\u201cYou have a way. I know you have a way.\u201d To Aiden\u2019s shame, his voice broke on the last word. <\/p>\n
Magda glared at him. \u201cNo. Can\u2019t be done, not without God\u2019s help anyway. And I don\u2019t believe divine intervention is real, either, so let\u2019s just say it can\u2019t be done, period.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t lie to me. I saw Missy Engle talking to you, alive, after she died. After Tara came to see you.\u201d <\/p>\n
For a moment, he feared that Magda would stand up and slap him. After a few seconds of staring at him in icy rage, she looked away and bit a thumbnail. \u201cDon\u2019t know where people get these stupid ideas, like I\u2019m a witch or something.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden drew a shaking breath. \u201cI don\u2019t think you\u2019re a witch, but I know you\u2019re hiding something. And if it\u2019s something that can bring him back, then. . . I\u2019m sorry, but I won\u2019t leave you alone until you tell me.\u201d<\/p>\n
She stood, then, and brushed some speck of lint off her denim work-shirt. \u201cI\u2019m sorry that you lost Milo. I truly am, and if I had a secret laboratory that could resurrect him, I\u2019d do it. But what you\u2019re asking, I can\u2019t do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden didn\u2019t move. \u201cWhat about Tara Engle\u2019s daughter?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at the floor. \u201cThat\u2019s a sad story, and not one that\u2019ll help you. Please leave, now.\u201d
\n<\/p>\n
Aiden sat in his car, and watched Magda\u2019s house, and thought about Milo. He thought about that day over a year ago, when he had almost finished closing up the caf\u00e9. The bell over the door, which he thought was annoying but the tourists found quaint, had jingled to announce an arrival. He turned, mouth open to shoo away a would-be customer, when he saw that it was Milo.
\n\u201cHelp you close up?\u201d Milo asked. He smiled as he said it, but Aiden saw the exhaustion in his eyes. Milo had been going grey for years now but had never looked old, not until that moment.
\nAiden wiped his hands on his jeans and crossed the room. \u201cGod, Lo, I\u2019m sorry. Come here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo leaned into the hug, and they stood like that for a while. Finally, he pulled back. \u201cIt was Missy. You know, Tara and Chase\u2019s oldest.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden swallowed. \u201cChrist. What happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, her fucking boyfriend hit a tree with his car. He\u2019s fine, but she went through the windshield.\u201d He shuddered and looked away. \u201cShe was alive when they brought her in, but. . . I mean, those head injuries. . . Well. I couldn\u2019t get her stabilized.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden rested his hands on Milo\u2019s elbows. \u201cLo, did you do everything you could?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you don\u2019t have anything to feel guilty about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo nodded and pinched the bridge of his nose. Aiden could see the lines he got between his eyebrows when his head hurt. \u201cYeah, I know. It was just hard, seeing Tara there. She was in shock, babbling, not making any sense. After I told her, she just kept saying \u2018I have to find Magda, I have to talk to Magda.\u2019 Wouldn\u2019t even acknowledge it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMagda?\u201d Aiden frowned. \u201cDid she mean Magda Warren? The one who sells cheese and stuff at the market?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe. That\u2019s the only Magda I know.\u201d Milo retrieved the dishcloth and tossed it to the sink behind the counter. \u201cMaybe they\u2019re good friends or something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHm.\u201d Aiden tried to recall ever seeing Magda Warren in their neighborhood. Tara\u2019s house was visible from the front porch, and he and Milo usually went outside to sit there several times a week. They watched the neighbors come and go, and saw when strangers arrived. He doubted Magda could be a frequent visitor without him noticing, and she lived well outside of the town. Aiden talked to her occasionally at the market, and found her likable in a brusque sort of way. He couldn\u2019t quite picture her being close to Tara, who was friendly but also loud and a gossip. <\/p>\n
Milo noticed Aiden\u2019s thoughtful expression. \u201cLook, it doesn\u2019t matter. Tara might have a sister named Magda, right, I mean, we\u2019re not her best friends or anything. And anyway, in her mental state, God knows what she was thinking. You ready to go? I need to go home and relax and have a beer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBeer and a backrub?\u201d Aiden offered, grabbing his keys.<\/p>\n
Milo smiled, and it was tired but genuine. \u201cHow\u2019d you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden waited three days before walking over to the Engle house. He wondered if he was supposed to bring something, and then wondered if he should be going at all. It was always like this when someone died, he thought. Nobody knows the rules for grieving or giving comfort. Milo refused to go. \u201cThe last thing they\u2019re gonna want to see right now is the doctor who couldn\u2019t save their kid.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not how they\u2019ll think of you,\u201d Aiden had protested, but Milo got that stony look and he knew it would be a mistake to push harder. <\/p>\n
So Aiden crossed the street by himself and knocked on the door before he could think better of it. As he heard footsteps from inside the house, he looked down and realized he still had on the stained T-shirt and jeans he\u2019d worn to do yardwork earlier in the morning. He\u2019d washed his hands, but there were still traces of dried mud on his pants. Cursing himself, he wondered how much of a breach of protocol it was to pay your respects in the same clothes you use to pull weeds. He\u2019d never heard it discussed, but it certainly sounded like the sort of thing that would earn him a disgusted sigh and a smack upside the head from one of his sisters. <\/p>\n
