The Ghost of Josiah Grimshaw Read online

  Spotting them, he smiled sadly and walked quickly towards them.

  'Dad?' asked Emma.

  But their father just shook his head, 'He's fallen into a coma. It's not looking good, I'm afraid.'

  Emma's bottom lip quivered. Noticing, Lana took her hand in hers and squeezed.

  'And Mr Grimshaw?' Lana asked.

  'He keeps drifting in and out of consciousness,' he replied, shaking his head sadly, 'it's the same situation as the boy. Touch and go. I must get back to work. Are you girls going to head home?'

  Emma shook her head, 'I want to stay here a while longer. I'd like to stay with him, if that's okay, Dad?'

  'Course it is, sweetheart. I'm sure he'd like that. I'll see you at dinner,' he said, kissing each of them on their cheeks before placing his hat back on his head. He walked back down the corridor towards the stairs.

  'I can't stay, Em. We arranged to meet Scott this morning, remember?'

  'You go. I think I'd rather be on my own here anyway.'

  'You sure?'

  Emma nodded, 'I'll walk home later on.'

  Lana said goodbye and wandered down the hallway, turning to watch her sister calmly walk back into the strange boy's room alone.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Outside, the harsh sunlight made it hard to believe that such a ferocious storm had unleashed itself on the island the night before. Apart from the debris piled across the beach, the only other proof of the event lay fighting for their lives in two different hospital rooms.

  Lana removed her leopard print cardigan and shoved it into the handbag she wore across her chest before shovelling around to find her favourite over-sized black sunglasses. Putting them on, she flung her bag across her back and climbed onto her bike, pushing away from the hospital and onto the main road.

  Scott had been waiting for 25 minutes and was just about to leave when he saw a lone figure cycling uphill towards the castle ruins where they so often met.

  'Hey!' he shouted, 'You're late!'

  Lana stuck out her tongue childishly and grinned at her and Emma's best friend who stood waiting impatiently. As she pushed the pedals the last few metres, the blonde-haired boy removed the small rucksack from his back, again, and dropped it to the floor.

  'Sorry,' she huffed, 'you'll never believe what happened,' she gushed.

  'Where's Em?' he asked.

  'Give me a minute, I'm getting to that...' she said as she climbed off the bike and let it drop against the crumbling walls of the ancient castle.

  'This unconscious guy was found on the beach this morning. Dad and Emma were the first ones down there to help him and when he opened his eyes, he recognised Em. He won't let her leave his side. It's seriously weird.'

  'Who is he?' asked Scott as they walked through their favourite archway and sat on the fallen stones where they'd sat a thousand times before.

  'Nobody knows, but he sure seems to know Em.'

  'So where is she?'

  'He fell into a coma at the hospital and she doesn't want to leave him.'

  Scott smiled, 'She's such a softie, your sister.'

  Lana pretended to be offended, 'And I'm not, you mean?'

  'I think you know the answer to that,' he replied, as he shoved her shoulder playfully.

  'Well, I guess I'm not quite as soft hearted as she is, I suppose.'

  'You reckon?' he laughed.

  Lana rolled her eyes and looked through the archway towards the rolling green hills and numerous wind turbines beyond, 'Did you hear about old Mr Grimshaw?'

  Scott nodded, 'Did they find him yet?'

  'Yeah. He's in the same condition as the young guy. Weird, huh?'

  'I guess. Let's hope they both make it.'

  Lana nodded and stood up, 'Do you wanna go for a ride?'

  'Sure,' he said as they wandered back to their bikes. 'Where do you want to go?'

  Lana shrugged her shoulders.

  'We could try and get up to Carlton Point?' Scott said with a straight face.

  'You are joking, right?'

  A chuckle escaped his lips and he nodded, 'Yeah, I know, I know. I wouldn't put you through that. Don't worry, we'll stay on low ground.'

  Before he knew what hit him, Lana gave him a swipe with her handbag, nearly knocking him to the ground.

  'Ha ha, very funny Scottie.'

  'Don't call me that,' he laughed before hopping on his bike, 'Come on, I'll race you!'

