“Already done.” I winked at her. “Great minds think alike.”
It did not take long for boredom to set in and tempers to become short. Being trapped with others for any length of time can quickly become unpleasant and I began to wonder how long I wanted the storm to last. If Rob had not been there I would have been blissfully happy, but he was there and there was nothing I could do about that. I could, however, provide entertainment.
“Anyone know how to play poker?” I withdrew a pack of cards from my bag and Rachel’s face lit up.
“I play a little,” Rob said. If he bluffs as bad as he lies this is going to be a walkover. Rachel corrected his statement, stating that he plays very well and has the perfect poker face. I had my doubts. Rachel enquired what version of the game I know. I know them all, and probably ones those two have never even heard of, so I allowed her to choose.
“5 card stud,” she said. “And you’d better give us chips. Unless you want to play strip poker that is.”
I raised my eyebrows. A tempting offer, but not a good idea. “Think you’re that good do you?”
“No,” she said pointing at Rob. “I think he is.”
“Behave yourself,” Rob said sternly to her as I removed stacks of chips from my bag.
We played for quite a few hours and had a lot of fun. It took me a few hands to work out that Rob was actually quite good, but he had a tell, and that Rachel was absolutely hopeless. I should definitely have taken her up on her offer of playing strip poker. I would have had her in her underwear in under half an hour. Dismissing the image from my mind I decided to let them win. I say them as Rob purposely lost a few hands so that Rachel didn’t lose all of her chips too quickly.
The easiest way to accomplish my goal was to fake not being able to bluff. Having spent a few hundred years playing with Ankou and some of the more distant members of my family I have perfected the art of never giving my hand away, as well as reading other players and knowing when to play and when to fold, but they didn’t know that. I made it take a long time, but eventually Rob managed to get all of my chips while Rachel still had a small stack in front of her. It takes a lot of skill to win at poker. It takes even more to lose without your opponents realising that you are throwing the game. Neither of them had a clue.
“Bet you’re really glad you didn’t agree to play strip poker now,” Rob said as he started to count his winnings.
I shrugged. “I would have played differently had there really been something at stake.”
“Is that a challenge?” Rachel asked.
“No,” I regretfully replied. “It’s late. We should all get some sleep. We might be lucky and have clear weather in the morning.” We wouldn’t be, but there was no way I was going to tell them that. We had all enjoyed ourselves and I would make this storm last for at least one more day.
In the end I lasted roughly 48 hours before I could not stand being stuck in the tent with Rob any longer. It was late morning when I allowed the storm to disburse and clear blue skies to become evident once more.
The more he won the smugger Rob became and it got to the stage where I either had to change game or admit that I had been letting him win. Luckily I had an endless supply of games I knew and created what was needed whenever a new one was requested. I thought about suggesting Twister, but the thrill of having my body so close to Rachel’s was offset by the thought of Rob joining in.
The journey was uneventful, but it was good to be able to stretch our legs again. We walked further apart than normal, each enjoying our own space.
Spending two days resting did a lot of good for Rachel and she recovered her strength well. Despite her announcement that she was fit enough to travel the day we left my home I knew that was not really the case and she should have spent another day in bed, but I could not bring myself to make Rob remain under the same roof as my sister after what she did to him.
We managed to cover quite a distance before the sun began to set and we had to find a campsite. I stopped next to a river as Rachel was probably desperate to bathe. Sure enough, as Rob and I put up the tents she headed toward the water, announcing that she was going to take a dip.
“Can you fish?” I asked Rob when the tents were up and a fire was nicely blazing.
“Sure,” he replied, so I pulled two rods out of my bag and handed one to him.
“The river is full of fish and they are always hungry. We will find plenty of worms close to the bank if we dig for them.”
Rachel was still in the water when we arrived, so I turned my back while Rob held out a towel for her. It took all of my self-control to not turn back again. I heard him tell her that the fire had been laid and that we would be at least an hour so she could dry off in front of it. After that comment there was no way I wasn’t going to go back to the campsite early.
As expected we easily found worms and were soon sitting on the bank, pulling out fish as they greedily took hold of our lines. We soon had enough to provide the three of us with a decent meal, so we laid down our rods and set about cleaning our catch.
Rachel had only been alone by the fire for about half an hour by the time we returned, but much to my disappointment she was fully dressed and brushing her hair. She seemed impressed with the fruits of our labour, but I think she was just being polite.
I coated the fish in herbs and roasted them over the fire. They tasted delicious. I provided a white wine which was the perfect complement, making sure it was chilled of course. All in all it was a very pleasant evening and we all went to bed feeling relaxed and happy.
Once I was sure they were both asleep I went to visit Death to let him know that we had recommenced our journey.
“I need you to take a detour,” he said once I had given my update.
“No problem. Where to?”
“The ghost fields.”
I stared at him in disbelief. “Why?” He knows I hate visiting there and the reason why.
“I’m sorry to ask this of you,” he said, “but Rachel’s parents are there. They want the chance to say goodbye to her.”
Oh. How could I say no to that? “Okay.”
