Blacken Read online

  “Pretty blasé, right? It unfortunately has to be that way, no matter how much we rally,” Caroline let out an airy laugh, before pointing to a few personal choices, “you can’t go wrong with these few here, and this one across town as long as you stay away from the fish.”

  Avie snickered, “All right, that’s been noted! Thanks for the heads up!” She wrote the memo down beside the legend on the map. The woman let out a steadying breath, glancing over the placements on the map, still unsure of one thing. “Caroline, do you know anyone else that had a vibrating body experience? Someone that I could maybe start talking to?”

  The nurse’s demeanour changed, the middle-aged woman looking sterner at her question, “You can try Jim at the hardware store, I don’t know too much about anyone else. I prefer not to get mixed up in that hysteria.”

  Avie felt the tone grow heavy, “Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by it. I appreciate all your help.”

  “Mmhmm,” she hummed in acknowledgment, before leaving her to her own devices.

  Well, that was weird.

  It was odd to see such a shift over a simple question, Avie wasn’t sure what to make of it. More questions came up, the whole phenomenon struck at her innate curiosity, she needed to find out more, needed to find out why there was a calling to this town that she followed. It affected its citizens in some way, but she was still very much in the dark about everything. There was a starting point at least.

  Jim who worked at Home·Aware was her first stop.

  It was time to get some answers.

  CHAPTER 2

  The sky loomed heavy with darkling clouds, a sure sign of an intense rainstorm coming at any time. The wind picked up enough for Avie to pull her windbreaker closer, attempting to block out the chills, to no avail. August rain waited beyond the trees, bringing in a bite to the atmosphere. Frost ran its threatening fingers over the evening, a promise it could come within days by the dropping temperature in the surrounding mountains.

  Traversing through the streets by the map in her hands, she felt good to get up and walk around for the first time since leaving the hospital. Even though her muscles protested in their sore state, she needed to stretch them out, knowing it was beneficial to build up her strength. Besides, she had been resting plenty, Avie could rest once she got a little more information.

  Her eyes searched the street ahead of her, locating the hardware shop on Blacken’s main street. Promptly after entering the store, a wash of warmth caressed her, finally out of the wind.

  “Hello, anything I can help you with?” A man appeared at the cash register to her left, flashing her a smile which crinkled his eyes, wiping his hands with a dark hand towel. He couldn’t have been any older than his late forties, but his face was worn. Avie thought absentmindedly that he smelled of tobacco, the scent wafting through the building.

  “Yes, I was hoping I could speak to Jim?” She stepped further inside, walking up to the desk to converse with the gentleman.

  He motioned to his name tag, “Well you’re in luck, Jim is in!” He chuckled, “You have a special project you’re working on?”

  The redhead fidgeted, not really rehearsing what she was going to say.

  “I, umm, well actually I was hoping to talk to you about something else. A nurse at Berridge General said you may be able to help, and I’m sorry if it sounds weird, but do you know anything about having your body… vibrate?”

  Jim’s smile dropped while his bushy eyebrows rose in being caught off guard, “It’s been a very long time since anyone’s asked. I had it take me here a good thirty years ago now, so I can’t rightly remember what it felt like, just that it took over my whole body. There’s not many people out due to the weather, would you like to come and sit, maybe have some coffee?”

  Avie agreed, knowing it may be a lengthy discussion, excited in the fact that he knew the sensation. She was led to the back; a break room of sorts, an old coffee machine brewing caused the space to smell like rich java. The large pot sat next to a few other appliances and next to a half-eaten sandwich on the counter, bright lights slightly flickering overhead.

  “I had just started a fresh pot; you take cream or sugar?”

  “Both, please.”

  Jim motioned her to sit at the small table while he fixed the cups of coffee, “So, Miss, what’s your name?”

  “Avie, Avie Conrad.”

  “Well Avie, you look like you were in quite a scuffle, you mind if I ask what happened?” Jim sat across her, handing her coffee over.

  “I crashed into a tree, just outside of the town. But since I came here, that feeling I had stopped. Do you… I mean, is there any answer for that?”

  Jim sighed, taking a sip of his black coffee, reverie dancing behind his eyes, “Geeze… How many years has it been since anyone asked about this…?”

  She tilted her head, feeling some lingering tenderness, “You don’t have a lot of people experience it?”

  “Well… No, not really. And there’s not really an answer. The locals of Blacken don’t like to hear or talk about it. They almost brush it off as some sort of witchcraft or conspiracy. I, like many others, can’t ask too many questions without being ostracized. It leaves people not wanting to pursue that curiosity.”

  She sipped at the coffee, mirroring Jim’s action at the natural pause. He looked down, breaking eye contact while staring down into the black abyss of caffeine held in his hands, speaking with a low longing. It almost felt like he was someone who gave up his search, one of the ones he was talking about—on the verge of being an outcast for asking of the strange sensation they had no control over.

  “But why is that? Why do they care so much about others trying to find an answer?”

  “Most people around here are religious, it’s the crutch they lean on whenever someone tries to go out of their way to explore what’s been going on and drawing people like us in. It’s been a long time since someone new came in. I honestly thought I wouldn’t talk about this phenomenon again. I thought it must have stopped.”

