Hope Falls

by Jamieson Wolf

  There was a pause on the other end of the line before a woman's voice said: "Susan, is that you?"

  "May I ask who is calling?" Susan said.

  "Why Susan! It's your mother. How could you not recognize your own mother's voice?"

  Susan froze. "Who is this?" she spat.

  "I've already told you baby girl." The voice on the other end of the phone said. "This is your mother."

  "My mother is dead!" Susan said and started to sob.

  SIXTY

  a ghost returns from the past

  "My mother is dead!" Susan sobbed again. "Whoever you are, my mother is dead, do you hear me?"

  "Oh, darling girl." The woman on the other end of the phone said. "It's me, Susie, it's me, it IS your mother."

  "STOP SAYING THAT!" Susan screamed into the phone. "My mother and father have been dead for two years! They died in a car crash!"

  "Oh, if only that were true darling girl..." The woman sighed.

  Miriam and the others were staring in horror at Susan. "What's going on?" Miriam whispered. "Who is it?"

  "Susan?" Naomi whispered. "Hang up the phone. Who ever it is, hang up the phone."

  "Don't listen to them." The woman said pleadingly, "PLEASE Susan, PLEASE! I am your mother, you have to listen to me, listen, you're in danger!"

  "I KNOW I'm in danger!" Susan screamed. "What do you take me for? An idiot?! I'm ALREADY in danger!" She sobbed, tears running down her cheeks. "Whoever you are, please, go away!"

  "Susan, now listen to me." The woman said. "I didn't die, your father and I tried to fake our own deaths, the reason is complicated, but we didn't die."

  "YOU DID DIE!" Susan screamed. "I SAW THE CAR GO UP IN FLAMES! What do you take me for, an idiot?" She sobbed again, the pain on her face evident.

  "You have to believe me Susan, you have to. Your father is already dead, he died only three days ago. He couldn’t keep up the strain of always hiding, but I am still alive. You're in danger Susan, you have to listen to me!"

  "GO TO HELL!" Susan screamed. "GO BACK TO HELL AND DIE!" Susan let the phone tumble from her fingers before she fainted and fell to the ground after it. Derrick reached out and caught her before she hit the floor, but Susan was out cold, tears already drying on her face.

  Naomi took the phone. "Whoever you are, stay away. You've done enough damage already." She hung up the phone.

  *

  Derrick and Miriam put Susan on the couch and wrapped her in a blanket. She was still out cold, but her color had returned and her breathing was normal. Naomi was sitting in the rocker by the window, the curtains drawn.

  "Who do you think was on the other end of the phone? Derrick asked.

  "From what I could gather, it was her mother." Miriam said.

  "But that's not possible." Naomi said. "Her parents died two years ago."

  "I know it's not possible." Derrick said. "I pulled their bodies from the car myself."

  Naomi and Miriam looked at him, shocked. "What?" they both said in unison.

  "Someone hit them from behind and the gas tank exploded. It happened in town. Susan was coming out from the grocery store and I was with her. We both recognized the car."

  "How did you get them out of a flaming car?" Miriam asked.

  Derrick shook his head. "I don't remember. I just remember hearing Susan scream and running to the car. I didn't feel anything, I just wanted them to get out. They were both dead when I got to them."

  "You must have been hurt." Naomi said.

  "I was in the hospital for a month." Derrick's voice was growing grim. "I had second and third degree burns all over my body. It was agony."

  "You've healed well." Miriam said, flushing, remembering his perfect body as it moved above her.

  Derrick blushed too. "I was lucky."

  They all paused when they heard the door bell chime. They all looked at each other for a moment before Naomi said "I'll get it. You guys just check on her."

  Naomi went to the door and opened it with the chain still on. An older woman with graying dark brown hair stood on the front porch. "Can I help you?"

  "I believe you can." The woman said. Her voice was deep and melodic. "I'm Susan's mother."

  SIXTY ONE

  the ghost returns to visit

  "I don't believe you." Naomi said.

  "I tell you, it's true. I am Susan's mother. Let me in. I have to see her."

  "I don't care." Naomi said, "You've done enough damage already, do you realize what we're going through?" Naomi shook her head. "She's under enough stress."

  The woman looked Naomi over. "You carry your own pain too." The woman said. Naomi looked at her again. She was tall, stately. She was not beautiful, but very striking. Her face was lined, as if life had been unkind to her. But there was a savageness there that would eat at a man's heart.

  He had striking black hair, shades darker than Susan's own rich brown curls. Her eyes were a light blue, like sapphires behind glass. Her lips curled at the edges. "I admire loyalty most. I see you are loyal to my daughter. I am Cleo Halliwell." She said. She reached into her purse and took out a card and a small photo. "That is my card and that is Susan's birth certificate. Now stop being stubborn and let me in to see my daughter."

