Long Live the Queen

Eleven: The News, The Visitor, Fifth Letter

INGRID

Sunday, January 27, 2015
Dead Girl Walking - Another Suicide Case for Erie?
By Carmen Ardelean
It has come to the attention of many that number of suicide cases in Erie has experienced a sharp increase over the past month. At the rate things are going, residents in town hypothesise that there will be at least a few more on their way. However, it is hard to predict where the next case will land as the victims of suicide are seemingly random. According to family members and friends of the deceased, those involved had nothing to escape from and no troubles to leave behind. This brings us to the big question: what is the force that drives these youngsters to take their own lives?
Following the deaths of Maia DeRosa, Lindsey McKay and Aaron Fosse is Adrianna Wilkes. All were students of the same school and belonged to the same age group with the exception of Aaron Fosse who had abandoned his school life to enter the workforce. The public has begun to question the stress level of students in Erie High, but many who pursue their studies there have commented on the "absurdly meagre amount of work, barely half a worksheet assigned every week."
What is most mysterious, apart from the high death rate, is the appearance of the said 'Dead Girl Walking'. When questioned about her family or personal information, the girl claims that she remembers nothing of her past. All she can come up with is an image of herself buried alive and soaked in blood, possibly her own. The police and reporters have talked to her about the numerous cuts on her wrist but, E, as a nurse addresses her, insists that she is not the one who made them. There are some who suspect that E's brush with death was attempted murder but the police seem reluctant to take further action. Unfortunately, the discovery of this girl has not provided sufficient aid to the investigations as she appears to have no connections with Maia, Lindsey, Aaron and Adrianna.
There are always two sides to the same coin, however, as the hospital staff sound optimistic about E's condition. They are pleased to announce that her mental stability and physical strength have been improving significantly and that she will soon be free to leave the care of the hospital. After such a close encounter with death, E is already back on her feet and most can tell that her will to live is a strong one. There are hopes that this will serve as encouragement towards distressed teens as a testimony that death is never the way out.
***
I lower the paper in the slowest of movements, leaning against the backrest of my chair as I digest what I've just read. A girl. Died. But she didn't die. She's alive.

Believe it or not, I start to wonder if this girl is Lindsey before brushing the thought aside, knowing that that's impossible. I saw her body, went to her funeral and I highly doubt that anyone would make a duplicate to place in that cold chamber.

Deciding that E could actually be a life-changing factor, I dash up the stairs and swipe my phone from the table. Scrolling through my contact list, I stop at 'Jack Fossil', which is what I have somehow decided to call him, and compose a message.

Did you read the news this morning? - Ingrid

I don't read the news - Jack

I'm going over to yours now if you don't mind. - Ingrid

I do! - Jack
Good to know! I'll be there soon :D - Ingrid

I tuck the device into my pocket and grab my house keys from the kitchen table. Pushing the door shut behind me, I lock it and amble onto the pavement. The air is crisp, the golden light warm against my tingling skin. So far, today has been the brightest day in history. A history I'm making where Lindsey isn't a living person. I'd take it as a sign but I've never believed in that sort of stuff so I just make do with the idea of the sun having some extra energy to burn.

I briskly walk across the streets leading to Jack's place, the same way I did when Aaron had just passed. But now it's a different day, with different news and a different setting. Same person to talk to, new person to talk about. By the time I get there my hair is knotted at the ends and I make an attempt to brush a few tangles out with my fingers before rapping on the door. When it opens, it reveals a not-very-pleased Jack Fosse, staring at me from his position beneath the doorframe.

"Hi," I say, shuffling a little in my awkward state.

"Welcome to my humble little cave," he says, stepping aside to let me pass before shutting the door behind us. I take my place on that same rickety chair and he settles down across from me. "What brings you here, fair lady?"

"I assume you haven't heard about E," I quip, pulling the thin sheet of paper from my pocket and pushing it across the table for him to see.
He grudgingly takes it and unfolds it, holding the greyish paper out in front of him. "Cyclist veers off road on highway, severely injuring-"

"Wrong article," I sigh, exasperatedly pulling the paper from his hands and turning it over.

He frowns. "Oh, this one. Dead girl walking, another suicide case for Erie..." He raises an eyebrow as he peers at me from over the paper, going back to reading once he sees my don't-say-a-word-till-you're-done look. After a couple of minutes he puts it down, looking at me expectantly.

"What?"

"Your definition of suicide is attempted murder by some unknown force, which is supposedly the way Aaron, Lindsey, Adrianna and Maia died. Is that right?"

"Well, not exactly-"

"Then what makes you think this E girl was in the same position as the others? For all you know she wanted to kill herself and get over it."

"Get over it? Get over what? The girl wants to live!"

"Who knows? Nobody does, not even her, but that's because she lost her memory."

I frown. "It could really have been someone trying to kill her, you know."
Jack sighs. "I know, but what do you expect us to do about that?" He shifts his gaze to the table and I follow it, a twinge in my heart as I notice the picture of Aaron. He looks like he could've had the world. A beautiful world, one he would've given all up for his brother.

"You know, he promised me that we'd have a better life some day," he says, quietly, sadly. With a shake of his head, he looks back up at me with a new determination in his eyes.

"Guess what. I want to find out the truth about Aaron and I'm going to trust you on this one. What's your plan?"

I pipe up immediately. "We're going to visit E."

"Right. And where do you say we find her?"

A knock sounds at the door.