by Rue Volley
I leaned toward her. “Thank you.”
She offered up a nervous grin. It seemed ironic that both she and Court had chosen to dress like they were dead. It only added to the creepy theatrics of the moment.
“Okay, so, what now?” Court asked.
I cleared my throat. “Well, we ask a question.”
Liv leaned in and whispered to the board. “Who does your hair?”
Court rolled her eyes. “Seriously, Oliver?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “What? I love his hair, and it’s Liv.”
“That’s great and all, but we’re not here for that, Liv.”
He pursed his lips as Court looked at me. “I think you should ask the questions.”
I took a slow breath. It was now or never. “Are you there, Killian?”
We waited, and nothing happened. Court shook her head. “This is crap just like I thou—”
The piece began to move under our fingertips. Slow and steady, moving toward the top of the board. Our eyes widened.
“Stop it, Oliver!” GG’s voice cracked with frightful tension.
“It isn’t me, GG—I swear.” He sounded different, unsure of himself. It wasn’t like him.
The piece stopped, and everyone let go at once with a yelp. We all stared down on the board in a perfect circle.
The piece was pointing at the word YES.
We gasped as one. Was this for real?
I stood up. “Did one of you do that? I really need to know like right now.” I paced back and forth.
Everyone scrambled to their feet and spoke in turn.
“No.”
“No!”
GG was last to respond. “No, I didn’t. I promise. I’d never!”
Liv raised his hands to his head. “What do we do now?” His voice trembled.
I stopped and glared at the board. “Okay, okay.”
I returned to my spot in front of it and held onto the edge of the table.
“Maybe he’s having trouble crossing over to see us now.” I was reaching, grabbing at anything I could to try to understand what was happening. “I mean, they always say it’s a veil, like a portal. Maybe I closed that portal when I told him I didn’t want to see him again.”
Liv spoke up. “Well, maybe that was for the best since he’s DEAD AND ALL!”
“Oliver Millhousen! When have I ever asked you for anything? Anything at all? Well, I am now. I need your help—all of you. Please!”
Liv knelt back down, and Court joined him. GG still stood at a distance. She was upset with good reason.
Liv looked at his watch and then swallowed hard. “It’s almost midnight.”
“What?” I asked as I looked around the room.
He held up his watch and showed me. It was five till midnight.
I pulled a piece of paper out of my pocket. Just words I had copied from the book.
I unfolded it, placing it on the table. I narrowed my eyes and stared at the words.
“What is that?” Liv asked.
I touched the paper. “It’s something I found in a book.”
“What?” GG asked.
I leaned in, took a slow breath. “How to commune with the dead.”
“Whoa,” Liv exclaimed.
She shook her head and pointed at the board. “Nope. Uh uh. People said don’t use those things. They’re not toys!”
I continued to read the paper, trying to memorize the words.
“GG, Harper needs our help. I think we owe her that much.” Court spoke calmly. She stood her ground. Court lifted a hand. “Wouldn’t you want help if some hottie dead boy liked you?”
She bit her lip. Court waved her over. GG seemed frozen with fear, so I looked at her. My expression spoke volumes. She looked down at her feet.
“Please, GG. I care about him, and he may be in trouble. Maybe that’s why he contacted me—all of us. Please? Will you help me? I just want to apologize to him, that’s all. Nothing more.” I waited, and then she finally joined us, taking her original spot beside me.
I took a short breath and released it. “I think we should all say this together. I’ll go first, okay?”
“Three minutes,” Liv said as he glanced at his watch again.
“Why do you keep telling us?” GG asked.
He rolled his eyes. “Halloween is the best day of the year to contact the dead. It’s when the veil between our two worlds is the thinnest, weren’t you listening to Harper?”
Her brow furrowed. “No, I wasn’t! I was over there, nearly crapping my pants.”
“Guys, please. Will you help me?” I pleaded. “Before we’re out of time?”
They glanced at each other and then gave me a nod.
“Okay.” I stared at the paper and then touched the piece on the board. They mimicked me, GG was last, as expected, but at least she was willing to try. I didn’t know if this would work, but I had nothing else.
I began to read the words, as simple as they were.
WANDERING SPIRIT ON THE OTHER SIDE
REVEAL YOURSELF TO MORTAL EYES
PUSH BACK THE VEIL OF WHAT CANNOT BE SEEN
AND SHOW YOURSELF THIS HALLOWEEN
I waited, but nothing happened.
I sat up on my knees and stared at the board.
Liv looked at his watch. “One minute.”
I cleared my throat. “Please say it with me, and we’ll keep going until the clock strikes midnight, okay? This is the only time I will ever ask any of you to do this, I promise.”
I began to chant, and each one of them joined me as they memorized the words.
