The Death & Loralei Collection

by Judith Post

  "No, but you'll probably have to remember."

  Her shoulders hunched again, and her expression pinched with worry. "Do I have to?"

  "We'll see." Death put a comforting hand on her shoulder. He gave it a gentle squeeze. "Let's start with Crumb."

  All five of them settled themselves around the heavy, oak table. Loralei placed the crystal ball in front of her and Ebony jumped onto her lap. She touched the ball to bring it to life and said, "Show us what led to Annalise's death."

  Annalise wrinkled her forehead, remembering things she'd rather forget, and mists rolled under the patio doors. They served almost like a movie screen, and Annalise's memories were projected onto them.

  A long ago scene started to play out.

  A high school hallway was crammed with jostling students, passing from one class to another. Annalise hurried to her locker to grab a book. She was dressed in worn jeans and a red T-shirt. The red should have clashed with her carrot-orange hair, tied into a high, crazy ponytail. It didn't.

  "Hey, you're sort of cute," Tammy told her, "in an offbeat, strange kinda way."

  "Thanks." Annalise looked surprised.

  The scene went on. As Annalise dug through her locker, Crumb walked down the hall. His steps slowed when he saw her. Annalise turned and caught him staring. He was about to say something when Scorch hurried around a corner and joined him. Scorch looked from one of them to another. He glared at her. "What you looking at?" She blushed, embarrassed, and Crumb immediately looked away. He started talking to his friend.

  Next, students gushed from the school building, hurrying to their buses or cars. Rain beat down on the asphalt parking lot in a steady rhythm. Annalise pulled on a poncho and opened her umbrella, in no hurry. She always took her time walking home. She was crossing the street, heading to her shortcut, when a car pulled up beside her. Crumb rolled down his car window and called, "Need a lift?"

  She shook her head. "Thanks anyway. I like the rain."

  His lips turned down. "I don't know why I bother trying to be nice."

  She smiled. "Because you are nice." Then she ducked between two buildings, unaware that he stared after her.

  "He likes you!" Tammy cried.

  "He helped hang me," Annalise shot back.

  The mists swirled, swallowing Crumb and his car, and showed Zeb and Cherri locked in a clinch behind the school bleachers. Zeb's dirty blond hair was damp with sweat after football practice. Everyone else had gone. Zeb's hands crept up Cherri's tight shirt to fondle her breasts. Cherri lifted it to make it easier for him. He was unfastening her bra when Ashleigh strolled past the bleachers. Zeb pushed Cherri away, ran his hand through his hair, and hurried to catch up with her. "Hey, there, beautiful!" Ashleigh slowed, and he fell into step beside her. Cherri yanked down her shirt to watch him leave. She glared daggers at Ashleigh's retreating back.

  "That girl hates your sister," Loralei said.

  "Cherri? She hates every female. Only likes boys."

  "She hates some girls more than others." Death watched the mists clear, then reform. Daffodils and tulips bloomed around the school's flagpole. The bell rang, and Ashleigh hurried out of the building, laughing up at a tall, dark-haired boy.

  "Donnie Lehman," Annalise said. "A basketball player."

  Donnie slid an arm around her waist to lead her to his car. Zeb called after her, "Hey, Ash, we're going for pizza after school, remember? We're supposed to meet Scorch and Cherri."

  Ashleigh's smile was high-wattage. "I'll meet you there. Donnie offered to drive me."

  Zeb locked gazes with Donnie. "Friends don't steal other friend's girls."

  "You're not going steady, are you? It's just a ride. She's never been in a Camaro before."

  Zeb's hands balled into fists as he watched them drive away.

  Loralei blinked. "I was never popular in high school. Maybe I’m glad. I missed all the drama."

  Annalise's cheerful, open face pleated into a scowl as the mists faded once again. "Ashleigh wasn't very nice to Zeb."

  "Zeb wasn't very nice to Cherri. He deserved it," Tammy snapped.

  Annalise still looked troubled when the mists billowed to encompass a larger area and show a larger scene.

  Leaves unfurled on tree branches, and Donnie, Scorch, Crumb, and Zeb sat with a group of friends at a picnic table outside the root beer stand. Cherri teetered on new shoes with high, wedged heels as she came to join them. Her shorts barely covered her ass, and her tank top stopped below her boobs. The boys glanced up at her, then returned to their conversation. Ashleigh sat a few picnic tables away with a pale, serious-looking boy who wore a Polo shirt and Dockers. A corvette was parked close by.

