17#17

16

Katherine languished in a gloomy cellar, barely sustained on thin gruel.

Her untreated shoulder wound festered, permeating the air with a revolting odor.

Initially, she cried out for help, but her pleas echoed in the emptiness.

Despair engulfed her, leaving her utterly isolated.

I wondered if this mirrored my feelings after death.

When she'd proposed terminating my mother's medical care, I'd experienced that same overwhelming hopelessness.

During Terry's next visit, Katherine was barely conscious.

Too weak to plead, she lay motionless, her gaze vacant.

"Weren't you the one unafraid of death, Katherine?"

"Didn't you claim willingness to sacrifice anything for those I love? Well, here's your opportunity."

Terry's voice was chillingly composed.

He set the cellar ablaze.

Katherine's screams pierced the air, more haunting than any banshee's wail.

But death eluded her.