A Girl Beyond (War of the Witches Book 2)

by Marjorie Weismantel

  I wish I could stop my mind spin. I felt bad about not carrying out our plan yesterday. Of course, if I had carried it out, I’d be more of a wreck than I already am. I was also still worrying about moving out to the sticks with Frank. What would happen to us? How about Aunt Amy?

  For today, I just had to get through school. The worrying won’t cease, but I’m good at turning it into a background buzz. At breakfast, Annie, Eve and I didn’t say a word to each other. We just gulped down a drink and ran out the door before Frank made his appearance. Seeing Frank before school is like mentally putting on the dim switch for the day. I preferred to start the school day with the mental lights on. I knew that lots of kids thought of school as boring, but for me, school was an oasis of calmness.

  This was my second week of school as a sophomore at Minnetauk Regional High School. There’s a little over 500 students here. Since it’s such a small place, everyone is familiar with everyone else’s business. That’s good and bad. People here are nosey, but once they figure things out, they tend to leave you alone. For example, many of the students here know why we don’t go out much. They recognize that it’s not due to religious or anti-social reasons. They know that it’s only because we live with crazy Frank. I used to have girlfriends over on occasion, but Frank got way too grumpy and weird for them, so I stopped inviting them over. Since then, I’ve just settled for school-type friendships. It’s easier, but it’s lonely. Consequently, I’ve felt left out of high school life.

  My first period class today was Spanish. After I walked in and sat down, I noticed how noisy the class was. It’s always like that in here. The teacher was perched up at her desk as usual. She always seemed busy up there, talking on the phone, looking at the computer, typing, etc. I’ve never seen her actually teach the class. She handed out the work for us to do, and then sat up there in her little private zone. Students knew not to bother her because she didn’t offer any help. She expected all of us to help each other, if we had any questions. Well, she’s the teacher, isn’t she? What was she there for? Anyway, we all just called her ‘Zoneout’. Just then, the school nurse came through the door. A paper airplane flew right by her. She walked over to Zoneout and said something.

  Zoneout tore her eyes away from her computer and looked at me. “Tessie, can you please go with Mrs. Dyer?”

  “OK,” I mumbled, thinking why didn’t the nurse just have me called down?

  We walked to the principal’s office without saying a word. Mrs. Dyer glanced at me with a concerned look on her face. That made me anxious. What’s going on? When I got there, the vice principal and my guidance counselor were seated at a conference table. The principal, Mr. Kowalski, and a police officer were in the corner talking. As soon as I walked in, Mr. Kowalski cleared his throat and became quiet. Since I hadn’t participated much in the way of extracurricular school stuff and hadn’t gotten into trouble, I’m not familiar to any of these people. I wonder if they even recognize me. The guidance woman, I forgot her name, motioned for me to sit next to her. Suddenly, Annie and Eve appeared, eyes open wide, looking at me. They were being escorted by the school security officer. I was feeling more freaked out now. Then I heard Mr. Kowalski ask the school secretary when my aunt would be showing up.

  Annie finally spoke up, “What’s going on? Why are we here?”

  At that moment, my aunt came rushing in, “I’m so sorry, girls. I got here as soon as I could.” She looked over at Mr. Kowalski. “Have they been told?”

  Eve responded, “We haven’t been told anything, Mom. What’s going on?”

  Aunt Amy took a deep breath and then replied, “There’s been an accident.”

  “Mom, who’s had an accident?” Annie asked, looking alarmed.

  Aunt Amy solemnly answered, “It was Frank. He was driving to work down the mountain. It appeared that one of his tires was loose and it came off his car while he was taking a sharp turn. He lost control and then he went over a cliff. He hit a tree.”

  “Well, how is he?” asked Eve.

  Aunt Amy’s hand went to her lips and she shook her head. It took a moment for her to speak. “I’m afraid he died immediately from the impact.”

