Page 110 of Ever After

“Children,” Levi interjects wearily. “Shall we get this done, or just stay sniping at each other in a graveyard until the sun comes up and we get arrested?”

“You never said that was an option,” I say, and he smiles.

Branok clears his throat. “’Tis over there,” he says, pointing at a low wall to the right of the graveyard. “I can dimly see the statue. I cannot help you now. I can go no farther than this boundary.”

“It’s fine,” Levi immediately soothes. “It’s just digging up a grave, opening a coffin, pulling out the skeleton, and… oh my god.” He bends over, breathing heavily.

I pat his back. “He is long dead, though. Not… not moist.”

“Gross,” he mumbles. “You’re such a fucking help, Blue.”

“I do try.” I give him another comforting pat and then turn around and pick my way over the graves towards the one Branok indicated. The moon is out again, and I can see the marble statue’s hand glowing. It looks otherworldly and I supress a shiver.

The ground rumbles as I walk on it, and underneath my feet, the mutterings get louder and louder.

“Shocking,” a woman says crossly. “No manners at all. Look how he steps over me with those big feet. Clumsy dolt.”

“Rude,” I mutter.

“What?” Levi asks from beside me.

“Just the dead,” I say.

He makes a faint sound of horror in reply, but we keep walking.

My skin crawls as though the spiders are back, but I immediately banish that fucking thought. I don’t need someone to take it as inspiration.

I glance up and groan when I see the grave hasn’t got any closer despite how many steps I’ve taken. The fog drifts around my knees, ragged wisps of it moving against my clothes. I feel cold all the way through, and the heavy scent of earth and decay fills my nostrils and coats my throat.

My feet are so heavy, my bones hurting.

I stare down at the ground. “Oh god.”

Levi gives me an anxious look. “What is it?”

I look from him to the ground. “You can’t see it?”

“See what?”

I’m ankle-deep in the soil and I can no longer see my feet. It’s like I’m sinking through the upper earth down to the graves beneath. I shudder. “Nothing,” I say quickly.

“Blue.”

I grab his arm and pull him close to whisper in his ear. “They’re not going to let me get to that grave.”

“What?” He looks around wildly. “Who?”

“The dead,” I say simply.

“No,” he says. “No, no, no. Let’s go back. I’m not risking you for a dead man’s quest.”

“Branok’s quest.”

He sags slightly and nods.

I give him a hug and whisper, “This is where we separate. Something’s coming.”

“What’s coming? And, no, we are not going to separate.”