Sinister Awakenings

by Marianne Spitzer

  “Forbid Kellie?” Max laughed. “Mike you’re a century too late, and I have a feeling she would be the same if she were born then. I’ve seen what she can do. If that spirit is after any of us or the city of Malone Springs, Kellie and Lance are your best defense. The kid is good.”

  Mike sat back down rubbing his forehead with his fingertips. “Good at what is the question that worries me.”

  “Don’t worry Uncle Mike. I’ll do my best and Lance will help. We’ll all be safe. Thomas is angry that his home has been taken from him. He wants revenge. Knowing that ahead of time is valuable. It’ll help us with a strategy.”

  “Strategy?” Mike said. “A strategy for eliminating a ghost?”

  “Exactly,” Kellie answered.

  Chapter Two

  When the door chimes rang, Rufus barked, and Hope, cradled in her mother’s arm, giggled. Kellie placed Hope next to her sister in the play yard and peeked through the peephole in her front door. She pulled the door open a big smile crossing her face.

  “Lance, come in. I wondered when you would stop by.” She stepped back to allow Lance entrance into her living room.

  Lance smiled back and said, “Hi Kellie. I stopped by because we need to talk and I think in person is best. Hope it isn’t a bad time. I just left Claudia’s and took a chance you’d be home.”

  “No, it’s actually a good time. The girls are fed and changed. They’ll lay and babble at each other until they take their nap.”

  Lance walked over and looked down at Hope and Faith. Two identical faces and two sets of perfect deep blue eyes looked back up at him. Both smiled at the same time and then turned their heads and began to babble again.

  He looked at Kellie with scrunched brows. “I swear those two know who I am and why I’m here even though they’re only three months old.”

  “Max says the same thing. He’s concerned they may have powers. I haven’t seen anything floating around the room, so I’m not worried. If they have a gift, it will make itself known in due time. Would you like some coffee?”

  Lance nodded and followed Kellie to the kitchen.

  After setting two cups on the table, she pulled up a chair and asked, “Did you and Claudia come up with any ideas on what to do about Thomas?”

  “Yes and no.” Lance sipped his coffee. “Claudia doesn’t believe we can eliminate him. His power has grown too strong. Anger and hate fueled it over the years. He’s cunning, and it would take more than you and me to eliminate his power completely. Claudia said from all she can gather that the best thing to do is to contain him.”

  Kellie, ready to sip her coffee, set the cup back down on the table. “Interesting. He was happy in the Gotz Manor House and even when it was just fire rubble. Where does she think we can contain him?” She took a sip waiting for his answer.

  “A cave,” Lance replied reaching for a cookie from the plate Kellie placed on the table.

  “A cave! A cave? What sort of cave, where, and why?” she stared at him intently.

  “Claudia and I have been working together, and I found I can do more than see ghosts and open doors. Remember when I placed my hand on the door of the dormitory and just moved it back, and the door opened?”

  Kellie nodded. “You saved Max and me. I knew you would discover more abilities.”

  “Yes.” He finished his coffee and picked up another cookie. “I’ve discovered I can move objects. I also have the ability to melt objects by placing my hands near them among other things.”

  “That could be useful, but you still didn’t say why we need to use a cave.”

  “It’s simple. We need to lure him into a small cave of some sort. You can wrap him in white light to keep him from fleeing. Then while he’s immobile, we cause a cave in. While I haven’t been able to melt rock completely, I can turn it into pliable clay. Once the clay is sealed, your white light melds with it, and I harden it again. His spirit is trapped in your white light in a place where no one will ever dig him out.”

  “Uh huh, simple you said. It sounds simple if it all works out the way you say. Thomas is the strongest evil I’ve ever encountered. I can contain him with my light while I’m concentrating on him, but I have no idea whether it will hold once I break contact.” She bit into a cookie without tasting it. Kellie shuddered imagining losing a battle with Thomas.

  She looked back at Lance. “You know how evil he is. I told you what he attempted to do to Taylor when he possessed Hunter’s body. It won’t be easy.”

  “That’s why we’re going to practice. Our best chance is to have Max, Taylor, Hunter, Cole, and Andrea to help. Claudia said they help make you stronger and will probably help me, too.”

