The Woman in the Black Dress and with the Red Coral Brooch

Abstract

Listen now to my secret, a terrifying secret that gnaws at my heart. I have been silent about it until now because I am horrified at my monstrous nature. But within me, the torture takes on a thousand different shapes: I feel two little hammers pounding on my heart, hurting it with their blows; there is a steel screw twisting in my chest like a corkscrew; there are a thousand gimlets piercing my skull; and there’s a nail embedded in my right temple. And yet, I cannot die from this long agony; my blood is renewed through my fever; my muscles stiffen in my suffering, but they come alive again because of the stimulus; my sinews redouble their strength. But I am not allowed to die. Others should die with me. I am writing about my secret not in order to gain relief for I have no hope of that; I am writing so that the truth of my case will be known.