Page 15 of Damnation (Gallows Hill)
Chapter Twelve
Thomas
The guilt I faced leaving Sarah in that jail cell yet again has waned with the days that have passed.
I have found that if I do not visit, I do not think of her often.
I know what type of man that makes me to be, but so be it.
There are bigger issues afoot than just my affections.
Salem has been plagued with witchcraft. Far worse than we ever imagined.
Reverend Noyes has been key in sorting out the sinners from the innocent.
Some have been acquitted, but most are guilty, and rightfully so.
My daughter Ann has been afflicted by many since speaking out, and many other girls are facing the same fate at the hands of vengeful witches in hiding.
At first, I believed this to be a game that Abigail and Betty had invented to pass the days.
I do not believe Ann would play along in such matters, and I shall not allow it to escalate to my other kin.
The fear, the terror, the evil among us.
‘Tis real, ‘tis dangerous, and it threatens to destroy us all.
Bridgette Bishop has been accused of afflicting my Ann, and today she faces judgment for such actions. She is the first to be sentenced, the first of many I foresee. God is ever present among us on this holy day, as we extinguish the flames of evil, one witch at a time.
L ooking up from my journal, I tuck it away and look to the rope dangling from the tree where George Corwin wraps the end around her neck. The woman sobs in anguish as he does so, while Walcott keeps the horse beneath her steady.
“Bishop, what say you? You stand here charged with sundry acts of witchcraft committed upon the bodies of Ann Putnam, Mercy Lewis, and others,” Hathorne says.
“I am innocent. I know nothing of it! I have performed no witchcraft…I am as innocent as the child unborn!” she protests.
I shake my head as Parris scoffs beside me.
Not a soul in the crowd believes her lies as Hathorne nods to George.
He takes a step back as Walcott does the same before Corwin’s hand slaps the behind of his horse, sending it running and her falling.
Her neck breaks with a loud snap that causes gasps to echo through the crowd.
Griggs approaches the dangling body, searching for a pulse before officially pronouncing her dead.
Women and children hide their faces as some of the weaker men turn green.
Not me. Instead of sorrow or sadness at a life lost, I feel relief, pleasure even.
Twas not an innocent life lost today, but a demonic one.
One that we should all be glad to be rid of.
I pray for more reveals, more executions. Death to all witches, I say.
My words have trouble matching my insides, though.
I can feel all of this, believe every word of what the court says, and still feel doubt when it comes to my Sar…
Mrs. Good. A small piece of me hopes she is acquitted, though I know any hope at our future is all but burnt to ashes, I still think of her often.
Think of our growing child. Though I do my best to banish such thoughts as they pain me so.
I am doing right by my village, my family. I must put all before myself. No matter how much I desire the opposite.