Bitterroot Crossing

by Tess Oliver

  The sun was still brilliant and warm. I wore my slip-on shoes with every intention of taking them off and going barefoot once I’d reached my destination. I’d realized something after these two days at school in my clunky, lace-up boots; I walked much better when I wasn’t thinking about how I was walking. And I walked much better without cumbersome shoes on my feet.

  Jasper had busied himself with a cornered lizard so I went to work searching the long row of blackberry bushes for untouched fruit. I happened upon a small gold mine, or black mine as it were, of plump berries hidden deep enough in the bush that birds and animals had not yet discovered them. I plucked the berries off and dropped them into the basket on my arm, stopping occasionally to pop one into my mouth. They weren’t as sweet as the midsummer berries, but they still exploded with juice in my mouth.

  The dog growled behind me and I turned to scold him for scaring the wits out of a helpless lizard. Instead, I came face to face with Zedekiah. “You certainly appear in the strangest places,” I said. Jasper growled again then wagged his tail and ran off to chase some more helpless critters.

  “You’re a sight to behold with that soft green dress, naked feet, and berry stained mouth.” Zedekiah’s brazen gaze surveyed me from head to foot. His blue eyes may have been dead for over a century but standing here in front of me he seemed anything but a ghost.

  “You’re causing Nana and I a lot of trouble. The town isn’t happy about your return.”

  Ignoring what I said, he lifted a berry and held it up to inspect it. Then he handed it to me. “Do me a favor, love, eat this berry and tell me how it tastes. Exactly. Don’t leave out anything. It’s been so long since I’ve tasted anything.”

  There was a sadness now in his expression that made me comply. I pushed the berry between my lips, bit down on it, and swallowed. His gaze did not leave my mouth, and I felt a blush rise in my cheeks.

  I closed my eyes to remember what I’d tasted. “First there is that anticipation of the burst of juice as you bite down on it. It starts sour and flows into a rich, fruity sweetness as it slides down your throat. Like a misty, warm summer afternoon settling in your mouth.”

  When I opened my eyes, Zedekiah’s image had become blurry as if he was sinking back into a memory, a memory of enjoying the taste of summer fruit. Then his image sharpened again. “Tasting, touching, all things I miss.” His long icy fingers trailed down my forearm sending a shiver up my skin. I stepped back out of his reach. He looked hurt by it.

  “Zedekiah, I’m not sure what it is you’re looking for, but I don’t have it. I know you don’t intend to harm me, but you are definitely making my life more difficult.”

  I returned to my task of picking berries. After picking clean the berry trove I’d found, I walked further down the line of bushes. Some of the canes and branches had grown long and unruly during the long summer light. Soon they would shrink away and go dormant for the winter.

  My ghostly companion followed. “It is lovely watching you walk barefoot. Those boots don’t suit you at all.”

  I reached in and plucked off two more berries. “Well, I can’t go to school barefoot. And while I’ll never be a dancer, I do feel more graceful without shoes.”

  Instantly, Zedekiah was perched atop the berry bushes staring down at me from beneath the brim of his black hat. “And why should you never be a dancer?” He pointed down to a small, bundle of berries I’d missed on earlier inspection.

  I reached for them. “I doubt many famous dancers have legs of a different length. Hardly makes for a flowing movement. Although, I confess, that sometimes in my dreams, I’m floating across a polished dance floor with the grace of a ballerina. Then I wake up and my homely boots are staring at me from the corner of my room, and I remember I’m lopsided.”

  Zedekiah came down from his perch. The basket lifted off my arm and floated to the ground gently so as not to disturb the contents. There was a cocky gleam in his dark blue eyes. It reminded me a bit of his great-great-grandson. In fact, they had a lot of similarities. Only Nick’s hair was golden brown. Zedekiah’s was as black as a moonless night.

  “Ready?”