“You agreed to that a little too quickly,” my uncle said, frowning at me suspiciously.
I shrugged my shoulders, then smirked at him. “You know I always do what you tell me.”
He grunted. “I wish my son did.”
I breathed a silent sigh of relief when he did not question me further, winked at him, then disappeared.
Ghosts
Knowing what our next destination was going to be prevented me from getting a good night’s sleep. I woke up feeling irritable so I got dressed and went to the river to think, walking downstream for a while before settling down on the bank. I heard Rob jump into the river and could not help smiling when he started to sing.
I began to doodle in the ground with a stick, wondering how I was going to get out of visiting the ghost fields. I drew a crude map, visualising the layout of the land in my mind, but I could come up with no plausible reason for disobeying my uncle. I was staring ahead of me, my mind elsewhere, when I heard Rachel approaching. She was trying to be stealthy and I could feel her gaze shift from me to what I had drawn on the ground. It is amazing how attune to her I have become.
“I know you are there.” I crossed out my drawing, completely erasing all of the markings.
“What’s up?” she asked as she sat down beside me.
I decided to be honest with her. “I’m trying to decide on our route. The quickest way is to cross the river and go through the fields on the other side, but I don’t want to take you that way.”
“Why not?”
“I’ll tell you later. Rob should hear this as well and I don’t want to have to repeat myself.”
While waiting for Rob to finish bathing I built a fire. As soon as he was dried and dressed I sat them both down and told them the bad news.
“Across the river is the quickest way to go, but I really do not want to go that way. On
the opposite bank are the ghost fields.”
“The what?” Rachel asked in surprise.
“Did you just say ghost?” Rob asked at the same time. “As in a spirit, soul, life force, whatever you want to call it, of a dead person?”
I nodded. “Some people, though they don’t believe they should go to Hell, do not let Death help them make the transition from living to dead. Their souls end up trapped in a state of flux, neither living nor dead. They become ghost like and inhabit the area just across the water from us.”
“That doesn’t sound so bad. After all, what harm can they do us?” Rob said. This guy was really beginning to piss me off with his attitude. How does Rachel put up with him?
“Have you ever met a ghost?” Rob shook his head. “Then please refrain from making comments on things you know nothing about.”
“What’s the alternative?” Rachel asked.
“There isn’t one. Death told me to take you this way so I don’t really have a choice.”
“Then why even bring it up?” Rob said.
“Two reasons. Firstly, I thought you both deserved to be warned. Secondly, I was hoping one of you could come up with a reason for me to defy my uncle.”
“I suppose that saying we forced you to take a different route wouldn’t work,” Rachel said.
“And how exactly are you planning on forcing me?” I asked, my lips twitching in a slight smile. I was not in a good mood and I loved the way she so easily lightened it. I’m sure if she put her mind to it she could find a way to persuade me, so I was a little disappointed when she shrugged her shoulders.
“Just how bad is crossing the field likely to be?” she asked.
How much should I tell her? I wanted her to be prepared, but I didn’t want to terrify her. “The souls of the dead will know that you are alive. They will be extremely jealous and will try to attack you. They have no substance so they cannot cause you any physical harm, but the sight and feel of them passing through you will be unpleasant to say the least.”
“Is that all?” Rob scoffed. “Doesn’t sound too bad to me.”
This guy really didn’t have a clue. “We will see,” is all I could say.
I followed the river downstream until we reached a bridge, then crossed over. The other bank was no different to the one we had just left and, had I not warned them what was ahead, the meadow we were now in would have seemed the same as any other we had walked through.
I continued forward for a moment, then realised that I was alone. When I looked back I saw Rob and Rachel looking around nervously. “What are you waiting for?”
“The ghosts,” Rachel replied. I could not stop myself giving her a withering look. I shook my head, turned around and continued walking. What had she been expecting? Did she think that the ghosts would suddenly leap out at her the moment she entered their territory?
“Where are they?” Rob asked when he caught up with me.
“They tend to congregate round the lake for some reason. Maybe it’s the only beautiful thing they have left. We will start to see some soon though.”
As soon as I finished my sentence I spotted a young woman ahead of us. She had long, wavy brown hair which streamed out behind her as she ran toward us. In hindsight I should have shouted a warning, but I assumed that they would both realise that she was a ghost.
With a look of unbridled delight she ran straight past me and Rob, who turned to speak to her, and continued on toward Rachel. I expected Rachel to move out of her way, but she didn’t and the ghost ran straight through her.
I cannot even begin to imagine how Rachel was feeling, having never experienced it myself, but the look on her face told me all I needed to know. She fell to her knees and vomited.
“Jesus Christ,” Rob exclaimed. “I thought she was a real person. Aren’t ghosts supposed to be see through?”
“Only according to those who have never really seen one.” I answered without really hearing the question; my mind was focused on Rachel.
She was still heaving as I walked up to her and handed over a bottle of water. “I did warn you,” I said.