  She looked away, “I know it must be difficult, it’s just… This all sounds very strange. Nothing in the town is doing this? There has been absolutely no one able to figure this out? Doctors? Scientists?”

  “Anyone who has tried, I have no idea about. We are only a small group in this already small town, in the end, the majority rules over silencing our voices. I suppose we have a few theories to go off of, but it’s really nonconsequential. Once I got here, I tried to find out a few things, but I came up short in any conclusions. It’s still a mystery with more questions than answers. Though, the only discovery we have is that when we try to leave, the feeling comes back. It’s a spectacle that no one has been able to figure out, but it hasn’t hurt anyone.”

  “No wonder they think it’s a weird conspiracy, to keep people in town like that… Do you think it affects the same people? Like, did we all come from the same place, just to be led here?”

  “Not sure. I came from too big of a city, the same is said for a few others, probably even the same as you, I’d imagine. Us older folk seem to not have to worry about the how or why. I live for Blacken’s community, it’s all I’ve ever dreamt about, it is a great little town for finding yourself and I think a lot of folks see it that way. I can’t speak for everyone, of course, but I’d rather have the vibration that led me here on the back burner while I got to enjoy the convenience of simple living.”

  “Jim, this thing that brought us here, with no one in town able to ask what’s causing it… Do you think they’re keeping it a secret?”

  “I have no idea. I still have as much information on this as you do, Miss. Conrad,” he chuckled, downing the rest of his beverage.

  Her mind was reeling, why wouldn’t people want to know more? Things couldn’t have led her here just to live in a small town. The populace seemed older, less driven so it would make sense that they just left well enough alone. But what about the kids? Were they stopped just by the others who preached
religion or even tradition? Were the two parties fighting out in a conspiracy against each other?

  “You said that it’s been a while since people who experienced this came in. How many usually come to live in Blacken?”

  “People came in every month or so, left the same way too.”

  “They can leave? How can they when—I mean, I thought you had said…” she trailed off, not understanding even further.

  Jim chortled, in the same flippant nature a parent would give to a child asking a silly question, “Like I said, it’s a mystery with more questions than answers. But some of the others can leave without it, I figure they return home because they had the same drumming buzz to do so or leave to another town. Who knows? In either case, they don’t stay long.”

  “So, there are people that come and go with this. Has anyone asked them what they did so that it doesn’t come back?”

  “Well, some people have tried. Some of ‘em built bridges here, and those close to them have tried to get into contact… but they can’t. It’s as though they started a whole new life, I never knew anyone who has left, really, but I would like to know what goes through their head when they do. Have you contacted your family since coming here?”

  She stopped, feeling embarrassed. Avie hadn’t even thought about it, even though they may not even bat an eye as they had when she moved to the city. They didn’t need to know, however what Jim said was making sense, maybe the affected population that came in and out didn’t have very many people connected to them, as she did. Maybe that was the connecting factor?

  “No, I don’t really have anyone.”

  “Then you’re like most of us. We don’t have a lot that we left, though some do, could be all coincidental though. People build lives here, the community is great, you’ll be making friends in no time. There are, however, plenty of people who don’t know what this situation was like, and they don’t like hearing about it. It’s been a long time since another came in, you may be the talk of the town, Avie.”

  She looked away, a small flush tickled at the back of her neck from the thought of people talking about her en masse, “Did you ever notice how long people like us usually stay then?”

  “Don’t get me wrong, I’ve noticed people can be here for the rest of their lives, but they also come in a lot older than you. They stay for a number of weeks at least if they do leave. If the sensation comes to people at random, it probably lets them go the same way. In any case, I don’t question it, it’s not like it’s a big deal if it leads people here to Blacken of all places.”

  More questions burned in her mind, the more information she was given by Jim, the more she wanted to figure out what exactly was going on in town, why the phenomenon was happening, why it wasn’t seen as a bigger deal by the townsfolk, why it led people in just to let them go?

  “I’ve seen that look, just be careful asking around, it can be awful if you push too hard. I can try to answer any questions you may have. For now, I hope you stay a while. Blacken is very hospitable.”

  She nodded; not sure what else she could ask. The young woman was not getting any direct answers, only speculations, it was frustrating.

  Avie stood to thank Jim, shaking his hand, “Thank you so much for your time, it really is incredible, this town. I want to stay for as long as I can and get to know Blacken better.”

  “You’ll get along great here, I can feel it, Miss. Conrad. I’ve got to run back to the shop, but you can take your time. I hope you’ll feel better soon!”

  She smiled in the middle of tracing a medicated salve over her lip, “Thank you, Jim. I’m doing my best,” she laughed.

  Her time with Jim gave her a little more insight to the town, but it still didn’t explain very much. Avie sought an answer on what was causing the sensations to begin with, it had to have been something more interesting than just a ‘God’s Will’ explanation coupled with the inability of the people wanting to know more.

  She thought about if anything was reported on the town, or what was going on, then its history may have a few jumping off points or clues on where to start digging up answers.

  Pulling the map out of her back pocket, she found the library just a few blocks over. Her attention was grabbed by the abrupt wind howling against the building.