  “What are you up to, Zedekiah Crush?” I gasped and reached wildly for something to grab onto as my feet left the ground. I was floating several inches above the dirt, and suddenly it didn’t matter that one leg was shorter. It took me a moment to get over the shock of levitating above solid ground. I took a step, then another. I threw out my arms and twirled as if I was skating on ice, or better yet, dancing across a polished floor. I could not stop from giggling excitedly as I pirouetted across the meadow with what I imagined to be the finesse of a ballerina. The scenery blurred around me and I was incredibly dizzy but I kept going. I didn’t stop until I could no longer catch my breath. I floated to a stop in front of Zedekiah. His face was smooth, beautiful, and otherworldly.

  My feet returned to solid ground, first the right, then the left. “Thank you. That was unbelievable.”

  “You move like an angel.”

  I laughed and picked up my basket. “And you, sir, are a practiced flatterer.”

  “It is not flattery when it’s true.”

  After the experience of dancing he’d provided me with, I hated to bring up the admonition. But it needed to be done. “Zedekiah, I need to ask you a favor.”

  “Anything, love.”

  “First of all, please call me Jessie, not love. It makes me blush.”

  The brim of his hat lowered but I could see his mouth jut out in a pout. “You mustn’t appear at my school anymore. The principal will suspend both Nick and I if you do.”

  A swirl of black mist appeared overhead and his demeanor changed instantly. “Nick? What does he have to do with this?” He squinted down at me. “Do you have feelings for him?” Suddenly I felt as if I was being transported back into my great-great-grandma’s shoes. His jealousy was palpable.

  “I’ll keep my feelings private, if you don’t mind. But your presence at school will get me in trouble. The mayor already came to the farm today.”

  He brooded momentarily. “Fine, I won’t appear at school anymore.”

  The way he’d said it did not put my mind at ease, but for now, I had to trust that he would not show himself there again. His anger seemed to lessen and the curl of smoke vanished.

  I heard our screen door shut in the distance. “That’ll be Nana waiting for the berries.” I slipped on my shoes and hurried toward the house. I glanced back over my shoulder. Zedekiah watched me walk away.

  “Thank you for the dance. It was lovely,” I said and then picked up my pace. The dance was more than lovely, I thought, as I walked trying to imagine the feeling again. For a moment in time, I was balanced, graceful, and normal. I would not forget the feeling as long as I lived.

  Chapter 13

  I basically had to load the same truck, with the same materials twice. I was beat and, for once, anxious to get home. The sun was just setting behind the mountain, casting long, gray shadows over the nearly deserted lumber yard. Mr. Mitchell was standing outside the office staring down the road.

  “I’m finished for the day, Mr. Mitchell.”

  He turned at the sound of my voice. “Huh? Yes, great.” His attention turned back to the road.

  “Are you waiting for someone, Mr. Mitchell?”

  “No, well, yes. Baxter went out skateboarding and it’s nearly dark.”

  “He’s not back?” I headed to where my bike was parked. “He usually goes to the park on his skateboard. I’ll go get him.”

  “Thanks, Nick.”

  My bike sputtered some as I sped down the road. It had not been the same since it fell from the sky. The closer I got to the park, the emptier the streets seemed to be and the more I started feeling like something was wrong.

  My intuition was on target. The gang, excluding their leader, was taunting something in the cypress tree that grew in the center of the park. Crow swung like a monkey by one arm from a branch near the top of the tree
and was poking at something crouched on a lower branch. That’s when I spotted Butcher attempting to ride down the sidewalk on a skateboard, Baxter’s skateboard. Human cries came from the tree. I walked beneath the branch where Baxter clung with all his strength. His face was pale and streaked with tears.

  “Why, if it isn’t Crush?” Axel came around the trunk of the tree. He swung a heavy branch at me, which I grabbed away from him. I hurled it through him like a javelin. He looked down at the hole it left in his chest and laughed. “Look, Butcher, I’m a donut.” The hole filled in and Axel snarled at me. “I forgot about those damn reflexes of yours.”

  Baxter whimpered above my head. I peered up at him. “Hey, buddy, it looks like you’ve got yourself stuck in a tree.”

  He sobbed loudly. His fingers turned white as he gripped the branch tighter.

