Chapter Eleven

Bittersweet

The strange trio of Ruby, Paige and Jeffrey stood outside of Jeffrey's nearly thirty-year-old car, looking at the few doors lining the small road. A chill wind was running down between the buildings, causing all three to shiver.

"It should be one of these doors," Ruby said as she walked forward, leading the other two. "Yes, here." She came in front of door that had a plaque naming the charity in charge of the shelter. She entered, holding the door open for her two new compatriots.

The room seemed quiet as they entered. A few people were dotted around here and there, talking in strange suspicious tones. A woman who looked like she may have worked in the shelter was standing by what Ruby presumed to be a kitchen window, speaking to the server in the same low whispers as the other people in the room.

They walked through the open floor, attracting the attention of the two people talking. One was an older woman with a friendly face while the other seemed to be a girl near the age of Paige. In fact, it seemed Paige recognised her by the way she stepped forward with a surprised, "Lacey?"

The girl nervously looked at Paige but evidently recognised her. "P-Paige?"

"Fancy bumping into you here," Paige said. "It's actually quite a good thing we did. But before that…" Paige motioned to Ruby, who took up the words.

"Have either of you two seen a lady with black hair and Asian descent? She should have been here not too long ago," Ruby said. She looked worried, constantly peering around the room as if Tanzi was hiding around a corner or under a table.

"Yes, a woman matching that description was here earlier…" the older woman answered, offering her hand to Ruby. "My name is Becky. Was that lady your friend?"

"Yes." Ruby quickly thought of the likely excuse Tanzi would have given. "She was… visiting a family friend."

"She said," Becky said with a soft smile. "Daniel doesn't often get visitors. You must be the woman's father and Daniel's friend?" She looked to Jeffrey, who was standing neatly behind Paige, his hands clasped behind his back.

"Yes, that would be me." Jeffrey was quick to go with the flow, not missing a beat. "My daughter texted me that she had gotten a hold of poor Daniel. She said she would be waiting here for us."

Becky's smile slowly turned into a frown. "I'm sorry to say this but it seemed like your daughter and Daniel got into an argument…"

"What!?" Ruby stepped forward with surprising agitation, taking Becky off-guard. "What do you mean?"

"Daniel is usual a quiet man. Keeps to himself. However he raised his voice and spoke the most I've ever heard him speak," Becky crossed her arms over her chest. "He stormed out of here I'm afraid. Your daughter followed after him. She seemed intent to help Daniel… I just hope they are okay…"

"Shit!" Ruby cursed, drawing a disapproving glance from Becky but she barely paid it any mind. "Now what?"

"We will have to wait for Tanzi to come back here," Jeffrey said calmly. He looked to Becky. "Would it be okay if we wait here for the time being?"

"Of course, please. Take a table."

"Thank you," Jeffrey nodded politely towards Becky. He put a gentle hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Come. Sit and calm yourself."

"…Okay." Ruby nodded, defeated. She and Jeffrey headed over to the table while Paige turned to Lacey.

"Keeping busy as usual, huh?" Paige asked Lacey with a smile. The girl just nervously nodded. "How's the Butterfly?"

"It's good," Lacey said, obviously more comfortable talking about her work than herself. "We've been getting more customers than usual so it's keeping us on our toes but… I think I like it that way." Lacey smiled. "The more I can help the better."

"That's the spirit," Paige nodded. She and Lacey weren't exactly friends so much as acquaintances. They had talked to each other before and shared lessons but they had never quite got around to hanging out. Despite this, Paige knew that Lacey was a decent person. Perhaps one of the only people at the college not to give her looks and just for that simple thing Paige appreciated Lacey a lot. Besides, working at a charity shop, volunteering at soup kitchens… There was no way Lacey could be anything but a good person. "Listen, Lacey… I need a favour."

"If I can offer anything I'll be glad to help," Lacey said, rubbing her hands together. "But I'm not sure if I can…"

"Don't sell yourself short." Paige motioned over to the table where Ruby and Jeffrey were sitting. "I actually kind of need you to meet someone. I know, strange, but… humour me?"

Lacey looked to Jeffrey as if suddenly realising who it was. "Why is our bus driver here?"

"…Bit of a long story." Paige let out a chuckle. "Ties into the lady over there though. Can I steal you for a moment?"

