Wild Alabama

by Everly Hansen

  "Pippa! Over here."

  To my right, parked in the handicap lane, was Shazo leaning against the trunk of an old Civic. He had a smile on his face and a bag in his hands. I walked over to him and we both hesitated, not sure if we should hug or not. I opted out since I had only seen him once before this, and lamely hit his shoulder.

  "Hey," I greeted.

  "Hey yourself. Welcome to Alabama."

  "The air is wet," I said.

  He laughed and nodded. "Yeah. Sorry about that.

  "Why do you have a handicap plate?"

  "This is my grandma's car, actually. She left it to me in her will and I just kept the handicap thing. It comes in handy sometimes, like now. I don't use it to grocery shop or anything though. I'm not rude about my lying."

  "Well, as long as you're not rude about it."

  He smiled and looked at my suitcases. "Let me help."

  With my things loaded, we got in the car. Shazo put the car in drive and set the bag in my lap.

  "Welcome present," he said.

  I opened the brown paper bag to reveal a key and a bar of chocolate. "Um, thanks."

  "I don't think I should've been in charge of the present. Felix would've gotten you something nice. That's your copy of the house key and the chocolate is because it's usually a comfort food. I know this will be a big adjustment, but I'm glad you decided to come."

  I smiled at the present and thanked him before adding the items to my large, turquoise purse.

  "Do you need or want to stop anywhere, or should we head to the house?" The car wound down the pavement and to a red light. He took a right and the car headed for the downtown signs. I looked at the amount of traffic and was a little surprised. Huntsville was not your storybook small southern town like I had envisioned.

  "House is fine. I'm kind of anxious to put down temporary roots. I like my own space. I feel weird without it. I can barely stay in hotel rooms."

  "I understand. Well, that, and all the strangers' bodily fluids."

  I blinked and looked at him.

  "In hotels, I mean. Not in the room you'll be staying in," he said quickly. "No one's been in that room in over a year."

  "What happened?"

  "It just got to be too much for him. It happens a lot. I mean we're surrounded by death constantly. It's not for everyone. That's why I thought a trial might be better for you," he said.

  I nodded in agreement. We passed by the Space and Rocket Center and my jaw opened a little at the massiveness of it. I didn't have much of a space interest, but no one could deny the "wow" factor of seeing those in person.

  "Cool, right? Some cities have a skyline, but we have a spaceline. The house is only about ten minutes from here," Shazo said.

  He pulled onto a freeway and we drove further downtown. A couple more turns, a huge hospital, and up a steep road, he finally got into a turn lane. All I could see in that direction were trees.

  "Okay, so here's where you need to pay attention because a lot of the roads look alike."

  I sat up straighter in my seat. The seat belt dug into my neck, making my shallow breath even worse. I tugged it back down.

  "So further up a couple miles is the state park. There are hiking trails and parking lots off to the side every now and then. The hiking path marked "The Backbone" is actually our driveway. There's still a trail, but like I said, the forest is officially closed."

  "Is the forest called The Backbone?" I asked.

  "No. Technically, the forest has no name. Tourists call it a lot of different things. I've always called it Ancora."

  "What's that mean?"

  "Ancora is Italian for still. That's what the forest is to me. Still, quiet."

  The car bumped along the dirt driveway and twisted up further into the woods. I watched out the window. I'm not sure what I was expecting. Ghosts to be all over? People on the side of the road, taking pictures of this 'suicide forest?' But there was nothing but nature. It was actually pretty peaceful.

  "Straight ahead is the main path to the forest," Shazo said, interrupting my thoughts. "Around the bend is the gate. We try to keep it locked at all times. Here to the right is the drive to the house."

  I turned my attention ahead after Shazo took a lazy right. A couple of seconds later, the house was in view.

