The Ungrateful Dead

by Rose Cooper

  “No, I swear,” Harper said. “And how would I even know anything about that night?”

  “We know you talked to Lucy,” Eden said.

  “But I haven’t. Not really,” Harper said.

  “Or maybe you have but you can’t remember. Because your brain is disappearing. Hello! Ever think of that?” Anna couldn’t help raising her voice. She didn’t do well with news like this. She always crumbled under bad situations. Or news.

  “I think I would remember something like that. But apparently Tabitha remembers.”

  “She can’t. She wasn’t even there,” Eden said.

  “That’s the thing,” Harper said. “She says she has these dreams and she remembers them. All of them. So they are kind of like memories. She says they’re so real and—”

  “Wait.” Eden held up her hand. “What did you just say?”

  “How she remembers all of them,” Harper said.

  Eden shook her head. “No, about memories.”

  Anna gasped as she caught on to what Eden was thinking.

  “Tabitha said they seemed more like memories than dreams, but had no idea how that could be,” Harper said.

  “I know how.” Eden looked at Anna. “She ate the cupcake.”

  “She ate the cupcake? Is that a code? What does that mean?” Harper looked back and forth between Anna and Eden, but they ignored her.

  “No way. She couldn’t have. I mean, if she did— Oh no. You really think so?” Anna said.

  “It would make more sense if she did,” Eden said.

  Anna stood up. “Can you stop being so calm for once and actually freak out? I don’t want to be the only one having all these freak-out moments.”

  “Can someone please tell me what is going on?” Harper yelled.

  Anna and Eden abruptly turned to Harper, as if just now remembering she was in the room with them.

  “Eden made a memory cake,” Anna told her. “It was a cupcake with a spell. I gave it to Johnny so he’d eat it and regain the memories he lost before the accident.”

  Harper’s eyes widened. “So if Johnny didn’t eat the cupcake and someone else did…” Her voice trailed off.

  “Then that person would get those memories,” Eden finished.

  Harper laughed. “Pretty sure Tabitha did eat the cupcake.”

  Both Anna and Eden stared at Harper as if her arm had just fallen off. Which wasn’t all that remote a possibility.

  “And how exactly do you know that?” Anna questioned.

  “Because I was with her when Johnny offered it to her.”

  “Did she eat the whole thing? Or only part of it?” Eden asked.

  “And what color were the sprinkles she ate?” Anna blurted out.

  Harper frowned. “I have no idea. I took off before she ate it. That was when, you know, I started falling apart that day.”

  Anna scooted closer to Harper. “So there’s a chance she didn’t eat it?”

  “Nope. I’m pretty sure she did. She would’ve eaten a worm if Johnny offered it to her. Speaking of worms…I’m kind of hungry—”

  “What does this mean, Eden?” Anna asked worriedly. “Tabitha knows about us now?”

  “Probably. But that’s not the worst part.”

  “How is that not the worst part? She’ll use this against us. My secret will be out. Your secret will be out!”

  “I think the side effects to this spell are pretty bad if taken by someone other than the intended,” Eden said, looking something up on her phone. “Her brain won’t have room to store all these extra memories, so it will grow.”

  “Her brain will grow? That doesn’t sound too bad.” Anna sat back down.

  “Except it won’t stop growing. When memories are implanted in someone who doesn’t have the vacant space already, the brain will continue expanding. Like a balloon. Until it can’t stretch any further and then…”

  “Her head will explode? You’re kidding, right?” Anna asked.

  “I wish I were.” Eden’s hands started to tremble.

  “How much time do we have?” Anna asked. This was bad. Definitely bad.

  “About forty-eight hours,” Eden said.

  “Mmmm, brains,” Harper said with a smile. “Oh, sorry. Did I say that aloud?”

  • • •

  Maddsen Manor had been deathly quiet when Anna had put a sweatshirt on over her T-shirt and flannel pj bottoms and tiptoed out of the house.

  The cemetery was even quieter. Using her flashlight app, she’d carefully made her way through the tombstones and grass to where her friends were waiting for her.

