Only The Young | ✔

Chapter Eight

Someone had brought a boom box, an ancient looking thing that blasted Billie Holiday and Pollux knew this because his grandpa was always blasting it on the jukebox in the restaurant. Frankly, he could not understand the hype and why old people thought oldies music was better than new music.

Still it didn't stop others from jamming to it. The night was going horribly, all of his attempts to coarse information from the teenagers around him just earned him a hurried excuse and stuttering words. No one truly wanted to speak about what happened four years ago and by the scowl on Castor's face, he wasn't getting much progress either.

That girl, Bathsheba had called this event a thing to celebrate her dead boyfriend's short but well lived life, those were her exact same words but honestly, it was just an excuse to make out, smoke and get drunk. And it was mostly full of college students who had nothing to do with their time. This was not how Pollux had intended to spend his time, but it was all his fault anyway. If he hadn't agreed to that stupid dare, then they wouldn't be in this situation, or maybe someone else would be.

Worse, the girls were not with them, opting to stay back at that filthy hideout but Pollux was sure they were hiding something. Tehani had looked fidgety after the funeral reception, though it didn't stop her from eating all the funeral food, Pollux thought with amusement. He had never seen anyone eat like her, their grandmother would have loved her.

He groaned and slapped a palm to his forehead, ignoring the looks it got him. He had stop referring to their lives in the past tense, like it was all a distant past that was hard to remember. It had just been two days, and a lot time to get the hell out of this nightmare, except it wasn't, time was still running out and who knew how long it would take for whatever was hunting people to catch up to them.

"This is a waste of time," Castor said suddenly, Pollux almost jumped in fright, he wasn't aware his twin was standing besides him. "Everyone here is either high, or drunk or both. Or making out." He added the last part as a couple locked lips, almost toppling into the bonfire.

"Where's the freaking host?" Pollux asked. His eyes scanned the small crowd of hormonal teenagers and past them to the one story building that was the high school far ahead, it didn't look much better than the other buildings in this version of Eden and was glad that his Eden was much better. The high school had potential, lots of space and he wasn't even counting the football field. The small building felt like an island in the middle of the ocean.

"I saw her head into the school building with a couple of others." Castor frowned in the dark. Pollux wondered if his twin felt as exhausted as he felt.

"What are they hiding?" Pollux wondered aloud. "What is worth hiding? What secrets could a small town like this be hiding?"

"You'd be surprised." A voice said behind them, Pollux turned around, hoping he wouldn't have to play nice with another stupid college student but it was only Gustavo, their grandfather and it unnerved both twins, seeing someone they missed so much being someone else.

"Enjoying the party?" Gustavo asked, unlike the others he wasn't holding a cup of beer, his hands hung limply by his side.

"I thought it was supposed a memorial." Castor commented.

Grandfather, no, Gustavo shrugged.

"I wouldn't know, I just got here." He said. He looked like he wanted to say something else but then they all heard a piercing scream rip through the air. The music stopped suddenly, and everyone was racing to the source -- lying on the outdoor volleyball court was a young black girl, hunched over her was Bathsheba Kane and she was screaming, even as her friends tried to pacify her.

What Pollux saw almost made him retch his guts, the lying girl's eyes were a milky white and wide open, staring into nothing, and she was naked, wearing nothing but a cross necklace but that was not the worst part, there was a strange triangle drawn on her chest with red ink. No, it wasn't ink. It was blood.

***

"I still don't understand why we couldn't tell the boys." Yurika said for the tenth time as they walked.

"Because they probably wouldn't understand, they'd think I'm the bad guy here." Tehani explained, she rubbed a hand to her head, feeling the onset of headache. "My family has practiced witchcraft for decades and I've always avoided giving myself to the practice because I've seen the consequences of magic and it's never pleasant."

Tehani oddly felt Yurika would understand, and not just because they were best friends.

"My family were immigrants from Nigeria, and they practiced before they came to Ewreburg, but they never stopped, choosing to hide it among a community that would have had them burned at stake."

"And now your magic had awakened." Yuri said, Tehani wondered why she wasn't freaking out, then she remembered the situation they were in. If they could travel back in time to a possibly alternate universe then nothing was impossible.

"No, something in this town has triggered it, I've always known I had it in me." Tehani answered absentmindedly, most of the houses on the street were dark and silent, she guessed Eden had seen enough of darkness and began to hide in it. The psychic shop was just at the end of the street and Tehani could tell because the front porch was bathed in the warm glow of lanterns.

"So this psychic can help you?" Yuri asked. "I don't know, this sounds very shady."

"I think she's our best bet," Tehani affirmed.

"I still think we should have brought the boys along." Yuri said.

Tehani shot her an amused look flashing the bulky flashlight in her friend's face. "You think we can't handle this?"

Yuri shielded her eyes with her hands and shoved Tehani slightly. "Because Castor might have been able to talk you out this."

Tehani snorted, Castor couldn't even talk Pollux out of all the trouble he got into daily, she doubted he'd be able to talk her out of anything. Somehow it was strange that they were all stuck together, four unlikely teenagers.

The woman from the funeral was sitting on the porch, legs crossed over each other and a slight smile on her face.

"You came," She said.

"You're Salome?" Yuri sounded shocked, as if she expected an ancient looking woman. Her name had been written on the piece of paper, along with her address.

"Yes, I am Salome." She said, tilting her head to the side to assess both girls, seemingly uncaring about the glare of the torch. "I might be a witch but I cannot read minds, you never told me your name?"

"I'm Tehani, this is my friend, Yuri." Tehani said, she flicked off the torch. The lanterns were enough lighting in the dark.

Salome rose up gracefully, dusting her colorful kaftan.

"Come inside, we have so much to discuss." She said. "Especially about the dark entity following you."

Both girls whirled around, chests pounding with fear, alas there was nothing behind them but somehow, they could sense a presence, faint but there, breathing over their necks. Tehani stood stiffly, fists clenched by her sides wondering how long it had been following them.

"Come inside," Salome repeated. "You are safe here, the shop is warded against spirits and demons."

Spirits and demons, what sort of trouble had they muddled into?