Soul Mate (Book One)

by Richard Crawford

  Anna comes and sits down beside us. "Are you going to draw something for me, Kylie?"

  We nod. I can feel the ghost wants to please Anna.

  "Can you draw me a cat?"

  I wonder why she wants us to draw a cat. But the ghost chooses an orange crayon and we start to draw a cat. It's not a very good cat, more like a stick cat with a big round face. The ghost catches our lip with her teeth as she concentrates. When she's finished with the cat she keeps drawing. First a house. It's just a box with a door and four windows. And a path. She spends time drawing the winding path. Then she draws flowers by the path.

  "Where does the path go, sweetheart?" Anna asks, real soft.

  The ghost doesn't say anything but she takes another piece of paper and starts drawing trees. We draw lots of trees. The path leads to the woods.

  Anna's talking to the ghost, saying what a nice picture it is. All of a sudden we put the crayon down and look at Anna. "I want to go home," Kylie says. The first words she has spoken. I don't think she's afraid anymore. She just wants to go home. We keep looking at Anna, waiting for her to sort it out, me and the ghost. She smiles at us a like it's not a big deal at all.

  "Of course you can go home. Just watch the television for a little while then I'll take you home, Kylie." She strokes our arm. "Is that OK?"

  We nod and start playing with the crayons, drawing random squiggles on the paper. The ghost is concentrating on the drawing so I don't see where Anna goes. I wonder if this is what she wanted. She was sure that everything came back to the cottages. I wonder what will happen when the ghost gets home. I don't want her to remember if it's going to be bad for her. But somehow she has to tell us what happened. I wonder if the ghost will be trapped here like Joe and Laurie. Will Danny be able to help this time? Will he want to? It was hard for him to get rid of Crick. I wonder if it's somehow dangerous for him.

  I start to get freaked out, so I make myself stop thinking about it.

  I have to trust Anna.

  She comes back and she's changed into smarter clothes. She smiles at us. "Are you all right, Kylie?" Her voice is soft and calm but I can see she's tense. She's clutching a large shoulder bag as if her life depended on it.

  We nod, still busy with the crayons. Anna starts putting stuff in the bag. I can't really see but I know she gets drinks, biscuits and crisps. Then she puts the notebook in and sorts through the papers we were working on. She takes a few pages; I think they're the ones with the lists of names on.

  When she's done she comes to sit down beside us. The ghost puts the crayon down. We look at Anna. It's like the ghost senses something. Anna's smile is a bit forced. She gives us an apple.

  "I'll take you home now, Kylie," she says. "We'll go in my car. Are you ready?"

  We nod. I can feel the ghost's a little uncertain. Anna takes our hand and we stand up. She leads us out through the scullery. The ghost stumbles a bit as we go outside. Anna holds our hand tighter. There's a garage with an old Volvo and a Land Rover with 'Lanson's Organic Market Gardens' painted on the doors. Anna leads us to the Land Rover. I'm surprised: I thought she'd take the car. For some reason it makes me anxious.

  The Land Rover's slow and noisy. But the ghost doesn't seem to mind. Anna keeps talking to us, playing 'I spy'. She tells Kylie, maybe she'll see some friends, people she knows. "Would you like that, Kylie?" she asks.

  The ghost nods, but I can feel she's not sure. The Land Rover chugs along the lanes. Anna points out when she sees muntjac deer, ponies and pheasants in the fields and the ghost likes it. Then we come to a stretch of road I think I know. When I see the tyre marks on the verge I'm sure of it.

  I can see the gates to Joel Hunter's yard. Holy Christ, what is Anna doing? She must know she can't take us there. I told her what happened. Anna slows down and stops before we reach the gate. She gets a floppy hat out of her bag.

  "Kylie," she says. "Will you wear this for me, so we can play a game?"

  The ghost nods. She likes the idea of another game. Anna puts the hat on our head. "I'm going to go and see a friend of mine, you'll see him too. He might be your friend. But I want you to stay in the car and make sure he doesn't see you. Can you do that for me, Kylie?"

  We nod and the ghost asks, "Is that the game, like hide and seek?"

