I Am Never Alone

by Campbell, Jamie

  “I’d appreciate that. I don’t want a repeat of the welcome I received last time.”

  I covered my smile with my hand. Hunter had obviously experienced the same kind of greeting the mole people had given me. I wondered if they dislocated his shoulder too or whether that was unique to me.

  Jet stood and I followed suit. “Our security system is effective, you’ve got to give us that,” he said, smirking. He was proud of his mole people, even though they were barely more than savages.

  Organized savages, I guessed.

  Hunter ignored the comment and skirted around the desk to open the door for us. “Until tomorrow. Everly, it was nice meeting you. I hope my friend here is treating you well.”

  I didn’t know what to say to that so I simply nodded. Hopefully he would accept that as a suitable reply. He walked us through the house and locked the door after us when we stepped into the street.

  Jet didn’t say much after that. We made arrangements to meet back at the tunnels the next morning and I insisted on walking back to my apartment alone. Truthfully, I was expecting Oliver to pop up at any moment and I wanted to discuss the recent developments with him. It would have been impossible with Jet still lingering.

  We weren’t that far from home when we parted ways. I turned down the street I needed and Jet kept a straight line back to the tunnels.

  A few more streets and I couldn’t help but feel like eyes were watching me. I stopped, looked around, but didn’t see anyone. No movement, no kids, and no Oliver. I was all alone out there.

  I couldn’t shake the feeling, however. The further I walked, the quicker my pace became. My insistence and stubbornness about walking home by myself now seemed a bit foolish. If Jet wanted to accompany me, why didn’t I just let him? My pride was going to get me killed one day.

  Hopefully not today.

  Silently, I begged for Oliver to find me. He wouldn’t be able to protect me in any way, but he would put my silly mind and fears at ease. He would remind me that it was daylight and I was out in the open, nobody would bother following me. It wasn’t like I had anything for them to rob.

  Unless they knew about the apartment. They might follow me all the way back until I was inside and then take everything I owned.

  They could do it.

  And I would be powerless to stop them.

  My feet moved faster until I was almost jogging to get home. The rational part of me kept reminding myself that I was imagining the footsteps behind me. That they were nothing more than a conjuring of my imagination.

  The illogical part was screaming at me to run like hell.

  I was about to listen to it too when a noise behind me caught my attention. I spun around, ready to fight or attack or run faster. But there was nothing there.

  My heart beating wildly in my chest was the only thing out of control. I scolded myself and turned around again, forcing one foot in front of the other to walk.

  Where was Oliver?

  Thoughts of the spirits being consumed by Kostucha filled my head. I had seen spirits disappear before my eyes, taken involuntarily by the demon to feed his energy. Surely he wouldn’t have done that to Oliver?

  Unbridled concern raged within me. I needed to see him, be assured he was just busy instead of gone. He couldn’t be gone. I wasn’t ready for him to be gone.

  There were still three more full blocks before my apartment’s street. I could see the tall building in the distance, a beacon calling me home. If I could just make it there, everything would be okay. Oliver would come home and the world would be right again.

  I was so intent on getting there I didn’t hear the person grab me from behind.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The hands were strong around me as they threw me to the ground. My face grazed the road, softened only by the thin layer of snow. A shock of cold mixed with the pain as I tried to take in what was happening.

  It was a boy, probably my age, peering down at me from his standing height. He was tall, much taller than I was. How he had managed to slink into all the shadows was beyond my fuzzy mind.

  His face wore a mask of pure rage, all directed at me. He hated me for whatever reason he had. Or perhaps he was just hungry, scared, and tired of the world.

  I knew how he felt.

  Without any further delay, he balled his hand into a fist and aimed it squarely at my head. I squirmed under him, pushing and kicking at everything I possibly could.

  “Get off me! Let me go!” I screamed.

  He grabbed both of my hands and leaned forward to pin them above my head. The snow was cold against my skin but that was the least of my concerns. I bucked my hips, trying to use his height to my advantage and throw him off balance.

  It worked.

  Slightly.

  He careened to one side and I threw my body sideways to push him off me. He crashed to the ground like a dead weight, giving me just enough time to get to my feet.

  It took him exactly three seconds to do the same thing. He balled his fist again, this time not hesitating in throwing a punch my way. I turned my head, copping it against my ear instead of my jaw.

  “No, please don’t,” I pleaded.

  The pain was instant. Everything went silent for a moment before returning in a cotton wool haze. I thrashed out at him, managing to get some knocks into his belly that I hoped hurt horribly.

  “Bitch,” he muttered.

  I think I poked the bear.

  He came at me again, grabbing my arms just below my shoulders. He shook me so hard my head snapped back and forth like a ragdoll.

  “I’m going to kill you,” he sneered. “And I’m going to enjoy it.”

  The pounding in my head was reflected in my chest as my heart hammered against my ribcage. I didn’t want it to end this way. If I died, I became one of the spirits and then there would be no chance of freeing them.

  No way of helping Oliver.

  I could not let that happen. I kicked out, grateful when I managed to connect with his shin. The guy towered over me, I barely even reached his shoulders.

