Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
He was here.
I knew he wouldn’t stick to Severfalls. I tried to keep him at bay, but the phantom followed me. He watched from the shadows, roamed the halls, stalked me.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
He came into my room one night and put his boney hand around my neck, squeezing.
“Oh, Eve, baby, I could just eat you up.” He laughed. I struggled in his grip, but he wouldn’t let go.
“Mine, all mine,” he whispered in a sing-song voice, skull-face smiling as always. “Come join me, Eve.” Black blood gushed from his mouth as he leaned in.
I tried to scream, but then I woke up and realized it was just another bad dream.
I shouldn’t have acknowledged him that first time. Should have known he’d slip into my mind even further, warp my senses.
Somehow, the mornings were worse. Waking up and reaching out, hoping to feel a large, warm body next to me—to believe the past few weeks had been nothing more than a bad dream and that he was still there beside me. But there was no one. I was all alone. No heat to comfort me, only the empty chill.
Marcus’s house always seemed to be empty, especially in the day. As much as a part of me wanted to be alone because of my paranoia, there were times I just wanted to be surrounded by people so I didn’t feel this crushing loneliness. Sometimes, I wished I could return to my classes too, find a cafe and go through the last edits of my thesis, soak in the sounds of people’s voices and laughter, try not to freak out and think Severfalls would capture me again.
I didn’t leave the house. But I didn’t allow myself to waste another day roaming the hallways like a damn ghost. Now that I had my laptop back, I tried to aim my focus once again on my thesis.
I sat at the dining table, facing the back sliding door, starting where I left off with my revisions and edits.
Rereading mine and Emery’s story was harder than I cared to admit. A few times, I had to take a break—by taking a walk around the house or sobbing in my seat. I spent hours rewriting parts, cutting out, or adding others. Not an easy thing to do with one hand, though I eventually took my bad arm out of the sling to rest it on the table and set my computer in a way so that I could use both. As long as I didn’t move my arm, I could still type.
Even with the new edits I stayed true to his story, to ours. I added some of what had happened at the house, and left out others. I did my best to incorporate every emotion, every thought that mattered. Even as deeply personal as everything had been, I knew in a scientific sense, a relationship like ours— victim and killer—had never been studied like this, never been shared. Ours was like nothing anyone had ever experienced. And it wasn’t just about our bond. It was about the things that led to our fate. What had been done, what had broken him and ultimately what had broken me.
By the time the sun had begun to set, I’d gotten through more than half of my paper. And for the first time in weeks, I felt a sense of accomplishment. I might actually be able to get through this.
When Lena and Marcus returned, I sprang to meet them.
“Dang, girl, you’re more energized than usual.” Lena smiled. I told her I was already through half my edits and her eyes lit up. “Wow, you’re a powerhouse! You could finish tonight!”
I shifted on my feet, feeling like a child looking for attention. “I was actually wondering what you had going on tonight?”
Smirking, she said, “We're actually going out tonight. Some of Marcus’s friends are having a little hangout at their place.” She wheeled past the living area into the kitchen while Marcus went over to his room. “You should come! There won't be too many people. At least not like a block party or anything.”
“Is this a frat thing?”
Lena shrugged. “Sorta. But they’re chill guys, I promise.”
“I’ll pass,” I said.
“Suit yourself.”
I wrung my hands, then winced when I felt a sharp pain in my arm, reminding me I needed to ice it. “How late until you’ll be back?”
Now it was her turn to grimace. “You mean tonight?”
I nodded.
“It’s hard to say, but you’ll probably hear the birds chirping before you hear us coming through the door.”
Great. “But you have classes in the morning,” I countered.
“No, I don’t.” She laughed when I gave her a confused look. “It’s Friday, babe. You know, the start of the weekend? Like hell I’d take a class on a Saturday.”
“Ah. What about tomorrow?”
She took my hand. “I got an appointment with my physical therapist and have to run some errands for my sister, but we could do lunch or something. How about that?”
“And Saturday night?” Shit, I hope I wasn’t sounding as desperate as I thought I did.
She chewed her lip. “I got that other party, remember?”
I frowned. “No?”
“You know.” Her eyes shifted over to Marcus’s room. “The goth party.”
“I thought you didn’t have anyone to take you,” I argued.
She clicked her tongue as she dropped my hand. “Come on, Eve, did you really think I wouldn’t find someone else to go with me? Do you even know who I am?”
Of course I knew.
“Jamie probably could stop by, you should talk to him,” she said.
I couldn’t expect her to stop her life just because I was having problems with mine. Still, a part of me wished she’d chill for once and stay with me.
I texted Jamie, figuring he’d be working tonight. When Lena and Marcus left for the evening, there was only me and one of Marcus’s roommates, Alex, from Japan. He barely said a hello before going up to their room and shutting the door.
I expected I’d be doing the same, taking the alfredo Lena bought me and settling in. Maybe I would get my thesis done tonight, after all.
I hung around downstairs, surfing online while taking bites of my food, stalling having to make the decision to go upstairs, when the door opened. Jamie entered with a bag over one shoulder and a carrier in the other hand. Soft little mews sounded from it.
