Speak No Evil Trilogy

by Amy Richie

  “Yeah.”

  “And she lived to tell about it?”

  I pushed my breath out through my nose, the two were talking about me.

  “Barely. When I got there, her strength was almost gone.”

  “She seems fine now.”

  “She was able to sleep on the bus.”

  “Tristan found you?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What did he say?”

  “I already told you what he said.”

  “Tell me again.”

  I heard Toby's deep sigh and was surprised when he obliged.

  “He told me she was in trouble and he told me to come save her.”

  “Incredible,” Nona whispered.

  “What's incredible?” Toby asked for me.

  “Ren.”

  “What do you want from her? It's not like she can do much.”

  “She can do a lot,” Nona corrected him.

  “What do you want?”

  “I want the same thing you want.”

  I leaned further forward.

  “Which is?”

  “I want Tristan dead- and Ren will be the one to do it.”

  As her words vibrated back to me, I almost lost my grip on the wall and fell forward. I had to dance on my feet to regain my balance.

  Kill Tristan? Were we going back to that?

  “She won't be able to do it,” Toby scoffed. “She's not strong enough.”

  “She will,” Nona insisted. “I'm surprised that you- who have been with her since the beginning- can't see how strong she really is.”

  My eyebrows lowered closer to my nose. Why did Nona sound so sure?

  “Or maybe you do.”

  Do what?

  “Do what?” Toby echoed my thoughts.

  “Maybe you do see her worth.”

  “I don't,” he snapped quickly.

  “You were right to bring her here,” Nona continued.

  “I heard you were waiting.”

  “I've been waiting for a long time.”

  This didn't feel right. I wasn't going to do anything to Tristan; he had saved me, he was the first one to care whether I lived or died. Toby was wrong to bring me here.

  “So what happens now?” Toby asked, calling my attention back to him and Nona.

  “Ren will sleep here tonight.”

  “You know what I meant.”

  “That all depends,” she shrugged.

  “On what?”

  “What is it that you want to know, Toby?”

  “Will she die after all this is done?”

  “Do you want her to?”

  I sucked in my breath and held it there.

  “What kind of question is that?”

  “Do you want Ren to be gone after you're finally free of Tristan?”

  “I don't want to be bound to her.”

  “It's Tristan's curse- you're stuck with her until she dies.”

  “You can't break the curse?”

  “No, I can't.”

  Toby made a clicking sound with his tongue.

  “But I can make you a deal.”

  “What deal?” Toby's eyes narrowed as mine widened.

  “You help me convince Ren to kill Tristan and I'll make sure she dies, too- then you'll be free.”

  I slammed my hand over my mouth to stop from crying out and darted back down the hallway.

  There was only one other door that wasn't the bathroom, so my options were limited. I flung my weight against the door, hoping desperately that it opened easily. Luckily for me- it did.

  Pushing the door closed behind me, I leaned against the cool wood, letting the back of my head fall until it touched the hard surface. Only then did I take my hand away from my mouth.

  The cry I had been holding back came out as a small shudder. I sucked in another breath as soon as the first one left me. My lungs weren't working right though, they refused to hold any air in. If I continued to hyperventilate, Toby would come back to investigate.

  Shoving my hand back across my face, I looked around at the room I had found. I was standing in someone's bedroom- a man's bedroom by the look of it.

  An animal of some sort had been beheaded and was now staring down at me from its place on the wall. Guns of different sizes and shapes were displayed in a glass case- those might come in handy later.

  There was a curtain-less window along one wall that provided the only light that I could see. The sun was disappearing quickly but it was still enough to make out that the only furniture in the room was a short, long dresser with three drawers and a large bed that took up most of the space.

  I sank down on the end of the bed, on top of the dark blue comforter tucked neatly under the top mattress. The bed was squishier than I would have guessed. I wanted to smooth out the wrinkles I had caused in the blanket, but I didn't trust myself to take my hand away from my face yet.

  What had I just heard? Toby wanted me dead?

  I always knew he didn't like me very much. He was mean to me and never missed an opportunity to remind me how worthless I truly was- but did he hate me enough to want me dead?

  I had worked so hard to find him; all I wanted was to help him be free. That would require me to die though, I realized with a heaviness that made my hand fall to my side.

  The only way to free Toby and end my nightmare was for me to die- but I couldn't kill myself. Nona knew that and she was doing what she could to stop the curse completely- once and for all.

  She was trying to help; but why did I feel so miserable? Why did it feel like Toby ripped my heart out of my chest and crushed it? Because he wanted me dead?

  It was the only way.

  I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Had Tristan known what Nona would ask me to do? Is that why he kept me hidden?

  In the end, he had chosen to hand me over to Toby and Nona rather than let Zac kill me. My eyes slid closed.

  If only they had let me die back by the roadside; everything would have been so much easier.

  Chapter Four

  Feeling more tired than I had in a while, I ground my eyes with my fists. They were sore and starting to matt up in the corners. I sighed deeply, letting my shoulders sag low as the air left my lungs.

