The Tree and the Tablet (The St. James Chronicles Book 1)

by Kathryn O'Brien

  Trying to appear as if nothing had happened, as if I hadn’t just wiped tears and snot on his shirt but knowing that my face was now bright red and splotchy from crying, I smiled anyway. Giggling, I shyly let my gaze roam over his face settling on his eyes, “Ummm, Sorry about all that”— I waved toward...well, everything — “How about some coffee?”

  The tree shook and then I heard Andrea’s voice saying in a most exasperated tone, “Dammit, Jaxon, I know you can't really control it but please stop pooping on me!”

  Daniel and I turned to see the little robin dancing around trying to avoid moving branches while chirping loudly. There was a long stream of robin poop dribbled down across the top of the face in the tree. Daniel and I looked back at each other, our eyebrows both raised and realizing the hilarity of what had just happened, we both started laughing so hard we were holding our sides from it. Every time we thought we were done we’d turn to look at the tree and start laughing again. All the while, Andrea was saying, “Oh, ha, ha! Very funny!” And “If you two are done laughing it up, can one of you please get something to clean this off?”

  We were finally able to gain our composure long enough to breathe regularly. Daniel, having noticed the hose laying on the ground near the tree with a nozzle attached, lifted it up asking, “Is this thing on?” At my nod to the affirmative—I was still having trouble talking without wanting to laugh—he sprayed Andrea square in the face.

  She sputtered and coughed. The visual display of the bird poop now running from the top of her face into the area of her mouth made us start chuckle again. Convulsions coursed through my body and I grabbed my side where a stitch had started to ache from the extended hilarity.

  We both heard Peanut barking in the living room which alerted us that someone was in the driveway. The humor left my face and I looked at the tree. “Not a word! Do you hear me?” The face quickly vanished to be replaced with the appearance of a simple knot in the tree.

  Daniel glanced over at me, one eyebrow raised in a silent question. Jumping up on the deck, walking toward the door, I checked my reflection in the glass of the door. Noticing he wasn't following, I turned to him and waved to him to come along, slightly breathless, “It’s Kelsey,” and I ran into the house just as the front door opened.

  “Hello? Aunt Maggie?”

  Chapter Twelve

  Stepping into the dining room, “I’m here.” She ran toward me and I dropped to my knees to hug her close to me.

  She hugged me tightly in return. “I missed you.”

  Leaning back to see her face better, I smiled, pushing a stray lock of hair from her face and curling it around her ear, “I missed you, too.” Such a difference in her tone. I searched her face to try and figure out what caused the sudden change in attitude.

  Not even noticing that we were joined by a strange man or that anyone else was in the room, Kelsey continued in a hushed voice, “I dreamed about mommy and daddy last night. I couldn’t wait to get home to talk to you because I wanted to tell you that I love you, just like mommy said I should.” She jumped into my arms again and giggled, then pulled back to touch my face.

  Watching her little chipmunk face, so beautiful and full of life. Her deep dimples seemed to shine with her exuberant grin. “I love you, too, precious girl.” Still holding her close in my arms, I booped her nose with my finger and we both giggled.

  She suddenly pulled back from me and said, looking over my shoulder, “Hi. Are you Daniel?” As I turned slightly to be able to see him, he nodded and smiled at her. She calmly replied in the most mature voice, “Mommy told me about you in my dream. You're here to help.”

  He cocked his head to one side and knelt down to her level. With the warmest look on his face, his deep voice replied, “Yes, Kelsey. I’m here to help.”

  Stepping to my side, she reached out her hand in an offer of a handshake. He took her hand, shaking it gently. “Nice to meet you, Daniel. Didn’t I see you on the airplane?”

  He chuckled and his eyebrows lifted, “Well, Miss Kelsey, it is my pleasure to meet you as well.”

  Noting how observant children are, I also realized that Daniel opted not to answer Kelsey’s question about the airplane. She didn’t press the issue though, but I would definitely be asking about that later. Briefly, I was curious about the fact that she only recognized him from the flight to Denver and asked slightly confused, “Haven’t you two met before?”

