Chapter 61

 I should have never said anything to Maisie. If I knew this was how she was going to react, I would not have told her I wanted to leave. Even before Miles confronted me about the money, I could not get the image of Maisie covered in blood out of my mind. When I brought her here from the tavern, I never expected this to happen to our family. She was here to be a wife and mother, not to witness murders and cook human meat for dinner.

Maisie’s eyes were wide in horror as she listened to Miles come down the stairs, but she did not turn. Miles did not have his usual blank expression. His brows were furrowed, jaw clenched, and hands balled at his side. His glare was ice cold, and I was prepared for him to come forward to attack me. Instead, he went straight to Maisie and grabbed her shoulder. She took in a sharp breath and wiped the tears off her cheeks.

How quickly would she tell him? My mind raced to think of an excuse, but nothing coherent formed. My mouth had gone dry, and my tongue was heavy. I cleared my throat to ensure it did not crack from fear. Miles could not know I was afraid. I was his father. I needed to be brave.

“What is wrong?” Miles asked Maisie.

She needed to speak, but another sob escaped her lips. Her hand trembled as she raised it to cover her mouth. At least she was trying to control herself.

“Maisie,” Miles said.

She squeezed her eyes shut as she shook her head. A few more tears rolled down her cheeks. Miles took a step back, but his hand did not leave her shoulder. His eyes assessed her for any injuries. Did he think I would hurt her?

Miles turned his attention to me and narrowed his gaze.

“Why is she upset?” he asked.

“She is emotional,” I said. “You have seen her like this before.”

“What happened this time?”

I took in a deep breath. He cannot know what I was planning. Would he kill me if he found out? He so easily killed all of those other people because he thought they would hurt Maisie. My son had always been different, but I let him become a monster.

I had to lie if I was going to get Maisie and Jasper out of this house. I had to save the Wilcox family from Miles.

“We were talking about Briar,” I said.

Maisie opened her eyes but did not lower her hand. Did she know what I was doing?

“Why?” Miles asked. “You know she cries.”

“She started it,” I lied. “I told her it was a bad idea, but she would not listen.”

Maisie furiously shook her head as she lowered her hand. She tried to speak, but it came out as short bursts of shaky breath as she tried to control herself.

“You should go upstairs to rest,” I told Maisie.

Hopefully, if she disclosed what I had told her, Miles would think it was emotional and delusional nonsense. If she continued to cry, he might even use the tranquillizer. If she were unconscious, I would have time to think of either a plan or an excuse to tell Miles.

“You’re lying!” she screamed.

Miles yanked her closer. She stumbled as she fell into his chest. Her movements were jerky as she tried to fight against his grip. She let out a frustrated scream as she tried to hit him.

A high-pitched cry came from upstairs. Maisie must have woken Jasper. Miles wrapped his arms tightly around Maisie to pin her to his chest. Why could he have not turned her the other way? I hated seeing her cry.

“We need to get her upstairs,” I told Miles.

“Jasper is crying,” he said. “He won’t be able to sleep if she is like this.”

“There is more tranquillizer in the barn,” I said.

“No!” Maisie screamed. She tried to shake Miles off but could barely move in his grip. “You’re a liar, Joseph! You-“

“Upstairs,” I cut her off. “Miles, we cannot let her act this way.”

“I’m not leaving!”

She closed her eyes and rolled her head against Miles’s chest. Her body heaved with sobs as she struggled to breathe. We had to make her unconscious before she started babbling about what I had said.

“You are leaving the kitchen,” I said. Miles did not seem suspicious about what she had screamed, but I could never read his expression. “We cannot let you be emotional down here. You need to rest.”

Maisie made a noise, which sounded like a mess of incoherent words. Miles dragged her toward the staircase, and her fighting had stopped. I stayed close behind as he pulled her into their bedroom. Jasper’s cries rang in my ears. I glanced in the crib to see his face was red, tears rolling down his cheeks, and he was throwing his fists in the air. Miles pushed Maisie onto the bed. She was gasping for breath as she was unable to control herself. She swung her hand, but Miles snatched her wrists. I could not leave her side until she was unconscious.

I placed my hand on Miles’s shoulder. He looked over his shoulder at me.

“Go grab the tranquillizer,” I said. “I will watch her.”

“Why me?” he asked.

“Do you want to stay here with all this noise?” I asked. Miles said nothing but looked at the crib. “Exactly. Go get the tranquilizer.”

Miles let out a huff of breath and let go of Maisie’s wrists. She covered her face with her hands as she continued to sob. Miles stormed out of the room and rushed outside. I sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed her wrists. She flinched at my touch but let me pull her hands away from her face. She closed her eyes and shook her head, still struggling to control herself.

“Maisie, look at me,” I said. Her eyes were closed as she shook with sobs. I tightened my grip on her wrists. “This is not what I wanted to happen. I want to protect you and Jasper. We cannot let that baby grow up in a house thinking that cannibalism is normal. We cannot do that to my grandson.”

Maisie refused to open her eyes. Jasper’s crying continued, causing my temple to ache.

“Joseph,” she sobbed. “I’m not leaving.”

I bit down on my lip as I watched her suck in a few deep breaths. How would I get her out of the house if she fought me like this? A few years ago, I was only able to get her into our home because she was unconscious. How would I get both her unconscious body and Jasper out of this house? I could not carry both. She needed to go with me voluntarily. I needed to convince her this was a good idea.

“You cannot say anything to Miles,” I said. “He will kill me if he knows.”

“No.” Her voice was weak and shaky. “I’m not leaving my family.”

I sighed and let go of her wrists. Her hands trembled as she wiped the tears off her cheeks. I stood and walked over to Jasper, who was continuing to cry. I picked him up and cradled him in my arms. Clara had always been better at making our children stop crying, but I copied how she used to bounce and coo at our babies.

When Miles came back into the bedroom, Maisie was curled on her side. She was trying to control herself, but I could see her shoulders shake every time she sobbed. Jasper’s crying had calmed, but he was still fussing. Miles had the rag in his hand. He placed his knee on the bed and reached over Maisie. He was able to easily pull her hands away from her face and cover her face with the rag. She tried to fight but soon fell unconscious.

Miles groaned as he straightened and dropped the rag on the nightstand. He ran his fingers through his hair as he looked down at Maisie. Luckily, Jasper had quieted in my arms. I should have set him back down in the crib, but I was paralyzed as I watched Miles and Maisie. He reached down and began unfastening the buttons on her dress.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“You told me to do this,” he said as he continued to remove her dress.

I swallowed past the lump forming in my throat. He was right. I was the one told him to remove her clothes when she was unconscious. I taught him how to care for his family, but I never thought it would turn him into a monster.

I turned and carried Jasper out of the room, not wanting to witness this any longer.