Purgatech: Jess' Horror

Chapter Twenty

Almost 3 weeks later, Jess had gotten into a somewhat normal routine. Actually, she didn’t really consider it much of a normal routine by any stretch of the imagination…because how could anything be normal after what she had gone through?

Still, she was doing everything she could to put Purgatech and the insanity of that week behind her. The first thing she did after getting out of there was to toss her phone. To be honest, she ran over it with her car a few times just to be sure no trace of them or their stupid app remained.

She’d only started sleeping through the night again. She tossed every piece of clothing she’d brought into the Ridgely Estate and was living in her old sweats until she felt normal enough to go out and buy new things. She knew it was a bit extreme, but she didn’t want to bring back anything that had been in that place. For all she knew, the evil spirit of Sarah Ridgely lingered, and there was no way she was going to bring that into her house.

Speaking of which, being back at home wasn’t exactly comforting. She was alone now, completely alone. Gram’s house had sold while she was gone so she didn’t even have it as an escape any more. Being back here without Erica was more devastating than she could imagine, but she had no choice right now.

She hadn’t even given any thought to going back to school and she wasn't sure if she would. It would be the same without having Erica there. Nothing would.

Jess looked down at the frame should been holding all this time and tried to hold back her tears. It was her favorite photo of she and Erica. They taken it the day they’d first moved into this place. They were so excited to live off-campus. It was their first place together and held so much hope and promise. Now that was gone for good.

She sat on the couch in the house she’d shared with her best friend, a wool blanket pulled up around her. When she heard footsteps coming down the stairs, she turned her head to the doorway. Kyle stopped at the front door, putting down a suitcase and a couple of boxes before turning and looking toward her.

Jess stood, taking the blanket with her and padded over to the front door. Seeing her best friend’s things all packed up that way only made everything feel so final. She would never be coming back. Jess would never hear her voice; she would never again laugh so hard at Erica’s jokes that she would cry. Her tears now weren’t happy ones.

As Kyle stood there, looking anywhere else but in Jess’ direction, she didn't know what to say to him. No words could make up for what they'd been through. She wished she could find some way to apologize to him for everything but all those sentiments just seemed so weak now.

"So, I guess that's it," Kyle finally said.

Jess nodded. She clutched the photo to her chest one more time and then held it up to Kyle. He smiled sadly and shook his head.

"I think you should have it," he said.

Jess bit her lip and blinked back tears. Him being nice to her was the worst part of it all. Maybe if she had just listened to him things would've turned out a lot differently.

"Are you sure? I mean, I can get another one printed."

He shook his head quickly. Jess wasn't sure if it was just too painful for him to see her the fact that she was in the photo with Erica would be too much of a harsh reminder.

"Kyle, I'm –"

He held up a hand to stop her. "Don't. I'm sure we both did things we wished we could take back now. But we can't look at things that way. Otherwise neither of us will ever get off the couch."

He was right. She had barely been able to get out of bed these last few weeks. The only reason she’d done so today was to see Kyle. Now, she kind of wished she’d rescheduled. Anything to post-pone the inevitable, their goodbye.

“You'll don't look good you know?"

She managed a weak smile. "I'm not sleeping much, after…everything."

That was a lie. Jess wasn't sleeping at all. Half an hour here, an hour there. That was all she was able to manage. Every time she closed her eyes she got flashes of things that happened at the Ridgely estate. But that paled in comparison to the thoughts she had when she was awake. She longed for sleep. She wished she could have the uninterrupted time worst think that all because when she was awake now, things weren't right.

Kyle cleared his throat before speaking again. “So, what are you going to do now?"

Jess shrugged. "I… haven’t really been up to heading back to class yet. I think I just need to take some time and think about what I want to do. Where I want to go."

"Go?"

Jess nodded softly. "After everything that's happened here, I just don't feel I belong here anymore. Besides, being in this house without Erica I just… I don't think I can do it. You know?"

Kyle nodded. She wasn’t sure if he was just agreeing to make things easier or if he really knew how she felt.

"What about you?"

Kyle shrugged. “I’m going to stay at my parent’s place for a few days, maybe more. Then…try to get back to normal, whatever that is.”

Jess reached out for him and placed a hand on his arm. When he winced, she pulled her hand away. It was like being around her was too much for him to even bear.

He half-glanced at her, which hurt even more. He couldn’t even look at her for more than a second or two anymore.

"Well, I guess I should be going."

He moved to grab the boxes but before he could get them, Jess took a few steps toward him and threw her arms around him. At first, she felt resistance from him as though he couldn't bring himself to let the wall down but then, he softened, and he put his arms around her too.

"Kyle. Oh my God, Kyle. I'm just so sorry. For everything."

