I had to think quickly. And this time, I would lie. “I owe her. She gave me some food and I told her I would find you in return. She made me promise.” I glanced at David for reassurance I was on the right track, he nodded in return. “If I don’t take you to her, she won’t give me anymore food. I’m hungry, I need her help.”
The door clicked open.
Michael stood in front of me. “Do you have any weapons?”
I held out my arms so he could see there was nowhere to hide anything. Oliver had my bag of supplies, my clothes couldn’t conceal a weapon.
He grabbed something from inside the house before stepping out again, closing the door behind him. It was his shotgun, I realized. “Let’s go. But if you pull anything, I’m going to shoot you. Do you understand?”
“I understand.”
“Take me to Kelly.”
I started the walk, following David. Michael kept his distance from me, making sure the shotgun was easily accessible as we moved. I doubted it even had any bullets in it. Most ammunition was in short supply. With nobody to run the factories, there was only a finite amount and most had been used in the early days after the Event. The moment when realization and panic had set in.
The silence between us was painful. To distract myself from my aching hunger and lingering bruises, I needed to talk. “So how did you get separated, anyway?”
Michael eyed me suspiciously before replying. “After... it happened, I went out for food. When I got back, the place had been ransacked and Kelly was gone. I tried to find her but it was like she just vanished into thin air.”
“Was that your house? The place we just left?”
“No. That was destroyed.”
“So you haven’t seen her for a year?” Their story was almost as horrible as the one I shared with my own sister. A year was a long time to look for someone. As much as your brain told you to give up hope, your heart never let you.
Hearts are determined organs.
Michael nodded. “Almost a year. I still go out searching for her. I see her face in every person in a crowd.” I knew how that felt, too. Everyone wore her face, just like the girl I had followed from the hall a few days ago. The one that led me into the trap.
“I guess your search will be over today.”
“Maybe,” he replied. He didn’t want to get his hopes up in case I was lying. If the situation was reversed, I would have been exactly the same. Hope and optimism only went so far. Despair and fear went much farther.
We walked in silence the remainder of the way as I tried not to make it seem obvious I was having a conversation with a ghost the entire journey. I was certain I looked as crazy as I felt at times.
David suddenly stopped in his tracks and pointed. “There, that’s the place.”
I wanted to stomp my feet and act my age for a moment when I saw what he was pointing at. Of course, it couldn’t have been a normal house like Michael had been staying in. No, his daughter was living in the sewers.
“Kelly lives down there,” I said reluctantly, anticipating the kind of reaction I would get.
Michael didn’t disappoint. “I’m not going down there. This is a trap. I knew it from the beginning. I can’t believe I was crazy enough to follow you like this.”
“It’s not a trap, she really does live down there.” In an effort to survive, some kids chose weird places to hide. I had chosen a house on a hill with forty-three ghosts. Kelly had apparently chosen an underground sewer.
To each their own.
“Kelly would never live in a sewer, she’s afraid of the dark. And germs.” Michael turned to leave. “I’m going home. Don’t ever speak to me again.”
I reached out and gently touched his shoulder, trying to stop him from leaving without getting shot in the process. David watched our every move with a frown that kept growing deeper.
“Michael, please stop. I’m not trying to hurt you or anything. I know Kelly lives in a tunnel down there.”
He stopped, shrugging off my hand. “How can you be so sure? And don’t give me that bullshit about knowing her. You can’t, not anymore.” His eyes blazed with anger. But there was something else in there too – pain.
I looked toward David for some guidance but he only stood staring at his son helplessly. He sure picked a good time to keep his mouth shut.
I gave the truth a go, to hell with it. I wasn’t getting anywhere anyway. “I know because I can see the dead. Your father guided me here and says Kelly is down there. He has no reason to lie, he loves you both and only wants to see you together again.”
The tension was thick between us as Michael tried to gauge whether I was a liar, insane, or honest. A real spectrum of choices he had to choose from.
“You’re wrong,” he muttered. “You just-”
“I’m not.” My own anger was starting to build. “Do you really think I wanted to spend the day walking all over town, trying to convince some idiot to come with me? Does that sound like a fun thing to do?”
He was momentarily taken aback. “You’re lying.”
“Oh my God. You know what? Fine, I’m lying. Go back to your rubble of a house and spend the rest of your life there. If you don’t want to find your sister then it’s no skin off my nose.” I started walking. I wasn’t doing it to make a point, I was really leaving. I didn’t care about the guy or his sister, his father could hassle someone else to bring them together.
I didn’t need them.
I didn’t need anyone.
I made it a block, and just as I was making plans to find somewhere safe for the night, a hand grasped around my arm. Michael stepped in front of me, blocking the path. “What’s my favorite ice cream flavor?”
I was about ready to punch him when David stood beside me. The cold emanating from his ghostly form sent a shiver down my spine. I looked at him for an answer. “Vanilla.”
“Vanilla,” I echoed.
