The Shadow Box: Paranormal Suspense and Dark Fantasy Thriller Novels

by Travis Luedke

  But she was dead. He didn’t exactly feel sad—it had been almost nine years and he’d grieved already—but maybe he’d be upset later when he had time to process it. He actually sensed some relief in finally knowing her fate, followed by guilt for feeling that relief. ‘How do you know she’s dead?’

  ‘Look, I’ll tell you what’s been happening to me since the day you pulled me out the way of the car. Just listen to what I have to say. I feel embarrassed enough coming here as it is, and I won’t be surprised if you think I’m crazy. But I’m not.’ She gave a stern look.

  ‘Okay.’ Intuitively, he sensed he could trust her; she seemed honestly annoyed to be in this position. For a moment, she gazed past him and at an empty table a few metres away. Nick turned to see what had caught her attention. Nothing was there. ‘Are you alright?’

  ‘Yes, fine.’ Her attention snapped back to him. ‘I was just thinking about something.’

  ‘Okay. Tell me what you were going to say.’

  ‘When the car came towards me, I really felt it hit me and throw me over the edge, but when I opened my eyes I was alive. You’d saved me. But I felt different. On the way home I started seeing shadows and figures … strange things that didn’t make sense. For the next few days, I continued to see and hear things. And at one point it became too much. I heard a voice say help me.’

  Nick listened attentively and tried to gather where she was going with it. He believed what she was saying, because if seeing the future was possible, then maybe this was, too.

  ‘I booked an appointment with Tamara Trewin. You probably know of her … the medium that lives in Willow?’ Nick nodded, and Juliet continued, ‘I described to her what had happened to me, and she did something with her hands, feeling my energy, I think. When she was done, she told me I was displaced.’

  ‘Displaced? What did she mean?’

  ‘I haven’t finished yet. She told me it was my fate to die and that when you saved me, I was physically saved, but my soul died, moved on, or I spiritually died ... something like that.’ Juliet looked down at her hands, as if ashamed to say these things aloud. ‘She said I’m anchored in two worlds: this world and the Otherworld.’

  Now Nick could see where Juliet’s tale was heading. He almost didn’t want to listen.

  ‘Tamara told me I was seeing spirits and that Halloween would be a difficult day for me.’ She stopped and rubbed at her temples. ‘I can’t believe I’m saying this aloud; it sounds ridiculous.’

  Nick shook his head. ‘No. I believe you.’

  ‘You do?’ She gave him her eyes and seemed about to smile, but then she looked away again.

  ‘Yeah. I have something to tell you that you might not believe. And I think I know where you’re going with this … My mum appeared to you on Halloween, didn’t she?’

  Juliet sighed, relaxed her posture. ‘There’s more to it than that. She asked me to find you. She told me your name and where you work. She told me her name, Samantha Crystan, and said that you must go to Grendel Manor, that you need to know the truth ...’ She frowned hopefully, as if the mention of Grendel Manor would mean something to Nick.

  ‘Know the truth? She must mean about how she died …’

  ‘I assume so. She tried to say more. She said, Tell him to go to Grendel Manor and that he must take his … but then she vanished.’

  ‘I don’t know what she could have meant by that,’ Nick replied honestly. He had a sip of orange juice and would usually have savoured the freshness of it, but with all these revelations, the acidity made his nervous stomach churn.

  ‘What do you have to tell me?’ asked Juliet.

  ‘The reason I believe everything you’ve said is because something strange happened to me too. A few days before the car almost hit you, I had a vision of it actually hitting you and throwing you over the edge. I saw you die. At the time, I thought it was just a weird daydream. Then on that Friday morning, I saw things that matched the daydream and I knew I had to act fast to save you. That’s how I got to you in time: because I’d seen the future.’ Tension flew off his shoulders; it was such a relief to finally share his secret.

  ‘So Tamara was right? It was my fate to die.’

  ‘I don’t know, but I wasn’t going to let you die like that,’ he said. Did he imagine it, or did she blush? He’d thought she was gorgeous when he’d saved her, but now he really saw just how beautiful she was.

  ‘This can’t all be coincidence, can it?’ she asked.

  ‘I don’t think so.’

  ‘So what are we going to do about it?’

