by Teri Barnett
Chapter 9
“Jimmy? I need to talk to you.” Connor took a step backward as his friend brought the heavy hammer down on a red-hot piece of iron. Sparks flew, singeing his coat. He brushed them off clumsily, but they had already done their damage. “Damn, Jimmy, watch what you’re doing with that thing.”
Jimmy glanced up at Connor and pushed the damp hair away from where it clung to his face. “Thought you wanted to be alone,” he commented, tossing the iron into a bucket of cold water. He left it there until it stopped hissing, then pulled it back out again.
“Uh, no. What gave you that idea?”
“Probably your stomping off to the saloon by yourself. I believe you said something like ‘I don’t need anyone to lecture me.’ Sound familiar?”
Connor shifted uncomfortably. “Hell, Jimmy, you know I don’t mean it.” He looked the other man in the eye. “Why, I actually like it when you tell me what to do.”
“You’re a fool.” Jimmy snorted and tossed down the tongs he was holding. They hit the anvil with a heavy clang. “What the hell do you want?”
“Can we go somewhere private?” Connor asked, looking in the direction of David Wells, the shop owner. He was a big burly man with a penchant for minding other people’s business.
“Sure. Hey, Dave, I’m going to take a break for a minute,” Jimmy called over his shoulder.
David frowned. “Don’t be too long. You got a lot to do today.”
The two men left the building and walked along the sidewalk, the old gray boards creaking under their weight. They paused. Connor leaned back against the wooden railing of the walk. He wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand.
“So, what’s bothering you?” Jimmy asked.
“I’m not sure.”
Jimmy sighed. “How much have you had to drink today?”
“Not nearly enough, I can tell you that. I still remember what she looks like.”
“Elizabeth?”
“No, the angel.”
“Angel? You saw an angel?”
“Yeah. Well, sort of. Last night, she came to me in a dream. I saw her again this morning in my cabin and I saw her a few minutes ago in the alley beside Clem’s.” Connor took a deep breath and looked at his friend. The other man was eyeing him curiously. “I know what you’re thinking, but it wasn’t the liquor. That’s what I thought at first, too, but I don’t think so anymore.”
“No, Connor, I wasn’t thinking that at all. In my father’s culture, people are visited by spirits quite often.”
“Well, that’s why I wanted to talk to you. I figured you’d understand, being Kiowa, that is.”
Jimmy laughed. “I’d think you’d want to talk to the preacher since it was an angel you saw and not a coyote.”
Connor spit over the railing. “You know me better than that. Preacher is more interested in damning me to Hell than helping me.”
“So, did this ‘angel’ speak to you?”
“As a matter of fact, she did. She said she wanted my help, that I was the only one who could help her. She also said something about Elizabeth, but I don’t remember exactly what.”
“Did this spirit have a name?”
He closed his eyes, recalling the golden beauty… “Bethany. That’s it.”
“Hmm. I never heard that name before. Maybe you should come to my house tonight. We’ll have a ceremony to see if we can conjure her up again.” Jimmy straightened and started to walk back to the smithy’s. “What do you say?”
Connor didn’t answer right away. He wasn’t so sure he wanted to see her again, especially if she was an angel of death. “What if she’s coming for my soul? What if it’s time for me to die?”
“You worry a lot about death for someone who hates religion.” He turned and looked Connor in the eye. “When you were Sheriff you faced death all the time?”
“That was different.”
“Why?”
Connor scrubbed his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know.”
“I think you do know Connor. I think you lost something and you have to find it again. Besides, we all have to die sometime, some of us sooner than others. But when we do die, it is the perfect time for us. Do you understand?”
He nodded. “I think so.”
“Good. I’ll see you later tonight.”
Connor raised his arm to wave good-bye. But his hand shook so bad he had to pull it back and hold it tightly against his side. “Damn,” he muttered as he walked back toward his cabin.
“I don’t know if this is such a good idea, Jimmy.” Connor’s eyes were wide as he took in the scene before him. He had stripped down to his pants as directed and now stood still while his friend painted markings on his body. The heat of the fire caused him to sweat profusely and the paint began to run. “It’s hot in here. Can’t we open that tent flap?”
“No. We have to keep the steam in. That’s why it’s called a sweat lodge. You got to ease the poison out of your system. This’ll do you good, considering how much whiskey you drink.”
Jimmy sat and motioned for Connor to do likewise on the opposite side of the low fire. Next, he dipped a gourd of water and poured it on the hot rocks on either side of the flames. The steam quickly filled up the small wigwam, making their eyes water.
“Geez, you’d think you’d get enough of this at the smithy’s.”
Jimmy laughed. “It’s not quite the same, friend. Now, if we’re going to call upon this angel of yours, we need to be in the right frame of mind.” He reached into a small suede pouch he wore around his waist and pulled out some dried plants.
“Got any whiskey in there?” Connor asked. “I sure could use a drink to steady my nerves.
“Your nerves will be fine in a few minutes. Here, take this.” He handed one of the plants to Connor.
Connor raised it to his nose. “Doesn’t smell too good. What is it?”
“Peyote.”
