GM chuckled. “Sure beats melon and marshmallows, don’t it?” She leaned over and patted my knee. “We can eat healthy tonight. You did well, Keira.”
Lawrence’s hand squeezed GM’s shoulder and she gazed up at him, her own hand covering his. “Thanks, dear. What would I do without you?”
He smiled. “You’ll never have to know, Pamela.” He moved off, walking toward the door. “Good thing I defrosted the pie.”
When he left the room, I sat back. “So Molly and Sam are really gone?” I’d miss Molly, and well... Sam, his story just had to get better after he left the house.
She nodded. “Sorry, no more maid service for you. But Sam... it was touch and go with him.” Her hands gripped her knees and she stretched a little looking down at the floor. Under her eyes, grape-shaded cusps gave a hint that this had taken more out of her than she would admit.
“What would have happened if he chose to stay? I mean, you can’t force him to leave, can you?” I looked down at my foot where the striped ball still lay and bent to pick it up. I’d keep this as a souvenir to remember my first time.
“I would never dream of it. No, it’s important that a spirit leaves of their own accord. It’s respecting their free will.” She huffed a sigh. “In the end, they both chose and they are where they should be.”
“With a little nudge from us.”
She nodded, then glanced around the room. “And no interference... this time.” She was silent for a few beats, watching me. “I know you’re a bit drained right now... but inside, how did you feel when this was happening?”
As I returned her gaze, I could tell this was the crux of the matter. I didn’t have to think it over at all. “I have never felt so right doing something,” I said softly. “I did something which really, really mattered.” Our eyes held. I understood GM a hell of a lot better now. I could see how a person could make this their life’s work.
She sat back in her chair when Lawrence walked in with another tray of drinks and pie. “More importantly, as you’ll come to see the more embedded in this you become... it was the right thing to do to keep the lines straight within the universe.”
Yeah. But. I just dove right in. “You’ve had Lawrence with you when you’ve done this... the transitioning. But what about me? If I’m to do this after... after you’re gone, won’t I need someone like him, to kind of watch over me?” I didn’t know how bad, bad could get, but the very fact that Lawrence still insisted on being with GM when she did this, spoke volumes.
“You will. You will find that person or like me and Lawrence, that person will find you. Until that happens, don’t be like me. Be cautious and know when to step away from a transition if you get a bad feeling.” She took the glass of juice from Lawrence and smiled looking up at him.
“Or you could end up on your ass, clinging to a diving board high above the water.” Lawrence grinned at her.
She held her hand up like a traffic cup! “Don’t you dare say a word about the bathing suit.”
He reached for my glass of juice to hand it to me. Under his breath, barely audible “What bathing suit?” He smirked at her as I took the glass from his hand.
Too much information. We’d cover this another time when Lawrence wasn’t around.
SEVENTEEN
WALKING DOWN THE SHOULDER OF THE TWO-LANE ROAD toward Gwen’s, I felt a weight lift from me. That experience with GM and the spirits was the most intense incident of my entire life, and I needed to catch my breath. At the age of twenty-three, there was nothing I had ever been a part of which came close to what just happened.
I’m afraid of heights, okay? So, when I turned twenty-one, I decided to take that bull by the horns and go skydiving. It was the most terrifying and exhilarating thing I had ever done. I freefell for about five seconds—what felt like about a half hour—before the parachute snapped open and I drifted down to earth. When my feet touched the ground, my knees went weak and I fell over. I laid on my side for a minute or so basking in the hugeness of what I had accomplished. When I got to my feet—the world was different somehow. I was different.
Well, jumping out of a plane a mile up in the air is nothing compared to what I was part of back at GM’s house. Not one, but two ghosts appearing in the living room, that Veil… that beautiful and amazing portal just showing up, the blinding but somehow comforting light pouring through—and then poof—everything back to normal… It all happened so quickly, and yet it all felt somehow so natural… I had to step away from this and just let it settle in.