  "Yes, that's right. You hide but you have to stay in the car."

  I'm trying not to go nuts in case I scare the ghost. But I can't believe Anna's doing this. She looks at me and smiles. I think it's meant to be reassuring. "It will be all right." She reaches over and pulls down the sun visor. The Land Rover windows are not big, with the visor pulled down we're fairly well hidden, but if Kylie gets out. I try not to think about it.

  Anna drives on and pulls into the yard. She parks just inside the gate. "Stay here," she says. She searches in her bag and gives us a Milky Way. "I won't be long." She jumps out and heads for the office. The ghost unwraps the Milky Way. I can tell she really likes chocolate. I try not to panic as we eat the first portion. In a little while, Anna comes out of the office. Joel Hunter is with her. The ghost watches them through the window. I can't feel any sense of recognition from Kylie at the sight of Hunter. I think what an insane risk Anna's taking. If Kylie had recognised him…. I push that thought aside.

  I'm still terrified Kylie will get out, but I suppose kids are used to being told to wait. We wriggle around a bit but in the end we eat the other bit of the Milky Way.

  Anna comes back to the Land Rover and jumps in. She shoves some brochures down by the seat. She's a bit flushed. I can tell she's wound up but she smiles at the ghost. "Are you OK, Kylie?"

  We nod and give her the wrapper for the Milky Way.

  Anna puts it back in her bag. She starts the Land Rover. "Did you see anyone you know?" she asks, real casual.

  We shake our head. But I think Anna knew that already. She's freaking me out a bit. I wonder what she thinks would've happened if Joel Hunter had been the killer, and how she could have hoped to cope with it.

  I'm glad when we pull out of the yard.

  Anna says, "I'll take you home now, sweetheart."

  The ghost feels pleased.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  We're heading into the sun. I try to remember Crick's road map. But I wasn't paying enough attention. I realise I don't even know where the cottages are.

  Anna talks to the ghost all the time but I'm not paying attention. I'm trying to work out what Anna's plan is. Does she think Kylie will see her killer and identify him for us? It seems risky and pretty brutal. But then I know Anna can be ruthless. I tell myself I have to trust her. It's not like I have a choice.

  We've been driving along between cornfields. But up ahead on the hills the woods are waiting. I feel creeped out when we drive into the shadows. I think it's just me as the ghost doesn't seem bothered. Anna keeps talking. Sometimes the ghost answers, mostly we just listen and nod or shake our head.

  I feel the moment when Kylie starts to recognise stuff. Or at least I think that's what's happening. She gets sort of still. We look out the window and don't respond when Anna asks us something. Anna turns down a really narrow lane. The Land Rover bumps through potholes. The ghost sits forward on the seat and I see a row of terraced cottages up ahead. They stand on a square of open ground. They have small front gardens with roses trailing over a low stone wall. There's a parking place on the lane in front of the cottages, behind them I can see back gardens, with vegetables planted. Out back of the gardens there's a small field with sheep, then the woods. The woods are all round, pressing close.

  Anna stops and turns off the engine. The ghost is staring at the furthest cottage. It looks dark and empty. There are no curtains in the windows but it's hard to tell for sure if it's empty.

  "Here we are, Kylie," Anna says. "I'm just going to go and see Mr Clemence. I want you to wait here until I come back."

  "Can't I come with you?" we ask. Kylie's not scared but I can feel her confusion. I wonder why she doesn't ask for her mum or
dad. It seems weird to me.

  "Just a few moments, Kylie, I promise." Anna reaches for the door handle. Her voice is warm and kind but there's something intense about her. I've been so wrapped up in what's going on with the ghost I've forgotten about the note. The fear she's lived with all this time, the way it has twisted her up. I've forgotten what this means to Anna. As Anna climbs out of the car, I'm scared for her and the ghost too.

  We watch Anna go up the path to the middle cottage. She takes her time. Clemence, I think he was the guy who lived alone, the one who didn't have an alibi. I realise he'll know Anna, even without the logo on the Land Rover. She said she spent time at the cottages. The neighbours must've seen her. If this is the guy who sent her the note, he'll know her. But it seems as if that's what she wants. I wonder what the hell she's doing. I understand that she can't take Kylie with her. I wouldn't be able to help her, but what sort of plan is it to go marching in like this?

