The Deepest Cut

by J. A. Templeton

  He immediately dropped his gaze to my comforter, and ran his hand over the material, tracing the filigree pattern with a long finger. “I didn’t want you to be afraid of her.”

  “Have you been able to see her all this time?”

  Sliding off the bed, he walked over to the window, looked out. “Yes, but Laria stays near the graveyard, away from me…and I stay away from her.”

  No wonder I had felt such a creepy sensation when I first saw that cemetery. “When was the last time you saw her?”

  “It’s difficult to say,” he said, turning to face me again. “You see, time is not the same for you as it is for me.”

  I frowned. “What?”

  “Time in the spirit world is different than time as you know it.”

  What did that mean, anyway? Frustrated, I ran my hands down my face. “Should I be afraid of Laria?”

  “You should be wary.”

  “Miss Akin said ghosts can’t harm the living.”

  I could tell by his expression that he felt differently, and that made me nervous.

  “I believe Laria is as dangerous in death as she was in life,” he replied. “Perhaps more so. I don’t know if it’s her connection to the Black Arts that makes her so powerful, but you must be careful.”

  Black Arts? As in witchcraft? “How much harm can she do? I mean…she’s dead.”

  “You would do well to remember that she’s the one who cursed me.”

  “I’m not afraid of her,” I said, even though I actually was. Laria made me really nervous. And I could tell by Ian’s reaction

  that I needed to be worried. “I wonder if there’s a book about witchcraft and spells that can help end the curse?”

  “It’s generous of you to try and help me, but I can’t ask you to put yourself in harm’s way.”

  “I want to help you,” I said, pulling off the elastic band from around my ponytail and running my fingers through my hair. Ian’s eyes followed my movements, and when our gazes locked again, he smiled.

  I felt that smile all the way to my toes.

  Tossing the hair band on my nightstand, I blurted, “Maybe I could check the library or the Internet. I mean, my dad promised to have the computer up and running by the weekend, but I really don’t want to wait that long, you know?” Oh my God, I was rambling, but I couldn’t help it. The way he was looking at me made me kind of nervous, but not in a bad way. Rather, an excited, I-can’t-

  wait-to-see-what-happens-next kind of way.

  “Maybe we can go to the library after lunch.”

  He nodded, but looked hesitant for some reason.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked, almost afraid of his answer.

  “Are you sure about this, Riley? Perhaps you should think about what you are truly getting into first.”

  I wanted to tell him that there was absolutely no going back. “I want to help you end this curse, Ian. What Laria did to you was wrong and you deserve to have peace.”

  He stared at me for a long minute, saying nothing––just watching me with a soft expression that made my insides tighten.

  “Thank you, Riley,” he finally said.

  “Thank you.”

  Chapter 6

  The town library was old and surprisingly large, but had a seriously disappointing New Age section.

  A girl about my age stood behind the front counter, helping a woman and her young daughter check out books. She watched me closely as I browsed the aisles, and I wondered if checking out books on ghosts and witchcraft was a smart thing to do given how new I was. With my luck, by the time school started everyone would be talking. Oh well, it wasn’t like people talking behind my back was new to me.

  Ian stood beside me, his fingers brushing along the book spines. I wondered what the girl at the counter and the other patrons would think if they knew there was a ghost in their midst.

  I pulled an old book off the shelf entitled How to Hex your Lover, and saw Ian give

  me a sidelong glance. When our gazes met he rolled his eyes, but a smile curved his lips.

  I laughed under my breath and noticed at that exact moment an old man sitting in a nearby chair, watching me over the rim of his bifocal glasses. I hoped he didn’t think I’d been laughing at him.

  The man’s brows furrowed as his gaze shifted back to his book.

  Ian leaned against me, his shoulder touching mine as he gazed down at the page.

  His long hair brushed against my cheek, and I smiled at the comfortable relationship we shared. It must have been horrible to live for so long in the shadows, trying to get others to notice you, and to know that you were cursed to spend eternity as a spirit. I was resolved to help him, no matter what it took.

