Chapter Twenty-Three

Dorian and I popped into the realm of the dead. It was overcast: thick, miserable clouds stood at a standstill above us. Spiny tree branches crawled toward the sky as if searching for sunlight that would never come. A soft breeze blew against my skin, icy cold and bitter. Our footsteps crunched against the barren ground and echoed off the rubble surrounding us. It was such a cheerless place; a broken down world within a world. I wondered how the spirits saw it. Surely their heaven wouldn’t be so hellish. And those bound for hell, well, I couldn’t imagine how much worse it could get.

Dorian clasped my hand, his fingers squeezing mine in reassurance. Together we made our way across the dirt-covered stretch of land. The problem was, I had no clue what way to go. As we walked, I tried to think of the directions the man gave me.

“Are there any hills here?”

We stopped walking. Dorian’s head swiveled as he appraised the layout. Soft wails carried on the breeze and filled my ears. There were two possible culprits for the eerie moans: a sorrowful spirit or a demon, neither of which I had time to deal with. As Dorian thought about my question I studied the land with eyes like a hawk. Ghosts I could deal with, but I didn’t want a demon sneaking up on me. Across the way, I spotted a misty figure, a man with his head hung and shoulders slumped. He dragged his feet against the ground as if taking another step was too much for him. His head lifted slowly, looking in our direction and his mouth dropped open. One of the most miserable sounding moans escaped his throat.

“Ignore him,” Dorian said.

Easier said than done. His face was scrunched up as if in constant pain, his eyes big and pleading for escape from what ailed him. As much as I wanted to be the one to save him from his personal hell I knew I couldn’t. Whatever he’d done in his life, he was now paying for in the afterlife. No matter how much power I possessed, nothing could break his punishment.

“There’s a forest of sorts north of here. There are hills there.” Dorian pointed in the direction, and if I squinted just right, I could make out dark gray mounds against the horizon.

“It’s going to take forever to reach it.”

“Then I suggest we start running.”

* * *

I don’t know how long we had been running when I had to stop for a breather. I bent over, resting my hands on my knees and took a moment to catch my breath. Lifting my head, I looked in the direction we were heading. The mounds were more pronounced now, yet still too far away for my liking. Standing, I placed my hands on my hips. My chest rose and fell heavily. The air here wasn’t as substantial as it was in the natural realm. My lungs fought to capture as much of it as they could, burning from the exertion.

“We’ll save her, Gwen.”

I looked over at Dorian. He wasn’t even breathing hard.

“I see the doubt all over your face. If you start thinking you failed before you even start, then you will fail. Keep a strong mind.”

My head bobbed in an agreeing nod. He was right, but keeping a strong mind wasn’t as easy as flicking a switch. I knew what the VC and Holly were capable of and how fond they were of breaking the rules.

“I’ll try,” I responded. “I mean…I have to believe she’s okay. I just can’t accept anything less.”

We started moving again, this time walking so I could catch my breath. I hated I was the weak link in our team. Had it not been for me, Dorian could have reached the forest in no time.

“Tell me about her.”

I kept my eyes forward, focused on the hills I was so desperate to reach. My mind filled with memories of Rebekah. When worry began creeping in, I slapped it away, taking Dorian’s advice. She’ll be okay.

“She was six the last time I saw her,” I said. My eyes filled with tears, and I tried to hold them back as best as I could. “It’s sad to think I only knew her for so short of time, but I miss her every day. Every year when her birthday rolls around I send her a birthday card. I don’t know if she receives it, or if my parents still live in the same house they did ten years ago.” A tear crawled down my right cheek. Rebekah’s face filled my mind. “She has raven hair like me and big green eyes,” I laughed softly. “I use to compare them to Lifesavers because when she was excited or surprised they’d get just as big.” My words fell from my lips as another thought tortured me. “What if she doesn’t even remember me? She was so young.”

Dorian reached for my hand, stopping my steps. With the pad of his thumb, he brushed away the tears. “That’s impossible. I’m sure she’s wondered as much about you as you do her.”

A few more tears fell, though I was smiling, lifted by his words. “I hope so, and thank you for being so comforting.”

Dorian grinned. “That’s three ‘thank-you’s’ in less than a day. I’m liking this new grateful Gwen.”

I gave a shaky laugh. “Shut up and just enjoy it while it lasts.”

“There’s the Gwen I know and lo…” Dorian cleared his throat, uncomfortable. “Ready to run again?”

