A Fifth Visitor by John D Payne

Author:John D Payne [Payne, John D]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-11-07T22:00:00+00:00

*

‘It’s all there, Scrooge,’ the spirit of Jack said quietly, almost in a whisper.

They were still sat on the bench and Scrooge probably looked like a madman talking to his invisible friend, but he was beyond caring about such trivial considerations.

‘I can see it through my eyes as it happened all those years ago.’

‘What can you see?’ Scrooge asked.

‘It’s a bit of a muddle, but if I concentrate, I can make sense of it. Grace is there. She’s holding my hand. I can feel the warmth of her, despite the cold all around us. She smiles at me and whispers something into my ear. I can’t hear the words; I can’t remember them, but the silken tone of her voice is there all the same. I’m about to whisper something back, but then a bang pierces the air and the moment’s gone. Grace pulls her hand to her chest and away from me in panic.’

Jack paused and his eyes darted all over the place, as if the different parts of the new memory were scattering, like a flock of panicked pigeons.

‘What is it, Jack? What happens?’

‘She’s running now, down the slope and deeper into the park. She shouts “We have to do something. Someone might be hurt.” I think about protesting, but before I open my mouth, I know it’ll be pointless, so I run after her, almost slipping on the snow. I had something to ask her, but now the moment’s gone. She’s getting smaller and smaller as she gets further away, out of my reach; she was always much fitter than me. I had something to ask her, but the moment’s gone.

‘The sharp, cold night air bites at my skin as I run, like it’s trying to stop me. I can’t see her now. She’s turned a corner. Despite the tiredness, I push on, scared for her.

‘I’m around the corner now, but she’s not there. My head starts to spin. I collapse to my knees and I can feel the cold seeping through my jeans.

‘“Grace! Grace, are you there?!” I shout. No reply. No reply. There’s no one around. It’s like she’s vanished into thin air, but then I hear muffled voices. There’s a long hedge with an opening in the middle and a rusty old sign for a boating lake. There’s shadows moving and shifting behind the hedge. Without thinking, I get up and push through the gap in the hedge. My heart’s pumping like mad. A thought flashes in my mind: Why? Why, if she’s only there, did she not shout back to—

‘A shot. It devours all the silence in the world. I stop. Why did I stop? If only I’d… I push on, my ears ringing, and then: A frozen lake, a cabin. A body. Her body! A shot. I fall. I fall into darkness.’

Jack stopped and the street seemed to follow his cue, out of respect for what he’d just seen unravel in his mind. Scrooge didn’t know what to say. After everything, they’d failed.

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