Glimpse (22 page)

‘Liz!’

‘I’m sorry.’ It was all I could think to say. My voice shuddered. ‘I am so, so sorry.’

My only friend; the only person, other than Dad and Zachary, I’d become close to in seven years. And I’d ruined it.

I scrabbled to my feet, grabbed at my bag. I had to get out before I made things even worse. ‘I’m sorry,’ I said again, then flew out of her room and down the stairs.

I stumbled, half running, back to the inn. I hated myself for acting so crazy in front of Susie; I hated myself for running away and not trying to explain. It was too late now. No doubt I’d destroyed every spark of friendship she felt for me. She was probably already on the phone to Matt, telling him how mental I was.

I’d been so stupid. There was no way doing an Ouija board in the presence of my friend could ever have turned out well.

I wiped my eyes on my dress sleeve as I entered the driveway. I couldn’t let Dad see me like this. It occurred to me that Ann might be waiting to attack me again, but even that fear paled in comparison to ruining things with my only friend. And when I crept indoors, all that met me was the comforting sound of Dad’s piano-playing. I raced up the stairs to my room and flung myself onto my bed.

I curled onto my side and stared at the wall. My Normality List caught my eye.

‘Get friends’.

I had to call Susie. I needed to make this right.

Sitting up, I upended my satchel, letting everything drop out onto the duvet. I picked my phone out of the pile and scrolled through the address book. My finger hovered over Susie’s name.

But what would I say? I couldn’t just tell her about the Glimspes. And I wasn’t about to beg her to act as if nothing had happened – that would only make things worse. I turned my phone off and let my hand fall into my lap. I might as well face it. ‘Get friends’ was doomed.

And so was I, if I were to believe Ann’s threats. A black fog of unease thickened around me. Ann couldn’t hurt me – her slap had been as insubstantial as a gust of air – but now Bess was gone, she’d clearly picked me as her latest object of jealousy.

It was so painfully ironic. As if I had any more chance with Zachary than she did! I’d heard of some weird relationships, but having a ghost as a boyfriend? Impossible.

I started to scoop my school things back into my satchel, then paused over my notepad. Beneath it lay a white-grey object, about the size of my thumb.

I knew instantly what it was, but I had to turn it over and over, examining the smooth exterior and the honeycombed inside, before I could believe what it was.

A piece of bone. Someone must have put it in my bag.

An hour after I heard Dad go to bed, I pulled on my coat and shoes, and tiptoed downstairs into the cool night.

‘Elizabeth.’ I heard Zachary’s voice before I saw him. His steady footsteps crunched across the gravel towards me. The darkness took his shape at my side. ‘What are you doing out here? Is something wrong?’

‘We need to talk.’ My voice was barely a whisper. ‘Away from the inn, so no one hears.’

There was a solemn pause, then the darkness nodded. ‘Follow me.’

He grabbed my hand, feeling stronger and more solid than ever, making my heart jolt. Before I could register what was happening, we were speeding off in the direction of the woods, as if we were being chased. Leaves crunched, damp grass swished, but all that existed was Zachary’s hand in mine. I clutched his hand harder than I needed to. Dead or not, Zachary was my only real friend right now, and I needed him tonight.

The trees looked like holes cut in the dark fabric of night. Zachary slowed and moved to my side, guiding me in-between the trunks. It was like navigating an obstacle course. Twigs pulled my hair over my face, roots tangled round my ankles, making me stumble.

After a minute, Zachary stopped. ‘This is far enough. Tell me what’s the matter.’ His voice was low and full of concern.

He let go of me. I put my hand in my coat pocket, trying to remember the feel of his fingers, smooth and warm in leather gloves, as long as possible. I needed the comfort.

‘It’s Ann,’ I said.

He swore.

‘She’s been threatening me. Telling me to stay away from you and to stop looking for Bess. She said you were hers.’

‘Damn her to hell.’ Zachary swung out at the air, grunting with frustration. ‘The girl’s relentless. Plaguing Bess was evil enough, but you – what does she think you and I are going to do together?’

His question was so angrily rhetorical, that I couldn’t help but flinch, though I knew he was right. I pushed my fists hard into my coat, hoping he couldn’t see my face.

‘How did she threaten you?’

‘She . . . Look I know it sounds dramatic, but she pretty much threatened to kill me.’

