by Dale Mayer
Finally, she put down the harp and thought about it. “Maybe it is better to let the colors come first and see what I can design, ignoring the music, then listen to the playback and see how bad it is.”
With that decision, feeling a little silly she let her fingers ripple across the strings, pulling the combinations she already knew would bring forward the specific colors she wanted and let them dance and play in the air in front of her. She gave herself over to the joy of creation and let the colors slip, move, and dance as they seemed to need to do.
Eyes closed, relishing the joy of color, she lost herself in her art.
A long time later, her arms aching, her lower back sore and grumbling from being in the same position for too long, she pulled back and let her fingers slow. The same haunting refrain she’d started with drifted across the room, a ghostly accompaniment to her music. A fitting end. She bowed her head and a shudder rippled down to her toes.
Straightening, she stretched her arms over her head. “Now let’s see how that sounded.”
She lowered her arms and her fingers danced across the keyboard, sending the recording to the beginning. She hit the play button and sat back to listen.
The same haunting refrain filled the room as the first part of the tune played from her laptop’s poor speakers. “Not half bad. Not brilliant, but…”
Then it shifted. The tempo became lively, energized, then skipping faster and faster into a crescendo of joy. In her mind she could see the same colors as she’d originally played them with her music. She sat in wonder for the first time, really being able to focus on the colors, and realized the shades were beautiful, but the music that had created them…was absolutely brilliant.
“Oh my,” she laughed, clapping her hands together. “What would Jacob say?”
“He’d say it was perfect,” said the weird pale ghost she’d seen yesterday. His features were indistinct yet glowing.
She was surprised he was still there. “What’s perfect?” she asked, wondering just what he saw, if anything.
“Both,” he said. “The music and the painting.”
He looked at her in a way that made her think he understood. “And I’d have to agree with Jacob.”
She shook her head. “I don’t understand. How can you see the colors?”
“Why shouldn’t I be able to?”
“Huh? Because you’re dead?”
He hesitated, then murmured in a gentle voice, “Am I?”
And just like that he winked out.
She stared where he’d been in shock. She’d had similar conversations with many ghosts.
Please let that not be Jacob. Her hand instinctively went to the phone in her pocket. She almost didn’t want to call in case he had died. She sat back, her phone in her hand, and remembered she’d had that conversation with Caslo several times as well. But he’d been dead for decades.
Just to be sure she called the hospital. And smiled. Jacob was still fighting the good fight.
Determinedly, she picked up her laptop to listen to the music again when the phone rang. It was her eye doctor. A few minutes later she hung up, wondering if this was good news or bad news. The specialist wanted to see her again. In her office. That part Celina didn’t like as it meant travelling to a new place, and she wasn’t sure what to think about seeing the specialist again. She remembered both the wonderful inner sensation she’d experienced – if that had been Dr. Maddy’s work – but she also remembered the horrific pain.
If the pain had been the result of something the specialist did Celina wanted nothing to do with her. Neither could she forget the threat from her nasty voice in her head. He could make things very ugly for her. She had to get rid of him. But how?
*
Stefan dropped into bed. He’d been grabbing two-hour stints of shut-eye for days now. He needed so much more. Celina was a pressing issue that dominated his thoughts. He was desperate to have her safe and healthy again. Hell, he was just desperate to have her in his life.
Just as he closed his eyes his phone rang.
He glared at the ceiling then realized who was calling. He picked up the phone. “What’s up, Maddy?”
“I have Celina coming for a second appointment tomorrow morning at nine. I think you should be here to see what I see.”
Bolting upright, he hopped off the bed and paced his room. “Is that a good idea? She only knows me as the consultant for the police.”
“And whose fault is that? Do you really want to avoid her or do you want to be able to get to know her on a different level? She needs your help, Stefan.”
He winced. “I’m not sure I’m the person to help her,” he said honestly.
“If you aren’t, I’m not sure who else could. There is a blockage in her head that’s causing her great pain.”
“Is the blockage hers? I’ve seen her walls. She has an impressive self-defense system.”
“Yes and no. There is a foreign feel to it, but I don’t sense another person in there.”
“Hmmm.” He waited but realized there was no other option. Besides, there wasn’t much he wouldn’t do to see her again. “I’ll be there.” And he hung up.
He lay back down and slowly worked the stress out of his system. His mind relaxed. He yawned once, then twice, and rolled over.
And was dropped into a vision. A young mother worked in a kitchen prepping food. Two toddlers ran around her kitchen. One was screaming and one chasing. Within seconds the screams turned to laughter and the two boys reversed roles to run back through the kitchen in reverse.
Stefan studied the image, trying to see his purpose into this window. The woman eased a hand down to rub her lower back. She stood still for a long moment, her head bowed. She appeared to be focusing on her breathing.
