For a while, the two of them stood there, trying to process this information. What were they to do next? How were they going to get through this mess? Matthew slunk down to the ground, still shaken from the emotional turmoil of his premonition. James leaned against a wall, scratching his head. They both were busy at work thinking about what course of action to take.
"I've got nothing," James said, looking around the empty alleyway before turning to Matthew. "You?"
"No," Matthew sighed. "That's the problem. I can't think of anything. And that's not all; there's so many other things we've got to deal with. What are we going to do about Kim's body? How are we going to explain this to the police? We've never had to deal with anything like this before."
"Oh yeah," James said, standing upright. "I hadn't thought about that. Well, do we really have to be responsible for all of that? I mean, nobody knows we're connected to this. We could get out of here and that would be one less thing we'd have to worry about."
"We could," Matthew replied, "but that wouldn't be the right thing to do. Kim was our brother's girlfriend. She's dead because of her connection to him. We're supposed to have each other's backs. How awkward would it be if he found out that we walked away from her body?"
"Who says we'd have to even tell him?" James asked. "It's not like he'd know."
"Jimmy," Matthew said, folding his arms, "I think with all the stuff that happens to us, he'd probably find out."
A faint rustling sound interrupted their conversation. Turning towards the source of the sound, Matthew and James saw crumpled up pieces of paper on the ground start to move in slightly circular patterns, as well as dry leaves and other small bits of garbage. The wind seemed to pick up in strength as their clothes and hair began flapping back and forth. They looked up to the dumpster, where a brilliant white light crept from the top, slowly illuminating the alley.
"What the hell is going on?" Matthew asked to no one in particular.
"You're asking me?" James responded, shielding his eyes from the brightness of the light.
The light finally subsided and suddenly, standing before them was a transparent figure, a female. She looked vaguely confused about what was happening, and gasped when she saw Matthew and James standing in front of her. They looked equally shocked as they took in her face, finally recognizing her.
"Oh my God," she said, her voice having an eerie sounding echo to it. "What's going on here? What happened to me?"
"Well," Matthew said slowly, gulping hard as he tried to explain as gently as possible, "I would say that you're…well…a ghost."
"A ghost?" she repeated, looking around. Everything looked normal to her. Holding up her hands, though, she could almost see through them. This was not right to her. She screamed out, but quickly covered her mouth as she heard the sound of her wail. It was a bone chilling scream that pierced the night air.
A homeless man wandered through the area, stopping at the opening of the alleyway where James and Matthew stood. He saw the two of them, talking to each other and the air around them. He felt a slight shudder as the ghost screamed, but could not see it. Her yell had caused his skin to tingle. He gave them a strange glance before continuing on his way.
"If that guy couldn't see you," Matthew confirmed, "then you really are a ghost. And the only reason we can see you is because we're…well…witches."
"This has got to be some kind of dream," the ghost said, trying to convince herself. "This can't be real."
"What's the last thing you remember?" James asked. "You've got to be here for a reason."
"Hmm," she said, tapping her forehead. The more she recalled her last memories, the sadder her expression became. Her last moments alive came flooding back to her, forcing her to relive the agony of being murdered. Once again she cried out in sadness.
"Think she remembers?" James whispered to Matthew, shaking from the chill that shot through his body.
"I was killed," she said, registering the words as she spoke them. "I was killed by someone named Bokor. Wesley is there with them. They made him watch me die. I don't really understand much more, except they're torturing him for whatever reason. I remember them saying something about using him to get to the two of you. He wants to kill all of you, and he's using Wesley to do it."
"Kim," James said slowly, "do you know where Wesley is? If we can find him we might be able to save both of y'all."
"It's too late for me," Kim said slowly, as if she was being told by someone in her ear. "I remember something about being in another dimension but I can't remember much else."
"Another dimension?" James and Matthew asked at the same time, looking at each other.
"I have to go," Kim said with uncertainty. "Someone's telling me it's time for me to go. Please tell Wesley I love him, and find whoever's responsible for this and make them pay."
With a smile, Kim looked upwards as a bright light reached down from the nighttime sky and gently lifted her spirit into the air. James and Matthew watched somberly as Kim left for the afterlife. In a matter of moments it was over, and they were left there alone. The lights vanished. Time passed as they looked at each other.
"We better get moving," Matthew said, finally breaking the silence. "We've got a lot of work to do."