Purgatech: Jess' Horror

Chapter Seven

Jess’s phone chimed for the millionth time that morning. She gritted her teeth and silenced it before shoving it into her pocket. She didn’t need to look at the display to know it with Kyle again.

She put the last of her sweaters into the suitcase on her bed before attempting to zip it closed. "Come on," she said, throwing herself on top of the suitcase with all her weight. "I don't have time for this."

"You realize we are only going to be gone for a month, right?" Erica said behind her, laughing as she came into the room.

"That's really helpful. What would be even more helpful is if you would haul that big butt of yours over here and help me close it."

Erica slugged Jess on the arm before complying with her request. With the two of them putting their full weight on top of the suitcase, Jess was finally able to force the zipper closed.

"Finally! I didn't think it would take so long."

Jess slid the suitcase from the bed and stood it upright. She pulled up the handle and wheeling it out into the hall just as her phone pinged in her pocket again.

"You know he's never going to stop until you answer him, right?" Erica said, following after her.

Jess rolled her eyes. "The last thing I need is another argument and you know that’s exactly what’s going to happen if I pick up so…"

"So, what? That's it? Are you guys like officially broken up or what?"

Jess shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know."

"But you did tell him you didn't want to see him for now right?"

"Yeah. But –"

"Maybe this isn’t such a good idea after all, you know? I mean, it's one thing that we decided to drop out of school for a month and go live in this creepy-assed house. But it’s another for you to do it when you know Dylan's the one running it."

"I told Kyle that Dylan has nothing to do with this."

Erica turned to her, tilting her head to one side and grinning at her. "Really?"

"He doesn't, I swear!"

"All I know is you never said anything about dropping out of school before you found out Dylan was back in town."

"Well, I might not have said anything about it but I’ve been thinking about it for a while. After everything that's going on lately, and then Gram…I just…Need a break, that's all."

"And the fact that you're taking this break and moving into this house where you’re going to be seeing Dylan every day? That has nothing to do with it?"

"You know what?"

Jess could barely contain the anger bubbling up inside her. Before she said anything she would regret, she grabbed her jacket from the hook by the door, shoved it on and then pulled open the front door.

"I never twisted your arm to do this with me Erica. So, if this is about you being too scared to take a chance on something, then maybe you shouldn't."

Jess headed out onto the porch and pulled her suitcase down the steps. The thump-thump-thump of the case hitting the wood filled the silence between them.

"Jess. Come on now. Don't get mad at me, please,” Erica called out to her from the front entryway. “Would you hold on a minute and talk to me here?”

But Jess shook her head, yanking open the back door and hauling her suitcase up onto the back seat. “I’m giving you an out, alright? If you wanna bail on this, do it now.”

Erica slammed the front door to the house shut before bounding down the steps and coming around to the side of the car.

“I’m not bailing, dummy. I just want to make sure you're not doing something that you haven't thought about. I mean, this is a big deal you know? Dropping out of school, moving into this house, testing out these gadgets that you know nothing about. I mean, this could affect your entire life."

"What life!" Jess said, spinning around to face her friend. "What kind of life am I living right now anyway? I hate school. I hate everyone that goes there. Now that Gram’s gone, not to mention all this trouble with Kyle…I just…I feel like I'm on the edge. I need time to think about where I want to go with my life."

"And you think going to this abandoned old house is going to help you do that?"

Jess didn't know how to respond. She didn't know how any of this was going to turn out. But she knew one thing. She believed. She believed in something more than herself. Even before Dylan and his tech company came into the picture, she believed there was something else out there. Some other thing that was about more than just the day-to-day. And instead of making her feel like a freak like everyone else wanted to, Dylan and Purgatech embraced that same belief.

She knew how it sounded to people. It sounded crazy. Nuts. The type of thing you’d see in those cheesy rags in the supermarket checkout.

But Jess didn’t care. She believed. And that other night with the Purgatech app on her phone? Something had happened. And if going to the Ridgely Estate for a month would help her find out what it was she saw, it was a small price to pay. If they could give her answers to questions she’d been asking her whole life, she was willing to take the risk.

"We've known each other for a long time, right?" she said, turning to face Erica.

Erica nodded.

"And you know I've never to something that would hurt you in any way right?"

"Of course I do, Jess."

