A few years have passed since I moved out of my parents' house to stand on my own two feet. While most things were difficult to manage at the beginning of my independent life, I now do them in my sleep.
a daily, weekly, even yearly routine that has always worked and there's not much that can break it. except when you realize sooner or later that the perfect life you've supposedly built isn't so perfect after all.
For example, when you realize that the monthly costs are too high to put any significant money aside and it will probably be difficult to pay off your student loan. and when the tax authorities come knocking at your door for a tax audit, you really realize what it means to be an adult.
some time ago i was in a terrible crisis because i had massive debts that i couldn't pay and my mother also died. and as i was an only child and my father died when i was a child, my mother was the last person i could count on. it was around that time that i started to see her.
the woman on the side of the road. i didn't notice her at first, but the more often she appeared, the more often i noticed her. at the time, i thought she was just a simple middle-aged woman waiting for her bus. but the more often i saw her, the more it increased. in the beginning, i saw her maybe once a month. then eventually twice, then eventually several times a week and eventually every day. and she always looked at me. She had long brown hair and a few strands of gray. Otherwise she was quite pretty. She wore a white short-sleeved top with a black skirt that went down to her feet. She also wore a bracelet
her face was emotionless and no one who walked past her seemed to interact with her. a month before the event, i started seeing her even at night. and during the night, she stood even closer to my house. she was not on the opposite side of the street but on mine, staring at the house. when this was the case, some strange things often happened. i heard someone knocking on the door but i didn't have the courage to open it because i assumed the woman was stalking me. then i heard doors and even windows opening and closing. i tried to speak to her a few times but every time i stepped out of the house she was gone. it was almost as if she had vanished into thin air.
And two weeks before the event, I saw her everywhere. At home, at work, on the way home, in my favorite cafe. everywhere. i only saw her in the corner of my eye. but the really scary thing happened the night before the event. i woke up in the middle of the night because i saw her in my dreams. she ran up to me and asked me for help. but she didn't explain what she wanted me to help her with. she just repeated it until i woke up. a shiver ran down my spine because my door was ajar and i saw her peeking through the slit. i wanted to scream at her to leave me alone, but i couldn't get a sound out. she turned around and disappeared into the darkness.
i contacted the police, but when they searched my house they found no one. there was no sign of a break-in either.
i worked at a tech company as a computer scientist and even though i was earning well i could only just cover my costs. and then there were still the back payments to the tax office. i couldn't even afford a car so i had to walk. i remained optimistic that my situation would change at some point. but most of all i hoped i wouldn't see the woman again.
and then came the event that changed my life. that evening i was walking home from work. it was a friday so it was the weekend and i don't know why but something made me take a detour through a forest. the forest atmosphere was incredibly calming. for the first time, i was able to really reflect. i came to the conclusion that i imagined the older woman as a reaction to my mother's death. that i didn't want to be alone and longed for a mother figure to lean on. i lay down in the grass and closed my eyes.
i was about to sink into the realm of dreams in the middle of the forest when i was suddenly awakened by a loud scream. i jumped up and looked around. i heard a woman screaming from a distance. i don't know why i didn't call the police right away, but i ran in the direction of the noise. i was afraid that someone was in danger that i had to help.
and then i saw them. two older, broad men who had gagged and tied up a young woman. they pressed their hands over the woman's mouth as she screamed in panic for help while they tried to tape it shut with duct tape. as they were still busy with the woman and were inattentive, i was able to pick up a thick stick nearby and sneak up on them. i reached out and pulled the stick over the head of one of them. he fell unconscious and the other first wondered whether he should attack me but then took flight.
the woman cried bitterly and i freed her. then i called the police. in the meantime, i stayed with the crying and traumatized woman and assured her that everything was fine and that nothing would happen to her. the man who had been knocked unconscious was arrested immediately and his partner was arrested as well. the two were wanted criminals who had already taken the life of a middle-aged woman after torturing and raping her.
when an ambulance arrived alongside the police, the woman was given medical treatment while the policemen questioned me. they told me that they needed a witness statement from me and took me to the police station. afterwards, i visited the woman in hospital. and she thanked me from the bottom of her heart. She explained that she was afraid at that moment she would share the fate of her mother, who was also murdered, but now she is happy that she is well. we talked for a while and got to know each other a little. and it got late.
i explained to her that i had to go now but that we would surely see each other again. she thanked me again and said goodbye. when i stepped outside i saw her again. the woman. she was standing on the other side of the street again. although it was raining i could clearly see that she was smiling at me. and then she made a sign for me to follow her.
i took this as a chance to find out what she wanted from me. also because i hoped to finally have my peace. i followed her and while i did so she always kept eye contact even if that meant walking backwards. i was a bit confused but whenever i called out to her where she wanted me to go she just kept quiet and made the gesture again that i should follow her.
she eventually led me to the town cemetery and there to the grave of a ruby miller. when i finally caught up with her she had her back turned to me and was staring at the headstone. she turned and looked me in the eye and i could see that she had tears in her eyes.
she began to speak: "i suppose you're wondering who i am and why i was watching you. after everything that happened, you deserve an answer. the girl you saved today. she's my daughter"
i looked at her in disbelief and replied: "what? that's a very macabre joke, isn't it? she told me her mother is dead".
"she is" she replied and showed me the gravestone. "my name is ruby miller. the men who were arrested today abused and killed me some time ago. they took my daughter's photo from my wallet and told me before they killed me that they would find my daughter and do the same to her."
I didn't know what to say so I just listened carefully.
"in the afterlife, i was looking for a way to help my daughter. souls are no longer bound by time after death. this allowed me to find a solution in different timelines to save my daughter. and in every timeline in which my daughter survived, you were the one who saved her. so i returned to my timeline, tracked you down and led you into the forest.
thank you from the bottom of my heart. i hope you know that you are her guardian angel. finally i can rest in peace now that i know my daughter is safe."
suddenly she pulled a ring she wore on her right hand off her finger.
"i want you to have this. this is my wedding ring. a gift from my husband. we were wealthy. this is a five-carat diamond ring. it was buried with me, but i don't think i have any use for it anymore. but for you, it can be a key out of your difficult situation."
she handed me the ring and came up to me for a hug. i closed my eyes for just a moment and when i opened them again she was gone. the only thing i heard was the rain pattering on the headstones and the grass. i stood in front of the headstone for a few more minutes. i still had the ring in my hand. it was hard to process that moment.
i sold the ring for a good price and was finally able to get rid of a significant amount of my debt. samantha, the woman i saved, became a friend of mine shortly after. but i never told her what happened at the cemetery. or what happened before that fateful day. if i had told her i had met her mother, she would never have believed me. Ruby however never showed up again.
i still cry when i think about it. thank you ruby. sincerely
Comments