  ‘We?’ His pitch rose.

  ‘Yes, we. If you’re going to Grendel Manor, then I’m coming with you.’

  Chapter Eight

  JULIET THOUGHT ABOUT Nicolas on her bus journey home. His hazel eyes had soothed her when she dared to look at them, which hadn’t been often. It was embarrassing, talking about spirits aloud.

  They’d agreed that on Monday, Nicolas would pick her up from Chanton, as it was closer to Grendel Manor than Amiton was. She hadn’t given him her address but instead chose a location they could meet at. They exchanged phone numbers before leaving the pub.

  The bus journey took eons. She was on edge again. At The Crow, even as she talked with Nicolas, there was a woman sitting a few tables away, staring. Juliet knew it was a spirit and knew who it was: the unfortunate woman that had died out the front of Creaky Crystals. Juliet had read the lady’s name in the light of the shop windows. Rowena Helen Howard.

  The spirit had fixed her eyes on Juliet for the first minute or so of the conversation with Nick, then vanished into thin air. Having had more exposure to it by now, Juliet handled the occurrence more calmly than she had the previous week of phenomena.

  After Samantha Crystan appeared on Halloween, Juliet had expected no more spirits, but there was another only a couple of days later. In fact, she’d begun to realise, walking around Chanton, that some of the usual passers-by were actually ghosts. They could have gone unnoticed to her, but she’d learnt to tell the difference; the air surrounding spirits seemed to twitch, like static on a television screen. And of course it was a dead giveaway if they suddenly materialised or dematerialised.

  Juliet found it odd that when Samantha had appeared, lights flickered, the temperature changed, and there were all kinds of theatrics, but that didn’t happen for every spirit. Maybe they come from different depths of the Spiritworld; is it harder for some to appear than others? Had Samantha not appeared fully formed the first time because Juliet was new to her ability, or was Samantha trying desperately to get through?

  She contemplated Rowena’s death. It’s not like I asked to be saved, she thought, and I wouldn’t have wanted someone to die in my place. Had Rowena stared to make her feel guilty, to let Juliet know it should have been her? Whatever the reason, Juliet hadn’t asked for any of this, and that helped her ignore Rowena and concentrate on the conversation with Nick.

  But now the emotion she hated the most weighed her down. Guilt. It didn’t seem to have a purpose. She could think of only one way to resolve it, though. I should learn to use my ability. Then she might even discover what had happened to Rowena. To Juliet, it would be plain wrong if she didn’t try to do something. Helping Samantha and Nicolas would be a first step at least.

  The bus pulled into Chanton, and Juliet received a phone call as she thanked the driver and stepped down. She looked at the name and removed a glove to answer. ‘Hey, Kim.’

  ‘Juliet!’ Kim squeaked. ‘What are you doing tomorrow?’

  ‘I haven’t planned anything yet.’ Usually she volunteered at the charity shop on Saturdays, but she’d cancelled, assuming Nicolas would want to go to Grendel Manor as soon as possible. He hadn’t; apparently he was going to his dad’s house on the weekend.

  ‘I’ll come over, then, yeah?’

  ‘Sure. What do you have in mind?’ Walking home, Juliet’s body was uncomfortably hot under her winter coat; it contrasted with the sting of cold win
d against her gloveless hand and naked face.

  ‘Some girly gossip, drinks, and a lot of chillaxing in your hot tub, of course. We can have a proper catch-up.’

  ‘You want to have some drinks? Are you planning on staying over or bussing home?’

  ‘Ryan will drop me off and pick me up. It’s Bonfire Night tomorrow, so he’ll take me to see some fireworks.’

  ‘He’s okay with you coming over and drinking?’ Ryan Fraser was Kim’s boyfriend, and they’d been seeing each other for about three years, maybe four. He gave Juliet the creeps.

  ‘Yeah. He’s the one who suggested I see a friend for the day. I think maybe he’s had a stressful week at work and wants the day to himself. He works odd shifts.’

  ‘Is he still a support worker?’ As far as Juliet could remember, Ryan had been caring for vulnerable adults for years now.

  ‘Yeah. Tough job. He’s a sweetheart for keeping at it. I know I couldn’t do it!’

