Hades

5 Highway to Hell

I stood on the landing watching my hysterical friends stumble down the stairs two at a time. It wouldn’t be long before word spread that there’d been an actual ghost sighting on the night of Halloween. While no one had actually seen anything, I was sure the story would be embellished many times before the night was over.

A sudden wave of dizziness caused me to reach for the banister to steady myself. So far what had been planned as a night of fun had turned out to be anything but. I’d had enough of this party. It was time to leave. Now all I had to do was find Xavier and ask him to take me home. When the dizziness passed, I found my way into the kitchen where I was grateful to be greeted by a much more innocent Halloween activity. A group was taking turns bobbing for apples in a tin tub they’d dragged in from the barn and placed in the center of the room. A girl was on her knees practicing taking deep breaths before submerging her face in the water. The onlookers cheered her on. When she finally rocked back on her heels, her dark hair clung to her exposed neck and shoulders and a rosy apple was clenched triumphantly between her teeth. When someone propelled me forward, I realized I had unwittingly joined the line to play.

“Your turn!” I felt a swarm of warm bodies around me.

I resisted by digging my heels into the floor. “I don’t want a turn. I was just watching.”

“Come on!” the voices urged. “Give it a shot.”

I decided it might be easier to pick up an apple than try to fight their enthusiasm. Despite the voice in my head telling me to run, to leave this place, I found myself on my knees staring at my own reflection distorted by the movement of the water. I squeezed my eyes shut and forced the warnings out of my head. When I opened them, I saw something in the water that made my heart stop. Hovering just behind my reflection was a wobbly image of a wasted face, its skeletal features concealed behind a heavy hood. It clutched something in its crooked, clawlike hand. Was it a sickle? Its free hand reached out toward me and its abnormally elongated fingers seemed to curl themselves like tendrils around my neck. I knew it was impossible, but the figure was startlingly familiar. I’d seen its iconic black robes in books and paintings and I knew it from my teachings back home. It was a representation of death … a Grim Reaper. But what did it want from me? I couldn’t be touched by death so it must be here for a different reason. It was an omen. But of what? I panicked and pushed my way roughly out of the circle and ran for the back door.

Outside I could still hear the muffled cries of protest at my alleged lack of participation. I ignored them and put a hand on my chest as if willing my heartbeat to steady. The cool air helped a little, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that the phantom reaper had followed me and was lurking nearby, waiting for a chance to catch me alone and encircle my throat with its wafer-thin hands.

“Beth, what are you doing out here? Are you all right?”

I heard a strange sound and realized it was coming from me. I was taking long, gasping breaths. The voice was familiar but it didn’t belong to Xavier as I’d hoped. Ben Carter got off the porch and came and stood beside me, shaking me gently as if I needed to be woken from a trance. The human contact made me feel marginally better.

“Beth, what happened? You sounded like you were choking ….” Ben’s uncombed hair hung over his brown eyes, which now looked at me with trepidation. I tried to catch my breath but failed and began to fall forward instead. If Ben hadn’t been there to catch me, I would have toppled facedown onto the ground. Ben seemed to be of the opinion that I had caused my own state of suffocation.

“What the hell are you doing?” he demanded, once he’d established that I wasn’t dying. He peered at me closely. Beneath his apprehension I saw a new idea dawn. “Have you been drinking?”

I was about to vehemently deny such an allegation before realizing that it was probably the most plausible explanation I could offer for my erratic behavior.

“Maybe,” I said, twisting out of his grasp and struggling to my feet. I backed away from Ben, fighting the urge to burst into tears. “Thanks for your help,” I said rapidly. “I’m fine. Really.”

As I walked away from him, one question kept sounding in my head, loud and clear. Where was Xavier? Something was wrong. I could feel it. Every celestial instinct warned me that we needed to get out of here. Fast.

I found a weeping willow in the front yard and leaned against its sturdy trunk. I could see Ben still standing by the front porch looking at me with an expression of concern mingled with confusion. But I couldn’t worry about having offended Ben now. I had more important things to think about. Could it seriously be happening again? Could demons have returned to Venus Cove? I knew for a fact that there was no more evil in this place. Gabriel and Ivy had seen to that. Jake had been banished — I’d seen raging tongues of fire consume him. He couldn’t be back. But why was every hair on my body standing on end? Why were chills coursing through my veins like tiny lightning bolts?

