by Melissa Good
A sudden pressure, and he felt a hand on his shoulder, and then a dark shrouded figure was leaning past him to look at his face.
He couldn't see the features. The darkness and shadows shifted across where a face might be but the eyes were distinct, and visible and as he unwillingly met them he suddenly felt a rush, and a prickling down his spine.
There was something in them he knew. A knowledge of him, and a sharing he scarcely understood but knew was real.
One of the eyes winked at him, then the cold washed over him again and a swirl of clean air blew his clothing hard against his body as the thunder of beating wings blasted through him then was gone.
A motion before his eyes made his hand come up automatically, and he plucked a long, black feather out of the air.
He stared at it, then he slowly looked around him, finding himself alone in the graveyard with only Jasper on the ground between his boots, no sign of ghosts, or men in sheets, or ..
He looked at the feather. Or anything else.
His knees slowly stopped shaking and he felt his muscles relax. He dismissed the recent terror, and focused on the here and now, looking down at his sister’s fianc_ still crouched on the ground.
"Dear Jesus, Dear God." Jasper was whispering. "Deliver me from evil."
Andrew wasn't really sure what had delivered them from his father's ghost, but he was pretty sure it wasn't either God, or Jesus. "Git up." He ordered, gruffly. “S’all over now.”
Jasper uncovered his head, and looked timidly up at him. "Oh the good Lord sent you! I thought I was going to die!" He got to his knees, then lifted his upper body and clasped his hands, raising his face up to the sky. "Thank you Lord."
"C'mon." Andy tugged him to his feet. "This aint no good place t'be." He pointed to the gates. "Lets head on back to Sally's place. You'll be all right there now."
Jasper looked around the graveyard, quiet and dimly starlit. “Where’d they all go? Those men?”
“Aint here no more.” Andrew said, gruffly. “Ah don’t know what you all heard, but there aint’ nothing here now so get a move on.”
Jasper wiped his eyes. "I was walking home from church and the next thing I knew, I got hit on the head then I was here." He touched the back of his skull. "I didn't think ghosts would have to dot hat."
"Weren't no ghosts anyhow." Andy said. "Just plain ordinary jackass KKK."
"K..." Jasper fell silent. THen he looked behind them at the empty graveyard. "Why'd they hurt me?"
“What?” Andrew stared at him.
Jasper extended his arms, turning his palms over. “Ahm as white as you are. Why all did they want to take after me? I ain’t done nothing against them.”
"Why? Cause you're fixing to get hitched to a grand dragon's daughter." Andy answered, grimly. "She never tell you?"
Jasper stared at him.
"Lord."
**
"Jasper!" Sally rushed for the door and they entered. "Sweet Jesus!"
Andrew closed the door behind him and stood quietly, regarding his sister, her fiance, and the two brothers in the room who refused to meet his eyes. “That all was not funny.”
“What happened?” Sally asked. “Are you all right?”
Jasper looked very uncomfortable. “I think… I think it was just some guys having a joke. For Halloween.” He said. “Anyway, it’s over.” He put his arm around Sally. “Right?” He looked at Andrew.
Given his pick, Andrew would have been glad to just go sleep in the truck. He walked past them all and went down the hallway to his old bedroom, going inside and sitting down on the bed.
It creaked under his weight, and he leaned back against the wall and studied the feather he was still holding, lifting it and twirling it between his fingertips before his eyes.
It was perfect, and glossy, a blue sheen along it's curve highlighting it's darkness. He touched it with his other hand, running his fingertips along it and remembering that touch on his shoulder, and that wink. Those eyes. The sense of overwhelming power.
Wild. Amoral. Awesome in every sense of that word.
Just. Andrew considered that. "Ah do not know what you were." He addressed the feather. "But I do believe ah like you. If we ever do meet again, ah believe I would buy you a beer."
He heard no sound at all, but suddenly the air vibrated slightly around him, almost as though something was laughing.
Someone.
Andrew raised the feather in salute, then he got up and carefully put the feather away in his bag, zipping it up just as his cell phone rang. He checked the caller ID, then flipped it open. "Hey there pretty lady."
"Hey Andy." Ceci's voice was atypically urgent. "Everything okay?"
Andrew sat down on the bed. "Sallright now." He said. "Had us some excitement a bit ago."
"Excitement?"
"Ah'll tell you when I get there." Andy said. "Some folks given mah sister's sweetheart a hard time. I settled it."
“You sure? I had a funny feeling you were in some kind of trouble.” Ceci said. “And you know how much I hate all that psychic stuff.”
‘Ahm sure.” Andy said. “Aint wasn’t nothing but some fellers in white sheets in a graveyard.”
"Ah." Ceci's tone relaxed. "That kind of trouble. Well, happy Samhain and all that. You're gonna miss a great party here."