"You were there with me the other night. You saw what I saw. You know I didn't have any kind of trick up my sleeve. What happened? It was a real. And that means everything to me. Because everyone I've ever loved, besides you, is gone. And if by some crazy twist of fate, Purgatech can give me the opportunity to even see them one more time, I'm going to take it."

"No matter what it costs you?" Erica asked. "Even if it's Kyle?"

Jess had to do everything in her power to keep the tears from spilling down her cheeks. "If Kyle loves me as much as he says he does, he would support me the way you do."

"He does, Jess. I know that. And if you look deep inside, you know he does, too."

Jess's phone pinged in her pocket as if on cue.

Erica smiled and nodded towards her. "See? Why do you think he keeps messaging you? He loves you as much as I do. He wants you to be safe. We both do."

"That's why I'm taking my best friend with me," Jess said, laughing." I know you won’t let anything happen to me. Just like I won’t let anything happen to you. But, I need to do this, Erica. It's just something I have to try. That is, if you still wanna go…"

Erica nodded to the car. “Why do you think my bags are already in the back seat, huh?”

Jess couldn't keep the tears from falling any longer. She quickly brushed them away with the back of her hand.

"Stop!" Erica said, brushing away the tears from her own eyes. “You know when you cry, I cry."

"Well, but stop crying and get out of here before this turns into a real sob-fest."

Jess didn’t need any further prodding. She closed the back door before opening the front door and slid into the seat. As she watched her friend run back up the steps to lock the front door to their house, Jess leaned her head back on the seat and took a deep breath.

Erica wasn’t wrong. This was a big deal. But missing school for a month was a small sacrifice if what Purgatech were promising was real.

After securing the house, Erica hurried back to the car. She buckled herself in behind the steering wheel and eased the car out of the driveway and onto the interstate.

“Shouldn’t take too long to get there,” she said, quickly glancing in the rear view mirror before changing lanes.

Jess nodded. Now that they were on the road, her anticipation had gone from butterflies in her stomach to a full-on nervous sweat. The twisted, gnarled branches of the forest leaned almost menacingly down as though they were reaching down to skim the countryside along the interstate. A blanket of newly fallen orange and yellow leaves lay limp in the puddles of water along either side of the highway. Normally she loved seeing the sights but now it just made her acutely aware that everything around her was dying.

The nearer they drove toward the Ridgely Estate, the more somersaults her stomach did. She would never admit it to Erica, but she had barely slept last night. She was afraid; not of what she would find, but what she wouldn’t. What if all the promises Dylan had made were ones he couldn’t keep? Jess wasn’t sure she could take the utter devastation. But she didn’t have time to second-guess her decision now. Erica had already made the turn onto the country road and before Jess could even breathe, they’d turned up the gravel road that led up the drive to the front of the Ridgely Estate.

Erica directed the car up to the front of the house where a number of other cars were already parked. Jess recognized the little old lady and the skeptic from her focus group the other day. They stood at the bottom of the stone staircase leading up to the front of the main house.

Erica turned off the ignition and unbuckled her seatbelt. “You ready for this?”

Jess nodded, but even when Erica opened her door and got out, Jess didn’t move. A ghostly chill seeped into the car. Jess pulled her hoodie closed around her and opened her door. When she stepped out, a blast of icy wind took a stranglehold of her and made her gasp.

“What? What is it?” Erica asked, slamming her door and rushing around to the passenger side.

“I don’t believe this!” Jess said, slamming the car door. She crossed her arms over her chest and motioned to the road. Erica turned just in time to see Kyle pull his car into the driveway behind them.

He flung his door open and jumped out of the car without even turning it off, coming at Jess with such force that she took a few steps back from him.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Erica said, inserting herself between the two. “Take it easy, bro.”

“You see, this is exactly what I don’t like, Erica. Jess putting you in the middle of what’s going on between me and her.”

“Now, hold on a minute,” Erica said, raising her voice and chest bumping up against him when he wouldn’t stop moving toward Jess. “I’m a grown-assed woman, Kyle. I make my own decisions.”

“Oh? Really? And how the hell do you think Mom and Dad reacted when I told them you were dropping out of school?”

“You what?! Kyle!”

“What? You expected me to keep your dirty little secret?”

“It’s not dirty and it’s not a secret,” Erica shouted.

