A Pocket Full of Posies (Book 1)

Chapter Fifteen (Part 2)

We're trying to lose it, but it's proving useless. Panic and adrenaline have overridden my drunkness, and anything left over is just making me unsteady on my feet. I've been scratched by this point, and there's a constant stream of rocks being thrown at us. Jamie's rambling on about something as we run, so I tell him to shut up because he's going to make himself out of breath.

After a while of aimlessly sprinting around the local area, I begin to notice streetlights flickering, and after another five minutes, I begin realising that they flicker every time there's a turning. It's far too controlled, and definitely too clever of a move for a poltergeist. It's Annabel. It has to be.

"Turn the direction of the street light that flickers!" I call back to Jamie, who's increasingly lagging behind.

"What? I don't--what do you mean?" he shouts back.

"Just follow me!"

My legs are beginning to ache, and my throat stings. The streetlight to my left flickers. We turn left. My ankle hurts from where the chair leg hit it earlier, but I grit my teeth and ignore it as best I can. Something smacks into my arm. A stone, I think. Another light flickers, and we turn left again.

I don't recognise this part of town, and the streets are empty. Where the hell is Annabel trying to take us? We take the next right. Jamie swears. I glance backwards to see him almost trip, but he just about saves himself. I think something hit him. We turn left again, then right, then another right. Something scratches my arm again. This is useless. This isn't working.

I turn to Jamie, and I don't think he's going to be able to run for much longer. There must be something we can do, somewhere we can go. A streetlight on the left flickers, just as I spot a concrete bus shelter to the right. An idea hits me. I run towards the shelter as the streetlight to the left flickers again.

All sides bar the front of the shelter are covered, but there's a concrete panel extending from the roof of the shelter to the ground in the middle of it, so Jamie and I stand in line with the panel, ensuring that no part of our bodies poke out.

"What is going on?" Jamie practically screams, despite there being barely any sound around us.

"Bad stuff," I manage to say through gasping breaths. "Mind you, I don't think I've ever sobered up so quickly in my life."

"Now's not the time to try and be funny!" he snaps back.

I slowly poke my head around the concrete panel, but there's nothing to see. The road is empty, and it's too dark to make out much anyway. The streetlight I ignored is flashing manically now. I'm about to move further out when I spot something heading straight towards me, so I quickly step back behind the safety of the concrete. There's a smash. I think it was a glass bottle. I have an idea, but I need Annabel to execute it.

I need to speak to her. Out loud.

I turn my eyes to Jamie, who's still trying to get his breath back. I can't do it in front of him. How the hell is this going to work? Now we're under shelter, we're at an advantage. We need the poltergeist to try and attack us. Their power is formulated entirely by energy, and the more they use up, the weaker they become. Or at least according to Ava's book.

There's no way we can taunt it safely though, it's too risky. Annabel, on the other hand... I really need to speak to her. I have to speak to her. I glance at Jamie again. I don't have a choice, do I? I shut my eyes and take a deep breath. I'm going to regret this.

"Annabel, I've got an idea!" I call out.

"What? What are you--" Jamie.

"We need to drain its energy! Distract it, taunt it, throw things at it so it has to fight back! Make it--"