  We watch as she knocks at the door. It's opened by an old guy. He's got slicked back grey hair and he's sort of hunched over. We stare at him. Maybe there's a flicker of something from the ghost but nothing much. Anna is talking to him. He doesn't seem to want to let her in but in the end they go inside. I feel a bit sick as the door closes.

  We keep watching. I can feel the ghost wants Anna to come back. It's very quiet. A breeze spills drifts of petals from the roses. I see a face at the window of the other cottage. The ghost sees it too. We lift our hand and wave. The face disappears.

  There's no sign of Anna and I'm getting really worried. I know she's not stupid. But I can't believe she's taking risks like this. There must be something I'm missing. I can feel the ghost getting bored. We fiddle with the door catch. Then we stare out the window. But there's no sign of Anna. The face is back at the window of the other cottage. It's half hidden behind the curtain but I think it's a man. We wave. The curtain sways and the face is gone.

  I feel the pull, just like with Laurie and Joe.

  The ghost fiddles with the door handle and gets it open. We hesitate for a moment and then scramble down. I start to panic, but there's nothing I can do. We're on the far side from the cottages. I don't know if Anna will see us. The ghost stands for a moment then walks along the lane towards the cottage where she lived. Close to, it looks empty. We stop at the gate but we don't go in. Beyond the cottage is a path to the woods. I feel the pull as the ghost heads down the path. This is not good.

  As we walk, I can feel the pull towards the woods getting stronger. The ghost's not scared and I'm glad. But I don't see how that can last. I wonder if she's going back to the last place, the same as Joe and Laurie. I remember how much that scared them. It had to be so much worse for Kylie. I can't even think about it. It drives me nuts there's nothing I can do to protect her. When we're a little way down the path we stop and look back at the cottages. There's a face in the window of the other cottage again. Kylie waves, then we turn and walk towards the woods. I get a bad feeling. I wonder where the fuck Anna is.

  We go under the trees and the path plunges downhill. It's like being in a green tunnel. The branches are close overhead. Kylie isn't scared. We sort of skip a bit. The path is narrow but well worn. I wonder if people walk their dogs here. We come to a fork in the path and Kylie turns left without hesitating. We're still going downhill.

  This path seems less used. There are thick briars and fallen branches on the ground beneath the trees. Something scuttles among the briars. We stop. Kylie looks round. There's no one on the path. We turn back and keep walking. But I have a feeling there's someone back there. I tell myself not to be stupid. Kylie isn't frightened.

  The path reaches the bottom of the hill and we step out from under the trees into a grassy glade. The sun feels good. There's a stagnant, reed-filled pond to one side. Kylie stops to throw stones into the pond. A moorhen scuttles out of the reeds. I hear a noise. I wish Kylie would look round but she's too busy looking into the pond for frogspawn or something.

  I'm sure there's someone else here.

  Kylie finds a stick to poke in the water. We're standing on the edge of the pond. I don't like it. But Kylie seems happy. We poke around in the water for a bit longer then she chucks the stick into the pond. It sinks into the dark water.

  Kylie heads off along the path. It's hardly a path now. We have to bend to get beneath some of the branches. We slow down and duck behind a big oak tree. There's a little hollow. We sort of run down the slope, dry leaves crackle under our feet.

  At the bottom we hesitate and look round. I'm sure I see a shadow back by the oak tree. But Kylie turns away. We climb back out of the other side of the hollow and the briars get really thick. The trees are covered with ivy and the branches interweave overhead so there's hardly any sunlight. There's a huge fallen tree; it's covered in ivy and moss and looks like it's been there for years and years. The withered roots stick up in the air taller than my head.

  We scramble between the roots and the briars. The ground falls away sharply but there's a worn path. A few steps and we're in this little bower hidden in a clearing between the brambles and the fallen tree. Kylie comes to a stop and stares around.