WANDERING SPIRIT ON THE OTHER SIDE
REVEAL YOURSELF TO MORTAL EYES
PUSH BACK THE VEIL OF WHAT CANNOT BE SEEN
AND SHOW YOURSELF THIS HALLOWEEN
WANDERING SPIRIT ON THE OTHER SIDE
REVEAL YOURSELF TO MORTAL EYES
PUSH BACK THE VEIL OF WHAT CANNOT BE SEEN
AND SHOW YOURSELF THIS HALLOWEEN
WANDERING SPIRIT ON THE OTHER SIDE
REVEAL YOURSELF TO MORTAL EYES
PUSH BACK THE VEIL OF WHAT CANNOT BE SEEN
AND SHOW YOURSELF THIS HALLOWEEN
We began to recite the words again, and I was beginning to lose hope, but then something started to happen. The temperature in the room began to chill, and flames shot higher than they ever had before. The candle flames flickered, and one by one, they put themselves out, leaving behind white trails of smoke.
“Keep going!” I cried out as the windows blew open, and the room filled up with chilled air. It lifted our hair, one by one, as we continued to chant the words, hoping that this would be it. Killian had to be so close to revealing himself. My heartbeat sped up; my fingers tingled like they were falling asleep. My body felt lighter, perhaps light as a feather, even lifting off the floor. I looked down, and we seemed to be hovering a few inches above the wood floor.
We stopped chanting the words as butterflies of every color filled the room, forming a strange vortex above the board. We all looked upward. My eyes lit up as a small light began to build in the center of the swirling mass. It grew, larger and larger, rolling like mercury, reflective and beautiful. I was mesmerized. So much so that I didn’t notice that GG was trying to speak to me. Finally, I felt her grab my hand, but just as I looked down at her pale fingers they began to fade, and her hand fell through mine. She was desperately trying to tell me something, but I couldn’t hear her. I narrowed my eyes as her body began to fade, then Liv, then finally, Court. I looked at my hands in horror, flipping them over as I began to fade, too.
What had I done?
Panic set in as the living room began to change all around us. The curtains changed from dark to light, the couches disappeared, replaced by two large chairs. The coffee table morphed into a smaller one, rounded and lower to the ground. I spun around as the dark wallpaper made way for white. Our pictures faded one by one, replaced by new ones. Unrecognizable paintings—some large, some small, intermixed with bla
ck and white photographs. It was my house, my living room, but it had changed — all of it.
Memories began to rush through my mind.
I could see my mom making food in the kitchen, my dad chasing my brothers through the entryway. I could see leaves falling to the ground, feel the chilled air on my skin. I watched the trees move in the wind, and ran my hand along the cold stones in the cemetery.
I sat at my desk in class, turning to see one desk empty, then another, followed by another.
Then I found myself in bed, staring out the window, too tired to walk, too weak to care. My throat ached; my chest felt heavy.
My heart raced in my chest, then began to slow.
One beat after the other.
Until finally, I closed my eyes, and silence followed.
Chapter Twenty-Four
I woke up on the cold stone, staring at the ceiling of an unfamiliar place. I sat up, narrowing my eyes, trying to understand my surroundings, but soon it became clear. I slipped from the side, placing my naked feet to the stone floor and stared down at my white nightgown. I noticed a door, so I approached it with caution, and placed my palm against it, pressing as hard as I could. I became discouraged and took two steps back only to spot a butterfly.
It floated by my face—peaceful, serene.
Calming me.
Its bright orange wings stuck out against the gray blocks. It landed and then disappeared through a small crevasse. I took a short breath and leaned in to look through the hole. I narrowed my eyes and placed my hand against the stone.
I struggled.
Then I understood.
I was inside the mausoleum.
The same one that I always leaned against while reading my favorite book.
The door began to move, dropping dust and small chunks of rock at my feet. Finally, it opened up, and I had to shield my eyes from the blinding light, but before me a shadow emerged with an outstretched hand. I reached out without fear just as the mysterious figure came into view and our fingers touched with sparks of light. Butterflies filled the room, and the once nameless boy who had so rudely interrupted me as I read pulled me forward and out into the light. I stared up at the blue sky, so beautiful, so perfect, so calm. Then he leaned in and whispered in my ear.
“Hi.” Killian looked so pretty, so healthy—so happy. It filled me with joy.
“Hi,” I repeated as things began to come into focus.
“You were right about everything—well, almost everything,” he added while cupping the side of my face.
“About what?” I asked, even though I knew.
“We did move to Juniper Hollow because my dad wanted to reach out to my mom, but he never found her. And then I—” He paused, while staring deeply into my eyes.
“Died?” I asked. “Killian, I know that it was you making all the noise in my house. Causing all the cold spots, the footsteps, the opening and closing of doors. And the way you seemed to appear and disappear at random. The way you faded in front of my house. How the lights flickered in the coffee shop. I get it now. I do, and I don’t care. I—I.” I expected this to end anytime now, so the fear of telling him the truth had melted away. I wanted to say it. It was right there on the tip of my tongue.
The word love lingered all around me.
“Oh, Harper.” I narrowed my eyes, “I tried so many times to reach you. I sat in class, watching you in the corner. I sat in the cafeteria watching you read. I saw you in the atrium, tending to the plants, but you could never hear me. God, I tried so many times, for years—then finally you heard me, right here while you were reading your book.”
“Killian.” His named hitched in the back of my throat. Of course he brought me here—to his place. Where he rested. I didn’t know how long he had been dead, but I didn’t care. Nothing mattered now, but the fact that he was standing before me. I could get lost in his beautiful bright blue eyes for an eternity.
