Mike’s voice broke as he asked, “Is she…is she dead now? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Mike.” Becker put his hand on Mike’s shoulder.
“Beck, shut up. You can’t believe this. You really believe Jessica went back in time to save a dead guy? This is bull!” Mike suddenly jumped up and paced the patio.
“I do believe it, Mike. No way that video was doctored. I can spot a fake a mile away, you know that. Jessica must have slipped back in time. It’s happened before. We’ve heard the stories on other investigations. People walk into a room, and the whole place is changed, down to the gas lamps and wallpaper.”
“Momentary glitches in the fabric of time. People don’t go back and stay, Becker. Things usually come into this dimension from other portals, not the other way around.”
“How do you know that? What if some people do? You and I both know Jessica Chesterfield was different. She was probably different in more ways than we know.”
Becker’s voice broke slightly. “All I’m saying is we can’t rule anything out. Isn’t that what you have always taught me? I think we should keep an open mind to all the possibilities. Look, man, you can’t let your guilt get in the way here. Yeah, you should have told her how you felt. Yeah, you should have been together, but get over it. You’re married for crying out loud. To Tina, who you love. And Jessica needs us now right now.”
I spoke up. “If you still care about her, Mike, you will help me bring her home. If we had a hand in her disappearance, why would we be looking for her now?”
Mike shot Becker a look but didn’t say anything else. Out of nowhere, a strong breeze blew across the yard. The magnolia tree to the right of the patio creaked in the wind, and a shower of leaves pelted the ground and us. With the falling leaves came a blast of sweet fragrance, but the scent didn’t last long, a reminder that my friend with the sad eyes didn’t have long either. We didn’t have time to sit here and share theories. We needed to find Jessica, but I was apparently the only person left in this world, in this time, who believed that was important. That thought made me want to cry.
“You should listen to Aunt Avery.” I turned around to see Dolly Jane lingering in the doorway. The teenager’s tanned arms were crossed, her thin legs looking even thinner in her bright green tights and oversized garage band t-shirt. This one read RAGE across the front. “Jessica is back there. Here at Sugar Hill but back there in time. I saw her myself and tried to make her come back. She didn’t want to come back. She’s really sick and needs medical help.”
“You mean you saw her the night of the ball?” Mike asked with an unbelieving smile on his face.
“No” she snapped as if he were a slow-witted dullard. “I know what I mean, idiot. I saw her last night. Here. At this house. I went back in time in the ballroom. It’s taken me all day to recover, and it nearly killed my great-uncle Danforth, but between us, we were able to do it. Jessica is back there, and she’s going to die.”
Unbelieving, Mike asked, “What do you mean, she’s going to die?”
“She took a bullet for Dominick Dufresne. Someone dug it out of her back, but it was a crude job. I don’t know if she’ll ever walk again, even if she survives, and she’s lost a lot of blood. I mean, a lot.”
“If you saw her, why isn’t she here?” he demanded angrily.
“Like I said, she didn’t want to come. Jessica knew who I was, but she didn’t want to come back with me. I did try.”
I wiped tears from my eyes and squeezed Reed’s hand. “We have to hurry. I think we can do it again—open the portal, I mean. I can help Dolly Jane since Danforth is too weak now.”
Becker leaned forward and asked, “What is it you want Mike and me to do?”
“I’m not really sure, to be honest. Just do your stuff. No offense, Becker, I’m glad you’re here, but I had such a strong compulsion to get Mike to Sugar Hill that I really didn’t think it through. I thought because you guys work in the paranormal field, you would know more than us.”
“We don’t usually work with time travelers,” Mike snapped.
Dolly Jane didn’t give him an inch. If she hadn’t spoken up when she did, I was pretty sure Reed would have booted Mike out right then and there. “Whatever you know how to do, you’d better do it soon, or it won’t matter. Champion, the guy who shot Jessica, came back to Sugar Hill right before I left. The family spirit—you know who I’m talking about, Aunt Avery—is driving him crazy, and he’s convinced that Dominick is the source of all his troubles. He’s going to try to kill him again.”
