“No.”
“Sure.” He rolled his eyes and it instantly made me remember the last time we had hung out together. It was in my bedroom, we were studying ancient history. I was trying to convince him Cleopatra was a made up figure and he was shooting me down by applying logic and reason. He had rolled his eyes at me then too and I thought it was adorable. Now, it was frustrating.
“I swear,” I insisted.
“Miss Everly Anne Hilton, you are too bad of a liar to actually do it convincingly. Quit it.”
I couldn’t keep up the charade, no matter how much I tried. Oliver had a way of seeing right through me. It only left one question: “How long have you known?”
“A while.”
“I don’t want anyone else to know.”
He nodded, back to being completely serious again. “I can respect that. Nobody needs to find out.”
I needed him to understand just how much was at stake with my secret. Even though I trusted Oliver more than anyone else in the world, he could still make a mistake. “It’s just that, if people know, then the ghosts will all know too. Sometimes it’s too much and they won’t leave me alone.”
“Maybe there’s a reason why they won’t leave you alone.”
Yeah, it was because they were desperate, needy, and some of them didn’t even realize they were dead. “I can’t help them.”
“No, but they could help the living,” Oliver replied. My brow wrinkled as I tried to work out what he meant. No matter how much I stared at him, the answer didn’t magically appear on his forehead.
I would have to ask him. “What do you mean?”
“They could pass on their knowledge to those here. If they explained to you, you could explain it to everyone else. We could rebuild the city with that kind of information.”
I shook my head fervently. I could not be responsible for that much. All I came down here for was food, I could not get roped into the burden of rebuilding the entire city. I just couldn’t.
I got up, the city suddenly feeling like it was suffocating me. I had to get out.
Oliver stood too. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“You can’t ask that much of me, Olly. I’m not strong enough to act as some kind of psychic mediator. I can’t handle the spirits that won’t leave me now.”
“Look, I really am sorry.” The sadness in his eyes made me stop for a second to hear him out. “Just stick around for a little while longer. I promise I won’t mention it again. You can think about it for a while.”
“I’m not going to change my mind.”
He chuckled with a nervous laugh. “You rarely do. But please think about it. You’ve got a gift. I can help you use it, I can be there for you.”
Oliver was one of the nicest guys on the planet, but he didn’t know what it was like constantly being hounded by the spirits. He couldn’t know what it was like to listen to their pain and know there was nothing I could do about it.
“I’ll find some food for you to take home.” He left me alone in the courtyard.
I sat back down again and leaned against the cold brick wall of the building. Pulling my legs up to my chest, I wished I was somewhere else. I wished the Event didn’t happen and I was sitting in the schoolyard again waiting for sixth period English class with Mr. Brown. If I concentrated hard enough, I could still picture all the students, laughing and talking in groups.
But Mr. Brown was dead now.
All the teachers were.
Many of the students, too.
I shook my head to get rid of the memories. That was the reason why I didn’t want to come into the city. The memories were too strong when everything looked so familiar.
Across the way, a little girl of about seven waved to me. Her red curly hair shone, even though the sky was still cloudy with smoke and blocking out the sun. I didn’t wave back, I couldn’t risk it. I would make no connections here, I couldn’t.
As I went to turn away, a piece of food in her hand was ripped away by a group of boys as they moved past her. They knocked her to the ground as they ran away.
I hurried over and helped her to her feet. She swatted at the dirt caked on her knees and hands. “Are you okay?” I asked. Up close, I could see her big green eyes as they fought back tears. She nodded, trying to be brave. “Are you hungry? Do you want more food?”
She shook her head and her curls bounced with the movement. “I was almost finished. I can’t go back for more, it’s against the rules.”
“Is there someone we can tell? They shouldn’t get away with stealing your food or knocking you down.” Stupidly, I looked around for a teacher. Of course there wasn’t going to be anyone supervising the courtyard, they were all dead.
“There’s no-one. What’s your name?”
I didn’t want to tell her my name because then she would tell me hers and then she would be a real person to me. Yet looking into her innocent eyes, I couldn’t just walk away. Not when she reminded me so much of Faith. “My name is Everly.”
“That’s pretty. I’m Lilia. Are you staying here?”
“No, just visiting.”
“I don’t live here either.”
I stared at the little girl. She had a sadness that no child should ever know. But every child here did know it, they knew it well like a worn teddy bear. “Who is looking after you?” I asked. If I could hand her over to someone, I could walk away.
And I needed to walk away.
“Nobody. I’m looking after myself,” Lilia said proudly. My heart leaped for her. Even in the broken world, she still took pride in her ability to survive. I guessed it was something to be proud of since the Event.
It was either survive or perish.
“Do you know a girl named Faith?” It was worth a shot, I had to ask.
She pursed her little lips together as she gave it great thought. My hopes lifted, perhaps she had seen my sister. “I don’t think so. Who is she?”
“Nobody.”
“Will you help me wash my hair? I’m not very good at it.” Lilia gave me that piercing look again, the one that was just like Faith. I guessed I could help her while Oliver was busy, it probably wouldn’t take very long.
