15 – The Ghosts

The moon casts a spooky light over the blue gums while Chloe slowly drives along the narrow path to her island in the woods. The eucalypti surround her like giant zombies waiting somberly for her to stop and climb out. Eventually, she arrives at the open island in the middle of the forest and stops in front of her dark wooden house now only illumed by her headlights. She switches the headlights off and darkness totally engulfs her. She remains in the Cooper and first gets her smartphone’s flashlight on and reaches for the bag that contains her takeaway she bought along the way. She then exits the car and sneaks step by step towards her place with only the scant light of the phone right in front of her to show the way. The moonlight is only enough for her to identify the dark shape of her place. It feels as if she is engulfed in darkness. It is symbolic: first her mother and then her father and now Zoey’s flame is flickering very low. Lyle was luckier. She climbs the stairs and with d