“Meredith, sweetheart, it’s been so long. I know it must be a little shocking for you to see me here, now, after all that has happened over the last few weeks. I know there are still so many questions you have for me and I hope that one day they will all be answered. There are still so many things you must learn and figure out on your own and in your own time.
I’m so proud of how you handled yourself when finding out about your destiny. It was a lot to take in, but you did beautifully.
There are some things that are about to happen and I’m so sorry it has to be this way. They are out of my control and if there was another way, please believe me that I would’ve done it differently. Trust in yourself and everything will work out as it should. I love you.”
Just like that, the image of her vanished. I tried to scream out to her, to tell her to come back. I had so many things to say to her, but no words escaped me. I knew that I’d been dreaming and I wanted to wake up and run to Blake and Abby and tell them that I saw my mother. I wanted to repeat her exact words to them, but there was no way for me to wake from my stupor. Trapped in what felt like a padded room with a straight jacket around me—I fought, screamed and clawed, trying to get out, but couldn’t. It felt like hours passed as I struggled to wake myself up.
After what seemed like an eternity, I was able to force my eyes open. My body felt anxious from the dream; but I was relieved that I had finally woken up. For a second, I laid in my bed and stared at the bedroom ceiling, trying to remember my mother’s exact words. Then, all of a sudden, a sharp pain stabbed my heart. The dream had me so confused and distracted that I hadn’t realized what ceiling was above me. It felt like a ton of bricks were sitting on my chest when I realized that it was my bedroom ceiling. My—bedroom—ceiling—at—my—house. Not my bedroom ceiling at the Harpers’ house. My body sprang up into a sitting position and I glanced around the room. My breath was coming fast as my eyes darted around at the familiar things: my desk, my alarm clock, the picture of me and Aunt Rose at graduation as well as the picture of my family and me before the accident. I shook my head, hoping this was just another dream to wake up from. This couldn’t be real. I didn’t want this to be real. This was my biggest fear coming true!
Panic consumed me as I jumped out of bed, ran to my bedroom door and swung it open. The house was silent except for the familiar tick tock of the grandfather clock at the bottom of the stairs. I took hold of the banister and tried to steady my shaky legs as I walked down the stairs. After searching the kitchen and living room and finding no one, I heard a door shut quietly. Taking a deep breath, I took a couple steps towards the noise of footfall that I now heard coming towards me. Slowly, I peeked my head around the corner and up the staircase.
“Oh my God, Meredith. You scared the sh…shucks outta me!” Aunt Rose grabbed her chest, her voice frantic. “What are you doing up so early?”
There was nothing I could do, but stand there and stare at her. She was there, in the flesh, like so many nights I had wished for her to be. It was always my biggest regret, not being able to tell her how much I loved her and how thankful I was for her. However, a part of me was wondering why she wasn’t screaming with joy—something along the lines of: ‘Oh, thank God, you’re alive!’ Or where were all the questions, the ones like: ‘Where have you been the last six weeks? Do you have any idea how worried we’ve been?’
There was nothing, though.
No questions.
No screams of joy that I hadn’t been kidnapped or wasn’t dead in a gutter somewhere.
The night Aunt Rose and Jack came home from their honeymoon and I didn’t get home until two a.m., you would have thought I’d been missing for years by how they reacted. Now that I had been gone for over six weeks and disappeared without a trace, there was nothing. This was weird.
“Meredith, are you okay?” Aunt Rose asked, staring at me curiously, probably wondering why I was staring at her like I’d never seen her before. I couldn’t find the words, though; my head was too overcome with confusion. “Meredith, seriously, you’re scaring me.”
Without even thinking twice about it, my arms flew around her, engulfing her in a big hug.
“Well, this is a surprise,” she said as she stumbled back a little, totally taken aback by my sudden embrace.
She smelled just like I had remembered her. It was a mixture between our laundry detergent and her pomegranate body wash. I hugged her even tighter.
“Meredith, don’t get me wrong, this is really nice... but I have to ask, is everything alright?”
I thought about that question for a second before responding. No, everything wasn’t alright, but it felt so good to hug her again, to see her standing there in front of me. So, for now, I was going to try and forget about being separated from the Harpers and just enjoy the moment. In the back of my mind, I knew the realization of what was happening would soon hit me and that thought scared me to the core.
“I’m just so happy to see you.” I smiled, releasing her and trying to fight back the tears that I could feel building inside me.
“It’s good to see you, too.” Her voice sounded unsure, still confused by my actions. She looked me up and down with a strange expression. “Do we need to go shopping for some pajamas? I actually haven’t seen you wear that before, but please don’t tell me it’s new. The style these days...” her voice trailed off as she continued down the last few steps, patted me on the shoulder and walked into the kitchen. I looked down and examined myself and a small gasp passed through my lips when I saw that I was still in Abby’s pajamas.
As much as I didn’t want it to, the reality of the situation finally hit me. Abby and Blake’s faces entered my mind and my heart began to ache, knowing that I wouldn’t see them today... and if I was being completely honest with myself, I wasn’t sure I would ever see them again. As I stood there in the hallway, contemplating that thought, my mother’s words came back to me.