I nodded reluctantly and she slid her little hand into mine. I fought back the tears, because if I closed my eyes, I could pretend she was my sister. But when I opened my eyes again, I knew it would just be another lie.
Lilia knew her way around the place surprisingly well. She guided me through the chaos of the hall and out the other side again. We walked for two blocks before we stood outside a building that had been partially destroyed. Whether it was from a lack of maintenance or human intervention, I wasn’t sure what had caused all the damage.
“This is your home?” I asked. She nodded and led me through a broken door. I had to duck and let go of her hand just to follow. The hallway was like a small dark tunnel. For someone as tiny as Lilia, it was easy to negotiate. I was a little bigger so I had to crouch down to move along.
Lilia passed through another door, this one was only barely hanging onto the wall by a broken hinge. It was going to fall down completely sometime soon. Hopefully that time wouldn’t be now. I tried not to touch it as I went underneath.
“This is my home,” Lilia declared with pride. It was a small, dirty room. But all four walls were intact and the window actually had glass in it. She was doing a lot better than many other people.
On the floor was a thin layer of blankets, another one balled up to act as a pillow. It was the only thing in the room. “You sleep here every night?”
She nodded, actually managing to summon a smile in the horrible conditions. “Nobody can find me in here, I’m safe. You won’t tell anyone, will you?”
“Never,” I promised. I doubted I would be able to find my own way back anyway. Kids were better at hiding than they had been since I was last in the city.
“Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?” Lilia curled up in her poor excuse for a bed and lay down. I sat next
to her, tucking the blanket up to her chin.
“Yeah, I’ll stay. Don’t you want to wash your hair?”
She shook her head, her curls bouncing. “Changed my mind. It’s too cold.”
“Sleep well.”
Her sleepy eyes were already starting to close. “Everly?”
“Hmm?”
“Do you think they’re coming back?”
I rubbed her back, unable to answer her question. It wasn’t because I didn’t know the answer, because it was a firm no. But I didn’t want to be the one responsible for taking away the little girl’s hope. It was all we had left. Hope was a commodity in short supply. The more you had, the richer you were.
“Go to sleep,” I whispered instead. Lilia settled into the bed further and sighed. Such an innocent little child, she didn’t deserve to be fending for herself.
I considered taking her back to my house on the hill but I knew it was useless rescuing every child I came across. It wouldn’t even create a dent in the problems of the city. Lilia was probably better off here anyway.
I waited until Lilia’s breathing became rhythmic as she drifted off to sleep. I crept out as quietly as I possibly could. I needed to find Oliver and get the food so I could go home. I’d had my fill of the city for one day.
For a lifetime.
I stood at the door to the hall and tried to spot the face I knew so well amongst the many that I didn’t. It was possible I did know lots of the people here but they had changed so much since the Event I couldn’t recognize them.
“Hey, there you are,” Oliver said behind me, scaring me half to death. I spun around out of instinct, my hand ready to punch him in the face and defend myself. “Whoa, it’s okay. It’s just me.”
“You shouldn’t sneak up on a girl like that. You might lose your teeth or something.”
He gave me his famous wide grin that always made me want to smile too. “I’m not scared of you. Especially when I’ve found you some food.”
“You did?” That was a relief, I could be on my way home and not have to return for a very long time. I would make the food last as long as possible, living off the barest of minimums.
“Come on, I’ll show you.” He waved me along to follow him. I trailed close to his heels to make sure I didn’t lose him amongst the people or debris.
We skirted around the outside of the hall until we reached the back of the kitchen area. Oliver pointed to a box on the stainless steel bench. “Take that box, it should keep you going for a while.”
“You’re sure it’s okay just to take it?” My old sense of decency screamed that I was stealing. After all, I hadn’t done anything to work for the food, and money hadn’t been used in a long time.
“If you were staying in the city you would be given a daily meal. This is the same thing. Take it.” I studied Oliver’s face to make sure he was okay with it. His eyes were nothing more than sincere. I stepped forward and picked up the box. It was heavy with food, it should last me as long as I’d hoped it would.
“Thank you,” I said gratefully. I would have hugged him if my arms weren’t full.
“I take it you’re going to go straight home now?” Oliver asked, a sad resignation to his voice.
“Before it gets too dark, yeah.”
“You haven’t changed your mind about staying?”
“No.” I wanted to give him a different answer, I really did. But coming into the city had only strengthened my resolve to hide away and pretend it all wasn’t happening. We could live out the end of days until we all destroyed each other.
It wouldn’t be too long.
Oliver suddenly smiled. “You can always change your mind.”
“I’m not going to.”
“But you can.” There was no use in arguing with him, we could do it all night and the only outcome would be fatigue.
“Thanks for the food, I’ll see you around,” I said. He nodded sadly and let me go. I made a beeline straight for the road out of the city, it couldn’t come fast enough.