  “Practice? Practice what?” Kellie took another bite. “Plus, we’ll have to discuss whether the others will help.”

  Lance studied her face. “You look anxious. None of you have to do this. I’ll find another way. I know you wanted to quit. I shouldn’t have come over and asked you to help. I’ll go. Claudia and I can work this out.”

  “No,” Kellie insisted. “I did decide to stop dealing with spirits, but Thomas involved me by trying to attack Claudia. He blames me and won’t stop until he kills me and people I love in the process. We have to get rid of him. I’ll help this last time.” She tried to smile but worry tugged at her heart. “Now, what do we have to practice?”

  Lance stood and walked to the counter pulling two pieces of paper towel off the holder above the sink. He returned and sat placing the paper towels in front of him. When he pulled two small rocks from his pocket and placed them on the paper toweling, Kellie scrunched her eyebrows and bit her lip.

  “Watch,” Lance said as he held his hands over the rocks.

  Kellie could feel the warmth emanating from the area near his hand and after a few minutes, he lifted his hand and pressed a finger into the once solid rock. He smiled at Kellie and said, “It’s okay, try it.”

  She touched the rock, then pushed her finger into it about a quarter of an inch. “It feels like clay. How did you do this?”

  Lance shrugged. “I have no idea. Claudia had me trying all sorts of odd things attempting to pin down what she calls my ‘special abilities.’ I don’t feel special. Claudia said I may discover I have additional abilities. Okay, watch again.”

  He repeated the process and Kellie felt the solid rocks again. “Amazing. So you think you can form a solid wall of rock to trap him in?”

  “Yes,” Lance nodded. “Your turn to practice surrounding and filling the rocks with your white light and making sure it remains after you break contact. Once you can do that, we practice on bigger rocks. Then we go after Thomas.”

  Kellie leaned forward and picked up the two rocks. “You make it sound so easy. Here goes.” The white light from Kellie’s palm encircled the two rocks. She lifted her hand, and the light disappeared.

  “Try again,” Lance encouraged.

  Kellie concentrated and tried again. This time, the light remained. The two rocks glowed slightly. “I think I did it,” Kellie let out the breath she was holding.

  “Can you find a sitter for tomorrow? We can go out and find some larger rocks in a secluded area near the river. I don’t want people asking what we’re doing.” He smiled.

  Kellie nodded. “I’ll call my Aunt Rita.”

  ~ * ~

  Kellie met Lance at River Park after dropping her twins at her Aunt Rita’s.

  She climbed out of her SUV, and he strode over to meet her. “It’s a bit overcast today; we shouldn’t run into too many people. I’d hate to explain what we’re doing.”

  “It wouldn’t do any good. Any sane, sensible person would run off dialing 911 and calling for help if you did.” Kellie smiled and glanced around. “Okay, where do you think we should try?”

  “There are some decent size rocks down near the river. We need to practice on bigger rocks each time. When we finally entomb Thomas, we have no idea how big the rocks may be.” Lance walked in front of her kicking at the loose gravel a
s he headed toward the river.

  When he stopped, Kellie looked around at the rocks lying near the river’s edge. She picked one up about twice as big as her fist. “How about this size first?”

  Lance nodded and picked up a second one similar in size. He took the one from Kellie and placed them side by side. He placed his hand over them both and concentrated. After a few minutes, he lifted his hand and pressed his finger into each one.

  “They’re pliable,” he said. He pushed them together until they formed one rock. “Okay, Kellie, your turn. Make sure they can’t be destroyed.”

  Kellie stared at the rocks and took a deep breath. She looked at Lance. “I hope we can do this. I can’t imagine what will happen if Thomas is allowed to run amok.” She held her hand over the rock and let the white light she felt build in her until it released through her palm and covered the rock. A few minutes later, she lifted her hand and said, “I think it might be indestructible now. At least, I hope it is.”

  Lance stood and picked up a large rock and looked at Kellie. “This is four times the size of those two smaller rocks. Hopefully, when I drop it on top, they will remain intact.” He dropped the larger rock and stepped back.

