The Ruby Amulet

Chapter One: Dusty Shop

I looked around the dusty book shop that had been in our town for years. It was run by a sweet and elderly, man. He was known for giving treats to young kids and some free books if he had any. I slid my slender finger down the spine of the book I was looking at on the bookshelf, then looking at my finger to see how much dust had collected on it. I chuckled; the old man must've missed this spot. I looked towards the counter and saw the slim but tall elder slouched in his chair, reading a book titled, "The Little Tree". I grabbed a book and slunk towards the counter.

 I slid it towards the man, and his mouth moved upward into a smile. I smiled as well; "I would like to buy this book, Mr. Lincoln." I stated, feeling my foot tap to a rhythm in my head. It was a weird thing; my foot always did that whenever something was wrong. But I looked around and nothing was out of the ordinary. The man shook his head, "Oh, you always get this book Miss Howard, you can keep it. On the house." He said, chuckling. His happy smile faded into a troubled frown, "I don't have many days left, I'm quite ill." He muttered. I knew this, of course. I nodded, "Thank you." I stumbled out of the door, feeling a sinking feeling in my stomach. 

I noticed a shiny object in the corner of my eye. I walked towards it as if I was being guided somehow. I bent down and grabbed the necklace with an orange-red jewel. I felt mesmerized for some reason like I couldn't look away... Suddenly, I hear a honk from the street, and I jump, falling out of the 'trance'. I pick the necklace up and put it on, then proceeding to walk home. I gripped the door handle and turned it with a tough grasp. My feet pattered on the hardwood floor. I stood in my cramped but sparsely decorated bedroom. I sighed loudly, "This town has no interesting news." I flopped onto my bed. My eyes slowly closed, and I dozed off. The morning sun rays shined through my curtain and I felt the warm glaze of light spread throughout my whole body. I sat up, yawning, and then speaking to myself, "I need some coffee." I groaned. "Yeah, you look like hell." I chuckled as I turned and widened my eyes to a transparent silhouette. I let out a sudden shriek and immediately pushed myself away from them. I pulled my covers towards me, feeling dizzy. I held my hand to my face, then removing it. I peeked back at where I saw the transparent figure, but it had disappeared? 

I rubbed my eyes; it must've been my lack of sleep. I stood up, stretching before slouching over towards my door. I opened it and walked down my rundown hallway before meeting my kitchen. I started to pour the water into the coffee machine. "What'cha doin'?" A voice behind me said. I turned but saw no one there. Was I going crazy or something? I went back to making coffee, eyelids drooping. "Wow, are you that rude? Why are you ignoring me?" a bratty voice squeaked agitatedly. I jumped and spilled hot water on myself, yelping in pain. "Who is here?!" I yelled in anger. I heard cackles behind me, and I turned around. I finally caught a glance at the mysterious transparent figure. It was of a small boy, looking to be around 9 or 10 years old. He wore a white collared shirt with a navy-blue vest. His pants were midnight black, like his hair. It was a side sweep hairstyle. He had freckles dotting his face like a constellation in the night sky. His eyes were a neon-like green. He had blood dripping from his nose and mouth, and his hands were stained red as well. His shirt indented a little whenever he moved, near his heart. It was as if there was a hole there. The boy smiled mischievously, "Wow, you really are an idiot, huh?" I stood up slowly, stumbling to the sink to wash my burning arm. The cool water felt so good as the pain melted away. 

"What are you?" I questioned. I couldn't even look "it" in the eye. "I dunno, where are we? This place is a dump." He said with a displeased expression. "My apartment?" I answered, annoyed. I hadn't made a lot of money and I was late on rent, but he didn't need to insult me. "What's an apartment? I've always lived in my really big house. Why don't you live in a big house?" I seriously wanted to punch him, but that gave me an idea. I quickly threw my hand for a hit, only to go through his translucent body. He shivered and was visibly annoyed. "Why are you here, you're a ghost or something right?" He shrugged, "I dunno, it's been so long I forgot." How long was he talking about? I could write about this. "Okay, how about... how you died?" He showed a clear expression of pain on his face. "I don't remember..." he muttered. "What about your name?" I felt bad questioning a kid, but this could be my ticket to success. "Allister." Wow, he even had a rich-sounding name. But that also had me thinking. If he somehow got stuck to me, that means that he must have died in Jouffrey, right? I started to think. A kid that died in Jouffrey that was rich and died maybe a few decades ago. I remembered a teenager named Leonardo, who was in a rich family, but he was still alive. 

Then something clicked! Leonardo had a little brother that was mostly hidden from the public. I was never able to get his name, but that was probably him.