I-Men: Blue Jean Burns

"Oh darling," Margaret sighed as she looked sadly at her husband, "... don't be so blue." She was sitting next to her husband on a stone bench. She could see tears falling from her husband's weary eyes. From time to time, her husband would wipe the tears with his dark brown flat cap. Her husband's sorrow was tearing her heart apart, but there was nothing she could do. She's dead and she knew it. What was keeping her down the world of the living, she thought she has found a clue: her husband wouldn't want her to go and she could feel it.

Margaret was glad she married Jean. He was kind and sweet. She has gotten to love him dearly. But such feelings for him were not present in the beginning of their marriage. It wasn't really her true desire to marry Jean, but she was not able to avoid it. Her marriage to Jean was negotiated.

It was a triple wedding. She and her two younger sisters, and Jean and his two younger brothers. Jean's parents did not want their two sons to be married to Margaret's sisters unless she, too, would marry Jean. So her parents pressured her into marrying Jean. She had always been an obedient daughter, and she cared a lot for her sisters, thus, with heavy heart, she agreed to marry Jean.

Jean was what they called a 'special child'. His body grew up normally but his mind did not develop as fast. When Margaret married him in his mid-thirties, he was believed to have the thinking of a child of six or seven.

In the early years of their marriage, Margaret, for many nights, did cry secretly, drowning in tears of self-pity. Yet, as years went by, Margaret began to notice the gem in Jean. Around her, Jean would always wear a childlike smile, grateful of everything that she did for him. Moreover, he was a dependable partner, always setting his mind on the things that he was asked to do. So, Margaret had learned appreciate living with Jean, notwithstanding his inability to give her children.

What happened to Margaret's younger sisters was the contrary. Jean's younger brothers turned out to be their wives' heartache and misery. One of Jean's brothers went away on a merchant ship and never came back, leaving behind his wife and his two sons. Jean's other brother became a sot. He also left his home and lived in an abandoned unfinished building by the pier where he eventually died. It was widely believed that he commited suicide, but some were convinced that he was thrown off the fourth floor of the abandoned building by a mean man named Jack.

Since the day Margaret died of leukemia, about four months ago, her husband had been coming up to her grave daily, bringing her red roses. Her husband had not forgotten, she loved red roses. And that morning, he again brought her roses. How she wished that she could do something to lift Jean from his desolation, but it seemed to her that her wish would never come true. Until the night before.

The night before, the moon was full. Margaret tried howling at the moon just like the young woman who, after howling three times, appeared from a white flame. After howling at the moon three times, Margaret was amazed. She too came back to life as she knew it. She could feel the wind blow, she could walk on the grassy ground, and she could even be seen by a dead old man named Gilmore Black. So she thought about it, she could once more go to Jean and show her self to him,and that was what she was bent to do. She then waited for the next full moon.

----

Soon, the full moon came. Excitedly, Margaret went back home from the cemetery. Before leaving the burial ground, she saw Gilmore Black beneath the only tree in the cemetery. He was conversing with the young woman from whom Margaret got the idea of howling at the moon.

At first, she considered joining Mr. Black and the young woman beneath the tree. But then she realized, if she would howl and become visible while still at the cemetery, it might be difficult for her to walk home because people along the way might see her, and recognize her, and be frightened by her. So, she decided to become visible only when she already reached her home.

Halfway to her home, while passing near the old lighthouse, Margaret saw three teenager boys, running scared and, altogther, shouting: "There's a werewolf atop the old lighthouse! He's howling at the moon!" Simultaneously, she saw the lights in several houses by the road go out. Some windows were slammed shut.

A werewolf howling at the moon? Margaret was curious. She decided to go up the old lighthouse and see. As she was climbing up the iron stairs, she noticed that the sound that was coming from above was quite different from a howl. It sounded more like a growl, full of anger, full of rage.

When she reached the top, Margaret was somewhat disappointed. What she saw was not really a werewolf. It was a man who appeared to have not seen a shaver in quite a while. With his long black hair and thick beard that almost covered his face, Margaret was not surprised why the man was being mistaken as a werewolf. Add to that, his growling at the full moon. Also noticeable to her, the man was protective of a dark-colored backpack.

