by K. G. Reuss
“No one else needs to suffer.” I waved her off tiredly. She gazed incredulously back at me with her large blue eyes. “What?”
“How are you so-so… easygoing about this?” she demanded, her full lips turned down into a frown. “I went with your mom to pick out your casket.”
“Did you get it?”
“Get what?”
“The casket,” I rolled my eyes.
“You can’t be serious,” she squeaked. “It was the second worst experience of my life, Ever! The first was hearing the news about you and seeing that it was true. Don’t joke about that. I’m still having nightmares.”
“I’m sorry,” I apologized softly, my eyes not meeting hers. “It’s just, it’s hard for me too, Nina. I-I feel different now. And it’s not just because I hurt and feel like crap. It’s something else. I can’t explain it. Can I tell you something without you thinking I’m crazy?”
“Of course,” she answered, her brows furrowed as she studied me.
“I-I think I saw someone in my mirror,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “And that night…I-I think there was someone there with me. Like a guardian angel or something.”
“What?” she asked sounding confused.
“Like, I opened my makeup compact and there was this tunnel in the mirror. There was a man standing at the end of it. He was watching me. It freaked me out. And then I keep getting these flashes of this shadow man with red eyes. He was with me that night. I-I think he saved me.”
“Seriously?” Nina asked, cringing.
“Yeah, and I keep hearing voices, but they sound far away. I can’t make out what they’re saying.”
Nina’s face fell, but she quickly forced a smile back onto it.
“Maybe it’s because you hit your head. You’re still healing, Ever. That sort of thing takes time, right? I’m sure in a few weeks it’ll all go away. I mean, we all know it was just you, Dylan, and the driver there that night. That’s it. I’m pretty sure it was just the trauma from the accident making you think there was an angel or a shadow with you. Same goes for the mirror and voices. You’ve been through something really scary. I think you just need some time to heal.”
“Right,” I said tightly, nodding. “You’re probably right.”
I prayed she was right. The possibility of her being wrong made my stomach clench painfully.
Chapter Eight
The following week, I got to go home. I was beyond excited. I couldn’t stand being holed up in that hospital room any longer. The nurses and doctors were great, but there was no place like home.
Mom had fixed up the spare bedroom downstairs. That gave me easy access to the kitchen, which was helpful since navigating the stairs in our house seemed like way more effort than it was worth. We argued about her returning to work. She wanted to be home with me, but I wouldn’t have it. Working kept her mind off things and helped her cope. The last thing I wanted was her to be constantly babying me after everything. She’d started working a few shifts again while I was in the hospital and was finally going back full-time tonight.
“Do you need anything?” she asked as she wheeled me into my new bedroom. The doctor said I only had about three weeks left before I’d be up on my feet again without so much effort. I couldn’t wait.
“No, I’m good.” I gave her a smile, hoping to ease her worries.
“I really don’t want to go back to work tonight,” she frowned worriedly, her pretty eyes tired. “I could stay, hon—”
“Mom, stop,” I said, sighing. “Nina is coming to stay with me. We’ll be fine. I promise.”
“You’re right.” She gave me a watery smile. “I’m just worried. You’re my baby.”
“I know, but I swear I feel fine.” I took her hand as I hobbled to my bed and sat down on the edge of it. “I’m just a little tired and sore, but other than that, I’m great. Never better.”
She looked at me like she didn’t believe me, but gave herself a little shake before speaking again, “I’m going to leave your pain medication on the table by your bed, OK? Take it if you need it.” She began running through instructions for me, “It’ll probably make you sleepy.” She pulled a couple bottles of water out of her bag and placed those beside the pills and gave me a pointed look. “Just in case you get thirsty.”
“Thanks, Mom,” I smiled at her. “I’m going to try for a shower and a nap before Nina gets here.”
“OK, sweetie. I’ll order a pizza for you girls. Do you want anything else?”
“No,” I yawned, taking the crutches that she’d placed beside me.