“You see, that’s exactly what’s wrong with you!” Jess said, finally able to control her temper - barely. “Maybe if you were able to talk to me about this without going off like you’re having a temper tantrum!”

“I’m not having a temper tantrum!” Kyle shouted. “I’m tying to talk some sense into you!”

He reached for Jess’ arm, grabbing her so hard that Jess winced in pain. All of a sudden, that same icy wind kicked up around them. Jess’ hair flipped up in a frenzy, whipping the side of her face. The force of the wind ripped Kyle away from her. He went staggering backward as though it had pulled him away from her.

He stood there, his eyes wide, staring up at her like she’d shoved him away from her.

“Kyle, wait! I…I didn’t…” Jess started toward him but the sound of footsteps crunching on gravel made her stop.

“What’s going on out here?”

Jess squeezed her eyes closed and cringed at the sound of Dylan’s voice behind her.

“Good job, man,” Kyle said, trying to get past Erica, who had to physically hold him back. “You’ve got my girlfriend snowed and now she’s taking my sister along for the little joyride. Tell me, what kind of shady things do you have cooked up for them? Levitating table? Rattling chains in the middle of the night? How much money are you soaking all these poor suckers for, huh?”

Dylan moved around the girls and stopped beside Jess. “Not that it’s any of your business but there’s nothing shady going on here, Kyle. And if you must know, we’re actually paying them to stay here.”

“Yeah, right. You know what you’re doing? It’s sick. Preying on vulnerable people, making them believe they can contact their dead loved ones.”

“We can, Kyle!” Erica said. “You were there! You saw it happen with your own eyes!”

“You know what, Erica?” Jess said, yanking open the back door and grabbing her bag from the back seat. “Don’t even bother. Even after everything he saw, your brother’s still in denial. Let’s just leave him there, shall we?”

Jess stood there clutching the handle to her suitcase, looking expectantly at Erica. The longer Erica looked from Jess, to Kyle and then back again, Jess got the sinking feeling that she was in this alone.

Unable to fathom being abandoned by her best friend, Jess took her suitcase, turned and started tolling it alongside her as she headed toward the main house.

“You okay?” Dylan said, falling into step with her.

Jess nodded. She couldn’t answer him for fear of bursting into tears.

“Jess, wait!” Erica called out from behind her.

“Look, I get it,” Jess called over her shoulder. “You don’t have to make any excuses. He’s your brother. I get it.”

“There’s no need for excuses.”

Jess spun around to find Erica with her suitcase in tow bolting up the drive toward them. Erica smiled broadly at her.

“I told you I wasn’t going to let you go through this alone.”

Jess tossed her suitcase aside and flung her arms around Erica’s neck.

“Oh thank god!” she said, laughing.

But when she caught a glimpse of the look on Kyle’s face, Jess’ happiness instantly evaporated. His brow was furrowed and his jaw clenched so tight, Jess swore she could see his cheek pulsating. But his eyes were what broke Jess’ heart. A combination of hurt and worry but most of all, betrayal.

He got into his car, slid into the driver’s seat and slammed the door shut and then just sat there looking up at her. Without saying a word, he shook his head fro side to side then lifted his hands to either side.

He wanted to know why. Why Jess would do this. Why She would convince Erica to go along with her. Jess felt a sense of relief when he finally started up the car, put it in reverse, then spun it around before heading down the drive toward the main road.

No matter how much she tried to explain it to him, he would never understand. In a way, Jess didn’t know either. But something was puling her to that house. A force she couldn’t explain. The only thing she knew was she had to find out what it was and why it’s hold on her was so strong.

She felt an arm encircle her and for a moment she jumped.

“It’s just me,” Erica said softly. “You aright?”

Jess turned to her, blinking back tears. “I don’t know.”

“You will be, Jess. I believe that.”

Erica hugged Jess to her and the two friends stood there looking up at the house.

“Last chance,” Jess said. “You can still leave now. I promise I won’t hold it against you.”

Erica giggled and nudged Jess. “Hell no. This place is creepy cool. Whatever it is we find in there, I have a feeling we’re never going to forget it!”

Erica bounded away from Jess, stopping when she’d made it to where the rest of the group was standing. She turned and smiled at Jess, waving her over excitedly. Jess smiled back and started toward them but she still couldn’t escape the chill that had crept deep into her bones.