“So, tell me about Rachel.”
“Where do I begin? Rachel is also amazing. She’s very talented, but about as selfless as they come. She is one of those people who put everyone else first; sometimes to a fault. She needs to learn to set some better priorities, but at the same time, you just know that she loves you so much.”
They continued to talk and laugh as they moved south. They could have easily made the trip in a day, but Maggie decided she needed to do some writing, so she got a room about 3:00 and took her laptop with her this time.
Jacob assumed his position and watched with great admiration as this marvel of a woman typed as fast as she thought. He could not wait to read what she was working on.
“Margaret, don’t you think you should stop and eat something? You need to keep up your strength.”
“I’m sorry, did you say something?”
“Yes, I was just suggesting you stop and eat. I’m worried that you’re not taking care of yourself. You haven’t eaten since breakfast.”
“Food. Yes, food is good. I should eat.”
Jacob chuckled. “Do you even know what you’re saying right now? You’re lost in that book.”
Maggie snapped out of her entranced writing and looked Jacob in the eye.
“I love to write. Did I ever tell you that?”
Again she elicited laughter from her ghostly love.
“What are you snickering at?”
“You, my love. You are lost in something you love. I am thrilled at your passion.”
“I’m starved. I should eat something. What time is it, anyway?”
“9:30.”
“P.M.???”
“Yes, love.”
“Oh, my word, no wonder I’m so famished!”
Maggie slipped on a jacket and walked to the diner and ordered some soup and salad to take back to the room. On her way back to the room, a stranger walking the other way stopped abruptly in front of her.
“May I help you?”
“You can give me your purse. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“Look, lady, just hand it over.”
“I will not!”
“Now who’s kidding who? I’m the one with the weapon.”
He pointed a gun at her and in the darkness of the parking lot she could not discern whether or not it was real.
Maggie screamed and dropped her dinner all over the blacktop.
The perpetrator screamed and ran.
“What the heck just happened?” Maggie muttered, still trembling from the shock of it all.
She turned to sit down on the sidewalk and came eye to eye with the source of the crook’s sudden retreat.
“Jacob, oh my word! Did you see what happened?”
“I just heard you scream. Are you alright? Did he hurt you? Did he take anything? What did he say?”
“He was after my purse. I thought my screaming had scared him off. I should have thrown my soup at him, but in that moment, I was so frightened I couldn’t think.”
“You did fine.”
“Oh, Jacob, what would I have done if you hadn’t been here?”
This simple question asked out loud brought her to tears.
“You would have thrown the soup! Come one, let’s get you back to the room.”
“What about my dinner?”
“Call the police, then order a pizza!”
Maggie smiled, but it was not an involuntary expression of gladness, but rather a small, forced token to repay the kindness Jacob was demonstrating to her.
She locked the door, sat on the edge of the bed, dialed 911 and made a report, then plopped back on the bed.
“Oh, Margaret, how I wish I could hold you all the time.”
“But you do, Jacob, every single minute of every single day. You don’t touch me, but I feel you anyway. Does that make any sense?”
“Yes, it does. I feel you also. But one day it will be real.”
There was a knock on the door and the peephole revealed it was an officer so Maggie unlocked and let her in.
“I’m here about an attempted purse-snatching.”
“Yes, thank you. He’s long gone, but I will give you the best description I can, considering the dim lighting of the parking lot.”
Maggie went through the details of the attack and noticed the puzzled look on the police officer’s face.
“Is there something wrong?”
“Ma’am, it’s just that you have given me a great description, but I’m a little confused as to what made him take off. If there was no one around, why would he run like that? Were you also carrying a weapon?”
Maggie had to think quickly. How could she possibly explain his taking off like that?
“Maybe it was my scream?”
“Maybe, but I would think he would still have grabbed your purse before he ran.”
“I couldn’t say. Maybe he was a novice?”
“Well, I’m just glad you’re safe. We’ll do what we can and if we get a lead, we may need you to identify the perp.”
“I’m traveling to Virginia to see my daughter and her family and then I’ll be headed west to Indiana to see another daughter and to pick up my car, which is in the shop from an accident I had in Ohio. It's being repaired just now. Just call me and I’ll do what I can, but I should let you know that once I’m home in a couple of weeks, I’ll be starting treatments for cancer.”
As Maggie inadvertently vomited the details of her recent life, the realization of how bizarre her life was suddenly hit her. She began to cry again.
“I’m so sorry, ma’am. We’ll be in touch,” the officer squirmed awkwardly and made a hasty getaway, clearly uncomfortable with all that this victim was going through.