"Why so angry at the moon?" Margaret pondered as she observed the man who had no clue of her presence. Then she noticed from the sky, a huge cloud was about to cover the moon. She then rushed down the stairs and headed home, fast. She knew she has to reach her home before the full moon completely fades.

When she reached her home, she found her husband in the kitchen, mending a fishnet. But she arrived too late, the moon had faded. Without even just a trace of moonlight, it was not possible for her to become visible to Jean. She was downhearted. Her husband would never know that she was with him that full mooned night. So, she just sat next to Jean and looked at him longingly.

Before dawn, Jean woke up and went out into the sea to catch some fish. Unknown to him, Margaret was with him on his tiny boat. When she was still alive and well, Margaret would join Jean go fishing. Now that he was fishing alone - Margaret could see - there was something lacking. His childlike grin.

The catch, Margaret saw, was scarce. It surely would barely meet Jean's needs. Jean brought his catch to Margaret's youngest sister at the fish market. Margaret was glad to see her youngest sister assist Jean in selling the fish. Her sister was able to sell the fish with a good price. Still, it was not a lot.

After receiving the proceeds of the sale, Jean left the market. Margaret followed. She was led by Jean to the street where flowers were sold on carts.

"I'd like to buy some red roses, please," Jean spoke to one of the flower vendors.

"How much have you got this time?" the vendor asked.

Jean showed all the money that was in his pocket.

"Again, Mr. Burns, that's not enough," the vendor complained. "It has been like this for almost a week now ... your debt is piling up."

"The catch was not a lot," Jean replied with a pleading tone, "I promise you, I'll pay as soon as I have a plentiful catch."

"Why don't you move on, Mr. Burns," the vendor tried to talk Jean out of buying the roses. "Your wife has been dead for quite sometime. Maybe its about time you stopped bringing her... flowers."

Jean went quiet for a while. Then, with sadness in his voice, he said, "I don't want my wife to forget me."

Margaret felt like her heart was going to explode. The things that her husband had to go through everyday. She was slightly shaking her head as she wept.

Finally, the flower vendor acceded and gave Jean a bouquet of red roses. Jean then headed up to the cemetery. Margaret walked next to him.

Later that morning, as Margaret watched Jean walk downhill, on his way home, she saw two men who were walking uphill. At first, she did not give them much thought, but when the two men were passing near her, she noticed that they were among the the group of men who previously howled at the full moon and then quickly ran away when the young woman appeared. Margaret became interested to know why they came up to the cemetery. She walked after them.

Beneath the oak tree, the two stood and then looked around as if they were looking for someone. One of them suddenly spoke with a loud voice, saying: "Wendi ... Wendi Sue .... In case you're listening, this is Troy. We've just come from the courthouse ... I'm glad to tell you that Gilmore's wife was found not guilty. There was no evidence to prove her guilt.... Gilmore's son was not able to testify. Apparently, he had lost his sanity when his father woke him up and talked to him. Justice works in strange ways, isn't it?... That is all.... Have a nice day."

Of all that Margaret just heard, what struck her was not the acquittal of the wife of Gilmore Black but the losing of his son's sanity. "Of course!" she said to her self, "Any one who sees a dead person would surely be scared silly." She sat on the stone bench near her grave, her heart was pounding fast and her knees were weakening. "I almost drove my husband out of his sanity last night," she exhaled as her stomach churned. Though belatedly, she became thankful that the full moon had faded so soon.

----

Nights went by, and the moon appeared again in full. Margaret did not feel like howling at the full moon that night. She has lost the reason to do so. She was sitting on top of her grave, watching the men who arrived at the cemetery just after dusk. They were the same five men that had come before. The five were under the oak tree. They were conversing and occasionally bursting into laughter.

When the night fell deeper and the full moon glowed at its brightest, the men, in unison, howled at the moon. Shortly thereafter, Margaret heard the familiar howl of a woman. The womanly howl re-sounded three times and, after the third howl, a white flame appeared which grew larger and then formed into a young woman.

Margaret was perplexed. She saw the young woman walk towards the men and the men seemed to get along well with her. They were no longer frightened. Three full moons ago, Margaret distinctly remembered, the five, along with several others, ran away scared when the young woman first appeared to them.