As soon as Chase opened the door, Aiden saw that he needn\u2019t have worried. A grenade could probably go off and Chase wouldn\u2019t spare it a glance. \u201cHi, Aiden,\u201d he said, mechanically and without making eye contact.<\/p>\n
Aiden took a hesitant step forward. \u201cChase, hi. Look, I don\u2019t want to intrude, but I just wanted to say how sorry I am about Missy. If there\u2019s anything we can do–\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot unless you know a good hitman.\u201d When Aiden didn\u2019t respond, Chase added, \u201cYou know, for her boyfriend.\u201d His mouth formed a hard slash in his doughy face. Aiden had always found Chase nice enough, if a little dull, prone to staring off into space and drifting in and out of conversations. This was the first time he\u2019d ever heard the man say a harsh word about anything. <\/p>\n
Aiden glanced down at the porch. His eyes fixed on a Super Soaker one of the kids had left leaning against the railing. \u201cWell,\u201d he said at last, \u201cCan\u2019t help you there, but if you need us to watch the other kids or something, just let us know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chase nodded. \u201cI appreciate it. Might take you up on it, actually. It\u2019s just been me here for the last two days, and without Tara, it\u2019s getting. . .\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere\u2019s Tara?\u201d Aiden asked before thinking.<\/p>\n
Chase took off his smudged glasses and wiped his red eyes. \u201cShe\u2019s at Magda Warren\u2019s. Don\u2019t ask me why, they\u2019re not even friends. I think she\u2019s just lost it. So, yeah, I might bring the kids over tonight and see if I can go get her to come home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, of course, any time. Whatever you need.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks, man.\u201d Chase reached out and shook Aiden\u2019s hand. His grip was limp and cold. \u201cAnd thanks for not bringing a fucking casserole. Got so much casserole in this house, I\u2019m gonna have to start feeding it to the dogs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden slowly walked home, picking over the conversation in his head. Milo was waiting at the kitchen table. \u201cHow are they?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cHm? Oh. Chase is pretty much a zombie.\u201d He pulled a glass out of the cabinet and poured himself some water. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about Tara?\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden thought about repeating what Chase had told him. But it would lead to speculation about what Tara was doing, and he knew Milo wanted to think about that as little as possible. He settled for, \u201cI don\u2019t know. She wasn\u2019t there. But we might be watching Jaden and Mackenzie tonight while they take care of some stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo blinked, and some of the tension drained out of his shoulders. Aiden knew what he was thinking: Tara and Chase would never let him babysit their children if they blamed him for Missy. Milo exhaled quickly and stood. \u201cGreat. I\u2019ll see if we have any movies they\u2019d like.\u201d<\/p>\n
The doorbell rang at 7:00 the next morning. Aiden, pouring more orange juice for Mackenzie, exchanged a glance with Milo. Milo stood at the stove with a spatula, pausing in the act of flipping a half-cooked pancake. Both of the kids sat in silence, still wearing their rumpled clothes from the previous day. Setting down the cup of juice, Aiden went to see who it was.<\/p>\n
The kids had been quiet and morose when Chase dropped them off the previous evening. They\u2019d never really acted normally, of course, but they\u2019d been somewhat cheered by Aiden\u2019s spaghetti and Milo\u2019s enthusiasm for drawing. They\u2019d eaten dinner, watched a movie, and played a few rounds of Jenga without any problems. The kids even giggled a little at Aiden\u2019s exaggerated reaction to knocking over the column of blocks. There was no mention of Missy, and both Mackenzie and Jaden seemed grateful for the distraction. <\/p>\n
Around 10:00, though, Aiden started to worry. The kids were young, five and eight, and he felt pretty sure they were supposed to be asleep by now. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did Chase say he\u2019d be back?\u201d Milo murmured as Aiden checked his phone for messages.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo hours. It\u2019s been almost five.\u201d <\/p>\n
Aiden tried calling several times, always going straight to voicemail. He even, after a moment of hesitation, tried Tara\u2019s number. <\/p>\n
By 11:00, both of the kids were asleep on the couch and Milo went to make up the bed in the guest room. They carried the kids to the bed, tucked them in, and returned to the living room to wait. \u201cWhere was he going again?\u201d Milo asked.<\/p>\n
Aiden rubbed one of his eyes. \u201cTara hasn\u2019t been staying at the house since Missy died. He was going to try to get her to come home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo raised his eyebrows but said nothing. At 1:00 am, they both gave up waiting and went to bed, only to be roused at 6:00 by Mackenzie knocking on the door and demanding to know where Mommy and Daddy were. \u201cThey\u2019re just taking care of some things, pumpkin,\u201d Aiden replied, trying to sound more awake than he really was. \u201cThey\u2019ll be back soon. Come on, let\u2019s go get some breakfast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden opened the front door and froze, mouth open. Chase had been dead-eyed and lost the previous day, but now his grief seemed raw and new. His face was swollen and eyes bloodshot with crying. He leaned against the door frame with one hand, as if unable to support his weight. \u201cI\u2019m here for the, for the kids,\u201d he said, breath hitching between words. <\/p>\n
Aiden finally got his voice to work. \u201cI\u2019ll get them. Do you want to come in?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. . . No, I\u2019ll wait.\u201d And he covered his face in both hands and turned away, shoulders shaking with quiet sobs.<\/p>\n
