Spiritus, a Paranormal Romance (Spiritus Series, Book #1) (8 page)

“Only fine?” He teased.

“All that I’ve done so far is go to school.” I confessed.

“That doesn’t sound like much fun.”

I sighed, “Nothing about this move has been fun.”

Jonah nodded, “So I take it your Mom and Dad didn’t ask your opinion before moving here.”

“My Mom is dead,” I said much harsher than I meant to. “My Dad grew up here and it’s always been his dream for some reason to come back.”

Thankfully, he ignored my rudeness. He only smiled again and nodded, “I take it you don’t see much charm to it and just went along with the idea?”

“I guess so,” I said with a nervous smile.

Jonah laughed, showing even more teeth. “It’ll get better, I promise.”

I stole a quick glance up at him and then quickly back down to my hands. He was just too handsome this close up. He made it hard to concentrate.

“Why do you say that?” I asked, sure that there was nothing that could make the situation better.

“Well, you need to see more of Corydon than just the school. You should come to the quarry Saturday.”

“The quarry?”

“The rock quarry.” He explained. “All of us go for a swim up there the last weekend in August. Sort of like our last hurrah of the summer. I’m sure someone will tell you about it.”

I was too stunned to speak. He was asking me to be at the same place he was going to be. Why did that seem like such a big thing to me?

“So what part of Corydon did you move to?” He asked. It seemed he was bound and determined to keep me talking.

I tried not to get distracted by his looks again, but I couldn’t help but to sneak a peek and then I had to struggle to remember what he even asked.

“Um, we moved into one of the houses on Capitol Avenue.”

“Wow.” He said with another brilliant smile. He leaned a little closer, “So have you seen any ghosts yet?”

My heart skipped a beat in my chest. Oh my God! I looked away quickly, “What do you mean?”

Jonah shrugged, “Nothing, forget about it. So, the quarry, will you think about it?”

I nodded my agreement just as Mr. Abramson called the class to order. I forced myself to at least try to pay attention. I couldn’t believe Jonah Ericson spoke to me again and the only impression I made on him was “unusual”.

Jonah was facing the front and seemed attentive to whatever it was that the teacher was saying. He was perfectly at ease in his body, leaning back in his chair. I fought the urge to lean close enough to smell his hair.

What was wrong with me? I was a basket case and he had probably already forgotten out brief conversation. I had to pull it together.

On top of all the other thoughts bouncing around in my head like if I believed in ghosts and what that thing was in my room, now I had to add a failed conversation with the perfect Jonah Ericson to the list.

When the bell rang, I was on my feet and out the door before I could make a bigger fool of myself. I didn’t even look at Jonah Ericson on my way out. I didn’t want to take the chance of making myself look any worse.

Dad was gone when I got home from school. I was sort of relieved to be alone. Ally and Billie both promised to call me later, but for now I could relax and it was nice to not have to try so hard to be normal.

I tossed my books onto the entry table and went into the living room. I didn’t really know what to do with myself. I was thinking way too much about too many things all at once. I was still trying to make sense of the spirit in my room, the spirit appearing in the window, and Jonah Ericson. I tried watching television to take my mind off it all, but I ended up staring up at the screen, but not really seeing it.

I didn’t know how much time passed. One minute I was watching a baby’s paternity test results being announced on a talk show and the next thing I knew some infomercial guy was overly excited about car wax.

I had to get out of the house. I could feel it closing in around me, waiting for some unknown event to take place. I grabbed my copy of
Hamlet
and headed out to the backyard.

Outside in the large, square yard, I sat down under the closest oak tree, and leaned back against the trunk. Stretching out my legs and crossing them at the ankles, I thumbed through the pages of my book even though I had no intension of reading it.

It was miserable hot. The air was still and unmoving. I was shielded from the sidewalk and road, making me invisible to the rest of the world. The only things that seemed aware of my presence were the birds and even they were growing quiet as the afternoon wore on.

From where I was sitting, I could look out over the tangled rose garden. I knew immediately I chose the wrong place to relax. Suddenly all I could think of was the vision of that other me holding the pruners.

I closed my eyes, wanting to forget about the rose garden, the house, and the mysterious spirit that seemed to haunt the place. I’m not going to think about it, I told myself.

A slight breeze came and blew through my hair, carrying with it the sound of rustling leaves that echoes my name.

Becca…Becca…They called.

I refused to open my eyes, even as the whispered echoes grew louder and more rapid. It was overpowering, the faint voices coming in waves, getting louder and louder. It was reaching a frenzy when one voice overcame the others.

“Becca?” Dad called out the kitchen door, summoning me in for dinner.

I opened my eyes and sat up, a little shocked to see the light starting to fade. I jumped up, suddenly anxious, with an overwhelming sensation I was not alone. I didn’t see anything, but I had the distinct feeling that I was being watched from the shadows.

I glanced around one last time and went inside.

Our meal was a lively one with Dad going over his plans for the house. He was so engrossed that I just had to nod or smile at the appropriate places and he thought I was participating.