  "What a tease!" Donnie griped. "She's using us as stepping stones."

  Zeb glowered at the new guy. "Pete won't last long. He's too boring. Corvette or not, she'll get tired of him." His gaze slid to Ashleigh, and he looked thoughtful.

  "You thinking of giving her another try?" Scorch asked.

  "Why not? She's pretty enough. And lots of fun."

  Crumb shook his head. "She's got nothing on her sister. Annalise would never treat people that way."

  Scorch laughed. "She can't, can she? It's not like there's a line forming to date her."

  Cherri reached for Zeb's mug, but he pulled it away from her. Crumb offered her a sip from his, but she shook her head. Her gaze went back to Ashleigh, and when she spoke, her voice sounded brittle. "Annalise knows what she's doing. She's great at playing hard to get. Makes guys want her more."

  Crumb frowned. "You think so?"

  "Look at you. It's working, isn't it?"

  His frown deepened. "She doesn't know I'm alive. That's different."

  Donnie smacked the back of Crumb's head. "You're so strong and silent, no one knows what you're thinking. Not even us, most of the time."

  "It's better anyway," Cherri said. "She's a witch, you know. Raises herbs and casts spells. Probably put a love hex on you. And she makes potions for her sister. Fills her with magic. It's her fault Ashleigh's so popular."

  Donnie smirked. "Then why didn't you buy a potion from her? We all know you want Zeb. Can't even get him by putting out."

  A flush rose to Cherri's hairline. "She probably wouldn't sell it. Only makes it for Ashleigh."

  Crumb pushed to his feet and started to his car. "You're talking a bunch of stupid, and you know it."

  Cherri narrowed her eyes at Zeb. "If Ashleigh didn't drink her potions anymore, she couldn't wrap every boy in town around her little finger. You might have a chance."

  Zeb gave a shaky laugh. It wasn't convincing.

  Tammy shook her head at the misty figure. "He's not buying her stupid idea, is he?"

  Death turned a thoughtful gaze on Annalise. "Desperate people do desperate things."

  The mists faded and took up again almost immediately.

  Crepe paper streamers and disco balls decorated the school's gymnasium. Ashleigh wore a shimmery, cobalt-blue dress that clung to her figure as she walked into the room on Pete's arm. Pete led her to a table, and they sat with a group of his friends. Zeb came with Cherri in a low-cut gown that showed her ample bosom to advantage. He sat with Scorch and the others at a table across the room. Crumb joined them, without a date.

  Music started. Girls, who'd come stag, wandered to the table to ask Crumb to dance. He didn't turn any away—not even Regina, who was still on crutches from her car accident. Cherri pulled Zeb onto the floor and made dance moves look like foreplay, but Zeb kept glancing at Ashleigh.

  Ashleigh flirted, she teased, but she couldn't get Pete to dance. Finally, in a huff, she went to get herself a glass of punch. Zeb left Cherri gyrating by herself to go after her.

  "Want to dance?"

  Ashleigh tossed a challenging look to Pete, who shook his head. She smiled at Zeb. "Why not?"

  They spent the next hour together. Crumb hurried to pull Cherri into a group dance with him and three other girls, then stayed by her side until Ashleigh tire
d of Zeb and returned to Pete's table. Pale eyes blazing, Pete looked across the floor at Zeb and deliberately put his arm around Ashleigh's shoulders. He pulled her closer—a clear statement. Ownership.

  Zeb and Cherri sat in angry silence at their group's table. Crumb rubbed his forehead and planted himself in his chair, refusing to dance anymore. Donnie laughed at all of them, and Scorch threw hateful looks Ashleigh's way. "What a bitch." He punched Zeb's arm playfully. "Friend, it's time to move on. That girl's a piece of work."

  "She needs someone to teach her a lesson." Cherri's hand trembled when she lifted her punch glass.

  "No." Zeb's one word was final.

  "Her sister then." Cherri leaned forward, her elbows on the table. "She pulls the strings from the sidelines. Probably laughs at us."

  "Get real." Crumb scraped his chair back, ready to leave. "There's no such thing as witches. No one's making Zeb do anything. It's just lust."

