The Death of Colleen Rivers

Chapter 17: Baylor

We laid her in one of the pig troughs — since there was no hay in there and that's all we could find — and placed a raggedy quilt underneath her for at least a little cushion.

"What are we going to do now?" Malcolm asked to no one particular.

I shrugged. "I don't have any idea. But she has to be woken up. This has to be explained to her somehow by someone." I looked around at Colleen and Malcolm. "Even if it's not me."

Colleen stepped closer to me and whispered in my ear. "Maybe I should. Since she is my best friend after all."

"Yeah I guess it would be the right thing," I agreed. "What if Malcolm and I stand outside, holding the doors shut so you can talk to her and she can't run off?"

Colleen thought about that idea before answering. "That's great and all, but wouldn't that be considered kidnapping?"

"No, not necessarily," Malcolm chimed in. "We could just call it...forcing someone to listen to you." He looked to me for help. "Right, bro?" Malcolm gave me a sly look.

All I could was shake my head to keep from strangling him to death. I don't know how I've kept up with him all these years. I guess our friendship is just too deep? "Not really, Lewis. But alright. Colleen? Just go with it. It's not like we are hurting her."

Colleen nodded and went over to wake up Nat while Malcolm and I went outside to hold the barn doors shut.

This was going to be a long day...

~~~

Shouting, shouting, and more shouting is all we heard for a straight hour. Oh, and some screams. We heard those, too.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Colleen and Natalie emerged from the barn. Natalie looked pretty shaken up, but Colleen was grinning as wide as ever. She had a tight grip on Nat's arm, her knuckles beginning to turn white and Natalie's hand to turn purple.

"Nat?" Malcolm waved his hand in front of Natalie's face to just get a blank stare from her.

"She's not talking," Colleen said. "I think she's still in some shock. Someone needs to take her home. Then we need to get her car and also take it home."

"I will," Malcolm volunteered. "I'll call a tow truck to collect her car. Come on, Nat. Let's go home, huh?" She looked at him and slowly nodded, obviously sluggish to hear Malcolm. He had to basically carry her to his truck and drove off, back to Nat's house.

I didn't want to ask about it, but I did anyways. "I'm guessing it went...decent?"

Colleen snorted. "Decent is too kind of a word to describe what happened. Let's just say it was really difficult, but I finally got her to believe me and not say anything to anyone about it."

"Alright," I laughed. "Wanna go home then?"

"Yes, of course."

We headed to Colleen's house, the trip over there mostly uneventful. When we arrived, I forced Colleen to put back on my hoodie just incase her mom and brother had arrived. She did so very reluctantly. I held Colleen's hand as I knocked on her front door with the other. The person who answered the door was just the person we didn't want to encounter yet.

James.

He slowly opened the door, careful to not make a sound. His eyes looked up at me with so much sadness I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry.

Wow. That didn't sound manly.

But it was true. There wasn't any happiness in his eyes at all. I couldn't look him in the eyes so I looked at his shoes.

"Oh. Hi, James. Nice to s-see you," I said shyly.

"Likewise," James answered. His voice was questioning me. "But, why are you here?"

I thought about this. I could cheer him up right now. I mean, I could freak him out but also cheer him up. It was worth a shot. "I came to make you happy again, man!" I looked up at his face and tried to smile. "You seem so down so I wanted to try and help."

He shook his head side to side so slowly I barely saw the movement. "There's nothing you can do. Unless you can bring my sister back to me."

Colleen started to snicker so I had to reach behind me and kick her. Fortunately, she stayed quiet. "Oh this'll surprise you....Come on, let's head up to your room."

"Okay but I don't see–"

"Oh and do you have any duct tape?"

~~~

Turns out, he did have duct tape. Which was a very lucky thing because I needed tons of it. I had James sit in in his desk chair and place his forearms on the chair's armrests and close his eyes. He questioned me, but because his brain still wasn't right, he agreed.

"Now!" I whispered to Colleen. We both grabbed strips of tape, quickly tying her brother to the chair.

James opened is eyes and looked down at his hands in confusion. He wiggled his wrists but of course couldn't get free. "Baylor? What are you doing?"

I sighed. "Look man, this is for your own good."

"My own good, wha–"

"Now, Colleen!" I shouted.

Colleen came up from behind James and duct taped his mouth shut, also adding a couple more layers to it. "Just wanted to be safe," she shrugged.

James wrestled around, trying to get out of his chair but had no luck. He squalled and shook his head, his eyes watering. He finally noticed that there was another person besides me in the room and looked at Colleen in bewilderment before passing out.

After ten minutes of shaking him, dousing him in water, and smacking him, James finally woke up. I made Colleen stand behind him so he wouldn't pass out so quickly on us again. She grumbled at me but went anyways.

"Hey, James. Glad to see you awake!" He was looking around dazed, slowly figuring out his surroundings. "Don't freak out again, okay, man? You gotta stay calm."

James looked at me as if to say, Are you an idiot? Of course I can't stay calm! But finally his expression lightened and he nodded in understanding.

I began telling him my experience with Colleen's ghost starting with the funeral. I told him how only I could see Colleen and no one else could. I skipped the sappy parts and the parts that didn't matter and went straight to the part where Ghost Colleen fainted and when I pulled Colleen out of her grave. I finished with the present situation we were currently in. "Okay, James, do you think you are calm enough that I can take this duct tape off your mouth?"

He nodded so quickly I thought his head was going to roll off his neck.

"Alright." I slowly took off the tape, careful not to do much damage to his skin and dark stubble that was growing on his face.

"Was...was that Colleen...with you?" he asked. His eyes were already beginning to fill with tears. But not sad tears. Happy tears.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" I held my hand out, silently telling Colleen to come around and grab my hand which she did.

When her brother saw her, he didn't thrash out, or scream. He sat completely still, staring intently at his little sister. Tears were streaming down his cheeks by now. I looked over at Colleen to see almost the same face staring back at me.

"You're really here," James whispered, trying to make sure his voice didn't break.

All Colleen could do was nod. She was too overwhelmed with emotion. She let go of my hand and untied her brother, letting him stand up before embracing him in a bear hug.