  Whaaaaaat??? I was shocked beyond belief. How could this be? Annie and Eve glanced at me with a bewildered look in their eyes. On the way to school I had told them that I did NOT loosen any lug nuts on Frank's tires. I explained to them that I just couldn't bring myself to do it. They were looking at me suspiciously now. I glanced back at them and slightly shook my head no. Everyone else at the table was looking at us with concern. They were afraid that we were going to break down and lose it in front of them. One thing I have to say about living with Frank; you learn to keep your emotions in check. All of us were stunned beyond words, and not just because he was dead. How did Frank happen to die in that particular way, especially today? How could that be a coincidence?

  3. The Appearance

  After we got home, Annie, Eve and I went upstairs to talk about everything. We just couldn’t reconcile the strange timing between our recent plan and what happened today. I even felt a little guilty. Was it somehow my fault? I had to reassure my sisters, again, that I did NOT loosen the nuts. Frank died in a real accident. I think I was also trying to convince myself.

  The next few days passed in a blur. There was a police investigation of the incident, but it was quickly resolved as an unfortunate accident. The Corvette was an older car with older parts that Frank worked on exclusively. He was not considered an expert mechanic, so repair mistakes would not be out of the question.

  My aunt planned a simple funeral. A few distant relatives came from out of the area and stayed with us, but most of the family lived within a drivable distance. The three of us tried to support Aunt Amy with all that she had to do. At the same time, my cousins and I felt kind of numb. Death wasn’t something teenagers bothered to contemplate. It’s a phenomenon we don’t believe in until it stabs us in the heart. Not that Frank’s death affected me that way. His dying just made me think about the possibility of other people dying. There’s a little corner of my brain that I usually manage to keep shuttered. Hearing of a death, any death, always shoves it open, and it’s not comfortable. It tilts my world so that everything is a little off. It’s all the Mom thoughts, Mom impressions, Mom feelings, where is Mom, does Mom see me, I miss my Mom, will I see Mom again, Mommy I love you, Mommy . . . Mom, Mom. It always takes me a while to lock it up again.

  I wondered how my aunt felt about Frank’s passing. Even though Frank treated her badly much of the time, she showed some loyalty to him. She was the kind of woman who was torn between her role as a good mother and a dutiful wife.

  The weirdest time for me was at the graveyard. The last time I was at a funeral was when my mother died. I remember freaking out when they lowered the casket and threw some dirt on it. I thought she would suffocate. I didn’t understand the finality of it all.

  Friends of the family and relatives were invited over to our house afterward for refreshments. I stayed downstairs with them for as long as I felt I should, and then I crept up to my room. I was so tired. They wouldn't miss me if I just lay down on my bed for a few minutes. I just needed to take a break.

  I was startled awake when I felt someone sit on my bed. I looked over. Why is Frank sitting there, staring at me? Is this another Frank nightmare? Am I still sleeping? He’s scaring me. Isn’t he dead? I put out my hand to see if I could touch him, but I only felt air. He’s still there, though. I can see him. He had a really horrible look in his eye, like he wanted to hurt me, so I finally spoke to him. "Frank, what are you doing here? What do you want?"

  "Why did you want me to die?" Frank growled.

  "What are you talking about?" I asked.

  "The reason I'm here is because of you." Frank moved in close to frighten me. It was working.

  "That makes no sense, Frank. I didn't do anything to you."

  He moved to within an inch of my face and stared at me. He didn't look right. H
e frequently got mad, but this was different. His eyes had a wild look about them, like he was angry and petrified at the same time. "You started things up. Once you got things rolling, my time came."

  "What are you talking about? You died in a car accident. That had nothing to do with me."

  "It had everything to do with you!" He screamed hoarsely at me.

  “You’re crazy. You’re just in my dream anyway,” I pushed back, trying to convince myself.

  He pointed to my eyes and glared at me, “You have the ‘Sight’, because you’re one of THEM. I knew it the first time I saw you. It was strong then. I kept you close, so you wouldn’t use it, but it’s in you. You used it against me. I didn’t see this coming.” Frank’s face started to look blurry.

  “What sight are you talking about, Frank? Don’t go away. Please tell me,” I pleaded.

  He was shrinking and fading before my eyes, but he croaked, “They’re watching you now. I’m warning you!”