  Kelsey turned her attention back to me, “Nope. Well, we met on the plane but I didn’t know his name. I saw a picture of him one time, but he looked a lot different, he was really little, and he and daddy were playing soccer in the picture so I didn’t see his face. Daddy talked about him before, but Daniel never came to our house before.” She shrugged her shoulders, cocking her head to one side thoughtfully.

  A broad grin spread across her lips as she looked back to the front door where David stood. “I’m going to go put my stuff away.” With that, she turned and walked down the hallway toward her room grabbing her backpack from the floor on her way.

  David stepped into the doorway with a concerned expression, “Sherri’s waiting in the car with the kids for the signal to go down to the ramp.”

  Standing, I introduced the two men, “Dave, this is Daniel. He’s an old friend of Jaxon’s.”

  Daniel stepped forward and shook Dave’s hand, Nice to meet you, Daniel.” He turned to me, “I’ll just go down and get the boat. Can you let Sherri know I’m on my way?”

  Nodding, my head, “Sure thing.” David stepped out onto the deck, “Hey, nice tree.”

  Replying softly, “Thanks.” He shut the door and walked toward the boathouse. Daniel still stood close by and I could feel his eyes on me. Heading toward the front door, I motioned toward the kitchen and said, “I’m just going to go talk to Sherri for a minute. Have a seat, I’ll be right back,” and walked out the door.

  Stepping out onto the front porch, I walked steadily toward Sherri’s inquisitive gaze. Reaching the open window of the SUV, her voice dripped with curiosity as she tried to see through my front window, “Who’s that? He looks cute.” Looking past my shoulder to the red pickup, her eyes twinkled, “Nice truck. You know what they say about guys with big trucks.” It was a statement, not a question.

  “Stop.” Chuckling softly at her teasing, I reminded her, “You know I don’t know what that means. My experience with men is limited. Remember?” Knowing her for as long as I did, I was only mildly embarrassed by her innuendos. “That’s Daniel BlackFeather, a friend of Jaxon’s.”

  Her brows drew together, “What’s he doing here?”

  For some reason, I lied, “He’s the trustee for Kelsey’s inheritance.” Well, that part was true. “He came to talk about things and see if there was anything we needed.” That was a lie. I took a deep breath to calm myself so I wouldn’t blush. Since I was a child, I’d struggled with my inability to lie without it showing on my face.

  She nodded. “He’s cute.”

  “Yeah, I guess so.” Another lie. Either I’m getting good at lying or Sherri is being purposefully obtuse. Choosing to take that moment to change the subject, I stated, “Dave is down at the boathouse and said he’ll see you in a few.”

  The boys were starting to get louder and more rambunctious in the back seat. Sherri made eye contact with them in the rear-view mirror, “You boys settle down. I’m trying to talk to Maggie.” They immediately complied. Leaning out the window, she threw her arm around me and hugged me close. “Well, I’d better go. I don’t want to keep you from your company. I love you, girl.”

  Reaching into the open window, I returned the squeeze and replied, “Thanks for everything. I love you, too.” Leaning back, I waited for her to drive away.

  The boys waved and laughed, shouting in a long drawn out way, “Bye, Maggie!” in unison.

  Chuckling, softly, I waved at the boys, “Bye, Boys!”

  Sherri shrugged her shoulders in a devil may care attitude and laughed with the silly boys as
she put the car in gear and headed toward the pull-out. As I closed the front door, I couldn’t help but grin at their antics while shaking my head ruefully.

  Stopping in the hallway, I called out, “Kelsey? Honey, are you hungry?”

  She yelled from her bedroom, “No. I ate at Sherri’s. I’m sleepy though, is it alright if I lay down with a book?”

  Not knowing what to say, I thought, why not? “Okay, let me know if you need anything.”

  A faint, “Okay,” drifted down the hallway and I knew she was probably pretty close to falling asleep. She was always sleepy after spending time with the boys. She ran like crazy trying to keep up with all of them.

  Turning toward the kitchen, Daniel was standing next to the coffee maker with a cup in his hand. Smiling roguishly at me, “I took the liberty of making coffee. I hope you don’t mind.” He pulled out a second cup and asked, “How do you take it?”

