The Writer’s Room

Of all the people who could have been on the other side of that door, why did it have to be you? All those years since you vanished, since anyone had seen you, thinking you were dead, we mourned you. And yet, nearly fifteen years since that day, here you were alive and well. Smiling as if you’d simply been studying abroad and had just come back for the holidays, not back from the dead.

You looked older. I don’t know why that surprised me. Of course you’d be older, we weren’t fourteen anymore, time would have taken its course. I grew, why wouldn’t you? I just had the image of you as a teen, in my mind you hadn’t aged. You were taller, more defined, you’d cut your hair short. It felt like hours I stood frozen at the sight of you, time stood still for an eternity. It was you who broke the silence.

“Surprise! You look like you’ve seen a ghost, although I suppose in a way you have.” Your smile was maliciously amused, enjoying my shock like you had waited years to see me like that - you had.

“Dylan, I- well - this is, I mean - I can’t believe you’re here.” I couldn’t get my words out, I didn’t know what to say. It’s funny to think about now because if I could go back there is so much more I would say. I have the whole speech in my mind, and still practice it every day even though you will never hear it. You only laughed at me, at my awkwardness.

“God, you can’t even talk properly anymore? Maybe all those blows to the head over the years did more damage than I thought.” You surprised me with your callousness. I had never heard you insult anyone before, let alone me, it shocked me at the time but now I’m surprised you never did before this. You should have. Maybe I could have realised how badly I was acting and stopped - I probably wouldn’t.

“Heh, no brain damage here, I don’t think I’d be able to work if I were.” I didn’t know how to respond, so I laughed. I treated this like a joke only because I didn’t yet understand what was really going on, if I did I wouldn’t have responded like that.

“No?” Your disappointment was evident, it was my last chance to potentially change the way this would go. My last test. I failed. Your face fell, eyes crinkled in anger, I wonder sometimes if things would have turned out differently if I has just apologised when I saw you. “So, you’re still the same bastard you were back in school.”

“Sorry?” I knew what you were talking about but I didn’t want to admit it even though there was no reason not to. There were no cameras in there, me and you both knew the truth, the only reason I didn’t was because of my pride. If only I had just admitted it.

“You know, I wanted nothing to do with you at first, I avoided you. It took someone else to point out all the lies you were telling the public about me and you, the way we grew up. You told them all about the early years but you conveniently ‘forgot’ about what happened after your ability manifested and I didn’t get one. It pissed me off at the time but I had other things to do, clients orders to fill, you know the drill. I’d probably still be doing that if not for you.” You paused, waiting for me to piece it together myself. I didn’t then, I couldn’t have known, not that I tried, my mind was blank. I doubt you’d actually expected me to because you answered yourself not a few seconds later.

“Remember a few months ago? You and a bunch of your colleagues raided our base and forced us to collapse. I think you were the one who arrested the big boss.”

“But,” the horror as my stomach dropped at that realisation, you were so close to me, and yet on the complete opposite side to me. To know that I had a hand in getting you here. I pushed you so far for no reason other than my pride. “We caught everyone involved with that group, there was no sign of anyone else.” You smiled, letting out a small laugh.

“I’ve gotten pretty good at hiding over the years, you gave me a good head-start at school.” The malicious gleam in your eyes as you glared at me told me more than your smile did. I remembered running through the school halls searching for you, some days we couldn’t find you, some days we would. Those were the bad days, sometimes you would still have fading bruises from the last time we found you.

“Then why change that now?” I can’t imagine those months after the raid were easy from you, the life you’d built from nothing after I’d chased you away, destroyed by the very same person who destroyed everything you had before. “You got away, why tell me knowing I’ll have to arrest you?” Your glare bore through my soul, you were quiet and final.

“No, you won’t.”

“I can’t make an exception for you, I have to take you in.” I had every intention to. Anything to get your eyes off me and away from my guilt.

“And risk damaging your precious reputation? I don’t think so,” you laughed. “Because I’ll tell them, and I won’t leave a single injury out. How do you think your adoring fans will react when they find out what a horrible person you really are?” My silence lasted too long to not be noticed.

“Well, then,” I stumbled over my words, trying to find the best way to respond. “Maybe I can just walk away and you can go back to wherever you’ve been for the past few months.” It was the wrong thing to say, I knew it even then but my damn pride couldn’t put my image aside to do the right thing, you knew this. I played into your hand.

You won’t do that either,” You were calm and composed this time, not at all surprised at my stupidity.

“Why not?” I was indignant, even knowing I was wrong. I had dug my grave years ago and you’d still given me extra chances to not fall in. I still failed.

“Did you forget what I wrote in the letter I sent you? I told you I have a way to poison everyone here!” You had broken your composure, my underestimation of you had shocked you. Even now, even when you had held a gun to my head I still couldn’t see your threat. “Did you think I was joking?” I always did, I never took you seriously. “I have standards, I couldn’t just say that and not actually do it.” I winced at that.

“So I walk away and you kill everyone here?”