"You all doing them things?" Andy asked.
"Am I doing some pagan ceremonies on the bow of the boat and scaring the living crap out of all of our marina neighbors? Why yes, I am. Having a great time too." His wife sounded smugly satisfied. "I was going to have the kids start kissing on the fantail and complete the festivities. I figure I could at least get four of those damn stuck up nitwits to fall in the water with that."
Andy started laughing.
"I'll save you some incense." Ceci said. "You'll be back tomorrow right, right?"
"Yeap. I sure will." Andy let the chuckles wind down. "Soon as ah can." He said good bye and closed the phone, tapping it on his chin and lapsing into thoughtful silence.
**
Andrew stood on the front porch of the church, gazing out over the short cropped grass as the sun poured down over the trees. He turned as he heard the door open, to find Pastor Gray there.
"Andrew, we're ready" The pastor stood back to let him enter. "That's quite a collection you have there."
Andy glanced down at his dress uniform, half covered in medals and campaign bars and the Lord only knew what else. "Ah done a few things for the gov'mint." He allowed, as he followed the pastor inside to the small waiting room just to one side of the chapel entrance.
Inside, Sally was just picking up her bouquet, looking beautiful in her buff white wedding dress, and veil. "Oh Andy, you look wonderful!
"You look real pretty yourself." Andy replied. "Evrybody ready to do this here thing?"
"Hell yes." Sally answered. "What a day!" She tucked her hand inside her brother's elbow. "I can hardly believe it - getting that call from that company in Mobile? Andy, it's a miracle! They're gonna pay me three times when I'm making here at the dealership."
"Amazin." Andrew shifted his shoulders inside their wool casing. “Aint’ it something.”
"And Jasper fnding that training job with the same company? He's so happy!" Sally gave Andy's arm a pat. "It's all the Lords good work. LIstenin to our prayers and all that. I just can't believe it."
"Sure nuff seems like a miracle." Andy agreed. "You all gonna like living up near the city?"
Sally sighed. "It's gonna be hard. I never lived nowhere but here, Andy. I don't know what mama would say, me leaving this house here behind." She glanced up at him. "But when this sorta thing comes at you, it's the lord's will, don't you think? Happening like that?"
"Wall." Her brother cleared his throat gently. "Ah do think things do happen for some kinda reason."
The heard the organ start to play. "It's time." Sally said. "Andy, I'm so glad you came. I think everything's going to work out great."
"Ahm su
re." Andy led her to the door and they waited for the music. He could see the church full of people, and they started forward as they all stood and turned to watch their entrance.
He remembered sitting in these pews, listening to the words of the Bible and knowing the men and women on either side of him only gave lip service to them, that adulterers and bigots sang those pretty hymns with all the conviction in the world - and soon as they cleared the door they were beating their kids, or stealing money or whatever.
Like the old man. Telling him not to marry no northeastern woman while he was having sex with every girl too scared to say no to him and figuring out ways to beat them others who only had different color skin.
He could see all the eyes on him, and he walked with his head high, glad as hell he'd put his money where his morals had been, cut the cord and never looked back. He could still remember the old man's face when he'd put his duffel on his shoulder, told him to fuck off, and left - letting the Navy become his family until he'd gone and met Cec.
Until he'd held his own child in his hands, and known a moment of perfect rage at how old Duke had treated his kids, and his wife, and neighbors around him who just so happened not to be just like he was.
Never went back after that. He knew he'd have killed the old man and ended up in some rancid ass Alabama jail cell for it and the bastard wasn't worth that.
"Wish mama was here." Sally whispered as they walked between the pews.
Andy didin’t. He wasn’t sure how their gentle mother would have coped with the world they were in now. “Ahm sure she’s watching you and saying hay.” He told his sister.
Sally smiled. “You know what, I think you’re right.”
Jasper was waiting up near the alter, in his gray morning suit that looked like it'd graced the grooms in his family for the Lord only knew how many generations. Andy deposited Sally next to him, then he took a step back next to Edgar and stood with his hands at his sides as Pastor Gray performed the ceremony.
He watched the crowd, looking around in the corners to see if there were any shadows, or mists but the inside of the church was full of people and light and music and nothing more.
Outside, his rental truck was waiting with his bag already in it. He listened to the end of the ceremony, watched his sister and her new husband kiss, then he shook Jasper's hand and gladly followed them out of the church.
Everyone was heading over towards the house. Andrew sorted his way through them and went to the truck instead. He sensed motion behind him and turned, to find Jon there. "Lo."
"You all leaving?" Jon said. "Hay, food's not that bad."
Andy opened the door and leaned on it. "Told Cec I'd be back fore dark." He said. "Gotta go."
"Ya'll want me to drive you to the field? Take this back? Gotta walk to the airplane otherwise." Jon offered.