  ‘Sounds like a rewarding job, though,’ said Juliet, unsure.

  ‘Ha! Not with the pay he’s on.’

  Juliet laughed. ‘What time are you coming over then?’

  ‘Midday?’

  ‘That suits me.’

  ‘Juliet … You’re buying the drinks, right?’ Kim sniggered amiably.

  ‘I’ve already got plenty for you to choose from.’

  ‘If I was minted like you, I’d buy us the drinks and let you chillax in my hot tub. You know that, right?’

  ‘Yeah, yeah,’ Juliet teased, ‘I’m sure you would.’ She stayed on the phone to Kim as she walked.

  Chanton was eerily still, giving Juliet the urge to run home. But she believed a better tactic for not getting mugged was to appear confident, rather than looking like a pathetically vulnerable running target. Scuttling down these quiet, dark streets would not portray self-assurance.

  Juliet’s mother had named the house when it was hers, and although Juliet wasn’t too fond of her mother’s choice, she’d left it unchanged. So now she lived at The Haven, eight New Avenue. After a goodbye to Kim, she hung up, entered the house, and removed her stuffy winter coat.

  Roy had called the day before with an update on the redecorating. Everything was going to plan and he reckoned it would be finished early next week. Juliet smiled when she heard that. It was the highlight of her week.

  There was still time this evening to do something productive. Juliet made sure she was stocked up on fruit juice and Southern Comfort; her wine collection filled half a wall, but she was pretty confident Kim would go for SoCo and cranberry. She put a bottle of champagne in the fridge, just in case.

  After switching on the patio lights, she strode out into the garden.

  The hot tub hadn’t been used in a while and needed a clean-out. She removed the cover first, used a weak chlorine solution on it, hosed it down, and then propped it against the patio wall to dry. Using disinfectant spray, she cleaned all the areas she could reach. Then she replaced the filter and filled the tub with hot water and bleach before running the jets. Leaving them on, she headed back inside.

  A blinking LED on her laptop caught her attention; she’d left the machine running without the power adaptor connected. She plugged it in, then logged into her online banking account. Tension set into her body when she saw that money had been transferred to her account. She’d told her mum it didn’t matter, that she’d only wanted to talk about the car incident.

  Oh well, an extra five thousand pounds is always nice to receive.

  But it reminded her of something Nicolas had said at The Crow: I wasn’t going to let you die like that. The way he’d said it was so ... caring? It had made her almost uncomfortable, but not in a bad way. Then she heard her mother’s voice: Well, you’re alive aren’t you? That’s all that counts. Dismissive. False? Almost as if Mrs Maystone had better things to do than worry over her daughter’s feelings.

  Juliet was bitterly glad that she’d survived the incident and didn’t have to burden her parents with her funeral. Her skin flushed, coming over with wriggly, restless sensations. These kinds of thoughts were not good. Not productive. She set her mind to online shopping and study research.

  After half an hour, she returned to the hot tub, drained it, then filled it with cold water and let the jets run again to rinse out the bleach. She left it another half an hour while she showered, shaved her legs and armpits, and washed her hair. She returned to drain the tub a final time. The cover was almost dry, so she replaced it and went back inside.

  Juliet climbed into bed, indulging in the slow sinking sensation of the memory foam mattress. She settled on her back to look up at the ceiling. The light was off but she could still make out the shapes of furniture in the room.

  It had been a strange couple of weeks or so, to say the least. Juliet came close to tears, thinking of Rowena. It wasn’t fair. She pulled the cover over herself and hid away in deep shame. With closed eyes, she reminded herself not to give in.

  I didn’t ask for this, but I still have a choice … She’d come to accept that she really could see ghosts. If that meant to others that she was absolutely mad, then so be it; it wasn’t like she was going to go around telling everyone.

  Feeling somewhat ridiculous, she said aloud to the spirits, ‘I’ll do my best to help where I can.’ Then she muttered, ‘But please don’t disturb me tonight …’ She gave one final look around the room, then rested contently after her statement received no ghostly reply.

  Kim arrived the next day, dead on twelve. Juliet answered the door and glimpsed Ryan in his car; he nodded goodbye to his girlfriend, then turned his solemn face to the steering wheel and drove off.