The light into the kitchen vision had a dim look as if faded. He’d often understood that to mean a past vision rather than the bright clarity of something happening currently. As he tried to make sense of it the woman reached for a cloth and ran it under the cold water. Wringing it out, she folded it into a square and placed the cloth against her lower back. She gasped several times and a sheen of sweat broke out on her forehead. She collapsed against the sink, the noise of the boys completely dominating the sad, desperate scene. There was black surrounding the region of her liver.
Stefan understood what was coming next. Nothing he could do but watch and try to see the details. He’d tapped into this for a reason, but which one?
The woman reached into her pocket and pulled out a cell phone even as she did a slow slide to the floor, her hand still holding the cloth in place. At least he could now see her face. And the pain that ravaged her gentle features, the gray cast to her skin. Whatever was wrong, it wasn’t new. She’d been ill for a long time. He frowned as she appeared to send out a text. She leaned her head back against the cupboard.
One boy saw her and recognized that something wasn’t right. He ran to her and crawled onto her lap. “Mommy, what’s wrong?”
The other boy came running behind him.
She grabbed them both and held on tight.
Stefan snapped back to his bedroom and closed his eyes as a shudder wrapped around his heart.
He had no way to know what the woman was experiencing except potentially a burning sensation in the lower back. However the vision was just a little too close to one of the files Brandt had given him.
Therefore the odds of her having survived this trauma were not great.
*
Sam sat at the end of the dock near the lake. This was their home now. Brandt and the Carlsons had come to an agreement over the price and the papers had been signed yesterday. She couldn’t believe the difference such a thing made in her life. She felt grounded here. Needed, but at rest.
Now if only the weird visions would ease up. She sat, head tilted to the afternoon sun, Soldier and Moses at her side.
And screamed.
No warning. From one instant to the next her lower back caught fire and unbeara
ble heat slammed into her right side. She cried, her eyes open, staring out over the cool water but couldn’t explain it. Any of it. Soldier jumped to his feet, a low, deep growl in the back of his throat. He walked closer and nudged her gently with his muzzle.
She managed to reach out a hand and hold onto his huge head. She gasped as the heat built higher, hotter, stronger… and then just like that – it stopped.
She shuddered and burrowed her face into Soldier’s neck.
Another one. Another insight into someone else’s pain… Another person suffering with Sam being unable to help.
Then she burst into tears.
*
Yes! It was working. He was gaining strength every day. He had no idea how far and wide he’d been spread, but pulling the plug on a few of the more major ones had helped a lot. His recovery was almost immediate after each session, and that made it so much easier to keep his focus. He didn’t want to take all the pathways out, but given that he could think so much clearer it made this a doable option. And he had only so many that he could control. Most were only little bits and pieces and he could sense them out there in a fog, but it wasn’t enough to grab onto and do something with.
And he wanted to do something. If this was his current existence, he wanted to be in control.
Not the other way around.
*
Jacob sat as still as a ghost and almost laughed at his own joke. There was nothing funny about this situation. As far as he could figure out his body was in a coma and he was lost outside. He’d been worrying about how to get back ever since he’d first recognized what had happened. He couldn’t be dead because the machines at his bedside continued to beep and nurses came and went on a regular basis. There were also a few regular visitors.
His brother had popped in to glare down at his still form, and if he hadn’t seen the fists clenched Jacob would have assumed his brother was angry. Instead, he’d taken it to mean that his brother was frustrated at his inability to help Jacob. And that would fit. His big brother had been looking after him for eons. This wasn’t going to be easy on him either.
His mom had been a mainstay at his side, and that had brought nonexistent tears to his eyes. He’d been a trial for her for a long time. That she still came was a sign of something he just now understood.
Real love. Love that went beyond the physical. Love that went beyond the relationships he’d experienced thus far in his life. He’d loved his mother, but like so many families they’d all drifted apart. He was saddened by that now. She hadn’t heard from him in weeks, and as he cast his mind back he realized it was really months. Many months.
He winced. Why was that? He loved her. Loved to spend time with her, so where had all the time gone? He stared around the large room and wondered at the other coma patients in there. There were three others. But he didn’t see them wandering the halls like he was. Or if they were, they were at a different vibration or something. He’d heard something like that mentioned before but had thought it was all hogwash.
He wanted to see that young woman who’d popped up and scared him shitless, then disappeared as if the joke was on him. And there was no doubt about that. Her name was Lissa, she’d said. But he’d been too freaked out to talk to her. She’d been like seriously see-through. What was with that? What was with the change in scenery?
Then she’d disappeared – as in poofed into a puff of smoke – and had taken the whole outdoor garden scene with her.
He closed his eyes and leaned back, the seat rest poking through his head.
This was the most incredibly scary, most horrifying experience he’d ever been through.
And now the loneliest.
And there she was again.
“Ha. I thought you wanted to stay isolated in your little world, so I left you alone.” Lissa gave him an impish grin. “How about now?”
