Counting Down (25 page)

He sighed.
“Nothing.” She heard the smack of his lips as his words sat on his tongue. “It’s nothing.”

Abby wanted to push for more information but she knew there was no point. She would only be talking to herself anyway. And suddenly she felt the strong urge to talk to someone with a pulse. She’d had enough of this weird, one sided conversation.

“Alex!”

Maybe a minute went by before he showed up at her bunk and pushed aside her curtain.

“What’s up? You want a beer or something?” His cheeks were flushed from drinking and he held three beer bottles in his hands. Two of them were unopened. “Sam and Jake can really suck down some booze so I’ve got my own stash.”

“No. Thanks anyway. Listen, can I talk to you about something?”

“Yeah, of course. What’s going on?”

Alex plopped down next to her on the bunk, flipped the switch to turn her light on. Abby squinted against the light and waited for her eyes to adjust. She never used the strip light. She didn’t need to. Complete darkness was something she never saw anymore.

With her hands folded in her lap, Abby began. “There’s really no other way to put this. So uh… I’ve been hearing Kyle’s voice.”

Alex didn’t skip a beat. “I know. I hear you talking to him. So does everyone else.”

“Shit. So I’m the resident crazy person then?”

“Well I wouldn’t go that far.” He took a swig from his open bottle. “Since you figured out the girl’s powers there seems to be a quiet understanding that you have unique methods that just happen to pay off in the long run.”

Abby frowned. “I’m not sure that’s any better Alex.”

He shrugged. “Well, at least they’re not calling you Circus Freak anymore.”

“What? They called me a circus freak?”

“Not a circus freak. The Circus Freak.”

She threw up her hands. “Well that’s just great.”

Alex chuckled. “Calm down Abbs. It’s not that bad. They listen to you and believe you can help them with their special talents… or whatever they are. Don’t worry about it.”

Abby wasn’t convinced but let the subject drop. “Why didn’t you say anything to me about talking to Kyle?”

“I figured it would pass and I thought maybe it was kind of normal considering the circumstances.”

“The circumstances that he was a guy I knew for three days who sacrificed himself right after he found out we shared a past life together?”

Alex sent her a look. “There was more to it than that and you know it. You cared about him and he cared about you. It was obvious.”

“It was?” She was usually the observant one, but sometimes people
outside a situation saw things better
.

He nodded as he drained the last of his beer and opened another one. “After what you told me, about the connection between the two of you, I was worried you were going to do something stupid when he died.”

“Like what?”

He gave her a look, ran a hand along the inside of her thigh.

She smacked his hand and jumped back an inch. “What are doing?”

“Where’d that scar come from Abbs?”

Abby looked down, fidgeted with her hands. “It was a sad time for me. I wasn’t thinking straight then.”

Alex nodded knowingly. “As long as you’re thinking straight now.”

“I was just sad. I don’t think I really want
ed to succeed at… ending it all
. Maybe I just wanted to stop for a while. Stop all the hurting.”

“And now you’re hurting again. And so you hear his voice sometimes. I don’t think it makes you crazy and it’s better than coping by hurting yourself. You’re just sad right now.”

She shrugged off her past with a shake of her head. “Maybe. But it’s not like I hear him every once in a while when I’m thinking about him or sitting alone killing time. I don’t hear him calling my name in the bunker or anything nondescript like that. I literally have conversations with a dead man.”

Abby grabbed one of unopened bottles from his hand and twisted the cap off. “Thing is, I don’t want it to go away. Not really. I mean I argue with him about it… well I guess I argue with myself. But I don’t really want to stop hearing him.”

“How often do you hear him?”

“It’s sporadic. Some days it’s constant and other times a day or two will go by without a word. It sounds so real Alex, like it’s really him.”

He leaned in and lowered his voice. “Did you really love him Abbs?”

“I don’t think I had a choice in that matter. But I don’t know if love is the right term. It seems too small of a word somehow. But who knows? We only had a few days to get to know each other. We might’ve learned to hate each other eventually if given the chance.” Her smile was sad.

Alex wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulled her head into his chest. “Maybe, but I’m sure it would’ve been fun getting there. You were connected with each other and he was a part of you. I don’t think you’re crazy.”

Abby swallowed the lump in her throat. “I guess I’m just destined to be haunted then.”

He gave her a squeeze. “I’ll make sure no one thinks you’ve lost it. Okay?”

“Okay, but do me a favor? I know you and Jimmy have been doing some bonding since we went under. Don’t mention this to him okay? He probably won’t notice anything weird anyway. If it’s not classic cars or old TV shows he doesn’t really pay attention.”

“Okay. I won’t say anything to him.” He paused, pushed a strand of her hair from his chin. “I promise.”

Wednesday, January 9th 2013, 11:27pm

“S
o what do you think?” Alex leaned against the wall of the bunker, his body propped up next to the bathroom door.

Jim rubbed his sunken eyes with the back of his hand. “Honestly? I think she’s having some sort of meltdown. She doesn’t want to deal with him being gone and her mind is creating an escape from reality. What else could it be?”

Alex nodded his head heavily. “Yeah, I think you’re probably right.”

