by Inia Jardine
'Of course my darling woman, because if a couple don't want to admit what is wrong or want to fix what is wrong how can one ever complain that a marriage or relationship is not working?'
I put my arms around Jonah and sigh with contentment. I am so lucky to have found this man. Before I met him I thought that at forty-something years of age I have missed my chance of happiness and I was prepared for a life with only my cats and my work. Look where I am now, just more than two years later. 'I know that you love me Jonah, but why? I am nothing special and you could have any woman you want.'
'Yes I do love you, very much, and never doubt it. Lilia, you are the most awesomely special and unique being that I have ever met. I just knew from the first moment that you were to be mine. You are just different to most females of the species. You are the sexiest woman in the world to me, you are not fussy about clothes and stuff. You save on shoes because you walk around barefoot. You are kind, non-judgemental, compassionate and loving. You are excellent in and out of bed, care about the environment and will do anything to help an animal.
You have no ego; you are not vain. You are not materialistic, accept whatever comes your way. You have helped me to make peace with my past, with my father. You gave me family. I just knew when I met you that you will enrich my life, make it better. For that I am ultimately grateful to you. And of course for rescuing me from that asshole Vatjer.'
A tear escapes my eye. 'Oh Jonah that's so beautiful. Thank you. That is why I love you, you make me feel good about myself. Before I met you I was lost, convinced that my chance at happiness had dwindled down to zero. Then I met this gorgeous huge man with an even bigger heart. I was not looking for love but it found me. You found me.
I fell in lust with you, you became my lover and then my best friend. I feel like Winnie the Pooh and Piglet ‘if you live for 100 years I want to live for a 100 years minus one day, because I never want to live without you again'. You are amazing, the sexiest man in the world and without a doubt, the best kisser ever.'
All of a sudden in the midst of our warm embrace I feel this cold air creeping over me. 'Oh, I think someone just walked over my grave'. I have goose pimples all over and suddenly have the weirdest feeling, like I am looking down on Jonah and me from above.
'Lilia, what's wrong? Why are you so cold? What happened?' Jonah rubs my arms to warm me up. 'Look at the laptop, it's on the frizz.'
I glance over at it and see that the screen has gone a hazy white colour and the drawings of the hotel seem to shimmer like it is underwater. 'Jonah,' I touch his hand with my icy one.
.
'She is here. The lady of the gazebo. Wisteria Lady. ' I can see her. She manifests next to Jonah and looks down at him with something very emotional in her stare. 'Please don't hurt him. I love him.'
'What is she doing? I can't see anyone.'
'Look at the cats. They can see her too. Kiki, come here, don't go too close.'
'Lilia, look at the laptop.' Jonah's voice is soft and dangerous. I turn slowly and see the letters forming. It looks like they are floating over the drawings, not quite on the screen but somehow part of it. I can see an E, an N, an O, a C, and an H... Enoch?
'Who is Enoch? Do you know anyone by that name? Enoch is a name from the Bible, if I remember correctly there is apparently a lost book of the Bible named Enoch. I read about it in a book once, a Dan Brown I think. But why...?' The laptop suddenly starts beeping and blinks off.
'Fuck. Fuck. What was that?' Jonah jumps up and strides over to look down at the gazebo. 'Did she want to do something to me? Why did you tell her to not hurt me?'
'Jonah, I don't know what just happened but it seems to me like she wants to tell you something. Something about someone named Enoch. I don't know. What should I do? This has never happened to me before.'
My heart is beating faster than a doctor bird's at the moment and I hug Kiki tight. She has come to stand tight next to me and her fur is all fluffy. Almost like a cat when it gets spooked by something. Yeah, spooked. Classic.
'We have just been spooked Jonah.' I grin. 'I am going to get to the bottom of this. But first I need a whiskey. Straight. Jonah, let's go inside and have a drink. You look like you need one too. Come cats, I think this door is being closed and locked now for the night until we figure out what to do.'
'Yeah Lilia, like a locked door will keep out a ghost? Think again. Maybe we should move down to the cove. I don't want her watching our every move if you know what I mean. Or we can go and stay with Henri and Jalade, they will like it I'm sure.'
'That's it Jonah, no, we must not go and stay there but let's see if we can go past there for a drink. Maybe Henri knows something. I will text him to say that we are coming.'
We lock the house up after settling down the cats and Kiki in our room. I don't believe that The Wisteria Lady will harm the animals, if she has an issue it will be with a person. Hopefully not with Jonah! As we walk up the path to Henri's house we both keep looking over our shoulders like frightened children. I clench Jonah's hand so hard but he does not seem to notice. He seems really disturbed by this supernatural incident.
As we walk up the front steps Henri opens the door. 'Who the fuck is Enoch?' Jonah demands immediately in a very impatient tone of voice.
'Sorry Henri' I counter for his discourtesy, 'we just had a bit of a shock. Any chance of a stiff drink? We will explain.'
'Sure, sure come inside. When we got your text I asked Jalade to get us a drink tray with some snacks. Have you eaten?'