  The woods around the house had, for the most part, been cleared out, leaving a clean grassy space for parking. There was a dirty, white wooden fence that surrounded the house, a small white shed, and two oak trees. The house itself was two stories with white slats and white columns from the porch all the way up to the second story balcony. White spindles kept balcony guests safe, and black shutters framed all the windows. Four brick stairs led to the front door that was half glass, half white wood. The roof really did need repairing; the age gave it an almost brick-like appearance. On either side of the roof was a brick chimney.

  "I guess Felix is here," Shazo said as he pulled up next to a black hearse. Despite looking like an older model, it was clean, shiny, and had very few dings. A single bumper sticker in the center of the back window read, 'Sometimes I wrestle with my demons, sometimes we snuggle.'

  "A hearse?"

  "Yeah." Shazo chuckled. The car lurched gently as it stopped and Shazo looked over at me. "Welcome to your temporary home."

  Everything in my stomach almost came back up as I looked around. I was really here. I had left home. I was in a strange state. I didn't really know anyone. I swallowed my panic and forced a smile. Shazo's eyes softened slightly and he touched my shoulder. "It'll be okay."

  "I know," I lied. I grabbed my purse and got out of the car. The air was warm and earthy. The sun sliced through all the trees in the nearby woods. I could smell honeysuckle nearby. It was a little comforting until I thought about the fact that multiple bodies could be out in the woods.

  Shazo got my other bags and led me to the small wooden gate. I opened it since his hands were full and we walked up to the front porch. Shazo set my large bags down to fumble with his keys, then opened the front door.

  The warm smell of vanilla hit me immediately and eased my nerves a little. We walked inside and my shoes clunked on what looked like the original hardwood floors. Shazo slipped his shoes off and put them in a pile behind the front door, so I followed suit. Just like at home, I thought. Clean white walls seemed to drift all through the house. Stairs sat to my right, took up the whole right side of the wall and disappeared to the second floor. Off to the left looked like a large living room with a leather sectional, a fireplace, and a large TV mounted over the mantle. Shazo led me down the large hall. Another room to the left held a large, thick desk covered in paperwork that spilled onto the floor. Across from that was a closed door settled under the stairs. The room at the end of the hall was the kitchen with a black and white tiled floor and glossy marble counters, there was a back door to the right of the fridge, and there was a small room attached to the right of the kitchen that appeared to be another office. This one had a small blue desk neatly organized and the second fireplace.

  "There's a half bathroom under the stairs, and upstairs is another bathroom and four bedrooms. What do you think?" Shazo looked at me, a hopeful look on his face.

  "It's gorgeous," I said.

  He smiled. "So, what are you thinking? Food? Do you want to see your room? Do you want to meet Felix?"

  "I think I'd like to see my room," I decided.

  "Great. Follow me."

  He led me back down the hall, picked up my bags from the bottom of the stairs and headed upstairs. They groaned under my feet and didn't seem to be happy with company. At the top of the stairs there was a framed newspaper article on the wall, the only wall decor I had seen in the whole house, and it appeared to talk about the forest.

  "To the left is my room, then the bathroom, center one here is Felix's room, the next one is empty, and you're at the end of the hall here." He walked to the right to the end of the hall and opened a glossy wooden door. He motioned for me to go in first, s
o I did. The walls were a light rose color. A full-sized bed with a cream quilt was underneath the only window in the room. There was no closet, but a large wardrobe instead. A small white nightstand next to the bed held a lamp and an alarm clock. It, and the whole house, seemed very minimalistic, but I loved it.

  Shazo walked in behind me and set my bags next to the bed. "I know it's all pretty simple and boring, but we don't really acquire a lot of stuff. Felix likes to clean, too, so there's usually not much lying around."

  "I love it."

  "I'm glad." He paused and looked a little uncomfortable. "Okay, well, I'll leave you to unpack and settle in. Come on downstairs when you're ready to hear more about the day-to-day stuff."

  "Okay. Thanks."

