14. Morella by Edgar Allan Poe.  
An unnamed narrator, deeply affected by his friend Morella, marries her despite not feeling romantic love, drawn instead by an indefinable, intense connection. Morella, a reclusive and profoundly erudite woman, immerses him in her mystical studies, particularly German metaphysical texts on identity, pantheism, and reincarnation. Over time, the narrator grows disturbed by her eerie presence, her cold touch, and her otherworldly voice, which shift his joy into horror. As Morella's health declines, marked by tuberculosis-like symptoms, he secretly wishes for her death, tormented by her unsettling gaze and cryptic demeanor.  
Morella dies during childbirth, prophesying that her child will live and that the narrator, who never loved her in life, will adore her in death. The daughter, eerily identical to Morella in appearance and intellect, grows unnaturally fast, displaying her mother's mature wisdom and haunting traits. The narrator, both adoring and terrified, avoids naming her, fearing the implications of her uncanny resemblance. At her baptism, compelled by an inexplicable urge, he names her Morella, causing her to collapse, proclaiming, "I am here!" The narrator buries her in the family vault, laughing bitterly upon finding no trace of the first Morella's remains.

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