I felt as if I were being hunted. From where I stood alone on the gravel drive, I had an uninterrupted view of the back fields and the thick woodland beyond. I could see the scarecrow in the paddock, his head drooping onto his chest. I hoped Xavier was on his way back from the lake. I knew as soon as I saw him my fear would ebb away like a receding tide. Together we were strong and could protect each other. I needed to find him.

Just then, a gust of wind set the dry grass rustling. The scarecrow’s clothing began to flap and its head snapped up, staring directly at me with its black button eyes. My heart somersaulted in my chest and I let out a piercing scream. I spun on my heels and started back toward the house.

I didn’t get far before colliding with someone.

“Whoa, take it easy,” said a boy, hopping lightly to one side. “What’s up? You look kind of freaked out.”

His speech was far too slurred for a demon’s, and when I glanced up, I saw he didn’t look like one either. He wasn’t wearing a costume and I recognized him vaguely from somewhere. My panic subsided a little when I realized it was Ryan Robertson, Molly’s former prom date. He was standing with a huddle of people who had gathered outside the front porch. A half-consumed cigarette dangled from his hand. The group regarded me with sluggish disinterest. There was a sharp, bitter scent in the air that I couldn’t identify, but was strangely pungent.

I lifted a hand to my cheek, felt it burning hot, and was grateful for the cool night air against my skin. “I’m okay,” I said, trying to sound convincing. The last thing I wanted to do was raise unnecessary alarm based on my own misgivings.

“That’s good.” Ryan closed his eyes dreamily. “I wouldn’t want you to be not okay, if you see what I mean.” I frowned; he wasn’t sounding entirely coherent. Was it me, I wondered? Was I going completely crazy or was this bizarre party to blame?

I jumped when the screen door slammed. Molly appeared on the porch.

“Beth, there you are!” She seemed relieved to see me and leapt down the steps. “Way to freak me out! I didn’t know where you’d gone.” Her gaze swept disdainfully over Ryan and his cohort. “What are you doing with them?”

“Ryan was just helping me,” I mumbled.

“I’m a helpful person,” Ryan declared indignantly.

Molly caught sight of the hand-rolled cigarette in his hand. “Are you high?” she demanded as she thumped his shoulder.

“Not high,” Ryan clarified. “I believe the term is greened out.”

“You loser!” Molly erupted. “You’re supposed to be driving me home. No way am I spending the night in this creepy dump.”

“Quit your whining, I drive better high,” Ryan said. “Sharpens my senses. By the way, I think I need a bucket ….”

“If you’re gonna puke, don’t do it near me,” Molly snapped.

“I think we should call it a night,” I said to her. “Will you help me find Xavier?” My suggestion was met with a swell of protest from Ryan and his friends.

“Sure,” said Molly, rolling her eyes at them. “I doubt tonight could get any weirder.”

We had just headed back toward the house in search of Xavier when the sound of a motorcycle tearing through the grass caused us to turn around. There was something urgent about the way it screamed to a halt in front of us, spraying gravel through the air. Molly shielded her eyes against the glow of the headlights. The rider slid off in one easy movement but left the engine running. He was dressed casually in a worn aviator-style leather jacket and backward baseball cap. I recognized the tall, well-built boy immediately as Wesley Cowan. Xavier and I passed his house every Friday afternoon on our way home from school. Wes would inevitably be crouched in his driveway polishing his dad’s old Merc in preparation for a weekend of partying. Wes played on Xavier’s polo team and I knew he numbered among his closest friends. Like Xavier, Wes was one of the hardest boys to rattle. There was very little that succeeded in shaking his air of confidence. It was surprising to see him now with his shirt muddy and his face creased with worry.

Instinctively Molly reached out to grab his arm.

“Wes, what’s wrong?”

His chest heaved as he struggled to get the words out. “There’s been an accident at the lake,” he gasped. “Someone call 911!”

Ryan and his friends sobered in an instant, collectively withdrawing cell phones from their pockets.

“No reception,” Ryan announced after a few minutes of trying. He shook his cell in frustration and cursed under his breath. “We must be out of range.”

“What happened?” Molly asked.

Before he spoke, Wesley threw me a strange look; it was almost imploring, like he was seeking my forgiveness.

“We dared him to dive-bomb from a tree but there were rocks in the water. He hit his head. He won’t wake up.”