I nodded, unable to speak. Was he saying he actually loved me or was he just going to use the well-known expression? I would worry about that later. Right now, I needed to reach those hills.

* * *

I smiled lazily when we reached the hills. I was panting harder than before, the air searing my throat as my lungs inhaled. It would have been so much faster if we could have jumped into a shimmer and gained ground that way, but shimmers are used as exit zones. Now that we were standing in front of the tall ashy mounds, I wanted to jump up and down with my exhilaration.

“If…I live through…this I’m…joining a gym.” Pain shot through my side and sweat collected along my forehead.

“I know another good workout,” Dorian winked.

“Come on, horndog, we have an old man to find.”

The hills were mini mountains, steep and unforgiving. Leafless trees stood guard over the dirt mounds, clumps of them huddled together while others were spread out.

“How long do you think we’ve been in here?” Time worked differently in the realm of the dead. We might have started out with twelve hours but we could be down to mere seconds. By my estimate, we had been here for at least two hours, but my estimate wasn’t logical in this place.

“It’s hard to say,” Dorian said. “Maybe four or five hours.”

If that was true, then our time had been cut almost in half. We began trekking up the first hill, both of us silent as we concentrated on our footing. Well, I concentrated on my footing, Dorian hadn’t even broken a sweat yet. Curling my fingers around a thin trunk of a tree, I hoisted myself forward and placed my foot against the base to keep from slipping down. Step after step, huff after huff, I climbed and climbed and climbed some more.

Something whispered on the wind, just a faint noise but I’d caught it. I stopped, tilting my head to the side. “Did you hear that?”

Dorian stopped to listen, mimicking me and tilting his head. “It sounds like the wind to me.”

“Or music,” I replied with a smile. We were getting close.

“He’s just going to be waiting at the top?”

We began climbing again. I clung to trees, using their strength to help lunge myself forward. “Travel through the deserted hills until you reach the top. Only when the music sings should you stop,” I said, repeating what the man had told me. I had been trying to remember when his words suddenly popped into my head.

“Yeah, but if you’re hearing music now, does that mean we should stop?”

“We’re just hearing the echo of it. It’ll be strongest at the top.”

“Only you would be visited by a Dr. Seuss wannabe ghost,” Dorian said.

We continued on our hike. I could now see the peak of the hill against the gray sky. Forty feet separated me from finding out how this all connected and saving Rebekah. The worry that had been pressing down on my chest was starting to lift. Answers were just ahead, and soon I would be reunited with my sister. That’s what I focused on, seeing her again. My imagination concocted what she might look like today. She was still young, barely sixteen, but I knew she would be beautiful.

A body passed in front of me, causing me to flinch back. Dorian’s arm shot out to support my weight as I stumbled. I watched as a ghost passed our path, his focus straightforward. He dragged a thick rope behind him, its friction causing a rasping noise against the dirt. He was dressed in brown trousers, a white shirt and had a newsboy cap on his head.

“What is he doing?” I whispered to Dorian.

“Believe me, you don’t want to find out.” He clasped my hand and tugged me forward. I moved along with him but looked over my shoulder, my curiosity too great. I couldn’t help it, the sadness wafting off of him consumed me. The spirit walker within connected to his death, feeling its icy cold grip. Even in the afterlife he was miserable. It just wasn’t fair.

The boy stopped in front of a tree, lifting the rope up over his shoulder. Reaching his hands out, he reached up and began to climb a phantom ladder I couldn’t see. His feet were supported by invisible rungs while he pulled himself up further. Once he was at the top, he shimmied out onto a thick branch. Taking the other end of the rope, he slipped it over his head and I realized it was a noose. My mouth dropped open, a scream caught in my throat. The boy stood up, balancing himself before jumping like he was doing a cannonball in a pool and not falling to his death. A sickening crack filled my ears and I flinched, squeezing my eyes tight and burying my head against Dorian’s shoulder. I didn’t want to see his swinging body. When I looked up again…he was gone. No rope, no body, just…gone.

“What the hell was that?”

“The punishment for his suicide. He relives the memory over and over.”

“That’s horrible.”

“That’s the ‘Powers that Be’s’ justice system.”

I turned, shaking the vision from my head. Music flitted through the spiny branches, filling me with a sense of peace. It was just as beautiful as I remembered, dark and dramatic with hard piano cords and smooth violin undertones. As we drew closer, the music intensified, swarming around my body and cocooning me in its enchantment. I sagged against Dorian’s body, happy he was there to catch me.