Scott declined Beth’s offer without giving any real explanation or consideration. “Maybe we can get together in a few days.”
“Where are you?” Beth asked.
Scott replied, “I’m in Swansboro getting ready to go back to New Bern.”
Beth’s reply made it clear she intended to get her way. “I’m in Swansboro too so why don’t we have dinner together and then you can head back. You sound like you need a friend.”
After only a few moments, Scott knew he had no acceptable reason to avoid meeting Beth and therefore agreed to have dinner with her. He found her at Captain Charley’s Restaurant where he and Amie had been to lunch before her treatment began. It had been almost two weeks since he had seen or talked to Beth and seeing her now was a somewhat pleasant distraction. Their conversation during dinner was relaxed and at times offered him some escape from his discouraging week.
After dinner, Beth and Scott walked down Front Street to the Gray Dolphin bookstore. They spent the next hour browsing in this and other shops before going back to the parking lot. They stopped several times along the way to peak in the windows of other shops before making their final stop for an ice cream cone.
Beth leaned against her car knowing they were now ready to say goodnight to each other. “Thank you for taking me to dinner tonight. Dinner was very nice and to be honest, I’ve wanted to call you before now.”
Scott also leaned against her car. “I’ve had a nice time too. I really didn’t want any company tonight but as it turns out, you have been the best part of my day.”
She looked down at the pavement. “I haven’t been the best part of anybody’s day in quite a while.”
“Maybe you haven’t given anybody the chance to say that to you.”
She smiled as she shook her head. “Most people think I am too screwed up and they don’t want to waste their time on me.”
Scott looked across his shoulder at Beth for a few moments. “One of these days, I am going to get inside your head and find out what makes you tick.”
Beth turned her head as she issued a warning. “If you were able to get inside my head, I might lock the door and never let you leave. You would think you were trapped inside an enigma without solution or escape.”
Scott turned his eyes to the sky as he tried to remember his last encounter with Beth. “You once told me you were a shark swimming in circles around me and that you were going to bite me. I think you are taking a nibble of me right now.”
Beth continued to watch his reaction. “The beach house is only fifteen minutes from here and I think you should come with me. We can drink coffee and talk all night. Besides, it’s a big house and I want to feel safe when I first go in. You would be doing me a real favor.”
Scott looked away as he considered her offer. “Maybe we could cheer each other up. You can tell me about your abusive boyfriend or we could talk about my runaway girlfriend?”
Beth had a different idea in mind. “Maybe we could talk about other things and forget about both of them for a while”.
She was offering Scott a much-needed distraction from both Ashley’s situation and Michelle’s departure. As if that were not enough, she had a way of drawing him into her world by allowing him to have a glimpse into her heart and soul. Still, she was going to make him work harder to see her deepest thoughts.
“The last time we got into a real discussion, things went a little beyond where you intended to go. Are you sure you feel safe enough for me to come spend a few hours alone with you?” Scott asked.
Beth looked away as she recalled their brief moment of passion on her basement steps. “I asked you to stop touching me and you stopped touching me. Yes, I do trust you enough to be alone with you.”
Scott looked at the sky. “We still have an hour or so of daylight, so let’s go watch the ocean for a while and solve all of the world’s problems.”
Once they arrived at her house, Beth went through the house checking each room to be sure all was secure. As they walked throughout the house, she checked each bathroom and closet for possible intruders before finishing their patrol in the kitchen.
Having made the mutual decision to watch the sunset from the deck, Beth fixed drinks before joining him outside. She sat next to him at the small table. “I got off work early today and was so excited to be able to come here this weekend. It is so peaceful here.”
“You have a great view of the ocean too. I really like to photograph the sunset.” Scott replied.
After a long period of silence, curiosity got the best of Scott. “Why did Michelle call you?”
Beth was going to be both careful and deliberate with her answer. “Oh, I don’t know. I think she had several things on her mind. She said she wanted to know how you were doing, but if that was her actual reason, she could have checked with you or someone else who knows you better than I do. I think she was mostly on a fishing expedition to find out if I had seen you.”
Scott gave no Beth no indication of what he might be thinking as he accepted her comment without responding. From his silence, Beth chose to move in her own direction with their conversation. “You guys have the strangest relationship I think I have ever seen.”
Scott’s casual tone did not come close to his actual thoughts. “Some things don’t work out for reasons we don’t always understand. She has moved on and I hope to hear about a job interview in a few weeks that will take me back to Asheville.”
Beth closed her eyes for a few moments. “I would love to go back there to live. I like the coast, but I think I would be very happy living in the mountains. Maybe we could go camping together this fall when all the leaves are changing. Are you going to let me come for a visit if you move back up there?”
“Let’s see if I get the job first.”
Beth was slightly more insistent. “We can still go camping together, even if you don’t get the job.”
After some thought, he nodded his head slowly. “You know, that might not be a bad idea for either of us. We could camp by the river and pick up all the pieces of our life and move on.”