As he spoke, his gaze never left my face. Why was he singling me out like this? I’d remained silent, but now a cold panic seized me, wrapping around me like icy fingers. It wasn’t Xavier. It couldn’t be Xavier. Xavier was the responsible one who had gone down there to keep an eye on the others. Xavier was probably down there right now, using his first-aid training until help arrived. But I knew my heart wasn’t going to stop pounding until I knew for certain. Someone else asked the question I couldn’t bring myself to utter.

“Who’s hurt?”

Wesley’s eyes looked guilt ridden and he hesitated a fraction too long, so I knew the answer before he spoke the name out loud.

“Woods.” It came out as a bland statement of fact, devoid of emotion, which didn’t strike me as odd until later when I replayed the scene in my head. But in that moment, all I could feel were my legs giving way beneath me. My worst fear — much greater than anything happening to me — was that any harm should come to Xavier, and now it had just come true. For a second it was too much to take in and I sagged helplessly against Ryan, who tried to hold me up, despite his own lack of balance. So this was what Xavier and I got as reward for spending time apart. I couldn’t believe fate could be so cruel. The one night our paths diverged he ended up unconscious. Wes put his head in his hands and groaned.

“Man, we are so screwed.”

“Was he drunk?” Ryan asked.

“Course he was,” Wes snapped. “We all were.”

In all the time we’d been together I’d never known Xavier to have more than a couple of beers. I’d never seen him touch hard liquor; he thought it was irresponsible. I couldn’t reconcile the image of him drunk and reckless in my head. It didn’t add up.

“No,” I said numbly. “Xavier doesn’t drink.”

“Yeah? Well, there’s a first time for everything.”

“Shut up and call an ambulance!” Molly screeched. Then I felt her arm around my shoulder and her auburn curls brushed my cheek as she leaned her head against mine. “It’s okay, Bethie, he’ll be okay,” she said.

Wesley watched us. His panic seemed to have transformed into a perverse delight in my distress. Others had gathered now and everyone had an opinion to voice on the best course of action. Their voices combined to create a meaningless babble.

“How bad is it? Should we try getting him to a doctor?”

“We’re all screwed if we call 911.”

“Oh, great idea,” someone retorted sarcastically. “Let’s just wait and see if he comes to by himself.”

“How bad is it, Wes?”

“I’m not too sure.” Wesley looked defeated. “He cut his head. There was a fair bit of blood ….”

“Crap. We gotta get help.”

The image of Xavier lying on the ground bleeding spurred me to action.

“I have to find him!” I was already stumbling toward Wesley. “Someone show me the way to the lake!” Molly was suddenly by my side, her hands gripping my shoulders both restraining and comforting.

“Calm down, Beth” she said. “Can somebody drive her?”

“Don’t be stupid, Molly, the lake’s in the woods,” Ben said. “You can’t get there by car. Someone drive into town and call a friggin’ ambulance.”

I couldn’t waste another second listening to their facile deliberations when Xavier was hurt and my healing powers could help him.

“I’m going,” I announced, breaking into a run.

“Wait! I can take you.” Wes had suddenly reverted back to his former concern. “It’s faster than runnin’ in the dark,” he added weakly, as if he knew that taking me to Xavier would in no way exonerate his involvement in the accident.

“No,” Molly said protectively. “You should stay here while we try and get a doctor.”

“What about calling his dad?” someone suggested. “He’s a surgeon, isn’t he?”

“Good idea. Find his number.”

“Mr. Woods is a cool guy, he won’t report us.”

“Yeah and how are you gonna contact him without reception?” Ben sounded exasperated. “Telepathy?”

I was struggling to keep my wings from bursting free and carrying me to Xavier. It was my body’s natural reaction, and I didn’t know if I could contain them much longer. I looked impatiently at Wesley.

“What are we waiting for?”

By way of reply he mounted the bike and offered me his arm so I could use it to wedge myself in behind him. The shiny motorcycle glinted like some alien insect in the moonlight.

“Hey! What about a helmet?” Ben asked churlishly as Wes kicked the bike into gear. He resented the school jocks and their daredevil antics. I could see in his face that he was also concerned about my safety given Wesley’s questionable level of responsibility. I understood that Ben was only being protective, but right then I had only one objective in mind and that was to get to Xavier.

“No time.” Wes was curt. He reached back to grab both my arms and positioned them securely around his waist.

