Almost Dead (Dead, #1) (6 page)

Laney scoffs. “Do I even want to know why you’re
smiling?”

“I was thinking about your sister and how much she’d love to be in your place.”

“Well, I would gladly give it to her,” Laney says. “I mean, you two freaks belong here. A normal person’s nightmare is your sanctuary.”

“Look at you,” I
sneer, “thinking outside the box. I guess all of that blonde hair dye hasn’t murdered your brain cells after all.”

She sticks outalse stick her tongue. “Oh, shut up. At least I don’t drink the blood of my enemies.”

“Funny. I don’t recall drinking yours.”

“
Not yet,” she retorts.

“Indeed.”

Lying back, I allow the fog to bury me under a thick, white blanket. Technically, there isn’t a sky, as the gray extends as far the eye can see, so it’s not like I’m missing out on stars or the moon. I’ve never realized how important they are until now.

Soft weeping comes from my
right. I sit up, far enough to notice Laney hunched over, her face buried against her bent legs.

“Crying isn’t going to help, ya know,” I say, even though
I sound like a complete bitch. Well, let’s be honest, I am a complete bitch. But also, I’ve never really been in a situation where I needed to comfort someone.

“You don’t understand!” she yells, fists
tightly clenched. “I have family, friends—people who care about me. I
have
to get home. There’s an important pageant next week, and I’ve been busting my ass to win that crown.”

Are her tears even real?

“Must be hard, practicing to win a fake, jewel-studded tiara,” I mock.

“Oh, you! I wish we’d never crashed. I wish none
of this ever happened,” she sputters.

“That makes two of us. As soon as I
find a way out of here, I’m gone,” I calmly state, redirecting my gaze toward the bland woodland beyond.

“I will show you the way out,”
a high-pitched, female voice says, causing me to nearly jump out of my skin. She appears out of the gloom, rays of light surrounding her form, like a vision of hope.

I bolt straight to my feet and stumble backwards.
“W-who are you?” I stammer.

Her lips barely curve at the edges. “My name is Sara, and I will be your spirit guide.”
Her voice chimes when she speaks, like a chorus of one thousand bells, and there’s a halo encasing her entire body. Is she an angel?

“It’s abou
t time we get help,” Laney says as she stands up and folds her arms across her chest. If this lady truly is here to aid us, then Laney needs to keep her mouth closed. I don’t want to be stuck here for the rest of my existence—wherever
here
is.

“Where are we
, exactly?” I ask.

“I have
a great deal to tell you both,” Sara says, “but I’m afraid we’re running out of time. There’s only so much undnly so I can do to help you before you leave here.”

Laney’s arms drop to her sides, and her fingers spread out when she speaks
. “Leave here? Where are we going?”

“
To the Shadowlands, a sister dimension of your world,” Sara replies.

“We’re not dead?” Saliva balls up and tangles in my throat.
That’s…good news, although I’m unsure how we survived the crash. Our bodies are pretty messed up.

“No,” she answers. “
Your souls have not yet moved on.”

The longer I stare at her, the more my eyes burn. I’m afraid I’ll go blind at any moment. Wispy tails of
fog whirl around her form. I have no idea if it’s the mist or something she emits.

“So,
if we’re leaving this place and going home, can I ask where we are?”

Sara
smiles genuinely. “Lichburn. It’s an alternate realm, an extension of where you stand now.”

I glance
over at Laney. She’s giving Sara the same vacant expression.

Unfettered, Sara continues,
“Your physical bodies have not perished, though they may be in terrible condition. You have only a matter of time to warn those who can aid you. I’m afraid we’re restricted in our studies together, ladies,” says Sara. “There’s only so much time…”

I swear to God she’s hovering
a foot above the ground.

“Like studying homework?”
Laney inquires.

“No, I need to teach you how to move objects and contact the living so that you may tell your families where your bodies rest.”

“Wicked,” I exclaim. “When do we start?”

Laney
sighs dramatically. “Look, I don’t really care who you are or what you’re here for. I just want to get out of this place, so if you could hurry this up, that’d be great.”

“Don’t be a bitch,” I tell her.

She scowls at me, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder. “I don’t have to listen to you, freak.”

“Ladies, please,” Sara
appeals. “We don’t have much time.”

Laney
’s eyes roll around once in their sockets. “I swear I just said we need to speed up this little shindig.”

Maybe I can finish off her body before this is over with. That’s
if
we make it out of here. Crossing my fingers.

W
hy am
I
the one who gets stuck with a freak from the afterlife and a freak from real life? Personally, I don’t want to go anywhere near Sara. She scares me—and not in the way of I’m-going-to-eat-your-face, but the way of I’m-hiding-something-and-then-I’m-going-to-eat-your-face.

Ew.

