Annamarie and Magdalena (Gypsy Spirits Book 2)

by Marianne Spitzer

  * * *

  Annamarie was tired and went to bed early. Since her dad had moved the furniture, she was sleeping in the guest room. It felt strange not to be in her pink canopy bed, but she was also happy not to have to trudge up the stairs when she was tired or up and down twice a night to use the bathroom. She knew this baby slept on her bladder all night.

  Soft music floated on the air and Annamarie was in the meadow behind the Logan house. It was night, but a full moon brightened her surroundings. Although it had been a snowy winter, wherever she walked, the snow disappeared before her feet reached the grass. She saw Magdalena at the edge of the pines, walking toward her. She placed her hand on Annamarie’s swollen belly and smiled. “The child is healthy and strong. She’ll be perfect. I am doing my best to keep Daniel from your dreams. If he breaks into them, do not fear. Also, still beware of men with dark hair. A man with hair the color of sunlight will enter your life. He will love you and your child forever. You must open your heart to him and let go of Daniel. Daniel wants only to cause pain. I will protect you. Sleep, my precious child. Sleep. All will be well.”

  * * *

  Late January was colder than average, but their snow totals were lower. It didn’t matter to Annamarie: cold was cold and she preferred spring. Six weeks before her due date, she was tired more than energetic and not all in the mood for a problem when she left work and her car wouldn’t start. Turning the key brought the sound of the engine trying to start, but to no avail. Mr. Hanson saw her from the window and hurried out to help. He jumped her car and followed her to the mechanic’s shop.

  Garret had owned it until he died and a father and son from Oaklin who wanted to expand their business bought it. When she pulled in the lot, Mr. Hanson turned his truck around and headed back to the dairy.

  Annamarie stepped out of the car when a young man approached her and asked if he could help her. She explained the problem and he said it sounded like her battery.

  “Please sit inside and stay warm while I check it out.”

  She smiled at him and said, “Thanks.”

  An older gentleman greeted her when she entered the shop. He offered her coffee and she declined.

  A moment later, the young man came in and said, “I was right; it’s your battery. We don’t have them here, but I can go into Oaklin first thing tomorrow morning and get one for you and deliver your car wherever you would like.”

  “That’ll be fine. I work at the dairy.”

  “I’ll take care of it and I’ll drive you home now.”

  “It’s not necessary. I can call my mom.”

  “It’s cold. Why bother her? I was about to leave for home anyway.”

  “Okay, thanks, but I live down at the end of Prairie Road.”

  “That’s fine; nothing is far away in Timmus Woods.”

  They had a pleasant chat on the drive to the Logan house and Sam waved when he pulled away.

  Annamarie thought she felt a connection to Sam. It was a warm, friendly feeling. His light blonde hair and soft blue eyes pulled at her heart. She scolded herself for being attracted to someone when she was seven and a half months pregnant and widowed for less time than that, but his blonde hair reminded her of sunshine. Sunshine! Magdalena’s voice echoed in her head. Was this the man with hair of sunlight she was supposed to meet?

  She did her best to put him out of her mind for the rest of the evening.

  * * *

  The Arizona sun blazed overhead, although it was March. Eddie was thrilled with his new life. His boss had promoted him to shift supervisor for the new section of houses they were constructing. He and Denise had been dating for six months. He hated to see her work so hard in the little diner across from the motel where he lived. Tonight would be the night he would change it all, he hoped.

  At seven o’clock, Eddie picked up Denise in his secondhand Chevy truck.

  “Hi, sweetie,” her gentle voice drifted into the truck when she climbed in.

  “Hi, honey, how was your day?”

  “Same as always. Where are we headed?”

  “I thought we’d celebrate a little and go to Seaside Seafood.” There wasn’t a lake for miles; much less an ocean, but they had the best seafood in the county.

  “Sounds wonderful.” She cuddled up to him while he drove. Her long, brown hair blew in her face while the A/C cooled her.

  Their meals were delicious. Denise enjoyed her steak and shrimp, but Eddie ate his steak and lobster slower than usual.

  She reached across the table, taking his hand. “Is everything okay, sweetie?”