  Kellie watched the rock fall and slide off the smaller rocks. When the dust and small pieces of broken rock settled, she reached down and picked up the smaller rock. A broad smile broke out across her face. She handed the rock to Lance.

  “It’s not even chipped. No damage at all. I think it’s going to work.”

  Lance turned the rock over in his hand. He set it down and rolled the larger rock over and inspected when it had connected with the smaller rock. “Look, Kellie, the larger rock is damaged and chipped. We did it, at least on this scale. Care to try an even bigger rock?”

  “Sure, but are you going to be able to lift a huge boulder to drop on larger rocks?” She tilted her head and watched his face for a reaction.

  He grinned and replied, “Nope, but I have a sledgehammer in the trunk of my car. I didn’t want to carry it out here unless we got to the point where we needed it. Next test and we might.”

  An hour later, Kellie and Lance had used their combined powers on three more rocks in increasing size until they were sure they wouldn’t encounter rocks larger when they collapsed a cave.

  Lance rubbed his shoulder and said, “I don’t think I can try to break another ‘unbreakable’ rock with that sledgehammer today. We did well. Now, we need to figure out how to get Thomas where we want him and when.”

  “The dangerous part will be when we remove our amulets, and he can see and hear us. Right now we’re safe. We need to have our plan perfected down to the split-second since that’s all it will take for him to travel to wherever we are,” she said as she inspected the smaller rock.

  “Noted,” Lance said. “How about lunch and we discuss it. I worked up an appetite.”

  He lifted the sledgehammer when a loud voice startled them. “Hey, what are you doing down there?”

  Kellie dropped the rock she was holding onto Lance’s foot. He yelled and jumped around.

  “Sorry,” she whispered and looked up the hill at the face of Walter, a part-time auxiliary police officer.

  “Hi, Walter. It’s just me, Kellie Conley-Noles.” She waved at the elderly man.

  “Oh hi, I didn’t recognize you. Are you okay? We got a call some kids were tossing rocks around. Did you see them?” He gazed down at her his face deadly serious.

  “Nope, I’m just down here helping my friend find a nice rock for his rock garden. He likes to get them from different places he visits.” She tried her best to smile and not laugh.

  “Okie dokie then,” Walter said. “Keep on looking and watch out for those rowdy kids. I’ll let your Uncle Mike know I saw ya.” He waved as he walked away.

  “That was close,” Lance commented. “Do you always come up with lies that quickly?”

  “No, but I’ve always been good at thinking on my feet.” Kellie laughed.

  “Are you that good with keeping secrets?”

  “Why?”

  “Because we can’t tell a soul about what we’re planning before it happens. We can say we have a plan but no details. Thomas can get into anyone’s head too easily. If just one of the people we talk to lets their guard down for a moment, he’ll know. It’s also for their safety. Thomas is a monster,” Lance said slipping the rocks into his backpack.

  “I agree, but everyone is protected by their amulet. He can’t read their thoughts,” Kellie insisted.

  “Accidents happen. What if Andrea’s little boy accidentally pulls off her amulet or one of the others is in an accident? Hospital staff could remove the amulet before a CT scan. If the person is unconscious, they wouldn’t fight the removal and once awake, bam Thomas knows all the plans.” Lance ran his hand across his face and gazed out into the field. “This is too important.”

  “You’re right,” Kellie agreed. “What about Claudia? We might need her advice.”

  “Something tells me she already knows.” Lance smiled.

  Kellie returned his smile knowing Claudia would always hear about their plans…somehow.

  ~ * ~

  Max hesitated before walking up the stairs leading to Claudia’s front porch. He needed answers and was afraid to ask Kellie. He knew she would be truthful, but he couldn’t let her know how worried he was. He needed to help her, but she said she didn’t want him to help. She wanted him to stay out of this fight, so if something went wrong, he could protect their daughters. Max couldn’t let her get hurt. Claudia had to help him somehow.

  He walked up the stairs and before he could knock, the door opened, and Claudia smiled at him. “Come in Max. I’ve been expecting you.”

  She ushered him into the house and closed the door. “Please sit, I’ll bring some coffee.”