  “There.” Anna set the wooden Ouija board down on the grass and sat next to Eden and Millie on Maxwell Maddsen’s grave. It was almost midnight.

  “Can’t you just call him for us?” Anna asked Millie.

  “It’s not like there’s a ghost network. I can’t just summon anyone just because they’re dead. It doesn’t work like that.” Millie said. She touched the Ouija board. “How do we use this?’

  Anna let out a sigh. “Have you ever seen one of these, Millie?”

  Millie shook her head. “When I was a kid, we played marbles. And jacks.”

  “Sounds like fun.” Eden pretended to snore.

  “So we each place a finger on the pointer,” Anna began.

  “Planchette,” Eden corrected.

  “Same thing.” Anna rolled her eyes. “Anyway, we ask a question and wait for the planchette to move.”

  “But we’re supposed to move it with our fingers?” Millie asked, wiggling hers.

  “No, the whole point is not to move it. We only have our fingers on it to give it our energy to help it move.”

  Millie shook her head. “Okay, whatever you guys say.”

  They placed their fingers on the planchette. “Make sure you’re not pressing down. Just touch it lightly,” Anna said. “And focus all your concentration. I’ll ask first.” She kept her eyes closed as she whispered. “We call upon Maxwell Maddsen. Can you hear us?”

  Anna didn’t feel any movement. She took a deep breath. “Maxwell Maddsen, are you here?”

  Nothing.

  Don’t break concentration, Anna thought.

  She felt her body relax, her muscles melt, as she pictured all tension leaving her body. Her shoulders dropped; her body slumped slightly forward.

  “Is there anyone here with us?”

  Somewhere in the distance they heard an owl. Anna felt Eden jump next to her.

  “Is there—”

  The pointer began sliding under their fingertips. Anna’s eyes popped open. The three girls stared down at the board. It moved over letters, not stopping, then changed direction and glided slowly toward the top of the board.

  “Are either of you moving it?” Eden squeaked.

  Anna shook her head.

  “No,” Millie said. “I was gonna ask you the same thing.”

  It came to the top, stopping on the word YES.

  “What do we do now?” Eden looked to Anna.

  “Is this Maxwell Maddsen?” Anna asked.

  This time it moved much more quickly, stopping at the word NO.

  “Should we stop now?” Eden asked. “What if it’s something evil?”

  Anna breathed in through her nose, concentrating on all the scents around her. A light pine fragrance tickled her nose. “No,” Anna said. “It’s not evil. Probably just someone who’s reaching out for help.”

  “Tell them to just text you later,” Millie whispered.

  “Can you sense or see any other spirits, Millie?” Anna knew Millie’s powers were far beyond Anna’s capabilities.

  Millie shook her head. “No. They are completely cloaked. So it’s someone who’s been gone for a while.”

  Anna’s fingers shook, quivering slightly on the board. “Who is here?” she asked.

  The planchette moved to the letter D and stopped.

  “D?” asked Eden.

  It moved to the next letter. A.

  Eden sucked
in a sharp breath.

  It quickly moved to the third and final letter before stopping. D.

  “Dad,” Anna whispered.

  “Dad,” Millie echoed.

  “Dad?” Eden looked at the two girls. “Whose dad? Mine is at home.”

  “Mine has been gone a long time, but he could’ve contacted me anytime he wanted,” Millie said softly.

  Both heads turned to Anna.

  “My dad is…he died when I was little. Could it really be my dad?” She could barely get the words out. Her heart pounded in her chest; her mouth went dry.

  The planchette started moving on the board without anyone touching it. It slid to the word YES.

  Anna didn’t realize she was crying until her tears splattered on the board. She quickly wiped her eyes. “How…I wasn’t summoning…I mean, what—” She couldn’t put a coherent string of words together. Her brain couldn’t process fast enough to speak what she was thinking.

  But Anna didn’t have time to process what was happening. Because a moment later, two things happened simultaneously.