He was so busy talking; he had barely touched his plate when I asked to be excused.

“You don’t want any dessert?” Dad asked, stunned I would pass up sweets. “I got a chocolate cake at the store.”

“No thanks.” I said. “I’m just going to go up and do my homework.”

“Well, don’t stay up to late.” Dad warned. “You’re looking tired.”

I agreed. He was thumbing through his notebook of ideas before I even got out of the room and I was sure he forgot all about me before I even got to the top of the stairs.

Once inside my room, I tried to do my homework, but I couldn’t focus. Much like it was with the television earlier; I was looking at the books, but not really seeing them.

It was a relief when Billie called my cell phone.

“Hey whatcha doing?” She asked.

“Just homework. Nothing exciting.”

“Well, I’ll just tell you this real fast.” Billie insisted. “I wanted to let you know what was going on this weekend.”

“The quarry?”

“Who told you?” She asked, seeming offended someone beat her to it.

I decided it would be better to lie. “A few people have mentioned it to me.”

“Did they mention that everyone goes?”

“Yes. It’s some sort of tradition, right?”

Billie laughed, “None of us really care about that part, but yeah, it’s become sort of a tradition.”

“Sounds great.” I said sarcastically.

“It is,” she said. “Are you in?”

I hesitated, not relishing the idea of parading around in a bathing suit. Then I remembered that Jonah Ericson went out of his way to tell me about it. How could I not go?

“Sure.” I said before I could change my mind.

Billie promised we would talk about it at school tomorrow and hung up. I was just about to give up on my homework and go to bed when a slight breeze came and fluttered the pages of my books.

Where did that come from? I turned to look at my windows, both were latched tight. I waited a moment to see if anything else would happen, but when the air remained still and nothing happened or appeared, I went on to bed.

I slipped back into dreams that night. My shadow-self walked down the staircase. Rich moonlight lit the walls as I floated down the entryway.

I could feel the caress of fine linen and lace over my body and the weight of my hair down my back. My hand on the banister was pale and glowing white in the light of the moon. I felt exactly the same, but still so very different.

All of our furniture was gone, and in its place were strange pieces that I knew were antique, but that looked oddly new. It made no sense, but that other me did not seem surprised.

At the foot of the staircase stood the man that I saw in the reflection of the restaurant window. He looked up at me with a slight smile on his sensual lips, taking my hand once I was within his reach.

“My beloved,” he whispered. “I have been waiting for you.”

The man’s face shattered then into hundreds of pieces of blue light, each cutting threw me. I could taste the blood; I could see it smeared on the wall.

“Yes, my beloved,” came the invisible voice. I’ve been waiting for you.”

I bolted upright in my bed, gasping for air and still feeling his touch on my hand. I could feel him watching me. I could feel him waiting for me.

Chapter 5

Saturday arrived in a burst of brightness that woke me from my restless slumber. I opened my eyes again to my perfectly normal room, but this time it was ablaze in a hazy light. Judging from the intensity of the early morning sun, the day was going to be a scorcher.

When I mentioned my plans to my Dad the night before, he became very enthusiastic about the whole thing, even sharing his own story about swimming at the quarry. I had no idea the tradition went that far back.

He actually made me a little self-conscious the way he kept going on about how wonderful it was that I had made friends and was accepted. Was it really so surprising?

“I’m glad you’ve made some nice friends,” he said for the tenth time. “I’m sure you all will have a great time.”

“Thanks.” I said before retreating to my room. I couldn’t help it; his ridiculous excitement was wearing on my nerves.

Billie and Ally came to get me just after lunch. I looked out the front window and recognized Ally’s mom’s black Toyota. They were both in great moods and were a nostalgic type of beautiful in their bikini tops and cut off shorts. I was dressed that way too, but they made it look so easy.

It was only a ten minute ride out to the quarry. I sat in the backseat, laughing as they sang along to the radio at the top of their lungs. We rolled the windows down and enjoyed the hot, dry air on our skins.

I wanted to be like them, carefree and beautiful, but I didn’t know how. I could only bask in the glow of their splendor and abandon. I couldn’t really be a part of it. I didn’t know how. The most I could hope for was to be guided by their gravitational pull.

I’d never seen a quarry, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I saw it from the road first, through a scattering of trees, the sudden rocky stop to the surrounding hills. The water below was clear, glass-like, reflecting the rocky cliff above. Along the crest were dense groups of trees. As I looked up, it seemed impossible to believe that we would be able to walk through them.

Ally turned at a sharp angle onto a winding gravel road full of dusty potholes and lined by trees. The view of the quarry disappeared behind weedy undergrowth and thorn bushes. The car rocked back and forth, making me think that only in Corydon would a Toyota compact be expected to go off road.

I thought I would be bounced and beaten to death, or suffocated by dust before Ally finally pulled off to the side and parked behind a long line of vehicles on the path. I felt exhausted and dirty and we hadn’t even left the car yet.