My throat tightened as I stood to meet him. “Is that…”
He grinned. “I thought she’d cheer you up.”
I nearly burst into tears as he set the carrier down on the table and I saw my kitty staring back at me. Sammy meowed again and I reached to unlock the latch.
“Hold on,” Jamie said. He put down the bag and took out some of Sammy’s toys. We closed the first-level doors and made sure it was kitty-proof to the best of our ability before I finally opened the door and let her out.
She meowed at me and I couldn’t help but pull her into me and snuggle her. She purred against my chest as I buried my face in her fur. I held her while Jamie made us tea.
When Sammy eventually wiggled out of my hold and jumped off my lap to explore, we sat in the living area, drinking tea and playing with her, watching her chase a feather on a string. This was perfect.
“She’s taken a liking to one of our lounge chairs back home that sits right by the window. She mostly just sleeps there unless she hears a can being opened,” Jamie shared, caressing her tail.
I scratched behind Sammy’s ear as she came up beside me. “I can’t thank you enough for housing her. Maybe some time I can go back to my apartment and…” It was hard to finish the sentence, hard to think of going back to normal even now.
“We’ll get there when we get there,” Jamie said. “She’s more than welcome where she’s at.”
“I hadn’t considered going back there. To my apartment, I mean. I know I need to get it all figured out.”
“It’s still there when you’re ready.” I felt his eyes on me and met his gaze. “I still think you might want to talk to your uncle. I’m guessing he still doesn’t know where you are.”
I shook my head. I’d gotten one call—just one—from Aunt May after my escape, but I hadn’t called her back. And she hadn’t tried again. I suspected their lawyer had advised them not to contact me, to wait until I was either found or reached out to them so they could record every word we said.
I wasn’t in the mood for that kind of bullshit, so I decided to forget it. I didn’t expect their help unless it meant throwing me back into Severfalls.
“They're not my aunt and uncle. Not anymore,” I stated. My heart sank with dread as a thought occurred. “There hasn’t been anything on the news, right?” A part of me didn’t want to know. But another was curious.
I could tell he didn’t want to say. “Do you really want to know?”
I nodded.
“The news claims you’re still in Severfalls or some undisclosed recovery facility. And that you're safe . On the forums, it’s a different story.”
“Forums?”
He shifted, clearing his throat. “There are people who have been following your story since you got caught giving therapy to Emery. There was an anonymous poster who claimed to know about your escape. So you can imagine all the rumors and speculation.”
Fucking great.
“That’s all it is right now,” he continued. “But I imagine if it did get on the news, it would be a real shit show.”
I cursed under my breath. “Yeah. Guess I didn’t really think about that.”
“Severfalls is trying to keep it under wraps. But who knows how long that will last. I think they're hoping to find you first before that happens.”
I felt a pang of anxiety in my gut. “I need you to swear to me, Jamie, that you won’t change your mind. I know I need help, I’m not so delusional. But not there.”
He exhaled. “I just worry things will only get worse for you, Eve, that’s all. But I swear I won’t rat on you. Liam swears too. But…if I’m forced into an interrogation, I can’t lie, understand?”
I understood that he couldn’t. But he wasn’t me or Lena.
“Fine,” I said. “Hopefully, I’ll be gone before it gets to that.”
“Where will you go?”
“Don’t know.” But in my head, I envisioned a beach. Maybe someday…
I floated down the river to the ocean and I’m there, waiting. Waiting for you…
A shiver trailed down my spine, and I had the feeling that if I looked across the hall behind me, into the dark, I’d see a shadow moving there.
“You okay, Eve?”
I nodded even as I started to feel cold. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
I played with my cat for a while longer, petting her and giving her treats. Jamie finished his tea, then started to pack up to leave.
“I wish I could stay longer, but Ben and I have a thing tonight with our gaming group.”
“I get it.”
Carefully, he placed Sammy back into the carrier, coaxing her in with treats. I said goodbye to her as I wiggled my fingers through the door and felt her pink tongue lick my fingertips.
“I’ll text you later.” He put a hand on my shoulder and drew me into a short hug at the open door. “Whatever happens, I’ve got your back, okay?”
I smiled. “I know. You took a blow for me, remember?”
He pointed to the small scar on his head. “Yeah. How could I forget? Can’t say I’m a bad friend.”
“No, not even close.” Chuckling, I hugged him one last time.
With him gone, the silence wore in. I might not be alone in the house with Alex in his room, but I still felt very much alone.
Having Jamie visit had been exactly what I needed. And despite my anxieties, I knew I really didn’t want to be alone. Too bad Lena wasn’t coming back anytime soon.
Begrudgingly, I went upstairs, but I wasn’t ready to sit in bed all night. I decided to take a shower, hoping it might calm my nerves. I would have considered a bath but the tub wasn’t in the best condition with chips and cracks on its side.
I let the water run till it warmed up. I took off my clothes and then stared into the mirror. Sometimes I really didn’t recognize myself. Sometimes I couldn’t even look myself in the eye.
I rubbed at the heart necklace instead and turned for the shower.