Sara leads us past where we were stuck before and through some uncolored trees (imagine that). It’s fantastic knowing that the discoloration of this world is never-ending. Oh, and my spirit feels as if it’s thinly stretched, like taffy before it’s molded and cooled.

Before I can ask why this is happening to me, a portal filled with blue, purple, and green swirling matter opens ahead. Having not seen color for a while,
the radiance burns my retinas. It’s like when I’m in a tanning bed and don’t wear the protective goggles.
Ugh
.

“If you think I’m going through that, you’re badly mistaken,” I say.

Flora gives me a severe look. She wants this. I understand; I want it, too, just not with either of them. I’ll take Oliver over these weirdoes any day of the week.

“
Fine. Remain here until your body dies,” Flora states, completely emotionless. Even her face is a blank slate.

Bitch.

“Fine. I’ll do that,” I say, lifting my chin a little higher. Maybe all of the lessons with Oliver about keeping my head raised are paying off.

“Laney,” Sara
begins with a gentle voice, “if you stay, I can’t help you. When the portal closes, there is no turning back. I can only help those in need once.”

“Basically,
you Barbie wannabe,” Flora cuts in, “you either stay and die or you go and have a chance at living.” She’s upset with me, but it’s not my fault I’m indecisive. I don’t want to be led into Satan’s parlor. I have to be cautious around these two.

I stomp my foot. That usually how I get my way with Chase.
“Whatever,” I mumble. “Just…hurry up so I can make it to the pageant next week. I need to look good in that dress.”

Flora tosses me a dumbass look. I know what I’m talking about. She probably doesn’t even know what a dress is.
Go worship Marilyn Manson or something
.

“You’re so stupid,” Flora states, though it’s not like her opinion really matters. She’s never accomplished anything in life, except being a burden to everyone around her. “Even if you do make it
out of here alive and recover froze=bm this accident, you won’t be in that pageant. You’ll be in a damn hospital.”

Huh. Okay, maybe the weirdo does have a point. Wait… Oh, my God.
I won’t be in the Miss Briarhaven pageant
. My life really is ruined. I’ve been training for weeks—
months
—and for what? Nothing.

I’m about five thousand percent done with
existing.

“Follow me,” Sara says melodically.
Her voice is like using a fillet knife on the end of my nerves:
painful
.

Sara disappears first, followed by Flora.
I curse under my breath. Is this what I want? Am I dumb enough to believe some creepy, angelic being appears out of nowhere, saying she only has one chance to help us? What if she’s lying? What if I step through that portal and it’s all a trick?

Ugh times ten. This place is starting to annoy me. And—

Oh, my God! The portal’s closing. It’s now or never. Plus, I really don’t want to stay here by myself. So, without second guessing this whole idea, I leap through the entrance. The experience isn’t entirely horrible, I guess. Inside, the portal has the same blue, purple, and green shades as it does on the outside, and there are specks of glitter floating on top of the colorful waves of whatever this thing is made of. White light radiates at the end, the intensity nearly blinding me. The closer we get, the greater the brightness. I shut my eyes, hoping my retinas haven’t been permanently damaged…and stumble as my feet hit a solid surface.

We
’ve landed in a tiny log cabin. Windows extend from floor to ceiling. A stone fireplace ignites on its own in the living room. The furniture is draped in cream-colored sheets, books are forgotten under piles of dust and cobwebs, and white candlesticks have melted, wax hardened along their edges.

“Ummm…
if you’re, like, a ghost, how do you have furniture and books?” I ask. It should be an easy question. I mean, how’d she transport these belongings to another dimension? And why are we in color but everything else is gray?

Flora and Sara stare at me, but I don’t tell them my thoughts.
Oh, my God. What if Sara steals items from people who die? She might’ve stolen my purse when I wasn’t looking. Does this mean she’s technically a grave robber?

“Our world isn’t so different from yours, Laney. We may not be up to date with technology, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have basic necessities. Now, m
ake yourselves at home. This may be a long night,” Sara says, taking a seat on one of the chairs. Flora sits on the couch. I lean against a table next to a dusty bookshelf.

“You aren’t glowing anymore,” I say, eyeing her up and down like she’s a cheap trick. I d
on’t have time for games.

“I don’t glow within ownglow withe
confines of my home. Out there”—she points toward the ginormous floor-to-ceiling windows—“is different. Out there, I light the way.”

“How
touching,” I add, for lack of a good comeback. She’s like an angel in disguise. In purgatory. I don’t find this comforting.

“I’m going to teach you both how to move
through objects,” Sara states, getting right to the point. “It’s simple, once you acquire a feel for the ability.”

Move
through objects? What good is that going to do? I need to be put back inside my body so I can use my cell phone and call my parents, or Chase.

S
ara leans forward and runs her hand through the coffee table before I can object to any more bullshit. It doesn’t land flat on the wood with a
thud
—it completely disappears from sight. I glance under the table to make sure I’m actually seeing this.