  'Hey, so not fair,' she laughed as she raced along behind him.

  But just as she reached him, she heard him curse as his mobile began ringing.

  'That'll be Mum, she said she'd call me if she needed my help today,' he said, slowing down.

  'Aww but it's a Saturday, Scott.'

  Raising his eyebrows, he pulled the phone out of his pocket, 'Hey Mum... yeah okay. I'll be there in fifteen.'

  Clapping the phone shut, he turned to Lana, 'Jeanie had a bit of an accident and had to pop down to the hospital so Mum needs my help in the shop.'

  Lana's angry expression vanished, 'Oh, is she okay?'

  'And there I was thinking you weren't a softie,' he laughed, adding, 'yeah, she'll be fine. She just cut herself on broken glass. It's a nasty cut and needs a few stitches. I'd better go though. Maybe see you later?'

  Lana nodded and shooed him away. 'Go,' she said with a smile, 'I'll see you later.'

  Staying put on the side of the road, Lana watched him cycle away into the distance. She didn't want to go home and she certainly didn't fancy going back to the hospital, so she hopped back onto her bike and took an easy ride towards the old churchyard. As she approached the crumbling remains of the building that had been destroyed in 1953, she kept a close eye on Carlton Point which stared back down as if goading her.

  But instead of pulling up at the churchyard, something made her continue cycling. It was if they weren't her legs pedalling. She just kept going. Breathless, her heart thumped in her chest as she came to a slow about halfway up the steep hill. Stopping, she climbed off and pushed her bike to the grassy expanse to the side of the pathway, letting it fall to the ground. She followed it and sat down for a few minutes, getting her breath back.

  The wind picked up temporarily and with it came a gentle sound. It sounded like someone calling out her name. Turning to look up towards the very top of Carlton Point, Lana couldn't see anyone. Its just my imagination, she thought. It's just because my heart is beating like God knows what. But the sound continued persistently: 'Laaaanaa..... Laaaanaa.... Laaaanaa...'

  'What the...?'.

  Standing, Lana did a full circle squinting her eyes before chuckling nervously, 'Very funny, Scottie. I know it's you. You can come out now!' she yelled.

  But nobody appeared.

  She fidgeted with her fingers nervously. Her plan was to climb back on her bike and cycle away but her legs moved in another direction: towards the summit.

  No, she thought, no...

  But it was no good. She no longer had any control over her body and she continued walking until she reached the pinnacle of Carlton Point. Lana was terrified. She'd always had what she thought to be an irrational fear of heights. Just like Emma had an irrational fear of water. There was no explanation to either phobia. Then why am I here? Why did I climb up?

  At the very top of Carlton Point was a small circular patch of ground surrounded by an ancient stone wall. On one side of it was the pathway she'd just walked along... although steep, there were no scary edges as such. But the other side was an altogether different story. She'd seen it in pictures, and from afar, but she'd never seen it up close.

  Standing dead centre as she let her handbag fall to the ground, Lana closed her eyes just for a second. I'm not here, she thought, I'm in bed having a nightmare. But the gentle breeze told her a different story. She gulped hard and opened her eyes, her limbs incapable of moving further. But she was no longer in the centre of the circle. She was now looking down at a sheer drop hundreds of feet below.

  She could hear her heart b
eating, feel it thudding in her chest. She couldn't open her mouth; it was too dry. All she wanted to do was scream but she couldn't even do that. Please God don't let me die, she thought.

  A sudden massive gust of wind took her feet from beneath her and she was forcefully pushed from the top of Carlton Point, falling silently and peacefully to the rocky hills below.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  She'd fallen asleep with her head leaning forward on the bottom of the bed. She woke with a start, a cry slipped from her lips, startling herself. Her hands flew to cover her mouth and a tear fell down her cheek.

  A strange feeling overcame her and Emma searched the room for Lana.

  'Lana?' she asked.

  'Em?' said the voice from the bed.

  Emma gasped. Wasn't he supposed to be in a coma, she thought.

  'I'm here,' she said without thinking, moving closer so he could take her hand.

  'It's me, Em... it's Joe... don't forget me. I've always loved you, you know.'

