by Susan Conley
“It’s a plan, anyway, more than I had before.” Chelsea stood, starting to clear the table. “Brad’s coming back tonight, he’s going to stay here for a while, at least until we get things sorted out.”
“Do I need to make up Teresa’s old room, or will there be other sleeping arrangements?” Grams looked pointedly at her granddaughter.
“I … um … Geez, Grams, I’m a grownup.” But her face reddened.
“I know, honey, like I said, I’m old, not dead.” She winked. “But I’ll make up Teresa’s room anyway.”
• • •
“Bradley, I put you in the bedroom next to Chelsea, it used to be her sister’s. Tomorrow, I’ll replace the curtains and the bedding. Pink’s probably not your color.” She smiled.
“I’m sure it’ll be fine, Mrs. Karmikel. I just need a place to set up my laptop.” He carried his duffel bag into spare room, dropped them to the floor. “My, it is a little pink.” Even the carpeting was a shade of rose.
“Like I said, I’ll try to dress it down a little tomorrow.” She chuckled, but grew serious. “Thanks for taking care of Chelsea. She’s very important to me.”
He smiled back at the older woman. “Me too.” And she was. He didn’t know how it had happened in such a short time, but it had. He was willing to fight for her, to keep her with him.
“Funny how that happened, didn’t think you two were going to get along.”
“Yeah.” He smiled. “Funny.” But he didn’t think it was funny, not at all. Chelsea Karmikel was his.
Chapter Twenty-Two
That night, after the house settled, Brad opened Chelsea’s door to find her waiting, sitting cross-legged on the bed, shorty pajamas covering her torso and thighs. Heat rushed through him as he took in her appearance, drenched in soft moonlight.
“It took you long enough.” She sprang up from the bed, and came up on her toes to wrap her arms around his neck, pulling him in close. “I missed you,” she whispered, lips close to the soft skin on his neck.
His arms came around her body, lifting her from her feet as he squeezed her tight, eyes closed. “I missed you too.” He sighed. He could relax now that she was back by his side. He bent to brush a soft kiss across her lips. His body wanted more; it was a battle to prevent giving in.
“Hey, we need to talk.” Brad pulled back. “What we talked about this morning?”
“Oh, that.” Chelsea eased out the breath she’d been holding. “What did you want to know?”
“Well, you started to tell me about your great-grandmother. Want to finish it?” He lifted her face to his, but couldn’t resist the cherry ripeness of her lips. His kiss lingered longer than it should have.
“Okay, since you asked so nicely.” She caught her breath and smiled, pushing a few strands of auburn curls behind her ear. “Great-Granny was ‘gifted,’” she shook head, “if you want to call it that … more like ‘cursed,’ in my opinion. She had this premonition that I was going to be a seer, just like her. Well, not exactly, she said I was going to be powerful seer, more powerful than there had been in a long time.”
He nodded. “And?”
“Well, Grams waited for me to … you know, start seeing dead people or for the gift to come, but nothing ever happened, so she thought it never would. She didn’t bother telling me about it, she didn’t want to scare me or worse, have me think my entire family was crazy.” She ran her hands over his chest. “Is that enough for you? Have I totally freaked you out with my family’s weirdness?”
“Honey, ‘freaked out’ and I parted company a long time ago, and I’m still here.” He lifted her chin. “I figure if Aunt Deloris believed in you, I can too. We were the same, she and I.”
“So, happy now?” Chelsea peered up into his eyes, watched him as he thought about what she’d revealed.
“I am.” He gathered her in a hug. “And thanks for letting your Grams stick me in a room that looks like a bottle of Pepto-Bismol exploded in it.”
“Teresa is way girlie. Hey, I tried to get her to let you share my room — this is a concession to propriety.” She laughed as her feet left the floor again only to touch down a few seconds later.
He smiled as his hands fingered her camisole, finding the soft skin of her belly. His hands stroked her ribs. “I’m feeling a little proprietorial right now. You’re mine, all mine.” He flashed her a quick grin. “Did you talk to your Grams today? Tell her what was going on?”
