The Departed - J A Templeton

by J. A. Templeton

  Randall flew at me, so fast I didn’t have time to move. The breath left me in a rush, and I was slammed against a tree trunk, my face pushed up against the bark. Randall’s hand tightened around the back of my neck and squeezed hard. A wave of dizziness washed over me.

  Cait screamed so loud it nearly pierced my eardrums. Abruptly the spirits disappeared.

  Kade came rushing out of the trees with Shane on his heels. They both looked wildly about. “What’s going on?”

  Cait was pure white and trembling. All her bravado had gone out the window. I knew how shocking it was to see a spirit, and I have no doubt she had seen Randall. Maybe she’d even seen Laria and the others.

  Kade helped me up, and Shane stared daggers at me. “You said you wouldn’t come without me.”

  “How did you know we were here?” I asked sheepishly.

  “Maddy showed up at practice,” Kade said, brushing the dirt off my back, and looking over his shoulder he scanned the area. “She was freaking out, saying you were in danger, and she told us you had gone in search of Laria’s grave.”

  Shane planted his hands on his hips. “I told you not to come without me.” It was really obvious he wasn’t about to let it drop. He glanced at Cait. “And what were you thinking?”

  “It was my idea,” Cait said, and Kade turned to her, surprise on his face.

  “Laria is haunting Megan. I mean, you saw her. She looked like shit. I thought we could end it by binding the grave like you mentioned,” she said, glancing at Kade. “I just want this to be over for everybody, especially Riley. Christ, how much can one person take?”

  Kade brushed a hand over his jaw. “I know you meant well, but this was stupid. I don’t know what happened, what the screams were about, but it was obvious you’re both terrified, because I’ve never seen either of you this pale.”

  “We’d better head back,” I said, feeling like we had gone through enough today. Shane was right—the next time we came up, we needed to be prepared.

  Kade’s fingers threaded through mine. “Promise me you’ll never do this again.” His gaze shifted to his sister. “That means you, too.”

  Cait nodded. “I swear I’ll wait until we can all go together as a group.” Her throat convulsed as she swallowed hard. “Or maybe we should continue. Another hour and we’d be at the top.”

  Kade looked at Cait. “I’m sure Maddy has said something to Mum by now, which means Dad will be headed this way very soon.”

  Point taken. The last thing I wanted or needed were Kade and Cait’s parents involved. As it was, Kade would have to come up with some excuse why he had missed practice.

  Without further argument, we headed back down the hill. We hadn’t gone twenty feet when I swore I heard a woman crying. In my mind’s eye, I saw an image of the blonde-haired woman who had been sacrificed in these woods.

  The gut-wrenching sob made me want to turn around and continue up the hill…but it was obvious by what Cait and I had just experienced that Laria, Randall, and the others were not going to back down without a fight.

  We needed to be prepared.

  Chapter 8

  Ever since we returned from the hill, I’d felt a presence with me. I couldn’t say if it was Laria, Randall, or even the girl who had been sacrificed…but the spirit lingered, staying in the shadows, which was out of character for the malevolent ghost who had taken such pleasure in tormenting me.

  Or maybe this was just Laria’s way of toying with me—and staying in the dark was the best way to do that.

  I couldn’t lie still. I’d been staring at the ceiling for the past two hours, looking at the pattern the bedside lamp cast upon the plaster, while listening to the sounds of the house, waiting for someone to come out of the woodwork...but as the seconds ticked away into minutes, the silence became deafening. My legs were restless and adrenaline raced through my body, which was strange, because I was exhausted, both mentally and physically.

  I am liquid fire in your veins.

  My heart missed a beat. Had I only just imagined the words? I wondered, when suddenly it came again…

  I am liquid fire in your veins.

  I smashed the pillow over my head. The words were as clear as day, coming at me from all sides.

  Do you feel me?

  Suddenly, dark images raced through my mind—of a group of men dragging a woman out of a barn and into the woods, torches lighting the way. The woman struggled as she was pulled out into the cold, pitch-black night.