“I’ll be in the living room if you need me—”
“Mom, I’m fine,” I assured her, getting to my feet and hobbling to the bathroom. I didn’t wait for her to respond. She’d coddle me all night if I let her. Once in the bathroom, I closed the door softly behind me and ran a hot shower. I hadn’t been able to have one since before the accident. Everything had been sponges and cool water.
I did my best to take my clothes off and get beneath the hot water, adopting an awkward stance with all my weight on one leg and other leg outside the shower, straddling the edge. Washing with one hand took a lot of effort, but when I finished, I felt almost human again. Hobbling out, I dried off and stared at myself in the mirror.
A frown pulled my lips down as I noticed a red mark on my shoulder. I rubbed it and winced. It was tender. I leaned closer to the mirror. It looked like an infinity symbol for some reason. My fingers went immediately to the silver infinity hanging around my neck. The mark on my skin wasn’t the same size as the pendant, so it couldn’t be an impression from that.
“What the heck?” I muttered, the frown deepening on my face. It wasn’t incredibly large, but it was definitely there. And it definitely resembled an infinity. I touched it gingerly once more. Maybe it was just something from the accident. But how could an accident leave a perfectly shaped infinity mark on me?
A quick run through with a brush tamed my hair. Then I gingerly pulled on my favorite plaid pajamas and went back to my room, where I flopped down onto my bed and snuggled deep into my nest of blankets.
My eyes had barely closed when the voices started. At first, they sounded far away, almost like I was hearing them through earmuffs, but then they grew. It was like I was in the same room with them—hundreds of them. I covered my ears and shook my head, trying to make them go away, but they were relentless, growing louder and more insistent.
“Stop! Stop! STOP!” I whimpered, rocking in my bed. At the hospital, it had only been whisperings and only one or two voices. This time I was being suffocated by them, as their voices closed in on me, shouting for me to acknowledge them. My brain rapidly tried to process each voice and what it said. One was calling to me.
“Ever! Everly,” a girlish voice warbled.
Others were upset, almost angry. A small few sounded hopeful.
“He changed her! He knew it and he did it anyway. He’s just as bad as they are. Now they have a weapon,” one argued with incredulity.
“Reborn, that one. She’s been chosen. Hasn’t been a Whisperer in over two hundred years.”
“Maybe she’ll help us. Not hurt us,” an optimistic voice said.
“We should kill her before they take her,” a hoarse voice rasped.
The voices wanted to kill someone. Me? I was losing my mind. Admitting to going crazy didn’t stop the voices echoing around inside of me.
“Ever, help me,” a voice cried.
“Ever, can you hear me? I’m outside your window. Let me in, please.”
“Look at her. She’s so weak. She can never help us. She can’t even help herself,” another scoffed.
“SHUT UP!” I screamed, grabbing my lamp and throwing it across the room. It hit the wall and shattered, the glass shards landing with a crash as they exploded upon impact.
“Everly?” My mom came rushing into the room breathless, a panicked look on her face. “Honey, what happened? Are you OK?” Her eyes darted from m
e to the shattered lamp on the floor.
“I-I’m fine,” I replied, my voice small and shaking. “I-I heard voices—”
“Voices?” she frowned, the cut of confusion and displeasure carved deeply on her mouth, as her eyes swept quickly over my face. “What are you talking about?”
“I-I don’t know. Maybe I was dreaming,” I lied hastily, suddenly feeling like the world’s biggest lunatic. The voices had stopped the moment she’d entered the room. I stared up at her from beneath the dark fringe of my bangs guiltily, wondering what the hell was happening to me.
“Sweetie,” she sat down on the bed beside me and pushed my hair away from my face. “You’ve been through so much.” She wiped at her tears and drew in a deep breath. “You can talk to me. If you’re really hearing voices, we can get Dr. Sanders to recommend us to another doctor—”
“I don’t need a shrink,” I interrupted, pulling away from her.
“It might help to talk through some things, Everly,” she sighed, folding her hands in her lap. “You never really dealt with your father leaving or-or any of the things he did. And now this. Sweetheart. You nearly died. Your heart stopped. You weren’t breathing. You’ve had a brain injury. Anything is possible. We can have some more tests done.”