As Aiden turned, he saw Tara. She stood on the sidewalk, one hand on the open door of Chase\u2019s car. Her head was bowed, blonde hair covering her face. Deep crimson scratches covered her arms. As he watched, she turned to look at him. Unlike Chase, she hadn\u2019t been crying. There was grief in her expression, but also shock and deep, powerful guilt. She met his eyes without a word for several seconds. Then she turned away and wandered down the middle of the street, vaguely in the direction of the Engle house. She wore no shoes. <\/p>\n
Aiden went back in the house, almost fleeing from the sight. He quickly bundled the kids into their coats and shoes. Milo started to protest, started to say they could take them home after they\u2019d finished their breakfast, but Aiden silenced him with one hard shake of his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell was that?\u201d Milo asked as Aiden closed the door. Chase had taken the kids\u2019 hands and turned away without making eye contact. \u201cThank you, Aiden. Tell Milo goodbye for me,\u201d he\u2019d muttered, barely audible. <\/p>\n
Aiden returned to the kitchen and sank into the nearest chair. His heart thumped wildly in his chest, and if asked he knew he wouldn\u2019t be able to say why. Milo stared at him with wide eyes. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJust. . . I don\u2019t know. Something must have happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo sat down across from him. Aiden thought about taking his hand, but didn\u2019t want him to know he was trembling. <\/p>\n
\u201cWell, I mean, they\u2019re in mourning. That\u2019s how it is in these situations, for a while they\u2019re ok, and then suddenly they\u2019re hysterical. It\u2019s hard to see, but it\u2019s normal,\u201d Milo said soothingly.<\/p>\n
No, you idiot, something happened, Aiden wanted to shout, then felt ashamed of himself. He forced a nod of agreement and stood to clean up the mess from breakfast. <\/p>\n
Two days later, Aiden heard that the Engles had disappeared. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d he asked, paused in the act of assembling a chicken sandwich. <\/p>\n
Elsa Belicek raised her palms in a helpless gesture. \u201cI don\u2019t know. I tried to call, because both of the kids have been out of school since Missy died. Parents usually think it\u2019s best to keep them at home when this kind of thing happens, but I try to encourage them to send kids back to school as soon as possible. You know, get them back to a normal routine. Anyway, when they didn\u2019t call back I went to the house, and it\u2019s empty. I mean, not completely, there\u2019s stuff strewn around, but there\u2019s no furniture in the living room. I was hoping they said something to you, since they\u2019re your neighbors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Out of the corner of his eye, Aiden noted that one of the part-time waitresses, Tanya, was taking a very long time making espresso. The customer, a tourist by the look of her, sighed and gave her watch an ostentatious glance. \u201cNeed a hand, Tanya?\u201d Aiden asked.<\/p>\n
She jumped and scurried into action. \u201cNo, sorry, I got it.\u201d<\/p>\n
He turned back to Elsa. \u201cNo, sorry, I had no idea. Didn\u2019t even see any moving vans or anything. I can ask around the neighborhood, though.\u201d<\/p>\n
She sighed in relief. \u201cThanks, Aiden. It\u2019s just, I worry about those kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah. I\u2019ll check into it.\u201d <\/p>\n
Once he and Tanya had served the remaining customers, she pulled him aside. \u201cSorry about that earlier. She was my principal when I was a kid. I was just curious. Because I kinda knew Missy, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t worry about it.\u201d Aiden started to turn away and stopped. \u201cHey, Tanya, did Missy spend any time with Magda Warren?\u201d<\/p>\n
Tanya frowned. \u201cNo. In fact, her mom told her to stay away from Magda.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden avoided eye contact, busied himself with emptying a coffee filter. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know. I just remember when we were at the summer fair once, and Magda was selling stuff there. Missy didn\u2019t want to try any of Magda\u2019s samples, because she said that Mrs. Engle had said Magda was into creepy stuff, but I don\u2019t know what she meant by that. But, you know, Missy and I weren\u2019t that close, so she might not have told me even if she knew anything else.\u201d The bell over the caf\u00e9 door chimed and a couple of regulars wandered in. Tanya moved to the register with a bright smile and started taking orders, leaving Aiden to his thoughts. <\/p>\n
The drive to Magda Warren\u2019s little ranch took Aiden out of town and along several miles of winding highway surrounded by thick Oregon forest. When he rolled down the windows, he could almost smell the salt air coming in from the coast. Bruise-colored clouds gathered on the horizon, but overhead was just a thin layer of grey, enough to soften but not completely block out the sun. Usually, drives on this road meant a hike with Milo, or maybe a longer journey to Portland for the weekend. Now, though, Aiden found himself ignoring the scenery and gripping the wheel a little too hard. <\/p>\n
He\u2019d never been to Magda\u2019s, but a sign for the Warren Creamery marked the drive to her house. Aiden parked in the gravel driveway between the simple ranch house and the barn, adjacent to Magda\u2019s beat-up Bronco. He could see two other buildings farther back on the property, ones not visible from the road. As he stepped out of the truck, Aiden smelled goats and heard their bleating from the fenced pasture next to the barn. He turned a full circle, scanning for signs of Magda or anyone else. Maybe the Engles, although he couldn\u2019t think of any reason for them to be here. <\/p>\n
Failing to see anyone, Aiden trudged up to the house and knocked on the front door. The sound of a barking dog came from inside, but no one answered. <\/p>\n
After a few minutes of knocking and calling Magda\u2019s name, Aiden went to check on the barn and the other buildings. He found no one there, and nothing more interesting than livestock feed and some gardening tools. <\/p>\n
