Ghost of a Chance Book 1 in Above the Grave Trilogy

by Kara Kirkendoll

  “Oh, fun!” That seemed to perk Liza up a bit. “I get to pick the movie though. I will bring some crawfish pasta also. That should go good with whatever wine you can dig up.”

  Drew had a lot to tell her friend. About Jack, Brendan, the cemetery, her experience with Wicca or not with Wicca, whatever, it was endless and she told Liza that she may as well plan on spending the night.

  Friday was only two days away. That gave Drew a little bit more time with Brendan and to hopefully talk him into being have his self when she had company. After such a rotten day she was actually feeling pretty good and couldn’t wait to get back home to him.

  When Drew reached her front door she noticed that it was wide open. Surely she hadn’t been that spacey had she? Maybe Brendan was just being nice and left it opened for her.

  “Honey, I’m home!” She said then saw the words spray painted on the wall and dropped the bag that she held in her hand.

  “Brendan?” There was no answer so she ran to the kitchen for some rags. Someone or several someones had ruined her antique gold wall paper with some kind of gibberish and she was quite pissed about that.

  When she came back to the living room she realized that what was written wasn’t gibberish after all. She recognized some of the symbols from the shop that she had just visited that day. She grabbed her sketch pad off of the end table and began to copy the symbols down before she attempted to wash them off for good.

  “Don’t bother.” Brendan said from over her shoulder.

  “Could you please refrain from sneaking up on me like that?” Drew asked after almost jumping out of her boots. When she turned around she saw a faded light in front of her that went from the ground to about a foot above her head.

  “Um, Brendan? How tall are you?” Drew said looking up towards the top of the light.

  “I’m six foot six inches, why do you ask?” He said.

  “Well, because I believe that I can s ee your form. It is kind of creeping me out a little; I’m not going to lie.” She studied him a moment longer then turned back towards the wall and her sketch pad.

  “I’m going to find out what the hell this means.” She said as she sketched the symbols frantically.

  “Leave now. You have been warned.” Brendan said.

  “Haven’t we already established that I am not going anywhere?” Drew said turning back around. “Besides, I thought that we were becoming friends.” She said hurt.

  “That is what the wall says,” Brendan said quietly. “At least, up to the w, which was when I yell at them, they stopped and ran from the house.”

  “Oh,” Drew said turning to look at the wall again, “Well, who the hell were they?”

  “Witches I imagine, as the words that they wrote are of Theban alphabet. Witches used it to hide their spells from nonwitches.”

  “Those damned bitches.” Drew said angrily and tossed her sketch pad onto the couch.

  “Witches Love, not bitches.” He laughed. “What have you done, Miss Drew?” He said seriously then. “What have you done to cause women in black to desecrate our home?”

  Our home , she thought. She wondered if he had heard himself say it as well. She shivered a little. It was a good shiver she thought, but then remembered he was a damned ghost and she was losing her mind.

  “I’m not sure exactly. I was just asking some questions in town and one of my interrogates just happened to be in a Wiccan store when I dragged her off to the corner and drilled her. The bitch or witch at the counter charged me triple for a stupid crystal ball that broke when I walked into the door. It wasn’t even my fault and I offered to pay for it.” Drew said innocently.

  “What is a Wiccan store, Miss Drew?” Brendan asked worriedly. He was pretty sure he knew, but wanted to clarify.

  “It’s a store that sells witchy supplies. You know crystals, brick dust, very expensive and breakable crystal balls… Wiccan is a religion that came about after you died, although it has been around a long time, they just called it something else Ithink. I’m honestly not really sure about the history of it. My Wiccan 101 was a very short class.”

  “Why is it that you are interrogating witches, especially in their own territory?” Brendan said angrily.

  “What? You think that they can hurt me? A little spray paint never hurt anyone. That was beautiful wall paper though,and I will never be able to replace it.” She said sadly staring at the wall.

