Perennial (18 page)

My world has gone black, but I feel two large, powerful hands—one holding up the back of my head, the other gently massaging the length of my left arm. I’m lying down somewhere. If this is a bed, it has the world’s most uncomfortable mattress.

But it’s not a bed. It’s the porch.

Lewis Wilde. William Weed. One and the same. A living ghost.

At first I feel relief at the realization that I can toss all of those conflicting emotions about Lewis and William out the window. He’s real! William is real! I no longer have to feel guilty about simultaneously falling in love with a ghost and an actual person.

But an overwhelming fury soon smothers the relief. William tricked me for three days. And how about all that time I spent feeling guilty about the conflicting feelings? How could I not realize it myself? All of the clues were right under my nose.

I think back to “Lewis’s” sudden appearance and disappearance in the middle of the street Tuesday morning. I mean, how weird was that? And what about all of “Lewis’s” stories about his friendship with William? Lies. Lies. Lies.

I open my eyes and sit up, instinctively pushing William’s hands away and scrambling to my feet. William stands as well, the two of us studying each other on the porch now, a few feet separating us. I reach behind me and feel Blade, secure and motionless in my back pocket.

“It’s okay, Alix,” he says, making a calming gesture with his hands. “It’s me. It’s William. I know you’re angry. I would be too.”

“You have no idea,” I say. “What about Lewis? Was there ever a Lewis, or has it been you since Tuesday morning?”

“What do you think?” He shrugs.

I look out toward the pristine lawn and a quiet Maple Grove Street.

“Did he ever exist?” I say. “The whole story about the alternative academy and Lewis getting clean and trying to help you? Was there ever a Lewis?” I rub my forehead. “And everything else, like the whole Aruna thing.” I pause. “God, there’s so much more, and you made it all up, didn’t you? You’re one big lie.”

“I had to,” he says, watching the street as if he’s waiting for somebody.

“What are you talking about? You had to? What does that even mean?”

“Alix, I’m almost positive Vagabond doesn’t know I crossed over,” he says, looking at me. “If he knew, he would’ve pulled me back by now.”

“What?” I squint. “Jesus. You need to leave, William. I have no idea what you’re up to, but you don’t mess with Vagabond. You know who and what he is. He’ll crush you, and I don’t want any part of it. I might not like Vagabond, but right now he’s my boss.” I point toward the sidewalk. “Leave. I mean it. Go away and never come back. I’ll solve your murder, but I’ll do it on my own. I can’t have you around if I expect to pass this test.”

William stands there, determined and not showing any sign of leaving.

“Damn you, William. Vagabond promised me my mom, okay? That’s what I get out of this. I get to see my mom, and I won’t let you or anybody else jeopardize that, so turn around and stay out of my life forever!”

“You don’t understand,” William says. “Vagabond’s rules still apply. I know what this means to you, and I know what it means to me. I took a huge risk in doing this, but I didn’t do it to interfere with your test.”

I roll my eyes and put my hands on my hips. “Then why did you do it? Why are you here?”

“I didn’t cross over to
help
you, Alix. I crossed over because I
love
you.” His green eyes seem to stare clear through to my soul. “I’m in love with you, okay? I knew it from the moment we first made contact Monday night. I crossed over Tuesday morning. There’s a reason you almost ran me over that day. That’s the moment I showed up. If it seemed like I appeared out of nowhere, it’s because I did.”

I shake my head and look away. All of the hints and connections about his true identity continue running through my mind.

“You were gone when I looked in my rearview mirror,” I say. “You said you took some shortcut your grandpa told you about. I knew you were lying, but I didn’t expect this.” I exhale deeply and stare at him. “You really did just disappear, didn’t you?”

He nods.

“And what about school? How did you register at Beaconsfield if you don’t even exist?”

“Here’s the thing,” he says. “I’m
not
registered. I figured I’d get away with it for a day, and I did, but I was surprised when nobody said anything to me yesterday. I guess it’s because every adult in the building is so rattled about Mr. Watkins. Two teachers finally asked me for my name today when they realized I wasn’t on their rosters. Mr. Dobbins was one of them. Actually, Dobbins told me I wasn’t even in the attendance system.” William shrugs. “I played dumb and said it must have something to do with me being a new student. It worked, but they’ll know something’s up tomorrow.” He pauses and looks away. “It doesn’t matter. Tomorrow’s my last day anyway.”