  And let’s face it; focusing on someone else’s problems was good for me. “Anything of interest?” he asked.

  I ran a finger down the table of contents and refrained from saying the chapter head-ings aloud, especially with the old man and the girl behind the counter watching me so closely.

  “I’ll check this one out for sure,” I said under my breath, and grabbed another book about ghosts off the shelf. My heart nearly leapt out of my chest when I saw a chapter heading that read, Can ghosts see us in the shower?

  Oh hell no…

  I flipped right past that particular chapter, but I could feel my cheeks turn hot.

  Oh my God, what if Ian could see me naked in the shower? I had just always assumed spirits popped in and out, with no rhyme or reason. Since I could see ghosts, then wouldn’t I know when they were in turn watching me?

  The problem with that theory was that I also “felt” spirits during those times they

  didn’t manifest or show themselves. Just like when I’d felt the ugly energy right before Laria appeared. How long had she been watching me before I had seen her? What if ghosts were always around—and I just didn’t see or even feel them all the time? I realized there was so much I didn’t know about the spirit world, and it was really in my best interest to learn as much as I could, no matter how frightening it might be.

  “Hey!”

  I jumped at the voice coming from directly behind me. Ian turned. I did too.

  It was the girl from the front desk. She was tiny, standing about five feet and weigh-ing maybe a hundred pounds. She had shoulder-length curly red hair and surprisingly huge boobs. Apparently she wasn’t afraid of showing cleavage, because her emerald green v-neck sweater hugged every curve. I glanced at Ian to see if he’d taken notice.

  He had. His gaze was focused on the girl’s D cups. Typical male…

  It was all I could do not to elbow him in the gut. “Hey,” I said, shifting on my feet, aware of the book in my hand.

  “My name’s Megan. You just moved into the old inn, right?”

  “Yeah, I did.” I extended my free hand.

  “I’m Riley.”

  “Nice to meet you, Riley.” She had a firm handshake for someone so small. “I didn’t see you at registration this morning, but I heard about you.”

  Oh great. I wondered what exactly she’d heard.

  “I met your brother. He’s coming by my boyfriend Milo’s house tonight. Would you like to come?”

  Shane hadn’t mentioned anything about a party, so I had to wonder if he wanted me tagging along.

  I looked over at Ian, wondering what he thought.

  “She cannot see me, Riley,” he said, sitting on a nearby table. “You keep lookin’

  away and she will think you are rude…or a bit soft in the head.” He said this last with a wink, and I returned my attention to Megan.

  “Sure, I’d love to come,” I said, and Megan grinned, looking genuinely happy that I’d accepted.

  “Excellent. I already gave your brother directions. So, we’ll see you at around eight o’clock?”

  “Sure.”

  “Okay then.” She glanced at the book in my hand. “Do you want to check that out?”

  “Yeah, but I’m going to look at a few more first, and maybe b
rowse the Internet while I’m at it.”

  “We only have one computer,” she said apologetically, pointing toward the back corner of the library where a middle-school

  aged girl typed furiously on the keys. “Alice Pengres is on it yet again.” She rolled her eyes. “I wish her parents would get Internet service already. She’s here every bloody day for hours on end. I swear she clocks more time here than I do.”

  I shrugged. “Oh well, I’ll just have to wait until we get Internet service at my house. My dad promised we’d have a connection by this weekend.”

  “Well, I’ll warn you right now that the speed is a bit dodgy in this town. Some days you get on fast, and some days it’s as slow as can be.”

  Since my dad was a software designer, he used the best of the best when it came to technology, so Internet speed usually wasn’t a problem, but then again we weren’t in Portland anymore. “Well, I’d better get back to searching.”

  “And I’d better get back to work before Mrs. Landridge returns from break.”