  Frank looked terrified. “Please, NOOOO. I must go now. They want me now. Ohhh, no, NO, PLEASE, please . . . ,” Frank’s voice ended in a whispery shriek.

  Suddenly, I could hear a knocking sound. I looked around. Was I sleeping? Was that a dream? It was my aunt knocking on the door, "Tessie, your Great Aunt Sandy and Uncle Jimmy are leaving. Can you come out and say goodbye to them?"

  After everyone left our house, I finally had a chance to think about the dream. It wasn’t like dreams usually are, kind of fuzzy and distant. With dreams, you forget most of the details after a short period of time. This dream was so real, however. I could recall every detail. I also experienced the same feeling I always got when around Frank; a combination of panic and loathing. I could even detect Frank’s scent in the dream. He always smelled of lava soap and car grease. Then I noticed something that really creeped me out. I had ironed a silk blouse and left it on the edge of my bed. I decided not to wear it to the funeral. It was still there when I lay down to take my nap, nice and smooth. After I got up, it wasn’t flat anymore. It looked like someone had sat there, right on top of it.

  4. Change

  Things were really quiet around here, for the first week or so after Frank’s funeral. We were all shaken up for different reasons, so we coped by returning to our daily routine of school, homework and chores. However, it was only a matter of time before that changed. It began to dawn on me and my cousins that we were no longer banned from the world of high school. Aunt Amy set up some rules, but they were nothing like the house arrest that Frank had imposed on us. So, we jumped right in, joining different sports and activities, and having some friends over to the house. Annie also got herself a job in a local real estate office. By that time, I had put the Frank hallucination out of my mind. I told myself that it was just a crazy dream. It wasn’t tough to release Frank from my thoughts. For the present moment, life was golden.

  One morning before school, Aunt Amy asked us to sit at the kitchen table. She sat herself down across from us. I’d been so busy in my own life, I hadn’t thought too much about how Aunt Amy was doing. She looked so worn out. She even looked like she lost some weight. She finally cleared her throat and said, “Tess, Annie and Eve, I’m giving you guys notice that there’ll be a family meeting tomorrow night at 7 o’clock. It’s very important that all of you can make it, so don’t schedule anything else during that time or have anyone over, seeing as it’s a ‘family’ meeting.”

  We all glanced at each other, and then Eve asked in an exasperated tone, “Mom, can’t you tell us something about this now, or if there’s not enough time, how about tonight?”

  My aunt frowned at us, “No, I need some time to explain things. I want to make sure that all of you are here and we have enough time. Lately, getting the three of you together is like trying to put the birds back in the cage.”

  “Auntie, you’re scaring us. Are we really going to be left hanging until tomorrow night?” I inquired sweetly. I didn’t want to sound too pushy.

  She got up and sighed, “I’m afraid so.”

  We got up and left for school. I guess we’ll find out tomorrow. In the meantime, I’ll be putting this out of my head. No sense in ruining my day. It might be the last good one for a while.

  The next day, we all congregated in the living room after dinner. Aunt Amy looked so serious. That didn’t leave me with a good feeling.

  She started out by saying, “You girls may have noticed that I haven’t been wearing my typical jeans and t-shirt outfit, lately. I’ve been dressing up.”

  “I know Mom, and by the way, you’ve got to update your stuff. When was the last time you bought something nice to wear? I think I remember you wearing that blue top about ten years ago,” asserted Annie.

  My aunt was taken aback. “It’s not as bad as that, is it?”

  “I’m sorry, Auntie, it is bad. In fact, I was thinking that the outfit you wore yesterday might have been from your high school days,” I said, half joking, but it did resemble clothes from Grease.

  “That blouse is a classic!” retorted Aunt Amy.

  “Oh, my God, that IS from your high school days. I was deliberately exaggerating!” I exhorted.

  Eve jumped in, “Mom, that’s terrible! I mean it’s great that you can still fit in those clothes, but really, that’s like things Grandma would wear to a tea party.”

  Aunt Amy chimed in, “Girls, girls, I hear your point, but we’re getting off topic. We’re here to talk about our future. I brought up my clothing situation because I’ve been dressing up to look for a job.”

