The Fire

Chapter Four

Past

Leah's funeral was just under a month after the fire. Her funeral was heavily attended, and there had been a procession around town in honour of her. There were hundreds of people there showing their respects for someone they didn't even know. And even amongst the vast crowds, I felt so alone.

When I got to the church, my mum, Millie, Josh and I were seated on the front pew. I didn't speak to anyone, nor did I want to. I just wanted to think about Leah without breaking down into floods of tears in front of everyone.

I looked up from my hands about halfway through the service to be shocked by the number of people there. Most people didn't have a seat, and instead lined the wall of the church. My eyes locked onto one person who I nearly missed amongst the swarm of black. Stood in a black hoodie, black jeans, hands in pockets and a shadow across their face. I knew who it was. How did he get in? I felt anger, pain, fear. I was probably imagining him. He probably wasn't real. I wanted to get up, go over to him, confront him, see if he was real. But I had wasted all my energy from crying that I changed my mind. I was too tired, and whatever I said to him couldn't bring Leah back to life, so I let him stand there and watch the service for the girl he murdered play out.

The service was running smoothly. Some people were sobbing into their tissues, others sat with their heads bowed down as if in prayer. I just stared at her coffin and the picture of her beautiful face next to it, barely even listening to the monotonous drone of the vicar reciting prayers and passages from the bible. Leah didn't want any of that, she wanted people to be happy and at peace. Now neither she nor the people she loved could feel either of those.

I was so deep in my thoughts that I wasn't surprised I didn't notice the lights go off. I didn't even notice the commotion behind me and the screams of young children. And it wasn't until Millie nudged me a few times that I eventually woke up from my daze.

I couldn't see anything and there was no light coming through the intricate stained-glass windows. "Shh!" I heard someone at the back of the church say, and everyone's heads snapped to where the sound came from in exact synchronicity and we all fell silent.

The silence unveiled the scuttle of footsteps by the exit and then the slam of the double wooden doors. The lights came on as if nothing had happened. The smell hit me before I saw it. Everyone's heads turned to the front where Leah's coffin lay, and their jaws dropped at the sight before them. On Leah's coffin, in dark red spray paint were the words, "SHE DESERVED IT" scrawled across unevenly. I span around. The Hooded Man was gone, all but the empty can of paint remained. Rolling around noisily on the tiled floor.

A/N If you liked this chapter, please feel free to give it a vote :)