Subj: Minerva's Revenge
Date: 2/15/02 12:18:17 PM Central Standard Time
From: Peggy Boone

Gregory Trask sat in his room at Worthington Hall. His Bible laid open on his lap. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He was having trouble sleeping. His wife, Minerva, had been dead and buried for two weeks and he still had not been able to go to sleep. He was still furious with Charity. She had gone to him with a ridiculous story a few days ago that she had seen her mother. He had slapped her and sent her to her room. He hadn't seen Timothy Shaw since his wife had been found dead. He supposed he would have to go try to find him. He finally closed his eyes and went to sleep. He had been asleep for half an hour when he heard a familiar voice.

"Gregory."

He looked around, but the only one in the room was him. He went out into the hall and went downstairs, but no one was there. Charity and the children were asleep in their rooms. He turned and went back to his room. When he got inside, he locked the door. He turned down the bed and got in. After he said his night time prayers, he closed his eyes and went to sleep. Soon, he heard, "Gregory."

He sat up in bed and looked around the bedroom, but no one was there. The only sounds in the bedroom was him taking in struggling breaths of air. He didn't know what was happening to him and who was trying to frighten him. He slid back down under the covers and went back to sleep. He had closed his eyes for about five minutes before he heard the familiar voice.

"Gregory."

Beads of perspiration appeared on his face as he finally was aware of whose voice he had been hearing. It was the voice of his late wife, Minerva.

He wondered who he knew who would be able to imitate his wife. He didn't know who hated him enough to go such a thing. The only one he could think of, was Timothy Shaw. The only thing was that he didn't know where he had gone. When he went to Charity's room to wake her up, he found that she had vanished in the middle of the night. The next night, he was sitting in his room with his open Bible on his lap. He was too distracted to concentrate on the pages in front of him. He could feel his eyelids growing heavy. He tried his best to stay awake, but he lost his fight. His head fell forward and his eyes closed. He was asleep. He was unwary of what was going on in the bedroom. He felt his body was being drained of all energy. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He wondered if he was becoming ill. He tossed fitfully. In his subconscious, he could see Minerva and himself at Worthington Hall back when she was alive. The two of them were having an argument. Timothy Shaw was there but he couldn't see what he was doing. He woke up with a scream. When he looked around the bedroom, he saw he was alone. He went to sleep with the bedclothes clutched tightly in two white-knuckled fists. He suddenly felt a cool breeze blow across the bed. When he looked, he saw the window in the bedroom was open. Crawling out of bed, he walked over and closed the window. Before he was able to turn around, he again heard the familiar voice.

"Gregory."

He turned around. This time, instead of the room being empty, he saw a shadow standing in front of him. When it became clearer, his late wife, Minerva, was glaring at him. "Please go away. Leave me alone."

"Why should I?"

"Someone will see you."

"The only ones who will be able to see me are those that I want to see me."

"What do you want?"

"I want to know why you murdered me."

"I didn't. Timothy Shaw did. Please go away."

"No, Gregory. You stole my life and home away from me. You hurt both Charity and me. I am back here to stay."

Reverend Gregory Trask turned on his heel and started for the door. When he got to it and reached his hand toward the doorknob and tried to open the door, he found that it was locked. He began pounding on the door in the hope that someone on the other side would unlock the door, but, no one did.

Minerva's laughter rang out when she watched her husband's futile attempt to get the door open. Finally, he sank to the floor in utter desperation. As he sat there on the floor, he thought that if Charity returned, she could unlock the door and let him out. He covered his face with both trembling hands. He'd thought that the next time he looked, she would be gone. When he lowered the hands and opened his eyes, Minerva stook by the locked door. He finally got up from the floor, went over to the bed and collapsed onto it.

Trask was not sure why Minerva had returned and what she wanted from him. In his mind, he had not done anything to her. He was not sure if it was something he had dreamed or not. Minerva walked over to the bed and reached her hand out toward her cowaring husband. She allowed her fingers to brush over his cheek. When he felt the cold dead flesh against his face, he screamed. Minerva's laughter echoed in the bedroom. Her husband clamped his hands over his ears. He wasn't sure how long he had been held a prisoner in the bedroom. He didn't know how much more he would be able to stand. He didn't know where Charity had gone. He wondered if she had brought his wife back. He decided that Timothy Shaw had helped her. He knew that the truth would be found out when they found Timothy Shaw.

Soon, he fell asleep. As he laid curled up in a fetal position on the bed, Minerva sat in a chair across the room and watched him sleep. She didn't see him move. She smiled a satisfied little smile. When she returned, she did it to find the one responsible for her death. He claimed that Timothy Shaw did it, but, she did not believe him. Trask was awakened by a sudden noise in the hall outside the locked bedroom. He slid off of the bed and hurried over to the door. He knew who was in the hallway. Charity has come back he thought. Now she will find a way to get me out of this infernal room. "Who's out there?"

"Charity?"

"Is that you, father?"

"Who do you think it is?"

"What's wrong?"

"The door is locked and I can't get out. Try to find someone."

"There is no one else here but me."

"Father."

"What, Charity?"

"Tim didn't murder mother. You did."

"I most certainly did not!"

"Mother said you did."

"When did you speak to your mother?"

"Just before she died. It is your fault that she is gone and I am not staying here any longer."

"Charity."

"What?"

"I have seen your mother. She is in here with me and I want her to go away."

"Why, father, you told me that I had not seen mother." Charity added. "I'm leaving now. Good-bye father."

Trask heard her walking away from the door to the bedroom he had shared with Minerva. When he no longer heard Charity, he began shouting at her. "Do what I told you. Don't walk away when I am speaking to you!" He didn't hear his daughter return. He began pounding on the door with both fists and screaming for Charity.

Suddenly, he stopped, screamed and clutched his chest. As the pain spread down his arm, he sank down to his knees. He turned his eyes toward Heaven, said the words, "God, help me. I beg of you." He then fell over onto the floor.

Minerva stood looking down at her husband's body. A smile played over her lips. She took one more look at him, then she vanished.

Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis Production