  Thoughts of just curling up on the massive bed and sleeping for the next week flitted through my head. I was only human, I needed sleep.

  The only thing that stopped me was the fear that whoever lived here might come home and find me sleeping in their bed. Whatever happened to Goldilocks? Did the bears eat her? I couldn't remember the ending of the story.

  I was going to have to go out to the front room with Nona and Toby. I didn't have many other options. I hadn't been back in the bedroom for long though, so they would easily think I had been in the bathroom this entire time.

  I wasn't going to say anything to Toby about what I had overheard. He would just tell me that I shouldn't have been trying to eavesdrop and he was probably right about that.

  Anyways, nothing he had said was that out of line with what I already knew had to be done. It had come as a shock to hear Toby making an actual deal with Nona to have me killed, but...

  Cutting my self-pitying thoughts off before they could overwhelm me again, I let out another sigh. The air came out of my mouth in a white cloud, staying near my face momentarily before disappearing into the room.

  I sat up straighter, experimenting with my breath again. I could still see it; and now that I could see it, it was coming out faster and faster.

  I had been in rooms before when they went suddenly cold. It was never a good thing.

  I turned awkwardly on the bed to see behind me- no one was there. I searched all the dark corners of the room with a quick, well practiced eye. It looked like I was alone.

  Arranging my lips into a small circle, I blew hot air out. It froze, creating a white stream in front of my face. No way was I alone- and Toby didn't make the room go cold.r />
  Without hesitating, I vaulted off the bed and sprinted the short distance to the door. No matter what deals Toby made- I still trusted him more than the ghost-people.

  The handle of the door was cold- cold enough for me to pull my hand back in shock. I fought my impulse to turn around, instead just grabbing the knob again and pulling hard.

  It didn't budge.

  With a tiny cry of panic, I twisted it the other way. The golden handle didn't move at all. No matter how hard I turned it, it didn't turn in either direction.

  If I pounded on the door, Toby would know that I had hid in this bedroom. What would I tell him when he asked why? Maybe the ghost-people would just leave.

  A cool breeze on the back of my neck quickly changed my mind. I pounded on the door with a closed fist, trying hard not to panic too much.

  “Toby,” I called out, rising up onto my tiptoes in my nervousness. “The door’s locked. Come let me out!” I wasn't far from where Toby and Nona were sitting- they would hear me and come open it.

  But why were they taking so long?

  The door in front of me got colder and colder until I could see a thin layer of frost around the edges. I pounded harder, making the little ice flakes tremble and flutter to the ground.

  Suddenly, a massive black form rose up in front of me, in the small space between the door and my body.

  A stabbing pain smashed into my chest, slamming me backwards. My scream was cut off when I hit the floor, changing into a low whimper. I rubbed frantically at my chest, gasping for a full lung of frigid air.

  In front of me, right by the door still, the solid black form hoovered dangerously. I had never before seen the ghost-people like this. The form wasn't distinctly human and my chest still ached where it had made contact with my body.

  I turned my head, searching for anything that could be used as a weapon. A pale face peered out at me from under the bed.

  Scrambling backwards, I crab walked across the floor in an effort to get away from the young looking boy-ghost who was now crawling out from under the bed with a wide grin twisting up his face. The black form still hadn't moved away from the door so I focused on the boy.

  “Stay away from me,” I croaked out, “you can't hurt me.”

  The boy's smile widened until his face was only teeth and wide yellowish eyes. Desperate, I pushed myself off the floor and back onto my feet. I couldn't get to the door though.

  In a rush of cold air, several more ghost-people pressed into the room. I backed up more, but couldn't get far enough away because of the wall. My breath came out in short rasps that hung in little puffs around my face.

  “They can't hurt me, they can't hurt me,” I chanted over and over again. Tristan said the ghost-people couldn't touch me, but they had made the bus I was in tip over and Zac had tried to suck my life directly out of me.

  I sucked in a deep breath of frigid air, burning my lungs in the process. “Toby,” I croaked out with as much volume as I could muster. “Toby!”

  He always came to save me from the ghost-people. Where was he now, when I needed him the most? So what if he called me weak and sneered at me for the rest of the night- I just wanted out of this room!

  “Toby!”

  More ghosts came, crowding close to where I stood cowering against the wall. It was impossible to count how many faces had gathered around me, it was just a mass of angry shining ghost-people.

  “Did you really think you could hide?” A man from the sea of faces asked loudly.

  “You really thought you were that smart,” another voice hissed.

  “There's no where you can hide.”

  “You'll join us.”

  “No,” I shook my head from side to side.

  “No?” The woman stepped forward, tracing one finger along my chest. A trail of fire erupted and burned even after she melted back into the group.

  “Toby can't hear you,” the boy from under the bed sang, “he won't come help you now.”

  “Toby,” I called out over the low murmur the boy's had created among the other ghost-people.

  “He can't hear you,” several voices pounced out immediately.

  “He can always hear me,” I gasped out, my voice already starting to fail me.

  “That's not what we heard,” the woman closest to me sneered. “You're going to die here little girl, and no one will even care.”

