Books of the Dead (19 page)

“Someone from our class. I can’t tell who it was, word was out by the time I reached class, and I heard your name being mentioned along with Nora. I got curious and wanted to know what was going on and it was then that I heard that you spoke with Mrs. Clarence.” Jeremy paused, then said “You know, it’s just that you don’t tell us anything, but Natalie is there with you all the time, and this person even saw you walking off with Natalie talking about Nora’s trip to elsewhere.”

Merly looked up and felt concern, she also felt exposed and vulnerable. What is Jeremy saying? she said to herself, but remembered the conversation she had with Natalie while walking back to their room through the corridor. Who was it who heard us speaking last night, Merly asked herself the question several times, and then she worked her memory hard trying to remember any face that she might have seen back then, but nothing came to her mind. Moreover, she was not very sure regarding Jeremy, Is he trying to get the information out of me? I can’t trust him, Merly thought.

“I don’t care what anyone thinks about me, I am in the dark as much as everyone else. Nora injured her leg and her mother simply informed me that she will be joining back late. That is all I have to say in this matter.”

“Nora was not on her way home, was she?” Jeremy was not letting it go and it added to Merly’s discomfort.

“I thought you said that you wanted to tell me something and not ask questions instead, but that is not happening.” Merly’s voice lifted to a higher tone.

“Talk quietly, I am asking this only to confirm, because now I know for certain that she never intended to go home in the first place.”

“What?” Merly asked.

“You heard me correctly. After you said to me the other day that you had no idea of where Nora was, I asked a few people, but nobody was able to tell me about her … none of the students in fact, but then do you know Stuart?” Jeremy asked.

“You don’t make any sense, what has Stuart got to do with this? And I think I have heard the name, but I am not sure who he is.”

“It will make sense. Stuart helps Mr. Summers run errands. I was in the park the other day asking someone I know if she had seen Nora leaving on the sad morning, and Stuart was on his way out. He heard us speaking then stopped and said that he had seen Nora on the bus stand, and do you know where she was heading … to Elmhurst.” Jeremy gave Merly the time to digest the news.

It did take her time to digest the news. She had a hard time believing that it was not only Natalie’s source, Natalie herself, but apparently Stuart and now Jeremy knew about Nora’s destination, too. Merly pretended that she was only half aware of the news.

“How did Stuart even know Nora? Of course, he must have seen her around once or twice, but to specifically remember someone going out to Elmhurst a week ago … that is not possible … so many students go out and come in everyday. Do you suggest he remembers everyone of them, where they come from or where they go to?” Merly didn’t believe what Jeremy said.

“What if I tell you that Nora asked him about the specific route or where to get off? Stuart said that he is sure about it, because he spoke with Nora a few days ago.” Jeremy had his answer prepared, or so Merly thought.

“Nora never told me anything about that. I had no idea she even knew him, I was not very well over the last few days, so I must have missed it even if she told me about it, but did you ask Stuart why Nora met him?” Merly exactly knew why Nora met Stuart, but she wanted to keep up her pretense so that Jeremy would think that she is oblivious to Nora’s motives as he is.

“I was beyond surprised. Nora tells me almost everything, but kept this news hidden from me, and I wonder why. I didn’t want to ask Stuart about why Nora met him, because there was someone with me, so I got a hold of him a day later. He said that she wanted to ask a few things about Mr. Summers. What is Nora up to?” Jeremy looked genuinely ignorant regarding the matter.

“She was asking about Mr. Summers?” Merly acted surprised.

“You didn’t know about it?” Jeremy squint his eyes while uttering the words.

“What made you think that I know about it?” Merly got nervous every second and anxiety started creeping in.

“I saw you looking at him with a strange look in your eyes during class, and it was right after Nora left. I didn’t pay much attention to it, but when Stuart told me the reason why Nora wanted to meet him, which got me thinking. In fact, it is not just me. Michael was asking me if you and Nora had a falling out. I avoided the question, because I know that is not true. Now if you still don’t want to tell me what it is, then there is nothing else for me to say, but in case you do, then I will try and assist you in whatever problem you are having.” Jeremy assured Merly, and for once, she knew that he was being honest about it.