Alex had given Abby over a week to come to grips with her delusions, but even as he broke his promise to her, she was in her bunk carrying on a conversation with a ghost.

“Maybe it has something to do with her visions,” Alex pondered. “
Maybe they have negative effects.”

“Like schizophrenia? I don’t know, but nothing would surprise me at this point.”

Jim didn’t understand. Nothing was logical anymore. He was living in a bomb shelter with one person who could make dried apricots juicy and full of life again and another who could wave one freckled hand and heal deep wounds that would otherwise need sutures. Now his niece was losing her mind. That or she had a direct line to the afterlife. He was suddenly glad he couldn’t see any of the glowing. That would likely send him over the edge.

“What should we do about it?” Alex asked. “We can’t just hold her down and shake some sense into her.”

Jim shook his head, exhausted. “If her mind doesn’t want to believe it there’s not much we can do.”

Alex’s let out a heavy sigh, shoved his hands into his pockets. “I promised her I wouldn’t say anything to you about it, but I don’t want to lose her completely because of all this? There must be some way to shock her back to reality.”

“I don’t think so. Not until we get up top and show her the….” Jim squeezed his eyes shut against the image in his head. “…body.”

Alex nodded then stood up straighter. “I think you should talk to her. You’re the closest thing she’s ever had to a father. She might listen to you and start letting go.”

“I’m not old enough to be her father.” Jim shrugged. “But I guess it’s worth a try.”

The two of them walked the short distance to Abby’s bunk in silence. They listened for a second before disturbing her.

“You think so? That actually makes some sense. They’re Movers not Builders. Huh? Yeah, I’ll try that then.”

Alex tapped his fist lightly on the frame of her bunk. “Abby? Can we talk to you?”

She was quiet for a second, not bothering to open the curtain. “Who’s we?”

“Uh it’s me… Alex. And Jim.”

Abby flipped the curtain open now with a swoosh. “You told him didn’t you?”

Alex looked down at his shoes. “I didn’t know what else to do Abbs. We just want to help you get over it.”

She sighed heavily and stepped out of her bunk. Her eyes scanned the bunks seeing only closed curtains with no lights shining through. With her head she gestured for the three of them to go into the main room.

Abby turned hot eyes on Alex. “Couldn’t keep your mouth shut, could you Alex?”

Jim spoke up in defense. “It’s not his fault Abby. I asked him if he knew how you were doing and I pulled it out of him.” Jim gave Alex a sideways glance which told him to play along. “We just want to help.”

“How? Did you guys recently get degrees in psychology that I don’t know about?
And what’s the point anyway?
I’m not hurting anyone. In fact, Kyle is helping me figure out what ability the guys might have.”

She stopped and looked passed them, obviously listening to something they couldn’t hear.

“What’s the voice saying now Abby?” Jim leaned towards her, put his face in her line of sight.

“He’s telling me I shouldn’t be mad at Alex. That he’s grateful I have people around me who care.”

Jim raised his eyebrows. “Well you should listen to him. Ghost, delusion, or whatever that’s good advice.”

Abby plopped down at one of the tables and rested her head in her hand. “Yeah. I’ve been realizing lately that insane people are full of great advice.” She sighed. “Look, I’m okay. Stop worrying. I know that’s going to be hard considering I’ve turned into someone you would avoid on the street, but I’m also someone who has had visions of the future, who glows from the inside out. Whatever I am doesn’t come with an instruction manual. I’m sure there’s some reason that I can now communicate with the dead or at the very least my own seriously insightful subconscious.”

Jim nodded but Alex didn’t look convinced. “Just don’t go catatonic on me okay?”

Abby managed a chuckle. “I’ll do my best Alex.”

* * *

The next morning Abby was ready to
continue cracking the code of the Yellow Gleamers. After her discussion with herself/Kyle the night before, she had some theories and was eager to try them out.

She finished up a small breakfast of Evie’s resurrected fruit before stepping to the doorway of the sleeping area. “Hey guys, meeting in the main room. I’d like everyone, but I especially need to see the Yellow guys.”

Everyone gathered around in the living area, looking tired. Even the two hounds looked annoyed as they plopped down onto the floor to get more rest.

Abby began. “I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what you guys can do.” She gestured to the men shining yellow against the back wall. “I think I’ve come up with a possibility.”

David rolled his eyes with an exaggerated movement of his head. “Been talking to your ghost again?”

Alex popped out from the doorway then, glaring at David to let the other man know he’d heard the comment.

Abby ignored the exchange and turned to Jake. “Why don’t you go first?”

Jake walked into the center of the room, turned to wink at Hannah. The red head’s cheeks darkened with a blush. He seemed to swagger even in sweatpants and a ragged tee shirt.

“Okay, I’m all yours. What am I supposed to do?” Jake asked.

Abby glanced around the room, her eyes settling on a row of unopened water bottles on the counter. “Try to pick one of those bottles up with your mind.”

Jake laughed, uneasy. “Right. Seriously, what do you want me to do?”

Abby’s face was
straight
.
“I want you to move the water bottle with your mind.”