She nodded and told him what Grams had said about Rowena. “She’s going to try some old contacts, see if the family’s still in the area. Maybe she knows more about this than we do.”
“It’s a place to start.”
“She’s going to make calls tomorrow.” Chelsea stifled a yawn. “I need some coffee.”
“I’m exhausted too.” He stretched, pulling her back toward the bed. “Time for bed. I feel all proprietorial again all of a sudden.” His fingers flitted over the shorty pajamas.
Chelsea laughed, stepping back. “Hey.” But then she grew serious. “I don’t know how to say this.”
“What? Are you tired of me already?” His eyes were soft as he gazed into her ocean blues.
“No!” She shouldered him playfully. “I’m just … I don’t know.”
Brad tipped her chin up to force her gaze back into his eyes. “What? You can tell me. Don’t hide from me.”
Her eyes filled and she blinked tears away. “This sounds stupid.” She laughed even as a tear trailed down her cheek. “I’m … afraid, you know, to go to sleep.”
“But you don’t have to be,” he said, his eyes never leaving hers. “I’ll be right here, I won’t go anywhere. Come Hell or the Devil, I’ll be right here.”
“I’ve thought about it all afternoon. What if I fall asleep and end up in that place again? What if I can’t get back out?” Her fists bunched the soft fabric of his black t-shirt, panic filling her eyes.
Brad pulled her tight against his chest, her fists between them, but he felt her heart begin to race. He brushed his hands up and down her arms, tried to calm her nerves. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
“How can you promise that?” she whispered, burying her face in his chest. “How can you know?”
“Because.” He lifted her gaze to his eyes again. “If I have to, I’ll come in after you.” He knew she saw the seriousness in his eyes, heard it in his voice. “Besides,” he lips quirked into a smile, tension broken, “you’re not getting off that easy. No escape, no surrender.” She relaxed as she leaned her head onto his chest, and the steady beat of his heart grew faster the longer he held her.
Brad wasn’t kidding when he said he would do anything to protect her, even from her nightmares. It scared him that she was vulnerable, and he didn’t like being scared.
“You’ll stay here with me? All night?” Chelsea stole a glance up at him.
“Yep, not going to go anywhere.” His strong hands rubbed her back, and she relaxed further.
“Let’s go to bed.” She tugged his body, leading him to the bed, the ties at her shoulders slipped, the ribbons of her top coming undone.
His eyes feasted on her soft flesh even as she drew him nearer.
• • •
Chelsea drove while Grams navigated. “They’re supposed to be still in the Sangamon Valley area, right off of twenty-nine. The school has to send tutors to help with the home schooling. Take the first exit to the Sangamon River, follow it till the road ends. It’s on foot from there.” Grams glanced up from the written instructions, while Chelsea watched for the exit.
“How far in do we need to go?” It was early, but the hike might take a bit. She wanted to be home before dark.
“Not far, according to the tutors.” Grams glanced back down at the instructions. “According to this,” she held up a crude map, “less than a qua
rter mile. There aren’t any real addresses out here, but it’s grown into a compound since Great-Granny visited. I don’t think we’ll have a problem finding them.”
They drove as far as they could before abandoning their car. “Are you sure you’re okay with walking?” Chelsea gazed at her Grams, but she didn’t show any signs of wearing out.
They turned onto a well-worn path. “I’m fine. Shouldn’t be much further anyway.” They walked a bit more, moving farther into the river valley. “I’m thinking … ” Grams turned, “I remember the sound of the river. The house was somewhere right around … here.” They walked through a thick verge of trees, and together they stared at the compound. What was once one house had grown to a hodgepodge of homes linked together by walkways. Near the main house, the sounds of children could be heard. They knocked on the door.
A young child opened the door and backed away. “Grandma! There’s someone here to see you.”