I spent a solid half hour under the hot water before I forced myself out. I snuck into my room to change into borrowed pajamas and slide my arm back into the sling. As I went to slip back into the bathroom to comb my hair and brush my teeth, I paused in the hallway.
The darkness down the passage felt heavier somehow. Or maybe I was just imagining it. I had to be.
Was that his shape or was it something else?
I stood there, staring, trying to figure it out. I turned for the bathroom, and it was like I could feel him right behind.
I froze. My head felt fuzzy as if another headache was starting. Another episode of the Lulladex withdrawal I couldn’t seem to shake.
Like a sleepwalker, I stepped back into the bathroom and turned to look in the mirror, and sure enough, he was there.
Was he a result of the pill or of my trauma or both? I was betting on both. Still, he scared me. I told myself I didn’t believe in ghosts, but this sure felt real as fuck.
Silently, he slipped an arm around me, his mouth against my ear. “ Come follow me, Evee ,” he whispered. “ Come follow .”
“How?”
He picked up a small pair of scissors someone had left on the counter next to the sink. He turned the scissors one way then the next in front of my face.
“ Show me your mine. And we can be together forever. You just have to become like me .”
Like…him.
I took the scissors and held them.
I pictured Emery’s face when the mask was off. The scars he had. From wounds he had inflicted on himself. So many beautiful scars.
Become like me.
As if time had been paused and someone had hit play, I brought the scissors to the side of my temple and pressed the sharp end into my skin.
The headache will slip right away. The nightmares will spill out and you’ll float away…to the ocean…to me.
The way his voice warped at the end made me shudder, made me want to scream. I sliced across my temple down to my eyebrow.
I gasped at the pain and dropped the scissors. Blood gushed into my eye. I blinked, and my phantom was gone.
“What the actual fuck?”
I looked over. Alex was gaping at me from the doorway, his face ashen.
“Yo, are you okay?” He took a step back as if he were about to bolt.
I put a hand up to the cut, hoping to stifle the blood. Before I could utter a word, he was inching his way down the hall.
“It’s cool, we're cool,” he said in a shaky voice. “I’ll call 911.”
I blinked again, confused at what the fuck I had just done. Finally coming to my senses, I grabbed a towel and put it to my temple before following him.
I caught him in his room, about to hit the emergency number.
“Wait. Please don’t. I’m okay. I just…I was going to cut my hair, but I slipped. That’s all. Please don’t call anyone.”
He looked at me like I was crazy. Which I was. But I’d have a fucking panic attack if the cops showed.
He was ready to press the number. I could see it. I could see the fear in his eyes. “You sure?”
I forced myself to be calm and collected, hoping he didn’t change his mind. “Yes. Sorry to freak you out. I’ll just clean up. No need to worry.”
“Yeah, right,” he mumbled as I turned to go to the bathroom.
I sat on the edge of the tub, pressing the towel to my head for at least a half hour before it was manageable enough to clean and slap a Band-Aid on. I then locked my room door, turned on the headlight and curled into the corner of the bed.
I didn’t edit any more of my thesis that night. I didn’t sleep either. When I heard Lena’s voice downstairs, I leaped from my bed and unlocked my door, practically running down the hall to the stairs.
“Hey, Eve, still didn’t sleep much, huh?” Lena said as Marcus moved around her into his bedroom.
I shook my head.
Her eyes flicked up to my forehead. “What happened there?”
“Just a little accident.”
She arched her brow. “You okay?”
“Yeah, totally fine.”
“All right, well, we're off to bed so…see you in a few hours.”
I stepped down to her as she started to wheel into the bedroom. She paused again, to study me. “You sure you’re okay?”
“Mmhm. Hey, listen, about tomorrow.”
“Oh, yeah, I have therapy around noon.” She covered her mouth in a yawn. “But Marcus and I will grab lunch and bring it back after, okay?”
“I meant about later. Are you really set about going to that party?”
“The goth one? I mean, yeah, I’m still planning to.”
“I couldn’t make you change your mind, could I? And stay home?”
I didn’t want to say it. But I didn’t know if I could take another night being alone. Only, seeing her utter disappointment made me somehow feel worse.
Her shoulders slumped. “I don’t know…My friend was pretty excited about it. She’ll be pretty disappointed. I hate to go back on that.” She wheeled toward the room. “Maybe we’ll talk more about it tomorrow.”
I gripped the strap of my sling, catching the sad tone in her voice. Dammit, Lena.
“Wait,” I said, already exasperated. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I’ll do it…I’ll go.”
I expected her to say it was too late since she obviously had someone else to go with her. Instead, her face lit up. “You serious?”
Honestly, at this point, I’d rather be in a crowd with people to distract me than alone with the shadows. Even if it was probably a lie, it might help. “Yeah, I’m serious. But only if I wear a disguise or something. And if we even see one cop there or anyone giving off bad vibes, I’m out.”
Lena grinned. “Deal. We won’t stay long either.” She squealed. “You won’t regret it, Eve. We will make sure no one recognizes you. This is going to be fun, I promise.”
“What about your friend?” I asked as she wheeled into Marcus’s room.
She snorted as Marcus moved to shut the door. “Oh, she’ll get over it. Good night!”