Straightening up again, he said: “I call this place heaven. It’s truly like heaven on earth. As you probably noticed already from your drive through Sogog and then here, it’s unlike most towns you come across. Agree?”
The Cullens all nodded in agreement.
“My boss spoke very highly of you, Doctor Whitmore, and of Matthew Town, so we couldn’t wait to get here,” Wade said. “I admit, all of us can use a break from our daily hustle and bustle.”
“Even the kids?” He arched a brow.
“Even the kids.” Mira smiled.
“Well, you’re definitely in the right place. I understand you’ll be exploring the caves and lakesides today?”
“That’s the plan,” Wade replied.
“Well, let’s get little Rosie here all sorted out. I don’t wanna keep you from all that good stuff. Right, Rosie?”
“Right!” Rosie nodded quickly.
Dr. Whitmore, along with Nurse Susan Vladimir, took care of Rosie and made sure the proper tests were underway.
“So far, so good,” he said a half hour later. We’ll get the results of the others by tomorrow. Just wanna be sure, huh?”
“Yes,” Mira answered appreciatively.
“Perhaps you all can join my wife and me for dinner before you leave Matthew Town?” Whitmore proposed, as he walked the Cullens to the main door.
“Sure, that would be nice, doctor,” Wade replied.
“Perfect! We’ll be in touch, but I’ll call you tomorrow when the results have come in.”
“Thank you, sir,” Mira said. “You have been very kind.”
“My pleasure, young lady. Have a good time today and drive carefully.”
Wade told his family to go on. He wanted to have a word with Dr. Whitmore.
“Ah, doctor, I… I heard about the loss of your brother and his family. I want to extend my deepest condolences to you on behalf of myself and my family. I’m really sorry.”
“I appreciate that, Wade. Unfortunately, my brother, Don, was a bit unhinged for several years and had a problem putting down the bottle. I can’t imagine though what could have possessed him to do what he did to his own family.” He shook his head.
“So, it’s been confirmed that it was a murder-suicide?”
“Not officially, but from what I gathered, the autopsy results are in and they’ll be wrapping things up soon.”
Wade was momentarily at a loss for words.
“Anyway,” Whitmore patted his back. “You’d better be on your way. Time flies when you’re having fun and there’s only so many hours in a day.”
After leaving the clinic, Wade drove down to Bonita Lake Park which was adjacent to the famous Cliff Caves. A few food vendors were scattered throughout the area, providing mostly hot dogs, burgers, chips and cold, refreshing drinks for sale. The Cullens sat on lush, green grass at the lakeside absorbing the surreal view of the still waters and inhaling the delectable fragrance of the fresh air they all knew, even subconsciously, must be perfect for the lungs.
“This feels like heaven,” Norma said, leaning on her husband’s shoulders. “Looks like the good, old doctor was right.”
Mira and Sara were strolling along the smooth dirt path, and Rosie and Tommy were further up ahead of them playing around and tossing pebbles into the lake.
“I have to agree,” Wade replied. “In spite of everything that happened thus far, I must say this is a great climax.”
Norma looked at him suspiciously. “Climax? You sure that’s the word you wanna use?”
He kissed her hand. “You wanna go in the caves? We can get busy in one of ‘em for sure.”
“Stop it!” She giggled, leaning her head on his strong shoulder again.
They spent the better part of the day at the lake park and exploring the caves. Old artifacts were left in different locations throughout the dark cavities and a park rep trailed a distance behind visitors to ensure that the town’s prized artifacts were protected.
8
_________________
The second night
The air-conditioning in Mira, Sara and Rosie’s room was piping since the outside humidity from around five that evening was beginning to become a bit unbearable indoors. The heart of summer in Matthew Town was no joke, according to residents the Cullens had bumped into earlier that day. When temperatures rose to the early nineties and high eighties overnight, you either stayed cool or barely slept a wink.
The first day of the Cullens’ visit was not nearly as humid, nor was the better part of the second day -- but that night was another story.
Around 3:00 am, Mira was fast asleep lying on her left side when a thick, black blob slowly and meticulously stretched itself out to about six feet in length and leaned over to her. It loudly whispered: “They will pay!” And in a split second, everything died — just like the night before.
Mira was the first one awake as the words she heard had jolted her from a dream.
“Not again!” Sara muttered, turning over. “What on earth is wrong with this place?”
“Thankfully, the room is still a bit cool from the air-conditioning,” Mira replied, getting out of bed. She went over to the curtain and slid it back a little. Looking outside, she could tell it was another town-wide power outage like the night before, and again, the generator had not clicked in.
“You think they lied to us about the generator coming on all those times before?” Sara posed.
“Don’t know.” Still looking out, Mira noticed something in the distance. “My goodness, what’s that?”
Sara got up and joined her at the sliding door. Her eyes widened with shock. “Oh, no! The bridge… it’s collapsing… and cars are on it!” She cried, wanting to disbelieve her own eyes.
Mira ran and grabbed her cell, and quickly punched in Wade’s number on speed dial.
“Wade, are you awake?”