“Jeremy, I understand that you are trying to be helpful and that you mean good, but there is nothing that I can say or divulge to you at this time, so please understand,” Merly painstakingly said.

“But I am concerned about Nora and you, too … we are friends and…” Jeremy’s phone rang out loudly and those sitting around made a sound of irritation. He looked at his phone, then abruptly cut his conversation. “Merly, I have to go, but just think about what I said.” and he left.

Merly was left alone, but she didn’t have the heart to go out, so she sat there by herself alone. She was almost lost in her own thought when a soft melancholic voice called out her name. Merly thought it was an illusion, but when the name was called out twice, she looked up slowly. Merly didn’t know the person who was now sitting in front of her, so she asked, “How do you know my name? I don’t recognize you.”

However, no sooner Merly uttered those words, the green eyes of the one sitting opposite from her reminded her that she had seen the person before. “Wait, I have seen you before, here in the library. How do you know me?” Merly questioned. Last time, the green cold stare had given her creeps and she remembered it then.

“I know everyone around here, and not just you,” her voice was slick and cold.

There was a similar look in her eyes like the ones Merly had seen before. “I don’t know you, so I am not the person whom you are looking for,” Merly said then pretended to be immersed in her books.

“Can I ask you a question?” the woman asked.

Merly was not too comfortable in answering, yet she obliged the woman. “Go ahead,” she said not knowing what question she might be asked.

“You look troubled,” the woman said instead of asking a question.

Merly looked at her with an annoyed expression. She has had enough for a day answering people about her troubles, so she replied roughly, “That is not a question, and it is none of your business.”

“Yes, it is,’’ the woman replied calmly as she was from the beginning. She didn’t seem to be bothered by Merly’s rough behavior, but became even more persistent.

Somehow Merly was not able to speak to her roughly. The calmness that the woman sitting opposite to her possessed affected her as well.

“I don’t think I want to speak to you now” Merly tried reasoning.

“But I haven’t even asked you the question yet. Do you believe in ghosts and spirits?” the woman asked.

“What silly question is this, and why do you want to know that? Who are you?” Merly by this time was annoyed, but her unlikely appearance scared her. One student from the other corner looked up at her and had a curious look on his face. Merly wondered the reason, but she didn’t pay much attention.

The woman was still waiting for her to answer, but Merly didn’t. “I asked you something,” she said again.

“I fail to understand why you want to know that. I hardly know you and I don’t want to answer that now, so please leave me alone,” Merly requested for the final time.

The woman didn’t get up, but remained seated. Then she moved closer towards Merly and said, “I care to know, because very soon you will see one.”

Merly was shocked; she looked at the woman sitting opposite her in bewilderment then looked around her to see if anyone was watching them. Merly calmed herself down, then suggested that the woman leave her alone.

“You seem to be unfazed by what I am saying,” she said even more calmly.

“Whatever you are saying doesn’t make any sense. Moreover, you are bothering me and asking me stuff that I don’t want to answer. Are you even real?” Merly cried out.

“You don’t believe that I am real?” the woman questioned.

“Are you new here? That is what I meant.” Merly was freaked out by the apparent lack of understanding that the woman was showing.

“You asked me if I was real, didn’t you? And I am saying that I am real, even beyond your imagination,” the woman said with an aura of confidence.

Merly noticed a few stray eyes looking at her, and she thought it was because of her raised voice. However, she noticed something else. The woman looked older, probably in her finals years, but she didn’t remember her seeing on the campus.

“You want to know which year I am?” the woman said breaking Merly’s chain of thought. Those words hit Merly like a bolt, “You wouldn’t know what I was thinking. Who are you? Please tell me who you are?” Merly pushed back her chair and got up, but the woman remained sitting calmly not even batting an eyelid.

