Speak No Evil Trilogy

by Amy Richie

  Tap, tap, tap, tap.

  I sucked in a breath and held it in my aching chest. Someone was knocking at the window. Had that woken me up? Maybe it was just my imagination.

  Tap, tap, tap, tap.

  Raising my head slightly off the pillow, I scanned the darkened room for Toby. The room was empty. Everything inside me screamed to just throw the blankets over my head and stay in bed until he got back, but I had no idea when that would be and someone was out there.

  Heart racing, I forced my head to turn enough to see the window. I let out a sigh of relief at the lack of shadows outside. I was just too jumpy.

  Tap, tap, tap, tap.

  My head swirled as the noise changed direction. The room was still empty, but I did notice something strange. A thin slice of yellow light spilled across the dark carpet from under the bathroom door.

  My eyebrows furrowed low on my forehead. How did the light get on? I had turned it off earlier when I laid down. I was positive that the light was off earlier.

  So, how did it get on? Better question, why was it on? Who would come into my hotel room just to use the bathroom? Instinctively, I checked the front door- still closed tight. What was going on?

  I pulled the light sheet off my legs, unsure what I was planning to do even as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. Sitting up slowly, I let my feet touch the carpeted floor.

  The light stayed strong under the bathroom door, daring me to go investigate. I bit down hard on my bottom lip, wondering if it was possible for me to just go back to sleep and wait for Toby.

  No one was in the room with me, I told myself firmly. The door was locked and I would have heard if someone broke it down.

  Staying in the bed wasn't an option anymore. Even if I did lay back down, I wouldn't be able to sleep until I knew that no one was in the bathroom. A hundred arguments shot up to question my sanity as soon as I leaned forward.

  What if I did find someone in the bathroom? What did I plan to do about it? I was just a skinny, barely old enough to be considered not a kid- girl. There was probably no one there anyways. I must have left the light on earlier.

  It was all useless though. I rose to my feet with a heavy sigh already escaping my chest. You'd think I'd be good at freaky by now.

  The carpet felt gritty under my bare feet, like it hadn't seen a vacuum in a while. I considered calling out to Toby, in case it was him, but the other side of that coin kept me silent.

  If it wasn't Toby, the only chance I had was surprise. And that wasn't a very good chance. Puffing out my cheeks, I blew the air out quickly before shuffling forward a few steps.

  The room wasn't very big, so it didn't take much for me to be standing just above that thin slice of bright light. Was someone really in there?

  “You see something?” a voice called from behind me.

  My heart slammed down past my feet and took its time coming back to where it was supposed to be. Someone was in the room with me. Someone other than Toby.

  Who even knew I was here? Was it the police? Had the guy behind the counter recognized me? Toby was wrong; he did care that I was a crazy girl that escaped from the mental hospital. Of course he would care. Who wouldn't?

  I wrapped one arm across my stomach, which was knotted with anxiety. I was going to have to turn around and face them. There was nowhere to run.

  I took a deep breath, a poor attempt to calm my shaking limbs enough to be able to turn around and face my intruder. I expected to see a whole room full of swat team people and Doctor Moore from the hospital, but there was only one man there with me.

  Tristan.

  He stood with his back against the wall, his arms crossed lightly against his broad chest. His lips were just barely lifted as he watched me trying not to have a full blown panic attack.

  My tongue darted out to run quickly across my bottom lip. My worst fears had come true; Tristan had found me. And Toby was gone. Would he at least be a little sorry when he came back and found me dead?

  Tristan shuffled forward slightly, causing the noise that was stuck in my throat to come out in a soft whimper. Hopefully dying wouldn't hurt too bad.

  “I'm not going to hurt you,” he called out softly. “I just want to help you.” His voice coated across my skin, lulling me into a false security faster than I wanted to admit.

  My heart was still racing, but the longer Tristan just stood there watching me, the calmer it became. He had never threatened me before. Maybe Nona was wrong about him. Maybe...

  “Are you here alone?” His head tilted to one side, sending the blonde curls fluttering.

  Should I tell him that I was with Toby? I didn't even know where Toby was. He had left me and for all I knew, he wasn't coming back. Toby wasn't my friend, I couldn't count on him for anything.

  “I'm not going to hurt you,” he continued before I'd finished deciding what to tell him.

  I stood very still, knowing there was nowhere to go. Even if there wasn't a tiny closed off bathroom behind me, running there wasn't going to be effective. If there was a way to run from Tristan, I didn't know how.

  Tristan smiled wide, his white teeth almost glowing in the shadowed room. It was a friendly smile, offering nothing but kindness. His whole face transformed, becoming open and concerned at the same time. Almost against my will, I felt my heart thawing out towards him.

  Even if I could run, why would I want to? Tristan was cute and he smiled a lot. I caught myself just before smiling back at him. Where was Toby when I needed him?

  I caught the inside of my lip between my teeth. Where was he? Shouldn't he be back by now? Nona told me to trust him; that he would keep me safe. If Tristan had any plans to kill me, Toby left the door wide open.

  Not that Tristan needed an open door.