There are some things that are about to happen and I’m so sorry, but it has to be this way. They are out of my control and if there was another way, please believe me that I would have done it differently. Trust in yourself and everything will work out as it should. I love you.
What the hell was all of that supposed to mean? It was too crazy to think that just a few hours ago I had fallen asleep in my bedroom at the Harpers’ house in 1905. Then, after having a dream of my mother and what seemed like just a few moments, I’d been catapulted back to my time. There was no warning, no chance to tell Blake goodbye, to tell Abby goodbye. How could the council—my mother—do that to me?
As much as I wanted to talk to Aunt Rose, I needed to process a few things first. So many things were running through my mind and I wanted a few minutes to myself in order to sort them out. It wasn’t just the fact that I had been sent back to my time and been separated from the Harpers. There was also the fact that Aunt Rose didn’t look surprised to see me, as if I had been here all along. Could the council have done something to her memory? They clearly showed they were powerful enough to send me back and forth through time whenever they felt like it, so what was a little mind erasing to them?
Deep down I had to believe that there was a plan for me; that there had to be a reason for all of this. Maybe if I did whatever it was that I was supposed to do, then I would be able to see Blake and Abby again. The council or my mother wouldn’t be so cruel as to allow me to get attached to these wonderful people and just take them away, could they?
My mind still raced with all of the unanswered questions as I opened my closet door and stared at my clothes. My clothes. It had been weeks since I had worn something that didn’t belong to Abby. Just the thought of her sent a sharp pain to my chest. I closed my eyes and tried to erase the picture of her face from my mind. It was just too painful to think about her, or about any of the Harpers for that matter. As much as I missed them all, what hurt the worst was the possibility that they were all hurting. Or that they had hurt when they discovered me missing about a hu
ndred years ago. Ugh, the whole time travel thing still made my head spin.
I need to stop this, I thought to myself. Standing here and pining away was not going to help me find a way back to them. I pushed the negative thoughts to the farthest corner of my mind and pulled myself together with a new determination to figure out what was going on. There had to be some reason I had been sent back to my own time. I always knew that the council was most concerned with the balance of power, and my being in 1905 must have thrown it off, but why wouldn’t they allow the Harpers to come back with me as well? I would still need my protector and my teacher to help me—the council would want me to achieve my full potential as an Astoria, wouldn’t they?
I had to admit, it felt amazing to be back in my t-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes. There was a little comfort in that at least. After composing myself the best I could, I decided to go downstairs and pick Aunt Rose’s brain a little bit. Her reaction to seeing me, or lack of, was totally confusing the hell out of me.
My heart was pounding hard as I walked down the stairs. I could hear voices coming out of the kitchen. When I walked in, both Aunt Rose and Jack were standing and leaning against the counter. They were lost in each other’s eyes when I walked in.
“Jack!” I screamed a little too loudly. I took a few large steps towards him and wrapped my arms around him. You could tell by his gasp that he was startled by my embrace, just as Aunt Rose had been.
“Well, good morning to you, too, Meredith.”
Again, there was no, ‘Oh thank God, you’re okay, or, Where on earth have you been the last few weeks?’ There was nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Both of them were oblivious to me being gone for the last six weeks which only increased my confusion about all of this.
“Are you about to leave for work?” Jack asked, totally throwing my thoughts off track. “It looks like it may storm. I could drive you, if you want. I’m leaving here in about five minutes.”
Work? Oh yeah, I had a job. Forgot about that little detail. Then a thought popped into my head—Ms. Donaldson! Maybe she could try and help me sort all this out. Even after all of this time since I had seen her, I still remembered every last word she had told me. She knew that I was a witch, too, so—if nothing else—she was the only person in this century who knew what I really was and that thought was certainly comforting.
“Uh, that would be great Jack.” I smiled, giving up on questioning them for now as a new feeling of hope came over me. “Do you think we could all have dinner together, tonight? You know, just the three of us?”
Aunt Rose beamed at me. “That sounds like a great idea. I’m off, so I can cook something special. What would you like?” She seemed so pleased and excited.
“How about tacos? Does that sound good?” I wasn’t sure why I said tacos; it was just the first thing that popped in my head. I glanced between the two of them. My heart was happy to see Aunt Rose so happy, allowing me to forget for a second about the situation I was in.
“Tacos, it is,” she said, still smiling.
On the drive to the library, I began to debate again on whether or not I should question Jack on the last few weeks. It seemed a little dangerous. Who knows, maybe I could’ve triggered a memory of something, causing him to remember that I had actually been gone for six weeks? It was difficult for me to pinpoint which emotion I was feeling more of right now. A part of me was sad to think that Aunt Rose and Jack could’ve forgotten the last six weeks of their lives. I really didn’t know how much the memory loss had included. Did they only not remember me being gone or had more of their memories been erased? Another part of me, a large part, felt angry that they had been affected by magic. The last thing I wanted was for anyone I cared about to be hurt or affected by magic in a negative way. This was my destiny, my life, so I should be the only one affected; not the innocent people I cared about.
