When Love Hurts and Ghosts Linger (16 page)

The drive isn’t that far away and we will be there shortly, a worrying feeling comes over me, for some reason some voice in my head tells me something is wrong with Jack. 

Mother intuition maybe? I don’t know but I know that when I walk through that door I will run over to him and check him all over.

We arrive outside the house and I see Jack’s little head pop up in the window with a huge smile and a wave. I unclip my seatbelt and head to the front door.

His mum opens the door and Jack comes running towards me. He leaps into my arms and the pain hurts as his body bashes against my ribs, but I don’t care, he’s worth feeling this pain just to hold him tightly.

“Mummy I missed you” he says sweetly.

“Aww mummy missed you too sweetheart” I say happily smothering him in kisses.

I put him down and give Levi’s mum a kiss on the cheek and say thank you. She offers us to stay for dinner and I can’t say no, I feel that would be being rude, I offer to help but she insists she does it, she’s such a sweet woman, now I know where Levi gets his kindness from, I smile at the thought.

“Where’s Jack?” I prompt looking for him.

“Oh he’s probably playing upstairs, sweet boy has a wonderful imagination and loves to tell stories when playing with his toys” Levi’s mother states happily.

This is true, Jack does have an imagination, wait, hang on, I’m confused “What stories?”

“Oh you know of the man who comes to visit to play with him and promises to take him to a magical land….” She laughs “I think he’s creating someone from Disney.”

My stomach flips, she doesn’t know it but I know it, some ghost has been talking to my son, sounds weird but I just know. I go upstairs to find Jack when I hear him talking, I feel the cold air and the hair rises on back of my neck, I know he’s not alone, for fuck sake now they found him here? I don’t go in the room, I just listen, I can hear both of them speaking.

“No, mummy doesn’t like me going with strangers.”

“I’m no stranger little one, come with me and I will show you magical things”

“Can we take mummy and Levi too?”

My heart sinks a little that wherever this thing wants to take him Jack is thinking of Levi, I’m glad they have bonded.

“We can take your mummy but this Levi person will have to stay”

“Ok, I will go get mummy first and then….” Jack stops.

I open the door quickly to see him sat there and a black hooded figure sat at the edge of the bed.

“Who are you…?” I ask scared.

“I am he who collects what is needed” this voice is deep, manly almost.

“Well he who collects what is needed, why are you bothering my son?” I’m annoyed.

“I am he who collects what is needed….”

I cut him off “Yes, yes I know you just told me that….”

“And what I need is him” and he points at Jack.

My mouth goes dry; this black hooded figure I swear from memory I have seen before. He makes his way towards me and I walk backwards until I hit the wall and am unable to move any further.

“I always get what I come for” his voice callous.

“Look, I don’t know who you are and quite frankly I don’t care, but you will never ever lay your hands on my son do you hear me!” I tried to hide the fear in my voice.

This black hooded figure doesn’t move, he just leans in on me, he’s so close I can smell sewerage or something just as vile. He looks up and I can see his face, it makes me scream, it’s ghostly with maggots and flies all over him, blood everywhere, I feel very sick.

“Babe?” 

I hear Levi calling me, this thing takes a look at me, he sort of gives a crooked smile and then he disappears.

Levi bursts into the room “you ok?” he seems worried.

“Uhhh-uhh-, y-yeah, yeah sorry I’m fine” but my voice is shaky and giving away the fact that I am scared.

I can see the worried expression on Levi’s face; I place my hand on his cheek tenderly.

“I’m ok babe, I just need to speak to Jack a second ok, go help your mum, I’ll be fine” I smile softly.

He kisses the palm of my hand and leaves, hesitantly.

“Sweetie, can mummy talk to you a sec” I ask as I sit beside him.

“Yeah mummy” he replies so nicely.

“Who was that man you were talking to?”

“My friend mummy, well, he is a stranger but he is my friend” he babbles.

“A stranger cannot be your friend, that’s why we call them strangers, because we don’t know them” I advise my voice stern.

“Ok mummy,”

“Where was he going to take you?”

