The Demon's Grave (35 page)

“We’re going to be fine,” I cajoled, knowing they were weak words.

This was it, our final, sixth run and we’d be free. We could figure out what was going on with our friends, finally. The dream with the mists had seemed so real that I wondered if I’d really seen them. If that were true, it meant they were together and alive, though Cody was still a mystery.

“Nora?” Aidan’s shoulders had tightened and I followed his gaze down to see the button on my shorts was missing and the zipper half way down revealing my favorite purple underwear.

“Oh,” I said startled.

The shame struck like a tidal wave. I know I shouldn’t feel like I’d done something wrong, but somehow I felt tainted, infected. If he’d gotten around to raping me I didn’t want to imagine what I’d be feeling then.

Doing up the zipper with shaky fingers, I heard Aidan breathe. “Is that why you were screaming? Did he…‌?”

“No.” I answered too quickly.

Aidan’s pale eyes rolled up to meet mine. “
Did
he?”

“No, Aidan,” I snapped, feeling my face warm in embarrassment. “We have better things to talk about then that asshole. He’s dead.
Burned
alive and gone.”
And showing up in dreams instead
.

“What did you say about dreams?” Aidan asked.

Did I say that out loud? “It’s stupid,” I said.

Aidan glanced at the black door behind him. “What do you remember?”

“About the dream?”

Aidan nodded and shuffled in one place. “Since we’re being so open an honest.”

“A‌—‌uh, poem by Edgar Allen Poe.” I shook my head to unclog the memory, “but only part of it.”

“Can you remember it?” Aidan raised his eyebrows, still looking down.

I nodded, the memory sticking to the inside of my skull like honey.

From the lightning in the sky

As it passed me flying by,

From the thunder and the storm,

And the cloud that took the form

(When the rest of Heaven was blue)

Of a demon in my view.

We stared at each other for several seconds before Aidan sighed. “I don’t understand.”

“Neither do I,” I confessed.

“Aren’t you an English major?” Aidan asked.

I sneered at him.

“Was Damien in the dream?”

Raising my eyebrows at him, I frowned.

“Did he say anything to you?” Aidan ignored me and looked up.

I shook my head and motioned to him. “He was talking to you, actually.”

Aidan’s eyes grew round and I felt time begin to slow.
Whoa, whoa, whoa
, I’d hit a land mine and I could see the realization playing on his face. “Did‌—‌did he talk to you in your dream?” I asked, the caution slowing my speech.

Aidan hesitated before asking incredulously, “In the cafeteria?”

I leaned back against the wall of our small box-like room.
He’s invading our dreams; but then how did I end up in the tower room again?
The cube being my test, the threats about cheating…‌where was all this coming from? I remembered the knife rattling on the floor and the hot pinpricks that raced under my skin. I’d moved that knife just by wanting it.

“What does this mean?” Aidan asked.

“I don’t know, what did he say?” I countered, lowering my hands to my camisole, clutching it in my fists.

Aidan shook his head. “It was just a dream.”

“I don’t think it was, Aidan.” I pointed to the door. “That’s our last Challenge and that poem makes no sense to me. If you have something to add…‌”

Scratching more of the crusted blood from the side of his face, Aidan shrugged. “I don’t think it has anything to do with the poem.”

At my glare he stopped rubbing and sighed. “He said I should give you up. Sacrifice you in the next Challenge and then he’d release our friends.”

Little Nora had said to Phoebe,
“No, she’s not good at being a sacrifice.”

“And what…‌” I swallowed hard. “What did you say?”

“Nothing!” Aidan protested, holding up his hands as if I’d aimed a baseball bat at his head. “I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t! I was frozen there in that seat and watched you talking to two little kids. Then I woke up and you weren’t here.”

“Are you sure that’s all he said?”

Aidan glared at me. I could see his hands curl into fists, trying to hide them in his crossed arms. “Where were you, Nora? Where’d you disappear to?”

Frowning, I glanced over my shoulder at the door. “It’s hard to explain.”

“Try.”

The hardness in his voice gave me pause. Should I tell him about bouncing back and forth between here and the tower room? If I did, it wouldn’t mean anything. I couldn’t take people with me and I barely understood how I managed to do it myself. It wasn’t cheating if I came back, right?

