by S. L. Baum
Eva collapsed onto the ground and her head rolled to the side. As soon as she closed her eyes, Abe opened his.
“No… no… no… What have you done?” he whispered as he looked down at her body. “I won’t have you do this.”
Abe didn’t stand up. He didn’t attempt to put any distance between himself and Eva. He reached down and grabbed the girl’s limp hand. Eva’s eyes popped open and Abe’s grew heavy again. “I can’t let you do this,” he whispered to her.
“You should have let me. You can’t die,” she breathed.
Abe shook his head. “I’ve lived a wonderful life. I helped raise my niece, her son, and his daughter. If it’s my time then I’m not going to fight it, and I’m certainly not going to allow some forced distance to exist between us. That would be a terrible way to live for just a few years longer.”
“But you’d be alive.”
“Without ever getting to be near you again, and being forced to observe your life from a distance, without any genuine interaction. That’s no life for me. And there’s no guarantee that something else wouldn’t go wrong with this body next year.” Abe gasped as a searing pain entered his body. “It’s coming back for me.”
“But I could have given you a longer life,” Eva cried.
“You added so much to my life. You made it sweeter, brighter, more fun, and sunnier than it ever would have been without you in it. You gave me some of the best years an old guy could have.” Abe struggled for breath; all remnants of strength were fading away. “Don’t ever forget that.”
Eva watched as the light left his body, and then she saw the mist of Death as it carried Abe’s life away. “I love you,” Eva sobbed against his limp body.
When the sobs subsided, and she finally found the strength to stand up, she realized that she’d have to get her uncle back to the house. It would be better if he had breathed his last breath while resting in his favorite reclining chair. She couldn’t leave him by the creek, but there was no way she’d be able to maneuver his body back to the off-road vehicle by herself. She didn’t know what to do.
It was a Saturday afternoon, her parents were states away, Doc had gone to Greenville for a weekend conference, and she knew Pete and Opal were in Woodside so the kids could visit his family. Even Trixie and her parents had left that morning; Tianna had taken a job in Greenville, after finishing her degree, so the family went up there occasionally for an overnight trip to go shopping, have a nice dinner, and stay in one of the hotels. Something inside of Eva didn’t want to call any of those people and disturb their day. The sooner she let someone know, the sooner Mortimer, the town’s mortician, would just take Abe away. He would put her uncle in a box and then lower him into the ground in the far corner of the Cedar Creek cemetery, where many of the other Webbers were buried.
Maybe I’ll wait a while longer, she thought, as she sat back down on the ground and rested her head against Abe’s knee.
She hadn’t truly taken and processed a death, but her body felt tired nonetheless. Even though she fought to keep them open, her eyes closed against her will. Eva fell asleep.
Chapter Fifteen
The crunching of twigs woke her. Daylight was fading, and cold had crept through the thick trees. She lifted her head from where it rested and found that her dreams were wrong. She hadn’t successfully used the power. Abe wasn’t fishing beside her with a contented smile on his face. Death had truly carried her uncle away.
A deer moved through the trees behind her, and Eva turned her head to get a better look at it. Her neck protested and winced in pain; she had been asleep in an awkward position for too long. She rubbed her sore muscles and stood up to stretch out the rest of her aching body.
What time was it?
Eva reached for her phone, but remembered it was on the dock, resting on the top of the tackle box. She looked at Abe’s watch. Five-thirty. She couldn’t put it off any longer. She’d have to call somebody. Abe’s phone was back at the house, attached to the charger, so she reluctantly left him sitting on the log and went to the dock to retrieve hers.
She could call Adeline, she figured, as she stared at the phone screen, so she’d have someone she loved by her side. But part of her wanted to simply call Mortimer and not have to deal with Addy’s attempts at comfort. Mortimer’s truck would never make it out where they were, though. Abe’s body would have to be brought back over the lake in the vehicle they came in. But there was no way she could maneuver him all by herself.