  They waited for him to leave, then heads together, they started to talk in low voices.

  The mists faded, and Annalise pushed her chair away from the table. She took a deep breath. "I don't want to see anymore. I didn't know any of this was happening."

  The mists evaporated, and the scenes flickered to an end. Sunlight flooded the room.

  Tammy shivered, and Loralei went to wrap an arm around her shoulders.

  "We shouldn't have let you watch this. You're only ten."

  Tammy rolled her eyes. "I've seen worse. My ma took men to her room all the time and shut the door. You don't think I heard what they were doing? Mom was a screamer, yelled out when she was happy and cried out if she got hit. If I can live through that, I can deal with this."

  Tammy shrugged out of her embrace, and Loralei reached for her cat, lying on the back of a chair. She stroked Ebony's fur without thinking. Habit. "I've seen enough for right now too. I need a glass of wine."

  "You gonna be okay, Miz Loralei?" Chris asked.

  She forced a smile. No one could have a more considerate ghost boy live with them. "I'm fine. This was just more intense than I expected it to be."

  "Mob mentality." Death went to the kitchen to pour her a glass of Sangria—mild enough for the middle of the day.

  "Reminds me of Lord of the Flies," Loralei agreed. "You kids should read that. A great book. Sort of disturbing."

  "Like life," Chris said.

  Loralei turned a thoughtful look on him. For all of his telling them what a great childhood he had, it meant he was willing to settle for a roof over his head and food in his belly. And he'd worked hard for that. From everything he'd told them, his Ma and Pa never abused him, but they never doted on him either, sometimes forgot he was there. Death handed her the wine, and she sighed. Life had a way of getting complicated.

  Annalise walked to the patio doors and looked out at the kitchen garden. "Can I go outside? Can I smell the earth again? Or will I dissolve and return Home?"

  Death opened the French doors for her. "As long as you're on our property, you'll stay in your mortal form, look the way you did when you died. If you leave here, though, you'll become a spirit—a ghost."

  Annalise looked at Loralei. "Can I go in your gardens?"

  "Make yourself at home. Pick whatever you want. It's the end of the season. Things will die soon anyway."

  Annalise started with the herbs. Tammy and Chris tagged after her, and soon, they were showing her the flower beds and introducing her to Chestnut, their horse.

  Death and Loralei stepped out to get fresh air too. Loralei felt battered by the scenes she'd watched today. The brisk, Fall breeze whipped away some of her uneasiness. She felt her shoulders relax.

  "They were just kids," Death said, stating her thoughts. "Emotions are out of proportion at that age, things seem bigger than they are."

  Loralei thought of her older brother. She was an embarrassment to him in school, just as Annalise must have been to Ashleigh, but Luke pounded anyone who made fun of her. In all the scenes they'd watched, Loralei could never tell how Ashleigh felt about her sister. Were they close? Did they like each other?

  These days, Luke called her once a month to keep in touch, but he'd moved away when their father died and their mom got sick. Too much stress. He admitted it. "I'm an emotional coward. You're the strong one," he told her. They loved each other and got together once a year at Christmas, but Luke didn't understand her attraction to Death and refused to come to the cottage. Loralei always went to him.

  When she blinked back to the present, Death was watching her. "You were thinking about your brother?" he asked.

  How did he do that? How did he know her so well?

  "Do you think Ashleigh loved Annalise?" she asked.

  "I'd guess yes. Zeb knew he'd hurt Ashleigh by hurting her sister."

  "And Cherri?"

  "Cherri knew if Zeb hurt Annalise, he'd never have a chance with Ashleigh."

  Loralei nodded. That made sense. She sank onto a lawn chair and Death took the one beside her. They didn't talk. They enjoyed their surroundings, letting birdsongs and breezes restore them.

  When Annalise made the full circle of the yard, and she returned with Tammy and Chris, they all went inside again.

  Annalise squared her shoulders. "I'm ready now. We can watch them hang me."

  "We don't have to," Death said. "We pretty much know where this is going."

  "I want to know who does what. I was so afraid at the time, I could hardly hear myself think. Some of it's sort of a blur."