“I don’t want more tests done,” I grumbled, rubbing my eyes. “I just want to go to sleep, OK?”
“OK,” she gave me a watery smile. The look in her eye said this conversation wasn’t over, just tabled for now as she got to her feet. I closed my eyes and listened as she cleaned up the mess I’d made.
“I’m sorry, Mom,” I whispered.
“It’s OK, baby,” she replied before the click of the door closing signaled that she’d left. I lay in bed, my heart pounding, hoping that I wouldn’t hear the voices again. When only silence greeted me, I allowed myself to drift off into a fitful sleep before the sound of Nina giggling from my living room woke me.
I sat up, rubbed my eyes, and looked at the clock. It was nearly eight at night. I couldn’t believe how long I’d slept. I fumbled with my sheets, finally untangling myself from them, and hobbled to the hallway on one crutch. The smell of fresh, buttery popcorn invaded my senses as I tottered down the hallway. As I peered around the corner, I saw Nina sitting on my couch, a bowl of popcorn in her hands, and her phone pressed to her ear. In the background, the television flashed with images from a chick flick she was watching.
She must have felt me hovering because she looked over her shoulder at me. Her eyes lit up and a wide grin spread over her pretty face.
“Ever is awake. I’ll call you later.” She tossed her phone aside and got to her feet. Her arms were outstretched as she reached out to help me. “I didn’t want to wake you, so I came in here and put on a movie.” She steadied me as I hobbled to the couch and sat down. “How are you feeling?”
“Tired,” I admitted.
“I bet,” Nina said sympathetically. “Do you want a drink? Your mom left us some sodas.”
“Sure,” I answered. Nina got up and went into the kitchen and a tiny buzzing started in my ear. It was like a pesky gnat was circling my head. I shook my head and rubbed my ear, hoping to make it stop, but it grew more insistent.
“Here,” Nina handed me a can of soda and the buzzing came to an abrupt stop. I breathed out a sigh of relief and relaxed against the cushions. “I’m watching Sixteen Candles, but we can change it if you want.”
“That’s fine,” I grunted, popping the top on my drink and sucking down a mouthful.
“I was talking to Dylan today,” Nina started delicately, gauging me for my reaction. When I continued to stare impassively at her, she launched into a more detailed description of her encounter with him. “He asked about you. He wanted me to tell you that he hopes you feel better soon.”
I nodded, not really knowing what to say. I didn’t think a game of conversation tag was in order, so I remained quiet.
“He’s been seeing Casey. I guess they made it official,” Nina confirmed softly, keeping her blue eyes downcast as she fiddled with a piece of lint on her sweater.
I chuckled quietly and shook my head, still not saying anything.
“Ever, come on,” Nina urged, her eyes meeting mine. “Say something! He almost freaking killed you for God sake. Don’t you have anything to say?”
“I’m happy for him,” I answered, clearing my throat.
She stared at me in disbelief. “Are you serious?”
“As death.” I gave her a small, sad smile before looking away. I climbed clumsily to my feet, tottering to the side before catching myself on the arm of the couch. I wiped quickly at my tears and turned away before Nina could see. But I wasn’t as fast as I thought I was because she got to her feet and gave me a hug.
“It’s OK, Ev,” she sniffled with me. “He’s a jerk.”
“I don’t even know why I’m upset,” I chuckled darkly, pulling away and shaking my head, not bothering to dry my tears. What was the point? The cat was out of the bag now. “It’s not like I wanted to be with him anymore. I just thought—I don’t even know what I thought.” I scoffed, “Whatever. I think I’m going to go lie back down.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Thanks for coming over. I’m sorry I’m not more fun.” I turned and hobbled back to my room. The buzzing was back in my ears the moment I closed the door behind me.
And then the voices started. Again.
Chapter Nine
“She doesn’t know,” an astonished voice shouted.
“She’s been Marked.”