“Last day
here
,” I say, indicating everything around us. “As you are now, you mean. As William.”

“I’m a ghost with a deadline,” he says, looking back at me. “The same deadline as you. I’m gone at the end of tomorrow, whether you solve my murder or not.”

There’s a silence during which I remember something important about my conversation with Vagabond.

“You’re right,” I say. “Vagabond doesn’t know you’re here.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“Yesterday I told him a guy at school named Lewis Wilde told me what Perennial was. Vagabond had no idea who Lewis was.”

“Well, that’s good then,” William says, nodding. “That’s excellent actually.”

“I need to know how you did it. Because at this point I don’t trust anybody or anything except my own abilities and a certain silver friend in my back pocket.” I fold my arms in front of my chest and give him a look. “I hate liars, William, and right now I don’t know whether I should punch you or kiss you.”

William says, “I’ll tell you how I pulled it off, but first let me just say that I honestly thought you would figure out the Lewis Wilde anagram sooner. And yes, I’ve told a lot of lies, but I had to in order to keep Vagabond off my trail. I never lied to deceive you. I was being honest when I told you time and distance had lessened my feelings for Aruna. I don’t love Aruna, Alix. There was a time when I did, but that was long ago.”

As angry as I am, I can’t help but like that statement. Unfortunately, the joy I feel disappears when Blade suddenly begins vibrating in my back pocket.

“Tell me how you did it.” My muscles tense involuntarily. It’s as if my body is preparing for a fight before my brain even knows one is coming. “And you better make it quick.”

“I cut a deal,” he says, unable to hold my gaze.

“With who?”

“You won’t like it.”

“Who did you make a deal with, William?”

Blade’s movements intensify.

“I made a deal with the Army of Fire,” he says.

I reach behind me with incredible speed and grasp Blade’s handle.

“Alix, no!” William raises his hands to the point where they look like stop signs. “I know what you can do with the knife, so just stop and hear me out, okay?”

“You made a deal with
demons
?” I say, glaring at his dragon tattoos as I release the handle and bring my hand back in front of me. Blade protests and goes wild in my pocket. “You made a deal with
evil
? How could you, William?”

“I’m trying to tell you, but I need you to listen.”

“My knife is telling me to do otherwise.”

“Think back to Monday night and the first dream,” he says. “Vagabond used me as a guinea pig to see if we could make contact. It worked, but doing something like that doesn’t come without risks for him. By making me active in the Light world, he also made my presence known to the Fire world. The moment I saw you, I knew I had to find a way to be with you. Fire must have sensed this, because one of their messengers offered me the deal right after the first dream ended.”

“What exactly did you agree to?” I say, relieved that Blade is settling down, meaning William must be telling the truth now.

“Fire said I could use a portal to cross over and be with you until Vagabond’s deadline. I agreed. I didn’t care what they wanted.”

“Where’s the portal?”

“You know where it is.”

“Oval City?” I say. William nods. “What did they want, William? What does Fire get out of this?”

William takes a deep breath. “I agreed that if you fail to solve my murder, Fire can have my soul.” He pauses. “Forever.”

I stand there in stunned silence, my mouth hanging open in disbelief. I suddenly understand why Blade wanted me to attack William just now and why I saw fire after the light during my reading on “Lewis” when we shared our second kiss in his truck.

Fire has tainted William.

“You’re telling me that if I can’t pull this off, not only will I not see my mom again but I’ll probably die, and your soul will be possessed permanently by the Army of Fire?” I don’t wait for an answer. “William, how could you
do
this to me?”

He steps closer. Blade has stopped moving, so I don’t protest William’s advance. I want to drop to my knees and give up, but I can’t show any sign of weakness. I love William Weed, but what do you do when your true love is a lying ghost whom you can’t trust?

