Tell No One

Chapter 20

Kiera laid on the gravelled roof of one of the many buildings in Newbank. It was one of the taller ones of the area, a head above the rest. She still kept far away from the lofty heights of the city's centre, but no doubt this area was in the business district. The buildings were uniform, placed in blocks and spaced evenly apart. She planned to climb down the service ladder that snaked up the side once night fell, but until that happened, she would have to wait up here. She didn't dare move in broad daylight. But, it was coming to that time of day where the busy workers of Newbank started to head home, and Kiera felt a build up of anticipation inside her. She hadn't eaten since her little break in all those hours ago, and her stomach gurgled at even the thought of food. The sky above her had turned a burnt orange, ribbons of salmon chasing the sun into the horizon. She watched the clouds scroll past, her hair played like a halo about her head. Long term, she wondered what she would do with her life- what she could do, even. She was a wanted criminal. Her actions had irreversibly changed the course of her life, all the potential she had was gone, thrown on the ground and stomped on by her selfish need to chase cheap highs. Deep down, she knew she was living on borrowed time anyway. She died on that cold autumn night all those months ago, and in some ways, she was still dead. To die now, would be to end consciousness. She would go into the abyss and simply cease to exist. Closing her eyes, Kiera embraced that thought. 

Kiera felt rather that saw the shadow appearing beside her. Without even looking, she knew Mera was laying beside her. Neither of them spoke, both staring at the endless sky. Stars were starting to shine through the haze, the streetlamps not yet on to blot them out. To her right, the inky canopy of the night was beginning to spread, quietly stealing the colour from the sky. A chill began to pick up.
Turning her head, Kiera rested her cheek on her coarse floor.
"What is it with you and sunsets." Mera turned to face her too, dragging his eyes from the sky. He gave her a small smile, before resuming to gaze at the sky. 
"What is it with you and sunsets." Kiera felt a twinge of annoyance at his refusal to answer her question but decided to answer him anyway.

"I like the feel of an ending. A cool kind of closure but also the promise that there'll be a new start. It the day dying, but knowing it'll reignite the next morning." 
Silence resumed between them, both content to lay in silence and look at the sky. 

"I know what you're thinking." Mera's voice was quiet, soft. It rolled in the air instead of breaking the quiet. "Where do I go now. What do I do now- do I end it now." Kiera gave a half-hearted laugh. That was exactly what she was thinking. The silence stretched on again until finally, Mera broke it.

"You're thinking that eventually, you'll slip up, and they'll get you. Weighing the options; a life behind bars, a life on the run, or going to the Abyss." Kiera watched as the sun sank lower. Putting it that way, the Abyss didn't seem so bad. "But Kiera..." Mera was holding something back. Sitting up, Kiera looked at him. Her shadow blocked the sun on his face, and he looked as if he was finding the best way to say something.

"What aren't you telling me?" Kiera's words curled in the air, a pressing question punctuated with Kiera's harsh eyes boring down on him.

"Ramatee isn't likely to let you just fall into the abyss. Most likely, you'll live on in his realm. serve him in some way." Kiera's eyes widened. 
Mera sat up, facing Kiera. The sun was on his face again, and Kiera was so close to him that she could make out a hint of colour in the black recesses of his iris'. "Often, with people like you, who have been given that rare opportunity to take his gift, and rarer still those who take it, he doesn't let them just... terminate." Kiera's face fell. There was no end. "I... I know because I was given the exact same chance and I, too, took it." Kiera watched his face. There was a longing in his eyes as he stared at the sunset. Idly, she wondered what gems this world offered had that the Abyss didn't possess. Was there even a sun? 
"So you died twice?" Mera nodded solemnly.

"Yeah. I-" Mera chuckled, and it surprisingly sounded genuine. "I was killed by my fiance." Kiera gasped in shock, bringing a hand to her mouth. 
"You what!" Mera laughed again, a deep throaty sound. He crossed his legs, sitting across from Kiera. She leant forward in anticipation, an amused grin gripping her face.
"Well, she walked in on me with another woman, threw her out and stabbed me with a kitchen knife." There was a twinkle in his eye as he said it, his delivery humourous. 
"What! You cheated on her!"Mera leant back, laughing again.
"I tell you I got stabbed, and all you're interested in is that I cheated on her!"
Kiera crossed her arms in front of her. "You didn't tell me you were such a womaniser."
"I prefer the term Casanova." Mera's grinned widened still. His eyes were heavy-lidded, seductive. "I was quite the ladies' man, I'll have you know." Kiera playfully pushed him, guffawing. Suddenly, she turned serious. 

"But... how did you die the second time?" Mera's smile turned slack, and he looked wistfully into the distance. 

"I jumped off a building." The atmosphere turned tense as the words left his mouth. Kiera's mind couldn't help but flash back to her own mother's death.

Eager to change the subject, Kiera spoke up. "So, what do you do now?"
Mera flopped back onto his back, spreading his arms out beside him. He gestured with one arm, and Kiera willingly snuggled up against him. 
"Well, right now I'm mainly looking after you. But I have duties to Ramatee-" Mera yawned- "Which primarily consists of chasing after people like you, chasing after people who chase after people like you, and advising him."
"Advising him?" Kiera stretched herself along his side, curled up under his arm pit. His other arm was nestled under his head like a pillow.

 It wasn't uncomfortable being this close. instead, she felt like they were more like old friends. 
"Yeah, I'm one of the more older residents of the Abyss. Most of the people from Ramatee's time had moved on. He's been good to me; I live in the upper level of the Abyss, which is one of the nicer places to live." Kiera watched the rise and fall of his chest, absorbing all this new information. Mera was tall, very tall, and from this angle, his legs seemed to go on forever. He still wore the suit he was wearing the very first day, his hair still the same oiled flick. Yes, Mera was her constant through her life, and she knew she would've fallen apart long ago if he hadn't been there. 
Cuddling in closer, Kiera shut herself off from the world.