  He looked at her and smiled. Sounding more like the old “Bulk” than the new improved Eddie, he stammered, “Denise, I love you more than I have ever loved anyone in my life. I don’t know what I would do without you. Please make me the happiest man on Earth and say you’ll marry me.”

  When he finished his statement, he pulled out a ring from his pocket. The diamond was tiny, but the jeweler said the setting would make it appear larger. It twinkled in the candlelight.

  Denise, trying to fight back tears, could only nod her head. Eddie slipped the ring on her finger and, in true “Bulk” style, stood, pulled her from the booth, wrapped his arms around her, and swung her in a circle, telling everyone in the restaurant, “We’re getting married.” He set her back down to a small roar of applause.

  Denise, having regained her composure, said, “What kind of wedding should we have? You only have your brother and my only family is you.”

  “Let’s go to Vegas. You can buy a beautiful wedding dress, I’ll wear a tux, and we’ll find a pretty chapel. When the boss made me supervisor, he said our entire crew could take a few days off because we came in under bid on the last project. Let’s go this weekend and stay a couple extra days.”

  Denise readily agreed. Eddie could see the glow of the candle shimmer in her big, brown eyes. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He had forgotten the horror of Timmus Woods and the people he left behind.

  * * *

  Annamarie slept fitfully. Her dreams were flashes of her life with Daniel, mixed with the handsome young man from the mechanic’s shop. She drifted deeper and found herself in the woods alone. It was cold and dark. Snow was falling between the branches of the barren trees. She shivered and tried to wrap her arms around herself to keep her and her unborn child warm. The wind picked up, blowing the snow harder, making it difficult to see, but then she saw him—Daniel. He stood in front of her and glared. “You will never keep my child. If I can’t take it with me, I will see to it my mother finds a way to prove you are unfit. You’re evil and the world will know. The blonde man will never be its father.” Annamarie shuddered with fear, trying to find a way out of the woods.

  A bright flash of light and a near-deafening clap of thunder threw Daniel back against a tree. A man Annamarie had never seen before stepped between them and told Daniel, “You were warned not to communicate with her. You will not only face Magdalena’s wrath, you will also face mine.” Daniel scurried away like a mouse fleeing a cat.

  The woods warmed instantly and the sun shone through the tree branches. Small flowers appeared on the ground. Magdalena appeared from out of nowhere. She walked up to Annamarie and wiped away her tears. She once again touched her cheek and said, “Remember what I told you. Daniel may try to come to you in your dreams or frighten you in person, but he cannot hurt you.”

  “He told me he would make his mother take my child from me.”

  “He can try, but she was taught one lesson. She could be taught another.”

  Annamarie remembered Maureen’s health scare. Could Magdalena do that? “I’m afraid of Daniel.”

  “Josef will make sure he does not harm you. He loves you as much as I do. Together we will keep the woods safe. Sleep deeply, my child, and remember to remain close to the man with hair of sunlight.”

  Annamarie drifted into a dreamless sleep for the rest of the night.

  * * *

  The next two
weeks passed quickly. Annamarie waved at Sam each day on her way home from work. She was sure he found something to do outside each day at the time that she passed. She enjoyed seeing him and wished she could spend time with him.

  Dr. Fox told her she could deliver at any time and Paula insisted she move back home and stop work. Mr. Hanson agreed over Annamarie’s insistence that she felt fine. She relented and Elaine packed her things and helped her move back to her parents’ home. Elaine was going to take a two-week vacation to visit her sister, which worked out well. Paula was not going to let Annamarie out of her sight until the baby was at least four weeks old.

  Boredom overtook Annamarie’s mind. She missed the few fleeting moments seeing Sam each day. She was tired of reading and became hooked on her mom’s favorite soaps. She felt fat and bloated. She knew she looked “roly-poly,” the way Carl said she would. She couldn’t wait to have the baby. She was hungry all the time and craved chocolate at all hours.

  Paula looked at her and said, “It’s definitely time for this baby to come.”

  “I’m tired of everyone asking me when I’m going to have this baby. Are they always so late?”

  “Many first babies can be.”