“They’ll come for her, and then she won’t be able to help,” the astonished voice argued.
“Ever, I’m locked in your closet. Come let me out. I can grant a wish. Save me,” a hypnotic promise.
“She’s lying, Ever. Come help me. I’m under your bed. If you don’t help me, I’ll grab your feet the next time you stand too close,” a sinister voice bellowed.
“She won’t come, you fools. She needs to die and be done with it. We can deal with her when she’s here,” another cackled.
“Stop it!” I shouted, covering my ears and losing my balance. I fell to the floor with a heavy thump. The air escaped my lungs, leaving me gasping painfully.
“Ever?” Nina burst into my room and ran to my side, her eyes flashing fearfully. “Oh my God. What do I do? Should I call your mom?”
“Give me my pain pills,” I groaned out. My ribs ached. My leg and arm screamed at me. And all the while the voices got louder. The voices only I seemed to be able to hear. I covered my ears and rocked back and forth on the floor as tears streamed down my face.
“Exactly like her father. The pills won’t silence us forever.”
“The alcohol might,” another voice added miserably. “It worked for him.”
“Shit,” I groaned, grabbing the bottle from Nina’s hand and downing two of the pills without bothering to ask for a glass of water. Nina stared wide-eyed at me.
“Ever…those are really strong. Do you think you should’ve taken two of them?” she asked sounding worried, her eyes wavering.
“Water, please,” I croaked out, ignoring her worries. A pill felt like it was stuck in my throat. Nina grabbed a bottle of water from my nightstand and handed it to me. I drank down half of it, breathlessly, before handing it back to her. She helped me to sit up, and I almost leaned against my bed until I remembered what the voice had said about being under it.
I got to my feet with her help. The voices started to fade away. My brow was dotted with sweat and my hands shook.
“Nina, can you bring my pillow and blanket out to the living room? I think I’ll sleep out there tonight,” my voice was weak, and I trembled with fear.
“Sure,” she said moving to the edge of my bed and grabbing my pillow. A scream slipped through my lips, as a blackened hand reached out from beneath the bed and swiped at her bare leg. Its nails were broken and jagged. Blood covered what wasn’t already black with decay. It went right through he
r leg without her batting a lash. The smell of death and decay filled my nostrils—a putrid smell, heavy in the air, clinging to it, making the room seem smaller as the smell grew stronger. I gagged a little as I whimpered.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, her face displaying how worried she was as she turned to look at me. I was vaguely aware of the sound of my own heartbeat in my ears. “Ever! What’s wrong?”
“I-I gotta get out of here. I-I can’t-,” I stumbled backward, catching myself on the edge of my dresser. A set of dark eyes peered out at me from beneath the bed A growl emanated from its twisted, bleeding lips.
“Ever, wait!” Nina rushed at me, steadying me as I fell back a step, my gaze locked with the being peering out at me from under my bed. Clearly, she couldn't hear the voices or see the thing glaring at me. And that made me feel even crazier.
“I’ll wait for you,” it hissed before backing away to the shadows beneath the bed—the very place I knew was now home to more than just that monster.
“G-get me out of here, Nina,” I choked out.
Nina did as I commanded, steering me to the doorway of my bedroom, but not before I noticed my closet door creaking open and a hand reaching around the door jam. Its fingernails tapped as if letting me know it would wait too.
Chapter Ten
The pills hit me hard and fast, and before I knew it, I was out. I didn’t wake up the entire night, for which I was grateful. The sweet smell of pancakes roused me. Sitting up from my nest on the couch, I looked to see Nina stretching on an adjacent couch—her blonde hair in a messy ponytail and her makeup smeared on her face.
“Good morning.” Mom popped her head in and grinned. She’d changed from her emergency room scrubs to a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. “I’m making pancakes. Chocolate chip or blueberry? You pick.” She disappeared back into the kitchen humming a song.
“Is she serious?” Nina groaned, rubbing her eyes.
“Yep,” I answered, pushing my hair out of my face. “She loves making breakfast. You should see what she makes for Christmas morning.”