When she left, Maggie once again collapsed onto the bed for about 30 seconds until she remembered how hungry she was. She ordered a pizza and a salad and went back to her laptop to wait for their arrival.
“Do you mind? I really feel like getting back to it, despite the distraction.”
“Not at all. I’ll just amuse myself over here in the corner. I think maybe there are some scintillating menus to read.”
Maggie rolled her eyes and then began to type. She got two whole sentences on the paper when her cell phone rang.
“Maggie, it’s David. I just wanted to check in with you and make sure you were safe. I had this awful premonition, nothing specific, just made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Are you alright?”
“Actually, David,” saying his name with great affect and turning to look at Jacob, “I’ve just had a run-in with a wannabe purse snatcher. It’s interesting that you would call at this precise moment.”
“It’s a connection. I can’t explain it. I’m sorry, I know you are with someone, but I still feel drawn to you. I knew there was something amiss.”
“Well, I’m fine. I’ve made a police report and I was just writing and waiting for a pizza to be delivered.”
“How was your visit with your daughter?”
“It was lovely. I’m just in between children right now. Is everything alright with you?”
“Yes, fine. I’m just concerned about you. Well, I won’t keep you. Pardon my call.”
“It’s fine, David. We’re friends, remember?”
“Thank you. Call if you need anything, anything.”
“Thank you, David. Take care.”
No sooner had she hung up than the pizza came and she carefully slid cash through a partially-opened but securely chained door and asked him to leave the pizza outside so that she could retrieve it after watching him pull out. She was still a little shaken.
Once he was gone, she cautiously unlocked the door, grabbed the pizza box and her salad, and slammed it shut once again, making sure to lock the knob and redo the chain.
She collapsed on the bed and declared herself much too tired to eat, but Jacob had a few words to say on the matter.
“Maggie, you must eat before you sleep. You
have got to keep up your strength for the battle ahead. You are stressed enough with all this traveling and it has been, by no means, uneventful.”
“You’ve never called me Maggie before!”
“Is that all you have to say?”
She smiled, grabbed her salad and wolfed it down. Then she disposed of two large slices of the pizza and finally, made a cup of tea from the complimentary motel offerings.
“I’m so done with this day!”
“Sleep, my love.”
“I’ve got to grab a quick shower and then I’m going to do just that. Make yourself scarce, but watch the door for me, please?”
It was a request, not a demand.
“Of course, I’ll sentry you. Enjoy.”
Maggie finished her nightly routine and by the time her head hit the pillow, her last thought was how her life had been riddled with odd events that were outside the norm of most people; why shouldn’t her death be the same. No sooner had the thought escaped than she was out, but her sleep was fitful. Jacob kept a vigilant eye on her and his heart broke a little more at her circumstance and her bravery.
He thought about the trip they would take in the morning and how her visit with Rachel and her family would stack up to her visit with Rhiannon and hers. He silently prayed for the best and then it was morning.
Chapter 22,
in which much our girl gets rather lost in her pursuit and our
gentlemanly specter has mixed feelings of joy and neglect
When Jacob heard Maggie stir, he greeted her with the biggest smile he had ever expressed. Tender as he was, and though he was often amused, Jacob naturally had a kind of scowl.
“What’s up with you, Mr.?”
“I’m just having the sweetest feelings for you and am looking forward to our road trip this morning.”
“About that . . . I’m not sure I want to head out just yet. I have some things that need to be put to paper, so to speak. Would you mind, terribly, if we stayed here another day? I'm just feeling particularly creative. I have to strike while the iron’s hot.”
“Of course not. You know that I support you fully in your writing and I won’t even attempt to make you feel guilty this time. Write away.”
Maggie didn’t even bother to dress. She opened the laptop and got right to it.
Jacob could have wondered what had precipitated this sudden burst of creativity, but he was just so happy to see her happy and writing.
They spent the day in the room, leaving only to grab some lunch and bring it back. Maggie was on fire. Jacob wished he knew what story she was working on, but he had sworn not to look or ask questions.
When the sky grew dark, Maggie was still writing and Jacob’s resolve to honor his promise was beginning to seem unreasonable to him.
“So, is the story going well?”
Silence.
“How’s it going?”
More silence.
“Are you almost finished?”
“I’m sorry, Jacob, did you say something?
“Just wondering about the story. How’s it going? Care to talk about it?”
“Jacob?”
“Yes, dear?”
“Find something to do. Isn’t there someone somewhere reading one of your books that you could go and spy on?”
“That was a little harsh, my love.”