“Peyote? You’re not going to get me to eat it, are you?” He shook his head and handed it back to Jimmy.
Jimmy pressed the peyote back into Connor’s hand. “Put it in your mouth and chew slowly. It tastes a little bitter, but it won’t hurt you. The whiskey you drink is worse for you than these mescal buttons. Don’t you want to find out what this spirit wants?”
Connor eyed his friend, weighing his options. On one hand, he wanted nothing to do with the drug. He’d heard stories about how some people went crazy after chewing the plant. But, on the other hand, he wanted to find out about the angel. He glanced at the button in his hand. He desperately wanted a drink… maybe the peyote wouldn’t be too bad. He hesitantly placed it on his tongue and began to chew, his gaze on his friend. “You too, Jimmy. I’m not going without you.”
Jimmy nodded, placing one of the buttons in his mouth.
“I don’t feel so good,” Connor said after a few moments. “I thought you said this would be all right.” He leaned over, his head dizzy, his stomach churning.
“And it will be. The sickness doesn’t last long.”
Connor started to speak, then stopped. He straightened and held out his hands in front of him. For the first time since Elizabeth left, they didn’t shake. Brilliant colors of red, blue, and yellow emanated from his hands. He waved his arms in the air, forming large swirls and rainbows. Jimmy splashed another gourd of water on the rocks. Out of the steam rose the figure of a woman, ethereal and wispy.
“What do you seek, Spirit Woman?” Jimmy asked.
“I seek Connor Jessup,” she answered.
“Are you here for his soul?”
She laughed, the sound like small brass bells tinkling together. Connor leaned forward, bracing himself for the reply.
“I have no use for only his soul. I need his body, too.”
“What do you want with me?” Connor asked. He reached toward the vision
but his hand passed right through it, and she vanished before she answered. “Where’d she go?”
Jimmy shrugged. “She’ll be back if it’s important. Spirits never rest until they have done what they came to do.”
“She said she wanted all of me. Am I to pass into eternal damnation body and soul?” He reached for the gourd. “Here, give me that. Let’s see if she’ll come back.” Connor poured more water on the stones and, sure enough, the spirit named Bethany returned.
Bethany drifted from the fire toward Connor. He moved away from her. She stared at him and he noticed a blue glow coming from her eyes. He felt a slight pressure, right in the middle of his chest, as if her eyes were pushing at his heart. “What are you doing to me?” he whispered.
“Trying to help you, but I can’t. You need to come to the portal.”
“The portal?” Connor repeated.
“It’s a place between the planes. It’s where I am. It’s where Elizabeth was. Come, Connor Jessup. You needn’t worry.” Bethany started to fade.
“Before you go, Spirit Woman, where is this ‘portal’ of which you speak?” Jimmy asked.
“Between the two straight rocks just outside Devil’s Gate. Please hurry. I’ll lead you the rest of the way.”
Jimmy nodded. “We will come.”
“Thank you,” Bethany murmured as she left.
“What do you mean ‘we will come’? Are you crazy? She wants to take me away.”
“You have to follow the vision in order to understand it,” Jimmy replied. “For now, rest. Sleep awhile. Before sun up, we’ll travel to this place between the rocks to see what lies ahead for you.”
Connor shook his head. “I don’t know about all of this, but I have no choice. She’ll keep plaguing me if I don’t go. If I’m lucky, maybe the angel will tell me what she knows of Elizabeth before sending me to Hell.”
Chapter 10
A coyote howled in the distance, calling to the setting moon. Already, the orb was low in the west while a soft lavender and yellow glow rose in the east. Connor and Jimmy scrambled over the rocky, barren terrain that lay outside Devil’s Gate. Every so often, a prairie dog would scurry past looking for breakfast. Connor laughed as one of the dogs stopped and stared, as if daring him to fight. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a flask. He took a long drink, then put it back.
“For God’s sake, the sun’s not even up yet,” Jimmy commented.
“Doesn’t count.”
“What doesn’t count?”
“I haven’t been to bed. As far as I’m concerned, it’s still night. I can drink all I want.”
Jimmy shook his head. “Somehow your reasoning doesn’t surprise me. You know, if you want to die so badly, why don’t you just use that gun of yours? It’d be a helluva lot faster.”
“I don’t want to die, Jimmy.” Connor stopped walking. He stared hard at the other man. “The whiskey helps to chase the nightmare of Elizabeth’s leaving away. It makes living bearable.”
Jimmy patted him on the shoulder. “I only wish there was another way.”
Connor looked out in the distance. “I think those are the rocks the angel was talking about. What do you think?” About half a mile away, almost to the mountains, were two tall rock formations. The men started walking again.
“Those were the ones I was thinking of when she spoke last night,” Jimmy answered. “I wonder if she’s there.”
“You know, part of me is afraid she will be, but I’m also afraid she won’t. Does that make sense?”
“Yeah. In a way.”
The men continued on through the desert in silence. When they reached the rocks, the sun was over the horizon and could be seen between the two stone towers. Its heat beat down on their faces, partially obscuring their vision.
Then, as if she stepped out of the sun itself, Bethany emerged, surrounded by a golden shimmer of light. It passed through her; the rays bending and casting streaks of color on the desert floor. She walked toward them. Connor and Jimmy took a step backward.