  He grabbed her shoulders then and turned her around to face him. For a brief moment she saw his dark eyes again in the light that was before her. “Drew they can hurt you and they will if you don’t mind your own damned business and leave them alone. Do you want to end up in a cemetery like my sister… like me?” She heard his voice crack at that.

  “Everyo ne ends up in the cemetery eventually, Brendan.” She said cautiously. “Sometimes that is the only way two people can be together.”

  “Och! You speak foolishly!” He said pushing her away gently. “Dying to be together such as Romeo and Juliet, I suppose? Such a romantic, such an idiot! Do you know how many times I thought of ending me life to be with Lezetta? Now look at me. Oh, that’s right; you can’t see me because I am a bloody ghost. I am a prisoner in my own home. Invisible chains wrapped around me ankles so I only feel their wrath. Where ‘tis Lezetta now? Her ashes are lying in my cemetery in the cold tomb that I placed them in. I haven’t laid eyes on her for one hundred and fiftyone years and I never will again.”

  “You know you sound more Irish when you are upset.” Drew said sarcastically. “What makes you so sure that you would want to be with Lezetta anyway? How do you know that she didn’t kill your sister, Brendan, and if she did, how could you still love her?”

  She watched his glow as it floated up the stairs and into a doorway. She guessed that meant that he was done talking. Well, that was fine with her. She had a wall to wash anyway. She didn’t care what those dumb witch bitches did or said, she wasn’t going anywhere and she sure as hell wasn’t done asking questions.

  Though she was happy for the time alone to think, something about watching him float away, angry with her, touched her down deep. It was almost like a husband and wife going to bed angry at one another. She didn’t like it. She wanted to make up.

  Drew wanted badly to go back to the cemetery. There was so much that she needed to know. Unfortunately, as much as her life seemed to suck at the moment she wasn’t quite ready to end it. Besides, her hand was still oozing from the last visit.

  As she lay at the edge of the pool listening to the sounds of nature around her she wondered how she could have gotten so lucky and yet so terribly unlucky at the same time. How many people did she know that lived in a beautiful, sturdy, very expensive home for so cheap? How many people did she know that were being threatened by witches and lived with over protective ghosts? The thought of trading him in for a yellow lab made her grin.

  It felt good to be outside in the sun. Every now and then she swore that she heard yelling and screaming from somewhere nearby, but she couldn’t imagine where in the world it would be coming from. She did her best to ignore it anyway. It dawned on her then that she had yet to explore the woods around her new home. She jumped up and headed inside immediately to get dressed. She was excited that there was a new venture ahead of her. Brendan may be trapped in this place via “invisible chains” but she wasn’t by George.

  She remembered her tarots once again and the fact that Chains were one of her major arcana. She supposed that being bound by a past that she would never be able to break free from was her own punishment. Falling in love and having a family of her own was out of the question for her because of it. She had her own chains she supposed, but they weren’t going to keep her from living her life. She needed to get out and do that exploring and she needed to do it now.

  Chapter 6 The Lovers

  As she started out of the front door in jeans and boots she saw his glow at the bottom of the stairs. “I’m sorry that I was so hateful earlier.” She said. �
��I should be more respectful. I don’t know anything about what happened back then, after all. I don’t know anything about the two of you, and I suppose I am a little jealous maybe.”

  He came closer to her then. “Where are you going?” He asked her quietly.

  “I was just going to go check out the woods nearby. I love to explore!” Her eyes brightened at the thought.

  He had to laugh at her childish animation. She was very beautiful and sassy yet sweet and innocent at the same time. “The last time I was in those woods I saw an alligator sneaking up out of the swamp. You seem to be prone to walking into danger. It may not be a good idea for you to go there alone.”

  What he was really thinking of was the fact that there was a cult of witches that she had unknowing pissed off. He didn’t want her leaving the house or his sight.

  He watched her face turn from sunshine to darkness in a matter of seconds. He felt a pang of guilt, but knew that he was right at the same time. “Sorry, Love.” He said.