Eva dialed a number and put the phone to her ear. “I need your help. Abe had a heart attack while we were fishing by the campsite. He’s gone. Can you please come out here, now?”
She slipped the phone into her back pocket and returned to where Abe’s body still sat, still resting in the hollowed out log that marked one of his many carefully chosen fishing spots. Eva sat down on the log beside the shell of what had been her great-great uncle and held his hand. Mr. Abraham Webber, a cherished member of Cedar Creek, avid chess player, decedent of one of the original families, hardware store owner, library donator, and beloved uncle, had died. Eva didn’t want to believe the man was truly gone.
“What am I going to do without you? I need my Grumple to laugh with, and tease, and to make me feel loved and special in a way that only you can. Who’s going to stay with me when Mom and Dad need one of their weekends away? Who’s going to tie my shoes, even though I am a grown girl who can do it on my own? Who will I fish with? Who will I tease? Who will ever love my like you do?” She looked at his still form as she talked, tears streaming down her face, barely able to choke out the words. "There is going to be a great big hole in my heart, in our home, in my world. I’m going to miss you so much. Why’d you have to leave now?”
The tears refused to stop flowing. No matter how much she wiped them away, they continued to stream down her face. It felt as though she could have flooded the creek with her tears. By the time he arrived, they were still falling.
“Evie,” he called out as he neared the site.
She stood up and wiped at her face again. “Over here, Trey. We’re over here.”
He ran to her side and wrapped his arms around her. “God, Evie. I’m so sorry. How long have you been out here?”
Eva let his arms envelope her. She was so thankful she remembered he had an extra Saturday practice. Since it was his senior year, and he was a responsible kid, his parents had decided to let him stay home alone on the weekends they went to Greenville during the basketball season. Eva rested her head against his chest and almost collapsed into him as her legs buckled.
“I got you. I got you,” Trey soothed as he rubbed his hand up and down her back. “It’s going to be okay.”
“That’s what everybody says about everything. But it’s not. It’s not going to be okay. He’s gone, and I didn’t save him. I tried to stop it, but, but…” she sobbed.
Trey didn’t know what to say, but he did know that there was nothing she could have done to stop a heart attack. He simply held on to his friend and let her cry.
Eva took a slow breath and attempted to calm herself. It was getting darker with every passing minute. They needed to move Abe and get him over the creek while there was still some natural light. She lifted her head and took a step back. “I need you to help me get him back to the house so I can call Mortimer to come get his body.”
“I can do that.”
They gently adjusted Abe so that Trey could grab him from behind and loop his arms under Abe’s. Eva supported her uncle’s legs and feet while the two teens carried him back to the off-road vehicle. They tenderly placed him into the passenger’s seat.
“Do you want to hold him up while I drive back?” Trey asked. “I haven’t driven over that bridge in this, though, so maybe I should sit back there and hold on to him.”
“I’ll drive us. Just don’t let him slip too far down in the seat. And don’t let him fall.”
Trey maneuvered his long legs and broad shoulders into the small space in
the back of the off road vehicle. It was meant for storage, not people, but Trey balanced as best he could. He brought his arms around the seat and grabbed onto Abe’s body from behind. Once Eva was confident Trey had a good grip, she released her hold and got into the driver’s seat.
“I’ve got him. Don’t worry,” Trey assured her as she guided the vehicle along the bumpy road.
The trip back took much longer than usual. Eva didn’t want Trey to lose his balance, or lose his grip. When they got back to the main house, she parked next to Trey’s ancient, beat-up, big red truck; a payment earned from working on a farm that past summer. Trixie had told Eva that her brother spent most of his spare time working on it with the farmer who’d given it to him. “It’s going to be a beauty, one day,” he’d said the day he brought it home. But the truck was still beat up, the paint looked rusted and it was chipped in some places. It was entirely too large and heavy to have made it across the bridge over the creek, which was why he had run the whole way.
