When the sun goes down, the gravestone statues in Willow Hills Cemetery come to life--including Gretta.
As a granite guardian of the dead, it's her job to make sure her charge--the snarky, hot-headed, lesbian spirit Quinn Rivera--crosses over and f...
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I never knew what pain was. But this blistering, horrible sensation had to be it. The necklace sizzled. The burning grew into a snake of flames, coiling around me and squeezing, squeezing, squeezing, until I was sure I'd shatter.
The fire consumed me.
A falling feeling, like cutting through the air without any sense of direction, washed me from head to toe. Twisting, I reached for the necklace to throw it as far away from me as I could. But I couldn't do much of anything besides scream and thrash.
A voice filled my head, getting louder and louder, like a roar. Quinn's voice. It was full of vigor, full of excitement. Which didn't make sense, because she was somewhere near me, not in my head.
Right?
Light exploded behind my eyelids like fireworks. A vision of trees and rocks shimmered in my view—an array of colors and roaring water.
Her voice consumed everything like the resurgence of a wave.
***
My brother was a hemorrhoid personified. His best asset?
Getting in the way of everything.
Like his shaggy hair I pestered him to cut. Like his wiry, clumsy legs that never fit his awkward frame. Like climbing to the top of the Waterfall, one of our many hangouts around town.
This time, he couldn't stop me.
"Get down from there! Christ!"
I smiled at him, throwing a leg over a concrete block. He only wished he could climb as well as me. I beamed down at him, triumphant. My T-shirt was covered in powdered sugar from funnel cakes at the county fair. My hair was a rattled, tangled mess from all the roller coaster rides.
"Don't you do it, Quinn!"
I pulled my arms up, scooting myself along the tiny concrete bridge. Well, it wasn't really a bridge. It was more like a garbage-control system for the water rushing underneath my feet, but whatever.
I stood up, looking over the edge of the Waterfall. Massive amounts of water poured over the ledge, creating a foggy mist that smelled like earth and moss.
Garbage bobbed in the tiny pond below. I held out my arms, throwing back my head, laughing into the sky.
My voice echoed off the water and the many trees spray-painted in rainbow. Kids came here to put their graffiti skills to excellent use, turning the landscape into a kaleidoscope of hues.
"I can't believe you climbed the freaking Waterfall!" he shouted at me. "You're a legend!"
"Of course I am!"
Jason laughed. I twirled my necklace between my fingers. He'd given this to me today at the fair and bought it when he thought I wasn't looking. I hated girly shit, but...I liked it.