“To magical place where he says I will grow big and strong” he smiles childish at me.

“Where too?”

“I don’t know” he shrugs.

My heart is beating fast, those fuckers have stepped up their game, but what I don’t understand is why Ivan the fucker has sent someone else after my boy and not come after him himself? He can surely attack me he’s had no issues doing that so why not attack Jack? I don’t want him to of course I don’t but I don’t understand.

“Dinners ready” Levi’s mum calls from the bottom of the stairs.

“Uhh yeah coming” I look at Jack “Sweetheart we need to keep this our secret ok, mummy will find the man and ask him ok, now be good at the dinner table.”

“Ok mummy” he kisses me and heads downstairs.

At the table everyone is entering in polite nice conversation, smiling and laughing with each-other, Jack is being such a good boy and using his manners well, proud mummy moment there. But in my head all I can think about is that bloody ghost and what game they are playing. The question keeps repeating in my mind 
‘Who is he’
 and the words he used 
‘I am he who collects what is needed.’

What? He needs Jack? I know what Ivan needs Jack for I have already been told this but to get that they need mine too so why send someone else. Ahhh for god’s sake I wish I had the answers right here. I need help, more help, my head is screaming out for someone to help me but who? Do I go and see another psychic or spiritualist or what? What do I do?

“Are you ok my dear,” Levi’s mum asks concerned.

“Yes thank you” I smile back.

“You seem a million miles away” she tilts her head smiling.

“Sorry, just listening to you all” I lie.

Levi can sense there is something wrong with me and he knows it’s something to do with me and Jack, he can guess what it is, I see it on his face how he is trying to work it out but deep down he knows it wasn’t a normal ghost and he knows that my mind is trying to put pieces together and figure this out.

We have been at Levi’s mums all day and Jack is starting to get tired, so we get Jack wrapped up, give his mum a kiss, say thank you and our goodbyes and head on home. In the car I can see Levi has something on his mind, it’s written all over his face, he has that look when he's thinking something and his brow crinkles.

“You ok” I ask him softly.

“Yeah just…..I don’t know” he sighs.

“Tell me” I push.

“This thing, this thing with you, I know it was happening in my mums and the thing with Pete, just a lot babe you know and I’m trying to keep my cool but it’s hard,” he runs his hand through his hair.

I swallow a lump in my throat, “I know and if it’s too much I understand if you want to leave” my head lowers.

“No, no, no I don’t want to leave baby, it’s me and you, it’s just trying to wrap my head round it” he places his hand on my knee.

“I know it is babe but I don’t think I could find the strength without you….” I smile softly.

We hold hands on the way home; I can feel how much he loves me just by holding my hand or the way he looks at me. When we arrive home its gone eight o’clock and Jack is fast asleep, we get him out of the car and quietly make our way inside and out him to bed.

I’m so glad to have my boy back safe and sound where he belongs, I stand in the doorway for a while and stare at him, even though his father is a complete knob head, this little boy is a perfect creation.

Levi appears behind me and wraps his arms around my waist and looks at Jack with me, he tells me to let him sleep and that we should go to bed too, he has to go back to work tomorrow and then he will be going back to his apartment, I wish he didn’t have to leave me, I hate being on my own and even though he can’t protect me I feel safer when he’s here with me.

We lie on the bed, he cuddles in behind me and wraps his arms around my waist, this is my safest place in the world, here in his arms, I hear him breathing, I think he’s asleep already, very early but I don’t care, I snuggle my head into my pillow and nod off.

I feel cold and it wakes me, Levi is sleeping soundly wrapped up in the blanket, his arm still over me, my ribs still hurt a little, when will these blood things heal? I climb out of bed quietly not to disturb him, its freezing, my toes feel numb it’s that cold. I make my way out into the hallway to Jack’s room to check on him, he’s sleeping soundly all cuddled up in his quilt.

I walk through the flat, fuck me it’s like a frozen winter in my flat right now, icicles will appear from the ceiling if it gets any colder. I hear whispers so I head towards the kitchen but I see no-one. I switch the light on and look around, I can feel my body shiver and my heart pound, I’m scared but my body is too cold for my brain to notice.