‘She is insane. You’re certain she cannot touch you?’

‘She tried to slap me. I felt it, but it didn’t hurt.’

His hand rested on my shoulder, reassuringly solid and strong. His eyes glittered in the darkness, intent on me. ‘I’m to blame. If I could force her to stop, then I would, but God knows how hard I tried when she plagued Bess. If you feel it’s necessary to stop meeting me, I will understand.’

I hesitated. That was the last thing I wanted. ‘But we still need to find Bess.’

‘I have not forgotten. But if anyone knows the value of life, it’s me, and I refuse to destroy yours.’

‘No one’s destroying my life.’ I made my voice light. ‘Least of all you. And Ann’s not going to either. The worst she can do is scare me.’

He nodded, and lifted his hand from my shoulder. But he didn’t step back.

‘I have something else to tell you.’ I paused. ‘Zachary, Ann didn’t threaten me here – it was across the village, in my friend Susie’s bedroom. That’s the third place in Hulbourn I’ve seen her. It’s obvious that she’s found a way to be more free in her movements than you can be. And I think I know her secret.’ I fished in my coat pocket for the piece of pale grey bone, and held it up for Zachary to see.

He said nothing. His fingertips grazed mine as he tried, and failed, to touch it. ‘Is that a bone?’

I nodded. ‘I found it in my school bag, which I had with me at my friend’s place today. I think it’s how Ann managed to follow me there. The other place I saw her was at Meg’s house, the old lady psychic I told you about, and she has a bowl full of bones just like this in her living room.’

I waited for Zachary to say something. He remained silent. I continued. ‘I think Ann’s going where her bones are,’ I said, hushing my voice though we were in the woods. ‘That’s the only reason I can think for why she’s not confined to the graveyard. One of the bones at Meg’s must be hers. There must be one at the inn. And this,’ I said, twisting the cold bone I was holding up, ‘must belong to Ann, too.’

I waited for his reaction. I could hear his breathing, steady but deep. Leaves rustled under my feet as I shifted from foot to foot.

It all made sense. And it fitted what Meg had told me –
Spirits can no more escape their bodies than you and I can escape gravity.

The question of who had put Ann’s bone into my satchel in the first place was another issue. Meg was the obvious answer. Scott was my other suspect. He had grabbed my bag that morning, and his warnings were unnervingly parallel with Ann’s, but the thought of him being able to see Ann – and choosing to help her – was too wild, and too awful.

Zachary studied the bone, turning my fingers gently this way and that to see it from different angles. ‘You believe this is Ann’s?’

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘I do. What do you think?’

‘I believe it’s very possible.’ His voice held an undercurrent of excitement now. ‘And horrific though that is, if it’s true, the implications—’

‘It means you could travel beyond the inn too.’ I smiled. ‘You could come with me to look for Bess.’

Zachary made a muffled noise. ‘Elizabeth, I knew it. I knew the moment I laid eyes on you that you would change everything.’ He laughed. ‘My prayers are being answered. I’ll finally leave here. We’ll find her. Together.’ He grew sober. ‘And if my brother remains in this world, I’ll find him too. When shall we go?’

‘The weekend? I have school for the next couple of days.’ My stomach churned at the thought of facing Susie tomorrow. ‘But that’ll give you time to decide where you want to go first.’

‘And to find one of my bones.’ His voice grew even more serious. ‘That will not be so easy. And it is something I cannot do.’

I tried to imagine myself going to the crossroads one night with a spade to unearth Zachary’s skeleton. I tried to imagine holding his remains in my hand. It was too like a scene from a horror film to even seem a possibility, but there was no question; I would do it – I had to.

‘I can handle it,’ I said.

‘Thank you.’ He was quiet. ‘I cannot express how much I loathe being so useless. I despise the fact you have to do so much for me. If I were alive, you wouldn’t have to do so much as open a door when I was around.’

I smiled. ‘That’s okay. I like opening doors for myself.’

He tilted his head to the side. ‘Bess would have liked you. You have so many traits in common.’

My smile grew a little sadder. ‘She will like me,’ I said. ‘Because we’re going to find her.’

‘Indeed we are.’

There was a long pause. Then Zachary held out his hand. ‘I rather think I’m ruining your sleep patterns.’