  Watching him pour the hot liquid into the mugs, I wondered briefly what I was doing but then decided that a cup of coffee might put things into perspective. “Just some creamer from the fridge will be fine.” He pulled the creamer out and started to pour it into the coffee, glancing over at me, I moved my hand in the air in the way you would to show him to keep going. Finally, I said, “That’s good.”

  He laughed this deep booming laugh that was so rich, I couldn’t help but be reminded of the bird poop. He placed the creamer back in the fridge and coming to sit next to me at the kitchen island, placed my cup in front of me. We sat silently enjoying our drinks. Unable to hold my tongue any longer, I turned toward him and said, “Why didn’t you say anything to me on the plane?”

  He set his cup down and looked up at me sheepishly, “Andrea didn’t want me to get involved unless it looked like you were in trouble.”

  Taking a deep breath, I asked, slightly concerned, “When did she talk to you and why are you here now?”

  Placing his hand on top of mine which was resting next to my cup, he said, “Honestly, Maggie, we thought it was safest for you and Kelsey if I didn’t alarm you in any way. I didn’t know they were going to die.”

  “But then, I still don’t understand why you didn’t say anything on the plane.” My anger was starting to rise again.

  “Jaxon asked me to come to him. We spent a couple days together trying to undo the curse he was under. With the information I had, I came back here to look for more clues on how to help them.” He rifled his hand through his hair. “I knew you were here with Kelsey, but she told me that you didn’t believe in the things she did and we knew that if things weren’t handled in the right way, you might not cooperate. That was before the accident.” His eyes sought my understanding. I stared at him, waiting for more, “I received your photo in an email along with a brief note to watch out for you and Kelsey but not alert you to our past conversations no matter what.”

  “But I don’t understand why?” A tear slipped down my cheek. “I don’t get it. We were so close. She never kept secrets from me.”

  “I can’t answer that. I only know she didn’t want to put you in more danger. Besides, I never thought they would die.” He looked down into his mug and I could see the sadness flit across his face. He looked back up at me with a sober but pained expression.

  However, as I stared at him, I could also see sincerity in his eyes, I couldn’t help but feel he still wasn’t telling me everything though. “I just don’t understand the need for so much secrecy.” Frustrated, I pulled my hand out from under his and made a point to examine my fingers. Looking back up at him, tears started to form in my eyes, “Why didn’t she just trust me? Maybe I could have helped before it was too late?”

  His beautiful green eyes widened in shock and then a deep sympathy reflected back at me. Shaking his head, “Maggie, there was nothing...”.

  Interrupting him, “No! Don’t! You and my sister had no right to keep me in the dark.” Trying hard not to cry, the tears just kept flowing like a dam had burst and a flood was coursing its way down my face, “You don’t know what it’s like to lose everyone you love.” Turning away, I tried to get a handle on my raging emotions.

  “You’re wrong, Maggie.” Peering back at him over my shoulder, a flicker of some faint emotion crossed his face and was just as quickly covered up. As I turned back to look out the window, he continued, “And you still have Kelsey.” Grasping the back of my chair, turning me back toward him, gently, he placed his hand under my chin and raised my head to look in my eyes. “That’s why I’m here.”

  Something in his gaze was reassuring but still mystifying. Steadying myself, I asked, “Why? What’s going on?”

  He took a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair which pulled his hair away from his face to then have it fall forward like a dark, mesmerizing waterfall. It was clear to see he was struggling with how much to tell me. “Why can’t you just tell me what’s going on?” Motioning toward the tree in the backyard, I said, “I think at this point, someone needs to start being honest about what’s really happening here. Don’t you?” Frustration made me grab the pull-cord for the blinds and slam them down to cover the view of the offending reminder of my sister’s conversion into a leafy creature from beyond.

  He sighed, “Maggie, there are forces here at work that are very ancient and powerful. If things aren’t done properly, and the tablet isn't found soon, you and Kelsey won’t be the only ones impacted by this.”

