by K. G. Reuss
Instead of answering, he faded away, leaving behind wisps of black shadow tendrils.
I let out another breath, my body trembling. Dropping my lip gloss, I rushed from the room and went downstairs to meet Nina. My guard was firmly in place as I nervously looked around making sure nothing else was lurking about.
When her car pulled into my driveway, I rushed from the house and greeted her outside. I threw myself into the passenger seat before she could even get out of her car.
“I knew that would look incredible on you!” she squealed as I closed the door.
“Thanks,” I said, looking over my shoulder at the house as I put my seatbelt on. There was nothing there.
I let out a breath of relief and relaxed against the seat as Nina started gabbing on and on about Jax’s party—who was going, who wasn’t, and all the alcohol she’d heard was going to be there. I tuned her out as I watched the dark scenery whiz past, my mind on what had just happened in my bedroom.
He didn’t hurt me. I wracked my brain, recalling all the times I’d encountered him. He’d never actually hurt me, even when we were kids. He’d always just watched me. OKKKK. So, he was back. He’d gotten rid of that monster in Mom’s room. Maybe his presence wasn’t such a bad thing.
I stiffened as we passed the cemetery, the last thought freezing in my mind. A feeling of foreboding washed over me. The full moon shining off the tombstones caused goosebumps to snake their way through my body. I gulped as two dark figures emerged from the shadows and began walking down one of the cemetery paths. They looked a lot like the shadow from my room, right down to their red eyes. I averted my eyes and looked at Nina to see if she noticed anything. She was still animated, talking a mile a minute about Jax’s party and had clearly not seen what I’d just seen.
Breathe, Ever. Breathe. I said it over and over in my mind, breathing in and out slowly until I relaxed.
Deciding it was best to remain quiet about the shadow people, I pushed the whole thing out of my head and smiled and nodded when appropriate. When we arrived at Jax’s house, I was ready to leap out of the car and drown my fears in copious amounts of alcohol despite my bad feeling.
“Nina! Girl, I’m so glad you’re here,” Beth squealed, hugging Nina the moment her foot entered the house.
“Oh, and look, you brought Ever,” Gemma simpered, eyeing my outfit, an envious glint in her eyes and a sneer on her lips.
“Yeah,” I muttered, pushing past them. “I’ll be by the keg if you need me.”
I located the keg and poured myself half a glass. I knew I wouldn’t drink any more than that, even though I really wanted to. Living with my dad all those years really put the fear in me about drinking. I didn’t want to end up like him. Plus, sipping a half a glass all night made me appear like I was living it up with my peers, most of whom hated me.
I shook my head and tipped the glass back. Ugh. I hated the way beer tasted. It was like vomit in reverse.
“Hey, Ever,” Jax greeted me. He looked good with his blond hair perfectly gelled into his signature faux hawk and his blue eyes sparkling. Jax was always in a good mood. If I was a dark cloud, then Jax was the sunshine. I had to hand it to the guy, he always tried to make me feel welcomed.
“Hey,” I replied, giving him a tight smile, as my eyes darted around to make sure Dylan wasn’t nearby.
“Having fun?”
“I’d probably be having more fun at home reading a book, but Nina insisted I come and grace your party with my presence.”
“Well, even though you’re having a shit time, I’m glad you came.” He grinned as he leaned in and gave me a hug. “Dylan is outside on the patio in case you want to avoid him.”
“Thanks for the tip,” I muttered as Jax pulled away a bit.
“For real, Ever,” He leaned down to speak in my ear, “You’re better off without Dylan. We’re friends and all, but he’s an ass sometimes. If I’d have known what he was doing, I’d have told you. You didn’t deserve that shit. He’s taking it kind of hard, though. He’s been talking about it all night.”
“Great,” I grumbled. I was not in the mood for this.
“Sorry. Figured you should know.” He gave me a helpless shrug as he moved away from me.
“Thank you.” I smiled sincerely at him. He nodded and then grinned as Brandon, another one of their group, came up and started talking to him. Alone once again, I looked around at everyone enjoying themselves. I wasn’t much for parties. Or people in general really. I liked keeping to myself.
