The Wilted Flower District

by Martin Niewood

  The Wilted Flower District

  By

  Martin Niewood

  Published by Martin Niewood

  Copyright © 2018 Martin Niewood

  All rights reserved.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the copyright owner.

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

  ISBN: 978-0-9993614-9-8

  This book is dedicated to the dreamers with stories still waiting to be written and to everyone who encouraged me to tell mine.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  CHAPTER ONE

  After I died on Earth, I was fortunate enough to be reborn in the Domain.

  Having lived in Fairhaven, a city within the Domain, for the last sixteen years, I accepted that death on Earth could trigger a new life somewhere else; however, death in the Domain was permanent. I truly believed that until three hours ago when my dead sister, Ophelia, appeared out of thin air.

  It made no sense that she was alive. Four years ago, the police had found physical evidence confirming that Ophelia was dead. Earlier today, I worried that the image I saw on the video footage at work was a figment of my imagination, but after she came to the house, I didn’t know what to think. Something was different. Her skin was sallow and dark circles dimmed her once sparkling eyes. After she said my name, however, there was no mistake — it was Ophelia.

  “Hey, Violet!” Weylin demanded as he stepped in front of me blocking my path, “are you listening to me? So, why would Ophelia ask you to trek through Woodburn Forest to meet her at Bramy Cave at this hour of the night?”

  I was grateful that my brother, Weylin, agreed to come with me to the tidal cave but I don’t think he believed me about seeing Ophelia. He seemed out of place walking through the forest with his neatly combed brown hair and expensive leather shoes now smeared with mud. Weylin was a year older than me and considered himself my protector, not that he would admit it. He always had my back, no matter what, especially if he thought he could keep me out of trouble, and as a preter growing up in Fairhaven, trouble wasn’t hard to find. Woodburn Forest, an isolated wilderness just outside the city limits of Fairhaven, was frightening during the day but after dark in a smoky fog, it was terrifying. I was glad to have Weylin walking beside me, even if he did ask nonstop questions.

  Standing my ground, I replied, “I don’t know why Ophelia picked Bramy Cave but I’m sure she had a good reason.”

  “Violet, ever since Ophelia went missing, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, you always wanted to believe that she was alive somewhere. Are you sure that you actually saw Ophelia and didn’t just imagine something that you wanted to see? ”

  “Yes, Weylin, for the last time, I’m sure that it was Ophelia. She gave me explicit instructions to meet her here at Bramy Cave on the Northern Shore at 9:00. She told me to find mom and you and to make sure you both came with me, but before she could explain further, she vanished.”

  “What do you mean, she vanished?” Weylin asked.

  “It’s hard to explain. It’s almost as though she stepped into an imaginary doorway and disappeared.” Looking over Weylin’s shoulder, I could see through the lifting fog that we had reached the edge of the forest and that the beach was less than ten yards away. “It’s almost time, Weylin, we need to go, or we might miss her.”

  “Wait, what’s that noise?” Weylin whispered, turning around to face the beach.

  “I didn’t hear anything. Come on, that’s Bramy Cave over there.”

  “No, we should turn back,” Weylin grabbed my arm. “This is a bad idea.”

  “What’s that?” I asked, sliding out of his grasp and starting to move toward the cave. “Weylin, look over there. Isn’t that Elsyn?” The moon’s light shimmered on the beach highlighting clusters of Elsyn tangled within the tall grey grass.

  Weylin looked around nervously, “Something’s not right. I don’t think we’re alone. What are the chances that all of this illegal Elsyn is out here in the middle of nowhere? We need to leave now.”

  I knew that Elsyn was illegal, but that didn’t stop preters from using it if they could get their hands on it. Sure, the government provided synthetic Elsyn to preters, but the real stuff was so much better. I didn’t see any harm in grabbing a few of the lime green fruit for my family. I wondered if Ophelia had suggested Bramy Cave because she knew about the Elsyn growing here. Most preters have special abilities, but from the stories I had heard about my older sister, her talents were exceptional. Despite their different abilities, all preters understood the value of organic Elsyn.

  “Relax, Weylin,” I responded, “why don’t you watch for Ophelia. She should be here soon.” Reaching deep into the tall grey grass, there was an unexpected putrid smell I didn’t recognize. The spongy vine was more deeply rooted than I expected, requiring me to use both hands. As I tugged the thick Elsyn root towards me, it gave way flinging me backward onto the sand. Looking up I realized it wasn’t Elsyn I had been pulling. It was something else.

  I jumped up instinctively and stared blankly at the mutilated corpse of a young man that lay at my feet. The skin of his torso had been seared off, but the lifeless eyes of his contorted face reflecting the terror and pain of his death were even more haunting.

  Paralyzed, I barely heard Weylin who had come up beside me. “We need to go. Now!” he urged as he grabbed my hand and forcibly pulled me away, back into the darkness of Woodburn Forest.