Just as he gave up and started back to the truck, Aiden heard a voice over the crunch of gravel under his shoes. He paused, wondering if it was just one of the goats. But, no, he heard it again, the sharp tones of a raised female voice too far away to be heard clearly. He turned around and made his way past the barn and the small outbuildings. The voice faded for a bit, starting up once more as he passed the tool shed. This time, it was close enough for him to determine that it came from the woods at the back of the property, where the goat pasture ended at a wall of mossy tree trunks and brush. <\/p>\n
Aiden found a rabbit trail and picked his way through the trees. He wondered why Magda hadn\u2019t cleared some of the dead limbs and brush; with a little maintenance, these woods would be a perfect place to hike or picnic. As it was, though, it was a nuisance to navigate and maybe even a fire hazard. Cursing slightly, Aiden hopped over a tangle of brambles and kicked a branch out of the way. Looking up as he came over a small rise, he saw Magda less than fifteen feet ahead. She was a stout, middle-aged woman with deeply lined skin and rough hands. Her braided hair, though, remained a bright, youthful red. She stood next to a fallen log, talking to Missy.<\/p>\n
Aiden froze. He stared, hoping the sight would resolve into something comprehensible. The longer he looked, though, the more certain he became that it was Missy. She had a distinctive cloud of black, curly hair, so unlike either of her parents. Like Tara, she had paper-white skin with a smattering of freckles; she\u2019d also inherited Chase\u2019s only beautiful feature, a pair of large green eyes. She said nothing, and she stood wrapped in a blanket that trailed the ground, so that Aiden couldn\u2019t see what clothes she wore underneath. <\/p>\n
Magda was speaking, hands on Missy\u2019s shoulders. \u201cLook, I\u2019ve told you, you can\u2019t come around here. If you wait, I\u2019ll bring–\u201d She stopped and turned quickly, responding to some sound Aiden didn\u2019t know he made. Her mouth dropped open, and panic flitted across her features. <\/p>\n
Missy stared at him, too, but her expression was more confused than frightened. She had always waved to him when they passed on the street, but now there was only vacant incomprehension in her eyes. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is private property. You need to leave,\u201d Magda snapped, a slight tremor in her voice. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s. . .\u201d Aiden began. <\/p>\n
Magda turned back to Missy and placed her hands on the girl\u2019s shoulders. \u201cListen. Go now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Missy glanced at Aiden, then back at Magda. She made a convulsive bobbing gesture with her head, one that made Aiden feel a little sick to see. She muttered something that sounded like, \u201cYesyes. Yesyes, waterwetlakepuddle.\u201d And then she sprinted into the woods, bounding elegantly between the trees. <\/p>\n
Magda turned and made shooing motions at Aiden. \u201cGo. I said, go now, I can call the police if you don\u2019t leave now, go–\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden took an involuntary step back, eyes still glued to the spot where Missy had vanished into the forest. \u201cWhat the fuck. . .\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI said, get lost.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden finally got himself to focus on Magda. She stood with hands on hips, face set in a stony glare. \u201cThat was Missy Engle.\u201d<\/p>\n
She rolled her eyes. \u201cDon\u2019t be stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMagda, that was her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Magda took two steps forward and jabbed him in the chest with her index finger. \u201cNow you listen. That was not Missy, I swear to you. What you think you saw wasn\u2019t what you saw. And that\u2019s the last I\u2019ll say about it, because it\u2019s got nothing to do with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden tried to think of a response. I should refuse, he thought. I should demand an answer. But every muscle in his body screamed at him to run, to get away from this place. In the end, he nodded and mumbled something, and let Magda nudge him back toward the barn and his truck. Before he climbed inside, he forced himself to turn to her. \u201cJust answer me one question, ok, and I\u2019ll leave you alone. I just came here to ask one thing. Do you know where the Engles are? Tara and Chase and the kids?\u201d<\/p>\n
Magda\u2019s jaw tightened. \u201cThey left. They went to a relative\u2019s place, somewhere in California. They\u2019re ok, but they won\u2019t be back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden nodded. \u201cThank you.\u201d He climbed in the truck, slammed the door, and sped all the way back to town. <\/p>\n
Milo sat in silence after Aiden finished his story. He perched on the edge of the sofa, elbows resting on his knees, hands folded. Aiden stood, had been unable to stop pacing while he spoke. A glass of whiskey sat untouched on the mantelpiece; it had sounded like a great idea, just the thing to steady the trembling in his hands, but his stomach clenched every time he thought about taking a sip. <\/p>\n
\u201cCome here,\u201d Milo said at last. Aiden sat next to him, and Milo took his still-shaking hand. \u201cYou know that this puts me in a weird position, right? I know you wouldn\u2019t lie to me, but I also can\u2019t believe you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden nodded and swallowed the instinctive, angry retort. \u201cOk.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAiden, I declared Missy myself. I was there when she died.\u201d He held up a hand to cut off Aiden\u2019s response. \u201cAnd, let\u2019s say I made a mistake and she wasn\u2019t really dead. Even then, Aiden, her skull wasn\u2019t just fractured, ok, it was crushed. Even if she wasn\u2019t dead, and she\u2019d somehow lived, which I don\u2019t think was possible, she would have been persistent vegetative for the rest of her life. There\u2019s no medical way she could have gotten up and wandered off. Not to mention the body would have to have gone missing. So I know it wasn\u2019t her you saw.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden said nothing; the tightness in his chest told him his voice would break if he tried to speak. <\/p>\n
Milo squeezed his hand and continued. \u201cBut I can tell you saw something that scared you. I mean, I\u2019ve never seen you this scared. So I\u2019m willing to concede that you saw something you can\u2019t explain. I mean, I don\u2019t believe in ghosts–\u201d\t<\/p>\n