Becker glanced at Mike. The older investigator sat in the chair beside him and clapped his hands as if to signal his surrender. “We’ll start with the digital thermometer to monitor fluctuations in temperature in the ballroom, which might occur if there is a portal opening. At least, that’s the common belief. We’ll also break out the parabolic dish. Did you hear any strange sounds before the door opened?”
“Yes, kind of like a boom. It shook the chandelier,” Reed said quickly.
“We’ll monitor the noise levels too, but if we’re to recreate this event, we need to pick the right time and place. Obviously, the ballroom is a hotspot.”
“Both events happened right around seven o’clock, as near as we can tell,” I offered.
Dolly Jane raised her hand as if she were in a classroom. “There’s a portal here too sometimes. Just at the end of the porch. It’s not as strong as the one inside. There could be more as well.”
Mike glanced at Becker. “That gives us a couple hours to set up equipment. I’d also like to monitor that place in the garden, the first place she went through. Is the house going to be empty? I mean, besides us? If we could cut down on the number of people here, that would be helpful.”
“I can make that happen,” Reed offered.
“I need to know how this works,” Mike said. “Can you explain it to me so I can get some idea of what to prepare for?”
Dolly Jane stepped closer, her arms still folded. “It’s hard to explain to someone like you.”
“You mean a non-Dufresne?”
“No, I mean a nonbeliever.” She pursed her lips at him to show her disapproval. Oh, the irony. The ghost hunter who didn’t really believe in ghosts. “It’s like meditating, only you don’t empty your mind. You fill it with what you want to see. I’d never opened a portal before last night, so I’m not an expert or anything, but that’s my limited experience. One more thing, though, Aunt Avery.”
“What’s that?”
“All this is useless unless Jessica wants to come back. I’m not strong enough to drag her with me when the portal opens again. And given the condition she’s in, I wouldn’t advise it, so there’s that.”
“We’ll have to compel her to return. I can do it.” I said confidently.
Reed found his voice and said, “No.”
“Yes, Reed. Dolly Jane is right. She can’t do it by herself.”
“Have you forgotten about your leg, Avery?”
I had, actually. “Dolly Jane said things changed for her when she stepped through the portal. She wasn’t herself but this Madlen person. That’s probably what will happen to me. I am sure I will be fine. I’ll reason with Jessica, and she’ll listen to me. I know she will.”
“What if you’re not okay, Aunt Avery, and I’m stuck with you and Jessica?”
Suddenly it dawned on me. I knew why Mike was here. And from the look on his face, he knew too. Without hesitation, he said, “I’ll go. If you can get me there, I’ll bring Jessica back.”
“I’ll go call and check on Danforth. Having him here might help us,” Reed said as he excused himself. His face was pink, and I could see that I’d lost his support, at least for the moment. Dolly Jane dogged his heels, and I was left alone with the paranormal investigators. Becker left, apparently eager to get started setting up.
Mike didn’t look me in the eyes at first, but when he did, I could see that his were wet with tears. He didn’t bother hiding th
em. He said softly, “I don’t like this house, Avery, but Jessica did. Even after she found the bodies. She always liked this place and you. She liked you a lot.”
“I liked her too. That’s why I’m not giving up.” We sat in silence for another minute.
“Thanks for that. I better go help Becker get everything together. He’s brilliant with software but not so great with camera angles.”
He stepped into the house, and I was left alone on the patio. I listened but heard nothing except the sound of the tree creaking.
“Handsome Cheever, if you can hear me, please watch over us. I need your help! Help me keep everyone safe!” I whispered. I did not hear Handsome’s voice, not that I expected to, but the silence still made me sad.
I fumbled with the wheelchair brake, turned the chair around, and rolled back inside.