Chapter 13
Celina dressed carefully the next day. She had a long morning ahead. The changing seasons were both a blessing and a curse. The morning temperature in no way matched the afternoon temperature, and it was easy to freeze or boil out there. She’d heard the forecaster calling for sun but hadn’t been able to feel any heat in the rays coming through the window. Maybe he’d meant later as in much later. She’d be home by then.
Collecting her purse and phone, she took the stairs down to the main floor hoping the cab would be waiting for her. Thankfully it was. The driver hopped out and came around to open the door for her. She thanked him and gave him the address to The Haven, where Dr. Maddy’s office resided.
Surprise in his voice, he said, “No problem. That’s quite the place. I sure hope you’re going to see Dr. Maddy. If anyone can help you it will be her.”
“Really?” How odd that he’d mention the one specialist she was going to see. “That is who I’m going to see, but I hadn’t realized she was that well-known.”
“Oh, she is!” The cabbie laughed. “She’s got magic fingers. My brother’s boy was badly broken up after a major accident. Docs said he’d never walk again and likely never be able to use his arms after all those breaks, but she got a hold of him and that’s what she did – pure magic.” He shook his head. “My nephew walks and plays video games now. He’s never going to be a running back for his school, but he’s planning on heading back up the mountain this winter to learn snowboarding.”
The admiration in his voice surprised her. Celina had no idea the specialist had such a reputation. It did make her feel better about going to see her.
Maybe Dr. Maddy could help her after all.
Too bad she couldn’t help her with the ghost problem.
At The Haven the cabbie parked and opened her door, then walked her inside and straight to the wall of elevators. He asked, “Are you okay from here?”
“I’m fine. Thank you for being so kind.”
“Hey, I’m happy to bring anyone here. Are you sure you don’t need me to wait?”
“I do need a ride home, but I don’t know how long I’ll be.”
A business card was pressed into her hand. “No problem. Give me a call when you’re done. I should be able to get back in time to pick you up.”
She paid him and with a smile stepped into the elevator.
“I’ve punched the button for Maddy’s floor. You’re alone in here, so stay on until you get to the right floor.” And then the elevator doors closed and he was gone.
She mused about the kindness of some people. Many cab drivers wouldn’t have left their vehicle. This one had escorted her into the elevator. A nice man. The elevator went straight up. She listened to the computer voice count off the floors until it stopped. She laughed when the elevator computer said, “Maddy’s Floor.”
“Someone has a sense of humor,” she said under her breath as she stepped out.
Using her stick she took several steps forward, expecting to hear the sounds of an office. Someone on a keyboard and someone else on a phone. There was only a gentle breeze blowing at her from the right. She turned in that direction, wondering about the strong wind when she sensed something else.
She stopped. Her head turned to the left and her nostrils flared. Her heart slammed against her ribs. She hadn’t seen him since her weird lucid dream. And yet here he was. His presence felt right. And that just meant she was losing it. She said, “Stefan Kronos?”
And felt his surprise. She grinned.
“Yes. You have great instincts,” he said.
“And you have a great aftershave.” One she hadn’t thought she’d smell again. Still, he’d made such an impression on her she willed his effect to be less strong today. And couldn’t. This man, whoever he was, commanded the space around him. She’d love to be able to see him in reality. She wasn’t into fantasy men, but dreaming about gorgeous males, at least gorgeous according to Jillian, had to be good for her heart and soul.
Surely.
“You here to see Dr. Maddy?”
“Yes, but as this is my first visit I’m not at all sure whe
re to go,” she confessed.
“Then let me help you.” He picked up her hand, tucked it into the crook of his arm and led her forward. “Maddy’s office is right here.”
“She might not be ready to see me,” Celina warned. “Isn’t there a dragon secretary guarding the door?”
“No dragons here.” he said.
A booming laugh broke out of him and she had to smile. What was it about this man that made him so comfortable to be around and so familiar, yet so unique and so… right?
She didn’t take to strangers. And that’s where this situation deviated. He was no stranger. She just didn’t understand why not.
*
Stefan walked Celina down the hallway toward Dr. Maddy’s inner office. He loved this place. The ambience was hushed with love and healing. Surely no one could miss the extraordinary atmosphere. He watched Celina lift her head slightly and relax a little with each step. Her smile loosened, and when she took a deep breath and released it slowly he knew she was accepting the benefits of being surrounded by strong healing vibes. He liked to visit to get his fix too. The wing at the children’s hospital was the same. Both places functioned like a micro ecosystem for healing. Each location required a tremendous amount of energy to maintain, although as the people healed they in turn added that positive healing energy back in. Each new patient had to go through a specific regime to get in. And each place could only accept so many at once. The energy level needed to be raised to accept the new lower-vibration additions so that the energy of the whole area balanced out in such a way to remain equalized for the other patients.