“He’s really here?” Michael asked, his voice wavering. I nodded because I was too exhausted to actually speak. I wanted to be done with him. “Dad, I love you. I miss you.”
“Tell him I love him, too,” David said, not looking at me but at his son.
I did not want to be a messenger girl for the other side. I almost refused to say anything. But it would be quicker to just get it over and done with. “He said he loves you, too.”
“And I want him and Kelly to stick together. I know they can get through anything as long as they’re together.” I repeated it word for word to Michael. Tears started to well in his eyes as he listened.
“We can do that, Dad. I promise.”
“Can we go into the damn sewer and get Kelly now?” I asked. If they wanted to have a heartfelt conversation, they could wait a few months. It wouldn’t be too long before they were dead too with the way the city was going.
“Okay,” Michael agreed. We returned to the entrance to the small hovel and started the descent. It was much darker than I had expected it to be. No sunshine filtered in whatsoever. I had to hold onto the hem of Michael’s shirt to stay with him.
Once we were on level ground there was a light in the distance. It flickered, probably from a candle. We followed it as all my other senses took over. I was acutely aware of dripping water somewhere, the sound of footsteps apart from our own, and the smell of dirt – lots and lots of dirt.
And a stinking sewer that had seen better days.
We eventually made it to the source of the light, a lantern of candles half burned down to the wick. A few kids were huddled around as the tunnel went off in two directions. David said to go right so we went right. We traversed another long, dark tunnel.
There was a dead end with more candles. This one was filled with only one person. A girl. The spitting image of her father.
“Kelly!” Michael exclaimed as he ran for her. The pretty brunette blinked a few times before she returned his embrace. They hugged it out while I felt like a specter myself, watching it all happen but not a part of any of it.
The thought came crashing into me like a sledge hammer right to the stomach. I was just like David. I walked amongst everyone, wanting more but unable to obtain it because I wasn’t really alive anymore.
It felt wrong watching the brother and sister reunite so I started to walk away. I didn’t need to see it anyway, it was none of my business.
David stopped me. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I replied. In truth, a small part of me was glad I had been able to help. Being alone in the city was miserable, I should know. At least Michael and Kelly didn’t have to go through that anymore. I doubted they would lose each other again.
As I stared at David, there was one question that burned on the tip of my tongue. “So what happens now?”
He smiled, a look of serenity and amusement washing over his features. “Now I leave you alone. Fight the good fight, Everly.” With that being said, he started to walk down the tunnel before he disappeared.
I half expected him to be swallowed up into some bright shining white light. But he didn’t. He just vanished. Into nothingness. Was that all that was out there? Nothing? That wasn’t a comfort.
Managing to make it aboveground with only a few stumbles, I had an overwhelming need to find Oliver. I needed to apologize for our earlier fight and make everything right with him again. He was the only person I still had, I couldn’t let our disagreement fester into something that would tear us apart permanently.
I had been relying on David’s directions to get me around the city before. I should have taken more notice of where we were because I quickly realized I had no clue.
Walking was the only way out of it. I turned down a street I thought we had come down and continued on, cursing myself the entire way. What I wouldn’t have done for some form of public transport.
The neighborhood started to trigger something in my memory. It wasn’t from earlier, but from years ago. I was in an area I rarely visited, but I did once have a friend that lived in amongst the lush apartments. I attended several of her birthday parties in the area.
Drawing from those memories alone, I managed to find my way back to the main road. From there, it was only a matter of following it back to the heart of the city that I once called home.
Oliver was waiting for me.
He stood the second he spotted me. It took more than a few minutes for me to reach him. I considered running into his arms and blurting out my apology but that wasn’t something I would do.
As it turned out, I didn’t have to.
“I’m so sorry, Ev,” he said the moment I was within earshot. I stood in front of him, ready to crumble from all the walking. “I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that.”
The prideful part of me considered withholding my own apology but I couldn’t do it. “I’m sorry, too. You were only trying to help and I completely threw that in your face.”
He shook his head, like I was wrong. “I shouldn’t have pushed you. I want to help you so much but I really don’t understand what you are going through. That… clouded my judgment.”
Before the Event, I probably would have given him a big hug and we’d go out for a frappacino and everything would be right with the world again. We would never speak about it because nothing more needed to be said.
Now, things were more complicated.
“Let’s just admit we were both wrong,” I offered. “Besides, I have to tell you about everything that happened today.”
A smile slowly crooked his lips. “Okay, tell me everything. I want to know every last detail.”
As we walked, I told him everything about David, Michael, and Kelly. I didn’t leave anything out, because I didn’t know what was important in the story and what wasn’t. I needed Oliver to know it all. Perhaps then it would help him understand me better.
By the end of the tale, we had found a place to sleep for the night. It was nothing more than an alleyway that appeared to have been forgotten or ignored by the rest of the citizens. But it was dry and gave the illusion of safety.