Jonah looks a bit bewildered but then seems to calm himself down a bit. 'Sorry Henri but fuckit, I just need to know. Who is Enoch? Do you know someone by that name?'
'Sorry son, but no, I don't. Why? Here, have some whiskey. Jalade, these two seem to have had a shock. Can you bring some sweet tea too please my darling? Let's go and sit down by the fireplace.'
'Thanks so much Jalade, oh my word these look lovely. We have not had a chance to eat yet.' I put a few of the artfully arranged carrot sticks, baby tomatoes, fruit slices, cheese and biscuits in a plate and pass it to Jonah.
'Are you going to tell them or must I?' Jonah shakes his head and indicates to me that I must go ahead.
As I relate the events of the past half an hour I sense Jalade becoming very quiet, almost withdrawing and not commenting or asking questions like Henri. Eventually everyone grows quiet and sip on their respective drinks while contemplating the event.
All of a sudden Jalade stands up and says in a hoarse voice ‘I speak for Enoch. He was brutally murdered here on this land and is seeking peace. His lover, Elizabeth, is here with us. She wants you to bring him justice and ensure that his remains are interred together with hers.' She touches her small gold necklace once and then slowly falls back onto the couch.
'Henri, do something! What's happening?'
'Don't concern yourself Lilia, I have witnessed this before. Jalade was in a trance and she will recuperate within a few minutes. I will just make sure that she is comfortable.' He walks over to her and gently puts a pillow from the couch under her head, and a soft blanket over her legs.
'She will tell you her side of the story after, but I can tell you so long that she is very intuitive and belongs to a faith called Orisha. They are part of the Yoruba religion. It is an island thing mostly, very active where she comes from. She will explain.'
A few whiskeys later Jalade is back with us and ready to tell her tale. 'Jonah, come sit with me and take my hand. Do you have something that means a lot to you that I can hold?'
'My wedding ring? Here' and he passes it to her, sits down next to her.
'Now Jonah and Lilia, I have to explain something. I trust that you have open minds and will not judge me.' She looks at us and we nod affirmatively. 'I am Orisha and can sometimes communicate with ancestors. I am not a medium though, so I don't go looking for them and have séances, they talk through me when circumstances are optimum for them. Let me first tell you a bit about us. We are not Santería, we are
not voodoo. We do not sacrifice animals; Lilia I am sure you will be happy to know that.'
I give her a thumbs up signal while she continues.
'This necklace of mine is a rooster; we believe that he was involved with creation. That is not important to your situation, he is just my link to the others. What is important for us though, is reincarnation. I will try to condense it, just give you the outlines. We believe in Atunwa, reincarnation within the family. When the time arrives for a spirit to return to earth through a new life, one of the entities of a person's being returns, while the other remains in a place of transition. The part of the spirit that returns is in the form of a Guardian Ori which symbolize the spirit and energy of one's previous blood relative. The Ori contains the assembled wisdom the person has acquired during their previous lifetimes.'
She hesitates and looks at Jonah pleadingly. ' It is a lot to take in but this part is extremely important Jonah, pay very close attention here. This Ori is not your own spirit, which contains your personal destiny Jonah, instead it is a previous blood Ori. That means Jonah, that you are still you, an individual, but deep within you, you have all the life experiences of this specific ancestor. It can be accessed via hypnotism if you are open to that.'
'Jalade, not at this point in time. Not ready. But please continue.'
'No problem, your decision only. Let's leave that for now. This Ori becomes a guide for you throughout your lifetime. At the end of this life they return to their spirit self and merge into one, taking the additional knowledge gained from their experience with you as a form of reward. Jonah, I believe that you were reincarnated in the Ori of Enoch. He is therefore your blood ancestor. Do you have someone to help you find out where in your family Enoch fits in?'
'This is a bit weird for me Jalade, you will have to give me time to ponder it. My mom, Hyacinth...' and he looks over to Henri who lowers his gaze, '...Mom would have known but she died about four years ago. I appreciate your trying to help though, being a conduit of some sort. Lilia and I will talk it over and let you know what we come up with. Henri, just for the record, are you also Orisha?'
'Yes son, I am. Not exactly the same as Jalade's belief system which is closer to Yoruba. My origin is Cuban not Trinidad & Tobago, but yes. We share similar beliefs. I have no abilities like Jalade here though. She is very special.'
He kisses her hand and takes it in his as a show of unity. 'I can vouch for her, she has helped me a lot. And because of her faith we don't eat chicken at all.' He looks over at me and smiles.
'Good start Henri. Good start. Maybe we will convince you to give up eating flesh totally. But it will have to be your choice. Your choice alone. I believe anything that is forced will not work. That reminds me, Henri, Jalade, I have this idea for a small boutique hotel down by the cove, and I want it to be different. I will give you some of my ideas and drawings tomorrow if Mrs Ghost did not destroy it, but one idea was that the restaurant will be all vegetarian. Any objections?'