\u201cI never fucking said it was a ghost. I\u2019m not stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Milo bit his lip and took a deep breath. \u201cOk. I\u2019m not saying you did. I\u2019m saying, you had a weird experience. And I\u2019m willing to accept that and say that unexplainable shit happens sometimes. But I also need you to let it go, and not try to convince me it was her. Because if you keep telling me that a dead girl is walking around in Magda Warren\u2019s woods, how would you expect me to look at that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden let out a shaky sigh and held his head in his free hand. \u201cThat I\u2019m losing it. That\u2019s probably what I\u2019d think if it was you.\u201d<\/p>\n
He sensed Milo nodding. \u201cI don\u2019t think you\u2019re crazy, I really don\u2019t. But please don\u2019t make me worry about you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden let Milo pull him into an embrace. He leaned his head against Milo\u2019s chest, and breathed in his scent, and held on tight. \u201cOk. I won\u2019t talk about it anymore. I won\u2019t,\u201d he promised after a while.<\/p>\n
And he didn\u2019t. They stopped talking about Missy, and a new family bought the Engle house, and Aiden was almost able to convince himself that it hadn\u2019t happened. Still, he avoided Magda\u2019s stall at the market, and when driving chose routes that didn\u2019t take him near her place. Milo may have noticed these behaviors, but if so he said nothing. <\/p>\n
Eighteen months after Missy Engle\u2019s death, the phone at the caf\u00e9 rang. It was Beth, one of the physician\u2019s assistants who worked with Milo. \u201cAiden? You better get down here. Milo collapsed, it looks like a heart attack.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden\u2019s knees threatened to buckle. \u201cIs he ok?\u201d<\/p>\n
Beth hesitated just a little too long. \u201cThey\u2019re working on him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Later, Aiden would be unable to remember the drive to the hospital. He would only remember stepping through the ER\u2019s automated door, and seeing Beth waiting for him. The mascara-stained tears streaking her face. His lungs seemed to forget how to draw in air, and he found himself sitting in a molded plastic chair with Beth\u2019s hands grasping his shoulders. \u201cIt\u2019s ok, just breathe, just breathe. . .\u201d she kept saying. <\/p>\n
\u201cLet me see him.\u201d<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t argue. Taking him by the elbow, she led him into a cold room where Milo\u2019s body lay under a sheet. His eyes were closed, but he didn\u2019t look like he was sleeping. Aiden stared, and tried to see Milo, but could only see a corpse with vaguely similar features. <\/p>\n
He stumbled out into the corridor. Beth had wiped the mascara off her face. \u201cI\u2019m so sorry, Aiden,\u201d she whispered. <\/p>\n
\u201cI have to go,\u201d Aiden heard himself say. He already had the keys to the truck in his hand.<\/p>\n
Beth laid a gentle hand on his arm. \u201cAiden, I\u2019m sorry, but there\u2019s paperwork to be filled out. I know it\u2019s the last thing you want to think about, and I feel terrible about it, but. . .\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. Later. Just don\u2019t. . . Just keep him here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beth tried to step in front of him. \u201cAiden, you shouldn\u2019t be alone. At least let us call someone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have to go,\u201d he repeated. \u201cI have to find Magda.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seven hours after Magda had told Aiden to leave, she came out to his truck. \u201cYou aren\u2019t gonna go home, are you?\u201d she asked with a resigned look in her eyes. <\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose as if to ward off a headache. \u201cOk. I\u2019m going to show you something, so you can understand why I can\u2019t help you. Because I\u2019m scared of what you\u2019ll do if you just go poking around here yourself, and don\u2019t understand what you\u2019re looking at.\u201d She met his eyes. \u201cBut this isn\u2019t going to help. I need you to accept that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden said nothing. Magda shook her head and turned away. \u201cCome on. Just follow me and do whatever I say. You\u2019ll be safe, as long as you don\u2019t do something stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden followed her into the woods. On their way to the path, Magda stopped in one of the outbuildings to pick up a bucket containing apples and carrots. She gestured at a plastic bag. \u201cCarry that for me.\u201d Aiden obeyed, peeking inside and finding only a package of rock candy.<\/p>\n
As they left the driveway behind, it occurred to Aiden that Magda could be carrying a gun. She could be taking him somewhere where his body would never be found. She could be insane. He considered the idea, and found it held no fear for him. <\/p>\n
They walked for over half an hour, so far that he couldn\u2019t hear the cars on the highway anymore. Aiden saw none of the usual signs of human passage he usually found on hikes. No cans, no cigarette butts, none of those things that made Milo grumble about a lack of consideration for fellow backpackers. <\/p>\n
Magda stopped at the top of a small slope. She gestured for Aiden to stand next to her. \u201cLook down there,\u201d she said. \u201cBut be careful. Don\u2019t get close to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the bottom of the slope was a clearing, an empty space that the forest seemed to lean away from. At the center lay something that Aiden at first mistook for a large mud puddle, until he saw it bubbling. It took him a moment to recognize it as a tar pit, roughly six feet across and bordered by a tiny ring of barren sand and scrub. <\/p>\n
