Grimmstone

Chapter 2

5

That name that sweet name rung true in Sera's head. Her father was Keith this she knew for sure. She searched her memory for the name of her mother. 

Reylen looked at the now confused expression on Sera's face. "What's wrong?" 

"I feel like my mother has an odd name. Something that perhaps starts with an M." 

Reylen nodded and smiled. "That's true, Sera. Her name is Myzela. She's originally from Greece, but moved over to America with her parent's when she was seven." Knowing so much about the Maclaine's was a habit of many around here. "I went to high school with her. We use to be friends until she met your father in college and started hanging around the rich people crowd." 

Sera was taking in all of this information. "Wow, I didn't know that." At least she didn't think she already knew that info. "Is there any way of contacting my family?" 

"How about I take you there in the morning?" Jennie said with a big smile. 

Sera seemed like she was sane, but how sane? 

"Yes, please! I'd very much like that!" Sera said and went to hug Mrs. Reylen. 

6

Jennie had told Sera to wait outside for her fifteen minutes before her shift was over. As they drove a flash of headlights passed through Sera's thoughts and she stiffly screamed in her seat. 

"What is it?" Officer Reylen asked the girl with deep concern. 

Sera blankly stared at the locked door. Odd sounds squeaked out of her as she tried to form words. Finally she said, "Accident." 

Jennie pulled the car over and touched Sera's arm. "Do you mean you were in an accident?" 

Nodding a yes, Sera breathed out raggedly. "I was in a car accident." She began thinking back. "My uncle Louie, dad's brother, was driving. I don't know if he survived or not." 

"We'll get to the bottom of all of this. I promise you, Sera. Let's get some tacos and go to my house." 

After getting the food it was a five minute drive to where Jennie lived. It was her, her husband Billy and their daughter Kaylie. 

7

They walked inside and Sera got a sense that she'd been here before. 

"Kaylie! I'm home!" Jennie called out to her daughter. 

Before Sera could even think Kaylie came running into the foyer. She stopped in her tracks. She looked Sera up and down and screamed loudly. Sera looked at the tall girl. She was a brunette with green eyes. 

Jennie looked between them. "Do you know Sera?" 

"She was in a few of my senior classes last year. In December she passed away from a car accident." Kaylie slowly backed off. "I'm going back to my room now." She was a hundred percent freaked out. 

Jennie held the bag of tacos tightly. Maybe the girl had told her the truth afterall. Maybe she did crawl out of her own grave. A million tiny shivers crawled up and down her spine. 

Sera felt the distance and went to sit down on a chair in the living room. "I'll tell you everything if you're willing to listen." 

"Yes of course." Jennie said and went to put the tacos on the counter. "Just give me a few minutes and we'll talk in my bedroom." 

8

"Kaylie and I were friends. Not very close ones, but we were good with each other." Sera started, sitting down on the queen sized bed. "More importantly I was in a grave tonight and I clawed my way out of it. I'm not sure where or even how far it is. Maybe we could go around to the cemetaries in the morning instead of surprising my parents." 

Jennie thought that was a good idea. "I agree we need to figure all of this out first." She was also afraid of Sera and was trying to not show it. "Can you guess in minutes how long it took you to get from there to the police station." 

Sera shook her head, "My guess is between twenty and thirty minutes. I was walking though, so driving would likely take less time to get there." 

Jennie went to grab her cellphone and googled the area around the police station. There were at least three possibilities within the distance provided. "Let's get some sleep and get up early to search the cemetaries." 

"Sounds good." Sera said and Jennie walked her to the guest room. 

"If you need anything feel free to wake me up or raid the fridge if you get hungry again." Jennie told her as she handed her two tacos from the bag. "Goodnight." 

"Goodnight." Sera said back and tiredly smiled. She wasn't really sleepy even though she laid down to rest. The clock beside the bed said it was 11:32 p.m. 

9 

Morning came and Sera was still wide awake. She had closed her eyes for a while. Sleep never came that night. Her head was filled with dark thoughts from being six feet under. She still felt the weight of the dirt on her skin. It felt like quicksand pulling her down every time she tried to inch herself out of the grave. 

She breathed and wondered if she was a zombie. No hunger pangs were telling her stomach to eat. Jennie didn't seem very afraid of her. Kaylie was stunned, but didn't seem overly traumatized. 

"Sera?" Jennie's voice said into the small guest room. 

Sera sat up. "Hey." She said and half smiled at her. 

"Get ready we're leaving in ten minutes." Jennie said and left the doorway. 

Sera noticed the small coffee mug sitting beside the clock. It was red and had a toothbrush and toothpaste in it. On the floor next to the bedside table was a plain light gray shirt and black leggings that Jennie hoped would fit her.  

In the daylight nothing seemed to jog Sera's memory. The first cemetary wasn't the one she'd come from. They'd looked all over and there was no headstone with her name on it. 

Jennie wasn't in her police uniform. She was wearing jeans and a T-shirt with the band U2 on it. The second cemetary seemed to be a fail too. They hadn't searched all of it yet though. Jennie's eyes scanned the area carefully and kept moving on. 

Sera looked carefully as well and moved slowly to make sure she didn't miss anything. 

10

Sera was giving up and turned sharply  to her left when she lost her footing and she screamed. The cold dirt smacked her in the face and she panicked. She was fighting it off of her when she heard Jennie calling out her name. Sera was so scared she thought she'd drown in the foot of dirt she was caked in. 

Sera felt Jennie's hands on her skin and Jennie tugged on her. Sera let Jennie pull her up. "You're okay!" Jennie said looking aghast at the surface and at Sera. Pieces of splintered wood also peeked out of the cold dirt. Jennie was surprised Sera hadn't pierced her skin on any of it. 

Sera did not speak as she yet again crawled out of the stupid grave. Sera and Jennie now looked at the headstone. It was Sera's name, birth and date death. 

Jennie counted the months Sera had been gone.  "Almost fourteen months have gone by," She said and shook her head. "How . . . why?" She looked Sera over and the girl seemed to be normal. 

"That's me, Jennie. I don't understand any of this either." She felt like crying, but her eyes didn't shed any water. Yet she felt so emotional inside like she would break down and cry. "Please don't tell the police department. No one would understand. Even I don't understand the how or why of this. Please, please, keep this a secret." 

Jennie was crying in concern, in fear and ashtonishment. This girl in front of her was telling the truth. Proof was right here in front of her. Now what to do?