“Pretty much.”

“I don’t want to fight you.”

“Too bad, cause I really do.”

You threw your fist at my head so fast I almost didn’t see it coming. I raised my arm blocking you a split second before you made contact. A sharp pain shot from my ankle and I collapsed. It still moved, I could still stand. I didn’t prepare for this, if a fight were to happen I’d usually use their own ability against them. But you had none for me to copy. As I stood a force knocked me back to the floor, I didn’t realise it was you until I was already down. The crack that followed pulled me back. My stomach turned as I saw my leg swollen, pointing at an odd angle. My heart dropped as your hands closed around my neck.

“I’ve known you for too long, but you really haven’t changed. Think you’re a god because of your ability? Doesn’t work with me though, does it?” I didn’t listen to a lot of your ramblings as I clawed at your hands, kicking up with my good leg. Spots started clouding my vision and my chest burned. You let go. I coughed, taking deep breaths as you walked away to the release button. I couldn’t let you reach it, you have to know that, you were the one who didn’t take mu knife away. The moment it left my hand, time slowed. It arced through the air, spinning as it flew before embedding itself directly into your heart.

Your sharp intake of breath before you collapsed was the most deafening thing I had ever heard, until it was drowned out by the thud of your body hitting the ground. I scrambled over to you, your shallow breaths and warm blood pooling around you, coating me wherever it touched, the only indicators of life. Life slowly ebbing away.

I have stayed in this place for centuries. Few are brave enough to bother me anymore. Those who do never stay for long, adults and teenagers alike. A party of thrill-seekers will attempt to stay overnight, with their cameras, tripods and recorders. They come seeking horror and ghostly footage, if it will keep them here I will provide. People mostly come to be scared, if I must be a monster in order to stay here, to keep my rare visitors, I will.

Occasionally someone seeking shelter will enter my walls, most of them are fully grown, recently evicted, with no family or friends to turn to, and nowhere else left to go. I let these ones stay a while, eventually they all move on. Sometimes these ones will attempt to perform immoral and illicit activities. I always drive them in and keep them there until authorities can show up. They never return. Sometimes young children find their way to me, children with bruises no child should have, carrying pain no one should endure. These ones stay as long as they require. I do what I can to help and not scare them. I send these ones to charities, people who can help these children. Some of them do return after years with families of their own, they tell me of their stories and their lives. They do well.

Today is a mixture of all of them. They are not yet adults, most have cameras and they have sleeping bags. A small party of six thrill-seeking youngsters, wanting a ghost story to share with the world. There may be no ghost, but I will provide evidence of one anyway. However, one of the six, a relatively normal looking young lady, she has the sinister feeling of the ones who come here for immoral purposes. As she walks through the front door into my domain I can see the glint of metal from her bag, a weapon she intends to use on the other’s in her party.

These children are endangered by one of their own, and it seems like I am the only one who has noticed. Who would suspect a vicious attack from a friend? I watch as she plays her role, smiling and laughing as they set up their cameras. They are all unaware of her true intent, I must warn them somehow, tell them to leave, but how? The TV? They’re set up near the antique device that has long since been out of use, but it’s mine. I send the power through the old frayed wiring. Static flickers across the screen and I flick through the thousands of images and sounds until I could scramble together a message for them; a voice saying to leave, a woman screaming, a knife, a pool of blood, another voice telling them to run. They would listen, they had to.

They didn’t. They laughed, pointed their cameras at the TV, made jokes. They are in danger, the girl with the weapon is laughing at the idea she would kill them. What to do? If they won’t leave they will die. If I scare then away, would she kill them elsewhere? Will she try again? She might. Perhaps I shouldn’t let her leave then, it’s safer for her to stay here where I can deal with her. I will do everything within my power to stop her. I reroute the power again, this time the static delivered my message to her; I won’t let you kill them, you will not leave my domain. I lock all the exits, windows and doors alike. She will stay here as long as required to stop her.

The rest of her party are still laughing at the TV, they do not notice the exits being sealed. She does though. Her head darts around the room, she knows I had caught her, but she doesn’t know what I am. No one has figured it out yet, I doubt she will. I need to separate her from the group. How do I do that? The party came for ghosts. If I give them multiple things to document, they’ll split up. I can get her alone. I can deal with her by myself. If I hand her over to the authorities she won’t be charged, there’s no evidence of her plan, she will try again.

Six ghosts for a party of six ghost hunters, each in different sections of the house. They split up, holding their cameras. She attempts to follow one of the others, but I close and lock the door behind them so she can’t. She goes into her room instead, attempting to find a way to one of her targets. I lock her in. She panics, running from door to door to try and open one, banging her fists on them in a pitiful attempt to escape. She tires when no one hears her screams, crumbling to the ground. Perfect. This is what I waited for. The walls open up and skeletal hands grab for her. They drag her as she kicks and squirms and screams. Closer and closer to the abyss created in the space where the walls once were, she is dragged in by the skeletons of those trapped long before. The sacrifices to keep me strong.