Rubbing her cheek, Barb looked back in horror. “Okay, I deserved that. But, oh my God, Cindy, what happened to Jennifer?”
“Not that you care, but she tried suicide, all because of Claire and those other girls. Are you happy now?” Cindy sneered.
Steve called from the upstairs, “Where's my tennis shoes? I can't find them.”
“Cindy, you need to hear this. It’s important,” Barb pleaded. She hiccoughed loudly, mumbling excuses.
“Hang on, Steve, I'll be right there,” Cindy hollered over her shoulder. She crossed her arms and stood. “Two minutes, Barb.”
“It’s so strange. It was Claire’s spirit that returned. Of course, we couldn’t see her, but our little Claire wrote messages on the chalkboard. She still can't spell, and the entire note didn't have so much as a comma! I know it was her, Cindy. She told us the whole time they were missing, the girls wandered around for days in Old Creek Cemetery, lost. She told us it wasn't Jennifer's fault my baby died in there…I was off having a good time at the country club and wasn’t there to save her.”
“The cemetery? On Halloween night? Oh, good Lord, why?”
“I found an entry in her diary about a Halloween prank she and Jennifer were planning. She warned us about that place when she wrote 'NOBODY LEAVES ALIVE' right there on the chalkboard.” Barbara wept into her shaky hands, looking as if she couldn’t bring herself to say another word.
Cindy went numb. The words scrambled in her mind. The cemetery? What did the creepy old place have to do with anything? Confused, she stammered, “Please, Barb, forgive me…I’m so sorry I slapped you. I'm just so worried about Jennifer.”
“It's fine. I don't blame you after the way I acted. It's me who needs your forgiveness. I value your friendship so much—you have to believe me.” Barb sounded sincere, even beneath the haze of booze.
“I believe you. And about Claire, I think she was here this morning, too. It was her voice I heard telling me to go save Jennifer. It was Claire, I'm certain of it. Oh, what does it all mean, Barb?”
“I don't know. But the weirdest message she wrote was that her Grandpa Tobias was taking care of her at the farmhouse. He was my dad, and he disappeared many years ago. I can only pray she's in Heaven with him.”
“I have to go, Barb, but if you ever need anything, I’m here for you. You know I loved Claire, too.”
Giving her a quick hug, and sending Jennifer a kiss from her, Barb ran off.
Cindy leaned against the closed front door and shut her eyes. She believed Barb had experienced a taste of the deceased visiting from the grave. It all fit. Their disappearance, no bodies found, all of it. Except Jennifer's miraculous escape. How had she alone escaped? Cindy tried to imagine the fear and agony the girls went through. It broke her heart to imagine their suffering. She knew Jennifer's legal troubles were about to start and she had to protect her. She needed to keep this information a secret from Jennifer. She didn't want her remembering a nightmare like that and lapsing.
Cindy thought she should call the detective and tell him about the cemetery. Then she changed her mind. Screw the cops. They can find out on their own. It won't do those poor dead girls any good, anyway.
Steve ran downstairs grasping his tennis shoes, and flopped down in the wingback chair to lace them. Taking her purse from the bottom step, she stood gazing at her husband. What in God’s name, would he say if he knew the truth? She couldn’t think about it. Not now. Not after what they'd been through.
“You found 'em, sweetheart. Are you 'bout ready,” she asked, pasting a phony smile on her face. Her trembling voice caused him glance up.
“What’s the matter? It looks like you’ve seen a ghost,” he replied and continued to tie his shoelaces. “Who was at the door?”
Oh God, I can’t tell him, she thought. He’d have me committed. Cindy more or less brushed it off by mumbling, “Nothing's wrong, I'm jittery. It was just a salesperson,” and headed straight for the garage.
She jumped in the passenger seat, placed a smile on her frightened face, and stared at the white garage wall in front of her. Steve trailed after her, locking doors and securing windows as he went from room to room. He got in the car, started the engine, and backed out of the driveway.
“You’re quiet. A while ago, I couldn’t get you to shut up,” he said.
“I have a lot on my mind. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine,” she told him and placed the seat belt around her. Cindy turned to stare out the window at her neighbors' homes as they whizzed by.
Chapter-Sixteen
Cindy couldn’t wait to get back to the hospital to be with Jennifer. Lunch with the doctor took too long. She wanted to wrap her arms around Jennifer and hide her from the world. Even with Barb's confirmation two days ago that Jennifer was innocent; she worried about her daughter’s reputation in this town. How were they to prove her innocence if the only witness is a ghost?
Steve was in the dark about the cemetery or any of it. Cindy had to contain her actions; otherwise, he’d figure it out for sure. She knew the troubles he faced at work with his co-workers giving him snide, knowing looks, and he did not need to deal with this. He was an insurance investigator, and she knew his instincts would send him out to the spooky cemetery to check it out. There'd be no stopping him, either. Once he got an idea in his head, he was like a pit bull. His job was about in the can already because of the days he'd missed, and one more episode would knock him over the edge, getting him fired for sure.