  “You can't hurt me,” I lashed out, trying to take a step forward in an attempt to get past them, but failing. I fell back against the wall with an audible gasp.

  “We don't need to hurt you.”

  “You'll hurt yourself.”

  “Why wouldn't you?”

  “No one wants you here.”

  “Where's your dad?”

  “He isn't here, is he?”

  “It's because he hopes you're already dead.”

  “It would have been easier for everyone if your mom had just finished you off.”

  “Just finish the job for her already.”

  “Leave me alone,” I screeched.

  With a deafening roar of frigid air, the gun cabinet I had noticed earlier burst outwards- sending shards of glass flying in every direction. I threw my arms up over my head just in time as a large chunk of glass sliced across my skin.

  I saw the bright red blood before I felt any pain. Immediately after the glass settled, the drawers flung open and crashed to the floor. The blanket off the bed- the large blue bed spread that I had just been sitting on- came off next, bunching up in an untidy heap on the floor.

  I slid against the wall until I felt the hard floor against my knees. Who were these ghost-people? I had never seen any of them and I had never known any to be so violent. Was it because I was completely alone now?

  It had to be, I realized, desperation starting to eat away at my insides. I was alone and Toby couldn't hear me. Now the ghost-people would kill me for sure.

  Purely out of self preservation, I flung both hands over my head and tucked my face close to my knees. I could feel the sting of the cuts from where the glass had cut my skin.

  “Toby!” I screamed into the jeans that weren't mine. “Toby!”

  “Toby,” the ghosts called back to me, their screeches loud enough to hurt my ears.

  “Toby,” one of them mocked, “Toby, come save her from the scary ghosts.”

  “Leave me alone,” I fired back without looking up.

  “Leave you alone?” she cackled like the witch from The Wizard of Oz. “Leave you alone like everyone else has?”

  “Please.” I knew pleading was useless. I still tried. “Please just leave me alone.”

  “Oh-ho!” A deep voice boomed out, “Are we scaring the pretty little girl?”

  I glanced up between the spaces my fingers made against my face. The ghost-people crowded around me, completely blocking the way to the door- the same door that wouldn't open anyways.

  Near the bed, the black shape hoovered- barely starting to take the form of a man. Somehow I knew that I didn't want to be in this room still when he became all the way clear.

  Chapter Five

  My breaths were coming too fast, leaving me feeling light headed and afraid. I needed to find a way out of the bedroom. The door was a no go.

  I made a quick scan around the room. The ghost-people made it hard to see anything but my eyes found the window I had noticed before. The cabin was only one story- if I could make it to the window, I would be able to crawl outside.

  It wasn't much, but it was the only chance I had. Either I could try to make it to the window through the wall of ghost-people around me or sit here and wait for the black shape to become a man.

  Some choice.

  With a grunt of exertion, I pushed myself away from the wall. The ghost-people seemed to realize I was making a move and crowded even tighter around me.

  What would happen to me if I just walked through them? I had never tried it before. Now- I might not
have any other choice.

  Sucking in a deep breath and holding it in my chest, I rushed forward- barreling through a solid wall of frigid air. The ghost-people dissolved and disappeared in a wisp of thick smoke.

  Wasting no time, I darted to the window and threw it open wide.

  From the inside, the ground looked further down than I had first thought; and my ankle was already bad. Would I break it all the way if I jumped? Did I have any choice?

  I chanced a quick peek behind me; the ghost-people hadn't come back yet, but the black form was still there. I couldn't just stay and hope they didn't come back. Very briefly, I contemplated trying the door again, but right next to me, a shining hand reaching out to grab my arm.

  With a great gulp of air, I swung myself out of the window and flung ungraciously onto the unforgiving ground. I landed hard on my knees, scraping my hands and ripping the material of my borrowed jeans in the process.

  “Ow,” I groaned, rolling onto my side so I could look back up at the window.

  Crowded around the opening that had been large enough for me to crawl out of but not much bigger were at least a dozen angry faces. The woman standing at the front was obviously screaming something, but I couldn't hear a word she was saying. It didn't make any sense- we weren't that far away.

  It was so strange. Why didn't they come after me? It wasn't like they had to worry about getting hurt from the fall like I did. They only crowded around the window though, screaming words I couldn't hear.

  I scrambled awkwardly up off the ground, rubbing my scratched up hands on my pants. Even if they weren't coming outside yet, it wouldn't take them long and I wasn't going to just stand around and wait.

  All around me were the dense woods that I walked through to get to the cabin, only now they were dark. The tiny bit of sunlight left in the sky didn't penetrate through the thick canopy of leaves and branches.

  Toby hadn't been able to hear me when I was in the bedroom so I couldn't hold out hope that he was still in the cabin at all. It wouldn't be the first time he had left me. Hadn't he just been planning with Nona how to have me killed? For all I knew, this could be her doing.

  Blindly and with no more thought than just to get away from them, I hurtled myself into the ominous trees. I had never been a fast runner and my injuries slowed me down even more- but I still managed to run.