Chapter Sixteen
Lucas
“Arnold Lee, remember, you can’t tell your mother about any of this. Nothing about Jessica or last night at all. I hate asking you to keep secrets, but this one is important. It’s really important. Promise me.” I glanced up as I saw Alice Marie’s shiny car pull into the grocery store parking lot. She wasn’t all smiles, but then again, neither was I. I didn’t want to let him go back, but my attorney said I had no choice, not until we got everything done legally. But one day soon, he’d get to stay with me. He wouldn’t have to endure her fear and judgmental attitude every day, and maybe she’d learn what I had—that Arnold Lee was different, but God made him that way for a reason. I knew that for certain now. I’d seen him yesterday drawing with all his might, determined to save his friend.
Even now, he was humming, just like my Dad. Always humming a tune. I knew that one. I’d heard Dad sing it many times.
Ooh, what a little
Moonlight can do.
Wait a while,
Till a little moonbeam
Comes peepin’ through.
With tears in my eyes, I hugged my son. “Son, you’ve got the phone I gave you, right?”
“Yes, sir, right here in my pocket. But I didn’t bring my hat. I don’t want her to take it away from me.” My son’s expression, a confused mingling of disappointment and sadness, just about broke my heart.
“It’s only for two days, and your hat will be right where you left it when you come home, I promise. I won’t wear it, even though I’ll be tempted to.”
“Daddy” He hugged me hard as Alice Marie honked the horn.
“If you need me, call me. I love you, son. Don’t forget that. And remember your promise.”
I raised a hand to Alice Marie, who gave me a disapproving look. Arnold Lee said, “I made this for you. Daddy, you have to buy some boots, the kind Grandpa used to wear. And you have to take the salt to the house for Jessie. She’s in a bad place.”
“Arnold Lee, we can’t talk about this right now, remember?” I glanced nervously at Alice Marie’s car.
“Daddy, please. You have to believe me. You can wear the hat if you want to. You should wear the hat ‘cause it will make you feel strong. Take the salt to the big house and spread it around, or there will be trouble. You have to believe me, Daddy.”
He left the folded paper on the seat behind him, got out, and walked to his mother’s car. She had her new friend with her, that preacher from the Bay Shore Baptist Church. I gave him a warning look and waved at Arnold Lee as they drove away. He waved back and gave me a sad smile.
God, I hate this. Why does she have to treat him like this? I don’t mind that she hates me, but what she’s doing to our son is not right. Why didn’t I listen to Dad when he advised me against asking Alice to marry me?
“Come on, Dad. We can’t all be satisfied with a dream woman. I don’t have a lady singing in my head.”
“No, but she’s in your ear, and she’s not good for your heart, son. Not good at all.”
I closed my eyes in a sad attempt at keeping the tears from falling. Who knew fatherhood would break your heart? I was a lousy son, and now I was a lousy father. My hand touched the drawing on the seat, and I reached for it as I flicked away the moisture seeping from my eyes. Arnold Lee had folded it like an accordion, his favorite way to fold long pictures. As the picture became clearer, I felt a sense of peace. What a strange thing. It was my father and me, both holding bags of salt over our shoulders, both wearing boots to keep the mud and salt off our feet. Waving at us from a black car was Arnold Lee, and in the front seat were two people who were obviously his mother and the preacher. How did he know the preacher would be there? I sure didn’t know that little detail. I mean, I knew they were an item, but nobody was supposed to be attending these custody swaps except Alice and me.
I studied the picture some more, and my eyes went to the large house he’d drawn. In one of the windows was a person with large sad eyes like Jessica Chesterfield’s. On the window were black bars wrapped with snakes. Arnold Lee had drawn a cartoon text box that said, “Help me!” It was dark in this picture, and there was a big bright moon at the top with a sad face in it. There were also some trees, like the trees in the backyard garden, and hidden among them was a woman in a chair. A wheelchair! That must be Avery. She also had a cartoon text cloud issuing from her open mouth. “Help me!”
Are they both in trouble?
Suddenly, I heard a song, just like someone had flipped on a radio. But the radio was off, and there was no one close to me in this parking lot. I rolled down the window just to check, but there wasn’t any music to be heard. Was I losing my mind? Once in a while, I did hear the odd tune, but not regularly like my father or my son did. I looked at the picture again. Yes, there he was.