“I know it sounds selfish,” he says. “And maybe it is, but it also shows how much faith I have in you. Vagabond’s not the only one who sensed how special you are. Fire offered me the opportunity to physically be with you for four days. I jumped at it, regardless of the personal risks.” He pauses. “I know you’ll solve my murder and destroy Oval City. I’m not worried about that. If getting the chance to be with you for four days means risking where my soul might end up for eternity, I’ll take it. I’m already dead, and trust me when I tell you that most dead people never get an opportunity to do something like this.” He gently grabs my left hand. “You don’t have to trust me, but I know how we feel about each other. We have a little more than twenty-four hours left together. I think we should make the most of it.”

“But what happens if Vagabond finds out?” I say, succumbing to an overwhelming urge and running my right hand along the dragon on his arm. I can’t resist. He’s too beautiful and my feelings are too strong for him.

“He won’t find out,” William says. “But even if he does, it’s between him and me. I’m here to be
with
you, not to
interfere
with you.”

“Meaning what exactly?”

“Like I said, Vagabond’s challenge rules still apply.” He takes my right hand in his left, clasps our fingers together, and kisses the top of my wrist. “I might be physically present, but I can’t help you with anything related to my murder.” He smiles. “We can do a lot of other things, though.”

He leans in and starts kissing my neck. I close my eyes and feel like I’m melting.

“Wait,” I say, somehow managing to pull away and open my eyes. “What about everything you’ve already done to help me? As Lewis, I mean. You told me about Perennial. You took me to Oval City. What if you’ve already ruined everything?”

“I haven’t told you anything you didn’t learn on your own,” he says. “Think about it. You basically forced me to take you to Oval City. And yes, I told you what Perennial was, but only after you already had it in your hands. Deep down you knew the purple powder was some type of drug.” William smiles. “And even if I did steer you in certain directions or let certain things slip, Vagabond never said anything against a guy named Lewis Wilde helping you out a little.”

“What about the
Vagabond’s Warrior
blog post?” I say. “And the list of words in the first dream? That’s what started all of this.”

“Vagabond set all of that up and told me what to do,” William says. “Vagabond put you on the scent of Perennial. You took over from there.”

I’m silent as I take it all in. I think back to the evil homeless man in Oval City and how he claimed he’d seen “Lewis” the previous night. That was true, I realize. If William crossed over via the Oval City portal, it only makes sense that he’s spending time in Oval City. Again, more lies. Still, I want to trust him. If William crossed over for my love, I have to give him a chance.

“Oh, William, I don’t know about this,” I say, putting my face in my hands and groaning. “I sure hope you’re right.”

“Hey, listen to me,” he says, taking my hands and lowering them. “Don’t you think Vagabond would have already called things off if he thought you had broken any major rules? Alix, you’re developing into a badass two-way psychic demon slayer. That’s exactly what the Army of Light was hoping for. I’m here until the end of tomorrow. There’s nothing you can do to change that. I can’t help you in any way, especially now, but you’re at the point where you don’t need help from me or anybody else. Just do what you have to do and end this thing.”

“Thanks for the pep talk,” I say. “But the last thing I need is the future of your soul on my already overloaded plate.”

“Forget my soul,” William says, grinning now. “I’m right here in front of you. Right here. Right now.”

“You’re awfully happy for a guy who’s literally playing with Fire.”

William scans the street and yard. There’s nobody around.

“Close your eyes until I tell you to open them,” he says.

“What?” I give him a look. “Why?”

“Just do it. I want to show you something I think you’ll like.”

“Fine.” I fold my arms in front of my chest and close my eyes. “But don’t take forever.”

I hear what sounds like something brushing against his jeans. Seconds later, William clears his throat, stifles a laugh, and says, “Okay. Open your eyes.”

I open my eyes. “Oh my God,” I say, trying but failing to muffle a laugh of my own. “Now I see how you pulled it off.”

William Weed has just become the “William” of my dreams. He’s wearing his black baseball cap backwards on his head, all of “Lewis’s” dark, wavy hair tucked up inside, his dark sunglasses concealing the “Lewis” aqua-green eyes. Although the black cargo shorts are missing and he isn’t quite shirtless, I instantly understand the lengths to which he went to conceal his identity when he crossed over.