  She walked towards the ballroom. “Oh, it’s ok. I mean, you aren’t my father, if I really wanted to I would go anyway. I’m not really much on people telling me what to do and what not to do. I suppose you are right though. I haven’t had much luck lately in the safety department.” She said as she looked down at her hand.

  “Did you ever dance in here?” She said as she pushed open the heavy French doors to the ballroom. “I have imagined a room filled with ladies in gorgeous gowns with their hair all done up in pearls and feathers, and gentlemen in their finest suites swaying around and around to the sound of a three piece band.” She twirled around then and mocked her imagination.

  Brendan laughed. “It was a one piece band most of the time actually. The piano can do wonders all by itself. Close your eyes, Miss Drew.” He said. Even though he wanted to come inside, he didn’t want the mirrors to give him away.

  “You play beautifully.” She said closing her eyes. “Will you play for me? I’ve dreamed of this room a few times and I would love to hear…” Before she could finish the music began. She kept her eyes closed and imagined the room full again.

  “Keep your eyes closed.” He whispered in her ear.

  Somehow the music continued to play when he took her hand. He led her into a dance that made her feel like she was flying. She didn’t dare open her eyes for fear that her feet may really not be touching the ground. They spun around and around until she began to feel light headed.

  For a light beam he was strong, and his body was hard next to hers. She could smell him. He was very manly in every way she noted. She had never really slow danced with anyone before, unless you counted Stuart, which everyone called Stud, at their high school homecoming dance. Not that Stuart really was a Stud. The preppies just started calling him that to make fun of him, more as an antonym of his true self.

  Dancing with Stuart was nothing like this though. She was literally being swept off her feet. When she fluttered her eyes open and saw herself in the large mirror in front of them she saw herself in midair. She was about two feet off of the ballroom floor. As she looked in the mirror she saw him as well.

  He was beautiful. He took her breath away. He was much better looking now than he had been in her paintings. Her Prince Charming was real. He was right there, holding on to her. That was the great thing about dreams. You could do just about anything that you wanted to. She smiled and closed her eyes again and laid her head on his chest.

  He saw her see him. His eyes widened with freight. He was afraid that she would try to run. He was afraid that seeing that the man in her dreams wasn’t entirely all that she had really dreamed of after all. She didn’t run though. She smiled and snuggled up to his chest to let him continue to lead her across the floor, or the air as it were.

  He ran his hand through her shiny silk hair that she had let down at the pool. She was so soft. He knew that she was hard inside though and he wanted to help her let go of that. He wanted her to love him even though he knew that she would just be hurt eventually because, what good could a ghost be for her? What could he really do for her? His thoughts brought him back to reality. As badly as he didn’t want to let go, Brendan knew it was the only right thing to do.

  She felt him set her back on the ground and when he stopped moving she sighed and said, “Is it time to wake up?”

  He let go of her then with a kiss on her forehead and walked away so that she wouldn’t see him again in the mirror.

  Drew stood still for a moment with her arms raised as if she were still holding on to him. When she opened her eyes she realized that she was all alone. She looked in the mirror to verify that fact. She had let her imagination run wild again. She glanced at the piano. There was no light. There was no sound. Where had Brendan gone? She wondered.

  Her sleep was restless that night. She tossed and turned and dreamed of her childhood it seemed. He lay beside her and watched her as her face twitched in sorrow and in anger. She tossed her pillow and blanket aside and when he tried to put his arm around her she thrashed at him as if he were a monster.

  “No!” She screamed. “Mommy!” She screamed again.

  He wanted to wake her and tell her that everything was ok, but hewasn’t sure that it was. Tears streamed down her cheek and she grabbed between her legs as if she were in pain. She wasn’t dreaming of her childhood anymore he thought. Something was altering her dream that he imagined she had had over and over again in her life.

  “Brendan, make her stop!” She cried as more tears fell. She dreamed of him. Was he hurting her in her dream? “My eyes! Oh, they burn make her stop!”