Beth continued to watch a fisherman on the shore as she replied, “I would like to pick up the pieces of my life. I feel very safe with you right now.”
After spending much of the evening talking and watching the sun disappear over the horizon, they made the decision to watch a movie before Scott was to head back to New Bern. Scott and Beth sat on the sofa together watching the movie until midnight when Scott drifted off to sleep. He remained asleep until Beth’s movement around the room aroused him from a sound sleep.
Opening his eyes, he immediately noticed two candles placed on the table in the dimly lighted room. Beth approached him wearing a long white gown and carrying a candle in her hand. Having glanced at the TV and DVD player, he knew the power was still on in the house. For the moment, Scott assumed Beth was trying to create a romantic atmosphere.
As his eyes were adjusting to the dim light, Beth stood several feet in front of him for only a few moments until Scott spoke. “You look very pretty tonight.”
Beth’s response was far from anything he was expecting. “Did you tell her we were in love with each other?”
Clearly confused by her question, Scott sought some clarification. “Did I tell who that we were in love?”
After only a few seconds, Beth offered an explanation that would leave Scott far more confused. “Did you tell Beth that you and I were in love with each other?”
Beth’s facial expression was devoid of any emotion and her entire body showed little animation. Her stare was almost relentless at this point. The one thing Scott felt with some degree of certainty was that she was not playing a game with him. In the brief time he had known Beth, he had seen nothing to hint at an explanation of her current behavior.
Choosing to believe that she was not fully awake, he asked what he thought would give him some insight into her thoughts. “How long have we been in love with each other?”
Beth considered
his question for a moment before moving to the sofa where she next to him with one arm over his shoulder. “I think I first knew we were in love on the day we went bicycle riding together.”
Scott knew he and Beth had never been riding together but her comment immediately captured his full attention. “Tell me everything that happened that day that made it special.”
Beth let her cheek rest on his shoulder as she described their experience. “We took our bikes out in the country and were riding along the road. On our way back, a storm was blowing in so we stopped at an old barn to wait for the storm to pass.”
Scott face was beginning to turn pale as he listened to Beth recount her story. She was describing an event, which happened between him and Ashley nearly five years before. Trying to remain objective and calm, he asked another question. “What else do you remember about that day?”
Beth’s reply was both calm and completely accurate in each of the details. “When we got to the barn, the farmer told us we could wait there until the storm passed. He got in his truck and drove away. You and I sat on a bale of hay in the barn just as the rain started. It was very sweet when you took off your jacket and wrapped it around me.”
Scott could not imagine how anyone could know the story about the day he and Ashley went off together. He was equally sure that even if someone had known about his date with Ashley, no one would remember it now. The only explanation that he could think of would be that Beth had somehow used old social media to find information Ashley might have posted at one time or another.
Scott knew that if he were going to understand what Beth was doing, he would have to find some minor detail that only he and Ashley might know. “Do you remember the farmer wearing a blue hat that had the word ‘FORD’ written on it?”
Beth sat up as though she were trying to recall that day in the barn. Scott was confident he had found something Beth could not possibly know. Her reply was somewhat uncertain. “I don’t remember it that way. I remember he had on a new green ‘JOHN DEERE’ hat. I remember you made some comment about him getting the new hat when he bought his tractor.”
Although Beth was correct and Scott was astonished, he remained determined to find out how Beth could possibly know such an insignificant detail. To his surprise, Beth returned to her original idea. “I think you need to tell Beth and Michelle that we are in love with each other and that I don’t appreciate them trying to come between us.”
Scott knew that either Beth was having some severe psychological problems or that Ashley was somehow using Beth to communicate her thoughts. The prospect of Beth having problems would be hard enough to face, but the idea that Ashley could connect to him through Beth was an idea he was not able to accept.
He would make one last challenge to test Beth’s knowledge. “I noticed you didn’t have on your bracelet this afternoon when I came to see you.”
Beth showed no hesitation with her answer. “They put it in my room because I had physical therapy just after you left. I love my bracelet and they put it back on my wrist before dinner.”
Having no idea what he should do, he played along with the role of being Ashley’s boyfriend. “I can’t believe I am talking to you.”
“Don’t worry sweetheart. In a few weeks you and I will be together forever.” Beth replied.
Scott looked at Beth who for all practical purposes was in a trance like state. Still she was somewhat animated as she continued to hold on to Scott. “We won’t have to wait a few weeks to be together because I’ll stop by again tomorrow and see you.”
There was a long hesitation before she spoke. “I’m dying Scott. In a few weeks when you and I have moved on to another way, we will be together for all eternity.”
Scott was shocked beyond belief with her statement. “Are you telling me that I’m dying?”
Ashley was apparently at peace with her idea. “It’s the only way we can be together. Try not to be afraid. The nurse told me I was dying and I was so afraid until I thought about you and me being together within the Universal Mind.”
