Hopeless.
The minute the phones reconnected, Claire was playing with it. She said, “I have a message.”
Claire listened, a bright smile widening across her face, “It’s Mom! It’s Mom and she’s okay. Raven’s going to the hospital because of a WOLF bite! Can you believe it? She said we should be careful because the wolves might still be out there. Don’t talk to Harold at all. Run if we see him, and tell Aunt Bertha when we get the message. But they’re both okay. They’re here on Earth.”
Jade sat up, pulling her phone out of her pocket. She listened to Mom’s message. It was the same as Claire’s, but hearing Mom’s voice again felt so good.
Mindy chimed in sleepily from the back, “Mom?”
Jade grinned, “Yes, Cricket, Mom’s fine. Go back to sleep. We’ll see her soon.”
The atmosphere in the car changed instantly from a glum, hopeless oppression to joy and laughter and joking.
Jade put her hand on Zach’s knee for the first time, nearly resulting in a car wreck because he was so surprised.
When they arrived home, Claire and Mindy immediately climbed out of the car. Jade waited. She said, “Do you want to come in?”
“Yes.” As Jade turned to open the driver’s door, Zach grabbed her hand with an almost desperate urgency, “I want us to keep dating. I am what I am, but I don’t think that means being your enemy. Will that be enough?”
Green eyes met grey. Jade realized that she didn’t just feel attraction for Zach, there was something else, something deeper, an undercurrent of trust. A Death Keeper who worked with Elementals to save their mother. A Death Keeper who gave up his power to save her life.
A man that she was falling in love with.
Jade put her hand on his cheek and leaned in to kiss his lips. She longed for him in ways that she could never have expected. Their lips touched. It was gentle and sweet at the surface. Beyond that in deep undercurrents she felt passion and longing slowly build inside.
He drew her closer.
From outside the car, Claire said in disgust, “Come on, Guys. Get a room.”
That dampened the moment again, especially when Mindy echoed, “Room.”
Jade pulled away, taking a deep breath. She was home.
~~ Aunt Bertha ~~
The news of Amy’s escape was certainly exciting, but Aunt Bertha worried over the release of Petrodus. Such evil could not be easily contained. The girls woke her up, excitedly telling her about their experience on the mountain, how they had spent hours trying to get Raven back and how on the long journey home, in complete despair, they had checked their messages and found Mom.
From despair to joy, the girls couldn’t get enough of repeating the story of their Mom’s voicemail in their darkest hour.
Aunt Bertha hurt.
Her body felt heavy despite the good news. She was happy, relieved that Amy was safe, but the cost was higher than anyone had guessed. Bertha knew that Petrodus was evil in a way that very few people are, a psychopath with the kind of power that devastated entire peoples. He was not one to let loose on the world. Her girls had done it.
Aunt Bertha’s back was on fire. The girls were already planning a trip to the hospital to see Raven. Bertha could have called them on their self-delusion. They cared for Raven, yes, but they all really wanted their Mom.
Bertha sat in her arm chair, trying to be stoic. It wouldn’t do to have Mindy see her curled up in agony. Mindy was so sensitive. After everyone was settled, Zach drove home. As the excitement died down, the girls yawned and one by one excused themselves to their rooms.
Bertha was glad to be alone, and then felt guilty for the depth of relief that she felt as Jade closed the door to her room. Sometimes Bertha didn’t want to be strong. Sometimes she just wanted to sob and sleep and take medications that conked her out until it was over. Her girls needed her. Maybe with Amy back, she could rest more.
Let’s get through today. Bertha said to herself.
She stayed awake all night, listening for wolves, watching for danger. She opened the blinds to the huge picture windows and watched the sun lift itself over the mountains, never tired, always joyfully golden and ready for morning. Shards of pink and orange blazed over the purple. It was a good morning. Bertha could almost forget that she was dying.
The thing about dying was that she kept wondering if it was her last. This sunrise was so beautiful, Bertha was determined to enjoy it. Yes, she did wonder if it was her final sunrise. It was a normal thing.
Watching the clouds change from pink to gold and the sky lighten, Bertha felt at peace. No matter what happened, she would be okay.
~~ Jade ~~
Jade crawled out of bed at the crack of ridiculous. She heard a thump. Rubbing her eyes, she made her way to the living room. Aunt Bertha sat in her chair, staring out the window.