  Her body went into convulsions then and he shook her. “Darling! Please wake! Everything is fine, it is only I, Brendan!” He said shaking her. She rocked harder and harder now and he thought that she was having a seizure.

  Her eyes flew open then. They were the eyes of someone that he loved, though they weren’t Drew’s beautiful blue angel eyes. They were the enchanting Irish green eyes of his baby sister.

  “Brendan, save her.” His sister said to him through

  Drew’s soft beautiful lips as she held his face in her hands. “You must love her. She will save you as well. You must keep her safe though or they will do to her as they did to me. Don’t let them take her, Brendan O’Keefe. You still have a life to live, if you lose her you will lose everything.”

  He felt his own tears now as they ran down his face. “Mary Ann?” He cried.

  Drew stopped shaking then and began to sob. He held her as close to him as possible. Had he been dreaming himself? Had his dead sister taken over the body of his poor broken Drew to send him a message? Her message had made no sense to him.

  “Mary Ann,” He cried again, “Can’t you at least say who did this to you, darling?” He rocked her then. He rocked and rocked until he felt Drew’s body relax and then snuggle up to him.

  Her eyes fluttered open and as if she was looking directly into his and whispered, “Please, don’t ever let go.”

  He didn’t let go the rest of the night or all of the next day. She slept for solong. Though he didn’t want to let go of her he was afraid that something was wrong and shook her as if to wake her. “Drew?” He said, “Drew, wake up, Love.”

  “Mmm.” She mumbled and snuggled her head up under his chin.

  He smiled as it felt so good to have her next to him. He reached up to sweep the hair from her face and noticed that his hand was slightly visible. He was no longer invisible, more transparent it seemed. What is happening to me? He thought.

  “Drew? You should get out of bed and eat something.” He said looking at his hand.

  “I’m not hungry.” She said finally.

  “I know, Love, but it isn’t good for you to sleep your life away and you must eat to keep your energy up.” He sat up then and she grumbled a curse under her breath.

  He laughed at that. “Darling, you must get up. I will draw you a bath.”

  She felt her head slip off of his shoulder and onto the pillo
w and immediately snapped awake. Had she just been cuddling with a ghost? She wondered. She sat up and looked around the room. Sitting on the edge of her bath was a see through man turning her bath water on.

  “Brendan?” She said in awe.

  He turned to face her then and smiled. Though his face was still a little blurry she knew then that he had been the man that she had dreamed of. He had been the man that she had become obsessed with to the point of drawing his face a million times, and he was the man that scared the shit out of her.

  She started to jump out of the bed and fell to the floor. He immediately ran to her and reached down to pick her up. She slapped at his hand and it made contact. She jumped.

  “You are a ghost, Brendan! Why can I feel you? Why doesn’t my hand go through yours? Why can I almost see you and what were you doing in my bed?” She felt tears welling up when she remembered the dream from the night before.

  The look that she gave him burned a hole through his heart and he stepped back.

  “You raped and killed me!” She screamed. “Get away from me!” She cried. “I’m dead! That’s why I can see you!”

  Brendan’s mou th dropped open in surprise and he shook his head frantically. “I did no such thing, Miss Drew.” He started to reach for her again and she pushed him away. “Drew! I merely held you is all, when you were clearly upset. I never touched you in that way at all! There was nothing sexual about it I promise you!”

  She was hysterical. “You carved my eyes out of my head and raped me you freak! You left me in the swamps to die.” She screamed as she was running for the door.

  “Damn it, Drew!” He yelled and was immediately in front of the door stopping her from leaving. “Would you listen to yourself?” He said. “Look in the mirror, woman!” He pointed towards the mirror on her vanity. “There isn’t a damned thing wrong with your eyes and you are clearly not in the bloody swamps!”

  He was a grown man and yet he wanted to cry. How could she think such a thing about him? What lies had her mind told her as she slept?