  He walked to the door and then turned around. "Oh, one more thing. The door to the balcony is actually in the bathroom. I have no idea what the previous owners were thinking. But, every window up here leads to it. So if you want to get on the balcony without going to the bathroom, just get on the bed and climb out the window. There are some chairs and a couple of ceiling fans out there and it wraps all the way around the house. It's a killer view."

  "No pun intended?" I joked.

  "What?"

  "Because of all the suicides. Uh, never mind." I felt my face heating up and I shook my head.

  Shazo chuckled. "You're going to fit in here just fine. I'll see you in a bit."

  And with that, I was alone. The silence was unsettling, so I quickly turned music on my phone. After I unpacked my clothes and books into the large wardrobe, I set my fluffy seashell-printed blanket at the foot of the bed, a bag of jellybeans on the nightstand, and my shower caddy next to the door. I sat on the bed that was thankfully very comfortable and texted my mom. She replied almost immediately. She asked about the house, the weather, and the guys. I told her what details I knew and she reassured me everything would be fine.

  I stood up, slipped my phone in my pocket and then remembered the tequila sloshing in my bag. I took the bottle out and looked around the room. I set it behind a copy of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and then left the room. I skimmed the wall with my fingertips and headed for the bathroom. I smiled when I saw a large claw foot tub. The floor matched the kitchen's and the counters were a shiny white marble. It was larger than any bathroom I had been in; I could actually walk around in it comfortably instead of only having a step or two between the sink, toilet, and shower. Like Shazo said, the door to the balcony was in there. It was covered with a heavy white curtain for privacy. I washed the airport germs off my hands and then let myself onto the balcony.

  The air was bearable with the ceiling fans whirling steadily above me. Shazo was right: the view was killer. There were trees as far as I could see and a slight break in them where it appeared a waterfall ran. I could only imagine how it would look in October. I took in a couple of steady breaths to try and prepare myself for the next conversation with Shazo. I wasn't entirely sure what I would be doing daily here. That amount of the unknown along with all of the death had my heart trying to ram out of my chest.

  I tried to get the nerves out, shaking my arms and walking along the balcony. I had never been on a wrap around porch and was instantly in love with it. I walked along the side of the house and then to the front. I noticed the hearse was gone and I was a little disappointed I hadn't met Felix when I had the chance. I took my time walking back to the balcony door, and then let myself out of the bathroom and downstairs.

  "Hey," Shazo greeted from the living room. He patted the seat next to him on the couch. I sat and leaned back with a sigh. "You just missed Felix. Someone's cat died. Hopefully he's back by sunset so we can all go on the evening check."

  "Evening check?"

  "I'll leave the paperwork explanation to Felix since he handles more of that than me, but I'll go ahead and tell you just about everything else."

  I settled further into the couch and looked at him expectantly.

  "Usually around eight we do a morning check. Earlier is cool, if you're up. We each take a path and check for ghosts. We carry walkies in case we find one or get lost or anything comes up."

  "What happens when you find one?" I asked.

  "For now, you'll probably follow one of us and hang back so you can hear the conversation but not spook whoever it is. Get an idea of how we talk to them and how we get them to cross over."

  "Cross over?"

  "There are at least ten places in the woods where people can cross over. We've marked them over the years with dream catchers, twigs in shapes, old deer skulls, whatever is around. You just have to lead them to one of these places and when they're ready, they'll walk through this marked gap in the trees. That's how they cross over."

  I looked at him a little blankly. "Uh, sorry. You mean, like, portals? Portals to another dimension?"

  "It's not as sci-fi as I just made it sound," he said with a chuckle. "But, yeah, I suppose they are portals. But they won't work on you or me. It's just air between trees to us. I'm not sure if it's a specific energy in certain places up here or what. I don't really have an explanation for you, unfortunately."

  I mulled that over for a minute and then moved on; there would be a lot more to mull over when he was finally done.

  "Do you ever get lost?" I asked.

  "Sometimes. I've been here a few years though so I know my way around pretty well when it comes to parts of the woods. But this is another reason we carry walkies. Also a flare gun. I'll give you a bag before we go out there. Think of it as a little survival kit."