  They heard a phone ringing beneath them. In the ground. “What the—?” Eden looked around her, trying to pinpoint the ringing.

  And they had an unexpected visitor. A shadow fell over them from behind.

  “Isn’t anyone gonna answer that?” Archer chuckled.

  Millie immediately vanished.

  “What are you doing here?” Eden asked casually, like it was the most normal thing to be in the graveyard past midnight. With a Ouija board. At least the ringing phone had stopped.

  “Oh, you know,” Archer said nervously with a shrug. “Couldn’t sleep. Took a walk. What are you guys up to?” He ran his fingers through his thick blond hair. He was wearing a navy quarter-zip fleece and jeans. Anna noticed he was sweating, his face flushed.

  “Same,” Eden said, eyeing him.

  Anna and Eden exchanged looks and Archer’s smile vanished. “Are you guys hiding something?”

  Anna watched his face as he looked down and noticed the board. “A Ouija board. Cool! Can I join you guys?”

  “Um…” Eden was at a loss for words. But Archer sat down between them.

  “Who are we trying to communicate with?” he asked.

  A sense of dread fell over Anna. She couldn’t explain why, but something wasn’t right. She knew that much.

  When no one answered Archer, he continued. “C’mon, guys, it’s not like I ran screaming because of ghosts the last time, right?”

  Eden’s eyes widened. “Last time?”

  “You remember that?” Anna’s voice quivered.

  “Yeah, was I supposed to forget about it for some reason?” Archer looked directly at Eden.

  “It’s just, you hadn’t mentioned it, so we thought maybe you forgot or something,” Eden said.

  “Yeah.” Anna nodded. She glanced at Eden, who was focusing intently on Archer. She’s casting a memory spell, Anna realized.

  “I’m not stupid, you know.” Archer crossed his arms.

  “No one ever said you were stupid, Archer.” Anna felt like she was talking someone off the ledge. The ledge of what, she wasn’t sure. And she didn’t want to find out. But she’d do whatever it took to keep his attention focused on her until Eden was finished. She glanced back at Eden.

  Eden nodded and mouthed the word “Done.”

  Anna felt a whoosh of relief wash over her. She stood up, dusting off the back of her jeans. “Hey, Archer. Wanna hang out tomorrow after school?”

  “Yeah, let’s go to the clubhouse.” Eden got up, standing next to Anna.

  But Archer didn’t stand up. Instead, he yelped, grasping the sides of his head.

  “Archer?” Anna stepped forward, touching his arm. “Are you okay?”

  Archer slowly put his hands down, never looking away. “Do you have any idea what that feels like?”

  “What what feels like?” Anna asked nervously.

  “It’s like bolts of lightning,” Archer continued, ignoring Anna. “Shooting through my brain. Do you know what that feels like? To have electrical currents stabbing you in the head, Anna? Because I do. Thanks to Eden, I’ve had to go through that wonderful experience several times now.”

  Anna turned to her friend. “What is he talking about, Eden?”

  Eden stood frozen. “The spell.”

  “Eden!” Anna couldn’t believe she’d just said the S-word around Archer.

  “He knows, Anna.”

  “What do you mean, he knows?” Anna looked from Archer to Eden and back to Archer. “What’s going on?”

  “Why don’t you tell her, Eden? Since you’re her best friend and all.”

  “Archer’s a warlock,” Eden mumbled. She gave Archer a look of defeat. “I swear I didn’t know. Not at first.”

  “But when you found out, you tried to keep Anna away from me, right? Because someone like me doesn’t deserve to have friends.”

  “What are you talking about?” Anna asked Archer. “You both sound crazy!”

  “Well, Anna, your best friend here put a spell on you so you would stay away from me.”

  “What?” Anna spun around and faced Eden. “Is that true?”

  “It’s not the way it sounds, though. It wasn’t—”

  “Did you cast a spell on me, Eden?” Anna demanded.

  Eden looked away.

  “I can’t believe you!” Anna’s voice echoed through the night air. “You promised you would never do that to me. You were supposed to be my friend.”