  There were so many young women screaming now, their faces so close to mine their features were a blur. A sense of overwhelming sadness, fear, and fury came over me, nearly choking me with its intensity.

  I had felt emotion before, but this was at a different level altogether. I felt rage within me, and was shocked when tears rolled down my face. Despair, similar to that when I lost my mom, gripped me.

  If I started talking, the spirits might never leave. I swallowed past the lump in my throat, threw the covers off my legs, and sat cross-legged on my bed. I was afraid if I let my legs hang over the side of the bed, Laria would rip me beneath the bed again. I couldn’t allow fear to come into play. I had to be stronger, not show her that she had gotten under my skin.

  I went into the bathroom. I turned on the faucet and splashed water on my face. I had deep, dark circles beneath my eyes. I looked as exhausted as I felt. As exhausted as Megan had seemed today.

  I blinked and someone stood directly behind me. Someone I couldn’t see…but I felt them. I felt cool air surround me, sending goose bumps along my flesh. There was also a pressure on my back, like whoever it was stood so close, their heavy breathing in my ear.

  Invisible hands moved up my sides.

  They had my full attention…I was just afraid to let them know it.

  Creeped out, I walked into my room. The drawing of Mount Hood was upside down. In fact, every single picture on my wall was upside down.

  Overwhelming fear gripped me—a creepy sensation that raced along my spine and wouldn’t let go.

  I ripped my blanket off the bed, grabbed a pillow, and started for my door. I stepped on something cold. I stopped, lifted my foot, and stuck on the very bottom of it was a razorblade.

  Not again…

  I picked the blade off my foot and then without another thought ran it across the pad of my thumb, a good inch, watching as the blood beaded and then the crimson stream raced down my arm, dripping onto the floor.

  Instantly I felt release, followed shortly by guilt.

  What the hell was I doing? Why had I done that? It’s like I had no control over my own body.

  You cannot escape me. I am everywhere. There is not a minute you are alone. I am always there.

  I sense you.

  I feel you.

  I am you.

  I reached for the doorknob and it slipped from my fingers. A second later, invisible arms encircled me and I was tossed back and thrown onto the bed. Hands grasped either one of my arms and held me captive. Panic welled up inside me. What felt like long hair fell across my face.

  Everything within me said to close my eyes and keep them tight, and yet in that moment I saw my friends’ faces flash before me, one by one. As easy as it would be to give up—to succumb to the darkness that consumed me—I couldn’t allow it. Laria was tormenting everyone I cared about.

  “Show yourself, you fucking coward.”

  The words hadn’t left my mouth when I was abruptly lifted up by my ankles, and dangled several feet above my bed. A forceful grip tightened around one ankle, dropping the other. How could a girl, who weighed roughly the same as me, hold me up? Cruel laughter vibrated in my ears and I saw a flash of my mother after the wreck. It was horrible. Even worse than I’d imagined. I had always believed there had been a reason I’d been knocked unconscious during the wreck, so I wouldn’t have to see what had happened to her. I realized now how right I’d been. Now, the blinders were off. “Stop it,” I cried, but the images burned in my mind, flashing ove
r and over again.

  Through the veil of my hair I saw others in the room…the individuals in black robes. Apparently, like Laria and Randall, they weren’t happy that I had gone to their hiding place.

  “Mom…Anne Marie, please help me,” I said under my breath.

  An image of myself on the shower floor—my wrists sliced open—flashed in my mind. At a glance, I knew I was dead.

  The razor was now on the bed, next to my hand. Inches away. There was already blood on the comforter from where my thumb had bled.

  Sweet release. Do it!

  Nails bit into the skin of my ankle, and I returned the favor, gripping onto Laria’s ankles, digging my nails into them as hard as I could.

  She laughed, obviously taking delight in my attempt at hurting her.

  The door opened and Miss Akin appeared.

  I abruptly fell onto the mattress.