  Naomi took the photo and the birth certificate. It had Susan's name on it, but it might be a fake. It looked pretty real to Naomi. She took the card and looked at it. It had her name and phone number on it in quiet and dignified black. "But what do you do?" Naomi asked.

  "Do, dear?" Here, Clo smiled. "Why, child! I do everything."

  At this, Naomi unlatched the chain and let Cleo in. Miriam came to the hallway just as the door was closing. "Naomi?" She said, her voice full of concern. "Who is it?"

  "It's Susan's mother." Naomi said.

  * * *

  When Susan came to, Cleo was holding her hand. She fluttered her eyelashes and focused quickly. "I was afraid it was a dream." She said softly, almost as if she were wishing it were so. A tear slid down her cheek.

  "Oh no, darling girl. It is not a dream. I am here and you are in grave danger. You have one of them in the cellar already."

  "Mom, how do you know about this?" Susan asked, shaking her head. "What the fuck is up huh?" Miriam suppressed a smile, thinking it was nice to see her friend back to good health. "I don't get it. Where the hell were you, I mean, for two years you've been dead and now you're back? What gives?"

  "We can't talk of that now." Cleo shook her head. "Please, the end is close, can't you feel it? Just let me enjoy this time with you for a few days." She patted her hand. "And then we'll talk. I promise you, we'll talk."

  "I think we should leave these two alone." Miriam said, sliding over to Derrick. She took his hand. It felt good to have it there.

  "Yeah, guess we should." He said. He squeezed her hand.

  They headed to the stairs. The last thing they saw was Susan and Cleo talking intently to each other.

  Naomi stayed listening for a while. "Where have you been? How do you know about what is going on?"

  "Oh, darling girl, I've done some terrible things. I've done some horrible things. I couldn’t live with myself, I just couldn't. We were so poor and you see, you were wanting a job on the television for so long. I can't tell you what it was like, we never told you..."

  "Mom, what are you saying?" Susan studied her mother intently.

  Naomi took this moment to leave the room. The conversation was getting a little too intense. She wanted to give the mother and daughter space to talk amongst themselves. It had been two years since they had had privacy.

  Walking down the hallway towards the back of the house, she took a cigarette from out of her purse and headed out the back door of the small farmhouse. She knew she shouldn't smoke, but to hell with it.

  Stopping for a moment, she turned and went back inside, pouring herself a glass of wine. If she was going to relax, she was going to do it right. The whole day had been weird. She was starting to feel as if she were right into the m
iddle of a soap opera. Naomi knew from reading Oprah that drama was not good for a healthy life style. She wished that it would all stop soon.

  She walked out into the tall sunflowers that grew on the edge of the yard. They reached towards the sky and it's early dawn grayness. She inhaled and exhaled, enjoying the play of the smoke in front of her. She took a sip of her wine and smiled. It was the last thing she did before she died.

  It was done in a flash. A knife blade across the throat, her own blood running down her front. She saw the blood running down her shirt front and tried to scream but could only gurgle.

  Naomi gasped, not making a sound. Looking down she saw that blood had collected in the curve of her wine glass, staining her wine to a nice rose color.

  The last thing she thought, before she fell backward into someone's strong, hard arms, was that she was finally getting her wish.

  She smiled.

  SIXTY TWO

  the others find Naomi

  Miriam had had enough of sitting around. It was now time for drastic action. It was time for Sabrina to come out and play. This time it might be dangerous. She didn't care. No one else must be hurt. This was all her fault.

  Miriam felt such guilt at getting the people around her into this situation. They were like her family now; especially Susan and Naomi. All because they had agreed to help her. And Derrick. If something should happen to Derrick, she couldn't bare it.

  While the medics came to take the body, Miriam got ready. She slathered on her make up as fast as she could. She wanted to make a clean escape without anyone seeing her. She tried not to think of what Naomi had looked like, the knife mark slashed across her throat, her skin a pale, clammy white.

  Sabrina White had rehearsal at the studio today. It was time to play some hard ball.

  * * *

  Derrick had been the one to find Naomi in the morning. When they had gotten into the bedroom, Miriam had closed the door. She leaned against it. "I want to make love to you." She said.

  "I know." Derrick said.

  "No, I mean it Derrick." She went to him, stopping before him and letting her dress fall. "I want to make love to you Derrick. I love you." She shivered, hearing herself say those words, but it was no time to hide the truth."

  Derrick came to her, took her in his arms. "I know, Miriam. I know. I love you too. So much that it hurts." He touched his chest, tapping twice. "It hurts right here. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

  "Yes, Derrick, I do." Miriam said. She put her mouth to his, lightly, softly and than bit his bottom lip playfully.

  Derrick slowly took off his shirt and pants. Miriam helped slide down his underwear. "Oh, you are excited to see me, aren't you?" Miriam purred.