“Aunt Bertha? Are you okay?” Jade asked.
Her great aunt turned, and for a moment it seemed as if the sun was shining from her. An instant later the shine was gone and Jade wondered if she had imagined it. Aunt Bertha said, “I dropped my cane. I was going to wander outside and get some fresh air, watch the back side of the sunrise.”
“We’ll go out together.” Jade said.
Picking up Bertha’s cane, Jade held her arm out. It took a few tries for Bertha to get to her feet. She clung to Jade. The thought crossed Jade’s mind that Bertha had grown more frail. She tried to stomp it out of her mind. Aunt Bertha is strong. She’ll be here for many years to come.
Jade led Bertha outside, carefully helping her down the three steps to the back yard. Aunt Bertha hadn’t been in the back for almost a year. It occurred to Jade when she exclaimed over the diversion Claire had made of the creek. The pond just beyond the lawn was larger than it had been, the gurgling brook a thing of the past.
The air was cold and tasted like winter.
Aunt Bertha patted Jade’s arm, “You’ve been through a lot this year. I just want you to know how much I love you and how proud that I am of you. I’m proud of all you girls.”
Jade smiled, “I love you, too.”
Aunt Bertha didn’t stay outside long. It was too cold and the beautiful colors in the sky were already fading. Jade helped her climb the stairs and walk down the hall. She had a memory of Aunt Bertha playing Chutes and Ladders with her. It didn’t seem like that long ago.
“Would it be okay if I skip school and borrow the car today? I’d like to visit Raven.” Jade helped Bertha sink back into the arm chair.
“Of course. Drive carefully, especially in the city. Pay attention to the one way streets and left turns with two lanes.” Aunt Bertha said and then hesitated for a moment. She asked, “Before you leave, would you help me get changed into pajamas and settled into bed? I didn’t sleep well last night. I’m not sure I’m strong enough to get back there alone.”
It was a huge admission. Jade didn’t want to believe it. This was the first time Aunt Bertha had ever asked for help. Aunt Bertha, who cooked dinner when Mom worked late at the flower shop, who helped Claire sew her costume on Halloween, whose boundless energy kept Mindy entertained on Mindy’s tough days.
Jade smiled softly and nodded, “Whenever you’re ready,” she said.
Bertha said, “I’d like to wait until Claire and Mindy are awake. Just to say good morning. They can miss school, too. Just this once.”
Jade chuckled. They had missed school ‘just this once’ a lot since Mom’s disappearance. Bertha just wasn’t as strict as her Mom…or maybe Bertha cared more about the Elements than school.
Jade scrambled eggs and toasted English muffins for everyone. Aunt Bertha ate in her arm chair with Mindy and Claire on the sofa right on either side. No one scolded Mindy for the egg crumbs at her feet. The siblings were truly happy for the first time since their Mom disappeared. Sure, Raven was hurt pretty bad. She had to get skin grafts and rabies shots and her leg was broken, but she was alive, and a heroine. And Mom was HOME!
Jade collected the dishe
s while Aunt Bertha spoke quietly to Claire and Mindy, giving them advice and telling them how much she loved them. Jade couldn’t help but think that it sounded an awful lot like goodbye, especially when Aunt Bertha told Claire, “Now, you tell Raven how dearly I love her and that I’m sorry I won’t be able to see her in the hospital. It’s a long drive for these old bones.”
“You’re not old,” Claire chided. Jade smiled from the kitchen. Only Claire could sound so offended at such a true statement.
“Just you tell her and don’t worry about my crickety self,” Aunt Bertha said.
“I’m Cricket.” Mindy said proudly, holding her head high.
“I love you, too, Cricket” Aunt Bertha said. “Now Jade’s going to help me get to bed and you girls are all going to the hospital to see Raven and your mother.”
“No…” Mindy whined, “Stay.”
Jade sighed. It was too good a moment to last. She said, “Don’t you want to visit Mom and Raven?”
Mindy shook her head.
Jade looked from Bertha to Mindy. Bertha was no longer in any condition to baby-sit Mindy, and even if she was seven, Mindy sometimes acted much younger. She couldn’t be left unsupervised. Swallowing her disappointment, Jade said, “Okay. Maybe we’ll all stay home.”
