The Sisters of Nowhere

f o u r t e e n : g h o s t b o y

It was the perfect night to sneak out.

The trickiest part was leaving the bed while all of her sisters were on top of it, but Marigold was quick and her sisters were sound asleep.

Marigold felt a tug of guilt. She wanted them in on the secret, but not yet. Not until she knew what the secret was to begin with.

Marigold's plan was simple: sneak down the oak tree outside the window, go to the clearing, and hope that the night-hour and the full moon gave her enough energy to summon the ghost she'd seen at the grocery store over three weeks ago.

It had almost driven Marigold insane, knowing there was a different type of ghost in Nowhere hiding just out of reach.

Now, since he'd never sought her out, she thought she'd find him. Whatever happened, Marigold knew she had to do it.

She couldn't keep yelling at her sisters just because she was on edge.

She glanced at Birdie's sleeping form and pulled on her cardigan.

As Marigold shimmied down the oak tree hanging near the second story of the house, the full moon threatened to illuminate her silent form.

The sisters' energy was always stronger at night and during a full moon. It didn't peak as much as it did during an eclipse, but every full moon, the ghosts would appear more clearly.

This was why Marigold believed she could summon Ghost Boy.

She'd been planning the evening all week and had left her truck about a mile down the road so she could start it up without anyone noticing.

Her burdened heart beat out the word, Liar, liar, liar.

She ignored it.

The smell of rain met her nose, followed by the distant rumbling of thunder that covered the noise of her footsteps. Perfect.

Though the Ford was parked far away from anywhere, Marigold's conscience convinced her that the rattling engine could wake up the whole town, so she sped a little faster than she was comfortable with all the way to the clearing.

The full moon mixed with the night air filled Marigold with energy, fluttering in her stomach like a bird in a cage.

Spirits haunted the vast field, wandering aimlessly and moaning their sorrows to the wind, but Marigold hardly noticed them as she jogged into the center of the clearing.

She took several deep breaths and close her eyes. She allowed the energy she absorbed to travel up her fingertips and warm her insides like a cup of hot chocolate after a snow day.

But then the energy suddenly shifted. It became more powerful, or maybe even wanting power for itself. Invisible fingers seemed to grasp the frayed edges surrounding Marigold's energy, craving it. This hadn't happened before--the Penny girls had always been the most powerful thing in the clearing, but now it felt as if something else was competing for it.

The moon bathed her skin in bluish hues and the shivering stars above seemed to bend closer, wondering what was about to unfold.

Marigold thought of the boy. His shaved head, his blue eyes, his ragged clothing.

When she opened her eyes, a figure had materialized in front of her--it was only the blue form of a person at first, but then began to solidify into Ghost Boy.

His blue eyes were bright, made even brighter by the similar moonlight.

They surveyed each other for a long moment.