  Whatever Toby was doing, it must have been really important. What could it be though? My entire life, he had been there almost everyday- all the time. It didn't make sense that he would leave now just when I needed him.

  Unless...

  “I know that the... ghost people tried to scare you.” Tristan’s words pulled me back from my thoughts of Toby. Tristan called them ghost people too?

  “They can't hurt you, though,” he continued with a lopsided grin that dimpled only one side of his handsome face. “I know you're afraid of them, and I don't blame you; but they're harmless, really.”

  I doubted if that were true. Even if all they could do was invoke fear- fear was more powerful than Tristan realized.

  “I saved you from them, don't you remember?”

  His stare was intense, but it didn't wreak too much havoc on my memory. I did remember when Tristan had saved me. Would Toby have done the same? Could he?

  I nodded my acknowledgement to his words. Not really sure if I should talk to Tristan or not, I didn't want to say too much. Or maybe nothing at all. I knew how to be silent. I had done it for years. The key was to stop listening; it was hard not to hear Tristan’s voice.

  “I've watched you from afar,” he said in his soft tones, “nearly your entire life.”

  One eyebrow shot high on my head. It wasn't impossible to believe, that he had watched me; I just would have assumed he had better things to do. Did he really find me so interesting?

  “It's kind of creepy, huh?” He blushed and looked down at his feet, his laughter light and embarrassed.

  I leaned forward, towards Tristan, without fully realizing I was moving. He really didn't seem so bad. He had once saved me and now he was just standing across from me- perfectly harmless. And perfectly perfect looking.

  “You can say hi to me,” he teased lightly, “I won't bite.”

  I wasn't afraid of him though, I realized abruptly. Not really; not like Toby and Nona thought I should be. Toby had caused me more harm than Tristan, and I trusted Toby just fine.

  Then he left me to fend for myself. I glanced towards the door, then back to Tristan. I couldn't understand why my face was so suddenly bla
zing hot.

  I tucked a few stray strands of hair behind my ears, suddenly conscious of how badly I needed a shower. My lips trembled with the effort it took to smile back at Tristan.

  He waited patiently, careful not to move too suddenly. He was much more considerate than Toby and I had run away in the middle of the night with him. What harm would come with a simple hello? It was an insanely acceptable form of greeting. All I had to do was open my mouth a little. It wouldn't be hard.

  Tristan’s smile widened.

  “Hi,” I murmured at last.

  Chapter Ten

  “See? I'm not so scary.” Tristan grinned.

  I peeked at him through the thick veil of light brown hair that had fallen across the side of my face. I didn't regret following his cue to sit on the bed with him, but now he was really close. All I had to do was reach my hand out a handful of inches and I could touch him. And of course, that distance went both ways.

  He didn't seem scary though, not when he was smiling like a little kid on the first day of summer. There was excitement and anticipation there; an excitement that was catching.

  “No, you're not,” I mumbled.

  “You think we can be friends?”

  “Friends,” I grimaced at the word, “probably not.” I had never really had a friend. What did friends do?

  “Well,” he shrugged lightly, not put off by my weirdness, “do you at least want to talk?”

  I looked over at him more fully, just to see if he was kidding. He seemed sincere. “What would we talk about?”

  “I don't know. Whatever you want.” He scooted back further on the bed. “How did you end up at Nine Crosses?”

  “My mother tried to kill me when I was six,” I answered without much thought.

  “What?”

  “She,” I shook my head quickly. What was I thinking, talking about my mother to Tristan? “She hated me.”

  “She didn't understand you,” he corrected immediately.

  “My father doesn't like me very much either,” I continued in a rare show of confidence. I couldn't explain, even to myself why I trusted Tristan so much, but I felt like I could tell him anything.

  “You're better off at Nine Crosses,” he cooed.

  “How so?”

  “You didn't have to pretend anymore.”

  “Pretend I'm not crazy?”

  He pursed his lips tightly. “You don't have to listen to Toby either. He doesn't like anyone- never has.”

  “Then pretend what?” That I liked people? I had never been much good at fitting in with other people. “Toby's right; I am crazy.”

  He shook his head before saying anything. “You don't have to pretend to be normal. You're not like everyone else. You don't have to pretend to love school and all the phony friends that come with it, then pick a college you hate to get you ready for a career you'll eventually hate and a husband you'll learn to hate.” His eyes narrowed as he talked, but widened back out when he turned back to me. “You don't have to pretend the way everyone else does.”

  “Are you here to kill me?” I blurted.

  His eyes narrowed into two thin slits on his face. “No.”

  “No?”

  “I'm not here to kill you, Ren. I'm not here to hurt you at all.” He seemed sincere.

  “Then why are you here?”

  “I... um...” His smile didn't touch his eyes. “I don't really know.”

  “You know why I think you're here?” I made the mistake of meeting his eyes when we were only a foot apart as it was.

  “Why?”

  I pushed my tongue over my cracked lips. “I think you're here because Toby is trying to hide me from you and you want to prove that he can't.”

  “Maybe,” he shrugged. His hand was suddenly touching my face, tracing the line of my cheek down to my jaw.

  “I thought you were a ghost.”

  His smile turned softly into a chuckle. “Maybe I am.”