There were sounds of scurrying around, doors closing, shushing noises. Rowena slowly made her way to the front of the home. Her hair was a steel-wool gray, worn loose around her shoulders. Her tired flesh showed age beyond her years. The old fashioned duster hung baggy over her shoulders and around her hips, white gloves covered her hands, reminiscent of Jacqueline Kennedy. Chelsea knew this woman had seen life hard.
“We don’t need no more Social Services. The kids have been going to school, check your records. What more do y’all want?” She leaned into the doorway, blocking the rest of the house from their sight.
Grams held out her hand. “Rowena?”
Rowena squinted. “You. You came here with that old lady. The one who wanted to talk about my visions.”
“Yes, that’s right. It’s been a long time.” Grams’s smile widened. Rowena’s gloved hand grasped her offered one.
“Heard she passed on, she was a real nice lady. Y’all wanna come in? What’s it been — ten years, fifteen?” She held the door open and they stepped inside. “It’s okay, kids, they ain’t with the state. Go on now, go outside and play.”
“Closer to twenty I think.” Grams smiled, and shook her head. “Where did the time go?”
Children appeared from doorways, slinked along the walls, and out the door.
“Sorry ’bout that, it’s nothing against you. They ain’t used to strangers.” Her faced paled for a few moments, and she stopped to catch her breath.
“Oh, it’s alright, we don’t blame them.” Grams waited for Rowena when she stopped. “You need to be careful around strangers these days.” Grams glanced over at Chelsea. “Rowena, I’d like you to meet my granddaughter, Chelsea Karmikel, Chelsea, this is Rowena Brown.”
She looked Chelsea up and down, then stuck out her hand. “I’ve been expecting you.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
“Excuse me?” Chelsea asked, sure her ears had heard wrong. She let her hand slip into Rowena’s gloved hand — it was oddly warm and friendly.
“Said I’ve been expecting you. The spirits told me you’d be coming. Always trust the spirits.” She nodded, and pointed toward the sofa. “You’re the one the old lady talked about, said if you ever came to explain things to you. You see, the spirits only want to be helped or to help, depending on your view, and theirs.”
“Great-Granny talked about me with you? Did you know, Grams?” Chelsea turned to her grandmother.
She shook her head. “I helped Great-Granny find the place, sat with her while she talked to Rowena, but they talked in private too.”
Chelsea wished she’d been there, wished she’d been old enough. But she would have never have understood anyway, she still didn’t understand. It was so odd to find out her great-grandmother had had this other life, one she’d known nothing about, and that she’d talked about Chelsea with a stranger. “Can I ask you something? I mean, it’s going to sound kind of strange.”
Rowena looked over at Chelsea and grinned. “Like what I do ain’t strange enough.” She chuckled. “Yeah, go ahead.” She eased the gloves off her pristine hands, pale and finely boned. The rest of her body looked hard worked, but her hands told a different story.
“I had this really weird dream, only maybe it wasn’t a dream. In it, there were all these hungry souls. And a Watchman who was supposed to guide them, show them the way. He called it the Inbetween.” She shivered with the recollection. “Have you ever heard of anything like that? I have to say, it scared the bejesus out of me.”
“Girl, if you were there, you’re lucky you got out. No place there for the living. No place at all.” Rowena backed away. “It ain’t no place I want to visit, not ever.” She crossed herself. “The good Lord willing.”
“How do you know about it?” Chelsea asked.
“Why, girl, from your Great-Granny. Don’t you know nothing?” Rowena looked at her with bewildered eyes.
“No, apparently not.” Chelsea raised her questioning eyes to meet Rowena’s startled ones.
“When’d you start having your intuitions?” she asked, eyes narrowed.
“Just a few days ago. I got electrocuted and all this started. Why?” Chelsea glanced over at her Grams, wondering why Rowena was so adamant.
“Should have started much earlier. Probably why you got sucked into that place. Bet you died too. You got to leave. I don’t want nothing to do with that place.” Rowena stood, tried to usher them back out and away from her home.
“No, you don’t understand. I don’t want to go there either,” Chelsea pleaded. “Please, I need help to understand this!”