“Hold on tight,” he instructed. “And whatever you do, don’t let go.”

The bike spun around before careening down the driveway and out toward the black ribbon of highway.

“Isn’t the lake the other way?” I shouted over the roar of the engine.

“Shortcut,” Wes bellowed in reply.

I tried reaching out to Xavier to sense the extent of his injuries. But I drew a blank. It surprised me; I could usually sense his moods even before he did. Gabriel had told me I would know immediately if he were ever in trouble. But this time I’d missed it. Was it because I’d been too busy stressing out over a ridiculous séance?

Wes had just turned onto the highway and begun to pick up speed when I heard a voice calling my name from behind. Even over the din of the engine I knew it was a voice I loved more than any other and I’d been waiting to hear it all night. It revived me. Wes swerved the bike around, and I saw Xavier standing, washed in moonlight, on the side of the road. My heart lightened immediately. He looked perfectly healthy.

“Beth?” he repeated my name in a cautious tone. He was standing just meters away from us and I was so excited to see him in one piece that it didn’t even occur to me that anything might be amiss. I didn’t stop to wonder why Xavier looked so surprised to see us.

“Where are you guys going?” he asked. “And, Wes, where the hell did you get that bike?”

“Xavier!” I cried out in relief. “Thank God, you woke up! How’s your head? Everyone’s so worried. We need to get back and tell them you’re okay.”

“My head?” he asked, the consternation on his face deepening. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about the accident! Maybe you have a concussion. Wes, let me off this thing.”

“Beth, I’m fine.” Xavier scratched his head. “Nothing happened to me.”

“But I thought—,” I began and then stopped short. Not only did Xavier look fine but there wasn’t a mark on him and no evidence of an injury. He looked exactly the way he did when I’d left him, in jeans and a fitted black T-shirt. I saw Xavier’s posture shift subtly into a more defensive stance. His ocean blue eyes darkened as understanding dawned.

“Beth,” he said slowly. “I want you to get off that bike.”

“Wes?” I tapped him lightly on the shoulder, suddenly aware that he hadn’t spoken a single word for the entire duration of my conversation with Xavier. The bike was still vibrating beneath me and yet the person in front of me remained motionless, his gaze fixed ahead.

Xavier strained to take a step forward, but something prevented him and he remained rooted to the spot. He tried to keep his voice level, but I couldn’t miss the undercurrent of urgency.

“Beth, did you hear me? Get off now!”

I planted both feet on the ground in order to appease Xavier, but when I tried to shift my arms from around Wesley’s waist, he suddenly revved the engine and the bike shot backward. I had to clutch him even tighter to avoid falling off.

Until that moment I still thought the whole thing was an elaborate hoax on Wesley’s part that Xavier failed to find amusing. Then I saw Xavier run a hand helplessly through his hair and watched his forehead crease in anguish. I saw a look in his eyes I hadn’t seen since that fateful afternoon in the cemetery when he’d been incapacitated and I’d been captured before his very eyes. He wore that same look now — the one that told me he was desperately searching for an escape, even though he knew we were cornered. It was as if he were facing off against a poisonous snake that might strike at any moment and the slightest wrong move could be fatal. Wes spun the bike in random circles, enjoying the anxiety he was causing. Xavier yelled out and tried to run forward but an unseen force held him back. He gritted his teeth and hurled himself against the invisible barrier blocking his way, but it was no use. The bike careered tauntingly in all directions.

“What’s going on?” I cried as the bike finally stopped and settled into the dust. “Xav, what’s happening?”

We were closer to Xavier now and in his eyes I could see deep pain, but also anger and intense frustration at his inability to help me. Now I knew I was in real danger. Maybe we both were.

“Beth … that’s not Wes.” The words chilled me to the core and filled me with defeat. I tried letting go of Wesley. I was ready to throw myself off the bike, but I couldn’t move my arms. They seemed to be pinned by an invisible force.

“Stop! Let me off!” I pleaded.