  Even more confused now, I scoffed at him, “Tablet? What tablet?” Of course, the tablet that guy was looking for, but did Daniel know about the letter ‘Drea left for me? He was just looking at me as if I’d lost my mind again, which prompted me to ask, “Are you kidding me? This is a joke, right?”

  He shook his head solemnly. “No, Maggie! This isn’t a joke.” Clearly his frustration was taking control now as it tainted his voice, which made him sound harsh, “Why can’t you let go of your guarded view of what you think the world is and see what’s going on?”

  Irritated by his judgment of my beliefs, I jumped up from my stool and turned on him. Now I was pacing like a caged tiger and feeling the blood pulsing through my veins, I exclaimed, “Listen to yourself. You sound like some stupid made-for-TV science fiction movie. Reality has definitely taken a trip to another universe.” A short burst of maniacal laughter exploded from my lips. Pain struck right between my eyes as if someone had just thrown a large stone at me causing me to look up at the window that was facing the tree. Can this be true? All of this is just too much. As I stood there staring at the shrouded window, a deep sigh was drawn out of me. Leaning forward to brace myself on the countertop, I whispered, “I don’t know how much more I can take of this.”

  A deep growl caused me to look at him again. His eyes flashed like a lightning bolt illuminated them briefly, “This is NOT a joke, Maggie. You need to listen to me. Andrea and Jaxon are gone, and the man who was supposed to be looking for the Tablet has gone missing.”

  As I watched him closely to see if his eyes would do that thing again, “So? What has that got to do with me? Or Kelsey for that matter?”

  Looking at me dumbfounded, “You can’t seriously be that clueless to what’s happening. Andrea told me a little about your childhood and your struggles.” My eyes flew open and I gasped, but he continued, “She told me that even with your experiences, you had a hard time with the possibilities of things beyond our world. I didn’t think you could be faced with facts and still deny what’s right in front of you.” He got up and walked over to the curtain, pulling on the cord to the blind which flew open to reveal the tree outside. “I just didn’t think it would be this difficult for you to let go of your bias with this staring you in the face.” He motioned toward the tree. Returning to sit in the chair next to where I continued to pace, his gaze was level with mine for a moment. In exasperation, he sighed, “Didn't you read the letter she left you?”

  I’d stopped pacing to give him my full attention, “Okay,” I ground out. “What’s really happening?” Rolling
my eyes, sarcasm dripped from my voice as I broke down my view of the situation, “I mean other than some weird amulet thingy has possessed the people I love, brought my sister’s spirit alive in a damn tree and put a robin in my yard in winter.” Glaring at him, “What else could possibly be happening here that I need to be aware of?”

  Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kelsey. She was standing in the hallway with her mouth hanging open. Glaring at Daniel, he looked over my shoulder, and looked toward Kelsey as she stared out the window…. “That’s my Mommy?”

  “Kelsey, honey, it’s not what you think.” Immediately, I tried to move toward her.

  Daniel read the scene and started to get up to walk toward Kelsey. She darted for the door. Glancing over at him and throwing my hands in the air, “Great!” I said as I flew out the door behind Kelsey.

  Daniel was step for step with me. As we reached the tree, the robin flew over and landed on Kelsey’s finger. She walked around the tree. “Mommy?”

  Suddenly the tree shifted, and Andrea said, “Hello, little dove.”

  Kelsey ran over and hugged the tree. “I knew you’d find a way, Mommy.” She cried and hugged the tree.

  My barely contained tears of earlier flowed freely now at the sight of mother and daughter united. The most agonizing sounds were coming from the most precious child I knew, and there was nothing I could do but stand there and watch it happen. It was almost like she was happy and sad at the same time. Absolutely torn in two by what was happening, I just stood there and watched it unfold. Daniel had the good sense to stand by wordlessly as well.

  After a while, Andrea said, “Kelsey, honey, I need you to be brave and to keep this our little secret.”

  Kelsey stood back and asked, “Why?”

  Andrea’s face flickered and shuttered in the tree bark. “Honey, if you tell anyone, then they may think you’re sick and take you away or think that I’m bad and dig me up and take me away. Do you understand?”