Aiden turned back to Magda. She squatted on the ground, taking the fruit out of the bucket and arranging it in several small piles. \u201cI didn\u2019t know we had tar pits around here,\u201d Aiden said after a moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not a tar pit. Put the candy next to that bush and come stand behind me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden did as he was told. They stood in silence for several minutes, watching the scattered clusters of food. As they waited, Aiden listed to a bird whose call he didn\u2019t recognize. It sounded a bit like a mourning dove, but with some odd little clicks interspersed in its song. It grew distracting enough that he scanned the forest for it, finally spotting it on the underside of a branch almost directly overhead. Wait, no, he thought, frowning. It can\u2019t be hanging upside down like that. But it was definitely a mourning dove, with dappled grey feathers and a pudgy body. As he watched, though, it swung up and gripped the branch with two legs that extended out from under its wings. It crawled along the bark, lizardlike, undersized wings occasionally flapping as if for balance. Aiden let out a curse and took several hasty steps backward.<\/p>\n
Magda followed his gaze up to the branch. \u201cOh. Yeah. Don\u2019t worry about those.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell is it?\u201d he asked in a low voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust shut up and watch.\u201d<\/p>\n
The first of them showed up about five minutes later. <\/p>\n
Twigs cracked in the underbrush, and Aiden nervously glanced around to see if there was a bear. The shrubs straight ahead of them shifted with the weight of an animal, something moving low to the ground. When it came out of the ferns and headed for the food, Aiden\u2019s stomach twisted in revulsion and he had to fight the urge to turn away. Everything about the creature screamed wrong, even before Aiden saw exactly what it was. <\/p>\n
Its hairless skin was a light pink, like a baby\u2019s. It crawled on all fours, limbs short and stocky like a badger. The stump of a tail swung in the air over its hindquarters. The small head had blue eyes set into the sides of the face.<\/p>\n
But it was the mouth that finally made Aiden see it for what it was. Beautiful cupid\u2019s bow lips, and behind those a set of straight white teeth. The lips parted, and the teeth crunched down into a bite of apple, licked up drops of the juice with a human tongue. <\/p>\n
The second one walked upright. From a distance, it might have passed for a naked man. Up close, things were missing: hair, fingernails, nipples, navel. The eyes had no iris, just tiny pinpoint pupils amid the white of the eyeball. It made it nearly impossible to tell if the thing was looking at Aiden or not. The rest of the face was flat save for a thin slit where the mouth should be.<\/p>\n
The third was Missy, or at least the thing that wore her face. Now, though, she didn\u2019t have a blanket wrapped around her; instead she carried it under one arm, just like a toddler with its blankie. As soon as he saw her, Aiden wondered how he could possibly have ever mistaken her for human. Below the neck, her body consisted of an undersized torso and four long, boneless limbs. Both legs and both arms extended at least five feet from her body, tapering down to points rather than fingers or toes. They flexed and swayed in the air like tentacles. The limbs looked weak and fragile, yet Missy easily balanced on the ones where her legs should be, curving the lower ends into something resembling feet. The legs bent in too many directions as she walked, sometimes forward like a human knee and sometimes to the sides like nothing Aiden had ever seen. <\/p>\n
Missy moved toward the one with no features. \u201cWine Easter swimming,\u201d she said, shaping the words slowly and with apparent care. <\/p>\n
It reached down for a piece of fruit, bending awkwardly at the waist. \u201cCalcalcalcaldera. Streetstreetstreet.\u201d <\/p>\n
Aiden realized that Magda had his arm gripped tightly in one hand. He managed to tear his eyes away from the things long enough to glance at her. \u201cJust stay quiet,\u201d she muttered. <\/p>\n
Missy undulated towards Magda. Her mouth worked, but no sound came out. \u201cHello,\u201d Magda said quietly. \u201cEat your food.\u201d<\/p>\n
Missy frowned. \u201cYour. . . Your food fad eat at. . . Halo. . .\u201d Her whole body spasmed and she snapped her teeth together three times in quick succession. Aiden backed up two steps, unable to go farther without breaking Magda\u2019s grip.<\/p>\n
\u201cSh,\u201d Magda said. She reached out and covered the girl\u2019s mouth with her free hand. \u201cSh. Go eat.\u201d<\/p>\n
Missy drifted away, mouth still forming silent words. <\/p>\n
The fourth one made Magda cry, just silent tears on her stony face. <\/p>\n
It had blonde hair and a handsome young man\u2019s face. The body was insectile, thin and jointed with six limbs. Instead of chitin, though, it had pale human skin covered in a downy layer of golden fur. It walked on its lower four legs, top two folded against the thorax. When it saw the food, it smiled like a child and opened its all-too-human mouth; pincers emerged, and it scooped up the rock candy with wet sucking sounds. All the while, Missy and the tall male one chattered incomprehensibly to each other. <\/p>\n
Magda began to speak, voice flat and monotone. \u201cThey came out of the pool. Those two–\u201d she indicated the one with no features and the one that moved low to the ground, \u201c\u2014those two were here before I found this. God knows how long. The one with the blonde hair was my son.\u201d She paused to glare at Aiden. \u201cAnd you know where Missy came from.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d The word came out like a gasp.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t tell you how. I can only tell you what happens. Things go in the pool. Dead things, live things, anything with DNA. The pool recombines it and creates something new. Squirrels and lizards. Birds and mice. People and insects, or cats, or fish, or snakes.\u201d She pointed at Missy. \u201cThat isn\u2019t Missy Engle. It doesn\u2019t have her memories, her personality, nothing. It just has some of her genes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The one on all fours left his food and snuffled around Magda\u2019s feet. She ignored it. \u201cI found this eighteen years ago, doing research. I saw it in action, just dumb luck. An injured deer died on the edge, half in the mud, and it got sucked under. A few hours later, I watched it jump back out and run away. Or I thought I did.