“Too late,” Wesley replied, only it wasn’t Wes anymore. His voice was now slick and smooth, a polished English accent clearly detectable. That voice had haunted my dreams for so long, I would have recognized it anywhere. The body I had my arms wrapped around began to shift beneath my fingers. The broad, muscled chest and well-defined arms shrank to become leaner and colder to the touch. Wesley’s broad hands became slender and turned bone white. The backward baseball cap flew off to reveal lustrous black locks that danced in the wind. For the first time he twisted his face around to confront me. The sight of him so close made me sick to my stomach. Jake’s face hadn’t changed a bit. Black shoulderlength hair contrasted sharply with the pallor of his face. I recognized the narrow nose that drooped slightly at the tip and the cheekbones carved out of rock that had made Molly once compare him to a Calvin Klein model. His pale lips parted to reveal small and dazzlingly white teeth. Only the eyes were different. They seemed to pulse with a dark energy, and as I looked into them I saw that they were neither green nor black as I remembered but a dull shade of burgundy. Just like the color of dried blood.

“NO!” Xavier shouted, his face contorted with despair. His voice was swallowed by the wind on the empty highway. “GET AWAY FROM HER!”

What happened next was a blur. I knew Xavier was somehow released from his immobility because I saw him sprint full speed toward me. My arms too became free and I tried to wrestle myself off the bike but felt a searing pain in my head and realized that Jake was now holding a fistful of my hair. He was maneuvering the bike singlehanded. I ignored the scalding sensation and struggled harder, but my efforts were useless.

“Gotcha,” he purred. It was the sound of a contented predator.

Jake twisted the throttle hard and I heard the engine roar to life like an angry beast. The motorcycle bucked and lurched unsteadily forward. “Xavier!” I cried just as he reached us. We simultaneously outstretched our hands and our fingers nearly met. But Jake violently veered the bike so that it slammed into Xavier’s side. I heard a heavy thud as the metal slammed into his body. I screamed as Xavier was thrown backward and rolled limply onto the side of the road. Then I couldn’t see him anymore. The bike sped past, leaving him lying in a cloud of dust. Out of the corner of my eye I could see people starting to make their way up to the road, attracted by the commotion. I only prayed they’d find Xavier in time to help him.

The bike hurtled up the deserted highway that uncoiled before us like a black whip. Jake was driving at such breakneck speed that when we rounded a bend we found ourselves almost parallel with the ground. Every fiber in my body yearned to return to Xavier. My one true love. The light of my life. My chest constricted to the point where I couldn’t breathe when I thought of him lying motionless in the dust. My pain was so all consuming that I hardly cared where Jake was taking me to or what horrors awaited. I just needed to know that Xavier was okay. I tried not to allow myself to consider the worst although the word dead rang in my ears, clear as a church bell. It took me a moment to realize that I was crying. My body convulsed with huge, wracking sobs, and my eyes burned from the scalding tears.

There was nothing else to do but call upon the Creator, praying, begging, pleading, bargaining — anything to make him protect Xavier. I couldn’t have him ripped away from me like that. I could survive emotional turmoil; I could survive the most intense physical torture. I could survive Armageddon and holy fire raining down upon the earth, but I could not survive without him. A strange thought entered my head: If Jake had killed Xavier, Jake would have to pay. I didn’t care what divine laws forbade it — I would seek retribution for my loss. I was willing to pardon any crime, but one against Xavier, and so help me, God, Jake would get his comeuppance. I wanted to scratch and tear at the body in front of me — to punish him for once again infecting my life with his black presence. I felt contaminated even being near him. I considered flinging my weight to the side and trying to topple the bike. I knew that at the speed we were traveling, we’d probably both end up smeared across the asphalt, but I was desperate.

Before my thoughts could rage further out of control, something happened — something I could never have imagined, not even in my most twisted nightmares. It should have terrified me; the very idea of it should have knocked me into unconsciousness. It was so unfathomable that I felt nothing but a sickening feeling that seemed to come from my core and spread like poison through my body. The highway defied gravity and suddenly reared up in front of us. A deep, jagged crack appeared in its center. The highway was splitting open. The crack widened like a hungry cavernous mouth, waiting to swallow us up. The wind that whipped my face grew warmer and steam rose from the broken asphalt. I knew instinctively what it was from the feeling of hollow emptiness that emanated from it. We were heading straight toward a gateway to Hell.

And then it was upon us.

I screamed again when the motorcycle hovered a moment in midair. Jake cut the engine just before we plummeted soundlessly into the void. I turned around to see the aperture close behind us, shutting out the moonlight, the trees, the cicadas, and the earth I loved so much.

I had no idea how long it would be before I saw it again. The last thing I was aware of was falling and the sound of my own ragged screams before the darkness consumed us.