'It might work. Most Rastafarians around here are vegetarian but is there a big enough international vegetarian community to justify it?'
'Always the businessman Henri. Valid question but don't you think that people, while on holiday, and especially in such a special place like what this is going to be, will try stuff that they have not tried before? Be more daring.'
'It might just work Lilia, for pure novelty value.' Henri smiles and looks indulgently at Jalade. 'The chef here will most definitely make everything look and taste superb.'
'Wait till you see her other ideas, quite mind blowing. And sexy. And with that I think we must make our way home, we have lots to think about and I am worried about the animals even though Lilia said The Wisteria Lady would never hurt them.'
'I agree, she, Elizabeth as we now know, is just here to see that justice is done for your ancestor Enoch. She means no harm.'
' Lilia I think that she may be a bit jealous as she sees Enoch in Jonah, so you just stay very calm when she is around, okay? Here, take the rooster as a talisman for safety but don't worry too much. Just tell her that you two will do all that you can to help her. Understood?'
'Shite Jalade, thanks. Now I am 'the other woman' I guess! I will tell her nicely though, that this Ori' and I grab Jonah around the middle 'belongs to me and not her. There may be a bit of Enoch in him but he is Jonah in the flesh and that flesh is mine.'
'We all know what happens to people who try and steal him away from you hey!'
As everyone laughs I kiss Jonah and we start walking back to our house.
'What do you think Lilia? What shall we do?'
'Tomorrow I will start researching your family line on the internet, there will be slave records if we are lucky. I feel very strongly that Enoch was your ancestor who must have been killed during or after those 1820 revolts here. They must have caused the subsequent burning of the Estate and the murder of your many times great grandmother by the mob. I need to find out what happened to him and where he was buried.'
'I will help you with that. First, my Ori wants to make love to your Ori as soon as we get home. Interested?'
'Of course my love, let's just check on the animals, get some more snacks, a blanket and then go down to the cove. I won't feel comfortable making love here tonight, but I do need you desperately. We can take Kiki with for additional protection.'
Down in the cove the moonlight is playing on the quiet waters tonight like soft fingers stroking a harp. Soft ripples undulating over the water surface and smooth, small wavelets breaking quietly over the white sand. Here and there flashes of iridescence sparkle as the bioluminescent comb jellies feed on the phytoplankton. What a backdrop to this glorious lovemaking of our Oris.
'Jonah, that was just groovy. Times a hundred thousand. I feel so close to you now. I can fall asleep here easily, it is so warm, so comfortable on the soft sand. You are just a tiny bit too heavy for me to breathe properly. But that's OK because I don't want you to get off me. I love feeling your weight on me. And in me. This is where you belong.'
'Hmm Lilia, I tend to agree. You are a very soft pillow; I am so glad you are not bony. Thin women are overrated. Is Elizabeth fat or thin?'
'Oh ef off. She is a ghost and you are not going to make the happy dance with her OK? You will end up a ghost too if you try that. And the bit of her I could see was thin and elegant, too thin and elegant for you.' I smack him on his shoulder and wriggle out from under him. 'Oi gimme food. I'm hungry. Where is the food? I put it over here.'
'Blimey. I think she followed us. Look over there Lilia.'
At first I can't make out what I am looking at. Then it slowly dawns on me that our Lady Elizabeth is standing, floating, a few hundred feet into the water of the cove. All around her the ocean is glowing brightly. The bioluminescence is now looking like a fire underwater. Red like blood.
'What on earth...'
I have just lost my appetite. Completely. 'Jonah, that looks like blood. Where is Kiki? KIKI!' I scream at the top of my voice and Kiki slowly comes out of the forest.
'Thank goodness you are alright. Did she scare you my baby dog?' I hug Kiki tightly and stroke her face tenderly.
'Jonah..., Jonah? Where are you?'
I jump up and run to the water’s edge when I notice him swimming towards the red glow. 'Jonah come back, don't be stupid. Jonah!'
I can't swim very well at all and that is the only thing stopping me from following him. 'Jonah!' Fuck it, I feel so helpless. 'Jonah!' I call loudly.
He turns around and sort of waves at me to signal that he heard me and then swims onward. He is almost at the red glow and I am freaking out. What will I do if something happens to him? If a shark gets him? Leave here and get help or dog paddle in to try and help him?
All of a sudden the red glow disappears and Jonah seems to stop, tread water for a bit and then turns around, swims back.
'Bloody hell Jonah don't ever do that to me again. Why did you leave without telling me? You know I can't swim.'
&n
bsp; 'Lilia, calm down woman. Firstly, you are not my mother. Secondly I had no idea what I was doing until the red glow disappeared. This is getting out of hand. It was a feeling of being out of my body you know, having no control over it, looking down at it from above. The weirdest feeling. But now I know what she was trying to tell me.'
An aura of sadness seems to come over Jonah. 'He is down there. Enoch. They brutally tortured him, put him in a sack with rocks, tied it with chains and drowned him. He died a slow painful death. They were monsters.'
