Adermoor Cove: Dissolved Girl - 3. Chapter 3

Moira was sore from the weekend she’d spent in the woods; she’d learned the discomforts of camping the hard way.

Trying to sleep the first night had been a nightmare. Even in the colder months the woods were alive with moving things, heard, but not seen. Moira was hyper-aware of the crunch of dry leaves - in the back of her mind she knew it was just a rabbit or some harmless animal moving through the underbrush; but every time she heard something she found herself peering frantically into the night, thinking the cave had finally popped into existence, only to find herself staring stupidly at the sea.

At night, through to the morning, a chill surrounded her tent. She would curl up in the blankets she'd brought with her and finally slip into an uneasy sleep, where ghostly faces (Ramona's face) taunted her. Then she would wake up and eat breakfast, wondering why she had forced herself into this maddening exile. Yet there was a part of her that liked the isolation of this spot. She liked to look out at the ocean, relishing the fact there was no one around to offer pity and ask questions she didn't want to answer.

Now it was Monday. The last period had ended hours ago and she was sitting at her desk, trying to prepare lesson plans for the following week. She kneaded the back of her neck, where her vertebrae were, trying to ease the stiffness there. No more camping for you, you stupid bitch, she told herself.

Her eyes burned from exhaustion. She was so tired she felt she could lay her head down on the table and fall immediately to sleep. It was the call of a bed - an actual bed - that brought her to her feet. She put everything away, grabbed her purse, and locked the door of her classroom. She entertained fantasies of crawling into bed, laying her head on a soft pillow, and drifting off into a dreamless slumber.

She was halfway down the hallway, heading for the stairwell, before she realized she wasn't alone. Skin prickling, she looked up, and felt all the blood in her body turn to ice. A woman at the end of the hallway, completely naked but for a pumpkin mask obscuring the face. Her breast were covered in dirt. Leaves clung to the bush of her pubic hair in between her legs. The jack-o-lantern mask grinned at her; on a normal day Moira would have found the mask amusing but at the moment she found it terrifying.

Her purse slipped from her fingers. She didn't need the woman to take the mask off to know who it was. She felt terribly nauseous. "Ramona?" she managed to say. Somehow she managed to keep from vomiting.

Ramona said nothing. Slowly, her hands rose into the air, dirty fingers wrapping around the mask. The mask came off" revealing the matted hair, once red now dark from unwash, and the black eyes underneath. The mask fell unwanted onto the floor. Moira found herself wondering where she'd gotten it. It was hard to imagine Ramona sneaking into a store to get it.

The last time Moira had seen her, almost two weeks ago, Ramona had been emotional. She had come to Moira with a message - to help her, to warn her. That night Moira had been sure the love of her life could still be saved. But now, watching as Ramona's mouth, seemed to stretch across her face in a demented grin, Moira wasn't so sure.

"What do you want, Ramona?" Moira asked.

"You," said Ramona. "The dark king said I could have you, and so I've come to take you with me." She spoke with a happy, girly voice. She was practically singing.

Moira's eyes narrowed. This was the second time Ramona had mentioned the dark king. Moira didn't know who Ramona was speaking of or what it was, but she knew it was the cause of the darkness that had entered her life and snatched the woman she loved from her arms.

She means to infect you.

Knowing this didn't disturb Moira as much as it should have. She suddenly felt quite numb. You could only feel so much terror for so long before you hardly noticed it anymore, before you simply stopped caring.

"I can't," she said. More firmly, "I won't."

Apparently this was not the answer Ramona had been hoping for, because the smile disappeared. "Why not? Don't you want to be with me - together? Believe me when I tell you it's far better than what's coming. Even now, at this very second, the dark king gets stronger. You don't want to oppose him when he turns this world into a wasteland."

Moira was shaking her head, not wanting to hear anymore. The numbness had been replaced by doubt and fear. She wanted nothing more than to flee, to get away from Ramona. She was sick of this nightmare - it had gone on for far too long. "I don't want any part of this." Ramona had begun to blur as tears filled Moira's eyes. "I want you to come back to me. I want you to come home."

For a moment, just a moment, Ramona looked sad. "I can't. There is only darkness. If you will not choose to come with me and give yourself to the darkness then I will make you." Then with an inhuman screech she lunged forward.

With a scream, Moira turned and fled. The terror she felt was mindless, suffocating. Lockers and Halloween decorations blurred past her. She screamed for help, though she doubted there was anyone around who could.

She had almost reached the stairwell when she felt Ramona grab her from behind. Strong fingers grabbed her by the back of her hair and hurled her backwards. Moira waved her arms about, trying to keep her balance, but it was no use. Her back slammed into the lockers behind her. The impact with which she hit knocked the wind from her body. She let out a breathless scream, cut off quickly when Ramona's hands clamped around her throat.