  “Shit,” he swore under his breath, this time to himself instead of me. “You’re the girl, the one we kidnapped. I loosened your ropes. You’re Jet’s property. Aren’t you?”

  When I didn’t reply, he shook me harder. My teeth chattered together like a skeleton on a string.

  “Tell me! Do you belong to Jet?”

  I just wanted the shaking to stop. I needed the pain to end. “Yes. Yes, I belong to Jet. I’m his property.”

  “Shit. I didn’t realize. I’m sorry.”

  He didn’t just let me go, he threw me away from him. I stumbled backwards onto the ground, falling directly onto my butt. The shockwave echoed through me, reaching right down to the tips of my toes.

  The boy ran.

  He didn’t look back.

  Whatever had spooked him had done a good job. I was beyond spooked myself. I pushed up from the ground, both my arms aching as well as my head.

  But I couldn’t stay there and dwell. I wasn’t convinced the boy wouldn’t come back. I forced myself to get home as quickly as possible. Limping, I ran.

  I thought I saw him in every shadow I passed, heard him in every little noise that reached my ears. My ragged breath did nothing to block out all the footsteps I thought I heard along the way.

  The pounding of my heart sounded like gunshots.

  It was too dangerous to slow down. Oh-so-painful to keep going. But I had to. I must get home or I was nothing but a sitting duck, ready to be beaten again. I had come too close to being killed, I could not give up so easily now.

  Finally, I staggered up the stairs, taking them one at a time and resting between flights. My door came into sight and I collapsed inside it. As each lock clicked into place, it made me feel safer. I was going to be okay, I was home.

  I slumped against the wall and took inventory of my injuries. I wasn’t bleeding anywhere, not even from my ear that had taken the blow. I was going to be bruised
and sore, my headache would probably take hours to subside, but I was going to be fine. There would be no lasting injuries.

  It took a while for my heartbeat to slow down and resume its normal pace. By that time, the sun had completely dipped below the horizon and left me in darkness.

  Dragging myself to my feet, I fumbled around until I found a candle and matches. Even just the tiniest amount of light made me feel instantly better. It was stupid, really. The light didn’t protect me from anything.

  But there were dangerous things that lived in the shadows.

  I would never, ever forget that.

  Oliver gave me a coronary when he appeared beside me. “Hey, Ev. Good day?”

  I jumped, clutching at my chest as it started racing again. Just when my nerves had been settling down…

  “No, not a good day. Where have you been?” I asked tersely, instantly regretting it. None of this was his fault, I had to keep reminding myself of that.

  “I was talking to the spirits. More of them have been disappearing and they’re all scared,” he replied. His eyes roamed over my face, trying to read what was wrong. “I’m sorry if I missed something. Are you alright?”

  “No, I got attacked on my way home.”

  Anger crossed his face, quickly suppressed down to concern. “Where was Jet? He’s supposed to be looking after you.”

  “He wasn’t there. I told him I didn’t need him.”

  “Ev, you shouldn’t have done that.”

  “Clearly,” I said. I shook out my hands, letting go of all the emotions I had held bundled up inside since the attack. Oliver was there, everything would be okay now.

  Whatever had happened to me was probably nothing like what he had gone through with the spirits. His day was much, much worse than mine was.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap,” I said quietly.

  He looked directly into my eyes, his green to my blue. “You don’t ever need to apologize. Do you want to talk about it?”

  I nodded as the tears started to dampen my eyes. I hadn’t been game enough to cry before, I was too scared I would never be able to stop.

  Oliver listened to every word, only interrupting when he had a question. I started with the attack but ended with everything Jet and I discovered since seeing him last. It was good to give him some news that was positive, like we were actually getting closer to being rid of Kostucha.

  “Hell is really underground?” he asked at the end, when I had released every piece of information that was within me.

  “I think so. I don’t know for sure. Hunter should be able to help with that. He’s a psychic or something. Jet didn’t really explain it to me.”

  “I wish I could come down into the tunnels with you tomorrow.” Regret was written all over his beautiful face. I wished there was nothing but happiness there instead. “I’d like to help you in any way I can.”

  “You are, just by being here with me.”

  “If you keep going, I might not be here for much longer,” Oliver said, so quietly it was barely more than a whisper.

  I wanted to reassure him, tell him it was actually a good thing he would be leaving soon. But I couldn’t find the words. I didn’t want him to leave. I hated that every day I tried to free the spirits I was bringing our goodbye closer.

  I hated it with every piece of me.

  But I couldn’t let him suffer. I couldn’t let any of the spirits suffer. They needed to be released which meant releasing Oliver too.

  “Ev, talk to me,” he insisted. “I want to know what you’re thinking.”

  I mustered a smile even though both of us knew it was fake. “I’m thinking of how much I’m going to miss you.”

  “I’m going to miss you, too. So, so much.”

  My palm rose through the air and Oliver gently placed his hand against it, careful not to pass through me. I felt the rush of cold from his skin against mine – the cold I was beginning to associate with him and no other.

  What I wouldn’t have done for one kiss from Oliver. If the universe could somehow just give me the old Oliver back for only a few moments, I would have walked on water for it. I would have caught a rainbow in my hand, turned the sky pink, and any other impossible thing asked of me.