Eva looked at Trey and then hung her head. “I don’t even know the number to the funeral home. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”
“I’ll find the number,” he told her as he untangled himself from the vehicle. He got his phone out of his pocket and looked up the town’s website so he could search the page that listed all businesses and services. “I’m calling right now,” he told her after he pressed the link to the number.
“Thank you,” she whispered as she smoothed the front of Abe’s shirt. He should look nice when they came for him, she thought.
“Hello. This is Trey Tyson. I’m at the Webber Estate with Eva Vita. Abe’s passed… She thinks it was a heart attack… They were down by the creek when it happened, but I helped her bring him back up by the house… No. He was already gone when I got there… We’ll be waiting for you. Thanks.”
“I should call my parents.”
“Do you want me to do it for you?”
Eva shook her head. “No. Thanks, but I should do it myself. Could you stay here while I call them?” She didn’t want to be looking at Abe’s body as she told her parents he was gone.
“Of course I can. Go ahead. I’ll wait here,” Trey told her. He watched her walk away and thought she was braver than he was. She was only a few years younger than him, but he was pretty sure she was much calmer than he would have been if he’d been faced with a death all-alone when he was fourteen.
While Eva was on the phone with her parents, Sheriff Tucker’s vehicle drove down the gravel driveway. When he came over to where Trey was standing, he could see the Sheriff’s eyes had misted over. “Morty called me after he hung up with you. He knew I’d want to be the official on the scene.”
“Guess we should have called the Sheriff’s Department. Didn’t think of that.”
“Nah. It’s fine. You kids did what you thought was right. Is Evie on the phone?” he asked. He could hear her voice but couldn’t see the girl.
Trey nodded. “She’s calling her parents to let them know.”
“You out there with her when it happened?”
“No. She was alone with Abe, they were fishing, and she said he had a heart attack. She called me to help her move him back to the house. I guess she didn’t want anyone else to do it.”
“It’s the stubborn Webber side of her. They always like to do things their own way,” Sheriff Tucker said with a small smile. “I guess you passed your stubbornness down to that girl,” Albert Tucker whispered to Abraham Webber. “But in the best way possible. You’ll be missed. Catch me a big one in that lake in the sky, old friend.”
Eva rounded the corner and saw Sheriff Tucker. “I guess I forgot to call the authorities.”
“Morty called. Nothing to worry about. You talk to your parents?”
“Yes. Daddy called the airlines as I was talking to Momma. They could spend the entire night flying here and there to eventually get to Greenville, or they could wait until first thing in the morning and catch a direct flight. They’re going to wait, otherwise they risk not getting a standby ticket somewhere and they might get stranded.”
“You can’t stay here by yourself tonight,” Sheriff Tucker told her.
“Momma’s calling Addy. She’ll come to stay with me.”
Trey looked at the pain on Eva’s face and he wished he could wash it away. “I’ll stay here until Addy arrives.”
“You don’t have to,” Eva whispered to him.
“I’m staying here,” Trey insisted.
Sheriff Tucker tipped his hat. “Thank you, son. Why don’t you go inside and sit down for a minute, Evie? Mortimer is coming down the drive now and we’ll need to get your uncle all situated to go. I’ll call you out before Morty drives away.”
Eva shook her head. “No. I’m staying right here until they take him away. He’s my uncle, I want to stay with him.”
Trey pulled her closer and she clung to his side as Mortimer’s vehicle came to a stop. Eva let out a small gasp as the stretcher was removed from the vehicle and they rolled it to Abe’s side. Trey hugged her even tighter.
The two men carefully took Abe inside the mortician’s transport and secured his body. He’d be kept in cold storage, Eva knew, until Doctor Baker could see him, until her parents got back to town, and until he was ready to be placed in the ground. She kissed Abe’s cheek before they took him away, and a sob wrenched through her body as the vehicle doors slammed closed. Eva buried her face into Trey’s chest and tried to steady herself.