Wanting to know why the men were no longer frightened, Margaret decided to howl at the moon too and, when she appeared, she walked towards them.

"Good evening," Margaret greeted the men and the young woman who seemed pleased to see her. "I'm Margaret Burns ... I've been howling at the moon too."

"Wonderful ... wonderful to meet you," the oldest among the men greeted Margaret. "I'm Eli Olsen."

"Troy ... Troy Green," the handsomest among the men came to shake Margaret's hand.

"Johnny Wembley," said the man who Margaret recognized as someone who used to live with her brother-in-law at the abandoned building by the pier.

"Jack Straw," the biggest among the men sounded. "He is Dan Forman," he added as he pointed at the man who was quietly leaning against the oak tree.

"I'm Wendi Sue," the young woman came to hug Margaret. "Mr. Black has told me about you."

"Oh yes, Mr. Black .... Where is he now?" Margaret asked as she looked around for Gilmore Black.

"We left him at the courthouse last full moon," Wendi Sue replied. "We are going there tonight to fetch him .... Would you like to come?"

"I'm considering going home to see my husband," Margaret revealed. Since the men were no longer scared of her and the young woman, she thought of going home again and, at last, show up to her husband. Her husband might not be frightened too.

"Don't!" Eli was emphatic. "You'll surely drive your husband off his mind."

"Indeed ...," Wendi Sue seconded, "that seemed to have happened to those whom Mr. Black and I have appeared."

"I really would like to talk to my husband," Margaret voiced out her despair. "His sorrow is tearing me apart. I'd like to tell him not to be sad ... that he's always in my heart."

"Maybe he won't be so scared if we tell him beforehand what he is going to witness," Eli suggested. "Tomorrow ... I'll talk to your husband, Madam Burns."

"Oh, how nice of you, sir," Margaret was grateful. "Thank you so much."

"Off to the courthouse, are we?" Jack butted in.

"I'll come with you then," Margaret offered.

When the group reached the courthouse, they discreetly called out for Gilmore Black. But they heard nothing from him.

"Looks like he's not here," Johnny uttered.

"Where could he be?" Troy wondered.

"Perhaps he has found peace," Wendi Sue suggested. "Perhaps he's now out there yonder, resting in peace."

"Possibly," Eli agreed. "What was keeping him down here was his wife's terrible predicament. Now she's free... no more reason for him to stay."

Convinced that Gilmore Black was no longer at the courthouse, the group then made their way back uphill to the burial ground.

When the morning came, Eli went to talk to Margaret's husband as he promised. He and his four friends met Jean at the cemetery who, as always, brought a bouquet of red roses. Jean was sitting on a stone bench in front of his wife's grave when Eli and his friends walked near.

"Good morning Mr. Burns," greeted Eli as he sat next to Jean. "I'm Dr. Olsen ... and these four men are my friends."

"What can I do for you, sir?" Jean asked politely.

"No, no .... There's nothing we want from you. We came to talk to you about your wife," Eli answered. "We spoke with her last night .... She wants to meet you here in the coming full moon."

Jean forced a tight smile as he stared at Eli. Then, still wearing the smile, he stood up and headed for the gate. As he walked downhill, along the dirt road, tears of rage fell from his eyes. Though he covered it with his forced smile, he felt deeply offended by what Eli had said. "How could they mock me," he muttered between sobs. "I may lack intelligence, but I'm not crazy."

As he walked lower down the hill, the intensity of his anger grew higher. He wanted to get even. He decided to go to the police station.

"There are men at the cemetery who talked about the full moon," Jean told the police officer who was sitting behind the front desk. "They may be the ones that you are looking for. I believe ... they'll be at the cemetery this coming full moon." Jean wasn't sure whether the men were really the ones that the police were trying to locate. But he didn't care. All he cared was that the men will have a hard time with the police.

"Sure ... we'll check it out," the police officer was doubtful, but he did not have the heart to turn Jean down. He knew, Jean was not yet over the death of his wife. He was careful not to add to Jean's heartbreak. "But you have to come with us .... Without you, we're not going," the police officer added.

"I will come with you," Jean assured the police officer, "I'll meet you here at full moon." He wanted to take pleasure of seeing the five men being accosted by the police.

