"MISS Eloise's death was not an accident," Jake had said. "It was deliberate. Something killed her."

Those were the words. The words that changed Ríone's life for better or for the worse - she could not discern which. It was the day of the memorial in their school. Not a true one, if you consider the absence of the body. One of their classrooms had been cleared and in the spot in the middle, perched on a chair, was the picture of a smiling Miss Eloise. Students and teachers alike had gathered there and had put wreaths of flowers on the floor beneath.

"You mean she was murdered?" Ríone asked. Her voice was a whisper amid the priest's prayers for the safe journey of the departed soul.

"Maybe. Or maybe something took her down." Jake had said with a serious frown on his face. Ríone said nothing after that. That look on her friend's face was sign enough that he was not joking. The gravity of the situation settled on her shoulders like the bruise her father had given just two days before.

Walking through the dark halls of her seaside home, Ríone remembered that conversation with Jake. Her breaths came out in audible huffs. Tears soaked her forlorn face. They interfered as children into a matter that no one could ever understand. At least, not wholly. If she was certain of anything, it was that.

With a sigh, she slumped on the sofa. No matter the lights. She preferred the darkness. Because sometimes light does not vanquish evil; sometimes all it does is magnify it and at times conceal it in plain sight. Darkness is much kinder; it gives solitude and respite from horrors of the world. That was all she needed then. Nothing more, nothing less.

The day after the memorial, Jake sneaked off in his parents' bedroom to procure anything related to accidental deaths in Loutham. It was a blessing in disguise that his father worked in the department of births and deaths. After a few days of searching, he had compiled an extensive list of deaths caused because of drowning and had discussed it with Ríone in the downtown cafe.

"See here," he had pointed out to the list of names he had written on a piece of paper, torn from a notebook. "Ever since this town's foundation back in 1790, there have always been incidents of deaths caused because of drowning in Loutham. There would at least be three per year."

"Oh, my!" Ríone's eyes had gone wide. "Do you sense some pattern here, or do you think they are not relevant? Are these other deaths related to that of Miss Eloise?"

Jake nodded. "People will say these are mere accidents. That stuff like this ought to happen in coastal towns. But I will say there is a pattern. I am sure there is one."

It was the day a silent agreement passed between them. After that had followed days of poking their noses into things they should not have, trying to find proof in every instance, strange things that kept happening with them which accumulated into the grotesque death of Jake's brother, Sean.

"We should not have brought him along." Ríone wept in the dark living room. It was early morning when Jake roused her from sleep and took her to the beach, for he had an experiment to conduct that would prove their theories. It was winter. Fog had gathered all over the sea, impeding their vision. Little did Jake realise that his baby brother had followed him. What followed was a bloodbath.

And she saw every moment of it - Sean struggling with the thing and his woeful wails. She and Jake tried to reach him, and tried to pull him away. But it never let them do it. It strangled him. Perforated his eyes. All in front of them.

A warning it was - if you try to mess with it, you will pay the price. But what did Sean do? What was his fault? Because of them, he paid the price with his life. Maybe both she and Jake deserved what happened to them in the aftermath.

"I am so sorry, Sean. I am so sorry. If you can, please forgive me."

Ríone cried again. She put both hands on her face and wept. Her heart hurt. It was a thing that never could bear too much. So fragile that the slightest scorn could shatter it. But it had to bear so much - neglect, abuse and deaths. Oh, how she wished to be like the rest of the world, oblivious to the darkside of this earth. She wished to be happy, like the heroes and heroines in her stories.

Yes, there was pain and ordeals in her stories. But there was a promise of happy endings too.

Would she have one too? She was not so sure. Derek was there, the girls were there. Even Timothee was there. Yet she was afraid. Afraid that the rot that was present in her soul would spread to them and poison their lives. Destroy them beyond repair, like she was. That was why she smiled. So that the demons would stay away.

But demons came to stay, didn't they? She forgot about that. Once it attaches itself to you, there is no escape. She should accept. Try to live with it. Because what other option did she have? She could not end her life, no, for it was entwined with so many. Ríone curled into a ball. She pressed her knees to her chest. The sound of her heartbeats made her feel a little relieved.

Outside, storm clouds gathered. In a matter of a few moments, raindrops danced down from the skies and splashed upon the sand, making tiny holes in them.

Against the backdrop of the stormy sky, the whiteness of the sea appeared to be faded like that of an old picture. The house looked doleful, like tears were streaming down from their eyes as well. The droplets of rain hummed and thudded on the rooftops like numerous crystal beads.

Behind the house, trees swayed in the chilly breeze. They shook like old men. Their green shades had turned dark and their leaves inched closer to its companion, as if to whisper some secret in their ears. Nature wept with Ríone, who lay motionless in the living room.

Had it not been for the heaving of her chest, one would have assumed that she was dead, lost to the mortal realm forever. On the floor, from her tote, the ends of the black booklet peeked out.

If misery loves company, it had a friend in her.