  Death gave a curt nod and led them into the kitchen. He poured Loralei a second glass of wine and they circled the crystal ball once more. Loralei placed her palms on it, and Ebony stared at the mists that swirled inside it. Soon, they filled the room.

  Annalise, dressed in witch garb, picked different herbs from her garden to place on a stone altar she'd built of stacked rocks. There'd be a full moon tonight, and she intended to call for a blessing for the farmer's crops this year. Corn plants already poked their heads above the fertile fields, but rain had been scarce. If the Goddess could bless this year's harvest, it would help the entire community.

  She hummed as she worked, so intent on the herbs she mixed, she didn't hear anyone approach. She jumped with a start when Cherri cried, "See? She built an altar. She worships the Devil, like all witches do, and she casts spells on the rest of us."

  Annalise turned to stare at Scorch, Zeb, and Donnie. Why were they here? She smiled. "The Devil? No, I worship the Goddess. She blesses the earth."

  "I've heard of your goddess." Cherri hugged herself. "She's a vicious killer with eight arms holding knives."

  "No, that's a different…."

  Cherri pointed. "What are you mixing? What do all of those plants do?"

  Annalise motioned to her dried herbs. "These…."

  "You cast spells, don't you? You've bewitched us!"

  Annalise laughed. "No, I only practice…."

  "See? She practices witchcraft. Her powers come from the Devil."

  Zeb stepped forward and with a swipe of his hand, scattered her herbs.

  Annalise stared. "What did you do that for? I need those…."

  "Don't let her talk! She'll cast a spell. We'll all be under her powers." Cherri covered her ears with her hands.

  Zeb pulled his belt out of his pant tabs and looped it around Annalise's face, jamming it in her mouth, between her teeth.

  Scorch laughed. "Looks like we've made the witch speechless."

  Cherri pressed a hand to her breast. "No, we've angered her. Now, when we leave, she'll curse us."

  "Not if we cut out her tongue." Donnie's eyes glinted with excitement. He reached for the garden shears Annalise left on the altar.

  He was moving toward her when Crumb pushed through the bushes to join his friends. His face drained of color when he saw what they were doing. "What's wrong with you guys? Let her go."

  "We're putting a stop to a witch's curses," Donnie said. He raised the scissors.

  Crumb said, "Do yo
u want to stand in front of Judge Harville? You won't go to college in August. You'll be in prison."

  No one budged.

  Crumb waved a hand in her direction. "Just tie her up and let's get out of here. It's supposed to storm tonight. Maybe we'll get lucky and lightning will strike her tree."

  Donnie threw back his head and laughed. "Yeah, I like that. Then the gods can decide what to do with her."

  "Exactly." Rough hands grabbed Annalise, and Crumb helped Donnie tie her hands behind her back with garden twine. They were ready to bind her to the tree when Cherri spotted the rope Annalise used as a clothesline to dry her herbs.

  Cherri's lips curved into a smile. "People used to hang witches so that they couldn't come back from the dead."

  Crumb stared at her. "That's murder. Let's just tie her to the tree."

  "And if lightning doesn't hit it? What then? We'll all go to jail for assault and battery."

  Scorch frowned. "Annalise wouldn't turn us in. This is just a warning. She knows that."

  "Does she? How many witches have you dealt with?" Cherri pointed at Annalise. "She's powerful. We already know that."

  "Powerful?" Crumb shook his head. "She's scared half to death. Let it go at that."

  "I'm not the one cursed." Cherri put a hand on Zeb's arm.

  Zeb's face twisted in anger. Blood flushed his skin red. He stepped away from her and pointed at Annalise. "String her up."

  Crumb placed his body between Zeb and Annalise. "No one cursed you. Ashleigh's just not ready to settle down yet. She might not even stay in a small town like this."

  A shovel slammed the back of Crumb's head and he went down in a heap. Cherri dropped the handle, then raised her eyebrows at the others. "Our town doesn't need a witch."

  The mists faded, and Annalise took a huge gulp of air. She rubbed her arms, fighting for composure. "Did they hurt Crumb? Was he all right after the shovel hit him?"

  Death looked to Loralei. "Can the crystal ball show us what happened to Crumb after Annalise died?"

  "I don't know. We can try." She placed her palms on the smooth glass globe and waited, but nothing happened. Everything they'd seen had been attached to Annalise's life and death. Crumb's future wasn't a part of that.