“No, girl, you don’t understand,” she whispered. “I got kids here. I got … ” She paused, looked around. “One of the kids, she’s got the visions too. I don’t want her finding out bout that place. I don’t want her scared. Right now, it’s all like a game to her.”
Chelsea looked her in the eyes. “No one else has to know, but I need help … I can’t … ” Tears prickled Chelsea’s eyes.
Grams held out her hand to Rowena. “If you can help … I don’t know what else to do, who else to see.”
Rowena relented, fidgeted a little, then sighed. “I want you to meet her, and if one day, she comes to you … I want you to help her, just like I’m going to do with you. You’ll be the only one who can. Take her in, help her learn the right ways.” Her face paled further to a leaden ashy gray, and she placed a hand on her side. “I fear my time is almost over, I might not be here to help her much longer. You have to promise me.” Her gray eyes held resignation. “But, even if you say no, I promised the old woman. I’ll … I’ll keep my word.”
Chelsea reached out to touch her hand, but Rowena jerked away. “I just wanted to thank you. You have my word, I’ll do whatever I can to help her.”
“Sorry ’bout that. No one touches my hands ’less they want a reading. I don’t want to read you, not yet.” Rowena shivered, and rubbed her hand down her faded duster before pulling her gloves back on. “Your life force … it’s not what I expected.” She eyed Chelsea, then turned to the door, and leaned out. “June Mary, you come see your grandmama right now, you hear?”
A freckled face young girl with indistinct dishwater colored hair in a dress one size too big stepped into the house. One shoulder was bare where the too large dress had slipped. “You want me, Grandma?”
“Yes, baby, I want you to meet someone. This is Chelsea Karmikel, and her own grandmama. She’s like you, baby, she talks to the spirits.” Rowena glanced over at Chelsea. “If I’m not here, Chelsea here, she’ll help you if she can. You remember that, if you need help, you get ahold of Ms. Karmikel. You understand?”
June Mary’s eyes grew round and she nodded her head. “Yes, Grandma, I understand, I won’t forget. Ms. Karmikel.” She held out a hand shyly.
Chelsea touched the ends of June Mary’s fingers. “Nice to meet you.” The girl smiled.
�
��Good. Now, you go on, go play. You’re a good girl.” She patted the young girl’s head, and she ran back out the door. “I’ll get it all written down and give it to her mama. I thank you. It puts my mind at ease to know someone else is here.”
Grams patted her leg. “You got a long time left here. It’s all going to be okay.”
Rowena smiled back, and clasped Grams’s hand. “The docs say I got a cancer, first it was just my lungs, now it’s in my bones. They want to do some treatment, but it ain’t gonna fix it, just make my time a little longer. God’s gonna call me home and there ain’t nothing nobody can do about it. I’ve made my peace, and now I don’t have to worry so much.”
Chelsea smiled at Rowena. “You’re strong, maybe you’ll beat those docs, they don’t know everything.”
“Nah, I can feel it, taken hold of me. Sometimes it feels like the Lord is looking over my shoulder.” She clutched her hand to her chest. “It’ll get me, but not before I can pass my knowledge on to you.” She smiled back at Chelsea. “My family knows, we’ll give the blasted devil a good fight.”
Chelsea nodded.
“Now … ” Rowena sat down, thoughts flitted across her features. “There’s more to this than the spirits, helping them and the people who lost them.” She shook her head and coughed a little. “I don’t much like to talk about it, but let me tell you what I know about the Inbetween and the Nevernever.” She paused, and looked Chelsea squarely in the eye. “The Inbetween, it’s not so bad I guess, not when you know there’s worse. The Watchman, he’s crazy as a bugger, but without him, those souls might be lost forever, and if they get lost, it opens them to … well, the other place.”
“And my Great-Granny told you all about this?” Chelsea asked.
Rowena nodded her head. “She said she visited in her dreams too. That old Watchman was crazed then, I don’t imagine he’s change much with time.”