“No.” Aunt Bertha said, “Mindy. I hear Earth telling you to stay. You tell Earth I’ll be fine. There’s nothing anyone can do to help me. You wipe your tears and go with your sisters to the hospital.”
Mindy went very quiet for a minute. Jade could almost hear Earth’s low, rumbling voice. Pressing her lips together and crossing her arms, Mindy said, “Not safe.”
“Honey, I’m dying. It’s not safe for me anywhere,” Aunt Bertha lifted her arms to Mindy.
Mindy crawled into Aunt Bertha’s lap before Jade could stop her. She knew Aunt Bertha hurt. She could tell by the way her smile had that grimacing edge at the corners of her mouth. Mindy huddled on Bertha’s lap and said, “Not safe.”
“I know. You need to go with Jade and Claire to see your Mom,” Aunt Bertha said gently.
Shaking her head, Mindy said, “No. Stay.”
Jade really wanted to see Mom, needed to see her, but she wouldn’t leave Aunt Bertha alone to take care of Mindy, not when she was feeling so poorly. She was just about to change plans when Claire said, “I’ll stay home with her. Aunt Bertha can rest, and you can take Mom and Raven care packages from all of us.”
It was a huge sacrifice for Claire. Jade knew that. Claire loved Raven best of all her sisters. Jade said, “Thanks Claire. That really means a lot.”
Jade helped Bertha wash up and change into pajamas, and then got Claire and Mindy settled with the latest Ice Age movie and fresh popcorn. It was ten in the morning before she was on the road to the hospital forty-five minutes away. In the back seat she had a box filled with snacks, books, and clothes. The girls basically put together anything Raven and Mom would need or want for an extended stay.
“I’ll be back before dinner. Let Aunt Bertha sleep. No arguments or you’ll suffer the Wrath of Mom,” Jade hugged her sisters. They had gotten a lot more huggy lately. She drove away feeling a strange sense of disconsolation, and a bit torn in two. She wanted to stay home with Claire, Mindy, and Aunt Bertha. But at the same time, she really wanted, no, needed, to see Mom.
~~ Raven ~~
The Universe hated Raven. She knew this as she waited in the Emergency room, a small private room in the middle of the hall of a huge floor, because to add embarrassment to injury, her chastity belt swimsuit, the metallic awesome block that kept Petrodus from taking her virginity…could not be cut off. No, it could not. Not for lack of trying. Maybe it was too awesome. Maybe Jade would have a laugh with her about it later. For now, she was humiliated.
The nurses and orderlies left to find something a little more powerful. Raven imagined them coming back with a chain saw and decided she was going to take it off herself. She made her Mom help her. The swimming suit had been a lot more flexible when she put it on. Raven would have to remember flexibility if she ever needed a chastity belt again. With her Mom’s help, she managed to remove it before the nurses returned.
Raven cried when she pulled it over her leg. She couldn’t help it. It hurt that much. She didn’t like being naked, not even in front of her Mom. She felt so…exposed. Helping Raven under the covers, Amy knew Raven was feeling very uncomfortable. She said, “There’s a store just down the street. I can go get you underwear.”
“Please,” Raven said. She shivered under the blankets. The emergency room was freezing cold. Raven wondered how long it would take the nurses to return. She decided she wanted her Mom back with underwear before then. “Hurry!” she said.
Twenty minutes later, her Mom returned with underwear and a book.
It was a long night. Every few hours someone came into the room to check on Raven. She was scheduled for surgery, but the surgery was pushed back, so she had to wait.
Raven longed to home. She was a complete prisoner in the hospital. Her bites hurt bad. Her arm ached where the I.V. was inserted. She was thirsty and hungry. The staff weren’t feeding her because of the surgery. No water, either. She was allowed to suck ice. That was it.
At some point after pain medications were pushed into the I.V., Raven dozed. Finally they came to get her for surgery. Her leg was torn up. The doc said it would take several surgeries to get her back to normal.
There was a large period of time between that moment when she was wheeled away and waking up in another room that Raven didn’t remember. The next time she opened her eyes, Jade and Mom were both there.
Jade sat down in one of the waiting chairs at the side of the bed. She said, “I’m proud of you.”