  Emma blushed, 'I... erm... I...'

  Joe smiled, his dry lips cracking, 'I knew we'd be together again, Emelia... ' he sighed and as a final breathe of air whispered through his lips, so did his life.

  'Joe? Joe?' she cried, 'Wake up, Joe...'

  The door opened and the doctor rushed in. After a few moments that seemed to last for ages, he turned to face her.

  'Emma,' he nodded. 'He's gone. I'm so sorry. I knew he wouldn't come out of the coma.'

  Emma looked at the doctor strangely, 'But... but he did. He just spoke to me,' she exclaimed.

  The doctor walked over to the monitoring system and shook his head, 'I don't think so, dear. There's nothing here to suggest that he woke from his coma. He's gone now. He's no longer suffering.'

  Emma sniffed, 'What will happen to him?'

  'Until the police can locate his family, he will be kept in the mortuary. I'm sorry, Emma, I know you seemed to have developed a bond today, but he's gone. It's time you went home,' he smiled as he patted her arm gently.

  'I... I'd like to go and see Mr Grimshaw, if that's all right?' she said, not quite knowing why she wanted to go and see the old man.

  The doctor nodded and directed her to his room, 'But, you do know that he's in a coma too, don't you?'

  Emma nodded, thanked him and walked down the corridor to Mr Grimshaw's room. As she pushed open the door, she expected him to have company but the room was empty, except for old Mr Grimshaw who lay pretty much the same way the young boy had done. Linked up to all kinds of machines that beeped quietly in the background.

  Pulling up a chair, Emma sat beside the bed and closed her eyes. A strange sensation flooded her body, like a feeling of deja vu. She shivered, wondering what Lana and Scott were up to, when a feeling of foreboding filled her. She rubbed her arms and shivered again, before closing her eyes, letting the gentle sounds of the hospital lull her to sleep.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  It didn't feel like death was upon her. In fact, Lana felt strangely alive as her body fell slowly to the ground. Slowly? Yes, she was falling slowly, far too slowly, in fact. Lana looked down and watched as the ground below her seemed to hover. She held out her arms and felt her feet gracefully touch the floor like a ballet dancer about to pirouette in the air. A shocked giggle erupted from her lips as she twirled and looked around, before glancing upwards to see how far she'd fallen. But it wasn't a fall, she thought, I should be dead.

  Suddenly, the full extent of what had happened hit her and she took a step backwards as if she'd been punched in the stomach. Oh My God, she thought, gulping. I've just fallen from Carlton Point and survived. Not a scratch. Nothing. It can't possibly be right.

  'Oh No,' she whispered, 'I must be dead.' Her hands flew to her mouth and she retched, heaving, throwing up the chocolate rice krispies she'd had for breakfast. Sitting down on a mossy rock, she put her elbows on her knees and breathed in and out deeply.

  Hang on, if I'm dead, surely I wouldn't throw up this morning's breakfast? She searched around for her body and it was nowhere to be seen. She pinched herself over and over until her arms were pink and sore.

  And then she just couldn't help it. She began laughing. Laughing until her stomach muscles ached. But after about five minutes, she stopped abruptly. A sensation in her abdomen caused her to curl over in agony. Writhing on the floor for what seemed like an age, tears rolled down Lana's face. Eventually the pain dissipated and she was able to sit up.

  Scrambling at her long black T-shirt, she pulled it up and peered down at her stomach. There, etched on her skin, was what appeared to be a tattoo. Lana's eyes opened wide and she began to cry, loudly.

  'What the hell?' she sobbed, 'What's going on?' she shouted as tears streamed down her cheeks, causing black mascara to smear across her face. 'What's wrong with me?' she said as she fell to the floor in a heap.

  'Emma, I need to get to Emma,' she whispered, pulling herself together as she scrambled upwards and ran around the back of Carlton Point until she eventually reached her bicycle.

  'My bag... where's my bag? Oh no,' she whispered as her gaze was forced upwards towards the pinnacle. Her shoulders slumped as she realised where her bag must be. 'No, I can't do it. I can't go back up there.'