  Max followed Claudia into her kitchen and sat at the table. She placed a mug full of hot coffee in front of him and set a plate of what looked like homemade chocolate chip cookies near the cup.

  “Have a cookie. It will help what ails you.” Claudia sat on the chair across from Max.

  “Why? Did you bake something odd in them or sprinkle them with some sort of spell,” he smiled as he picked up a cookie.

  “No, of course not.” She took a bite of cookie. “Chocolate butterscotch chip cookies are good for your spirit. Makes you happy. You need a bit more happiness. Take a bite.”

  He did and smiled. “It’s good.”

  Claudia nodded.

  “I need your help. Kellie doesn’t want me to help her fight Thomas. She’s afraid if we’re both killed the girls will be unprotected. I understand it, but I can’t sit back and let her go off and do this alone.” He finished the cookie and reached for a second.

  Claudia sat forward and interlaced her fingers placing her hands on the table. “You must understand the dynamic regarding Thomas’ evil. He held many spirits hostage at the Gotz Manor House, and Kellie freed them all helping them go into the light. His primary focus is on revenge toward Kellie. Of course, Taylor, Andrea, Hunter, and Cole helped her, and they are also in Thomas’ path of revenge. Randy Jensen was a part of what took place, but he’s passed on. He can’t help, but her other friends can since they were there. They can form a bond again as they did before to strengthen Kellie to battle him. I honestly believe the best thing you can do for Kellie is be home with your girls while she faces this battle. If she doesn’t have to worry about Faith and Hope, she’ll concentrate more clearly on what she needs to do.”

  Max dropped his face into his hands and pushed his hands through his hair. He looked back up at Claudia. “That’s not exactly what I wanted to hear.”

  “I know,” she reached out and patted his hand. “But you did come here for help and the truth. I’ve given you the truth. Knowing the truth will help you. Trust me.”

  Max sighed and lifted his coffee mug and sipped the coffee. “Okay, I will do my best to do what Kellie needs and watch over my girls. They will be safe
won’t they?”

  “Yes, they’re innocents. Thomas can’t harm them, but if Kellie is worried and loses her concentration, he could harm her.” Claudia pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders. “More coffee?”

  “No, thanks. I should go. I appreciate your advice and help. Please do what you can to help Kellie protect herself.” Max stood to leave.

  Claudia wrapped him in a hug and said, “Don’t worry. We’ll do what we can.”

  Max patted her back, mumbled a less than heartfelt thank you, and left Claudia’s house. He was torn between family responsibility to his children and his need to protect Kellie. Was it his ego? He wasn’t one to sit around. He was a man of action. Max slammed his truck door and decided he would do his best to do what Kellie asked.

  ~ * ~

  Kellie drove toward her Aunt Rita’s to pick up the twins and mulled over her lunch with Lance. They had discussed several ideas, and she agreed they would need help. Andrea and Taylor both returned her texts saying they would do whatever was necessary to rid the world of Thomas. Taylor added that she would never sleep peacefully again until he was gone.

  Of all their friends, Taylor suffered the most at Thomas’ hands. When Thomas possessed Hunter’s body, Taylor knew she would die in the dungeon torture chamber of the Gotz Manor House. She would die by her husband’s hand although not his mind. It took months for her to overcome her fears and nightmares. Now, they were back. Taylor admitted to Kellie that her nightmares returned the night before. Kellie needed to end Thomas’ reign of fear once and for all.

  Hunter also had a desire to rid Thomas from their lives. It tore his heart apart when he realized what nearly happened to the love of his life at his hand. It never mattered that Thomas possessed his body. He felt responsible. His love for Taylor and his need for revenge would work well when they needed to connect all their strength in the battle.

  Cole wasn’t sure he would be of much help in another battle against Thomas, but he insisted he be there to protect Andrea. Cole adored her, and that love would also strengthen them.

  Kellie felt confident that the six of them would be strong enough to carry out the plan Lance suggested. Now, all she had to do was convince Max he needed to stay with the girls to keep them from danger. She pulled into her Aunt Rita’s driveway and shifted her SUV into Park. She dropped her forehead until it rested on the steering wheel. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, prayed for help in convincing Max, and opened the vehicle door. It was time to collect the girls and head home.