“I think I’ve been bouncing back and forth between here and the tower room.”

There. It was out and I saw Aidan glance at the black door.

He wouldn’t look at me when he asked. “Is that why he asked you about jumping?”

Nodding, I said, “I didn’t really get it then, but I keep waking up sometimes in that room, alone and then I’m suddenly back here. Damien seemed to think I had some connection to this place, but I think you do too.”

“Because of the house,” Aidan rolled his eyes. “You got the messages, remember?”

“Yeah, but when Cody said your name, Damien got this look on his face, and then told me not to tell you about my family. Now, he’s whispering to you in dreams. I think your grandpa knew about the Demon’s Grave,” I said. “What if Damien knew your grandpa?”

What if Nell knew his grandpa? Or worse, maybe Aidan knew who she was.

Aidan shook his head after a pause. “But, you did tell me about your family, or was there more?”

“There’s more,” I said and instantly regretted it.

Aidan raised his eyebrows, saying nothing, waiting for me to continue. When I didn’t he took a deep breath, looking away. “And you can’t tell me now because it would be cheating or something?”

I swallowed, “He said he’d kill people.”

This made him pause, his shoulders relaxing a little. Pale eyes darted to the black door and his mouth pinched as if he’d eaten something sour. I wished I could have asked him what he was thinking, but didn’t dare.

Aidan brushed past me and without a backwards glance opened our final Challenge and stepped through.

Behind us the final door slammed shut, frightening ebony birds.

Glancing over my shoulder I watched the black door fade at the edge of the swamp. Vines as thick as my legs wound their way around ancient trees. Lush wide-leafed plants came up to our waists, blocking our feet from view.

I breathed in the pungent, stale air, testing to see if the swamp were truly real. This was it. This was what the doppelgängers warned us about.

I looked to Aidan, but he kept his face turned away.

The river in front of us was mostly still water, littered with algae and glistening driftwood.

Aidan pointed across the river. It was as lush with vegetation as our own.

Not seeing anything, I whispered, “What is it?”

Waving at me to keep quiet, I noticed the movement on the opposite riverbank. If it hadn’t moved, I’d have never seen it there. The crocodile or maybe it was an alligator‌—‌I’d never know‌—‌slid on its belly through the muck and into the dark water. As its tail submerged, the beast barely cast a ripple before disappearing under the glassy surface.

Even with the reptile under water, I had the unnerving sensation that we were being watched.

Worry wrinkled Aidan’s eyebrows. “Nora, we’re in a swamp.”

“He’s just trying to psych us out.” I tried to sound brave, though one glance at Aidan proved I was unconvincing.

Licking his lips Aidan said. “This is our last chance to be honest with each other, you know.”

Stopping me cold, the words left me blinking at him. “I’ve told you everything I can,” I said, waiting for the anger.

Instead he crossed his arms. “Have you?”

“Yeah, have
you
?”

Snorting, Aidan’s arms dropped to his sides and he stepped by me, making a point not to look at me. The mud sloshed around his sneakers and he grimaced. “What do you think about the poem?” He asked softly.

“I don’t know yet.” I said. To prove my bravado I stepped up beside him. My sneakers disappeared beneath squishy, dense mud. I could feel the cool slop against my ankles. Waving my arms for balance I took my next step and my next until I reached semi-solid ground where the plants didn’t hide my feet. Mud caked my shoes and socks and I wiggled my toes, they were still dry but not for long. The humidity was enough to stick my clothes to my body even standing still.

Getting ahead of Aidan, I tried to shake off the excess mud from my shoes. Mostly, it just made a bigger mess, splattering mud up my bare legs.

Aidan took two large steps and came up beside me, touching one of the twisted trees for support as he wavered in the slippery mud.

Trying to watch my feet and the marsh at the same time, I noticed an eerie dark cloud creeping in on the other side of the river.

Aidan must have noticed it at the same time. “I don’t think we want to be caught in that when we cross.”

“Why are we crossing the river?” I asked, taking another sloppy step.

He pointed to something dark just ahead of us along our shoreline.