  “Ugh,” said Annamarie and she pushed herself off the couch and headed for bed.

  Chapter Twelve: New Life

  Lying in bed after a fitful night’s sleep, Annamarie wondered if she would be pregnant forever. She was ten days past her due date, and Dr. Fox told her she should deliver soon.

  “Little one, you have a mind of your own. I think we should eat breakfast.”

  Rolling onto her side, she pushed herself into a sitting position. She stood up, tried to stretch and felt a gush of fluid between her legs. It ran down her legs to the floor and began to puddle.

  “Mom!” she screamed. “Something’s wrong!”

  Paula was there before Annamarie could scream a second time and said, “Your water broke. You’ll be fine. Sit down on the bed.”

  Paula disappeared down the hall and reappeared with towels. She threw them onto the floor. “It’s time to call Dr. Fox.”

  “Am I going to be all right? This is yucky.”

  “You’ll be fine,” Paula said as she reached for the phone. “Hello, this is Annamarie Logan’s mother. Her water broke.” She listened and replied, “Yes, I can drive her right now. Thank you.”

  “What now, Mom?”

  “I’m going to drive you to the hospital.”

  “Mom, I can’t do this. I thought I could, but I need Daniel. I miss him so much. Why did the madman have to kill him?”

  She began to cry harder. Paula worried she’d get hysterical. Annamarie had kept her emotions under control for so long she was at her breaking point. Once the baby is born, maybe they can finally give her something for her nerves, Paula thought. “You’ll be fine, Annamarie. Dr. Fox said I could stay with you during your labor. I’ll stay by your side and help you the best I can.”

  “Okay, Mom, I don’t have a choice, do I?”

  “No, it’s up to the baby now. Get used to it sweetie, babies always have their own minds.”

  Arriving at the hospital, a nurse walked out with a wheel chair for Annamarie.

  “Dr. Fox should be here soon. He said he would walk over between appointments to check on you.”

  Annamarie was near panic. She thought the doctor would be there. His office was next to the hospital. The nurse said he’d be there soon, but what about now. Only the nurse was there. Where was her mom?

  Her mom walked in the room and Annamarie burst into tears again.

  “You’re safe now, here in the hospital.”

  “The doctor isn’t here.”

  “The doctor can’t be here all the time. These nurses are specially trained in labor and delivery. You’ll be happy they’re here when your labor starts.”

  Annamarie groaned.

  The nurse was back with her smile and cheerful voice. “I spoke to Dr. Fox and since you are three centimeters dilated, but are not having contractions, he ordered some medication and it will help your labor start. I’m going to start your IV now, Annamarie.”

  “I want to go home, I’m hungry. I didn’t have breakfast. Can’t I come back when my labor starts?”

  “I’m sorry, dear, you won’t be able to eat or drink anything until you deliver. This medication works well and it won’t be long until labor starts and you’ll have a beautiful baby.” She hooked the IV bag to the bed’s pole and Annamarie saw the liquid enter her arm.

  “Mom!”

  “It’s okay, dear, I’m here.”

  Annamarie watched the minutes tick away on the clock when a pain hit her. She thought her body was being ripped in two.

  “Mom, help me.”

  Her mom held her hand and tried to reassure her. The pain stopped and Annamarie was grateful it was over. A few minutes later, another pain hit.

  “Help me, I can’t do this. I need Daniel.” Annamarie writhed and moaned with each pain. Her panic grew while she lay in a bed with rails keeping her trapped.

  After four hours of IV drip and contractions occurring randomly from three minutes apart to fifteen, Dr. Fox thought another dose of medication would do the trick. Four hours later, she was still having random contractions.

  “Well, Annamarie, your baby is stubborn and wants to do things on his or her own time table. We’re going to wait a while to see if you go into labor on your own and if not, we’ll do a C-section.”

  “You want to cut me open. Oh my God. Mom, do something. Get me out of this bed.”

  “Relax dear, they do it all the time, you’ll be safe. This is 1968, not 1800.” She looked at the doctor for confirmation.

  He nodded and said, “I’ll be back in a bit.”