“Yeah. What’s up, other than a repeat performance of last night?” he replied.
“Look outside your window.”
He remained on the phone as he went to take a look. Mira heard him utter an expletive that she had never heard him use before and he was urging Norma to see the devastation unfold as well.
“Mira, call 911! I’m gonna go down there and see if there’s anything I can do.”
“I’m coming with you,” she said.
They both hung up and Mira quickly threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. She heard a knock at the door two minutes later.
“Ready?” Wade asked.
She nodded. “Let’s go.”
“You two be careful out there!” Sara warned, as quietly as she could, not wanting to wake Rosie.
* * *
The scene where the bridge collapsed was completely congested with emergency vehicles and police cars with spinning hood-top red and blue lights. Wade and Mira sat in traffic unable to get anywhere near the scene.
“Dammit!” Wade slammed his hand on the steering wheel.
“What can we do?” Mira asked.
Wade looked out, scanning the area where all the commotion was happening. They were so close, yet so far. “Maybe if I got out and hopped over the guard rail, I can make it close enough to offer my assistance if they need it. I see we’re not gonna get anywhere near there in this car.”
“You’re right,” Mira agreed. “You go ahead, and I’ll try to find a spot up further to park, then join you.”
“Okay, Sis.” He got out of the van, crossed the busy street and leapt over the guard rail. Mira was on her way to the driver’s side and watched as her brother jogged toward the disaster area. She could see the cars and small trucks floating in the water beneath the bridge and heard deafening cries of people either trapped in their vehicles or in the water itself – sounds that made the very hairs on the nape of her neck stand up. Sitting in the van, stuck in traffic, made her feel terribly helpless.
“Come on! Come on!” She yelled. “What’s going on up there?”
Finally, the traffic was movi
ng again, although pretty much at a crawl. And as the van rolled along, Mira found herself gazing at a young woman standing near the rails on the same side of the bridge. Her eyes were glued to her as she passed by, and hers to Mira. Suddenly, Mira slammed the brakes after nearly rear-ending the car in front. It was then she remembered the words she had heard in her ear before the power went out: They will pay! At that point, she realized it was all connected — the power outages, the collapse of the bridge, even the peculiar infestation of flies the night before. Mira knew there was something different about this young woman, as opposed to the others who sometimes accompanied her. But the mystery was “what”.
“I have to get over there!”
She muttered, turning the steering wheel hard to the right and mounting the sidewalk. She could only hope it didn’t get towed while she was gone.
Mira dashed out of the van, crossed the busy street, and followed the path Wade had taken toward the bridge. It was at least two hundred yards away and running on the rough surface would be a bit challenging, but she was going to get there, come hell or high water.
Finally, when she had arrived, she could see Wade had been let through and he was doing CPR on someone who was soaked to the bone. There were several other people being tended to on the shore and others taken in ambulances, but to her dread, there were also a few bodies floating in the water. They were being fished out, one by one, by the fire crew.
Mira approached a uniformed police officer behind several lined off barricades. “Please let me help! I’m a doctor.” She handed him her ID, which he, in turn, closely inspected with his flashlight.
“Is it legit?” An inspector nearby asked.
“Yes, sir. It appears to be.”
“Then, let her through! We need all the help we can get!”
Mira and Wade, along with other city workers and volunteers, spent practically hours trying to save as many lives as they could. Many critically injured persons had been air-lifted to the main city hospital miles away. In the end, more were lost than saved and with extreme exhaustion and maddening depression, Mira and Wade left the scene and headed back to the van. By then, it was daybreak.
* * *
Everyone could see the look of defeat on their faces when Wade and Mira walked in.
Mira went straight to the bathroom and locked the door. With the faces of all those lost still imprinted in her mind, she stood in front of the mirror and wept bitterly.
Rosie started to the bathroom behind her, but Sara stopped her. “Give her some time, Pumpkin. She just needs a few minutes to herself.”
Wade sat at the edge of the bed with his face in his hands. Norma and Tommy went over to him and tried their best to console him.
“You both did your best, honey,” Sara said to him. “I’m sure you couldn’t save everyone. No one can.”
He looked up and shook his head. “Mom, if you had seen the devastation we saw…”
Sara went over and sat on the other side. “I can only imagine. We watched some of it on TV a little while ago after the power came back on. We saw you and Mira working so hard, doing all that you could.”
“Yeah, but it wasn’t enough,” he said.
“The important thing is, you both did all you could— in fact, everyone out there who tried to help. But like I said, you can’t help them all. Take comfort in knowing you did your best.”
“She’s right, darling,” Norma said.
“Yeah, Dad,” Tommy seconded.
Mira leaned over the faucet to wash her face, trying her hardest to restrain the tears that kept flowing. With eyes closed, she grabbed a towel from the rack and dried her face. Then behind her, through the mirror, she saw the same young woman who had stood near the bridge. On turning, Mira noticed that the boy and the older woman were there too.
“What do you want?” Mira asked quietly.
They stood there silently; the intensity of their gaze frightened her. “Were you responsible for what happened on that bridge?”
