âIâm going to say this as straight and plain as I can. Youâre dead.â
I chuckle at this. âBuddy, Iâm not sure I know what youâre talking about.â
âSo is he.â The man nods at Halfacre.
âRightâ¦whatever you say, pal.â This guy is obviously mental. âDo you know a fella named Dirk? He works here. I know him.â
The man ignores me. âYou were beaten down by one of your degenerate fellow menâmurdered. Then your body was dumped in a field. I brought your soul here.â He points to a clearing where I can barely make out the lines of a car.
Something sparks in my memory. For a second everything comes rushing back at once, kind of like waking up and remembering a dream from the night before. I remember this guy pulling me away. The whole time I could see Hank standing over my lifeless body.
Hank just stood there confused, looking back and forth from me to Halfacre, neither of us moving.
I faded in and out after being dragged to the car and then driven for who knows how long. I donât know what happened to Halfacre. He must have got in the way of the shovel.
âI carried your soul here,â the man repeats. âYour soulâdo you understand? All you have left is your soul.â He waits for me like Iâm supposed to respond. âYour ghost was lost. So I constructed this body for you with bits of your DNA.â He gestures at me like heâs pointing out something that isnât important. âBut itâs not very substantial; youâre just a shadow, now.â
I donât believe a word the man is saying, but my legs give out anyway. Sliding to the floor boards of the porch, there are several thoughts fighting over my mind. Cold-cock this guy. Find Dirk. What happens when you die? Go back to sleep and try to wake up again.
The man continues to speak quietly, almost to himself. âSorry for being so blunt about it, but you seemed like a hard-nosed guy.â
âSureâwhatever,â I say. I donât want to hear what he has to say, even though Iâve got a sick feeling heâs telling the truth. I reach for a cigarette and then remember I canât taste them. Damn it.
âI need you to listen to me, to be open-minded,â the man says. Heâs shifted gears again, from distant to serious and focused. âI need your help.â
âOh, yeah? With what?â I say with as much sarcasm as possible. Thereâs no way Iâm dead. I canât be. I can feel my body. Iâm breathâ¦wait, Iâm not breathing. I havenât taken a breath in the last thirty seconds.
Like he can read my mind, the man says, âGo ahead; take a deep breath.â
Near panic, I take a huge gulp of nothing.
âItâs just a reflex,â he says with half a grin. âWe can talk inside. Iâll try my best to answer your questions.â
âGet away from me,â I say as I stand and stumble away from him. Itâs a dream, thatâs all.
At a trot, Halfacre follows me off the porch.
The man walks to the edge of the first step. âYou donât want to go out thereânot now, not by yourself.â
A few steps from the porch, I look as far as I can see into the fog. There are trees beyond the clearing, big ones, but thatâs all I can tell. âIâll take my chances.â
âPlease,â the man says, âhear me out. Thereâs something elseâyou can still find your ghost.â
I point a finger at him and again tell him to stay away from me. My gut says to run, and I always listen to my gut.
Our Walk Through the Woods
October 28th, 1986
Culver Crisp on recess
Starla and I stand on a small hill away from the kids on the playground. The woods are in front of us, and Jeff and Timmy are behind us. I was hoping Timmy wouldnât remember his dare from yesterday.
âYou gonna go, or what?â Jeff snickers. Heâs wearing a
Rebecca Hamilton, Conner Kressley