My father, holding his bag of salt and smiling at me.
Dad?
I knew he really was with me and wanted me to do this. I had no other choice. I wept for real now. When I was done, I said, “Okay, Dad. You win. I’m going, but you have to go with me.”
I put my seat belt back on, rolled the picture back up accordion-style, and put the car in drive. I didn’t bother to turn the radio on. There was already a song playing in my head, and she was singing loud too. I couldn’t believe I was actually hearing her. Me. Not Dad, not my son. Me.
You’ll get bored.
You can’t resist him.
And all you’ll say
When you have kissed him is,
Ooh, what a little
Moonlight can do.
Ooh, what a little
Moonlight can do.
Ooh, what a little moonlight
Can do to you.
“What a little moonlight can do,” I sang along with her. I knew without a doubt that I would hear her clearly now and forever, now that I wanted to hear. I didn’t have to please Alice Marie anymore. I didn’t have to pretend I wasn’t my father’s son. I could be myself. Dad was gone, and Arnold Lee needed me to be who I was supposed to be, whatever or whoever that was. As I turned the car onto Jackson, I felt a peace I hadn’t felt in a long time, and I sang with all my might.
Chapter Seventeen
Avery Dufresne
By the time we got started, there were cameras, cords, and more cords all over the bottom floor of the house, even in rooms where nothing paranormal had happened, at least not recently. The door that led from the ballroom to the patio garden was open, and there were cords leading out there too. Well, one thing was for sure: Mike and Becker were prepared for whatever was going to happen.
“It’s almost seven o’clock, Avery. Let me show you what we’ve got.” Mike ran through the equipment, explaining how everything worked. “Becker, what’s up with this K2? It’s dead. We need fresh batteries.”
Becker stalked over to take a look. “Shoot. I swear I just put batteries in it. This one is crapping out too. You know, that could be a good thing.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, kind of interested in their anxious excitement.
Becker continued, “It might mean that an entity is drawing energy from the batteries.”
Mike elbowed him and said, “But it might also mean we got a bad batch of batteries.”
While all that was impressive, I was having a hard time focusing. Reed had left a few hours ago and hadn’t returned. He wasn’t answering my phone calls, either. That wasn’t unusual when he was working on a case, although he wasn’t, as far as I knew. He was eager to help Lucas with his custody case, though. Maybe that was it.
As if he knew I was thinking about him, Reed walked into the ballroom wearing his movie-star smile. Apparently, all was forgiven now because he was looking me square in the eye, and that grin wasn’t going anywhere. Despite my nerves and the horrible situation, I couldn’t help but smile back. I loved him so much. Behind him was Danforth, and also Pepper’s son, Alexander James, and my fellow Matrone, Summer.
“Summer? Reed! How did you manage this?” I practically cried at seeing them all. Summer and I didn’t even get a chance to hug before Dolly Jane screamed for joy and ran to her. Even Reed hadn’t expected that. He stepped out of her way and took my hand.
“Aunt Summer!” Dolly Jane was in her arms, and Summer held onto her as if she might never let her go. I had no idea those two were so connected. I felt like a heel now for being jealous before. Forget sisters, those two were more like mother and daughter. I loved that, and I was happy for them both.
“Danforth, how are you feeling?” I asked as Reed kissed my cheek.
“I’m fine, Avery, dear. Just eager to get this over with. You remember Alexander James?”
Wow, this was a night for miracles. Danforth calling me dear. Summer returned to Sugar Hill even though she swore she would never come back. “How have you been, Alexander? We all miss Pepper so much.”
“Yes, she was one of a kind.” He didn’t say much else, and I didn’t push him. He didn’t know me from Adam’s house cat, as my grandmother Vertie used to say. She was full of funny witticisms like that. How I missed her tonight. What would she think about all this? I had a feeling she wouldn’t like it much, but at least she’d be glad the Lovely Man had been defeated.
The Hauntings Of Sugar Hill: The Complete Series Page 69