Leaning against the counter, I lost track of time, which sounded weird considering I wanted to leave within the hour. I was jolted out of my random thoughts by the sound of people laughing loudly. I looked in the direction of the commotion and saw Dylan stumble into view, a wild look on his drunken face, his eyes dazed.
“You can’t drive, man,” Jax said, putting his hands on Dylan’s chest as Dylan lurched to the side.
“I gotta go, dude,” Dylan slurred, tripping and falling into the wall. “I gotta call my girl.”
“You don’t have a girl,” Jax said evenly, stepping in front of him again to stop him.
“Yeah-yes, I do,” Dylan shot back indignantly, pushing him aside. “You say that all because you want her to yourself.”
“Whatever, man. You’re not driving.” Jax was firm as he snatched the keys out of Dylan’s hands.
“You’re going to take my girl, man. I know it!”
“Go sleep it off, Dylan,” Jax said, pushing Dylan forward.
“Ever!” Dylan’s eyes fell on me and his face broke into a wide, lopsided smile. “There she is. That’s my girl. Baby, come here.”
He stumbled his way over and wrapped his arms around me, crushing my small body to his.
“Mm, baby, you smell so good.” He took a deep breath. “I’m so glad you came to see me. I was gonna go see you, but Jax is bein’ an ass-an asshole.”
“You’re drunk,” I grumbled pushing him off me.
“Drunk for you,” he laughed loudly, his arm snaking around my waist. “I miss you, Ever. My hot mamacita.” His voice became louder as he started to shout, “All you bitches listen up. This is my girl. Ever is the hottest, sexiest chick in the whole school, and I majorly screwed up.”
“Dylan, stop it,” I hissed, grabbing his raised arm and pulling it down to his side, knowing damn well my face was flushed with embarrassment.
“No, babe. They need to hear this. So do you.”
This was going to be the most embarrassing moment of my life. I could feel it coming on in 3. . . 2. . . 1. . .
“I love Ever,” Dylan bellowed while people around us snickered loudly. “She’s my girl. I’m not going to be screwing you other chicks anymore because she’s it. She’s my forever.”
“I swear I’m going to stab you,” I growled at him.
“Come here, babe. Kiss your man,” he slurred out, reaching for me.
“If I kiss you, will you shut the hell up?” I growled angrily at him, my eyes darting around the room hoping that people had lost interest in his drunken shenanigans.
“Cross my heart,” he answered with a lopsided grin. He didn’t wait for my answer. He pressed his wet mouth to mine, jamming his tongue inside. I nearly threw up at the way he tasted—like stale alcohol and vomit. I hurriedly pushed him away and wiped at my mouth in disgust.
“Come on! I know you can do better than that,” he shouted. “You’re my little jalapeno. Give daddy some spice.”
I grabbed him by the arm roughly and tugged him away from the snickering crowd he’d accumulated.
“Keys?” Jax handed me Dylan’s keys.
“Thank you,” I said, snatching them from his hand.
“Get him home safely, OK? Do you want me to go with you?”
“No, I got it,” I muttered, pulling Dylan and his grabby hands away.
“We’re going to go make out, aren’t we?” Dylan asked gleefully, squeezing my backside. “We’re going to get back together, right?”
“I’m going to tear your arm off and beat you with the bloody stump if you grab my ass again,” I snapped at him.
“Ooh, foreplay,” he grinned stupidly, reaching out for my butt again. I turned and slapped his hand away, and he jerked it back in alarm.
“Damn, babe. We can do rough if you want. Remember all those times we sparred together? We could work on your form again.”
“Get in the freaking car, Dylan,” I snapped, opening the passenger door of his car and gestured for him to get in. He stumbled forward and after some major effort and patience on my part, he was inside the car and buckled in. I climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine, then quickly backed out of the driveway.
“You’re so sexy, Ever. Damn,” he murmured, eyeing me hungrily. His hand came forward to caress my thigh.
“Knock it off, Dylan,” I snapped again, pushing his hand away as I tried to stay focused on the road.
“Why? We’re back together!”