When GM headed in for her nap early, I told her I was going. She didn’t get huffy with me. She just nodded. I could tell she wasn’t crazy about the idea, but I think some of the division between us over my making friends with Gwen was healed by how I handled Molly’s and Sam’s transitions.
I came to a halt in my walk to Gwen’s and turned my face up toward the sun. Its warmth bathed me. The disconnect of the afternoon hit me again. I just had a glimpse of the hereafter and eternity when I saw the light emanating from behind The Veil, and here I was basking in the warm rays of the sun on my way to a dip in a swimming pool.
Well, I guess, life does go on, doesn’t it?
It was just another minute or two before I turned up her driveway. I pulled the bag containing my swimsuit and towel higher on my shoulder. I hadn’t gone swimming at someone’s home in a long, long time. There’s not a lot of houses with swimming pools in Manhattan, okay? Maybe I should have brought along a bottle of wine or something.
Yeah, life goes on.
I climbed the few steps and strode across the veranda and knocked on the door. It opened and Gwen stood there, wearing a bathing suit top and a pair of cut-off jean shorts. “Hi Keira! C’mon in.” Once again her hair was tied back in a pony tail which swished over her shoulders when she turned. Her arms were lean but the muscles were clearly defined; carrying mailbags must be a good workout.
“Hi Gwen.” I stepped into the hallway. “Thanks for the invitation; it sure is a hot one today.” It was cooler inside, but not by much.
“Tell me about it,” she nodded. “The sweat was pouring off of me by the time I got off work.” She nodded toward the living room. “Let me introduce you to my dad.”
We stepped into the room, and Gwen said, “Dad, this is Keira. Keira, my dad, Devon Jones.”
Devon was older than my own father, probably in his sixties. He was completely bald and ensconced in an overstuffed wing chair at one end of the room. Like a lord of the manor, he had a golden lab curled at his feet and a ball game on the TV, mounted on the opposite wall.
Except this lord of the manor also had a walker and cane set up beside his throne.
As I strode across the room with my hand outstretched, the dog scrambled to its feet and skulked around the chair putting it between us. I stopped and sighed. Why were dogs always freaked out when they saw me? I love dogs! Well… from afar, anyway.
Devon glanced over at the dog and back to me. “Some guard dog, huh?” he said with a faltering smile and held out his hand. When I stepped forward to shake it, the dog let out a low whine.
When I took Devon’s hand in mine, a sad billow of forsaken loneliness washed over me, even though his face was smiling in welcome. His wife had been gone for years and he missed her still. Her tinkling laughter, her warmth in his bed, her cooking, and how she loved having company. It was all there at once in my mind, and complete.
“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Jones.”
“Nice to meet you too, Keira.” He had his smile back in place. “So you’re Mrs. York’s granddaughter?” He glanced up at Gwen and then turned back to me. “From New York? I was there only once, back in the eighties. How are you enjoying Kingston?” He pulled his hand back and rested it on the arm of the chair.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed Gwen rounding the sofa, patting her hand against her thigh, “What’s wrong, Buster? C’mere.” The dog let out another whine and slinked over to her.
I focused on Gwen’s
dad. “Good, although I haven’t seen all that much of the city yet. My grandmother... well, I’m trying to spend most of my time with her.” Another part of my mind was skipping lightly. I’d been able to sense his emotions and the sadness even though I hadn’t consciously tried. I wasn’t even in my grandmother’s house and this had happened! The dog... well, I was used to them cowering away from me.
I glanced over at Gwen and right on cue she piped up. “We’re having a swim and some beers, although not necessarily in that order. Would you care for a beer, Dad?”
“I’m fine right now.” He looked down at his lap for a moment. “You two go on and enjoy your swim. I’ll keep Buster company. Where did he get to?”
“He’s hiding behind the sofa. I don’t know what’s up with him being shy.” Gwen shrugged and her gaze flitted to me. “Normally he’d knock you over trying to lick your face.”
“That’s okay. Dogs don’t take to me.”