  “I’ll see you tonight,” I said, and as she walked away, I glanced over at Ian and was surprised he was looking at me and not Megan.

  “See, you are making friends already,” he said, sounding happy for me.

  “Looks that way,” I said, excited I’d been invited to Milo’s. I just hoped Shane wouldn’t be pissed I was going.

  The old man cleared his throat loudly, and Ian smiled and took hold of my hand.

  “Come on, we had better get out of here.”

  Chapter 7

  I tried to calm my nerves as I walked with Shane up the cobbled stone pathway leading to Milo’s house. The last time I’d been to a party had been the night before the accident that killed my mom. It felt strange, and somehow wrong––and the only thing that kept me walking toward the door was the fact I wanted to spend time with Shane.

  Speaking of Shane, he actually had looked relieved when I told him I was going to the party. Aside from our trip to the castle, I tried to recall the last time we hung out together. We used to attend dances at a gym called “Hoops”, where we’d dance all night with our friends to bad techno music. Back then we’d always got along, and always defended each other if the other one was in trouble of any kind…that was until I started hanging out with Ashley.

  Meeting Ashley had been the beginning of the end for me. I thought she was so cool, so different than Becca and my other friends.

  I was a dancer, on the honor roll, and I didn’t smoke, drink or do drugs, but Ashley did.

  And she convinced me that my life would be so much better if I did too.

  In my starry-eyed mode, I’d turned away from everything I had known, including my family. And then Shane had started acting out, and my parents had blamed me, which in turn made me push them even farther away.

  Music blared through the open windows of the gray stone cottage that had a ginger-bread house look about it. My heart picked up speed with every step that brought us closer. I had spent an hour getting ready and I hoped I wasn’t overdressed. I’d opted for a black, button-up shirt, and dark jeans with a pair of wedge heels. For the first time in months I had curled my hair and put on

  makeup. As I’d been getting ready, I couldn’t help but wonder what Ian would think of the outfit, or how I looked.

  Shane knocked on the door. A second later the door flew open and Milo was there, smiling from ear to ear. “Welcome, American friends,” he said with a terrible American accent.

  His gaze caught mine and he whistled through his teeth as he looked me up and down.

  “Dude, seriously,” Shane said, sounding irritated.

  I had to admit Shane’s behavior surprised me in a good way. I liked knowing he had my back.

  Milo threw up his hands. “Dude, I’m just saying big sister’s smokin’ hot.” The words sounded strange with his Scottish accent, but his effort to come off as American made me smile. The compliment didn’t hurt either.

  Milo gestured for us to enter.

  “Thanks,” I said, slipping past him, anxiously looking around the room at the others who stared back at us. Uncomfortable, I shifted on my feet.

  Aside from the pounding music, the voices had quieted, and as Milo shut the door, I fought the urge to turn and run, back to the safety of my room and Ian.

  I finally relaxed when I saw Megan come toward me. She had a drink in one hand, and when our eyes met, I could tell it wasn’t her first.

  She grinned. “Hey, I was wondering if you were gonna show.” She gave me a big hug and spilled some of her drink on my sleeve and the rest onto the floor.

  “Thanks for inviting me,” I said, grabbing onto a nearby chair to keep from falling over with her on top of me.

  “Watch it, love,” Milo said, righting the glass and pulling Megan toward him. “My

  mum will have my head if I make a mess of the place.”

  Megan snorted. “Yeah, your mum will be livid once she learns you had a party while she was away.” I could tell she struggled to focus. If she drank much more, she’d be on her ass in no time.

  I looked around the room and saw Shane was already busy tossing back a straight shot. A small crowd had rallied around him and they roared their approval.

  At the front of the crowd was a younger girl with black hair, multiple piercings, and black, emo-style clothing. She appeared to have her eye on Shane, and I had the feeling he had noticed her too, from the way he watched her.

  My little brother was definitely growing up.

  “You want a drink?” Megan asked.