“No, we aren’t,” I snarled. “I’m giving you a ride home so you don’t end up dead. That doesn’t mean I want to suck face with you.”
“Why are you being like that, Ever?” he demanded angrily, his good mood gone. “We dated for months and you never put out. What the hell? I think I deserve something from you since I had to deal with you and your smart ass for so long.”
“Had-had to deal with me?” I sputtered in disbelief, looking from the road to him then back again. “You’re kidding, right? You were screwing everything that had a pulse while we were together. Beso mi culo, Dylan.”
“Stop speaking that stupid language. You know I can’t understand what you’re saying,” Dylan growled angrily.
“It means ‘kiss my ass’.”
“Believe me, I’ve been trying to do a lot to that ass for months now,” Dylan spat at me, his words still slurring. “You’re a prude, Ever. You’ll die a virgin at the rate you’re going.”
“You’re disgusting,” I bit out, pulling the car over to the side of the road. I put it in park and got out, slamming the door hard behind me.
“Where are you going?” Dylan demanded, climbing clumsily out behind me. I looked around and gave a shiver. We were in front of that damn cemetery where I’d seen those shadow people. I wrapped my arms around myself, angry that I hadn’t been paying more attention to where we were.
“You can sit there all night,” I yelled, my voice shaking as I turned and began walking away from him, deciding that beating the pavement in my wedges in the dark with creepy shadow people lurking around was ten times better than listening to his drunken crap.
“You can’t be serious.” Dylan grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop. “Give me my keys. I’ll drive myself.”
“Like hell! You’ll kill yourself or someone else.”
“I’ve done it a bunch of times before,” he countered, stumbling forward and grabbing at the keys in my hand. He got a hold of my hand, and we had a tugging match. I held on as tightly as I could. Dylan managed to tear the keys away, and I stumbled backward unable to stop myself.
The screech of tires filled my ears. Then there was a blinding pain and white light. Dylan yell out in horrified shock as I fell forward, my face hitting the pavement with a terrible crack.
Chapter Five
Wet. Hot. Sticky. Blood. So much blood.
I was bathing in the hot, sticky mess. My entire body was saturated with it. The acrid smell clung to the air like a dense fog. My body lay on a bed of broken glass, the tiny shards biting into my skin painfully. There were voices around me—dull, panicking echoes that sounded far away. I tried my hardest to pull air into my lungs. Despite my best efforts, my breathing was shallow. My lungs deflated as I tried to gasp in tiny, rapid breaths. Panic began to set in—my chest aching as my heart hammered, the erratic thud of it reverberating in my ears.
I’m dying. This can’t be how I go. My mom! Nina!
“Ever! Jesus,” Dylan shouted. His face was ashen and his lips trembled as he fell to his knees beside me. “Call an ambulance! What have I done? Oh my God, Ever. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—”
“Don’t touch her,” a shaky unfamiliar voice managed to cut through the panic. “9-1-1 says not to move her.”
“Ever,” Dylan reached out and clutched my hand. A river of fresh hot tears snaked down his pale cheeks. “I’m sorry, baby. I’m so sorry. Oh God. T-there’s so much blood. What do I do? Tell me what to do!”
I tried to open my mouth to speak, but there was nothing. My body violently spasmed, causing Dylan to sob loudly as he held onto my hand. I was in so much pain. The world around me started going dark, as my breathing became more difficult. Each breath felt like razorblades bearing down into my lungs. I was acutely aware of a shadow moving along the edge of the scene. His red eyes narrowed on me. I whimpered timorously as he approached with sure and steady movements.
“Help! Someone help!” Dylan shouted desperately in a strained voice. His hand gripped mine even tighter, as if holding me harder would keep me there. “Ever, no! Don’t die, OK? Help is coming! Help! Someone!”
Little sparkles of black and white began to dot my vision, and my heart slowed down to a stumbling thud in my ears. I tried once more to breathe. Nothing.
The shadow approached me and finally stopped, looming over me with his head cocked. It was the shadow I’d seen only hours ago in my bedroom. I don’t know how I knew it was him. I just did. His face was shrouded in darkness, his features indiscernible, as he gazed down at me. I wasn’t afraid of him in that moment.