  "You know it." Derrick said, smiling

  *

  In the morning, Derrick went down to breakfast. Susan and Cleo were in the kitchen, laughing over coffee. It looked as if there had been a night of bonding for the two of them. Cleo was right. The time for questions would come later. For now, he was just happy for the momentary safety and that his love for Miriam was real.

  "Have you seen Naomi?" Susan asked, stopping the conversation.

  "Not since last night." Derrick said. "We went to bed before all of you."

  "She went to bed before us." Cleo added.

  "I'll go check out back. Maybe she snuck out for an early morning smoke."

  "She smokes?" Susan gritted her teeth. "Man and all this time I've been hiding my nasty habit."

  "I'll go check outside." Derrick said, smiling.

  He wasn't smiling for long.

  Naomi lay sprawled on the ground. Her throat had been slit and her mouth slashed to ribbons. Only her eyes and her lips had been left unharmed. She looked out from a face of blood.

  Her arms and legs had been slashed to and fro. She had bled to death, her blood forming a protective circle on the sunflowers that surrounded her. Her skin was a pale white and her hair a dusky red that looked like blood flowing onto the flower petals.

  Derrick heard a sound. It was long and loud. It took him a moment to realize the deep painful cry was his own.

  SIXTY THREE

  Miriam takes matters into her own hands

  By the time that Derrick, Susan and Cleo watched Naomi's body being taken away, by the time that any of them noticed that Miriam was gone, there was nothing they could do. Miriam was already on her way to the station.

  When she got there, Miriam wasted no time at the station. She knew that she had not found out much information but she planned to change that. She had a plan, as simple as that. She couldn't believe that she had not thought of it before.

  She needed information. Sabrina White had to register before her rehearsal. She would watch where they put the confidential information, she would keep a keen eye. It would give her a place to start.

  Miriam collected the information package at the front desk. The receptionist did not look at her. "Fill them out over there." She said, motioning to a sea of tables.

  Miriam sat down and filled out the forms quickly. The sooner she found a source of information, the sooner she could fight back. Miriam was angry.

  Miriam walked up to the receptionist and smiled. The receptionist did not smile back. Miriam continued to smile. "First day jitters." She said, handing back the forms.

  The receptionist smirked. "Done any acting before?" She openly sneered at Miriam's body. Ah, Miriam thought. The casting couch.

  "Well," Miriam said, "Only a few pornos." She smiled and fluttered her eye lashes.

  The receptionist blanched and got up, flustered. She took the forms and put them in a blue file folder. She took them to a closet door and opened it. Inside were walls of red brick, but on either side and the back, there were a sea of file holders. A sea of blue file folders, actors pictures on them.

  And than Miriam saw something inside her head. She watched herself fill out the same forms as Miriam, not as Sabrina; she saw the receptionist taking them and putting them in a blue folder, putting them in the same closet. Miriam remembered that blue color, a deep blue. It looked like a water fall.

  Miriam saw another flash in front of her eyes. This one bringing to her mouth a little sound. Miriam sighed, letting out a little pained sound. Miriam saw something else. Another flash and she put her hand to her head, holding it. The pain made her feel as if she would split apart, as if she would split in two.

  Miriam watched as a scene played out before her. She watched as the characters moved.

  *

  [INT HOPE FALLS STUDIO'S. MIRIAM'S DRESSING ROOM, AFTERNOON. HOWARD KOWALSKI IS IN FRONT OF HER HOLDING A RED FILE FOLDER. MIRIAM'S PICTURE IS ON THE FRONT.]

  HOWARD: Your rating's are slipping.

  MIRIAM: What?

  HOWARD: I said, your rating's are slipping

  MIRIAM: I don't understand.

  HOWARD: You know what that means, Miriam.....

  ....Miriam watched Howard place the red file folder deeper into that closet, deeper inside of it, past the back.

  *

  Miriam felt a stab in the middle of her head and she let out a sound of pain. The receptionist had returned. "You look so pale."

  "First day jitters." Miriam said. "I'm a little nervous."

  "Oh," The receptionist said. "I guess I haven't helped, have I?" She patted Miriam's hand. "Would you like an aspirin?"

  She smiled. "That would be nice." Miriam said. "I've got a splitting head ache."

  When the receptionist went to get the Advil, Miriam smiled. That closet.

  The receptionist came back with the pills and a glass of water. "You're rehearsal is through that door and down the hallway, turn on your first right."

  "Thanks." Miriam said. She took a look at the plaque on the front of the desk. It read: HOURS: 9-11:30AM 11:30-2:PM LUNCH 2-4.

  Miriam took a look at her watch. It was eleven o'clock now. "Have a good lunch." Miriam said, smiling.

  SIXTY FOUR

  Miriam learns the beasts secrets

&
nbsp; At two o'clock, Miriam made her way out of rehearsal and towards the receptionist desk; and perhaps the answers to the mysteries of Hope Falls.