  But Lana soon changed her mind as she remembered that her bag was full of her many treasured things: her favourite animal print cardigan; expensive perfume, Juicy Tube lip gloss, pink camera, etc. She couldn't just leave those things up there. Reluctantly, she dropped her bike once again and began climbing upwards.

  But that's when she realised something had changed. The fear that she'd felt since she was a baby had gone. She walked with a new found confidence. The confidence that her fear of heights had left her. It had gone for good.

  When she reached the top, Lana held her arms high above her head and twirled around and around, laughing. She located her bag and took out the camera, taking pictures of everything that she could see from such a height. All the places where she, Scott and Emma spent much of their time: the old churchyard, the castle ruins, the new church which they visited on special occasions, but best of all, she could see the one place she'd always wanted to see for herself but had never had the courage to: the mainland. She could just about see mainland England.

  'Woop, Woop!' she shouted as she eventually put the camera back in her bag and went over to the spot where she'd fallen. Lana looked down. It didn't even make her dizzy. Without thinking, she climbed up onto the stone wall and held out her arms, 'I'm on top of the world!' she yelled as loud as she could, laughing. When another gust of wind pushed her from behind, Lana didn't even flinch. She let it take her, because deep down she knew she would land on her feet, in one piece, safely. And that's exactly what happened.

  But the pain in her abdomen brought her back to reality. 'Mum and Dad are going to kill me,' she whispered as she bent over, wincing. How the hell am I going to explain this, she thought as she walked back around to her bike, climbed on it and headed downhill.

  People milled around the hospital just as they had before, minding their own business. Lana walked up the stairs, past the nurses station and into the room where she'd left her sister earlier. The sight of nothing but an empty bed startled her.

  'Oh no,' she whispered, 'Excuse me,' she asked one of the orderlies cleaning the floor outside, 'Can you tell me what happened to the young man who was brought in this morning?'

  'I'm sorry, love. He died a little while ago. Your friend was here when it happened.'

  'My friend?'

  'Yes, love, the girl with the long brown hair. You know, with the intense green eyes,' he smiled.

  'Oh, you mean Emma. That's my sister,' she replied.

  The man looked at her quizzically, 'Your sister?'

  Lana smiled, 'Yes, my sister.'

  The man looked a little awkward before adding, 'She's still here. She's down with the old man who was brought in earlier. Grimshaw, I think his name is.'

  'Oh? Okay, thank you. Can you tell me which
room?'

  After she'd been told where to find Emma, Lana thanked him and walked away.

  'Em?' she whispered as she opened the door to Room 12 and saw her sister sleeping in a chair next to the old man.

  Tiptoeing inside, she gently closed the door behind her and wandered across to look at Mr Grimshaw. He looked terribly sick. He's so old, she thought, poor thing.

  When his eyes shot open, Lana nearly had a heart attack.

  'Jeeesus!' she cried.

  'Wh...what the he...' shrieked Emma who jumped up from the chair.

  'Em... Em... is that you my love?' said the old man.

  Emma groaned, 'Oh no, not again.'

  Lana raised her eyebrows at her sister once she'd calmed down. 'What is it with you today?'

  'Em... Emelia?' he croaked before closing his eyes again, quickly returning to his unconscious state.

  The door opened and a nurse popped her head around the door.

  'Everything all right, girls?'

  Emma nodded while Lana shook her head.

  'Well, which is it?' she said as she walked into the room and checked on Mr Grimshaw. Lana was about to say something but Emma tugged at her arm and shook her head.

  Smiling sweetly, Lana told her everything was fine.

  The middle aged nurse pulled a funny face and walked out, closing the door behind her.

  'What's going on, Emma?' Lana asked, placing her hands on her hips and tipping her head to one side.

  But before she could tell her, Emma asked, 'Are you all right, Sis?'

  'Wh...why do you ask?' she stuttered.

  'Well, you've got panda eyes for a start and, I don't know, I just had this horrible feeling earlier. Weird really,' she said, shrugging her shoulders before she proceeded to tell her sister about what had happened while she was out.

  '... and he told me his name was Joe. Just before he died he called me Emelia.'