The sisters talked about stupid stuff, things they wouldn’t even bother to mention at home, like who was the coolest, Dean, Sam, or Castiel or what was funnier The IT Crowd or Firefly.
Raven was actually disappointed late that afternoon when Jade had to leave.
Chapter 15
~~ Claire ~~
After Jade left, Claire and Mindy moped around the house. Somehow it felt strange not being at school when everyone else was. Also, Aunt Bertha was fast asleep.
Mindy whined the whole time. She fussed when Claire changed the channel and said,” No. Otter.”
Claire stared up at the ceiling, her mouth hanging open and said, “Again? I am going to absolutely die of boredom.”
“Otter.” Mindy pointed to the television, her lower lip protruding further than it should and a stubborn set to her jaw.
“Fine. Otter.” Claire sighed and switched it back to Million Dollar Baby so that Mindy could see the otters. Mindy loved animal shows even more than cartoons.
They were about halfway through the show when Water splashed Claire between the eyebrows, Trouble coming. Hide!
“What is it?” Claire asked.
Death Keeper. Dangerous. Hide Mindy, too.
Claire grabbed the remote and turned off the television. Mindy started to cry. “Mindy, we’re going to play hide-and-seek. Go to your room and talk to Earth. Ask her to hide you. Hurry!”
Water urged Claire, Get Bertha. You don’t have much time.
Running down the hall, Claire screamed, “Aunt Bertha. Aunt Bertha.”
She banged on Bertha’s bedroom door.
Claire could barely hear Bertha through the door when she said, “What is it?”
“Death Keepers. Water says for us all to hide,” Claire yelled. “Are you getting up?”
Aunt Bertha called through the door, “Yes. Get Mindy and you girls hide. I’ll be right there.”
Claire didn’t wait to see what Aunt Bertha was going to do. For years, even decades into the future, her memories of that moment would haunt her. Perhaps if she had gone in to see Aunt Bertha and realized she was too weak to stand. Perhaps if Claire had used water to protect her Aunt, but that’s not what happened.
Mindy was doddling in the hallway. Claire grabbed her and dragged
her into the room she shared with Raven. Mindy screeched, blasting the house with her siren wail.
“Hush! We have to hide,” Claire didn’t understand what was wrong with Mindy. Usually Earth would tell her if something was going wrong. Even if she only spoke in one-sentence words, Mindy usually knew when to hide.
Frustrated, Claire begged Water for help. “Why isn’t she listening to me? I can’t force her to talk to Earth. I’m not strong enough to turn her into Water with me.”
Water was silent for a moment.
She used too much energy. She can’t hear Earth.
“What do we do?”
I can reach Earth.
Claire and Water found Earth. Although Claire was not familiar with Earth, she was able to nudge the Element to hide Mindy. Claire followed close behind. They ended up deep inside the ground, far below the house. Claire wondered why they had gone so deep, but neither Water nor Earth were talking. They were focused on what was happening above. For partners, the two Elements weren’t saying much to Claire or Mindy, either.
Mindy was content now that Earth was talking to her again. Claire hadn’t realized that Mindy’s crankiness was directly related to having lost contact with her Element. That was good to know for future reference.
They waited in the dark, but they weren’t alone. They had Water and Earth. They had each other.
~~ Aunt Bertha ~~
Aunt Bertha had hoped to sleep during the day since her last night’s rest had been so elusive. She had just managed a cat nap when the screaming started. Claire bawled like a bull calf for Aunt Bertha while Mindy screamed. Claire banged at Bertha’s bedroom door as if the world would come to an end.
Bertha sighed when Claire said the word, “Death Keeper.”
The Death Keepers would be coming to collect her soon anyhow. Bertha no longer feared them, not on her own behalf anyway. She’d made her deal. It bought her nieces a few months at least. Aunt Bertha wondered which of her girls had been given the Gift of Time. Amy was cunning, but with four girls with distinctive personalities, there really wasn’t much choice. She suspected Jade. Claire was too talkative. Had she been the recipient, everyone would know by now. Raven? Maybe. Mindy. Amy would never be so foolish as to give such a powerful gift to a newborn. Lastly Jade. Also possible, even likely.
A Time to Die (Elemental Rage Book 2) Page 15