  I could feel my teeth touching as I involuntarily clenched my jaw. Just what I needed, to get lost in the woods with ghosts.

  "It'll be okay. You won't go out by yourself for a while, okay? The buddy system is important until you can find your way around a bit." Shazo patted my knee and smiled encouragingly at me. When I forced a smile, he frowned. "Are you having second thoughts?"

  "It's just a lot of big changes at once."

  He narrowed his eyes a little and then poked my shoulder. "If you can't do this or some part of this job is just too much, let me know. I'm serious."

  I smiled and poked him back. "I will. I promise."

  Shazo hopped up and held his hands out to help me up. "Okay then. Are you ready for your first shift?"

  ELEVEN

  Shazo's office was a disaster. Papers slipped off the desk, there was a half-eaten bowl of cereal, and a dirty mug being used as a paperweight. He grabbed some items from the desk and a shelf, grabbed a canvas messenger bag off the floor and shoved all the items inside. He held it out for me with a slightly embarrassed smile. "I meant to have Felix pack this up. Would've been much nicer. Sorry."

  I took the bag and peered inside. A flashlight, rain poncho, flare gun, granola bar, empty water bottle, and sunscreen were inside.

  "Oh and here." He picked a walkie-talkie off a shelf, turned it on to make sure it worked and then handed it over. "Channel three is always us."

  I put the walkie-talkie in the bag and then slung the bag across my body.

  "All set?" I asked.

  "Just about," he said, and glanced around the floor. "Misplaced my bag."

  I stifled a small laugh. His lack of organization was kind of charming.

  "Oh! My room. Why don't you fill up your water bottle and I'll go grab it."

  "Okay."

  He left me in the office and I headed into the kitchen. While the water poured into my new bottle, I glanced around and noticed there was no table. I grew up with almost nightly dinners at the table; we rarely ate in front of the TV. This would be another adjustment. Although dinners at a table with two guys might make me even more homesick, so maybe it was just as well.

  I heard an engine outside and I hastily screwed the top on my water bottle. I padded down the hall and glanced outside. I noticed the return of the hearse.

  "Is that Felix?" Shazo came downstairs, a blue bag in hand.

  "I think so."

  Shazo looked at the
time on his phone and nodded. "He usually has perfect timing."

  I glanced at my own phone and saw it was five o'clock straight up. Shazo slipped his shoes on, so I grabbed mine and quickly tied them. He plucked a set of keys from a small hook above the shoe pile and then opened the door. We stepped outside and he locked the door behind us, and then he started walking towards the hearse. I could see someone was still inside and my heart started to thump a little harder at the anticipation of finally meeting Felix. Shazo tapped his fingernails on the window in a rhythm and then stepped back. The hearse door opened and I found myself holding my breath. I guess I assumed a slightly overweight, average height guy with overalls and a trucker hat of some sort would step out. It was a bad stereotype, but it was all I had really heard about Alabama. Instead, black boots and long legs swung out of the car followed by the rest of him. He was tall and slim, and his snug black jeans elongated his frame even more. His simple white t-shirt enhanced his sun-kissed glow. He had aviator sunglasses on, but once he shut the hearse door he slid them up to sit in his thick, wild mahogany locks. After that he was all heart-shaped face and hazel eyes.

  Felix.

  Whoa.

  His eyes slid up and down me and he grinned. Then he hugged me. My feet left the ground a little and before I had time to react I was back on the earth.

  "Pippa Wilder. Finally!" Felix said, his grin still visible.

  I noticed neither of them had much of an accent. I managed a smile. I was going to have to find the ability to speak soon. They didn't make boys like this back home.

  Shazo glanced at me and I saw him raise his eyebrows at me. When I was silent he shook his head a little, looking amused.

  "Are you going on evening check with us? It's Pippa's first time out," Shazo said.

  "Oh great! You bet." Felix walked to the other side of the hearse and took his bag out.