  CHAPTER TWO

  My bedroom window overlooked the lush gardens of Pearl Park, and although I loved the view, most days I hated its early morning wakeup call when the unwelcomed sun dragged me from sleep. Today, however, there was no need to pull me from a restful slumber, as I had not slept all night.

  After we rushed home, I went straight to bed, but that tortured face haunted me. And that smell, could I ever forget the smell of burnt flesh? Why had I touched the body? Slamming my fist into the mattress, I worried if I left my DNA behind, hoping that the tidal waters may have risen high enough to cover the body with seawater and erase all evidence of my presence. Last night everything had happened so quickly, but now that awful scene kept playing and replaying in my head on a continuous loop and I couldn’t turn it off. If only I had not gone for the Elsyn. Why didn’t I listen to Weylin? The alarm sounded on my A2B band, but for once, it was unnecessary.

  The A2B band was created by Dr. Fredrick, the scientist who catapulted Fairhaven from the dark ages into the cybernetic revolution. The band was indispensable for anyone living in Fairhaven as it served as a watch, phone, computer, keys, fitness and health monitor or anything else you wanted it to be. Looking at my A2B band, I wished that it was capable of transporting me back to before any of this started—back to before we found the body, before Ophelia disapp
eared, back to before my parents died.

  Overwhelmed by questions, I scanned my bedroom as though the answers were hiding there just waiting to be found. Looking beyond the clothes littering the floor and the laptop perched precariously on the edge of my bed, the room was rather utilitarian with its grey painted walls and composite wooden shelving. Besides the bed, the only other furniture was an old mahogany bureau and a full-length mirror. I purchased the bureau myself with money I had earned. It bore the scars of time and use but I found its intricate inlaid panels beautiful, and I liked owning a piece of the past.

  The bureau was like one that my parents had in their room when I was a small child. Just looking at it reminded me of a time when things were simpler, and the world was a safer place. I didn’t keep clothes in the bureau; instead, it was filled with toys, mementos, my father’s favorite hat and some pieces of jewelry from my mother. It also held my most precious possession, a picture of my biological mother, Meadow. I never understood it, but my parents always preferred that I call them by their first names, Meadow and Parker. Lingering over the photograph, I realized that it was times like this that I missed them the most.

  A knock on my bedroom door brought me back to the present with a start.

  “I’m up,” I called thinking it was my adoptive mom, Ivy, but turning over I saw the door opening and Weylin standing there ready for school. He was a year ahead of me at the Preter Academy, and somehow he managed to look good even in the lame academy uniform of a white shirt, gray slacks, striped tie and green blazer boasting the school’s insignia on its breast pocket.

  Most mortals and preters attended the local public schools, but enrollment in the Preter Academy was restricted to preters in much the same way that the Mortal Prep was solely for mortals. Initially, the schools had been founded as military institutes but over the decades as tensions between the preters and mortals eased, they focused more on liberal arts and science than military strategies. Both the Academy and the Prep were prestigious, and a friendly rivalry existed between them as they shared some academic programs and numerous social events.

  Fairhaven is a scientific marvel and a testament to the genius of Dr. Fredrick and his high tech advances that enabled the city to serve as home to thousands of mortals and preters who finally found a way to live together in peace, despite centuries of bloody conflict. Once we stopped fighting, we realized that mortals with their astonishing technological aptitudes and preters with their fantastic innate abilities complimented each other very well.

  Leaning against the doorjamb, Weylin looked almost too casual, “Hey, I have a game tonight, so I’ll be late. I won’t be here for dinner, okay. I’ll grab something while I’m out.”

  Weylin’s calm exterior unnerved me. I couldn’t tell if he was crumbling on the inside and putting on a brave face or if he really was okay.

  Awkwardly I smiled, “Are you feeling all right?”

  Shrugging his shoulders, “Well that was a random question. Sure, I’m great.”

  Spotting my mom behind him, I realized what was going on. She sensed that something was wrong and she was checking up on me. It was unusual for me to come in and go straight to bed as I had last night. She frequently used Weylin to see how I was handling things. It was her not so clever way of ensuring that I was okay without delivering one of her famous lectures about family. She would go on and on about how it didn’t matter that we weren’t related by blood. She knew that I loved her and despite rarely saying it, she understood that she was one of the most important people in my life.

  Rolling my eyes, “Mom, I can see you. I’m fine. Not to mention this is a complete invasion of privacy.”

  My mom popped out from behind the door, “I’m your mother; I’m just making sure that you’re okay. Now give me a hug.” She quickly scurried into my room, and I tried to avoid her, but she was lightning fast. The pink apron with “World’s Best Mom” imprinted across the front of it looked ridiculous atop the black silk mandarin jacket, maroon trousers, and adorable patent leather pumps. I wanted to tell her about what happened last night, but I knew that would only cause her trouble. So I looked to Weylin for help, but he simply laughed. With that, mom turned her attention to him, “Don’t be jealous. You’re getting one next!”

  “Mother, get off of me, I’m seventeen years old,” he sputtered out through all the laughing.