“Sorry, I told you up front. This is mine until I’m ready to share it.”
Jacob moped over to his chair in the corner and put his chin on his elbow with a big, fat sigh.
When the hour grew even later, he wanted to let her know that she needed to rest, but he instinctively let her go on with her task. She worked until after midnight and then looked up and asked what time it was.
“It’s very late.”
“Did I miss dinner?”
“Yes, I’m afraid so, although you might go to the convenient store on the corner and get yourself some beef jerky to chew on. Maybe a grape soda to chase it down?”
“You’re in a fine mood, aren’t you?”
“I’m sorry. I’m just a little bored. Are you about ready to turn in for the night?”
“Yes, I think I need to. I’m wiped out.”
Maggie pulled down the comforter and crawled into it without even brushing her teeth. This night, she slept quite soundly and didn’t wake up until after 9:00.
Jacob put on his best grin when he saw her eyes open.
“I’m sorry I was so rude yesterday. Of course I’m delighted to see you writing. You take all the time you need.”
“No, I’m ready to shower and get on the road. I think I got most of it out of my system for now. I am anxious to see Rachel and her family.”
They packed and loaded the car, leaving the memory of the assault lying in the parking lot and her laptop on the dresser.
Chapter 23,
in which gloomy weather darkens a mood which is made even darker
by an awful discovery
The day was gloomy and drizzly and it made for a much less enjoyable journey. They had gone about four hours when Maggie got a distressed look no her face.
“Something’s wrong.”
“I know. This weather is awful.”
“No, that’s not it. Something’s missing.”
She spied her purse on the floor of the back seat.
“I don’t know what it is, but something’s definitely wrong.”
She pulled over and opened the trunk.
She saw her suitcase, her overnight back, everything but her laptop. She began to wail so loud that Jacob panicked.
“Maggie, what is it?”
“My laptop . . . my writing . . . it’s gone. All that work and all the family pictures and all the genealogy. Everything. Gone.”
“I’m sure it’s at the motel. We’ll call them.”
“If we call them, someone will be alerted that it is there and they’ll steal it.”
“That’s an awfully grim outlook.”
She cried harder.
“Look there’s nothing to do but go back and pray that it’s there. I wish I could drive for you. I wish I could blink us back there. I wish, at this moment, that I had the means to make this all better.”
“Jacob, go back. Go to the room and watch over it and I’ll meet you there.”
“I could do that, but they’ve cleaned it by now. I’m sure it’s at the front desk waiting for you.”
“Jacob, please! Go back and find it and then stay there and wait for me. I’ll hurry back.”
“Don’t hurry. Take your time. I’ll be watching over it.”
“Jacob, before you leave, do you think you could let me know that it is there and that it is safe and then go back and watch it. It would only take a second for you!”
“Of course.”
He disappeared and it seemed forever until Maggie saw him again. He simply gave her a “thumbs up” and then he was gone again. Maggie could hardly wait to have it back in her possession again. There were things on there so personal that she didn’t want the world to know. She tried to distract herself with the radio until her phone rang. It must be the motel letting her know they found her computer.
“Hello,” she anxiously responded.
“Maggie, it’s David. I just had a feeling that something was terribly wrong with you. I don’t know why I get these premonitions. It’s never been that way before with anyone else. I’m really sorry I continually bug you.”
“No, David, it’s alright that you care. It’s very nice, really. I’m just driving right now and can’t really talk.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. I’ve got your number. Maybe I’ll give you a ring after my visits are finished and before I begin treatments.”
“As you wish, Maggie.”
“Take care, David.”
Maggie was so exhausted from all the traveling, the accident, the assault, the visit with Rhiannon’s family and now this. As she considered all that had happened to her on top of the news th
at she had cancer, she felt a thoroughly cathartic cry bubbling up from deep inside her. She pulled over and threw herself onto the passenger seat and brought it to fruition.
She wasn’t sure how long she sat there sobbing, but she was snapped back into the here and now by the flashing blue lights in her rear view mirrors.
“Oh, goodness, now what?”
She heard knuckles rapping on her window and rolled it down.
“Ma’am, are you alright?”
Through puffy red eyes and a runny nose, she managed to lie, “Oh, officer, I’m just tired and not feeling very well. I’ve had a rough couple of days, let me tell you. I just needed to pull over and have a good cry and get it out of my system. I’m fine now.”
“You don’t look so well; are you sure?”
“No, I’m absolutely . . . ”
That was the last thing she remembered until she awoke in yet another hospital and when she opened her eyes, there stood David.
Grimm's Last Fairy Tale Page 11