  “I don’t know,” I said, and both Milo and Megan groaned. I had no desire to get drunk

  in front of strangers. My dad had always said you only had one shot at making a first impression.

  Megan’s lower lip jutted out. “Come on, Riley. Don’t be a buzzkill.”

  Buzzkill Riley—not a nickname I was wanting.

  “Sure, why not.” I was determined to sip on the drink in case Shane might need my help walking home later. One of us had to be clear-headed when we faced our dad who’d been surprisingly chatty at dinner. Both Shane and I had contributed little to the conversation, other than nod and answer each of his mundane questions. He seemed to like his job, which was good, but it also meant any chance of moving back to Portland wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

  “And you must be Riley,” said a gorgeous guy with light brown eyes and shaggy brown hair. He had an athletic body, and wore a button-up blue and white striped shirt, dark

  jeans, and skater shoes that he hadn’t bothered to lace. Aside from the unlaced shoes, he seemed fashionable and was definitely a hottie…and every girl in the vicinity seemed to notice him.

  “Yeah, that’s me.”

  “I’m Johan,” he said, shaking my hand.

  “An original name.”

  He flashed a grin, and my heart actually skipped a beat. “My parents would like to think so.”

  Milo pushed a drink into my hand.

  “Drink up, Riley,” he said, waiting for me to do just that.

  I brought the neon green plastic glass to my lips and winced as the strong liquor burned my mouth.

  Two girls came up to me and introduced themselves, but I quickly got the feeling they were using me to get to Johan, since they kept throwing glances his way. To his credit, he seemed oblivious to all the attention.

  I listened to the conversation going on all around me, while keeping an eye on Shane. I felt uneasy when he took yet another straight shot. I didn’t want to go off on him like our dad would if he knew Shane was drinking, but I didn’t want him getting sloppy drunk in front of people he’d just met either.

  “He’ll be okay,” Johan said.

  I smiled. “That obvious, huh?”

  “It’s good you’re looking out for him.

  That’s what family is for.”

  I nodded. I seriously wondered what others would think of my family if they knew the truth, especially about me. A girl who could se
e and talk to ghosts wasn’t exactly the norm. And God forbid they found out about my cutting. Back home I’d managed to keep my secret relatively safe, but I’d also become a loner in the process.

  “I have a confession to make,” he said, and I instantly straightened, afraid of his

  next words. “I saw you today at registration and tried to get your attention.”

  I sighed inwardly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you.”

  “Yeah, you seemed a bit preoccupied.” He leaned into me, his lips close to my ear.

  “How about I introduce you around?” His breath was hot against my neck and I couldn’t ignore the sudden racing of my heart.

  “Sure,” I said, following behind him. Johan stayed by my side every second, except when I excused myself and went to the bathroom, where I poured the mixed drink into the sink, and set the cup on the cluttered kitchen counter on my way back to the living room.

  Unfortunately, when I returned, I noticed Shane was getting really clumsy, nearly knocking over an end table and lamp.

  We would have to leave soon, and I knew he’d probably argue with me, but I wasn’t

  leaving without him. I’d pull in reinforcements if I had to, although I was beginning to think I might be the only sober person in the place.

  Johan put his hand on my hip. “Come on, loosen up, big sister.”

  Granted, the attention was nice…but he was getting a little too comfortable, and I didn’t want anyone getting certain ideas.

  “We need to go soon. Our dad is pretty strict.”

  He nodded in understanding, though he looked disappointed that I was going to leave. “I’ll walk you home, if you’d like.”

  “Thanks,” I said, grateful for the offer.

  Shane was going to be a handful, and I could use all the help I could get. “Maybe in about twenty minutes?”

  “Sounds good,” he said, flashing a smol-dering smile that made me feel slightly flushed.

  The warm and fuzzy feeling left me when from the corner of my eye I saw someone watching me. Uneasiness rippled along my spine, and when I turned, I noticed a girl staring at me from across the room.

  My stomach fell to my toes.