The Banshee -Paul Lahote-

Chapter 27

Mavis sat in the back of an ambulance with a dull look on her face. It was dark out, and the flashing police lights illuminated the area. The officer wasn't allowing them to leave until they got their full statements. She went first, but Rosalie had taken over. It was clear something more was going on. Mavis had driven them out out of Forks and into a town named Beaver. Then stopped at a gas station with a full tank, but she believed they needed some. It was clear why Mavis found the body, but none of them wanted to say it.

Emmett had called Carlisle immediately and then contacted the police. The Beaver police were considerate and wanted to get as much from them as possible. Carlisle arrived rather quickly, bringing Charlie with him. Although he was from a different department, he could provide some useful insight on dealing with murders.

Charlie had been with Billy when Carlisle found him, and news from there had traveled quickly. All Billy had heard was that there was a double homicide in a gas station and that Rosalie, Emmett, and Mavis needed assistance. It was unclear who was dead.

Mavis watched as they wheeled past two bodies in black bags. One was the store clerk, the person she saw. The other was a teenager who had been down one of the aisles. The buzzing in her ears had been from the lights in the store. One of them was shorting and needed replacement. Mavis had been ignoring the sound for hours. People were dying, but she wasn't listening. Maybe if she had, things would have been different. Perhaps she could have saved two people instead of ignoring the signs.

"Excuse me," a young deputy approached her. "I have a few more questions."

She stared at him but wasn't really listening. "I'll be happy to answer them," Emmett stepped in front of her. He knew this was a lot for her to process. The deputy seemed to agree and moved to the side. Emmett followed after him. Mavis glanced across the clearing towards Rosalie. She was standing with Carlisle and Charlie talking to another deputy. She explained the events from start to finish. They locked eyes, and Rosalie offered a faint nod. A signal that they knew she needed to leave and were working on it.

Carlisle seemed to pick up on the situation as well. Mavis stood up from her seated position and looked around. All she wanted was to go home. She felt guilty enough for not doing anything. "Hey," Carlisle approached her. "How are you?"

Mavis stared at him, "I would like to go home."

He smiled at her, "I can make that happen. Come with me." And she did.

~~~~~~~~~~

Mavis sat away from the group that was hanging out on the Rez. She wanted to be alone after what happened that morning. They ended up at Emily's house, and the group hung out on the edge of the treeline. Emily was inside cooking muffins. She thought it would help brighten Mavis's mood. The girl knew it wouldn't but didn't tell her that.

Her mind had been silent since the finding the bodies. The scream she let out echoed through her mind, but there were no other noises. No indication that someone else was going to die. Mavis couldn't help but wonder why. Why did she find those two bodies a town over? Why did they matter? And why did she ignore the noise that was clearly begging to be followed? There was a chance she could have stopped it, saved them from dying, but she fought the instinct. "Hey," Paul sat down beside her on the hammock. "Are you okay?"

The last thing Mavis wanted was for Paul to worry about her. "I'm fine." He had heard some of what happened from Billy. Now, hours later, he was still waiting for the whole story.

That didn't convince him. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Mavis shrugged. All she wanted was to stop seeing the body. "I heard they're heading to the beach soon. You should go with them."