Frozen in the eerily calm waters a dead log had been pushed onto the bank.

Squinting, I realized it wasn’t just a log, but it had been hollowed out, like a man-made boat. How had he seen it right away? From here I’d have never picked it out of the swamp. “Might as well check it out,” I agreed, keeping my voice low.

Aidan glanced at me and held out his hand. I paused, unsure if it were sincere or not. He had made a point of avoiding me most of the game, though to be fair, he hadn’t once left me behind. I thought of how he saved me from the witch’s house and ran with me through the museum. It was just the two of us now.

With a small smile, I grabbed his hand and together we stumbled along the river bank.

The mud slid under our feet threatening to sling our legs out from under us.

The water slapped against the shore and Aidan hissed for me to stop, his body stiffening in mid-step.

Struggling to stay upright, I almost slipped. Leaning forward, I had to keep my hands straight out, still clutching to Aidan for support. Wobbling on shaky legs, I froze as best as I could, my body shaped in a L just to keep from falling.

Searching the swamp for whatever could have spooked Aidan I eased my spine straight.

The waters had calmed since my lurching stop, leaving the eerie silence.

I squeezed Aidan’s hand to get his attention and raised my eyebrows to form the question.

He hesitated, opening his mouth as if to explain, but cast one last look around the swamp before mouthing, “
Sorry
.”

Releasing my hand he trudged toward the shore, staying just within the jungle’s canopy.

I started to follow when he turned back around and motioned me to stop, eyes wide and warning.

I started to shake my head when he motioned me to stay put with both hands. Eyes narrowing at him, I frowned and he rolled his eyes before motioning me to stay again. He paused, waiting for me to protest and when I didn’t, he eased toward the shoreline and out into the open.

He might think he was hiding me, but I didn’t want to separate. With us this close to a success, Damien was sure to have a surprise pop out somewhere and I wasn’t about to let Aidan out of my sight, even if he thought it best.

Facing his back, I shuffled forward, keeping a safe distance. Stopping just outside the thick brush, I could see my feet. Mud had given an extra sole to my shoes and my legs noticed the additional weight.

The little boat was just a few feet out in the water. The problem was, it was in the water, away from the shore.

Aidan hobbled into the shallow water, testing each step and taking his time.

Drawing in air, I prepared myself to scream a warning if I saw anything. The sickening feeling of being watched hadn’t lifted and I didn’t doubt that something was hiding just beyond our sight.

Aidan was up to his mid-calf when he was able to reach the hollowed out log. Fingers curling around the edge, he strained to grab it, pulling it closer. It didn’t sink as it skidded across the smooth surface toward Aidan.

A small break at least.

Glancing over his shoulder Aidan saw me at the tree line and frowned. He pointed at me as if it were an adequate a threat.

I wiggled my fingers in a sarcastic wave until he turned to drag the wooden boat closer to the muddy shore. Aidan’s efforts cast ripples outward, slopping the green and brown debris onto the shoreline.

The boat scraped bottom, sounding volcanic compared to the swamp’s eerie silence.

Standing when it was done, Aidan allowed himself a smile that was genuine.

Smiling back, I lifted one foot, hearing the mud’s suction against the ground. Looking down I noticed a movement behind me and jerked my head up. Aidan had noticed it too and his smile wiped clean.

“
Move!
” He mouthed, pale eyes wide.

I picked up my foot to step closer, ducking instinctively when I realized it was lodged in the mud.

Looking down, I tried to move again but my left foot was stuck. Twisting, I attempted to reach for a branch or vine above, but found nothing in my reach. Stepping forward, I pulled, feeling my swollen knee twinge.

Desperate, I stretched fingers to Aidan and whispered shrilly, “Pull.”

Aidan pointed behind me, though he inched closer, careful not to get stuck in the mucky shore.

I leaned as far forward as I dared. I could feel the heat of those eyes. As I dared to look over my shoulder, every hair on my body bristled.

Three pairs of deep-red, glowing eyes peered from the brush and they were focused on me. One of them blinked slowly, seeming lethargic and bored, as if it had all the time in the world.

Fighting the urge to scream, I snapped my gaze back to Aidan warning him.