Epilogue.
Mummy
A s Mummy shuffled along the hallway, he cursed that there hadn’t been a mirror in the victim’s room. The man’s soon-to-be-dead son had covered it over. No doubt, wanting to avoid watching what he was doing to harm his dad. Ever since his father had been admitted, the boy arrived and stayed late, leaving around ten. Mummy knew this was unusual, and Marie had discovered he was bribing the late-night caretaker who doubled as a receptionist.
As he approached the room, Mummy heard voices and shuffled into the shadows. Nobody would see him here.
“I’m telling you, Joe, something is wrong. Mr Carpenter is full of bruises; he’s not doing them to himself. And why is his son allowed to stay so late?” a woman demanded.
“Eloise, you know not to pry,” Joe responded.
“The son is hurting him. We can’t allow it to happen,” Eloise replied.
“Do you want to keep your job? Then shut up, Eloise. I like you, so I’m warning you. The bosses here, they’ve sacked many people who they thought were whistle-blowers and then went on to blacklist them,” Joe hissed.
Mummy cocked his head as footsteps stomped away.
“I’ll not let an innocent man suffer abuse,” Eloise murmured and left.
Mummy quickly shuffled to the room where both Mr Carpenters were. He peered through the gap and saw the younger pinch his father cruelly and cover the old man’s mouth.
“All you had to do, Dad, was stay at home. No, you fell and ended up here to recover. Now I can’t get your money because it’s being used to pay for your stay here. Which really makes me angry, so I suggest you start telling people you need to be discharged. Or things will get worse,” the son spat.
Mummy had seen enough. He shuffled into the room and grabbed the guy by his throat. Lifting him off the floor, Mummy hissed. “Elder Abuse is a Sin.”
The man in his grip struggled and kicked out, but Mummy let his Sin out to feed. He sucked the life from the son and, when he was dead, dropped him to the ground.
In bed, the old man stared, horrified.
“I’ll not harm an innocent. You may live the rest of your years in peace,” Mummy said and unhooked the cloth covering the mirror. He whispered to Mary and then disappeared through.
“That’s twice now,” Eloise murmured as she watched from the doorway.
The mummy had left it slightly ajar, and she’d caught everything. Eloise’s shoulders relaxed. The hospice was huge, with over three hundred patients on varying wards. But Eloise wasn’t bothered by what she’d seen. It appeared that a guardian angel protected the innocent people at the hospice. Just like she did.