  “What on earth!”

  I had no idea how much she had seen because I was face down, and a heavy pressure kept my head buried into the pillow.

  “Riley?”

  Her footsteps rushed forward. I felt Miss Akin try to pull me up, but her efforts were in vain. “Shane!!!!!!”

  Her scream reverberated off the walls.

  Blackness beckoned, the hand at my neck unrelenting.

  Miss Akin was screaming now, and then the weight at my neck was gone. I rolled onto my back and sucked a breath into my lungs.

  “Dear God, what was that?” Miss A asked, standing back with a stunned expression.

  “Are they gone, Riley?” Shane asked, and I nodded.

  “Is who gone?” Miss Akin asked, her brows pinched together.

  “The ghosts.” Shane sat on the edge of the bed and hugged me.

  Miss A gasped. “Anne Marie visited me in my dream last night and she warned me that this would happen,” she said absently, staring blankly at us. “Now I’m afraid for what is coming.”

  She wasn’t the only one.

  ***

  Miss Akin made us hot chocolate and when the sun came up we were all still sitting in the kitchen, looking at each other, trying to understand what was happening. I had let Shane talk, and Miss Akin had listened intently, nodding her head from time to time while saying “dear lord,” every few minutes.

  She wasn’t surprised about Laria. After all, she’d had firsthand experience with her at the séance we’d had with Anne Marie, but she seemed more terrified now than she’d been back then, and for good reason. Seeing your boss’s daughter dangling over her bed while being held by an invisible force was a bit tough to wrap your brain around.

  She had no idea how bad things were going to get.

  “Perhaps you should stay home from school today. You need your sleep,” Miss A said.

  “No, I’ve missed too much school already.” Plus, I didn’t want to tell her that school was one of the few places I had the most peace. And I wanted to see how my friends were doing, especially Megan, who had gone quiet on me. I hadn’t received a phone call from her since the slumber party.

  “You said that Anne Marie warned you this was coming,” Shane said, reclining back all the way in the chair. “What did you mean by that?”

  “I had a dream, and when I woke, I swear I saw her at the foot of my bed. It was just a second, just a glimmer, but she was there,” Miss Akin said, in a way that sounded like she was trying to convince herself. “Truth be told, she has visited me nearly every night since her death. Actually, I find it comforting.”

  If I ever doubted at all that Anne Marie was working in tandem with us to help beat Laria, I had my answer.

  “That’s how I knew something was wrong this morning,” she said. “I woke out of a dead sleep and heard her voice telling me to check on you.” Miss A looked at me. “Does your father have any idea of what’s happening?”

  “No, and he won’t,” Shane said, raking his fingers through his hair. “We have to keep this to ourselves. He wouldn’t believe it, even if we tried to convince him.”

  I was still shaken by the pictures that had flashed through my mind of my mom’s death, and of my own death. It had been the second time I had seen a vision of myself in the shower with slashed wrists. Were these visions a warning for me to stop cutting, because I could end up killing myself?

  “What do we do now?” she asked.

  “Destroy her,” I said, hoping Laria heard me. The thing I didn’t tell Miss Akin was I had no choice. I had to destroy Laria before she had the chance to destroy me.

  Chapter 9

  Peter followed me around school like a lost puppy.

  Although he didn’t talk to me, he did intentional things to get my attention, like rolling pencils off desks, tossing books on the floor, and making as much noise as possible. He had gained my classmates’ attention, but I refused to look.

  If he kept it up, soon everyone in my classes would think I had telekinetic powers.

  Every single time something strange happened in first period, Dana would look directly at me.

  Even Aaron seemed a little freaked out, not to mention unusually quiet. I tried to focus on what he was thinking, but I was too distracted. I figured his parents had heard from Mr. Monahan and he was told to steer clear of me.

  As the day progressed and Peter kept at it, I began to wonder again if maybe I was wrong. What if Laria had only said the stuff about Peter so I wouldn’t have a confidant who was another spirit?