Lacey thought about it and looked to Becky. Becky just nodded. "It's okay Lacey. It's getting quiet and we'll be closing soon anyway. Take the time you need."

"Thank you." Lacey quickly swapped places with Becky and nervously followed Paige to the table. Ruby looked up and immediately smiled at Lacey and offered her hand.

"It's nice to meet you. Lacey, right?" Lacey nodded, awkwardly shaking Ruby's hand before sliding down on the bench. "My name is Ruby." Despite her concerns about Tanzi and the man she now knew to be called Daniel, Ruby was pleased to meet another one on the list. "Not many people your age volunteer at shelters and the like. It's really decent of you to do so."

"Th-Thank you," Lacey looked at a particular spot on the table, finding it hard to make eye contact with this girl with the bright red hair. "P-Paige said I ought to meet you… Can I ask why? A-Are you a new teacher or… or something?"

"No, nothing quite so simple," Ruby's voice grew lower as she glanced around. There was no-one else in close proximity to the four's table though. "I'm going to explain something to you and it's going to sound a little bit… odd."

"Crazy," Paige put in. Ruby glanced to her.

"Well, yes, crazy is a word for it as well, I suppose." Ruby leaned forward but before she could say anything else they heard the front door open. She turned and was immediately delighted to see Tanzi standing in the doorway. The delight turned into worry upon seeing Tanzi's dejected face. Ruby immediately stood up and made her way over to Tanzi. "What's wrong? What happened?" Ruby looked left and right, searching for Daniel. "Where is—"

"He's dead," Tanzi said in a flat tone. Her bottom lip quivered as she looked somewhere around Ruby's neck, unable to make eye contact. "I-I couldn't… I didn't… I tried but… but…" Her arms started shaking and her words caught up in her throat.

Ruby felt like something was constricting around her own neck. She stared down at Tanzi, the words ping-ponging around her skull. He's dead. He's dead… dead, dead, dead. It felt like the triumph she felt upon saving Jeffrey and coming into contact with Paige and Lacey was thrown away. A dread feeling crept up her stomach. This is it… This is the start… how naïve… Saving everyone, Ruby? What a stupid thing to say. You idiot. What right do you have to say you can save them when everyone died before? That's that, isn't it? It doesn't matter what you do it's just going to happen all over again and this time, this time—

Ruby quickly shook her head, throwing the thoughts away. How could she be so selfish when her best friend was standing right in front of her on the verge of breaking down? What she needed was support, not dejection.

"Tanzi…" Ruby started but felt unsure of the words to say. How could you comfort someone who had just experienced a real death, not just one in a vision. Instead Ruby reached forward and pulled Tanzi into a deep hug. "I'm so sorry, Tanzi…"

"I-I… screwed it up, Ruby…" Tanzi sniffed, burying her head into Ruby's shoulder. "You wanted to save everyone and I…"

"It's okay," Ruby whispered.

"It's not okay!" Tanzi exclaimed, pulling away from Ruby. "These clues that you said I was going to have… They…" Tanzi's face twisted in grief. "They let me know the person. I can feel things… about their past, about their present and Daniel… He was… He was broken and I was nearly there. I nearly had his hand and he just… he just fell and that was that and…" Tanzi's hands were shaking uncontrollably as she spoke, recalling the ghastly scene. "I didn't know whether to call the police or… I just came back here… I need help, Ruby, this… I don't know how to deal with this… I can't… I just can't…"

"The police wouldn't be able to help anyway," Ruby assured. She gently put her arm around Tanzi's shoulder and led her towards the table where Jeffrey, Paige, and Lacey were sitting. "All we can do now is move on. All we can do is take the next step. The important thing is that you tried. That is all we can do, each time."

"I'm not happy with that, Ruby… I'm not content with that."

"Neither am I," Ruby said with a sigh. "Neither am I. But we have to keep going forward. We don't have the time to mourn his death. We can't look back else we'll be trapped by grief and regret."

Lacey sat wide-eyed upon hearing the story that Ruby told, with interjections from Paige every now and again. Tanzi sat silent in her seat, Daniel's death still fresh on her mind. Upon finishing, Ruby sat back to let Lacey process it all.