***
Thrilled her parents had left her alone for five minutes, Jennifer waited for Mandy to fall asleep. She then struggled to sit on the edge of her bed, disconnected the IV from the machine and pulled out the tube in her arms. She had to use her mouth for most of it because for some strange reason, her hands wouldn't work right. They refused to do her bidding, flopping off the end of her arms with the most irritating twitch.
Good thing she sweet-talked the nurse into undoing her restraints. Jennifer had trouble with the thick bandages restricting her movement. She ripped at them with her teeth, then unrolled the gauze before gazing at her stitches in awe. They looked like twin cross-stitch embroidery projects. Cool.
She fled out of the hospital in search of Claire, her bare butt swinging in the wind in her hospital gown. Taking the back stairwell to avoid detection, Jennifer crept to the ground floor, taking the exit door that led outside through the parking lot of the hospital. Thank God, every door had one of those push-bars on it. She didn't know what she'd have done had she faced a doorknob. She took off staggering down the sidewalk, and into the downtown vicinity.
***
The Cravens took the elevator to the fourth floor. The hospital staff temporarily housed Jennifer on the surgical floor until a bed became available in the psych ward. Cindy kept her mouth shut about committing her. She feared she’d say something wrong, so it was best this way. As the elevator doors opened, they headed toward Jennifer’s room. Steve shoved his hands in his front pockets to control his jittery nerves. Cindy happened to glance over and saw his facial expression. The tension in his eyes cut through her. She wanted to console him, but decided against it. He didn't look open to affection, so she kept her hands to herself and her trap shut.
Rounding the corner of the nurse’s station, a nurse about broke her neck to get to them. “Mr. and Mrs. Cravens,” she said, gasping. “We tried to call you to tell you that Jennifer has gone missing. She must have snuck out, right before lunch.”
Steve and Cindy darted across the nurses' station, skidding across the waxy floor. Turning the corner past the X-ray room, Jennifer’s room was the first door on the right. They rushed in the semi-private room to see the doctor standing over an empty bed.
“Where is she?” Steve shouted. He tore the covers back and saw Jennifer’s IV's and tubes curled under the thin white sheet. Bloody bandages were everywhere.
Cindy slapped her hands on her face when she saw the empty bed and a white piece of paper dangling from Dr. Ric
hards' hands.
“I’m sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Cravens…but it appears Jennifer has left the hospital. I don’t know how she got out without anyone seeing her, but we’re doing our best to find her.”
Handing the Craven’s the note; Cindy knew it was time to tell Steve what was going on. It would make it worse if someone else told him, like Barb. Taking him out in the hall for some privacy, she started with the conversation she had with Barbara.
“I don’t know how to tell you this, but Jennifer, Claire, and the other girls went to Old Creek Cemetery on Halloween night. That's why they didn't come back. The legend is true, Steven. All of it.”
A ghastly look painted Steve’s face in shades of gray. Suddenly losing his breath, he turned toward the wall, pressing his hands against the glossy yellow paint. In a faint, distant voice, he croaked, “When were you planning to tell me? How long have you known?”
Scared to answer him as he moaned and struck the wall with his balled fist, she was glad she decided to tell him now rather than waiting like she initially planned. He couldn't kill her in the hospital. Noticing the anger flaring from the corner of his eye, she jumped to her own defense.
“I found out before we came to the hospital. It was Barbara who rang the doorbell.” She told him the story Barb had relayed to her. “I can’t believe it either, and I know they must be going through hell right now, but what are we supposed to do? We’re not miracle workers; we didn’t do anything wrong.”
Cindy deliberately left out the part about Claire whispering in her ear and saving Jennifer's life. She didn't think he'd understand but rather look at her as if she was the crazy one.
***
Steve took a few calming breaths, but the thought of Old Creek made his blood boil. The horrible truths he knew about the place, he couldn’t share with his wife. Cindy wouldn’t understand and he knew she couldn’t handle it. He also knew she’d fall apart if he told her the dangers Jennifer faced. As a child, Steve’s grandfather had told him about the legend of Old Creek Cemetery. Nobody leaves alive. To his understanding, it was like a curse that follows the innocent for the rest of their lives and there was no way to escape the black souls. After discovering the news, he knew Jennifer was part of the evil forever. He wished now he'd signed the petition to bulldoze the place.
“What? Steve, talk to me.”
“I can't, not about this. I can't even think about Old Creek. It holds too many bad memories. We have to find Jennifer.”
Determined to find his daughter before the night had a chance to deepen, he reached for his wife’s arm and rushed her through the hallway to the elevator.
***
All Jennifer thought about was finding Claire. She had to return to Old Creek Cemetery. That's where Claire was. She was willing to hitch a ride with a perfect stranger if she had to. Nothing was going to keep her away this time. Claire made her promise never to go back there, but she didn’t care about a promise she had no intent of keeping anyway. Every night when lights went out, she heard voices’ telling her Claire was in trouble and it was important she find her. Jennifer was going to find her one way or the other, whether it meant her own death.