“Oliver?” I asked in the darkness. A part of me only said it so I could be sure he was still here.
“Yeah?” Even just one word was comforting.
“I don’t know what to do,” I admitted. “Helping David today, it did nothing to help the city. I could help the spirits every day but nothing is going to change.”
The silence stretched out. I wondered if Oliver had fallen asleep or simply stopped listening to me. Perhaps he had given up on an answer because there merely wasn’t one.
“Oliver?”
“I think you did help the city, Ev.”
“I didn’t.”
He shifted, the sound loud in the quietness of the alley. “Michael and Kelly are reunited now. Perhaps together they will do something positive for the city. If nothing else, two people are less lonely tonight because of you. That’s helping the city.”
But it wasn’t.
The city still bled like an open wound. It pulsed with hurt and pain because it was nothing but an empty shell of humanity. Nothing had changed just because two people were together tonight.
Nothing.
I wasn’t going to argue with Oliver again. Neither of us had the energy to fight and there would be no winner. All I could do was voice what I thought was more important. “I’m really glad you’re here, Olly.”
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, Ev.”
The tears stung my eyes but I refused to let them fall. I was still alive, I could fight another day, I would not feel sorry for myself. I had a lot more than most people. I had Oliver.
My next words were cut off by an explosion. The loudest noise I had ever heard.
Chapter Nine
The building to my right erupted in a ball of flames. We were thrown back from the impact, the shockwaves radiated out in an abundance of chaos.
Oliver and I ran for the alleyway, crouching on the ground as debris fell from all angles. My hands instantly went to cover my ears from the shattering noise. It seemed to go on forever, awakening the night like it was day.
Even the tight walls on either side of the alley couldn’t really shelter us from the fallout. Pieces of rocks and concrete showered down on us like rain from hell. When I moved my hands from my ears to cover my head, I still couldn’t hear anything. It was like the world had gone silent.
Deathly silent.
“Are you okay?” Oliver yelled through the cotton wool in my ears. He had to repeat himself three times before I could fully understand his words.
“Yeah. You?” He nodded back, his own hands shielding his head.
I started to pull myself from the ground. With an explosion like that, there had to be casualties. Which meant children were hurting, if not dead.
Peeking around the corner, I had to blink the soot out of my eyes before they would focus. Where there had been a full five story building only minutes before, there was nothing but a hole and plumes of smoke.
The tendrils of thick smoke found my lungs, choking in my throat and burning. I pulled my shirt up to cover my mouth and tried to remember to breathe normally. It hurt like hell as every breath was sucked in with force.
A few others had come to see the mess too. We stood around, useless to actually do anything. There was no chance anyone could survive that.
No chance at all.
A few spirits joined us. Most of them were adults, which meant they hadn’t been killed in the explosion. The ghosts of children were a little harder to tell. They could have been brand new. I ignored them all.
All of a sudden, a figure emerged from the remains of the building. I hurried over to help the little boy. But as I reached him, all I could do was gasp.
He was burned.
Badly.
His charcoaled body was ready to give up and he was ready to let it. Escaping those kinds of wounds would be a relief, ending his pain. He collapsed onto the sidewalk, his eyes staring blankly at the sk
y.
His soul stood and walked away without looking back.
He was even younger than my sister.
The urge to fall to my knees and sob was overwhelming. Because I knew that little boy couldn’t have been the only one inside the building. Collapsing myself seemed like a good option. I wouldn’t do it though, not with so many people around. Weakness was a death sentence these days.
Instead, I turned to Oliver who had followed me. “How can that happen? How does a building just blow up like that?” I was nearly hysterical. I was used to seeing spirits, but I wasn’t used to seeing them torn from their bloodied bodies.
Oliver remained calm, showing none of the panic I was feeling. “It was probably a gas explosion.”
“Gas? Gas killed them?” Surely nothing so ordinary that we had taken for granted for so long could cause so much damage to the boy’s body. He was barely recognizable as a person.
“Most likely,” Oliver replied. How did he always manage to stay so levelheaded in a world full of madness? “There is nobody maintaining the gas pipes. It only takes one little fault and the entire building goes up. It’s been happening right around the city.”
All those explosions I had seen from the house on the hill. I had always wondered. The reality of seeing the destruction and aftermath was horrifying. I ached for the safety of my house, my hill, my sanctuary.
“It could happen to other people,” I stated, it definitely wasn’t a question. This building was not the first, it wouldn’t be the last either. There would be more people burned beyond the limits of humanity.
“We should go,” Oliver said gently. “There’s nothing we can do here.”
I couldn’t move. All the faces around me were as haunted as I felt. We were momentarily united in shock and grief. I made the mistake of looking at one of the spirits.
“You have to help me.”
Ignoring her was my best option.
Until all the others noticed.
“I think my daughter was in there.”
“Forget them, I need to talk to Fleur. Can you find her?”
Legends of the Damned: A Collection of Edgy Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Novels Page 282