Up close Ramona smelled of damp soil and sweat. The flesh stretched across bone was almost transparent she had become so pale. The ribs beneath her chest were visible. She was clearly malnourished, yet Moira could not overpower her as she should have been able to do under normal circumstances.

Beginning to lose consciousness, Moira thought, If this is what giving yourself to the darkness turns you into then I don't want any part of it.

Ramona's other hand stroked Moira's face. Her slender fingers left behind brown, almost-black smears of soil wherever they touched. Her eyes were wide with fascination, as if she was seeing Moira for the very first time.

Moira knew if she gave up now and let unconsciousness take her she wouldn't be Moira when she woke up. She would be like Ramona...she would be something else, doing the bidding of another.

With her last vestige of strength she fought with the desperate ferocity of a wolverine. She managed to drive Ramona back, clawing at her, kicking, shoving, screaming the whole time - not just out of fear but sudden, blinding rage. Somewhere in her strained mind she had stopped seeing Ramona as the woman she loved but as an extension of the will of the entity that wielded her. Whatever hope Moira had held for Ramona had evaporated.

With another mighty shove, Moira pushed Ramona over the top step of the landing. Ramona fell back, arms flailing comically. She fell down the stairs like a log rolling down a hill, head bouncing up and down. There was a sickening thud before she finally came to a stop at the bottom.

Before Moira could contemplate what she'd done, she ran down the stairs, taking them three at a time. Her breath rattled in her chest as she ran past Ramona, through the double doors on her right, into the night. It wasn't until she reached her car she remembered her purse was back in the school, where she'd left it.

There was no time to go back and get it now, so she kept running. She didn’t stop until she saw the lights of downtown Adermoor three blocks later. Her heart galloped in her breast. The wind coming from the breeze was chilly enough to numb her cheeks. She watched a couple, a man and woman, heading in her direction. The presence of people was a comfort.

Just as she was letting out a heavy breath, a voice said, “Moira?”

She turned. It was Ted Magyer, Lane Hardy’s lawyer.

“Ted,” she said, relieved. She was still fighting to catch her breath.

He stood in front of his car, keys in hand and his brief case held in the other. “Are you alright? You look frightened.”

“I need your help,” was all Moira could say. Her throat felt tight, as if she was squeezing out the words through a straw. “Can you take me to Lane’s?”

…

Lane, Carlos, and Ted Magyer listened intently as Moira recounted the story of her latest encounter with Ramona. The warmth of the hot chocolate Lane had made her was comforting as well as the presence of friends. She noted, with guilt and amusement, Lane and Carlos looked as if they had just gotten out of bed. It was impossible not to wonder what they’d been doing together.

“This is the second time she’s mentioned the dark king,” Carlos said after a moment’s thought. “I’m really beginning to wonder just what the hell it is.”

Lane, Moira noted, had grown a shade or two paler when she mentioned the dark king. Now he spoke with great reluctance. “Remember the night Mom hypnotized me? That was him...I think. He attacked us. When I went under there was a moment when I felt him and he felt me. Right before the attack happen I felt him looking at me.” He shuddered visibly. “I know I should have mentioned this earlier but I’ve been trying really hard not to think about it...it wasn’t a pleasant feeling.”

“I’ve been camping outside, hoping the cave would appear,” Moira muttered. She cast a guilty look around the room. “I know it sounds stupid, but I was hoping if she showed up I could get through to her. Now I’m not so sure. She seems really gone.” She began to shake at the memory of Ramona’s cold touch, the sight of her standing at the end of the hallway naked, with nothing but that silly Halloween mask on. I’ll have nightmares about it for the rest of my life, she thought.

“I’m sorry,” Lane said, coming over to sit next to her. His eyes reflected the sense of guilt he was feeling. “After what happened with my aunt and the incident on Donovan Road I’ve been so preoccupied with trying to get settled, I haven’t tried helping Ramona.”

“It’s not your fault, Lane.” Moira took his hand and gave it an encouraging squeeze. She truly meant it. Lane was not at fault any more than she was. She couldn’t believe what she was about to say next, it felt like a betrayal to Ramona, but it had to be said. “I think she’s beyond saving. And I think she’s proven herself to be far too dangerous. She needs to be dealt with.”

“I agree,” said Carlos.

“How?” Ted Magyer asked. His moustache bristled with question.

“Well we know she wants me,” said Moira. “What if we lured her, using me as bait? We could lead her to us and Lane could...” She couldn’t bring herself to finish the rest.

“It sounds dangerous,” Lane said.

Moira laughed hysterically. “I think we moved past the point of safety a long time ago. We don’t have much of a choice. If we caught her maybe somehow we could get information out of her about what’s causing the darkness.”

“Maybe,” said Lane. “From what you’ve said she sounds different from any of the infected people I’ve encountered so far. Smarter and stronger. Are you sure?”

“I’m sure,” Moira said. She hoped she sounded braver than she felt.