Scott had talked about the Universal Mind when he and Ashley were alone in June and he was convinced Beth would have no way of knowing about that conversation. In a final effort to determine if he was actually talking to Ashley, he posed one last question. “Do you remember when we talked about the Universal Mind?”
“It was at the beginning of summer when you came to see me. You were holding my hand while we sat in my room. Don’t you remember?” Beth replied.
Beth had made a statement that was completely accurate and to deny what he was hearing was no longer an option. “Are you in any pain?”
Beth shook her head. “No, they gave me a shot to help me sleep and I don’t think I can stay awake much longer.”
Scott could contain himself no longer. “How are you talking to me through Beth?”
“It’s not easy, cowboy. She is fighting me as hard as she can for control. I’ve had four years to learn to use my mind in a different way and I don’t really know how I did it. All I know is that I can connect to people who are with you. For some reason I can’t just connect my thoughts to yours.”
Ashley was the only girl who had ever referred to Scott as cowboy thus adding one more layer of knowledge to what he was seeing. Scott now had to ask the ultimate question. “How am I going to die?”
“We can decide that in a few weeks. You should think about the best way for you to end your life but we can figure that out later. I have to go to sleep. The medicine is making me tired and I can’t keep fighting Beth much longer.” Ashley replied.
Scott was so stunned with her reply, that he simply made a quiet suggestion. “Go to sleep and don’t fight this anymore. I’ll see you in the morning.”
The last words he heard from Beth before they entered a prolonged period of silence were “I love you.”
Scott sat silently while Beth drifted off to sleep as her head rested on his shoulder. In a state of disbelief, he was confronted with a situation where he had been witness to something he knew to be impossible. He was now left in the dim candlelight to contemplate the meaning of his experience and all the emotions she had brought to the surface.
Long ago, Scott had come to accept the fact that he would never again have a conversation with Ashley and still that night he heard her words through Beth’s voice. He believed the girl he loved in high school had been lost to the world, yet she apparently found a way to be in his life. With Ashley’s voice now sleeping, Scott realized he had wasted an opportunity to tell Ashley so many things he would like to say to her. There were things he both wanted and needed to hear from Ashley, but he had let their time together disappear as he tried to confirm her existence in Beth’s voice.
Ashley accepted her pending death not only with courage, but also with a sense of optimism believing she and Scott would once again be together in a life beyond the one they were both living. She was now suggesting Scott end his own life not as an act of desperation or depression, but to fulfill a commitment they made to each other long ago.
Any sense of guilt over the accident Scott had managed to hide in the attic of his mind had now been reborn with a new unrelenting intensity. It was as though she had erased any sense of healing he experienced in the past four years. Every faded memory was now crystal clear in his mind.
Scott sat for the next thirty minutes with his mind racing from one thought to another until Beth began to stir. She opened her eyes slowly and blinked a few times as she looked up at his face. “What time is it?”
Scott glanced at the wall clock before he responded. “It’s one-thirty. You’ve been asleep for a while.”
Beth stretched as she stood up before making her way to the kitchen to fix them a drink. When she returned, her comments would leave Scott in a state of near amazement. She placed their drinks on the coffee table as she sat down. “I had the strangest dream. I thought the ghost had come back and was talking to us.”
Making a deliberate effort to hide any
sense of surprise, Scott questioned her. “What did the ghost tell us?”
Beth shrugged off his question. “I don’t remember but I think she was talking to you.”
Scott did not intend to let Beth know the truth about what had happened. He assumed she was better off not knowing as it would be difficult to explain and impossible for her to believe. “Well, dreams can be strange sometimes.”
Beth smiled as she looked over her shoulder at him. “I’m glad you came here with me tonight. I have been feeling a little uneasy for the past few weeks. I also have that feeling people get when they think something bad is going to happen. It’s silly but I still feel better with you here.”
Still very distracted by his experience, Scott put his hand on Beth’s shoulder to reassure her before he got up and walked to the door. Staring out at the ocean, he asked a question in a soft voice. “What do you think happens to a person after they die?”
Beth replied, recognizing the serious tone to his voice. “I don’t know. I want to believe we all go to heaven and that we live forever in peace and without fear.”
Her use of the word fear caught his attention. Without turning to look at Beth, he asked a follow up question. “Are you still afraid of me?”
“That’s an interesting question. To be honest, I was afraid of you, but I’m getting over it. It’s odd that I would be afraid of you while at the same time feeling safe knowing you are here with me. My brain tells me you won’t hurt me but something in the back of my mind makes me feel like I need to be cautious.”
Scott was being somewhat cryptic in his reply. “Beth, sometimes it’s the things you can’t see that hurt you the most. You have nothing to fear from me.”
Beth rose from the sofa and stood behind Scott for several minutes with her arms around his waist. “You look distracted and very tired. If I have nothing to fear from you, then come to bed with me.”
Brother Willy's Traveling Salvation Show Page 30