Call it acceptance of the inevitable, stupidity, whatever, but I felt calm, safe even, as he went down to a knee and hesitantly reached out to me. His red eyes—eyes like fire— were intense, like he was warring within himself about touching me, taking my hand in his. Something within me told me it was in my best interest to take what he offered, even if I didn’t know what it was, even if it was death. I needed to trust this creature who knelt before me. I reached weakly out to him, and his hand wrapped around mine, as he kept his ruby-colored eyes focused on me.
Where I had expected coldness, there was only warmth. I shuddered violently, closing my eyes. Flashes of color, flashes of people I didn’t recognize, invaded what was left of my quickly failing mind. Voices shouted out to me. Voices of the dead. Screaming at me to hear them.
I swallowed thickly. The blood that had pooled in my mouth made me sputter and gurgle. The taste was hot and metallic, biting at my tongue, reminding me that this was real—and that I was going to die.
“Ever! Ever! No! NO!” Dylan shouted frantically. His voice sounded far away. “I’m sorry, Ever! Oh my God! Help! HELP!”
His voice dissolved around us, and all I was left with was the image of Shadow leaning over me. He consumed everything around me, darkening the world until only the two of us existed.
“Breathe,” his deep distorted voice commanded, shaking my heart. “I’ll do the rest.”
I tried to suck in a shaky breath. It was too hard. Too painful. I felt hollow—empty—inside. I couldn’t. . .
“Everly!” he shouted, his voice frantic as he started to shimmer like he was fading away. “Don’t stop! Focus on me. Stay with me. No matter what, don’t stop.”
“My heart,” I sputtered out, not sure if I was even talking. It felt like it was all in my head. Everything was so surreal, like I was caught in the eye of a hurricane, with the world blowing past me while I stood in the eerie calm awaiting the aftermath, awaiting the inevitability that life brought with it—death.
I couldn’t feel my heart like before. The familiar thump no longer hammered a rhythm in my chest. It stuttered every few seconds, like tiny jolts of fading thunder within my ribcage.
“It’s not beating like it should.” He came into focus once more, like he knew my thoughts. As I gazed up at him, I concentrated all I had on him, begging him with my fixed gaze to do something to save me, even if saving me meant taking the pain away so my soul could be freed.
“Am I dead?”
“Not yet,” he murmured in that oddly distorted voice. “Your heart barely beats, but you still live. Do you want to die?” his voice cracked as he asked the question. Those red eyes of his softened, making him appear younger—or as young as a shadow man could appear when one couldn’t see his face.
“I-no,” I was starting to shiver violently. My voice shook with each tremor that painfully tore through my body, “I-I want to live.”
“You will not be the same. You’re special. Who you were will die tonight on this pavement, and a new you will be reborn from the ashes and misery. Death stalks you tonight.” His eyes swept my face quickly before he let out a shuddering breath. His eyes closed momentarily. He squared his shoulders as he seemed to come to a decision. “Do you accept what this could mean for you? Do you understand that nothing will ever be the same? Because Ever, you’re going to die here tonight, whether you continue to breathe or not.”
“I’m afraid.” Hot, wet tears rolled from my eyes as a strange tugging slowly started to build within my core. Like a fire aching in my soul, it was mercilessly grasped by the hands of Death. The delicate tendrils that held me in my body slowly gave way to the destiny of the living. I clung to his hand, silently begging him to save me.
“Fight it,” Shadow commanded, his red eyes filled with realization as the burning intensified within me. “It will be my battle, not yours. I will take it all away. Trust me, Everly. I won’t hurt you. I would never hurt you.”
“Who are you?” I gasped, as the tugging grew stronger and the desire to just let go enveloped me. I was meant to leave this body. I could sense it. The pressure was intense, like I was being pulled and flattened in all directions.
“Tonight, I’m your lucky penny.” Shadow breathed out slowly. Reaching forward with the hand that wasn’t clutching mine, he placed it over my chest. The warmth that I’d become accustomed to from his touch began to spread through me. The coldness of impending death started to trickle away, the fire in my soul quenched with whatever he was doing to me.