  I thought back on that day in the library when I’d looked up spiritual possession on the Internet. Peter hadn’t left my side, and he hadn’t tried to deter me from searching, either. In fact, when I asked him what he knew about the subject, he’d answered my questions pretty truthfully…not at all like an evil spirit who had been found out or wanted to derail me.

  I was so confused and so tired. I was distracted after only getting a few hours sleep and waking up to Laria. My head hurt, and my exhaustion was catching up with me. At lunch, Kade asked me if I was feeling all right. I’d lied and smiled, telling him I was fine. Cait apologized at least a dozen times about talking me into going to the hill. I told her she hadn’t made me do anything, which seemed to pacify her.

  Peter followed me home, and he stayed about fifteen steps behind me. I walked over the bridge, glancing at the river but not really seeing it. When Peter was within arm’s reach, I stopped in my tracks, ignoring the old lady who watched me from where she sat in her car in front of the market.

  I abruptly turned. “Leave me alone.”

  His eyes widened and he glanced over his shoulder, almost like he expected to find me talking to someone else. “I…what? Riley, what is happening to you? I don’t understand what I did to make you so mad.”

  “Quit masquerading as other people and spirits, especially an innocent little boy.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked, sounding close to tears. Suddenly it seemed to dawn on him and his eyes widened. “Oh my God…you believe she’s me, or that I’m her?”

  He sounded so convincing…

  I wanted to believe him. Truth be told, I missed the little shit.

  With my mind racing, I picked up my pace, broke into a run, and didn’t stop until I was home.

  I had an hour before I had to be back to school and at the football game. I washed my face, reapplied my makeup, and changed into a sweater. Miss A had mentioned that the nights would start getting cold fast, and she wasn’t kidding. The wind would pick up and the temperature dropped really fast.

  The football game had already started when I got there. I texted Cait and she immediately texted me back and said she’d come down to meet me. I was grateful. I hated walking into any social event alone.

  One nice thing about the after school games is that they weren’t as well attended as the Friday night or Saturday afternoon games. And right now, the less people I was around, the better.

  Cass walked around the corner and smiled at me. “I didn’t think you were going to make it. I’ve been texting you for the past thirty mi
nutes but you didn’t pick up.”

  I frowned. “You didn’t text me until I just now texted you.”

  She removed her cell from her pocket and showed me the last three text messages, which were all to my phone number.

  First Kade and now Cass.

  I showed her my recent calls. Zero messages, which was odd come to think of it.

  “That’s insane,” Cass said, and tried to text me again.

  My phone signaled I had a text and she frowned.

  “Didn’t get it, huh?”

  “I swear.”

  She cracked a smile. “I believe you. Come on, we’d better get to the stands. We’re at the very top bleacher so we can talk, you know?”

  “Good idea.”

  “Oh, and Kade has been searching for you since the game started.”

  I grinned, anxious to see him too.

  We walked up the bleachers, and I ignored Dana and her friends who were sitting right in the middle of the small crowd. I just kept walking right past them.

  I was stunned to see Milo and Richie sitting beside Megan. They normally never made sports events, but Milo was even more attentive to Megan. He obviously realized how serious Laria was. The problem was, anyone associated with me had a reason to be scared. Look at Anne Marie—I still believed her death was connected to Laria. Maybe there was such a thing as being scared to death…

  We took a seat in the bleachers, and Richie planted himself right next to me. “I hear you have a ghost haunting you.”

  “As a matter of fact, I do,” I said, glancing at his hand that was resting right against my hip.

  I liked Richie, but I think he enjoyed making me uncomfortable. Maybe it was because I knew Kade didn’t exactly appreciate the way Richie flirted with me.

  “If you ever need anyone to spend the night with you,” he scooted a little closer, “you know, to protect you. I’m your man.”

  I smiled and shook my head, grateful for the lighthearted comment. If any of my friends, guys included, spent one night in my house and saw what I saw, I wondered just how cocky they would be by morning.