He rubbed her back. "I know you are. I am too."

She held him there for a moment, relishing being in his arms again, but when he quickly pulled away from her and cleared his throat, she knew. That was it, the end of everything, the end of them.

“I’ll uh…talk to you soon, huh?”

Jess smiled and nodded, moving with him as he grabbed Erica’s boxes and headed to the door, but she knew it was just one of those things people said to one another.

“Sounds good.”

It was lame, but it was the only sentiment she could muster.

Kyle opened the door and went out onto the porch, balancing the boxes as he picked his way down the steps.

“Need some help?” she asked hopefully, going out onto the porch after him.

“No, I got it.”

She pulled her hoodie closed around her and watched as he went to his car and loaded everything into the backseat.

She waited, hoping for one last look, one gesture, anything that indicated there was still a tiny sliver of hope for them. As he got into the car, he paused briefly, giving her a small wave before closing the door and starting the engine.

It was small, but Jess would take it.

Not able to watch him drive away, she went inside quickly and closed the door behind her. She stood there in the entryway, her back pressed against the door, listening to the house. It was quiet, too quiet for her own liking. But it was something she was going to have to get used to.

As she heard Kyle’s car drive off, she suddenly spun around and looked out the front window, watching long after she lost sight of him. She didn’t want to turn back to the empty room and admit she was alone. She just couldn’t face the cold that seemed to seep into every corner of the house now, haunting her like a lingering specter.

From across the room, Jess's phone pinged from where she’d left it on the arm of the couch. She turned and race across the room, snatching it up, half hoping that it was Kyle; that he felt the same; that he couldn’t say goodbye.

Instead, it was Dylan’s phone number on the display. She paused for a moment, not sure what to say to him, not even sure she wanted to talk to him, but at least it was someone.

She lifted the phone tentatively to her ear.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Jess. Hope I’m not bothering you.”

“You’re not. I was just…not really doing anything, to tell you the truth.”

He sighed. “How are you?”

She shrugged and shook her head. “I’m…okay, I guess. Still processing everything, I guess.”

“Yeah. I get that. So much happened. I think it’s going to take a while to get back to normal, if that’s even possible, you know?”

“Yeah.” She waited, hoping he would say something, anything to take away the loneliness. Even some lame cliche. Not that it would help much but maybe she could fool herself into believing it.

But he didn’t say anything.

“So, you’re okay then?”

“I’m alright. Just taking some time.”

“That’s good.”

“I guess. It’s not easy, starting over.”

“Oh, so…”

“I left Purgatech.”

Jess was silent.

“There was no way I could stay with the company after everything that happened.”

“Oh. That must have been hard for you.”

“Not really.”

“But after all that time you spent, all those years…”

“It doesn’t matter. There was no question about what I had to do. Which makes this phone call that much worse.”

Jess’ brow furrowed. “Why?”

“It’s the final wrap-up. You still have to come in for your exit interview.”

Jess felt a jolt of panic through her body. “What?”

“I know. It’s despicable. But…it’s a part of the contact you signed.”

“I don’t care!” she shouted.

Her voice sounded so hollow in the empty house.

“I know. I wish there was something I could do to save you from having to do this but it is in your contract. If you don’t, you’ll be considered in breach of contract and Marshall will take you to court.”

“Are you serious?” Jess said, moving over tot he couch and grabbing onto the back for support.

“Unfortunately, yes. Believe me, he isn’t backing down. After the fiasco at the Estate, I was sure he would have learned something. But no. He’s desperate, now more than ever. Which means he’s willing to take any of you to court if he has to.”

Jess shook her head as she slid around to the couch and sun down onto it. Just the thought of going in there again, of even coming with 100 miles of the Ridgely Estate sent a rolling wave of nausea through her system. It was a good thing she sat down because her arms and legs trembled so violently that she thought she might fall off the couch.

“Look, Jess. I’m sorry. I wish to hell you had never heard about Purgatech. I wish I’d had the balls to stand up to Marshall a long time ago. I wish…I wish for a lot of things.”

Jess nodded, but she couldn’t respond. The sound of her blood ringing in her ears was too much. The darkness in her mind, replaying every sickening sound, every frightening moment in that house struck her silent.

“Jess? You okay?”

“Yeah,” she said, but her voice was weak, thin.

“I know, this is unthinkable, but it saves you from—”

“Dylan…I…I can’t!” she croaked.

She ended the call and tossed her phone across the room, not caring that it went flying across the hardwood, coming to rest near the fireplace. She couldn’t go back there. Not after everything that happened to her, to Erica. She just couldn’t.

She shook her head, trying to will away the darkness threatening to spiderweb across her brain. Sinister memories trying to invade her thoughts again.