“They don’t like you?” Devon asked.
“No... it’s not they don’t like me...” I gestured to where Buster was cowering. They’re scared of me on sight.” I shrugged. “It’s kind of sad, actually, because I always wanted one, growing up.”
Gwen tilted her head. “That is a little odd; I’ve never heard of that. I’ve heard of dogs hating people on sight, but never being afraid of people on sight.”
Devon eyed me up and down. “It’s not like you’re scary looking or anything. You look pretty normal to me.”
If only you knew, Mister Jones, I thought to myself. Me and my grandmother are pretty, pretty far from normal. Instead, I just shrugged. “That’s just the way it’s been all my life.”
“Well, you never have to worry about getting rabies from one then,” Devon quipped.
I let out a laugh. “My own father said the same thing to me years ago.”
“Smart man.”
Gwen stood up from the sofa. “We’ll just be out back so if you need anything, just holler.” She nodded her head to the side and started across the floor. “The bathroom’s just down the hall, Keira, if you want to get changed into your suit. I’ll wait for you in the kitchen.”
“Sure.” I continued along to where she’d indicated, my footsteps making the floorboards creak in a few spots. The place was old but tidy. Handrails had been mounted to the wall of the hallway though.
In the bathroom—again there were signs that things weren’t easy for them. There were grab bars mounted beside the toilet and also in the bathtub. Inside the tub was a stainless steel stool and a shower wand. I quickly shucked my clothes and scrambled into my bathing suit.
When I walked into the kitchen, Gwen was leaning against the counter, a beer in her hand and towel draped over her neck. “Ready? I hope you drink beer. If you’d rather, I have wine too.”
I walked over and lifted the icy bottle of beer. “Beer’s fine.”
“Good.” She started for the door out to the pool, speaking over her shoulder. “So what’d you do today? Anything fun?”
As I followed her out, gazing to the sparkling blue pool a few feet away, I considered what to tell her. Certainly not the truth, that was for sure! “Oh! GM got me a car. It’s a red Miata. It’s got just the sweetest ride.”
She turned and her eyebrows were high. “Just like that? She bought you a car?” She shook her head.
“It’s just a rental. Something to get around while I’m here. Seriously, I’ve got to take you for a ride in it.”
“A Miata.” She stepped right up to me, and looked down. She had to be four, maybe six inches taller than me. “Think I’d fit?” she giggled.
I shot her a cheesy grin. “Well, if not, we can strap you to the luggage rack on the trunk.”
She snorted and we both flopped onto the lounge chairs.
“So how’d you make out at the casino with your dad? He seems like a pretty nice guy, by the way.” I took a long pull at my beer and my eyes opened wider. This was some strong stuff! Way heavier tasting than what I had back home. I glanced at the bottle.
“He is. But then again, I’m kind of biased. He was only down a few bucks when we left, which is a banner night in my books.” She drank slowly and then wiped her lips with the back of her hand.
“Oh yeah? Maybe the next time, I’ll join you. I could be your lucky charm.” With how fast my talents have been growing under GM’s tutelage, I’d probably be ready for the poker table before long.
“Yeah, sure.” She took another pull on her beer and looked at me silently for a couple of seconds, like she was deliberating on something and then she spoke. “You know... in all the time I’ve been doing my job with the mail, I’ve only seen your grandmother and Lawrence a few times. They sure are loners. The only time I’ve seen a visitor there—is some woman who comes up every so often. She answered the door once, when I left a parcel.”
“Did she have blond hair, about my height?”
“Yeah, come to think of it she did.”
“That was my mother.”
“How come you never visited with her before this?” Gwen cupped her beer in two hands, her thumbnail toying with the label.
“I was busy with school, I guess.” But seeing the look of disbelief in her eyes, I knew how weak that sounded. “Actually, to be honest, I never knew she even existed until recently.”
“That’s odd. Why would your mother keep that from you? I knew my grandparents for just a short while before they passed on, but even so I still remember them fondly.”