  Paula glanced back at Annamarie and saw that she was sound asleep. Paula noticed a slight scent of pine. She thought perhaps Maureen was right and the hospital cleaned with pine cleaner. Two hours later, Annamarie woke with the look of terror on her face.

  “Mom, what’s happening? It hurts ten times worse, and I feel as if the baby is going to fall out.”

  “You’re in labor, dear.”

  “Labor? Then what was all that before?”

  “False labor. It happens.”

  Annamarie muffled a scream; her knuckles were white from gripping the side of the bed rail. Paula rang for the nurse.

  She quickly checked Annamarie. “You dilated five centimeters in three contractions. That’s why it hurts and you feel pressure. I’ll call Dr. Fox. You’re about ready.”

  Dr. Fox hurried in and checked Annamarie. “We’re off to delivery, Annamarie. Paula, I’ll be back when she delivers. The nurse will show you where to wait.”

  Paula could hear Annamarie’s “Moooom” wail while she was rolled down the hall.

  Forty-five minutes later, Dr. Fox walked into the waiting room. Paula, Maureen, and George were waiting for him. “How is she?” asked Paula.

  “Mother and daughter are doing fine; seven pounds, fourteen ounces, twenty-one inches.”

  Paula’s tears flowed freely down her cheeks. “Can I see her?”

  “Yes, but only Paula right now. George and Maureen can see her later.”

  “Okay,” said Paula as she hurried down the hall. She stopped at the nursery window to see the most beautiful baby she’d seen since Annamarie was born. Then she hurried to Annamarie’s room.

  “Hi, Mom,” a sleepy Annamarie said. “Did you see her? She’s beautiful.”

  “Yes, I did and she has a lot of dark hair. She’ll look like you.”

  “Daniel had dark hair, too.”

  “I know, dear, she’ll be beautiful. Maureen and George are waiting to see you, too.”

  “That’s nice. Tell them her name is Magdalena Grace.” She drifted back to sleep.

  * * *

  George and Maureen walked to the nursery to see their new granddaughter.

  “Look, George, she has hair like Daniel’s when he was born. She’s
so beautiful.”

  “And tiny. Was Daniel ever this small?”

  Leaning her head on his shoulder, she said, “He was a bit bigger, but not much. I miss him so much. If he could see his daughter, he’d be so proud.”

  “I know, dear, but we’ll tell her all about him and show her pictures. She’ll know she had a dad who would have loved her dearly.” He put his arm around Maureen as they walked back to the waiting area. Neither saw Daniel’s reflection in the nursery glass.

  Paula was waiting for them. “Dr. Fox has given Annamarie a sedative. She seemed to be a bit fitful in her sleep. She has been through so much and he wanted her to get a deep, relaxing sleep. Since she lost Daniel, she has been on edge all the time.”

  Maureen took Paula’s hand. “We miss Daniel terribly and I know this is hard for her. She has been brave and strong for nine months to bring a healthy baby into this world. Let her sleep and rest. We’ll come back later.”

  “Dr. Fox said she’ll sleep for about eight hours.”

  “We’ll go home and rest and come back later.”

  Paula touched Theo’s shoulder. He bolted awake. ”Is she all right?”

  “Yes, they both are. She’ll be asleep for a while. They’ll call when she wakes. We need to get some sleep and call Carl and Bonnie. Let’s go home.”

  * * *

  Seven hours later, Annamarie began to wake. She tried to call the nurse to ask about the baby, but she drifted back to sleep.

  She heard the roar of a motorcycle and rock ‘n roll music blaring. She tried to say the baby was sleeping when she saw Daniel. He stood right in front of her, holding Magdalena. “You didn’t think you could kill me and steal my daughter? She’s coming with me and you’ll never see her again. Say goodbye to Mommy.” He revved the engine and rode straight into the pines on the path leading from the meadow.

  Annamarie’s scream brought two nurses running into her room. She was crying, mumbling, and shaking. They knew she had some sort of bad dream.

  Still groggy from the sedative, Annamarie was a bit incoherent, but they understood enough that she thought someone stole her baby. One nurse stayed with her to calm her while the other brought Magdalena into the room. Once Annamarie saw her daughter, she calmed down instantly.