Happily Never After (9 page)

I gazed at the picture in the tiny screen.
I’d caught some kind of mist, something not much lighter than the
surrounding darkness. It had been standing right in front of me,
exactly as I’d sensed. I showed it to Jason.

“Oh man, it’s the shape of a person. It’s
hard to tell, though, it is so faint. It can’t be that easy.”

I narrowed my eyes as I said, “It’s not that
easy. You got lucky tonight. We haven’t even been here thirty
minutes.”

“I’d bet everything that someone was standing
right in front of us. Are you, what do they call it, one of those
sensitives?”

That question brought up a whole mess of
personal details I really didn’t want to get into with him. I
ignored the question instead and said, “Come on, let’s find Abby
and show her this.”

Chapter Eleven

The rest of the night was uneventful but
Jason still vibrated with adrenaline as we walked up Lincoln Street
in the direction of my house. Luckily, because of the heat, there
weren’t many people out or I’m sure Jason’s presence would have
caused a stampede. I followed his lead and stuck to the shadows
when we passed someone on the sidewalk.

It wasn’t my idea for him to walk me home. I
argued and even tried to lose him on the dark streets but he was
crafty. He didn’t let me out of his sight. The guy just didn’t get
the hint.

“I still can’t believe what happened. I mean,
I’ve always been kind of a skeptic but that was crazy.”

“No matter how long or how many times you
experience something paranormal, it’s hard to get used to.”

“Sounds as if you’ve experienced it a
lot.”

I wasn’t sure what made me open up, maybe the
hope that if I told him he’d go away. “When I was little mama used
to tell me stories about Savannah and about the people who lived
here before us, even those who were still here in a sense. She said
it was a city built on the dead and populated by them as well. As a
girl, I thought they were only stories. Some might think she had no
right telling spooky stories to a young child but you know how it
is here. You said you sensed it yourself, Savannah is
different.”

He nodded. “It’s very different. Something
about it feels so old and there’s so much more here than what you
see with your eyes. I thought it was my imagination but some of the
crew from the movie mentioned the same thing. Now, after Moon
River, I know.”

“People chalk it up to the architecture, the
trees, the many cemeteries right in the middle of town. Every
single war fought on American soil had a battle here. In the
Revolutionary War, tens of thousands of soldiers died and many were
buried where they fell. It creates a mood and messes with your
head. It makes you believe the stories. Anyway, as I got older, I
started seeing things.”

I paused and when he didn’t say anything, I
continued. “It started off as a flicker out of the corner of my
eye, something there I couldn’t quite focus on, or explain. As I
got older, I sensed more information. I knew the man who went up
and down the stairs at my place was a soldier and he gave me the
feeling he still protected the house. Things like that. It’s weird
because the older I get, the more these skills, if that’s what you
call them, get stronger. I think I might even be able to hear them
now, which is new.”

Jason didn’t say anything, which convinced me
I had said too much. Maybe he was used to being the most
interesting person in the room, or the street. Or maybe he was
trying to come up with something witty to say and as usual, had a
hard time with it. His silence made me nervous. Why didn’t he say
something?

“You asked. I’m a freak,” I mumbled with
deepening embarrassment.

Finally, he shot me the dimpled grin.
“Honestly, I think it’s kind of cool. You’ve gotten a glimpse into
a world beyond ours. A lot of people would kill to have your
ability. You shouldn’t think it makes you a freak.”

“Too bad that’s not what people think when
they look at me.” I hadn’t meant to say that aloud.

“Why? Because you dress that way? That’s
stereotyping. You and Abby did the same thing to me, thinking I’m a
shallow Hollywood stud.”

“I still think that, by the way.”

“It’s okay, I’m used to it. I’ll surprise you
when you least expect it. Besides, you want my professional
opinion?” He paused, but not long enough for me to answer. “I think
you dress like you do to avoid unwanted attention.”

