Letters from the Dead pt. 22

I remember the morning that my mom told me Cherish was dead.

It was the day after prom, and I was hung over and overjoyed.

I had stumbled downstairs, the ghost of the music from the dance still playing in my head, and the taste of cheap vodka coating my mouth. 

My mom was sitting at the table. 

She looked like she had been crying.

She had been.

When she told me about Cherish, I picked up where she had left off. 

I knew that it was my fault. 

I was the one who had said something to that asshole. 

I got him riled up. 

I told my mom about what I had done.   

“He would have found a reason to do it. If it wasn’t what you said, it would have been something else.”

I wanted to believe what she was telling me, but deep down I knew the truth.

I had gotten my best friend killed.

Eye See You: Luke pt. 12

Bella is asleep on the couch, sedated. 

Randy is lying next to me, his body curled into mine, his hand draped over my chest.  I can feel him breathing, the warmth of his skin.  He’s alive. 

For now. 

I glance up at the ceiling.  The visions haven’t left me completely.  I didn’t expect them to. 

The dirty, white plaster seems to bleed, red blossoming like blood through a cloth bandage.  It doesn’t scare me.  Not anymore.  I have already seen far worse. 

No, as I watch the bright red turn to crimson, as I watch the white become saturated with gore, I wonder… 

There is one more name on that list.

Dina.

She could be a problem.

I would need to find out what I could about her.  

As I drift towards sleep, my mind wanders to Janelle. 

I had watched her. 

I had seen how she had progressed from her first few messages, to her last days.

Would I change as much as her?

Would Randy?

I couldn’t let that happen. 

I would kill before I let that happen.

Ruins pt. 10

As we walked through the deserted streets the little girl stuck by my side.

Her name was… Nora. 

She had liked my sister.  So, by default, she liked me. 

The other adults didn’t have the patience for Nora. 

I did. 

My sister had cared for her.  My sister had cared about her. 

That was enough. 

She grabbed my hand, huddled close to me as we walked. 

Even in the daylight the city terrified her.

To her, the creatures never slept, they always lurked. 

Those things that had stolen her parent, her older brother, they were always there. 

“I’m tired.”

Nora rubbed her eyes. 

I was, too. 

How long until we found somewhere to rest?  

Eye See You: Luke pt. 11

She leans forward.

We run.

She leans further.

We’re almost there.

A train is coming.

We reach out. 

She is over the railing. 

We reach out, and…

She closes her eyes. 

My fingers grab the back of her shirt. 

I pull back.

She falls forward. 

The shirt holds.

I yank.

She falls into my arms.

She is sobbing. She is miserable. She is still alive.

And Randy is still not on the top of the list.

I’m ashamed, but it’s true. Randy wants to keep her alive, because he cares for her.  I want her alive, because…

She is keeping Randy from the top of the list.

Letters from the Dead pt. 21

After school Leah and I went back to our usual bar.

I needed a drink.

I needed several drinks.

I told Leah my theory, and she watched me like I was nuts.

“So, you’re saying your guilt brought on these letters. Why?”

She was sipping on an Amaretto Sour. 

I was nursing a whiskey, straight up.

I couldn’t tell her why. 

I didn’t know.

The puzzle I was looking at was still scattered, and I made only one connection. 

The big picture was still a mess. 

I took a drink, the whiskey burning as it slid down my throat. 

“And what do you have to feel guilty about?”