I looked down at the edge of the pool for a few seconds. There wasn’t much I could add which wouldn’t give away the family secrets. I decided to steer away from this subject. “How about your mom? When did she pass away?”
Gwen’s gaze fell. “Eight years ago. A brain tumor.” A smile flitted across her face. “I swear there are times when I can feel her presence.” She looked at me with a strange expression.
“Oh? How so?”
“This sounds crazy. But it’s happened a few times. I’d be mooning around the house thinking of her, missing her like mad, and then her favorite song would come on the radio.”
I shrugged. “Just coincidence, maybe?”
Gwen scoffed. “Yeah, I thought so the first time. I mean, I was trained as a scientist, right? But when it happened again, I started wondering.”
“Go on...” She was onto something and now I was curious.
Gwen looked aside for a moment, and stared off. “It happens twice a year. On July fourteenth at ten thirty a.m., and October twelfth at three forty-five in the afternoon.”
“You sound pretty sure about those days and times.”
She nodded. “Those dates and times are when I miss her the most.” She turned her head back to me. “My mother was born on July fourteenth at ten thirty in the morning.” She held my eyes, and continued. “And she died at three forty-five in the afternoon on October twelfth.”
“Whoaaaa.”
“Yeah, ‘Whoaaa’. And it’s the same song each time. “Snowbird” by Ann Murray.” Gwen held my eyes. “Yeah, so my house is haunted—just like your grandmother’s.”
I blinked a couple of times. “What?”
“Since I was a kid, your grandmother’s house has had a reputation for being haunted.”
“Really?”
She nodded. “When I was growing up, kids would dare each other to go there on Halloween. We all thought it was haunted.”
I picked at the label on the dark bottle for a beat or two. How much could I tell her without her thinking I was part of the Addam’s Family? I looked over at her. “I can see that. I mean, it’s old and kind of creepy looking, even though it’s kind of a mansion. But I’m not sure it’s all that scary when you live there.” Vague, but at least I didn’t out and out lie.
“What’s really going on over at that house, Keira?”
I put my bottle on the table between us and sighed. GM was right about staying away from the locals. “Okay, I get it now. You’re trying to pump me for gossip
.” I started to get up.
“Hey! No! Wait!” Gwen held out her hands. “Do you think I’ve ever told anyone about my mother’s song on the radio? I’m not looking for gossip, Keira!”
I kept my voice level. “Then what are you looking for?”
She sighed. “Data.” She looked away, then back at me. “No. Not data. Information.”
“Oh! I see! You need a ghost story! Okay!” Before she could stop me I said, “How about this one?” I waggled my eyebrows at her like a circus clown smoking crack. “Well... I’ve run into two ghosts, in my room. The first one, Molly—she’s a clean freak picking up after me—and the second one is a little boy, Sam. He thinks his mother is coming to get him. He also likes playing with my camera. So far, that’s about it!” I smiled brightly. Well, truth’s stranger than fiction, right?
Gwen ran her hand over her head. “You know something? I think you just told me the truth, you know that? You’re trying to make it sound like a bullshit story, but it’s not, is it?”
I kept my mouth closed, watching the wheels turn behind her eyes.
She nodded. “Yep. You just told me the truth. Molly and Sam really happened.” She nodded briskly. “I knew it.”
“Why are you so sure?”
“Because of the light I saw one night at your grandmother’s house, and because of the rose.”
“What are you talking about now?”
“One night, not very long ago actually, I was taking Buster out for a walk. And when I went past your grandmother’s home, I saw an incredible light shining out of the front windows. I never saw anything like it in my life. It was as bright as the sun; as if they were filming a movie inside there or something.” Her eyebrows furrowed. “But it was different than light you see... it... I don’t know how to describe it, it was purer or something.”
I kept silent.
“Now I only saw that the one time.” She held up her finger. “But. There’s something very, very strange about your grandmother’s garden.”
“Oh?” God this girl was good. “What about her garden?”
A Grave Conjuring Page 30
