”. Confused, Cassie stared at the little girl. The child answered and pointed at the door, “Here they come”.

Cassie turned her head to the front door. She could hear her parents calling out for her. At that moment, everything clicked into place. Cassie was adopted by Hilary and Marcus Grant. Marcus was the great-great grandson of Miller Grant, the owner of Miller farms where Cassandra and her little sister, Samantha, worked and lived. Cassie was 18 and Sam was 5 when Miller accused Cassie of witchcraft. Oh Massachusetts! One evening, Miller Grant decided to burn Cassie and Sam alive. Cassie managed to escape but unfortunately, Sam was burned alive. Cassie watched in tears, as her sister and cabin burned. That night she vowed revenge on the entire Miller bloodline. Tonight was the last of them. Sam looked up at Cassie and nodded. Cassie nodded back and called back to her parents “Mom…dad…I’m in here”. It was THE moment. It was HER moment to make things right. Cassandra smirked as she finally fulfilled her destiny.