“Like hell you did,” she rasped. “You described it as ‘unpleasant’ if memory serves me right. You could have said it is the worst sensation I will ever have the mispleasure of experiencing.” How was I to know? I was only going by what I had been told. What difference would it have made anyway?
She grabbed the bottle from my outstretched hand, undid the top and drank deeply. Big mistake. As soon as the liquid hit her stomach she vomited it straight back up.
“Sip it,” I said.
“Thanks,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “I wouldn’t have thought of that.”
She did as instructed and managed to keep the water down this time. For a while she just sat on the floor with her head in her hands. She did not look at all well, but we could not remain where we were while she recovered.
“We need to keep moving. They know we are here and will come in force soon.”
Rob took her arm and helped her to stand. “Are you alright?” he asked.
“No,” she said. “Someone just walked through me. I am far from alright.”
“I mean, are you okay to walk or do you need me to carry you?”
His tone suggested that he wasn’t trying to be funny; he was serious. “I’m fine, but thanks for the offer.” She smiled at him, slipped her hand into his and gripped it tightly. A surge of jealousy flowed through me, but I forced it to remain under the surface where it continued to simmer. I really needed to get myself under control and not react this way. “Let’s go,” she said, obviously as eager to get out of the field as I was.
We spotted a few more ‘ghosts’ in the distance as we walked, but none approached us. After a short while we crested a small hill and the sight before us made Rob and Rachel freeze. We had reached the lake.
In front of us was a crowd of people, thousands all packed together like they were at a football game or an outdoor concert.
“We are never going to make it through all of them,” Rob said in a stunned voice.
“They will avoid me. Just stay close.”
Rob then positioned Rachel between him and me, ensuring that she was protected front and back. In single file we made our way down the hill to confront the multitude of dead souls that would soon be surrounding us.
As they do every time I go there, the ghosts melted out of my way. They sensed that there was something different about Rob and Rachel and soon a murmuring filled the crowd. I could make out the words, but I wasn’t sure if Rob and Rachel could. “They’re alive.”
The apparitions moved in closer to us until they were just out of reach. A large man with tattoos down his arms walked over to Rob and started screaming at him. “Why are you here? Why are you allowed to keep your life when we have all lost ours? You deserve to die.” His voice was filled with hate, but he made no attempt to attack.
Then an elderly lady grabbed at Rachel’s arm, missing it by millimetres. She pulled her arms in closer to her to make herself a smaller target and moved nearer to me. I wanted to reach back and grab her hand reassuringly, but resisted the urge.
Rob suddenly cried out and I turned my head to see an old man walk out of him. Rachel, too, had seen it and went pale, looking away quickly before she vomited again.
A woman reached to pull her hair, but her hand passed straight through it. Rachel shuddered, but did not stop walking. Then a child threw himself at Rob’s feet and, despite the fact that he had no substance, Rob reacted instinctively and tripped forward, pulling Rachel to the ground as he fell.
The ghosts were on them instantly, passing their limbs through them as they tried to grab hold of any part of them they could. Rob screamed. In a move that showed he is a lot braver than I realised he positioned himself on top of Rachel so only the barest minimum of her body was exposed to the attacking hoard, but he had no protection.
Only a few seconds passed between Rob falling and me forcing
the ghosts away, but to him I am sure it felt like hours. The ghosts recoiled away from me and I dragged Rob to his feet before helping Rachel stand up.
As soon as they were both back on their feet the spirits of the dead began to close in again. Rachel braced herself for attack, but it was waylaid by a voice I didn’t recognise. “Keep away from my daughter,” it shouted.
“Dad?” Rachel asked in a small voice.
“Kris, get them out of here. We will protect them from behind,” an equally unfamiliar woman’s voice said. Her mother?
I didn’t need telling twice. I took hold of Rachel’s hand and told her to grab hold of Rob, who was still screaming. She didn’t move, so I had to shout at her to get her attention. This time she obeyed and Rob flinched as she touched him.
“It’s alright Robert, it’s me,” she said. He looked down at her and finally went silent. Without another word I pulled on her arm and led them away from the lake.
It took a while, but eventually the crowd began to thin until there were no more ghosts ahead of us. When it was safe to do so I reluctantly let go of Rachel’s hand and stopped walking.
“My parents are dead,” she said in confusion. “They can’t be here. They can’t be real.”
“They are real.” I couldn’t even begin to imagine how she was feeling. Part of me hated my uncle for making her go through this. “Real as in you are not imagining them. But they are ghosts, just like the rest. Go and speak with them.”
She turned to them and tried to speak, but the words would not come out. Tears trickled down her face and her mother moved her arm, intending to wipe them away, but stopped just before she touched her. I moved away, giving them the illusion of privacy, but I could still hear every word they said.
“I miss you both so much,” Rachel sobbed.
“We know sweetheart,” her mother’s ghost said. “We miss you too.”
Rob finally came out of the trance-like state that had overtaken him during his attack. “Why are you here?” he asked. “Why did you not pass on?”
The question was posed to both of her parents, but after all she had told me about her father’s attitude toward Rob’s family I was not surprised when her mother answered.
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