‘As far as I can tell, this
place has always been here,’ Elle says, ‘it exists on the path to the Great
Beyond.’
‘So it’s real?’
‘Well, that’s the question,’ she
says. ‘They all believe it is. It’s just the problem, no matter how much you
say it, how much are you ever convinced of something, especially something with
no proof. Some people choose to go, and they lose their belief, fear sets in
and people end up here. They’ve made a pretty good life for themselves to be
fair.’
‘We make do,’ Tarquin leans over
his shoulder. Obviously he’s been listening. ‘As far as we can tell, this world
is mostly desert, but we’re filling it. We find quarries and fashion tools. As
I’m sure you noticed before, interacting with physical objects is no problem
for us. We found a quarry nearby.’ He waves his hands at the lines of buildings
and pavements.
‘So we’re still ghosts,’ I confirm.
The rumble in my stomach disagrees.
‘Always,’ Elle says. ‘You just
have to learn to accept some facts.’
‘Your mind is strong but your
will and belief can be stronger if you train it to be. I’m Sandra by the way.’
I shake another hand.
‘Tarquin’s the major here.’
‘How do you become mayor of a
ghost town?’ I ask.
‘Vote,’ he smiles. ‘Literally by
show of hands. Some people prefer to stay here because they think it’s as close
to a Great Beyond as they can get.’
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