With pure determination, she wandered through the streets yelling out Claire's name. The medicine coursing through her veins began to take a toll on her, blurring her vision. A homeless woman pushing a grocery cart took pity on her near nakedness and tossed her a pair of baggy, stained sweatpants. Jennifer yanked them on and staggered along. She watched the cars zoom by as if they were going to a fire. The traffic began to hypnotize her eyes as they sped back and forth. Everything around her looked different, but she couldn’t figure out why. Where was she?
***
Motionless, Claire sat in front of the cemetery gates in a daze. She always returned to this exact spot every single evening. From dawn until dusk, she spent days exploring the limits of the world she found herself in, looking for Grandpa, searching for a way out, or rather, a way in. But nightfall consistently called her back here, to the rusty gates. It was the closest home she had away from home now. With her head down, contemplation on her mind, a hand came through the bars and touched her shoulder. She jumped and turned around as Grandpa tipped his battered cowboy hat. A smile lightened her gloomy face.
“Grandpa!” She couldn’t believe he found her. Claire had a sudden premonition this was the last visit. She feared she’d never see him again. She'd better make it last.
“My sweet Claire, I've finally found you. I've been searching for days.”
His eyes shined with relief to have found her. She sensed he wanted to take her back to the farmhouse, but something told her it wasn’t going to happen the way her grandfather wanted it to. Maybe if she begged. “I have something to tell you, Grandpa, but it's hard to admit I made a mistake.”
Without her saying another word, he said, “Claire, I already know, and I’m so sorry for your troubles. You see, you're not the only one who can read minds.” He grinned and reached for her hand.
Grandpa patted her hand through the iron bars. She wanted to hug him but the chains made it impossible. She'd have to settle for holding his hand.
He took a breath and said, “I was so afraid of you dying before you had the chance to come back to me. My instincts were right. I never should have let you go. I neglected to tell you something important before you left. By allowing it to slip my mind, your condition is my fault.”
“What do you mean? None of this is your fault. I'm the one who broke the rules.” Claire looked at him with puzzlement.
“Claire, look into my eyes. What do you see right now?”
Pulling herself up from the ground, she examined his face, seeing nothing she hadn’t already seen: sadness, resignation, and fatigue. The same emotions etched into her own soul.
“I’m confused, Grandpa, what is it?” she asked, wondering what he was trying to get at. Her heightened emotions were clouding her mental abilities.
“You can’t come back to the house with me…I’m sorry, my love, but…”
He placed his head down so she wouldn’t see the tears in his eyes. He knew Claire knew the reason, and it angered her. Maddie Ann had banned her.
She withdrew from the fence and started to shriek. “It’s because of what Tina did to me, right? Please, Grandpa, say something. Did Maddie Ann ban me?”
His answer was not what she wanted to hear. He simply nodded. What was she to do now? Where was she to go? There was no place for her; not even Heaven would take her now. Realizing how serious this was, she began to throw a tantrum like a two-year-old.
“Oh, HELL NO, Maddie Ann! You can’t do this to me. I have to come back in there—I have no other place to go. I can’t stay out here.” She whirled and shook the gates. “Grandpa, you have to do something. Please, I’m begging you to help me.”
He looked into her sad eyes and started to fade away. “Claire, you're going to be fine. Tina did you a favor—by killing you, she set you free.”
In a sheer panic, her mind went blank. A black curtain descended behind her eyes. “What do you mean, ‘set me free,’” she whispered. “Set me free how? I don’t understand, Grandpa. I'm a prisoner here. How can killing me make it better?”
“You're a free spirit of the world; go wherever your heart leads you. Remember me on the morning we fixed breakfast or when we went fishing in my boat. Remember me in life. I love you.” And he was gone.
Maddie Ann retrieved grandfather’s soul, leaving him imprisoned and unable to escape the evil world that caged him.
“Grandpa, wait, please.” Claire's tears fell freely down her face. “Don't go…”
“Go and be happy. Open your wings and soar through the big open sky, my sweet Claire. I will love you forever,” his disembodied voice called out.
Vanishing behind the headstones, she heard his whispered “Good-bye.”
Chapter Seventeen
Jennifer had forgotten the Harvest Festival opened today and the cops had blocked the streets
off in the city center. There must have been two hundred people milling about the Town Square. Crafts and an array of different foods occupied booths in the area. Classic cars filled the parking lot of the Tasty Freeze, and faces Jennifer barely recognized roamed the streets and sidewalks, shopping and eating. The parade was already over, judging by the litter and garbage in the streets. She took the alleyways to cut time and preserve a low profile.
Everything she eyed rippled from all the medication the hospital gave her, and the farther she walked, the more exhausted she became. An abandoned building behind the Elks' Lodge beckoned, promising a shelter for her to hide. Jennifer climbed through a hole in the chain-link fence and found a cozy spot inside on a pile of rags to rest.
Maddie Ann s Playground Page 21