Lacey looked to Paige and then to Jeffrey, both relatively familiar faces. Her skin had grown even more pale at the story. "Y-You… believe them?" She asked Jeffrey, the most senior of the group. Surely if someone his age was going along with this story then it was more than just fiction, right?

"For a small while I wasn't too sure," Jeffrey said, his long fingers interlaced with each other. "But with everything that has happened today… with poor Daniel…" He made sure his voice was low. Throughout the whole conversation Becky was looking at them strangely from the booth but otherwise hadn't made a move towards them so their words were unheard. "I am inclined to believe them."

"And you, Paige?" Lacey asked. It almost looked like she was looking for a negative answer, something that she could latch onto so she didn't have to believe this story.

"I do," Paige said confidently. "And I believe getting everyone together is key. Once everyone on the List is together then I reckon the next step will be simpler." Paige looked to Ruby with a minor glance to Tanzi. "We need a plan, Ruby."

"I agree," Ruby nodded, thinking. "According to Tanzi's vision, Jay Scythe is next. So finding him is a priority. However he will be safe until Tanzi has another vision referencing him." Ruby frowned slightly. "So unless she does have one, I think it is best to wait until tomorrow morning. Tanzi needs some rest… I think we all could do with a night to sleep on everything that is going on, actually."

"So we all just go to this Jay and convince him with numbers?" Jeffrey didn't seem convinced. "The young man is a delinquent, no? I doubt he'll listen to a bunch of women and an old man."

"I'll make him listen," Ruby said firmly. "Besides, I still have his wallet. I can use that as a bargaining chip if necessary. Other than Jay, we still need to find Zach, Naomi, and Jade." Ruby looked to Paige and then to Lacey. "I believe the two of you will be the best to get their attention." Ruby then turned to Jeffrey. "If you wait somewhere at your college and if Lacey and Paige lead the three of them, you can explain to them the situation. I think they'll trust you considering your… seniority."

"Are you saying I'm old?" Jeffrey said with a soft smile signifying his joking manner. Ruby just chuckled as well and Jeffrey nodded. "I think that sounds like a good idea. Zachary, Naomi, and Jade are all decent students as well so we shouldn't have too much trouble with them."

"I wouldn't be too certain about that." Paige said. "Jade is often focused on her band, Naomi tends to be a little bit distrustful of others, and Zach is kind of an idiot. A great guy but an idiot." Paige tapped her finger on her lip. "Well, Zach is the easy one. All Lacey will need to do is ask him out. Slip him a message or something. The guy is always looking for a girl."

"M-Me!?" Lacey practically squeaked, her face going bright red. "W-W-What about you?"

"I was actually thinking…" Paige looked to Ruby. "I would like to go with you and Tanzi to Jay."

"An extra hand would be appreciated… The man's a tough cookie… Jeffrey, Lacey, would you two be okay with that?"

Anxiously biting her lip, Lacey slowly shook her head, "U-Um, I-I-I have plans for… for the morning. I can't really p-postpone it… Sorry…."

Seeing that Lacey seemed conflicted, Paige let out a breath and crossed her arms, sounding surprisingly disappointed. "Okay, I guess I'll take a rain check on going with you two. I'll get a hold of Zach first – he'll be easy and hopefully I can get Naomi as well."

"Then it is settled." Ruby nodded and looked to the still withdrawn Tanzi. "Tomorrow morning, Tanzi and I will go after Jay. Jeffrey and Paige, you will see what you can do about the other three students. Lacey, you'll need to keep in contact with us, okay? I don't know what your plans are but we need to make sure that you're safe, okay? You're next after Jay."

Lacey just nodded, still feeling bad about having to refuse to help with Zach, Naomi, and Jade. Ruby seemed to look at her for a moment before looking at the others. "I promise you guys… I will do my best to make sure what happened to Daniel won't happen to the others."

At the mention of Daniel's name, Tanzi shivered. Could it be as simple as those words? Or were so many more of them destined to die? Everyone around this table, perhaps? Tanzi was extremely frightened of the fact that she had seen all four of these faces around the table devoid of life. She could remember that feeling of absolute terror when Lacey had been trapped behind the seat. She could still feel that brief moment of impact before the Volkswagen hit Jeffrey; the feeling of Ruby accepting her fate and could feel Paige's hand grasping her own as the train derailed… Tanzi clasped her shaking hands together and forced herself to believe Ruby's words.