"We found her!" Victor was laughing hysterically. He gently placed his daughter on the couch. Emily walked over to her and gazed at the unconcious child.
"So this is Emily," she murmured. "She's beautiful. And what a lovely name I might remark."
"Isn't it. I once knew a lovely woman called Emily. That's where we got the name." Emily found it hard not to blush.
"Where is Victoria?" Victor asked, glancing around the room. Emily walked over to Victor and placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Victor, your wife is in hospital." Victor looked horrified.
"It's true Mr Van Dort" Andrew continued. "She tried to drown herslef in the bath." Victor was speechless. He sat down by his daughter, stroking her hair lovingly. Emily tried to comfort him.
"She'll be glad to know your daughter is safe." There was a sad silence.
"Mr Van Dort, I've called a local doctor to check up on your daughter" said the elder constable. Victor nodded.
"He'll be here in a few minutes, we'll hang around and wait for a bit."
"I'll make some tea" Emily said hurriedly, and dashed into the kitchen, although she and Andrew hadn't finished their first cups.
"I'll go with her" Andrew scurried after her.
Emily was mindlessly stirring a spoon in her now lukewarm tea.
"Are you alright?" Andrew asked, approaching her warily. Emily would not meet his gaze.
"It's all a bit stressfull, that's all." She tried to stop a sob welling up inside her.
"It's a dreadful shame. I really feel sorry for Mr Van Dort." He cast his gaze to his feet. "I wouldn't like to be him. Uh, Miss Eleanor, about before, the grave, you don't have to do anything you don't want-"
"Its fine Andrew. I meant it when I said I'd like to." Andrew smiled. They were interrupted by the constable yelling for tea. Emily turned away and began brewing the tea.
****
There was a great tension in the underworld. Miss Plum was anxiously stirring a pot of murky water, bonejangles pacing the bar, Mayhew wasn't even smoking. The body of Emily lay on the piano. No one knew what had happened to her. Until that moment. Elder Godknecht hobbled into the bar. Everyone stopped what they were doing and huddled around him.
"Well?" asked Paul. "Do you know what did this to Emily?"
"Indeed I do," Began Elder Godknecht. He opened a huge thick book on the pool table. He read aloud what he had found:
"The SoulSnatcher:
The Soul Snatcher is a devious spirit that has been trapped in the Underworld for centuries. He was once a serial killer and was hung for murder. He has mystical powers to transport souls to empty bodies. But this is purely for his benefit alone. Once he has a soul under his control he can feed of the despair that builds up inside it. He can also get the soul to run errands for him.
The Soul Snatcher can also feed off the living. He choses a host and sends the soul to the host. He can cause mishaps and the utmost grief will fill the host. The Soul Snatcher will feed off his grief. But the Soul Snatcher uses clever tactics. When it looks like things can get no darker for the host, the Soul Snatcher brings a string of good luck to them, then destroys their final hope.
Eventually the Soul Snatcher will have completely devoured his chosen soul and exhausted its uses. This soul will then dissapear into the atmosphere. It will never be seen again, but some say that it still lingers in the air for three days. If the soul can reach it's body by then, it can regain life. If not, the soul will perish."
"So Emily is the soul?" Mayhew said. Elder Godknect nodded.
"Oh god," cried Miss Plum. "We have to help her!"
"We might be able to," said Elder Godknecht. "I have located her. We need to bring her here as soon as possible. Who knows when her time is up."
****
"I'm sorry Mr Van Dort" said the doctor, pacing the room. "Your daughter has a terrible fever. I can't treat her. Not in time. I doubt she will make it through the night."
"Through the night!" Victor collapsed next to his daughter. Emily thought she was going to burst into tears. She turned away, wanting to become invisible. She was unaware that Andrew was watching her sadly. He came over and put his hand on her shoulder. Emily jumped in suprise. Andrew slipped his hand away. He scuttled over to the constable, embarassed.
Emily gazed at the younger Emily. She looked so peaceful, so quiet. Emily didn't like it. Her eyes widened. She ran over to Victor's daughter, and placed her fingers on her neck.
"Eleanor! What are you doing?" cried Victor. Emily turned to look at him. Her eyes were wide and tearful. She shook her head slowly.
"She's cold."