Before I knew it, we were pulling up to the library. I glanced out the window and saw the building that made me so nervous at the beginning of the summer. Now, this was the one place I looked forward to going to the most, the one place that offered me hope.
“Have a good day, kid. See you tonight for dinner,” Jack said as we pulled to a stop. “You know. I don’t know why I’m even saying this, but it’s really good to see you.” He glanced over to me and smiled.
“You, too, Jack. Thanks for the ride.” I returned his smile and got out of the car.
My stomach began to feel uneasy as I walked towards the glass doors. The same doors I had bolted out of after reading the newspaper article about the Harpers and then, again, the night I ran to the cemetery to ask for my mother’s help in going to 1905 in order to warn them.
My heart felt like it was in my throat and my legs felt strangely weak. I wondered why I was so nervous. I should be excited to be here and see Ms. Donaldson. She would surely have some answers for me, right? She would at least be able to explain the whole memory erasing thing... right? Then, something hit me and fear crawled up my spine. What if... what if she had her memory erased as well? I would be here—in this time—all alone. No one in this century—or that was still living—would know my secret. I shook my head, trying to get those thoughts out of my head.
When my hand finally reached the handle, I couldn’t help myself from tearing the door open and rushing in, hearing the loud screeching sound as it closed behind me. I looked to my left and saw that Ms. Donaldson wasn’t sitting at her desk. Panic filled me. I scanned the library, searching desperately for who I felt was the only one who could help me make sense of what was going on, but I couldn’t find her.
“Ms. Donaldson!” I called, my voice cracked from my slight panic. I heard some rustling of papers coming from somewhere in front of me and then I saw her. She stood up from behind the checkout counter looking frazzled with a messy stack of papers in her hand.
“Oh, Meredith, thank goodness you’re here. I have this awful cold and apparently clumsiness is a symptom.” Her voice sounded scratchy and I could see her nose was a glowing red. She was looking at me over the rim of her glasses and her hair was disheveled. My stomach turned at her reaction, or lack of, knowing at that moment that she had no memory of me being gone the last six weeks, either.
Slowly, I walked towards her, the whole time wondering if I should say anything at all. Maybe if I explained everything, then she could help me. But what if there was a reason they weren’t supposed to remember anything? What was I supposed to do then? If I couldn’t talk to her, then I couldn’t talk to anyone. How could the council—my mother—do this to me? The more I thought about it, the more it irritated me. I knew the council must have had a reason for bringing me back here, but leaving me vulnerable, confused and freaked out was not fair.
“Are you okay, dear? You have a look of fright on your face?” Ms. Donaldson asked as I got closer to her.
I made up my mind, I was going to try and talk to her about it because I couldn’t imagine trying to figure all of this out on my own. My heart hammered against my chest and I wasn’t sure of the best way to approach the subject. I wasn’t sure what she remembered. Did she even remember telling me everything that night in the library?
“Ms. Donaldson, when was the last time you saw me?” I swallowed hard, trying to force down my panic.
She cocked her head and looked at me with a confused expression. No words came out of her mouth for a moment; she seemed to be thinking hard on the question I had just asked her.
Finally, she spoke, “Well, I—I don’t quite remember the last time I saw you, dear, but if today is Monday, then it must have been Saturday, right? Huh, that’s the strangest thing.” She laughed nervously. “I guess forgetfulness is another symptom of this horrible cold.”
I could tell that she was struggling with something internally. It was as if she knew that something strange was going on. I bit my lip, not knowing if what I was about to do had any repercussions. Could the council punish me for rebelling against them? At this point, I felt like there wa
s no other choice. She was my last chance.
“Ms. Donaldson, do you remember the day that I ran out of here in a hurry? The day I was working down in the basement?” Just thinking of that day still sent chills down my spine. That was the day I thought I had lost the Harpers forever.
She hesitated for a moment. “Uh, yes, I do remember that day.”
“Do you remember our conversation that evening when I came back for my backpack?”
She shut her eyes tight, like she was trying to search her mind for her lost memories, as if she knew some had been lost. “I remember you running up from the basement and out of here in a hurry, then calling your house a few minutes later to make sure you were alright, and then... well, that’s all I remember from that day.” She opened her eyes and stared at me, blankly.
My heart sank. I stared back, wondering if I should go any farther. It felt like I was messing with fire, like I was challenging the council head on, but I didn’t care. I had to talk to someone.
“Ms. Donaldson, we need to talk.”
Ms. Donaldson sat quietly as she listened to me tell her everything about the night I went back in time, to my six weeks in 1905 and finally, how I unexpectedly arrived back here this morning. I filled her in on how Aunt Rose and Jack didn’t seem to remember me being gone. I told her my theory on how I thought the council had somehow erased their memories, as they had with hers. When I finished, she sat back in her chair stunned. She didn’t speak for a moment; then, as she began to piece it all together in her mind, she asked me a question I couldn’t answer.
Crest (Book #2,Swift Series) Page 4