“Robyn”

I jump out of my skin, there he is, Jay, in-front of me.

“Jay what the…..”

“Listen I don’t have much time,” he’s looking all around him as if to be expecting someone.

“You look like shit Jay, how are you here….” I’m so confused and he looks awful, he has a wound to the head now and what appears to be holes in his ghostly apparition.

“I’m here for you; I had to come tell you, I know you need help”

“How do you know that?”

“He has sent someone for Jack, to befriend him, earn his trust, once he has that he will bring Jack to the darkness, he knows you’ll follow, he knows you will go after Jack, he wants Jack to come willingly so his soul is easier to take….” He says fast.

“But he needs my soul to have Jack’s” I’m confused.

“Yes, he will wear you down until you give it but remember, you are stronger, if you give yours it means you surrender Jack's he is trying to befriend him so that Jack thinks it's safe to go with him, that’s why he needs his trust, so Jack will say yes to him but he won’t fear him….” He sounds so panicked.

He quickly turns his head as if he hears something.

“I have to go, I don’t think I can come back I will try though, don’t let him get Jack Robyn, remember you are stronger” and before I know it he’s gone.

Ok, I know I was screaming for help in my head but there is no possible way he would have heard that and how the fuck did he get here? I don’t get it! And what the fuck happened to him, he looks awful, like he has endured so much torture and pain.

For a moment I feel sad for him but then something clicks, Jack is a five year old boy, he's six soon and over time when he spends time with people he trusts them, this thing sent to get him is befriending him so they can take him easily. Ok, so I understand that bit but how do I stop Jack befriending them, do I block his memories like my mother done with me so that he forgets he can see them and therefore they can’t contact him, but wait, no, I can’t do that, I remember what it did to me, how I felt them and thought I was going crazy and when they did reappear how frightening it was, I couldn’t do that to my little boy, the only way I guess I could help him is to try and teach him not to go with anyone, dead or alive, you know, the strangers thing we teach all kids, even if they seem nice always come see mummy.

I go back upstairs and quietly climb back into bed, I hear the trees blowing outside, I see them almost tap on the window, they form shadows on my ceiling, its normal temperature but I know they are watching me, I snuggle into Levi and go back to sleep.

I roll over to cuddle into Levi but he’s not there, I open my eyes and its morning, I hear Jack and Levi giggling and talking, they must be in the kitchen having breakfast. It’s nice knowing they have bonded, I know Pete is Jack’s father but I wish everyday Levi was, he’s so much better for him and isn’t a complete asshole.

“Morning beautiful” he smiles at me.

“Morning to you too” I sit with them.

I’m feeling rather blue to be honest, Levi is going back to his apartment and I really don’t want him to plus my mind is racing about last night, I feel time is running out and something is coming now, like a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach that something isn’t quite right.

“Go get dressed sweetie mummy has to take you to school….” I kiss Jack on the forehead.

He skips off very happy to his room. Levi is looking at me, his blue eyes twinkling at me, I want him right there on the kitchen table but I can’t.

“You don’t seem happy babe” he looks sympathetic almost.

“I’m fine babe, just a lot in my head right now…”

He pulls me across so that I sit on his lap and he kisses my knuckles softly. I see the 
‘tell me’
 in his eyes.

“You can talk to me you know”

“I know, it’s just, I don’t want you to leave and ghost stuff” my voice is low.

“Ok, well the ghost stuff I can’t say much on but….if you don’t want me to leave….then I don’t have to” he smiles.

I look at him, eyes wide open “wait….you’d move in?”

“Yes of course I would”

I fling my arms around him and kiss him passionately, why I didn’t just ask him this in the first place I don’t know, maybe I was scared that he wouldn’t want to live with me, ya know, ghosts and all. I feel excitement running through my body, like a little school girl with a birthday present, mega excited and I know Jack will be pleased.

“I need to get dressed baby” I smile and kiss him.

“Me to” he smiles back.