  But I couldn’t have that moment.

  I never would.

  And soon, he would be gone from me for good.

  I slept restlessly that night. Oliver stayed with me for the duration. Every time my eyes blinked open, he was still there.

  Watching.

  Guarding.

  Loving.

  With the morning came the reminder from my body that I had been attacked the previous day. I stood in the unfinished bathroom, staring into the mirror attached to the wall with its sharp corners. It reminded me of the city, all jagged edges that were supposed to be smoothed one day. Now they would always remain jagged.

  I changed the bandages on my forearms, giving myself a mental note to clean the old ones so I could reuse them again next time they needed to be rotated. My eyes roamed over the rest of me, seeing all the new purple bruises I had earned yesterday. They were worse at the tops of my arms from when the boy had gripped and shaken me.

  For some reason, I also limped. I didn’t process the kick at the time, but the large bruise on my shin told me the boy had managed to get a good one in at some stage. I hoped he was counting up at least an equal amount of bruises on his body that morning.

  I hoped he thought of me and relived every painful moment I had given him.

  “Ev, are you ready?” Oliver called out from the living room.

  Shrugging back into my coat, I pushed all the memories to the back of my consciousness. If I allowed them to plant themselves into my mind, they would grow into an all consuming fear. Which would then prevent me from leaving the apartment ever again.

  “Yeah, I’m good,” I replied, opening the door. There was no way I was allowing him to see my injuries. Nobody would.

  It took a vast amount of concentrating, but I could hide my limp by shifting my weight to my good leg. It hurt even worse, but at least it allowed me to keep some of my dignity.

  Oliver walked me all the way to the tunnels. We talked about things that didn’t matter, like the old days and all the stupid things we had gotten up to. Neither of us mentioned the discussion from the previous night and I certainly wasn’t going to either.

  The thought of saying goodbye to Oliver was too much to bear. Far worse than any physical injury anyone could inflict upon me. I could cover that kind of pain with a coat, long sleeves, or favoring a different leg.

  When Oliver left, my scars would be openly bleeding.

  When we reached the tunnel entrance, I stopped. “Are you going to spend the day with the other spirits?”

  Oliver nodded. “Yeah, but I’ll keep checking back so I know when you leave. I don’t want you walking home alone. Promise me you’ll get Jet to take you.”

  The thought of asking Jet to walk me home made me nauseous. I was never the damsel in distress kind of girl. I had always taken pride in looking after myself.

  But the thought of walking home alone again, of who I could encounter, that thought was even worse. “I’ll do my best.”

  “Everly….”

  I looked up at him through my eyelashes, trying to appeal to his weak spot. “I’ll be okay.”

  He went to poke me playfully but quickly took his hand back, remembering he wasn’t corporeal. “You better be or I will kill you myself. Be careful… with everything.”

  “I will.”

  Oliver flashed away and I entered the tunnel. This time, I came prepared – I had a flashlight from the apartment. Using the light’s beam to scan everything in front of me, I was surprised to see how easy it actually was negotiating around the tunnels.

  Really, once you could see, it was just a matter of following the well worn pathway.

  I surprised Jet by turning up at his door without an escort. He looked behind me, about to dismiss whoever
had brought me there. “Where’d they go?”

  My face split into a grin. “I came alone.”

  “All the way? On your own?”

  His bewilderment was actually really cute to watch. I couldn’t hold up the ruse for too long, I held up the flashlight. “I had a little help.”

  Jet visibly relaxed, his smile matching my own. “I should have known, cheater.”

  “It’s not cheating. Cheating is all of you people running along these tunnels like you’ve got cat eyes or something. I’m just leveling the playing field.”

  Amusement danced in his eyes as he shook his head and stepped out of his room, closing the door behind him. “Whatever. Come on, Hunter is already in the cavern.”

  We started walking. I kept the flashlight off, it was much easier letting Jet guide me with his hand on the small of my back.

  “Hunter’s here already?” I asked. I thought I’d made good time getting there from my apartment. It was quite a way to go, especially through the horrible weather.

  “You sound surprised.”

  “I guess I didn’t expect him to be so… familiar with the underground, that’s all.”

  “Why, princ- Miss Hilton, is that a hint of jealousy I hear in your voice?” he said happily. Clearly giving up my old nickname was a lot harder than it should have been.

  “I’m not jealous, I’m just…” I grappled for something else, something other than jealous. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find another word for what I was feeling. I changed the subject instead. “How many other people know about the tunnels?”

  Jet laughed, knowing he’d won that round. However, he continued anyway. “Hunter, you, that’s about it besides the people who actually live here. It’s a security measure not to tell everyone what’s down here.”

  I don’t know why I felt relieved about that, but I did. It was like being in an exclusive club.

  “What is he anyway? Psychic?”

  “You could say that. He prefers the title intuitive. He picks up on things, whether that be energy or events of the future. I’m not sure how his gift works, but he’s been handy in the past.”

  We reached the cavern with its usual orange glow. Walking down the narrow pathway was difficult with my sore leg. I insisted on Jet going first so he wouldn’t see me wince with each step.