Chapter 10
Erin came to awareness in pitch darkness, on her knees with carpet under her hands. She blink hard and rubbed her eyes, and something cold and gentle touched the back of one of her hands. A small cold hand. Snatching it back she curled up and folded in on herself scrambling back until she backed into a wall. Shucking off her pack and huddling into herself out of half fear and half cold. The dark made her feel exposed.
“It's okay. I’m sorry.” A little voice with an Irish? accent spoke to her gently, the voice was young but had the cadence of someone much older.
“Who is that?”
“My names Fiona. You looked at the Lady didnt you?” She blinked frantically in the darkness looking for the source of the voice.
“I dont know. Why, who are you?” The ghost sighed and lightly brushed her face.
“I can help but Ima need to go back. Is that okay?”
Go back? Go back where? Her heart was hammering in her chest dear god was she cold. Something came closer and a chill entered her head for a moment and an apparition of a young girl maybe about eleven glowed faintly before her. She had a look of deep though and Erin stared back at her with wide eyes.
“Your friends. They said they want to help us.”
Erin blinked again trying to calm. She nodded.
“Yeah. Yes. To get you unstuck here. Help you find rest.” The little girl shook her head.
“That's not what you need to get rid of. Its the Lady that has us trapped here.”
“The Lady? What do you mean?”
“We know her as the Keening Lady. She sings, and leads you places, gets you lost.”
“Is that who's in the mirror?” Fiona nodded.
“She wants your friend, the one that Hannah likes. But Hannah wants her too. She’s pretty.”
Erin nodded in agreement and rubbed at her eyes again, it felt like a film had grown over them obscuring her vision. She was tired and over this job now, she couldnt see, she didnt know what time it was and she was freezing.
“She wants you too though. You looked at her, she likes you.” A gentle caress on her cheek again. “I think you're beautiful too.” The tone of her voice had a tinge of envy in it. Did this ghost want her too. She felt her hands flex on their own then reached up to touch her face. Erin flinched inward. “So beautiful.” The voice crooned outloud a mix of hers and Fiona’s.
“Erin?!” Abbys voice cut through the fog and Fionas hold on her loosened. Her vision cleared some but not by much as Abby took her by the shoulders and gently shook her. She felt Fiona fade to the back of her head. Abby’s outline faded into view. She sighed.
“Yeah?”
“You okay? Talking to Fiona?”
“Howd you know?”
“we’ve spoken before. She took a liking to you. Holy shit youre freezing where were you in the freezer?” Abby chaffed Erin’s hands in hers trying to warm her up.
“You tell me, where are we? Its pitch dark, do you have your flashlight?” Abby went quiet. “What? What!”
“How many fingers am I holding up?” Abby asked carefully and Erin could barely make out the shape of her hand in the dark.
“I dont know three? Why whats going on.” There was a long silence Erin could practically feel the nervous grimace Abby usually gave when something had gone wrong. “Abby.”
“Okay, don't panic….but can you see this?” She waited.
“See what…”
“Ah okay…”
“See what!?” She reached forwards and felt for Abby in front of her. “Kind of a light?”
“My flashlight.” She paused herself and thought about it. She kind of saw a dim light, like the flashlight was very weak like it was dying but then it clicked. “I said don't panic!”
“Abby I’m BLIND.” Erin choked waving her hands frantically in front of her face. “I’m blind!!”
“Its okay, it's okay! I think the banshee did this. Did you look at her?”
“A BANSHEE?! THAT'S WHAT THIS IS.” Abby put her hands on her face to calm her shshing her.
“Shhh shhh. I think its temporary. I hope it is.” She mumbled the last part. “Your eyes do look a bit cateracty.”
“I can see shadows and shapes I just thought it was dark!” she shrieked catching her breath. Then Erin felt something like a comforting embrace from the inside.
“I can help. A little trust me?” Fiona's voice whispered to the both of them. Erin waited a beat then nodded. She felt her move forwards in her head and she blinked. The room seemed to clear just a little bit more like a fog lifting. Seeing Abby looking back at her, blearily but there.
“Whoa. Got head light eyes.”
Erin placed a hand on her chest and sighed some comfort coming to her.
“Thank you.”
“Fiona are you there?”
“A little. But I wont come through if she wont let me.” Fiona’s came out of her mouth, it was a strange sensation to be aware of. It was like sleep walking. Abby held out her hands and hoisted Erin to her feet. “Just until the Lady is gone. You can do that can you?”
“We’ll do our damned best, come on. I have an idea.”
Abby took hold of Erins pack and helped her back into it then taking her arm they headed towards the bar.
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Conveniently they all convened back in the bar, the mirror being their save point.
the crack had gotten deeper and the reflection murkey. with closer inspection it didn't even reflect the room anymore. It just sat there…ominously.
“Oh hey you found the other stray great. Great minds think alike.” Abby motioned Erin to a stool and said nothing else. Erin shouldered off her pack and leaned it against the wall rolling her stiff shoulders.