  Mom gave him a bear hug before releasing him at which point Weylin slowly and dramatically dropped to the floor.

  “I’m sorry, honey. I got carried away. So who wants pancakes?” mom asked as she made her way back to the kitchen.

  My mom’s preter ability sometimes surfaced when she got excited. Mom’s exploits in her younger days were legendary, and although she had abandoned her more violent past, she could still literally suck the air out of the room if she didn’t stop herself.

  Failing to hear a response, she added, “I made Elsyn butter this morning.”

  Pushing away the covers, I straightened my powder blue nightshirt before hopping out of my queen-sized bed and calling out, “Thanks, mom, be there in two secs.” Mom’s Elsyn butter was a treat because she had access to organic Elsyn as opposed to the synthetic Elsyn that Cerpen Pharmaceuticals manufactured and distributed for the government.

  Elsyn had a long history in the Domain. In its natural state, Elsyn was about two inches in diameter and lime green with yellow and purple veins running down its sides. It was soft and squeezable but unattractive to look at. Eating it triggered an unimaginable euphoria for preters and it also had various health benefits including but not limited to dramatically slowing the aging process. The problem with Elsyn was that there was never enough to go around and these shortages caused conflicts within preter communities as well as wars between preters and mortals in cases where the Elsyn was found on mortal owned land. Although the mortals could not physically tolerate Elsyn, they had strong feelings about preters raiding their farms, destroying their crops and upsetting their livestock in order to rummage through their fields for it.

  The problem existed for centuries until Dr. Fredrick’s institute developed a synthetic form of the fruit that contained the essential qualities of organic Elsyn. It wasn’t perfect, but it solved multiple problems for the residents of Fairhaven, and the government enlisted Cerpen Pharmaceuticals to manufacture and distribute this synthetic Elsyn to all of its preter residents. Small amounts of organic Elsyn still spouted up in various locations from time to time, but the government attempted to quickly confiscate these tiny harvests before they showed up on the black market.

  Turning back to Weylin I coaxed him on, “Get up, Weylin. Oh, come on, you’re so weak,” but he remained motionless.

  Looking down at him lying very still on the floor, the horror of last night returned. Instead of Weylin, I imagined the image of a lifeless corpse starring up at me from a bed of soft gray grass. Extending my hand, I touched his shoulder before helping him to his feet. “Everything is so twisted,” I mumbled as he stood next to me.

  Seeing that I was upset, Weylin placed his hand on my arm attempting to comfort me, “Just breathe.”

  “I can’t get the image of the dead body out of my head.”

  “Me neither, he was pretty messed up.”

  Moving away, I pushed the door, leaving it slightly ajar in case mom called, “How old do you think he was?”

  “Twenty. Didn’t you watch Geoff Allen?”

  “No, not last night,” I responded.

  “After you went to bed, I watched the local news on my A2B band. The pictures they showed were horrific. The reporter said that the victim was from the University City District here in Fairhaven. Wait; let me play the news clip for you.” Weylin hit his band and projected the report onto the wall.

  Geoff Allen, the Fairhaven News anchor, appeared on the screen. “Our top story tonight is the discovery of a severely burned body at the entrance to Bramy Cave. The police have identified the victim of this suspected homicide as Claude Cole, a twent
y-year-old man from the University City District of Fairhaven. Mr. Cole was found in possession of a large cache of illegal Elsyn, and the police believe that the murder may be drug-related although no connections have been made between the victim and known drug offenders.” As Mr. Allen spoke, footage from the crime scene played on the screen behind him. Officers with the word, Forensics, across the back of their yellow jackets appeared to be combing the area for evidence.

  “I just can’t stop thinking about it.” Tucking a stray strand of black, wavy hair behind my ear, I explained, “The only other time that I had seen a dead body was when my biological father, Parker, died. It was at the medical center. He had been rushed there after collapsing in the street. It was such a shock because although he had no history of coronary problems, the doctor said he suffered a heart attack. Parker looked so peaceful, almost as though he was sleeping.”

  Looking down at the floor, Weylin asked, “What about when your mother died?”

  “Meadow? They never found her body. When I was younger, I used to imagine that she was still alive somewhere and that one day she would return as if everything was all right. However, as I grew older, I gradually realized that she was gone and that she was never coming back. I used to hope that one day we would all be reunited in another world. You know, like when you die on Earth and are reborn in the Domain. I prayed that something else came afterlife in the Domain. I lost faith in that idea, but since Ophelia has returned, I’m not sure of anything.”

  “I’ll bet that you didn’t believe in an afterlife when you were on Earth, either. I know what the scientists say, but I don’t believe that this is all there is. Still, I’ve always wondered what’s the point of all this? I mean, if there is nothing after the Domain, then why follow the rules? Why don’t we concentrate on having a good time, steal whatever we want and live it up for as long as it lasts?”

  Burying my face in my hands, “I don’t know. I can’t even think about that now. What do you think killed Mr. Cole? Could it have been some kind of wild animal?”