After getting past the hall, the amount of people milling about grew less and less the further I walked. I looked forward to the time when they disappeared all together, I could feel their eyes drilling into me.
I purposely didn’t look because I knew I would see the dead as well as the living. I didn’t want to see the haunted faces, I had enough of them back home to deal with when I returned. They could find their own person to torment, I was full up.
A flurry on the sidewalk caught my attention before I could stop myself looking. I saw the face of a young girl, just a child. It wasn’t Lilia but she did look familiar.
Faith.
I only caught a glimpse of her before she slipped between two buildings. It had to be her, it just had to be. I changed direction to follow the shadow, hurrying as fast as my legs and the box would let me.
The alleyway she had entered was empty, I went right through it. At the end I could go left or right. The small figure was in the distance to the right so I went that way.
“Faith,” I called out, trying to get her attention. She didn’t stop or show any signs of hearing me. I kept trying anyway, desperate to have her acknowledge me.
I willed my legs to go faster. There was no way I could let Faith go, not after I had lost her so long ago. Not a day had gone by when I didn’t think of her, miss her, grieve for her. If there was the slightest chance I could find the girl, I had to take it. I would walk to the ends of the earth for that little thing.
She ducked around another corner and I followed. The gap between us was narrowing, it wouldn’t be too long before she would be able to hear me. I would yell as loudly as I possibly could to get her to listen.
I would scream if I had to.
Another corner.
She was in my grasp, if I could just go that bit faster, I would be able to catch up with her. But no matter how many times I called her name, she kept moving.
“Faith, please stop,” I begged, but I didn’t slow down. I couldn’t. If I found my sister, nothing in the world would matter anymore. We could leave the city for good, go deep into the woods where nobody could find us. It would just be the two of us, with no ghosts or people to hurt us. They wouldn’t be able to touch us anymore.
Maybe Oliver would come with us.
I turned another corner, certain this would be the one where I would catch her. We would embrace and cry and laugh, all because we found each other.
It would happen.
It would really happen.
I took the corner eagerly, my lungs burning from exhaustion. A lack of food, sleep, and sanity had worn my body out until I was barely more than skin and bones. I wasn’t equipped to run like this, not anymore.
One more corner and I found myself staring at a brick wall. It was a dead end, completely void of a door. I was surrounded by nothing but three red walls, covered in colorful graffiti.
I spun around, searching for my sister. She had vanished into thin air like a ghost.
Like a ghost.
I shivered with the thought. I didn’t want my sister to be a ghost. For the past year I had been holding onto the hope she was okay and safe, just lost from me. Sometimes that thought was the only thing that got me through an entire day of otherwise hopelessness.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement again. Every cell in my body screamed at me not to look but I did anyway, for the tiny chance it still could be Faith.
The ghost and I made eye contact.
It was only for a split second, but it was enough for her to know that I saw her. She was a woman, probably close to fifty years old. She rushed at me with the speed of a train, stopping with just an inch between us.
“You’re a seer,” she said, both hopeful and sad at the same time.
“Go away,” I urged her. I would have crawled down on my hands and knees and begged her if I thought that would have worked.
It wouldn’t have.
It never did.
“She can see us
. Come quickly!” the woman shrieked. I braced myself because I knew what was coming. It wouldn’t just be an empty dead end at the back of an alleyway anymore. It would be hell.
In less time than it took to click her finger, I was surrounded. All of them were adults and all of them were dead. Men and women alike swarmed on me.
“She can really see us?”
“Marybeth, are you sure?”
“But nobody can see us.”
“That’s because we’re dead, stupid.”
“If we were dead, she wouldn’t be able to see us now.”
“We’re dead, when are you going to get that into your thick skull? Huh?”
“Tell her about the pain.”
“And how much it hurts.”
“I don’t need to interpret, she can hear all of us.”
I clasped my hands over my ears, desperate to drown them out. It was bad enough listening to the voices I had become accustomed to. These strangers didn’t understand how much they hurt me. I was just a vessel for them, a link to a world they could no longer be a part of.
I stepped backwards, trying to get away from them. My eyes were squeezed tight as I wished they would go away. Perhaps if I tried hard enough, I wouldn’t see them anymore. I could pretend they weren’t here and just leave.
But I couldn’t.
No matter how much I tried.
I crouched down on the ground, muttering under my breath for them to leave me alone. They were loud, getting louder by the minute as they each tried to get my attention. Each one thought their message or words or mission was more important than everyone else. As they fought to be heard, my ears pounded with pain. My hands weren’t shutting them out, nor were my eyelids.
“Please, please, leave me alone,” I whimpered, certain they weren’t listening to me.
“You have to find Sophie, she doesn’t have anybody.”
“Bradley and Toby, I left them behind. They are so scared.”
“You have to listen to me, this is important.”
“She cries every night.”
“It hurts so much.”
“I don’t know where she is, she’s just a baby. I need to know she’s okay.”
“Please help me.”
“Help us all. It’s too much.”
All The Pretty Ghosts (The Never Series Book 1) Page 4