Andy studied him, then he indicated the other door, and settled behind the wheel. He headed off towards the field, leaving the party behind them.
He'd done what he could. Maybe the change would give Sally a better life. Maybe it wouldn’t. But at least it was change. He suspected, though, his sister and her husband were in for a surprise when they had them their new employee talk at that new company of theirs.
He’d enjoyed his, specially when they got to talking about the big shots in the company and showed pictures.
They drove in silence for a several minutes. Then Jon shifted, loosening the tie around his neck. 'You all gonna say what all happened last night?"
"Nope."
Jon nodded. "Stu figured." He said. "You kill them boys, Andy?"
"No ah did not." Andy replied. "But I done saw what did, and ah will tell you that you all need to stop messing around in these here parts for your get yourselfs into some real trouble."
Jon blinked a few times. "Was it really a ghost?" He finally asked.
"Ah do not know what it was." His brother said, firmly. "But It aint' something you all want to fool with."
"They was just trying to scare Jasper." Jon said. "Keep him off, y'know? Dind't mean nothing by it."
Andy didn't say anything.
"Figured he'd run off." Jon went on. "Stu and I aint' got no place to go, Andy. Sally was gonna throw us out in the road. Didnt we growed up there too? Our house much as hers no matter what mama said."
"Wall." Andy paused, waiting for a truck to pass before he turned downt he road that led to the airfield. "Ya'll got it now."
"Yeah. That's real weird how that happened, huh?"
"Ain't weird. Just took some phone calls is all.." Andy muttered as he pulled the truck into the parking lot. "Got to find me that pilot feller."
"Hay. That's a sweet lookin plane. Wonder what it's doing here?" Jon was looking out the window to the field, where a sleek Learjet was parked, looking sadly out of place.
Andy parked the truck and glanced at the plane, pausing when his eyes fell on the logo painted on the tail. "Huh." His brows lifted. "Ah do believe that there might be my ride home."
Jon stared. "Y'all are going in that?" He hopped out of the truck. "Get out!"
Andy got his bag out and closed the door, as the pilot who'd been waiting near the plane started towards him. "Yeap."
"Commander?" The pilot greeted him. "Ms. Roberts asked me to pick you up."
"Now did she?" Andy smiled. "Imagine that."
"Yes sir, she did." The pilot took his bag. "I'll stow that for you." He went to the planes luggage hatch and opened it.
"Mah kid." Andy looked at the plane with a sense of wry satisfaction. "They done got one of these here things and parked it down by us for her to use since September. Didn't want her flying in them big ones."
"Huh." Jon followed him over to the plane and looked inside. "Boy that's sweet." He said. "I aint never seen the inside of one of these."
Andy settled into one of the big, comfortable leather seats and extended his legs, crossing them at the ankles. "Ah have."
Jon shook his head. "Well, anyhow. See ya, Andy. Too bad you didn't want o stay for the party."
"So long" Andy lifted a hand and then dropped it as the pilot climbed aboard and shut the hatch behind him.
"Sir, there's cold beer in the fridge there, and some ice cream." The pilot said. "Ms. Roberts said she wasn't sure which one you'd need first."
Andy started laughing.
"And I need to get out of here before the winds come up again." The pilot said. "So please, sir, hold on and we'll be out of here before you know it."
Andy folded his hands on his lap and looked out the window. He could see Jon standing there next to the truck, watching the plane with a sad look on his face. Wasn't for him, he reasoned. Maybe he and Stu had been looking forward to another night of harassment.
Or maybe he'd miss Sally. Andy didn't think either of his brothers could cook. Maybe getting what they wanted would turn out to be a hell of a lot worse than they thought.
"Ready to go home sir?"
"Hell yes." Andy settled back as the engines turned over. "Can't go fast enough."
The plane started to roll and he watched out the window as the field flashed by, grass turning to trees as the jet lifted off and soared above the ground. "Bah bah." He waggled his fingers as the town dropped off into the distance.
"Did you enjoy your vacation, sir?" The pilot asked, after they leveled off and were heading southeast.
Andrew looked up from his bowl of ice cream. One eyebrow hiked sharply.
"Guess not!" The man said, turning back to his controls. "You can watch outside for witches though, it's Halloween after all. "
Involuntarily, he looked out the window, seeing nothing more than the expected clouds and sky. With a shake of his head, he turned back to find a surprising dent in his dish, as though someone had swiped a forefinger through the scoop to taste it.
He stared at it, then peered around the inside of the plane. Aside from the pilot, and himself - it was empty.
He set the dish down and got up, going to the refrigerato
r and removing the ice cream, dishing up a second portion and setting the bowl down on the table between the seats. Then he sat back down and picked up his bowl, turning his back on the table and resuming his spoon.
He seriously hoped it would be empty by the time they landed.
**
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