Under the Rose

Chapter 17 | Among the Veiled

As soon as I opened my eyes, I knew I was in what Caus calls the Veil. After coming here quite a few times myself, I eventually figured out that this was what my dad called the Forest of Reflection, where the lost souls usually roam. He always said that the poor souls to end up here consisted of those that died suddenly, were too attached to the surface world, or those that were forced here. I feared that I may have ended up as the latter.

I was standing in the middle of the forest, surrounded by people. Well, I thought they were people; I could only see silhouettes in the dense fog. They were all just standing there, unmoving. Some were crowded around me, facing whichever way, and others were spaced throughout the trees. It was one of the eeriest situations I've ever had the misfortune of partaking.

A girl stood in front of me, head down and facing me. I swallowed and slowly attempted to step around her, my eyes never leaving her motionless form. When I successfully avoided her, I wondered what exactly these people were doing. Were they actually . . . dead? If so, why were they all idling here?

My curiosity will be the death of me; I was certain. I reached out a hand. After a whole minute of hesitation, I finally touched the woman's arm. She whirled on me in a blur, her milky white eyes inches from mine as she spoke rapidly.

"My son," she said in whispers. "Where is my son? You took him from me. Give him back. Give him back!"

I twisted my arm out of her ice-cold hand, holding it to my chest as I took several steps away. "I'm sorry; I-I don't know."

The woman's face fell slack and she slowly went back to her previous position, stance straight with her head down. I waited a few frantic heartbeats before I decided to keep going. The woman's entire demeanor haunted me. She was lifeless, yet she still looked for her son desperately in death, unaware that she was dead herself. It was utterly heart-wrenching. My father was right: this was a place for the lost that could never know rest, and it was horrible. I wanted nothing more than to do something about it. But what could I possibly do? I couldn't even take care of my own supernatural situation.

I maneuvered through a sea of motionless people—souls—that seemed to be stuck in once place. I tried not to think about all of the reasons they could be here. Hearing just that one woman was enough. I didn't want to feel the sorrows of all of these poor people that didn't choose to be here. It was more than I could handle.

"You!" A vice-like grip on my arm yanked me backwards, and I turned to see a pale, older man with eyes just like the woman. "You don't belong here. Do you know where I am? Do you know the way out?"

I tried to get out of his grip, but this man was holding my arm so tightly it hurt. "I'm so sorry, but I don't know how to help you—"

"You have to help me. I'm so lost; I don't know what happened. If you could just call my granddaughter. What was her name?"

Tears welled in my eyes, my heart breaking for this man. I felt absolutely hopeless. I wanted to reassure him in some way, but I didn't know what to say or what to do. I placed my hand over his cold one, unable to do anything else. I could only convey my condolences in this way. I wasn't sure if I should even do that.

I caught movement in the corner of my eye and looked in that direction. My blood ran cold when I saw the heads of every silhouette slowly turn to look at me. Some of the souls began to turn completely and walk toward me, hushed whispers overlapping each other.

"Outsider."

"She's different."

"She can help me."