“No!” she shouted, suddenly clamping both sides of her head with her hands.

Both hands shaking, simultaneously freezing cold and burning inside, she jumped up from the couch and bolted toward the front door. But she stopped herself. She had no one. No place to go. No one to help her. She was alone.

The only thing she could do was to stand there in the growing darkness foyer of the house once so filled with hope. Sunset came so early these days, making everything inside a cool shade of purple. This used to be her favorite time of day but now, it only made her more aware that she had a long night ahead of her.

She wasn't sure how to be herself in this house anymore. There were memories around every corner. The day they moved in. All the parties they’d had with Kyle, Josh and Corey. All of late nights and early mornings, all the fun and craziness. Jess wanted to remember all the good times but thinking back and replaying those moments over in her mind only made the emptiness inside feel that much more devastating. Would she ever feel that happiness again?

She slowly plodded back over to the couch and sunk down on it, pulling the blanket around her. She closed her eyes and inhaled. It still smelled like Erica's favorite rose perfume. It broke her heart to think that it was already fading.

She sat there for a long while, listening to the sound of the wind outside the windows. It was a sound that she had always loved but one she now hated. It only brought back flashes of that swirling mass of anger stirred up by Sarah Ridgely’s ghost at the estate.

She snatched up the framed photo of she and Erica again, clutching it as though it would protect her and blinked back tears for everything she had lost these past few weeks. She wasn't sure what lay ahead of her, especially now that everyone she loved was gone from her life.

She threw off the blanket and bolted up from the couch, going over to the mantle. She placed it in the middle the frame photo in the middle amongst the others the people had left at Erica's service a few days ago.

She took a match from the box and struck it on the side, lighting the candles on the mantle. Tucked between various tall vases of flowers, she found them. The faces of her best friend; her Gram; her parents, who had been gone so long now; each of them illuminated in pale candlelight. The flame flickered a few times before blazing bright. It was strange but immediately, Jess felt its warmth swirl around her, enveloping her. In that moment, she felt the tiniest bit of hope. She braced herself before daring to speak.

"Gram? Is that you?"

The flame flickered again, blazing brightly.

Jess swallowed hard. "Erica?"

She waited. The room was silent. She was utterly alone. But then the candles started to flicker wildly, illuminating the room with the staccato rhythm, strobing the room with bursting white light. The scent of roses seemed to grow, the perfume wafting around her.

Jess clutched the blanket around her. She smiled, laughing through the tears streaming down her face. She lifted the frame and held it out in front of her.

"Erica! I know you're here! It's me, Jess!”

She held her breath, waiting. At first, it was the same unbearable silence, but jut as Jess was about to give up, she heard the tiniest hint of sound.

She stood perfectly still, listening, hoping with everything in her that she would hear something more.

At first, it was a low clinking sound, but then it rose. Jess spun around to face the mantle. The glass in the framed photos shifted and stretched, splintering until the glass on the photo of Gram shattered.

Jess gasped, skidding backward, but the next one, the one of her parents, broke and then the next. All the frames, every photo shattered. All the flowers people had sent Jess, their vases, shattered too, spilling on the mantle, pouring down the fireplace, pooling on the floor with a drip-drip-drip.

Jess stood there trembling, her breath coming in quick short bursts.

“Erica? Is that you?”

She waited, but the sound of the glass fragments rattling against the floorboards made her skin crawl.

“Erica?”

The shards jumped and chattered.

“Err-bear? I'm sorry!”

An intense force whipped through the room, making the candles flicker wildly before they went out. The pale moonlight streamed in through the window giving everything an eerie glow. Jess's hair whipped the side of her face, stinging her cheeks. All at once, the last framed photo shattered and fell face-down to the floor. It scraped across the floor toward her.

She backed away from it, ignoring the pricking cut of shattered glass to the bottoms of her feet. But still it continued. Jess lost her balance, tripping over her feet and falling with a hard thud to the floor. The frame came skidding toward her, jabbing her in the side before it stopped.

With one shaking hand she reached out for it, lifting the frame and turning it over.

Jess gasped. She felt sick. It couldn’t be.

Instead of Erica’s face staring back at her, it was a photo of Sarah Ridgely.

She cried out, throwing the frame at the fireplace, where it broke and fell onto the hearth.

Jess squeezed her eyes closed, pulling her legs up to her chest. She wrapped her arms around her knees, holding onto them with every ounce of energy she had left.

“It’s not real. It’s not real. I’m just imagining things. It isn’t real!”

She kept repeating herself, the words becoming a mantra for her now. She had no other choice. To stop saying them would let the silence in, and allow the darkness to take over. It was either that or live another nightmare.