“I’m glad to see you. I wasn’t sure you’d come,” Bethany remarked, stopping about five feet away from the men.
“I want to know about Elizabeth before you take me away,” Connor stated.
“I’m not here to take you away, Connor Jessup. It’s your choice whether you come with me or not.”
Connor eyed the woman. “It is?” He cleared his throat. “I mean, you are an angel, aren’t you? Didn’t you come to take me to Hell?”
Bethany considered him for a moment. “Where is this ‘Hell’ of which you speak? I’m not familiar with this place. Is it another of the planes of existence?”
“Planes of what?”
Jimmy stepped forward. “Let me talk,” he whispered to Connor. Turning to Bethany, he asked, “What is your mission, Spirit Woman?”
Bethany chuckled. Spirit Woman. She liked the moniker and decided to play along. “This Spirit Woman’s mission is to request Connor Jessup’s assistance in the search for my daughter. I believe he has information that will help me.”
“Angels have daughters?” Connor asked, incredulous.
“I’m not an angel.” Bethany glanced over her shoulder. The sun was rising and soon she would disappear in the light. She needed to return to Zachariah’s before being trapped on Earth forever. “I don’t have much time. Will you come to the portal with me? We can discuss my daughter and Elizabeth there.”
She glimpsed the reluctance in Connor’s eyes.
“Please, I must find my daughter. It’s a matter of life and death.”
Connor turned to Jimmy and the two men exchanged a look. Connor turned back to her and blew out a breath. “Show us the way,” he said.
Bethany sighed with relief and passed through the natural entryway formed between the rocks and continued for several feet until she came face to face with a stone wall. She turned to the men. “This is it.”
“This is what?” Connor asked. “It looks like solid rock to me.”
Bethany sighed. “The portal. The place of entry between the planes.”
“Tell me, Angel, what’s this have to do with Elizabeth?”
“I don’t have time to explain everything right now.” She glanced up at the sun again. Looking down at her hand, she could see its definition was fading. “Please let it suffice for the moment to say she was a visitor to my world.” Bethany touched the wall behind her and a slight crack appeared. “Will you come?”
“Why do I have to come with you? Why can’t you talk to me right here?” Connor asked, his eyes narrowed.
Bethany took a deep breath. “Actually, I would prefer to talk to you here. The truth is, though, I’m out of time and can no longer stay on Earth. I have to return to my world. Now. Or be trapped here forever, as this shadow who stands before you.”
As she spoke, the wall of stone began to shift until there was an opening just wide enough to pass through.
“And you say it’s my choice, right?”
Bethany nodded.
Connor turned to Jimmy, gripping his upper arms. “Thank you for everything, Jimmy. You stood by me when no one else did and you helped get me back on my feet. I’ll miss you, my friend. I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again.”
“Eventually we all go to the same place, friend –the lodge of the Great Spirit. I’ll be in the home of the eagles, just look for me.” The two men embraced. “May you find peace and forgiveness, Connor Jessup.”
Connor entered the opening behind Bethany, turning to wave as the rock closed around him.
Chapter 11
“Are we going to Hell or not?”
“I told you, I don’t know about this Hell of yours.” Bethany replied. “Perhaps when you’re done on this plane you can travel there.”
Connor shook his head and glanced around him, awestruck at the mil
lions of criss-crossing lines of light around him.
“What is this place?”
“The light beams show all the planes of existence,” she said. “You’ll have to ask Zachariah if you want more details.”
“Zachariah?”
“Please, Connor. Your questions will be addressed soon enough. In order to cross over to my plane, you have to close your eyes and concentrate. Allow yourself to relax and imagine a bridge stretching from here to that doorway over there.” She pointed to a wall about one hundred feet away. A bright blue haze shone from its center.
“Why can’t I just walk from here to there?” He indicated with his chin. This angel was becoming a real pain in the—
“Because of the planes of existence,” she huffed, interrupting his thought. “You cannot move through them. You have to close your eyes and imagine a bridge and allow your mind to cross it. Then when you open your eyes you will be on the other side.”
Connor looked ahead and saw a faint ripple of blue light in the blackness beyond the grid. “You mean there, where it looks like a waterfall?
“Yes, that’s it exactly. Just concentrate and follow the path.”
He pulled out another flask from his jacket pocket and took several sips.
Everything he’d experienced in the past twenty-four hours was crazier than anything he’d ever encountered in his entire life. Oddly though, he didn’t feel threatened by Bethany. In fact, he trusted her. Something he hadn’t felt since Elizabeth left.
Bethany frowned. “What does that drink do for you? Is your courage in that bottle, Connor Jessup?”
“You have terrible manners, for an angel.” He scowled.
“I do not have the luxury for pretty manners.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “My daughter’s life is at stake.”
Connor scrubbed his hands through his hair. “All right.” He closed his eyes and imagined a bridge. Tentatively he took a few steps and was amazed at the solidity of it. The bridge that his mind had conjured actually held his body weight. Connor flexed his knees, bouncing slightly. The bridge swayed and he teetered, thrown off balance.