  “Do you think if I climbed up there, you could follow me back down?”

  He shook his head at first. “The ghosts will get me.”

  “I won’t let them get you.”

  “We’ll see about that,” Crow said from above.

  I started climbing the tree. My foul-smelling audience seemed to be entertained by it. Axel and Crow made it as tough as possible, snapping off the branches I reached for. I nearly fell to the ground twice, but I managed to hang on. The harder they tried to knock me off, the more determined I was to climb it. I made it to the branch Baxter clung to and I positioned myself right behind him. “Baxter, I need you to loosen your hands and knees and start scooting back toward me.”

  He was still crying hard. “I’m real scared, Nick.”

  “I know you are but you’re the coolest dude I know. You can do it, bro.”

  It seemed like an eternity but Baxter finally relaxed enough to scoot back. The entire time I was watching to make sure he didn’t fall, I had to keep an eye out for the ghosts. They seemed to be watching the entire spectacle with humor and curiosity which was fine with me as long as they left us alone. Of course, I was convinced they weren’t done with us. My plan was to try and get Baxter free and clear of them first. I hadn’t seen Steamer yet either, and I worried he might creep up on us any minute. He was the meanest of the bunch.

  “You’re awesome, buddy. Now watch what I’m doing and follow me down the same way.” I grabbed hold of the lowest branch jutting from the top of the trunk and stuck my foot in the natural holes formed by animals and weather. My feet hit the ground. Suddenly the tree shook like crazy dislodging a crapload of leaves and Baxter. He dropped the last few feet but landed on his feet. He looked close to puking. He crossed his arms tightly around his chest. Something he always did when he was nervous.

  I patted the helmet that was still on his head. “You did it, Baxter.” He smiled weakly.

  “Ain’t that sweet,” Crow said. He was balancing the skateboard’s nose on the end of his finger. Baxter lunged for it, but Crow lifted it higher in the air. The ghost opened his mouth wide as a hippo and roared. Baxter jumped behind me. A stench filled the air. I waved my hand in front of my face in a futile attempt to clear the air.

  “You know when I was younger, I thought you guys were cool. Now I realize you’re just balls of useless, dead vapor.” I waved my hand again. “And you stink like shit.” Baxter giggled behind me. I was done with ghostly encounters tonight. I glanced around and saw the abandoned park maintenance golf cart sitting to my right. It was my best chance.

  I turned to Baxter and buckled his helmet. “Dude, the helmet’s kind of useless if a breeze can knock it off your head,” I said loudly. Then I leaned closer to his ear. “Baxter, remember when you told me you could fly down that road to your house on your board?”

  He laughed and nodded. “Like a freakin’ race car driver,” he said loudly.

  “Shhh, we don’t want these guys to hear. I’m going to get your board. When I toss it to you, I want you to run to the road with it and jam home as fast as you can. Can you do that?”

  “Oh, yeah. Real fast, Nick.”

  “Now don’t forget, go as soon as I toss it to you.” We bumped fists. I jumped up, grabbed the big branch overhead, pulled it back, and flung it toward Crow. He shot away from the branch. The skateboard flew through the air. I snatched it from its fall and tossed it to Baxter. I worried he might forget my directions, but he tucked his board under his arm and ran toward the road.

  Before any of the jerks could follow, I raced to the golf cart. “Hey, this way you band of rotten swamp pigs.” I started up the cart and raced down the narrow cement path, they flew after me, nostrils flared in rage. That’s when I whipped a donut onto the grass, hopped back onto the cement trail, and floored the cart straight toward them. Unfortunately, Steamer appeared out of nowhere. That ghost was one massive cloud of dead guy. I raced past him as he reached out with a fist, slamming it into the cart and sending it onto its side. The cart and I slid across the wet grass several feet before coming to an abrupt halt. Wasn’t totally sure how I was going to get out of this one. Then as luck would have it, I found my weapon. I reached under the seat and grabbed the fire extinguisher that had been attached there for what I figured were those infamous park fires.