\u201d She stared into the trees. \u201cProbably I would have seen that it wasn\u2019t just a deer anymore, if I\u2019d gotten a better look.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did your son. . .\u201d Aiden murmured, eyes locked on the thing sucking down lumps of crystallized sugar. <\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t understand. I thought I knew what the pool did, and he died, and I acted without thinking.\u201d She stepped in front of him, stared right into his eyes. \u201cCan you even fucking imagine what it feels like to see the face of the person you loved the most on one of those things? Think about what that would be like. That\u2019s why I\u2019m showing you this, so you don\u2019t ever have to go through that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden staggered backwards until he bumped into a tree. \u201cHe\u2019s gone.\u201d He closed his eyes and tried to picture Milo exactly as he\u2019d looked this morning, drinking coffee and reading the news. There\u2019d been nothing special about this morning. No great romantic gestures, nothing different except that it was the last. He tried to recall if he\u2019d even kissed Milo goodbye before driving to work. He couldn\u2019t remember. <\/p>\n
Something rustled in front of him. He opened his eyes and saw the thing with Missy\u2019s face standing before him. She watched him for a moment, then slowly extended one of her limbs. It held an apple. \u201cMid. Flash. Mid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden gingerly accepted the apple, and she smiled. \u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d he asked. <\/p>\n
Magda stooped to pick up the bucket and plastic bag they\u2019d carried the food in. \u201cNothing. They can mimic the sounds of words, but they can\u2019t attach meaning to them. Believe me, I\u2019ve tried to teach them. I think there\u2019s enough human genes in there that they know they\u2019re supposed to be verbal, but they can\u2019t quite do it. Doesn\u2019t stop them from trying, though.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden took a clumsy step forward. Tears felt a long way off. Right now he just felt too heavy to move. Magda took him by the elbow; this time, though, it felt like support instead of restraint. As they moved out of the clearing, Missy and the blonde boy tried to follow them. \u201cNo,\u201d Magda said sternly. \u201cStay.\u201d<\/p>\n
Missy reached out with both limbs and the boy let out a whimper, but both stayed and watched them walk away. <\/p>\n
Aiden found himself in Magda\u2019s living room without quite remembering how he got there. She wrapped a blanket around his shoulders and started arranging kindling in the old fireplace. \u201cI should go,\u201d he murmured.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be criminally irresponsible to let you drive right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me. . . Tell me what happened with Tara.\u201d Aiden heard himself say the words, and realized that he didn\u2019t particularly care. He just didn\u2019t want silence.<\/p>\n
Magda sat in her armchair and stared into the fire. Her dog, a black border collie, nuzzled her hand and she absently stroked his head. \u201cShe found out years ago. Before Missy was even born. I was still experimenting back then, with dead animals and things, trying to see if I could control it. I thought if I could figure out how it worked, I could reverse. . .\u201d <\/p>\n
She cleared her throat. \u201cAnyway. Tara came to me one day and said she knew. She\u2019d been in the woods and saw me put something in the pool, a dog or something. I didn\u2019t show her anything, but I managed to convince her that it was something that needed to be kept secret. I kept expecting her to blab about it, but I guess even she realized that it was important. Then a year and a half ago she shows up crying on my doorstep, saying I need to bring Missy back. Saying she can handle if the girl has deformities, as long as she gets her back.\u201d Magda let out a dry, humorless laugh. \u201cDeformities. That\u2019s what she thought she\u2019d get. I told her I wouldn\u2019t do it, and she threatened to tell everyone, so I told her we\u2019d talk about it. I assumed if I let her stay here and waited until she calmed down, she\u2019d see reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then Chase came to find her,\u201d Aiden murmured.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah. They went out in the driveway to talk, and next thing I know they\u2019re both gone. Up in the woods. By the time I got there, they\u2019d already dropped some of Missy\u2019s hair into the pool, and there wasn\u2019t anything I could do to stop it from happening.\u201d Magda pressed her lips together and shook her head. \u201cThey thought she\u2019d be Missy, just a little different. And then that thing came out, and they saw what they\u2019d done. No wonder they left town.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo now it\u2019s just you taking care of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Magda looked at the floor. \u201cIf you can call it that. That thing, that pool up there, it\u2019s a fucking miracle. Hell, for all I know it could even be the primordial soup, you know, the stuff that started everything. There\u2019s a chance that pool might be able to explain life on Earth, but, Jesus, I hate it. I can\u2019t even stand to look at it. And I can\u2019t stand to look at them, any more than I have to.\u201d<\/p>\n
They fell silent. Aiden stared at the fireplace and thought of Milo. The next thing he knew, he was waking up to morning light streaming through the kitchen window. The fire had burned down to ashes. He took a deep breath, stood, and walked outside without a word.<\/p>\n
Aiden turned off the truck\u2019s ignition and gazed through the windshield at Magda\u2019s house. Reaching over to the passenger seat, he grabbed a bulky paper grocery bag and opened the truck door.<\/p>\n
Magda came outside before Aiden reached the house. He saw the wariness in her eyes, saw her preparing for an argument. He held up a hand. \u201cDon\u2019t worry. I\u2019m not here to ask you for anything.\u201d <\/p>\n
