THE DEAF BOY HEARD IT ALL (BOYXBOY)

SOUNDS SECRETIVE (13)

I was on the floor, Soren and Emrys swam into my vision as my eyes cleared. Groaning I sat up with their help. It was still night time. We were still in the hallway. Zane, Jude, and Lyra was still with us.

"How long was I out?" I asked as I was helped back to my feet. Everything felt off centered. My head was pounding and my heart was racing. What was that? How could any of this be happening? What had I just seen?

"Twenty, thirty minutes at the most," Emrys answered before anyone else could. Mary was gone but what I saw still stuck with me. It was a dream . . . a vision. Something the well showed me like before -no- Mary showed this to me. Did Mary want me to see who my people were? The evils lengths that my bloodline went through.

"Come on let's go," Zane spoke and I looked at the other man. Jude had a worried look on his face and I stepped closer to my brother-in-law. His hand was holding onto Lyra's tightly but his eyes spoke of his panic as they shifted around the hall.

"What?" I asked touching Jude's arm and bringing his blue eyes to me. "What's wrong?" What was right these days. In the last month or two everything seemed to have gone to hell.

"I can't find Harlow," Jude spoke and my chest tightened as air whooshed from my lungs. Jude and asked Lyra where her mother was when she had first come downstairs to join us. Before Lyra could give an answer Mary started to sob.

"She has to be in your room," I had seen Harlow leave out of that bedroom and go to Lyra room. What did Jude mean he couldn't find Harlow? Where could my sister have gone at this hour of night?

"I looked while you were passed out. She's not in our room. She's not in our room. She's not in Lyra room or the bathroom. She didn't check on Lisa and she's not with Mae. There's also no way she could have left the house without us seeing her. And why would she? Why would she leave Lyra alone if she had to get out of the house?"

She wouldn't have, Harlow had a lot of problems her drinking was one of them but she loved her family. She would never just leave Lyra alone and walk away. Not when she didn't even known what was going on. When she heard someone scream and didn't know if it was safe or not.

"Daddy," Lyra tugged on Jude's shirt trying to get his attention. "Dad," she added a whine to her voice stomping her foot.

"What is it, Sweetheart?" Jude asked still distracted as his eyes shifted to the other door in the hallway.

"I know where mommy went," Lyra spoke and all eyes fell on her. Jude dropped to his knees in front of his daughter his hand clasping on her shoulder.

"Where? Where did mommy go?" Jude asked his voice was pitched higher than normal. I've never seen Jude anything but calm before he was always the voice of reason. It was unsettling to see him this way. Maybe I was underreacting. My sister was missing. So far as I could remember nothing ever happened to Harlow in this place.

She only ever shared one story about seeing what should never be seen. There was never a time when Harlow's name was whispered through the darkness. Harlow always thought dad was crazy, she never believed in this stuff.

I thought that kept her safe. Not jumping at every shadow. Not reading more into a strange noise. Harlow wasn't the kind of person to follow the dark figure down the hall. My sister has always been smart and brave. In my mind Harlow didn't fear ghost, ghost feared Harlow. So where was she?

"She's in the bad place," Lyra answered her father and my blood ran cold.

"The well?" Jude questioned and Lyra and I both shook our heads. Tilting my head back. I looked up at the ceiling. I could hear my heart drumming in my ears. It didn't feel like I was breathing.