  All four of them hovered over me in the overturned cart. When their ugly faces got close enough that their collective breaths sickened me, I pulled the extinguisher pin and shot them with the frothy white contents. They disappeared, or dissipated, or whatever ghostly matter does when confronted with the wrath of an extinguisher. I knew it wouldn’t be long before they got their molecules back together, so I climbed out of the cart, jumped on my bike, and rode home as fast as I could. I didn’t see Baxter on the road anymore, so I assumed and hoped he’d made it home without any more trouble.

  The streets were deserted and nearly silent. There were hardly any lights on at my house when I turned up the driveway. Everyone had to be home. They had no place else to go. I stepped inside. “I’m home.”

  I walked through to the kitchen. My parents and Bobby were huddled around the table with worried looks on their faces.

  “What wrong?” I asked. “You all look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  “You think this is funny?” My dad shot up from his chair, grabbed my shirt and slammed me into the fridge. Mom’s collection of kitten magnets and Bobby’s drawings fell to the floor. I looked down at my shirt then stared into his face. “Let go of my shirt. Now.” He released his grip and stepped back.

  My mom stood and nearly tiptoed over to us. “Sweetie, why didn’t you tell us Zedekiah was back?”

  “Why, has he been here?”

  Dad sneered at her. “See I told you he knew all about it.” Now his sneer faced me. “Go look out back.”

  I walked to the back door and glanced out to the backyard. The two car garage that once stood there was now just a pile of smoldering ashes.

  “The door to the garage was wide open,” Mom said in a shaky voice. “The gang came by and just rolled a ball of fire in there as if they were bowling.” She giggled nervously.

  Dad shoved my shoulder. “Well, what do you have to say, Nick?”

  I turned and nearly clashed shoulders with him as I passed. “The only thing I’ve got to say is that I’m damn hungry and your great-grandfather is an even bigger asshat than you.”

  Chapter 14

  I shouldn’t have been so happy about the cancelled school day, but I couldn’t help myself. And to think just weeks ago I was thrilled with the prospect of attending high school. When I’d heard the sirens down below alerting everyone that school was closed for the day, I jumped right out of bed and threw on my favorite pair of shorts. Apparently there had been just too much paranormal shenanigans in town for the citizens to deal with.

  It was another crystal blue day with the promise of warm sunlight. I grabbed my book and my latest needlepoint, a portrait of Jasper sitting proudly in front of the fireplace, and headed to the back steps. Even this late in the year, the top step received direct light.

  Nana was still in bed. She’d worke
d herself into a headache after the mayor’s visit. I moved stealthily through the house so as not to wake her.

  I was halfway through Jasper’s ear when I heard Mandy’s whinny from the barn. It meant she was finished with breakfast and ready to be turned out. The mare was already pacing when I got there. “Hold on, girl. I’ll get you out.” Mandy was the kind of horse who needed no halter. I just opened her stall door and she trotted obediently out to her pasture. I returned to my porch and sat.

  Dry leaves crunching under footsteps made me look up from my work. It was Nick. He smiled and instantly my fingers trembled. I put down my needlework before I stabbed myself. “I didn’t hear you pull up. Where’s your bike?”

  “It’s been running sort of rough after . . . .” He stopped and looked around for a minute. “Besides, I didn’t want to alert you-know-who to my presence. He seems to have it out for me.”

  I patted the step for him to sit down next to me. “He hasn’t appeared this morning. Maybe ghosts like to sleep late.”

  “The town’s sirens seem to be useless these days.” Nick climbed the steps and sat next to me. He smelled heavenly.

  “I like the fragrance of the soap you use.” The words just sort of spurted out.

  He tucked his hair behind his ears and grinned. “Thought I’d spruce up before I came courtin’. Even put on my Sunday best.”

  I laughed at his fake accent. “It’s Wednesday. And you’re wearing jeans and a t-shirt.”

  “Yeah, but it’s my best t-shirt.”

  “I can’t believe how warm it is still. I hope it stays forever. I dread snow.” I stretched my legs out to soak up the heat of the sun then pulled them right back. But not before he glimpsed them. I wrapped my arms around my knees.