  Sunlight filters through the leaves. There's a log that looks as if it was brought here. The ground is worn and there are cigarette butts by the log. It's clear someone still comes here regularly. There's a biscuit tin tucked away beneath the ivy and brambles. Kylie opens it, like she's done this before. Inside there are some tatty plastic dolls, a black and white plastic horse and an old skipping rope. We smile, and I can tell she's pleased with this stuff.

  I hear a noise again and this time Kylie looks round. There's a man standing by the fallen tree. He's about fifty, skinny with dark hair thinning on top but left a bit too long at the sides and back. He's wearing a green jumper and corduroy trousers. His face is sort of blank, but his eyes are full of suspicion. I don't like him.

  "Mr Dawson," Kylie says, and we smile at him.

  He gets that look, and I know he heard something in our voice. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

  "It's our special place," Kylie says. We're still holding the biscuit tin. "You know that, Mr Dawson. We come here all the time."

  Dawson's gripping hold of one of the roots now, about shoulder height. He looks over his shoulder to see if there's anyone else here. "Put that stuff down," he says and starts towards us.

  Kylie closes the tin and tucks it back under the brambles. "Are we going to play a game?" she asks, a little uncertain now, worried she's done something wrong.

  Dawson's about three feet away. "What are you doing here?"

  Kylie sort of laughs but there's a thread of fear now. "This is our special place, Mr Dawson." We back away a pace. I want Kylie to run.

  Dawson makes a grab for us. Kylie jumps aside with a little gasp. She's not sure if this is a game. But Dawson is between us and the way out. He picks up a branch and starts forward. Kylie starts to cry. There's nothing I can do. Dawson swings the branch. It hits me in the head. We're still wearing Anna's hat and that takes some of the force. The branch's rotten and breaks when it hits. But it's enough to knock us down.

  We lay there sort of stunned. Kylie is crying and whimpering now. I feel something terrible is going to happen. Or maybe I feel something that already happened. Dawson throws the rest of the branch aside. He drops down and his weight pins us to the ground. His hands are round my neck. He's shaking us and yelling, "Who are you? What do you want here?"

  His fingers get tighter and tighter. He's still yelling. I get the feeling this is an echo of something that happened before. Kylie is frantic with fear. I try to move, but she still has control. I scream for Danny but there's nothing.

  We can't breathe. Stars flash, pinpricks in the darkness that covers our eyes. It's happening again.

  I hear someone yelling, but they're a long way off. The weight on my chest eases. The fingers loosen from my throat. But we're still choking. Our feet kick against the ground. I can hear a voice yelling my
name, but something's wrong. Kylie's dying. Somehow, I'm caught up in it.

  We're falling, falling so far I think it will never end. I can't feel anything except Kylie's terror and these terrible memories. A flood of horror I can't escape. I try to tell her I'm sorry, but there's nothing from Kylie now but a thin scream that goes on forever.

  Then something happens. It's like Kylie is lifted away. Her terror fades along with her scream. It's soft when the ghosts come for her, not like last time, not slamming into me. I feel Danny, I feel them all, just like when they were in me and Mr Edwards too. I sense them sort of gather Kylie in and push me away. I reach out to Danny. But they push me away again. I don't want to let Danny go.

  "Tommy!" I can hear Anna shouting, "Tommy, please, are you all right?"

  I can't speak but I sort of wave my arm at her. I roll onto my side. My throat hurts like hell and breathing makes me choke. I groan. I know I should help Anna with Dawson, but I can hardly find the energy to look up let alone get up. She's standing close by. I see the gun in her hand. Dear God. I wonder what she's done.

  I get an arm braced underneath me. Dawson's on his knees by the tree stump. He's holding his hands in the air. Blood runs down his face. I can see he's terrified. I look up at Anna and I can see why. There's something feral in her eyes.

  We stay frozen like this for a while. Anna with the gun pointed at Dawson.

  "She's buried here isn't she you bastard?" When he hesitates she waves the gun at him. "It's over for you. They'll find her. And your DNA all over this stuff. Your alibi, they'll break that too." She takes a step towards him, "And Clemence told me about your little walks with Kylie. How you threatened him." She sounds wild and triumphant. "I should just kill you now. After what you did to Tommy it would be self defence."