That bothered me. “I’m not trying to avoid
anything and I don’t exactly fade into the background. Besides,
you’re not a professional. And maybe I like wearing black. What do
you know anyway?” I was babbling.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying there’s
anything wrong with how you dress. The whole ‘goth’ thing works for
you. Your hair and your coloring, it makes you stand out even more.
Not all guys are into the cookie-cutter Barbie type.”

“Yeah right, you don’t have to flatter me. I
can tell you right now I’m not the squealing and worshipping kind
of girl.”

“I’ve noticed,” he mumbled before changing
the subject. “So, have you ever seen your parents or sensed them,
whatever it is you do?”

“No, and I’ve tried so hard. Both my parents
loved this city and they loved our house. Things haven’t been the
greatest since they left. I've always assumed there’d be some kind
of contact with them, but I've had nothing.”

He stepped a little closer as we walked. “Do
you think it would help if you could see them?”

Just then, I remembered his brother. Thinking
I could help Jason contact him was the only reason I stayed in
Jason's company. At least that’s what I told myself.

I had to rethink my answer with his loss in
mind.

“I honestly don’t know. We’re not supposed to
understand death. Whether the people who stay behind do it because
they want to or because it’s not their decision, we might never
know. I won’t deny I’d love to have the opportunity to ask Daddy
what he saw in my stepmother and why he thought I’d be safe with
her. Maybe there are some things we’re not meant to find answers
to.”

“It would be nice to understand why some
people die and some live.”

He sounded so sad and I wished there was more
I could say to him. I couldn’t imagine having been in an accident
and watching a sibling die. It struck me then how similar we were.
I wouldn’t say it made me happy but I felt we understood each other
in a way others couldn’t.

Jason was talking again. “So why did you
invite me with you, to the lawyer's office? I mean, apparently I
annoy you but you let me tag along.”

That was harder to answer. I still wasn’t
entirely sure why I'd let him come. It was like my subconscious
battled my conscious and convinced me he wasn’t as bad as I wanted
to believe. My seesaw attitude confused not only him but me as
well.

“Good question. I’m just hoping I don’t
regret it one day.” I gave him a flippant answer wanting to stick
to the unimpressed side of my head. Luckily, we reached our
destination. “This is my block.”

York Street intersected Lincoln right near
Columbia Square. Our house sat on a trust lot, one of the smaller
lots surrounding the old squares scattered throughout Savannah and
part of the city’s original design. All the historic homes in the
area were made of ‘Savannah grays,’ the brick common to the area.
With the exception of the house built behind mine, the others dated
back to before the War.

Jason gazed down the street. “Wow, nice
neighborhood. Which one is yours?”

I pointed. “Halfway down on the other side of
the street. I don’t want to get any closer. I’d rather not have to
explain you to Marietta.”

“Okay, but someday you’re going to have to
tell me about this family of yours. Um, what are you doing
tomorrow?”

For the first time, I didn’t doubt he
actually wanted to see me again. I watched as he fidgeted,
shuffling his feet and clearing his throat. Gone was the cocky
actor I forced myself to see. Replacing it was a guy who acted very
nervous about my answer.

I didn’t trust him yet but he intrigued me
enough to want to see him again. Plus I wanted to see if my initial
instincts were right in sharing some personal stuff with him.

“It all depends on how much trouble I’m in
for the incident earlier with Marietta.” I handed him my phone.
“Put in your number and email address. Don’t put it under Jason,
put it under Dr. Sherman or something.”

“Dr. Sherman?” He grinned and handed me his
phone to do the same thing, “Where did that come from?”

“Well, doctor because it’s not suspicious and
Sherman because any true Southerner in their right mind will shy
away from the name Sherman.”

It took him a minute to get it. “Oh, right,
the burning of the South after the Civil War.”

“Actually, it’s the War of Northern
Aggression,” I said in my heaviest drawl.

He laughed and handed me back my phone.
“Fine, I’ll remember that. I’ll be in touch tomorrow morning to see
if you’re on lockdown or not. I love your accent by the way.”

“Alright, bye.” I waved, embarrassed by his
compliment, and ambled up the walk. As I opened the front door I
fought the urge to look back at Jason and to run from the house.
Marietta would probably be waiting up for me.