  “I am your friend.” Eden’s voice was barely above a whisper.

  “A friend wouldn’t have done that.” Anna wanted to run home. But instead she turned away, walking calmly, clutching her phone. And why had Millie ditched her? She’d come here tonight with two friends and was leaving with none.

  “I’m sorry, Anna!” Eden called out, but Anna never looked back.

  The second Anna got back to Maddsen Manor, she poured herself a glass of water and leaned against the counter, trying to catch her breath. She was still unable to accept what had just happened.

  “Anna!” Her mom rushed into the kitchen. “You’re home!

  Anna jumped, spilling water on the floor.

  “Mom! You scared me!” She grabbed a dish towel and started soaking up the mess.

  “Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?”

  “Um…”

  “How could you think it would be okay to leave the house without telling me?” her mom demanded. “And in the middle of the night!”

  “Mom, I’m sorry. I was in the cemetery. I was practically in the backyard!”

  “You snuck out, Anna! Do you not think that’s a big deal?”

  “It’s not that big a deal,” Anna said.

  “Just, just go to your room,” her mom said through clenched teeth. Her face was bright red. “I’ll deal with you tomorrow.”

  “Mom. It’s not like I was out doing anything bad.”

  “I said go to your room. Now.” Her mom was fuming.

  “But, Mom…”

  “Anna!” She pointed her finger at the stairs.

  “Fine. All right, I’m going. Geez!” Anna stomped all the way up the stairs, not caring if she woke anyone else up.

  The next morning, Anna had to drag herself out of bed. She woke up with the worst headache. It wasn’t like lightning shooting through her brain, but still. Her head throbbed with the slightest bit of movement, and her energy was at an all-time low. She rummaged through a pile of discarded clothes on her floor and put on her jeans and a striped T-shirt. She felt like she was walking uphill through quicksand.

  She saw several text messages from Eden and chose to ignore them, shoving her phone in her back pocket. Then she did a double take as she noticed something sitting on her desk. It was a phone.

  Her old phone. The one she had dug a small hole for and had buried when she’d first said goodbye to Millie all those weeks ago.

  There was a scratch in the upper corner
of the screen. And it was covered in dirt.

  This was the phone that they had heard ringing last night in the cemetery.

  Millie. She had vanished last night and never returned. Anna gripped the phone tighter. She still needed her. And what about her dad? She couldn’t ask Eden to help her contact him again. She needed Millie.

  Anna stashed the old phone in the top drawer of her nightstand, then threw her messenger bag over her shoulder and headed downstairs. She was so focused on the steps she almost ran straight into Winston at the bottom of the stairs.

  “Whoa!” Anna jumped back. “Sorry, didn’t see you.” He was blocking the front door and didn’t seem to understand she was in a hurry. “I have to leave,” she said, and reached around him, hoping he’d move so she could turn the knob, but he didn’t. He stared at her with his arms crossed.

  “What?” Anna said.

  “Heard you snuck out last night.”

  Anna screamed in her head. She had to get to school. “Mom is talking to me later about it.”

  “No, I think we need to talk about it now. Go sit down in the living room.”

  “I have to leave now or I’ll be late.”

  “I’ll give you a ride to school.”

  Anna’s heart was pounding. What was she supposed to do? Her mom would not let her be late to school if she were here. He was probably doing this behind her back. She wasn’t going to be a part of that.

  “No,” Anna whispered, looking away.

  Winston’s eyes widened. “No?”

  “I’ll talk to Mom later.” Anna turned and headed toward the back door. She’d rather walk through the cemetery to get to school than stay at home.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Winston called out.

  “I’m going to school. Like I’m supposed to,” Anna shouted, before slamming the door behind her.

  Anna didn’t even remember walking to school. She was so deep in her thoughts that the next thing she knew, she looked up and was in the parking lot of the Academy.

  “Anna!” Eden ran up to her, falling into step beside her. “Did you get my texts?” She sounded like she had run a marathon as she tried to catch her breath.

  “Yep.” Anna looked straight ahead as they walked into the building.