After Mortimer drove away, Sheriff Tucker came back to where they were standing. “Adeline will be on her way here as soon as Patricia can get over to the motel. Twenty, thirty minutes, tops. She doesn’t like to leave it unattended when new guests have checked in.”
“It’s fine. We’re fine,” Trey told the sheriff.
“I don’t want to leave you two alone,” Sheriff Tucker protested.
“I’m sure we’ll be able to look after ourselves for half an hour. If I were a few years older, I’d probably insist that you leave,” Eva sighed. “I’m not protesting Adeline or anything, I understand that I’m technically too young to be left on my own, and I’ll be happy to have someone to sleep in the house with me, but you don’t need to stay here. Trey and I will be fine until Adeline arrives.
“I’m not saying you can’t look after yourself. It would just be wrong, leaving you teens alone after a loved one has died,” Sheriff Tucker protested. “I’ll stay outside until my sister gets here, and you two can go up into the house. Eva, you look like you need to sit down.”
“Alright,” Eva conceded. “Thank you for looking out for me.”
“Good people deserve good treatment.” Sheriff Tucker gave her a sad smile. Eva hadn’t just lost an uncle; he’d lost a friend.
Trey followed Eva through the side door into her house. They stopped in the kitchen where Eva poured a glass of water for herself. “You want one?”
“Sure. Thanks.”
She hadn’t had anything to eat or drink for hours, and her body was beginning to notice. She gulped down the water and then refilled the glass. Her hands began to tremble and her eyes burred. She set the glass down on the counter with a clang. Eva gripped the side of the counter to stop herself from falling, and Trey came up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her and rocked back and forth with her in his arms.
She spun around to face him and clung to him and cried.
“I feel so bad for you, Evie. I know how much your uncle means to you. He’s a great guy. Everybody loves him. I’m really going to miss seeing him around town.”
Eva took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. Trey hadn’t switched to past tense. She’d noticed, and that meant a lot. It didn’t matter that Abe was gone, her love for him didn’t die just because he had. It had only been a few hours; Abe’s spirit was still a very real, true, and present thing. But the reality was that soon everyone would use the past tense about him, and eventually so would she.
“I can’t imagine my life
without him.”
“I haven’t had to deal with a grandparent dying yet, and my great grandparents passed away before I was born or when I was a baby. You’ve had a few more blows than I’ve had.”
“Everything hurts. Nothing makes sense.”
Trey rubbed her back and rested his chin on the top of her head. “I have a feeling you’ll be that way for a while. There’s nothing I can say that will make it hurt less. But I will say that you always have a friend to talk to if you need it. I don’t care if you need to cry, or yell, or punch something, just call me and I’ll be there for you, whenever you need me. I promise.”
“You don’t need to promise me anything,”
“Eva, you’ve been my little sister’s friend for as long as I can remember. But I’m your friend too; you can count on me.”
“Thanks for coming out here, for helping me with Abe, for staying with me until Addy comes. I don’t really know why I called you, but I’m so glad I did.”
Trey pulled back so he could look Eva in the eyes. “It’s like I just said; you called me because I’m your friend and you can count on me.
“You’re right. That’s exactly why I called.” Eva tried to smile, but she couldn’t hide the pain underneath. “Let’s go into the other room and watch a Hitchcock movie: the one with Jimmy Stewart. Uncle Abe loves those. I’ll feel like my Grumple is in the room with us.”
“Rear Window?”
Eva walked to the living room and Trey followed. “That’s the one. You know your Hitchcock,” she said with appreciation, as she turned on the television, inserted the DVD, and started the movie. “I didn’t know that about you.”
“My grandpa loves those movies too,” he told her.
“How come they never come to Cedar Creek?” Eva asked as she unfolded a blanket and sat down on the couch. “I know Trixie has told me, but I forgot.”
“Grandma is afraid to fly and they live pretty far away, so we go visit them every few years instead.”