“is it still bad luck if we didnt break it first?” Patty mumbled side eyeing the mirror arms crossed over her chest.
Erin settled in looking up at the mirror too, she had a very weird feeling that it could see back at them, her especially. She looked over towards a conspicuously quiet Holtz also staring up at it deep in thought. Transfixed. She squinted and watched her a bit closer, she seemed calm, a look of resolve on her face, her hands clasped behind her back. Then she noticed something.
“Hey Holtz...Holtzmann.” It took a second to get her attention.
“Hmm?” She hummed without looking over.
“Your pack.” She pointed.
“Hm?”
”Your pack. Where is it?” They were all wearing their packs still, except Holtz.
“Oh I dunno, took it off. Heavy.” She scrunched her face in distaste and shrugged. It was a simple answer, yes. Erin smiled and nodded getting up and backing away slowly then scrambled back and skittered to Abby fiddling with the PKE meter.
“Abby. Abbby.” She didnt take her eyes off of Holtz. She nudged Abby hard in the side. “Abby.”
“What?”
“Holtz took off her pack.” She said in a low voice, disturbed. Abby lowered the meter and looked at Erin curious, seeing the look on her face staring at Hotlz she looked over too.
“Hm?” Erin bent downward and hissed a whisper and pointed.
“She. Took. Off. Her. Pack.” Accentuating each word. Abby blinke, waiting. “Because it was heavy.”
Abby's brain loaded the information then dinged.
“Ah hell.” She clasped the meter back in her belt. “Holtz. Holtzmann!” Patty was the one to look over instead and Abby made some odd gestures Patty seemed to understand right away. Erin looked between them buzzing with anxiety. Patty sighed and walked into Holtz’s line of sight.
“Hannah.” Holtz perked up and looked at Patty giving her attention. Hannah? Hannah…familiar.
“Yes?”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m helping.”
“Thats very nice of you but we need to talk to Holtz now okay?” Patty talked to her patiently and Holtz made a very Un-Holtzmann face, a pout and a scoul and crossed her arms petulantly.
“No I’m not done yet.” She stomped her foot. “Besides the Lady is still singing to her. Look her ears are bleeding. I’m helping!” She touched her left ear and her fingertips came away red, she held out her hand to see. Erin felt lightheaded, this Hannah was possessing Holtz and wouldnt let her go. A small gentle voice whispered in the back of Erins mind, like a gentle pat of comfort
“Come on Hannah. Once we get rid of the Lady, you and your friends can move on and finally rest.”
“NO!” She screeched her eyes glowing. “You cannot make me!” The accent came out loud and clear, no longer Holtz’s voice but that of the young girl before completely taking over now. The mirror make a loud crack as it splintered again a chunk of glass falling out of the frame and onto the floor.
All four heads turned to look and Hannah pointed. A cold wind picked up and the smell of musty air mixed with frost began to whip around. The room darkened as the mirror grew in its void power. They braced themselves for another round.
“We need to break it!” She yelled over the malestrom and a familiar and terrible voice began to shriek.
“Hannah!” A voice that wasn't Erin’s came out of her mouth calling out to her. “Let her go! Give her back!” Fiona took hold of her legs and hurried her forwards, Erin taking a backseat in her head as she took over. Grabbing her arm and pulling her back in a friendly way.
Hannah looked back at her friend with a look of fear and anger, glowing eyes pleading.
“We had our fun. It was nice yeah but this ain't us.” Hannah tried to rip her arm away but Fiona held fast, and so did Erin breaking through some. Desperately trying to drag her friend back, her Holtz back. She looked back at the mirror then her friend and shook her head. They were both afraid. Hannah yanked her arm away and stumbled back edging towards the bar exit, putting Patty and Abby on edge again, she was about to bolt again. But Hannah took both her hands and faced her.
The winds calmed but the presence of the Lady loomed ever closer. Hannah continued shaking her head furiously, her eyes squeezed shut.
“No no no not yet.”
“Oh stop it you two!” The boy's voice came through and wrenched the two apart, sending both of them to the ground. “Hannah just give her up, not like you can keep her forever.”
Erin came to awareness and looked over towards her pack, she had to get to it. She managed to roll over onto her front prone on the floor. She paused and looked over toward Holtz to see her curled in on herself on her side. Her eyes still squeezed shut tight. She mustered the will to crawl the few feet towards her, having to practically claw her way to her. Holtz had been through enough tonight.
The wind died down but a dark heaviness began to bear down onto them, pressing them down into the floor. The cold seeping in sucking the air out of the room. Holtz’s eyes opened and met hers, looking back at her thinking she saw a hint of Holtz looking back helpless too. She reached out her hand Fiona letting her and Holtz’s hand twitch. Struggling to reach forward like fighting a current.
Their fingertips brushing, and just as they touched, in a blink the two were gone again.