I grasped his gloved fingers, though I no longer needed to, my eyes had adjusted to the darkness. We headed back through the woods together, stopping just before stepping out of the trees. The outline of the inn sprawled, squat and dark as a giant toad, beyond the stretch of grass.

I took Ann’s bone out of my pocket, and threw it as hard as I could into the woods we’d just come from. I heard it plink against a branch, and a rustle as it dropped into the overgrowth.

‘Do you know how it came to be in your bag?’ Zachary asked, as though thinking of it for the first time.

I shifted and looked through the trees in the direction of the outbuildings. ‘That, I’m not sure about.’

‘You must be careful. Promise me.’

‘I’m always careful.’ I drew my coat tighter around me. ‘So, shall I meet you here tomorrow night? I’ll bring a spade, you bring the moonlight.’ I tried to keep my voice bright.

He shook his head as though with wry laughter. ‘I can barely wait. Goodnight, Elizabeth.’

He held my gaze for a long, smiling moment, then melted into the darkness of the woods and was gone.

I walked to the bus stop the next morning determined not to lose my first real friend in seven years; determined not to be known as ‘Loony Liz’ again.

I had come to the conclusion that, though it was stupid of me to do the Ouija board in front of Susie, it was even stupider to run away. I was ashamed. I was stronger than that now: if I had the courage to attack Glimpses, to help ghost boys, to have feelings for ghost boys, I had the guts to be myself with my only friend.

The crowd at the bus stop was still small (I’d left the inn early) and I saw Susie and Matt immediately. From a distance they looked like one mass. As I walked closer, the mass divided into two parts, like an amoeba, and Susie walked to meet me.

‘Hey,’ I called.

‘Hey.’ She stopped in front of me, her eyebrows slightly drawn.

‘Susie, I’m—’

‘If you say sorry one more time,’ she interrupted, her voice stern, ‘I’m going to force-feed you beetroot cake.’

That disarmed me. ‘I am sorry though. For running off like that. It was totally crazy. I owe you an explanation.’

She glanced behind her, and said, ‘Come on, let’s walk a bit.’ When we were a safe distance from prying ears, she said, ‘Liz, what the hell was that in my room yesterday?’

I wasn’t sure if she meant my behaviour or Ann. I pressed my lips together. Here goes. ‘Would you believe me if I said it was a ghost?’

Susie stopped walking and stared at me. ‘Well, yeah I’d believe you.’ She sounded annoyed. ‘The whole point was to summon a ghost.’

I exhaled with a relief so strong it was painful.

‘So you can see them?’

I nodded.

‘Was yesterday the first time?’

I thought for a moment. And made a choice. ‘No,’ I confessed. ‘I’ve been able to see ghosts for as long as I can remember.’

‘Why did you run off?’

‘I guess I assumed you’d think I was crazy. I mean, my reaction and stuff . . . It doesn’t usually make people want me around.’ I looked at her. ‘You really believe me then?’

‘Liz, this is me we’re talking about. I might not be able to see ghosts, but I’ve believed in them – just known they were real – for ever.’ She hooked her arm with mine, grinned, and tugged me towards the bus stop. ‘I have a lot of questions to ask you.’

The rest of Thursday passed in a daze. At school, Scott gave me evils when we passed in the corridor, but he kept his distance.

Susie alternated between excitement and awed delight, but mercifully she said nothing when Matt or anyone else was in earshot. She now knew every one of my secrets, apart from Zachary – the Glimpses, my amnesia, my dead mother. And she still wanted to be my friend. I couldn’t believe it. And I couldn’t think about anything else.

So it came as a bit of a jolt when, on the way home, I remembered what I had to do later that night.

Dig up Zachary’s grave.

That evening, I had English homework, but I couldn’t settle to it. Instead, I sat on the sofa next to Dad, twisting my hair around my fingers and not paying any attention to what was happening on TV. After a while Dad went to the dining room to play his piano, and I started to formulate a plan.

I found a torch under the sink, and some fresh batteries in one of the kitchen drawers. I snuck outside and, without getting close enough to the outbuildings for Crowley or Scott to see me, checked their garden tools were still piled up against the outside wall.

Then I made myself a Thermos of coffee – I was already feeling blurry at the prospect of another late night – and went upstairs. I picked out my most suitable outfit for grave-digging – my baggiest pair of jeans, the trainers I’d worn for PE at secondary school and a ratty black wool sweater riddled with so many holes I’d long stopped wearing it.