  “Nona told me you wanted to kill me.”

  Anger turned Tristan’s eyes dark; his hand stilled against my face. “You talked to Nona?” I nodded mutely. “She shouldn't have...” His words cut off abruptly, as did his anger. “I'm not here to hurt you,” he repeated.

  “Toby will be back soon.” I didn't mean for it to come out like a threat.

  “Toby is out looking for me,” he chuckled, letting his fingers once again trace the lines of my face.

  “Oh.”

  “I promise, I won't hurt you,” he swore fervently.

  I pulled back to my own side of the bed. Somehow our heads had gotten too close together. How could Tristan make a promise like that?

  “Nona said you would kill me,” I reminded him gently.

  His jaw tightened briefly, but there was no anger now. “There will always be two sides,” he replied just as gently. “You just have to decide which side you're on.”

  “Oh, is that all?” My eyes widened sarcastically.

  “I think you already know what you want to do, Ren.”

  The sound of my name on his lips was music to my soul. Every word he said made perfect sense, making me wonder how I had ever been afraid of this amazing person.

  “I guess so,” I nodded slowly. “If it's a choice between you and Toby...”

  “It's not,” he cut me off quickly, “but if it was, it's clear who would come out on top.” He grinned wide, his whole face turning boyish and cute.

  “Very clear.” It wasn't though, not very clear at all. Tristan was obviously nicer than Toby, but Toby had been there my whole life. He was comfortable- like an old pair of shoes. And Tristan, even though he was shiny and new, I was afraid he would give me blisters.

  “I like you, Ren.” He brushed my hair back over my shoulder. “More than I thought I would.”

  “I like you, too, Tristan,” I smiled wide.

  “More than Toby?”

  “That's not hard.”

  “Guess not,” he shrugged.

  It was easy to talk to Tristan- too easy. “Toby's supposed to take care of me- keep me safe. Nona said he would.”

  “She doesn't know Toby like I do.”

  “Toby's a... a... cursed.”

  “I know.”

  “Are you... one of them too?” It was probably too personal to ask, but the words were already laid out between us. I couldn't take them back now.

  “No.”

  “What exactly are the Cursed? What makes you different?” I could tell that he was different than the ghost people. He could touch me. “Toby's different, too, though,” I realized out loud, “He's hot.”

  “Does he know you feel that way?” he grinned.

  My cheeks flamed hot. “I didn't mean like that.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes!”

  He winked, clearly amused by my discomfort. “I mean, he's a good looking guy.”

  “He's... not even real.” And neither was Tristan.

  “But this is real,” his voice lowered as he placed his palm against my chest, feeling my heart flying under my ribs. “That feels real to me.”

  “I don't understand what you are.”

  “I just want to be your friend.”

  “Only my friend?”

  He shrugged, not committing to anything. “I'll be whatever you need me to be.”

  “What about... me?” Did he want me to be someone I wasn't, the way Nona did?

  “What about you?”

  “What do you want from me?”

  “Nothing that you don't want to give me.”

  Tristan had a way of talking in circles. He could talk and talk without ever really saying anything at all. I wanted to be frustrated with him, but the sound of his voice calmed me. All I wanted to do was curl up beside him and dream of what life could be like if I was allowed to be with Tristan.

  To stop myself from touching him, I pulled my legs up on the bed so I could wrap my arms around my knees an
d still watch him. He seemed content to just watch me, too.

  I wondered briefly why he had come here to find me in my hotel room if it wasn't to kill me, but I let the thought drift away. There were too many other thoughts to take their place.

  Like- what would it feel like to run my fingers through Tristan’s honey colored curls? Would his hair be as soft as it looked or would my hands go right through him? I frowned slightly at the thought.

  “What are you thinking about?” He poked lightly into my shoulder. “What has you looking so upset?”

  “Nothing.” I shook my head quickly. Was I really that transparent?

  “Thinking about your daring escape?” His eyebrows wriggled dramatically.

  Realizing he was giving me the chance to keep my real thoughts to myself, I jumped on the topic with an excitement I didn't feel. “It was so scary.”

  “Toby was with you, he wouldn't have let anything happen to you.”

  “Toby?” I scoffed. “Toby doesn't care what happens to me.”

  “He helped you escape the hospital, he must care a little.” His smile stayed in place, but there was something hidden under his words, something I didn't understand.

  “Only because Nona told him to,” I sighed.

  His brow furrowed at my words. “Toby spoke to Nona?”

  “No, she told me to tell him.”

  “Yeah?” He relaxed beside me. “What else did Nona tell you?”

  “Just that,” I shrugged nervously, “that you would kill me. Soon. And that...” I let my voice fade. Nona had told me that I would be the one to kill Tristan. It wasn't like I could tell him that, though. I had almost forgotten about that part. It was too easy to forget everything else when I was with Tristan. I smiled down at him- where he was almost laying all the way down.

  “And what?”

  “And that I needed... to talk to Toby. That I should trust him.”

  “I don't think you should.” His fingers slid up my bare leg and back down again, reminding me that I should probably find some pants. What was the etiquette for a girl over eighteen sitting alone in a hotel room with a ghost?