  Looking down at her windbreaker, she grimaced at the lighter clothing. Braving the weather in her walk, Avie shivered heavily upon entering the library.

  She held her arms across her body, a feeble attempt to keep the extremities warm while rubbing up and down to create friction. Her teeth chattered while walking into the dim lobby. The young woman observed her surroundings, unable to find anyone else in the building, not even anyone at the reception.

  Her footsteps echoed in the quiet building, it was so silent, even for a library. The lack of persons, coupled with the storm brewing outside—darkening the lobby through the grand windows, made her uneasy. The space wasn’t over all anything lavish, small town, small buildings, she assumed. However, the woman was hoping to find another friendly face like she did with Jim at Home·Aware, but even glancing around the open area, she couldn’t see any staff wandering around.

  Maybe they were busy elsewhere?

  Reaching the reception desk, Avie placed her palms down on the cool marble, “… Hello?” she tentatively called out.

  A man with dirty blond scraggly hair and beard to match popped out from the desk, seemingly to have been interested in something on the floor or low shelving. Small glasses framed his face as he pushed them up with a large hand, cradling a stack of folders with the other.

  “Yes, hi, I was just… Um, hello! I’m here, yes, hello,” he struggled to speak while attempting to catch the falling papers, his tweed suit moving in a flash with his erratic juggling movements.

  “Goodness, you scared me!”

  He placed the paperwork down between them while strewing his words, “Sorry! I didn’t mean to; I was having problems with the sorting and—holy hell... Are you alright?” The man finally looked at her, taking in her features.

  Avie rubbed at her arm, “It’s just a couple of bruises, I was in an accident a few days ago.”

  “You’re also shivering! Have you been outside with only that?” He looped around the marble desk, showing off his tall and lanky form, “Do you need some hot chocolate? I also have a large sweater that might help warm you up from the rain.”

  She shook her head, holding up a hand, “Oh no, it’s not a worry, you don’t have to go through the trouble.”

  The scraggly man looked around the library in an exaggerated manner, “There’s nothing going on here, hasn’t been for a while. C’mon, you’re gonna catch a cold. I’m happy to help if you wanted to keep company and warm up for a bit?”

  It was a very tempting offer, Avie felt as though she could not warm up; a mix of the weather and the chills that lurked in her body since the hospital.

  She sighed, giving in, “If you’re sure, I would absolutely love some.”

  His smile lit up his face, radiating the cerulean eyes. “Done deal. I’m Owen,” he held out his hand for her to shake.

  “Avie. Nice to meet you, Owen. You’re the first person I’ve met that looks about my age,” she laughed, finally meeting people in her age group.

  He joined in her laughter, “That’s Blacken for you! How old are you anyway, if you don’t mind?”

  “Turning twenty-seven in October.”

  “Almost time to celebrate for you then! I just turned twenty-five a few months ago, still trying to get used to that milestone,” he laughed.

  They walked over to one of the tables and sat, Owen bringing a sweater and hot cocoa. She held the foam cup in her hands, having the heat flow through her with the help of the coat hugging her shoulders.

  “So, did you forget to check the weather before going out?”

  Her eyes raised to meet his, this Owen was pretty straight forward, it seemed.

  “Um, I actually, uh… I don’t have anything else.
I didn’t really pack anything with me.”

  “And so, you came to the library instead of a winter shop?”

  The woman in question took a sip of the drink, careful to avoid burning herself before setting it back down. Thinking over her words, she took Jim’s advice in heed, “I was hoping to get some more information on the town. I didn’t get too much from some of the locals.”

  She traced the lip of her cup, eyes trailing her thumb as it danced in a semicircle. Realizing Owen hadn’t responded, Avie grew worried she still said too much. She glanced up, seeing his features gleaming instead.

  “You’re one of them, aren’t you—that came into town because of the body tremor? God… It’s been forever since we’ve had anybody new.”

  “You know about it? Are you one too?” She became visibly restless, enthusiastic to get more information on the subject. She didn’t really know what qualified as ‘one of them’, assuming it was just having the vibrating that led someone into Blacken, but she couldn’t be sure if there was more to the mystery.

  “I’m not but, I’ve been extremely interested in what’s been going on, unlike most people. It’s like they don’t even want an answer to something that could be the biggest mystery since the vortex of the Mirny diamond mine.”

  Avie shifted even further, growing more excited with everything the blond was saying.

  “I know! What’s up with that? There is this mystery that’s just begging to be solved at this point, and no one’s asking questions. All I can think about is what the bigger picture is. I was hoping there was more information about it here, if anything’s been reported. Do you happen to know?”

  “Avie… I’ve been waiting a long time for someone like you to show up. Someone just as interested. Can I show you what I have been working on?”

  Nodding enthusiastically, she followed the young man into a side room down a staircase, locked off and only accessible with the key ring attached to his belt. Inside were a few papers, newspaper clippings, maps, and scribbled notes along most of the photocopied pages. Avie looked over the newspapers, old dates standing out amongst the scientific hypotheses as to what the town was experiencing, especially with the people who had come and gone.