  Annie looked surprised before asking, “So, how’s it going?”

  “Not so good. This is a rural area and there aren’t a lot of jobs, plus the economy isn’t the greatest right now. However, even if I got a job, I know that we can’t afford this mortgage on my salary.” My aunt looked a little defeated when she told us this, but then she sat up and straightened her shoulders and added, “Anyway, I might as well get to the point. I’ve decided that the best thing to do would be to move back East, to Grandma Edwina’s house in Connecticut.”

  “Mom, are you kidding? Eve yelled. I can’t believe you’d want to move back there. We don’t even know Grandma Edwina. We haven’t seen her for years. We don’t know anyone there. That’s a terrible idea!”

  I added, “Don’t move because of money. We can help make money by doing jobs around here. I can babysit and Annie has her job to help out. Eve is 16 and soon I will be, too. We’ll be able to get regular jobs, too. We can make it here.”

  Annie was sitting there, as if in shock. She finally jumped in, “It would be just awful to move right now, Mom. I’m a senior. I’m finally able to hang around with my friends here. You don’t know what it’s like for a teenager in this situation. You were able to do stuff that normal teens can do. I want to have a happy life with my friends now. That will all change if we move away. We’ll have to start all over and be new kids in a school back East. It will take forever to make new friends. By the time that happens, I’ll be going away to college. Mom, what are you thinking?”

  I had to hand it to Aunt Amy. She seemed prepared for the onslaught. She calmly responded, “I’m really sorry girls, but my mind is set on this. I’ve already spoken to your grandma, and she’s waiting for us to show up. She has a nice big house and plenty of room. Since Grampa Myron died, she really needs help in the greenhouse, too. She’s getting older, after all. I used to work there when I was a kid, so I can jump right in. It’s the perfect job for me right now. It’s also a way for you to get to know my family that lives back East.” Then, she turned to Annie, “Dear, there’re also plenty of good colleges in that area of the country.”

  We all sat there dumbstruck. My aunt cleverly took advantage of our stupor to hammer home one last point, “Most important of all, it’s what is best for our family right now.” Oh boy, once my aunt uses the ‘family’ word in the argument, we’re sunk. And, she had that stubborn look on her face. I’ve seen that face on two other occasions. There’s n
o fighting it. Even Frank backed down when he saw that look.

  “But Mom . . . . ,” Eve started.

  “No buts!” Aunt Amy admonished. She knew she was ahead, and she wasn’t taking chances with any other debating points. Talking was over.

  My cousins also realized it. Their shoulders were slumped over and I couldn’t see their eyes. We’re going east.

  5. The Train

  So here it is, two weeks later and we’re on our way to the train station. We were originally going to fly to Connecticut, but it’s just too expensive, especially considering all the stuff we had to bring. It’s cheaper for us to haul everything on the train. We could also take our Siamese cat, Beauty Queen, on the train with us. We just had to keep her in a cat carrier.

  My cousins were still wearing the ‘mopey woe is me’ façade, but it was getting old. I could see signs of it cracking. I knew Aunt Amy was noticing the cracks, too. I had a feeling that once we were on the train viewing the scenery, they’d let down their guard. I think they’re a little pissed at me for not keeping up the hostility, but I just couldn’t do it after a while. I’m still anxious about the move, but I’m also looking forward to a new adventure.

  We boarded the train at the station, located right in the center of our town. I must have passed this building hundreds of times, although I never noticed it before. It’s one of those places you never really see because it’s so plain that it blends right in. I’ve never even been on a train before. When we boarded, I wanted to see everything, so I kept on walking through all of the cars until the last one. My aunt and cousins didn’t say a word, but they followed me all the way. They were curious, too, I guess. We’d be on this train for a few days so we might as well see where we go to eat and where to buy stuff. We finally sat down in seats that were in the end car (is that the caboose?) and got out books, iPods, iPhones, and other paraphernalia, and settled in. The rhythm of the moving train was very soothing. After a while, I could feel myself drift off.