“I have to go ... I can’t stay,” Merly managed to say and bolted out of the section, but she hit someone on her way out. She wasn’t looking where she was headed, so she slowed down, “I am…” Merly’s words were left unfinished, because in front of her was standing the librarian, and it was not Mr. Stevenson. It was someone she had seen before and was warned by some. The lady librarian gave her a gentle smile and tried to reach out for her. Merly took a step backwards then three more steps and her back hit a table. The way out was blocked and by this time, Merly knew it was the ghost of the former librarian and she was reaching to hold her hand.

Merly tried to dismiss it, but her mind said otherwise. “It is not possible. It is not real, and you cannot be real!” Merly kept stammering, “Go away ... is this a joke? This must be a joke, a sick joke that you are playing.” Merly went on blabbering, but her words were beginning to choke in her throat. “Go away, go away, and go away,” she tried to scream out, but words failed to come out.”

The librarian didn’t move and there was ghastly look about her. The eyes looked expressionless and dead, her body was sickly thin and on a closer and concentrated look, Merly realized that the person standing in front of her was not human. It was impossible to believe that this was happening to her. Merly’s mind went blank, her palms became sweaty, her throat were parched like during those dreams she would always have.

“This is just a dream. I am being silly. This can’t be real. The woman was lying. I can’t be seeing a ghost; this is not a ghost.” She licked her lips to moisten them and tried to cling on to the words she was saying in her mind in the midst of trying to gain back her voice again.

All her efforts were crumbling down like a tattered pile of bricks. The librarian made no movement or showed sign of backing off. Merly felt a chill behind her back, her nerves began to shake tremendously, her eyes started to get cloudy and her heartbeat increased to a humongous level, her legs gave away under her weight. Merly managed to find her voice, gave out a loud shriek, and it was more a cry for help before passing out in complete darkness.

Merly woke up in the doctor’s chambers with a nurse sitting beside her bed.

“Nurse Richardson, what happened?” Merly said in a feeble voice. She tried to get up, but her head was beating too fast making her weak. She rested back in the bed.

“You don’t remember what happened to you?” Nurse Richardson asked kindly.

Merly lay quietly in the college resting center. She noticed that she was given IV drops. The dizziness was still there, and she felt a surge of nausea.

“Don’t move too much,” Nurse Richardson pleaded. “Stay put,” she urged.

“What happened to me? Who brought me here? The last thing I remember I was in the library … and then…” Merly suddenly remembered what happened in the library and didn’t finish her sentence. The memory made her shudder and she closed her eyes in pain.

“Are you all right?” Nurse Richrson probed. Merly didn’t say a thing, her silence made Nurse Richardson nervous so she asked, “Should I call Dr. Peters to check on you once more?”

“No, just tell me who got me here, I need to know, what happened?” Merly begged.

“Relax, Merly. You are stressed, so don’t over work yourself.” Nurse Richardson laid a motherly hand on Merly’s shoulder.

“I asked you something, Nurse Richardson. Please answer me that,” Merly pleaded for the second time. She wanted to be sure that what she happened and not just an illusion.

“I will tell you, but first you need to completely rest. Can you do that?” Nurse Richardson asked firmly.

“I can do that,” Merly promised, but a little tear escaped her eyes and that did not get unnoticed by Nurse Richardson. Therefore, she didn’t delay in telling Merly what actually happened.

“Mr. Stevenson gave me a call, and there were two first-year students who got you here,” Nurse Richardson stated.

“What did they say?” Merly wanted to know more.

“Mr. Stevenson called me and said that they heard a loud shriek, more like someone was afraid, and they went over to inspect what had happened. You were lying there unconscious, and there was no one there. They looked around, but you were alone. There were very few students in the library at that time, and all were sitting at other ends of the room. They didn’t see anyone approaching or leaving you. So it was assumed that you passed out due to stress. Someone did question why you shrieked so loudly, but nothing was found, so everyone is waiting and eager to know what actually happened. You were unconscious for about twenty minutes and your heart beat was rapid, but other than that, you are fine. There is nothing serious to worry about.” Nurse Richardson stated each fact very carefully, so not to make Merly more anxious.

“They are waiting to know what happened, but what do I say?” The incident was not pleasant for Merly and she was at a loss of knowing the appropriate explanation she should provided.