  Shivers ran down Juliet’s spine.

  ‘Eeeeeeeeeeee!’ Kim greeted her with a shriek and a hug.

  ‘Kim!’ she said enthusiastically. ‘It’s good to see you.’

  ‘Let’s start drinking.’

  ‘What? It’s midday.’

  ‘Yeah; we’re late already then.’ Kim laughed, then grabbed Juliet’s hand and pulled her towards the kitchen. On the way, Kim paused and tugged on Juliet’s wrist. ‘You look different,’ she said accusingly. ‘Your skin … You’ve had treatment, right? And your hair … it’s lighter!’

  ‘I haven’t had anything done, except maybe a haircut since I last saw you.’ She shrugged. Strangely, she felt like she was lying; she’d noticed a difference herself. When she’d woken up and looked in the mirror, her skin had seemed smoother than usual, healthier, and her hair brighter, almost glittery.

  ‘I don’t believe you.’ Kim stuck out her tongue, then giggled. ‘Whatever you’ve had done, you look stunning.’ She returned to dragging Juliet towards the kitchen, and with a comical sigh she mumbled, ‘I wish I had your money ...’

  Juliet prepared her best friend’s SoCo and cranberry, and then she and Kim proceeded to the living room to begin their catch-up. Kim said things with Ryan were the same as always; she loved him, they never seriously argued, but he was always too stressed and preoccupied to do anything romantic.

  ‘Are you seeing anyone, Juliet?’

  ‘No, and I’m not looking.’

  ‘Come on. We’re not in school anymore. Why don’t you try to meet someone?’

  At school, Kim and Juliet had liked to think of themselves as untouchable. They’d been naturally popular due to their good looks but had never wanted boyfriends. After they left, though, Kim changed her views on guys and went through a period of having a different boyfriend each week. Juliet didn’t go through that phase. She’d had one relationship that lasted about seven months, and although she lost her virginity within it, she’d only done so because she thought she should have by that age. It wasn’t special, and she never felt close to the guy.

  ‘I don’t know. I don’t think I have time for a boyfriend.’

  ‘You do,’ said Kim, matter-of-fact.

  ‘Maybe ...’ Juliet’s chest was tight and uncomfortable.

  Observantly, Kim asked, ‘What is it? You never
like talking about men.’

  The answer came automatically to her mind, but Juliet was unsure if she wanted to say it aloud. But, with everything that had happened recently, she found the courage. She took a rallying breath and said, ‘Why would anyone like me?’

  Kim’s face turned serious all of a sudden. ‘Don’t say that, Juliet. You’re way prettier than most girls, you’re intelligent, you’ve got your own business, and lots of money!’ She paused, giving weight to her words.

  Kim’s hair was dark—almost black—and she kept it in a short bob cut that wouldn’t suit a lot of people, but it framed her face well. Her eyes were large, brown, and alluring. She reminded Juliet of cinema’s femme fatales, but only in her seductive appearance and kickass looks; Juliet couldn’t imagine her best friend purposely using her feminine wiles to get her own way.

  ‘There are so many reasons for someone to love you. Almost every guy at school fancied you; probably half the girls did, too!’ Kim tittered in a caring-yet-serious manner.

  ‘No. They all fancied you!’

  ‘They fancied me too, obviously.’ She stuck out her tongue. ‘They fancied both of us. Look at us …’ She gestured a hand back and forth between them. ‘We are pretty hot.’

  ‘If you say so.’ Juliet shook her head and laughed appropriately, letting the subject of her love life fall away. They continued to gossip for a long while and put on a DVD in the background. Kim had brought her favourite film of all time with her, Love Actually—one of Juliet’s least favourites. For Kim, though, she could endure it.

  Kim became steadily merry throughout the afternoon, but Juliet didn’t drink so much. She got up and walked to the kitchen to make her favourite guest another drink.

  It wasn’t the ideal time to ponder it, but Tamara’s words jumped into her mind. Your fate was to die. It made her think of Final Destination, another film she’d once endured for Kim’s sake. The idea of ‘Death’ hunting her down was something she didn’t want to worry about. But, worse than that, she felt like her freedom had been taken away. She had always believed people created their own realities and made their own choices. The thought of having a predestined life was plain horrible.