----

When the full moon again appeared, Jean and two police officers went up to the cemetery stealthily, walking along the hill's cast shadow. From the graveyard gate, they could hear some men howling. The police officers were encouraged. They thought they'll be catching the men who escaped from the mental asylum.

They found the five beneath the oak tree, looking up at the full moon and were howling at it. After a while, they heard two more distinct howls, apparently howls of two women. Then, Jean and the police officers saw what looked like two white flames that appeared near the oak tree. The white flames grew larger and then formed into two women.

The police officers were horrified. "Good Lord! .... Did you see that?" one of the officers sounded.

"Foley and the undertaker were telling the truth all along," the other replied.

"That's ... that's Margaret!" Jean exclaimed, pointing at the older woman. "That's my wife! Let's go meet her."

"Are you crazy?!" one of the officers restrained Jean. "That's a creepy thing, you're seeing out there .... She'll take you to grave with her.

"No sir. My wife will never do me harm," Jean argued. "She's always been good to me."

"Aw, let him go if he wants to," the other officer butted in, "there's no use arguing with a half-wit like him."

"Half-wit is, what half-wit does, sir." Jean responded. It was what his wife had always responded to those who wanted to belittle him.

"You're on your own, Mr. Burns," one of the police officers finally said. "I don't want to end up like Officer Folley." The police officers then left.

Jean was not scared. Due to his limited understanding, he had not found a lot of things to be frightened of. Add to that, his deep longing for his wife. He then entered the gate and walked towards his wife.

"Jean! ... My darling Jean!" Margaret came rushing towards her husband. "Thank heavens ... you came!" Margaret hugged Jean tightly.

"You came back ..." Jean said. He still could not totally understand what was happening.

"I never left," Margaret replied, "I've always been with you .... You just didn't feel my presence. But now ... thank heavens, we can be together again."

"Live again together?" Jean wanted to know.

"Together ... yes," Margaret responded, "but only when the moon is full. There is something with the full moon that gets me back to life, even I can't figure out why. Don't be blue ... I promise I'll be with you whenever the moon is full. Alright?"

Jean nodded like a trusting little child.

"Come ...." Margaret then said, "I'll introduce to my friends." Margaret led Jean towards the men and the young woman and introduced her husband to them.

While they were chatting, they heard a howl sounded. It sounded like the howl of a child. They waited for the third howl and then they looked around.

"Hey! There's the boy!" Margaret pointed at the human figure peeking from behind the headstone that was nearest to them. "Mr. Black and I have seen him before."

"Come here, boy!" Troy called out at the boy. "Don't be scared ... we're friends."

The boy then walked shyly towards them.

"What's your name, son?" Eli asked as he gestured to the boy to have a seat.

"Frank, sir," the boy replied.

"Why are you still down here, child?" Margaret asked. "What do you think is keeping you here?"

The boy looked down, his face grew dim. "I promised my brother to go back for him," he answered with a gloomy tone. "I left him behind when I escaped from the orphanage. I promised him that I will be back to get him .... The day after I escaped, I was beaten badly. I was caught stealing bread from a bakeshop. The owner and his men beat me so hard 'till I passed out. Soon, I realized ... I'm dead. Now, there's no way I can fulfill my promise to my brother."

"I've not eaten since the day I escaped," the boy added, wanting explain why he tried to steal,"I was very hungry."

"How sad ...." Margaret was sobbing.

"What's your brother's name?" Johnny was curious.

"Ben, um, Benjamin Helsing," the boy replied.

Wendi Sue's eyes widened. She looked intently at the boy sitting next to her as if she wanted to be sure of what she just heard. "Ben Helsing?" she asked.

"Yeah, Ben Helsing," the boy again answered.

Eli, who was facing the boy and the young woman, noticed that Wendi Sue was holding back some tears. "Are you alright, girl?" he asked.

"Sad stories ...," Wendi Sue forced a smile and then looked down.

"Don't you worry, kid," said Troy, trying to make a good impression on the young woman, "... tomorrow, I'll go to the orphanage and talk to your brother."

Wendi Sue looked at Troy and said, "Maybe you should find out first, how long he has been dead." Then she stood up and went to find some solitude.

-- End --
(06-26-07)

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