That’s what I wanted.
All that I wanted.
“Harper, I love you.”
“I—” My mind swirled and my knees felt weak.
He leaned in, and kissed my lips, soft and gentle, washing away the confusion and the fear of the unknown, bridging the gap between our two worlds once and for all. Piercing the veil. His hand cradled the back of my head while his mouth moved against mine. The kiss was more than I could’ve ever hoped for — sheer perfection.
Then it ended, as quickly as it had begun. I wanted more. Always more.
But we have that now, don’t we?
I opened my eyes to find him smiling and studying my face. “What?” I asked.
“I think it’s time you know.”
“What do you mean?” I asked in a daze. The kiss had left me fighting to stand.
He turned me around so I could read the inscription on the outside of the mausoleum.
I gasped.
“Harper. It was always you.”
Butterfly Omens and Color Chart
Blue- These enchanting butterflies are believed to grant wishes and make dreams come true. However, there’s a catch. One should not give up. Difficulties might be presented and cause may seem lost. However, if you insist, things will change rapidly. Do not despair.
Also, a Blue Butterfly will grant you protection over evil magic and malicious spirits. Are you under a curse? Time to break free and spread your wings.
Brown- The soil colored butterflies is an omen of important – usually good – news. A probably delayed and long-awaited answer will come to you. Something you’ve been waiting for too long.
This will help you flourish anew, signifying a fresh beginning. Hence, a brown butterfly is considered a good omen, although patience is required.
Purple- If these rare species are spotted, a powerful omen has become clear. A very powerful, or rich, or enlightened person will come your way. S/he may even have royal origin.
Purple Butterfly implies a divine intervention. When life becomes too hard or you face a very important issue – even health involved – spotting a purple Butterfly is an omen of release from one’s burden.
Black- Usually interpreted as an ill omen, black butterflies tell us to turn inwards. There is magic at work here for either good or ill. A black butterfly is a harbinger of magical energy, coming usually from Deities or Witches related with Storms, Thunders and Lightnings. Is a Storm Witch after You?
Moreover, if a black butterfly is spotted, sudden change should be anticipated. An end of an era. A break up, or maybe a change of hearts, relocation etc. In conclusion, if you see a black butterfly, it’s time to practice some magic. Time to define this energy.
White- White Butterflies imply the presence of your deceased loved one who are here to protect and guide you. These amazing creatures symbolize life and death. Hence, different traditions advise us to consult our dead ancestors for what they are trying to tell us.
According to some tribes, white butterflies are omens of death. Others believe it’s an omen of independence and good luck. All agree however, that this is a very powerful omen of change which has to do with our legacy and our ancestors. Hence, devote something to your dead ancestors asking for their guidance. Is a deceased loved one angry? Let’s make peace.
Orange- Spotting an orange butterfly is usually a sign that we need to stay active and optimistic. An opportunity or a change is coming and we have to conjure all our enthusiasm to get the most out of this situation.
Is this a new job, a new romantic partner, a new friend? Orange Butterflies predict that a change is coming and we have to go out and grab this opportunity.
Yellow- Yellow butterflies are not easy omens as they predict sudden life change. Sailors spotting a yellow butterfly – or for other traditions any butterfly at all – prior embarking, was a sign that this will be their last journey.
However, yellow butterflies are not omens of Death, but a sign to wake up, because a New Life is awaiting for us! We need to conjure all our mental clarity as we are going to face a challenge whic
h required our alertness and creativity.
Green- A green butterfly is an omen of Good Luck, growth and abundance. It certainly tells us that we are on the right track. Moreover, if the Green Butterfly is flying over our head making circles, wealth and healing is on its way.
If green butterflies are spotted indoors then good luck will come to the ones who live there. Also, it may mean promotion, success or unexpected good news like pregnancy or marriage.
Red- According to the Native American tradition, spotting a red butterfly by chance is an omen of very important, life-changing news. Something huge is coming towards you. Also, as butterflies symbolize the souls of the dead, a red butterfly is a symbol of a very powerful spirit watching over you.
Please Enjoy A Sample of 13 Ways To Midnight
Prologue
I closed the magazine and admired the cover. There they were, standing side by side, my parents, Peter and Alice Navarri, world-famous archaeologists. The headline was about as accurate as it could be.
“Digging up the past to predict the future.”
I lowered the glossy image and spotted the two of them standing next to each other on top of the small white steps jetting out from the side of the plane.
My dad’s thick curly black hair framed his pale face and bright blue eyes while my mom’s long dirty blonde hair lay in a thick braid that cascaded over her shoulder and rested just above her narrow waistline. Her eyes were emerald green with specks of amber tossed in here and there, almond-shaped and devoid of emotion. She’s impossible to read, so I don’t even try. My dad, on the other hand, is an open book. I guess I fall somewhere in between.
Ten plus hours of skirting along the lower stratosphere had not upset them in the least.
Me? I was a hot mess.
My hair was disheveled, and my clothing wrinkled. I suffer from terrible jet lag, and this had been the longest flight we had been on in months.