The boy tilted his head innocently to the side. “Help us,” he pleaded.
“Help you do what? You have to tell me!” Mira was perturbed.
“They know,” the older woman spoke. “They all know.”
Their bodies crumpled like sand on the floor into three distinct piles. Mira stooped down and swept her finger across one of the heaps, then watched as letters were carefully carved out of the sand: B… L… A… C… K. She was able to view it for a second before every trace of sand vanished into the tiled floor. Mira understood it was their way of guiding her, but she had no idea what the word stood for. Black? She thought. It’s a color. What connection could they have to the color black?
The second she walked out of the bathroom, Rosie flew into her arms. “Have you been crying?” she asked her mother with a grave look of concern on her face.
Mira shook her head. “No, honey. I haven’t been crying. I’m fine.”
Everyone could tell she was lying. It was Mira being the strong, composed one again, who never wore her emotions on her sleeve.
She went over to the sliding door again, looking at remnants that used to be the town’s bridge. It was broken in half and one part still stood highly elevated, while the other side was almost non-existent. Some work crews were still out there, but mostly police officers and vehicles to transport bodies to the morgue.
“Are you all right, honey?” Sara approached her.
“Yes, I’m fine.” Mira cleared her throat. She kept looking straight ahead.
9
_________________
As they were having lunch at Old Joe’s, Wade’s cell went off and he quickly answered it. Within moments, everyone assumed it was Whitmore he was speaking to who had also been out there at the scene earlier that morning, helping out as much as he could.
“Okay,” Wade said. “Friday would be fine; it’s our last day. I know you have your hands tied right now.”
He told the doctor to hold the line and handed Mira the phone.
“For me?” she whispered across the table.
Wade gave her an affirming nod.
“That’s really great news,” Mira said to Whitmore shortly thereafter. “Thanks so much.” She gave Wade his cell back.
“What did he say?” Sara asked.
“He said that your Pumpkin’s tests came back all clear.” She landed a kiss on Rosie’s forehead. “So, she’s in top shape just as I knew she was.”
“Excellent!” Wade said, pinching Rosie’s nose.
“Uncle Wade, I can’t breathe!” Rosie squealed in jest.
Everyone laughed heartily, and Tommy much more loudly than the others.
Although the atmosphere in town was undeniably bleak, the Cullens got in as much sight-seeing as possible before having to return to the hotel. Wade and Mira also wanted to get their minds, as much as possible, off the tragedy the little town would now have to declare as part of their history.
On their way back to the Marietta, they took a little detour through some of the more residential areas. Most of the houses were fairly simple in design, but the yards were beautifully landscaped – all, except for one that they came across. This particular single-story dwelling was overgrown with weeds and shrubbery, and the place appeared to be abandoned.
Mira's curiosity of the property was piqued to the extent that she asked Wade to pull over to the side.
After getting out, she slowly walked through the front yard, and stopped in front of the porch.
“What is it?” Wade shouted to her, still at the wheel.
Mira stepped on to the porch and stopped again at the front door. There, a multitude of raw, painful emotions overcame her. She struggled to compose herself, wiping a tear that had suddenly escaped her left eye. With sheer will power, she pulled herself away emotionally and ran back to the van.
“Let’s go!” She said, fastening her seat belt.
“What was that all about?” Sara asked.
“They all died in there,” Rosie
said softly.
“Mira, what is Rosie talking about?” Norma asked.
“I can’t talk about it right now. We need to get back to the hotel.”
“Do you want us to just cut our losses and leave this town?” Wade suggested. “There’s really too many things going on here. It’s probably best we leave.”
“We can’t leave yet,” Mira insisted. “If we do, what’s been started won’t stop until they’re all dead.”
“What?” Sara was shocked by the partial revelation.
“Mom’s right,” Rosie said despondently. “We can’t leave yet. They need us.”
No one dared to pose another question, and were silent during the remainder of the drive.
Walking through the foyer toward the elevator, Mira noticed the manager chatting at the counter with a young man.
“I’ll meet you guys upstairs,” she said, making her way over to Reception.
“Why, hello, Miss Cullen… Doctor Cullen. How are you today?” Doris said, giving Mira her full attention. “I must apologize, yet again, for the electricity matter last night. I don’t know what’s going on, to be quite honest with you. But I’ve spoken to my superior and we’ve decided, because of all the inconvenience and trouble you’ve endured since coming here, to credit your charge card every penny you’ve paid for both rooms. And you get to spend the remainder of your time here for free! How’s that?”
The entire time Doris was speaking, Mira could barely keep her eyes off the surname imprinted on the woman’s name tag, which was Black.
Could this be the meaning of the ghostly scribble in sand?
“Sounds good; thanks,” Mira replied. “Look, can I speak to you privately for a sec?”
“Privately? Sure.” Doris stepped from behind the counter, wondering what this could possibly be about.
The ladies went off to the side.
“Yes, Miss Cullen?”
Mira sighed, somewhat nervously. “Doris, what I’m about to ask you might seem rather odd, but I have to ask anyway.”
We See No Evil (The Cornelius Saga Book 4) Page 5