Chapter Twelve

The minute I walked into the house, I felt
it. The air was wrong, malevolent somehow. Once I fought past the
fear, I recognized it as Marietta, or more correctly, the darkness
taking her over.

I swallowed hard and forced myself to walk
into the front living room, where it was strongest. The lights were
out but I could still see the shadows pulsing and shifting, almost
as if they were alive. Not even the streetlights made a dent in the
air slithering near me.

My breathing sped up and I tried to search
for the other spirits in the house, George and the soldier, even
the strange one that appeared around me at times. I felt
nothing.

“Welcome home, Quinn.”

I squealed and jumped. From what I could tell
in the dark, the voice came from the couch. What worried me the
most was it sounded like Marietta, but underneath her voice
something sinister echoed and my body shivered in response. I
feared for my life but couldn’t make myself move.

As my eyes adjusted to the dark, I once again
became overwhelmed with the putrid smell of the river. It made me
gag.

“I – I’m sorry, I lost track of time. I’m
sorry about my behavior earlier, too. I shouldn’t have disrespected
you that way.”

She barked out a cold laugh. “You’re a
Roberts through and through. It’s sad to see what we’ve
become.”

“I don’t understand.” She didn’t make any
sense but I tried to concentrate and take advantage of the
opportunity to learn something.

“Of course you don’t. You have no idea what
our family is capable of.”

“What do you mean ‘our family’? Who are
you?”

“A Roberts daughter, like you, left to fend
for herself. They valued their name and their precious house above
everything, including me.”

Before I could ask anything else, it all
changed. Marietta shook her head and looked around, unsure how
she’d gotten to the couch. There were black circles under her eyes,
giving her a hollowed out appearance. It was a far cry from the
high maintenance woman I was used to.

“Quinn? When did you get home?” Her voice
sounded tired but normal. The room warmed with the glow of the
streetlights and the shadow retreated into the background.

I couldn’t stop shaking. My knees threatened
to dissolve into nothing at any moment.

“A few seconds ago, Marietta. I’m sorry I
took longer than I should have. And I was way out of line
earlier.”

Marietta pinched the bridge of her nose
between her fingers, as though she had a headache. “Don’t speak to
me that way ever again. Go to bed. The girls and I will be going to
Atlanta in the morning. I’ll leave a list of things for you to do
on the kitchen counter.”

I hurried out of the room and up the stairs
before she changed her mind. I was terrified and left all the
lights on in the attic, as I’d been doing every night lately. I
felt George in the corner, hiding, and knew I should offer him some
encouraging words, but I didn’t have any in me. Who would comfort
me?

It affected me more than I thought to see
Marietta so vulnerable. I knew the shadow entity had to be feeding
off her and I wondered how long it’d been going on. Kicking off my
shoes, I lay on the bed and thought back to when I first met
her.

When Daddy first brought her home, she’d been
uptight and snotty but not in an evil way. She'd acted exactly how
I envisioned a rich Atlanta housewife to act, nothing more. In the
year before Daddy died, we’d even come to an uneasy friendship and
it made me hope one day it would be more.

It wasn’t until after Daddy died that she
started to change. Four months after the funeral, I saw the shadow
entity for the first time and experienced the mean nature of its
influence. I didn’t think it was a coincidence that when Marietta’s
entity showed up, so did the one who fought back for me.

Ever since the night I’d almost been
strangled things had stayed disturbingly quiet, until tonight. Even
if all it did was speak, I felt the power throbbing off Marietta.
Whatever that thing was, it seemed to be waiting. It almost killed
me the last time and what might happen next terrified me. I thought
about what she said and why she had such a hatred for my
family.

Catherine. It had to be Catherine.

No matter how much I wanted to get away from
Marietta and the twins, I couldn’t leave them now. This thing hurt
me and it could just as easily hurt them. I needed to figure out
what she wanted and how to stop her. I had to be strong.

Sleep was a long time coming. I literally had
the urge to sleep with one eye open but eventually I drifted off.
Right as I went completely under, I felt the protective spirit
beside the bed.