Magda folded her arms and waited.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had him cremated,\u201d Aiden said after a moment. He looked down at the gravel of the drive. \u201cWe scattered his ashes off the coast. So even if I wanted. . .\u201d<\/p>\n
Magda\u2019s features softened. \u201cWell. That\u2019s good. I won\u2019t ask how you\u2019re doing. That was one of the worst things about when Cole died, people asking that all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden nodded. There had been the week of drinking, and the week spent in bed, and the week snarling at anyone who spoke to him. There\u2019d been moments of quiet and warm memories, and moments so lonely he\u2019d thought his chest would cave in. There\u2019d been too much food from the well-meaning neighbors, and a visit from his sister than left him wanting to be anywhere except in the house with her. Underlying all of it was the ache that he would never have the words for, but that he recognized when he looked at Magda.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like I\u2019m ready to do something,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike what?\u201d <\/p>\n
The idea had come to him the day before, standing at the kitchen sink. He\u2019d looked out the window and seen a stray cat darting across the yard, and had been struck with the memory of when Milo had found an abandoned kitten several years earlier. Even though he hated cats, he\u2019d still fed it with an eyedropper and kept it alive and healthy until they found a home for it. Aiden had let out a little laugh at the memory of Milo getting out of bed at 2:00 am and grumbling about feeding the damn kitten. With sudden clarity, Aiden realized what Milo would be doing right now if he was alive, what he would have done long ago if he\u2019d been the one to see what hid in the woods behind Magda Warren\u2019s house. <\/p>\n
Aiden held up the grocery bag he\u2019d brought from the truck. \u201cI brought some things for them. You know. . .\u201d He gestured toward the woods.<\/p>\n
Magda stepped warily toward him. \u201cWhat things?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJust. . .\u201d he rummaged through the bag, \u201cpaper and crayons and some other art stuff. And a little CD player, for music.\u201d<\/p>\n
Magda looked at him silently for a moment. \u201cWhat do you think they\u2019ll get out of that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiden shrugged. \u201cI dunno. I think they\u2019re lonely, and they don\u2019t know how to communicate, and you\u2019ve been dealing with them alone. I don\u2019t know if I can get them to talk, but maybe there\u2019s a way to get through to them. Maybe it\u2019ll be easier for me, since. . .\u201d <\/p>\n
She shifted on her feet and stared at the woods. \u201cI don\u2019t know how much you\u2019ll be able to do,\u201d she said at last, \u201cbut if you want to, go ahead and try.\u201d She turned back toward the house. \u201cI\u2019ll have coffee waiting for when you get done with them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finding his way to the pool was easy. There was a smell, he realized, something that got stronger as he went farther along the path. Something like earth and blood. <\/p>\n
The thing with Missy\u2019s face followed him there. He caught sight of her halfway to the pool, peeking from around a tree, but she darted away until he started walking again. She appeared and reappeared, getting a little closer each time. Aiden\u2019s heart hammered whenever he caught a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye, and he wondered how long it would take for the fear these things triggered to leave him. <\/p>\n
Aiden stopped on the slope above the bubbling pool. Sitting cross-legged on the ground, he arranged the contents of the bag in front of him. Brush rustled off to his right. \u201cIt\u2019s ok,\u201d he said in a low voice. \u201cIt\u2019s ok, you can come out.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a few minutes, the thing with Missy\u2019s face edged into the clearing. \u201cHi,\u201d Aiden said. When it didn\u2019t bolt, he picked up a crayon and a sheet of drawing paper. \u201cMy name\u2019s Aiden. I don\u2019t really think you can understand me, but we\u2019ll see if we can work on that. You\u2019re alone out here, aren\u2019t you? Why don\u2019t you sit down with me for a little while?\u201d As he spoke, he moved the crayon across the paper to create a swath of green hillside. To the hill he added the outlines for a little house, one similar to Magda\u2019s. When he glanced up, he saw the thing watching the movement of the crayon, openmouthed. Aiden slowly reached over and tore off another sheet of paper. \u201cHere,\u201d he said, \u201cyou try.\u201d<\/p>\n
The thing hesitated, glancing between the sheet of paper and his face. She frowned, as if trying to work something out. Extending one of her limbs, she picked up one of the scattered crayons and lowered herself to the ground. Slowly, carefully, she pressed the tip of the crayon to the paper and began to draw.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cYou have a way. I know you have a way.\u201d To Aiden\u2019s shame, his voice broke on the last word. Magda glared at him. \u201cNo. Can\u2019t be done, not without God\u2019s help anyway. And I don\u2019t believe divine intervention is real, either, so let\u2019s just say it can\u2019t be done, period.\u201d \u201cDon\u2019t lie to me. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":251,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,458],"tags":[1337,459],"class_list":["post-2690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fiction","category-tcl-7-spring-2013","tag-fiction","tag-the-colored-lens-7-spring-2013","entry entry-center"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2690","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/251"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2690"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2690\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":139667,"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2690\/revisions\/139667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2690"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2690"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecoloredlens.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2690"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}