by S. E. Babin
My client today was one I had seen before. This sometimes happened with older people. At a certain age, they began to lose their family and friends. Dolores was in her eighties, a spry older woman with sparkling green eyes and a laugh that sounded like she’d smoked ten packs a day for year. Her first appointment was to raise her dog for her. I’d hesitated because the dog was ten years old, but the accident had been unexpected and she never got to say goodbye. I allowed that one and gave her a discount because she seemed like such a sweet old lady.
She spent two hours playing with her reanimated pooch before she was able to say goodbye, and before she left that day she had thanked me profusely. I had a feeling if I saw Dolores on the street, she wouldn’t shun me.
But today she was here for a much bigger reasons. Dolores had lost her son twenty years ago in a drunk driving accident. Her son was in a car full of teenagers when a woman coming back from a bar had crossed lanes and hit their vehicle head on. When she told me this, I was appalled. I also wasn’t sure I could help her with it. I had never attempted to raise someone who had been gone for that long.
But I couldn't handle the grief in her eyes so I told her I would research and see if I could do it successfully. The last thing I wanted to do was traumatize someone if I wasn't able to bring their loved ones back correctly. Humans were a little bit different than animals. With animals, I didn't need to enact a binding spell. Their souls were pure and innocent. With humans, a binding spell was necessary because I wasn't sure what kind of person they had been in real life. I'd found after a couple of pretty big errors that a lot of times their families didn't know what kind of person they were either. As sad as that was, it was nailed home after I'd failed to whisper the words of binding and the person had tried to force their spirit into a new body, usually one of their loved ones standing too close.
I thought the first time it was a fluke or that I had somehow done the raising wrong. When it happened a second time, I realized I needed to always enact the binding spell just in case. Even though I liked Dolores, I would not make an exception to this rule ever again.
She would be able to see her son and talk to him, but she would not be able to touch him.
When I came out of the bedroom, Hank was nowhere to be found so I assumed he had gone back outside. I poured myself a glass of water and drank it down. The doorbell rang two minutes before the scheduled appointment time. I told Margo to stay in the kitchen because I wasn't sure how she would handle strangers.
When I opened the door, Dolores was standing there wearing a retro pink suit, white low heeled shoes, and a pillbox hat. She looked adorable. I greeted her with a wide smile and pushed open the door to let her in.
Dolores leaned in and gave me a kiss on the cheek, leaving me with the scent of her Chanel perfume. I shut the door behind us and Dolores headed straight to the living room, but not before she saw Margo wagging her tail in the kitchen.
Vibrant green eyes widened. "Helen! You got a dog?" Dolores dropped her purse on the couch and went into the kitchen to give Margo a belly rub. My dog abruptly dropped and rolled, her legs swinging through the air. Little charmer.
"Have you ever had a dog, Ms. Dolores?"
She made a tsk noise and slowly stood up. "Long ago, dear. When my children were still young. She was an adorable old beagle and had eyes only for my son." She laughed a little sadly at this. "She tolerated the rest of us, but she thought my son hung the moon."
Margo trotted after Dolores as she made her way back to the living room. She sat down gingerly and smoothed her skirt down. "Now tell me, dear, who's that delightfully handsome man outside your home drawing something?"
I smiled. "Hank. He's the gardener."
"Well," Dolores said as her voice lowered, "I've got a very disused garden patch I'd love for him plow."
I sputtered with laughter. "Ms. Dolores!"
"Don't tell me you haven't thought about it, girl. If you haven't, you've got something wrong with your hardware."
I shrugged. "He's pretty grumpy."
"Who cares?" Dolores asked. "You don't need him for his personality."
"Oh my god," I whispered under my breath. I could not believe I was having this conversation with an 80-year-old woman.
The sound of a throat clearing made me freeze like a deer in the headlights.
No. Noooooo.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your scintillating conversation about both my personality and your unused garden patch, but I was hoping to borrow Helen for just a second." Hank looked at Ms. Dolores with rampant curiosity. She, in turn, gave him a beatific smile.
I, on the other hand, must have looked like a vine ripened tomato. I cleared my throat and excused myself.
Hank followed behind me. "There's something I need to show you when you get a minute," he said. "It's important."
"I'm sorry you heard that."
He shrugged and gave me a grin. "It isn't often I get to hear things like that from a senior citizen. Although, I do find it disagreeable you find me grumpy, especially about our earlier conversation about tacos."
I was going to die of embarrassment. I rubbed the space right between my brow. "I'll come out with you when I'm finished. It will be at least an hour. Will you still be here?"
"And miss anymore of Dolores' lusty comments about my manhood? I wouldn't miss it for the world."
I sighed and left him standing in the kitchen.
"Ms. Dolores?" I called. "We can head outside any time you're ready."
She tottered to the back of the house and I held the door open as she headed to the slab out back. "Don't interrupt me, Hank!"
Margo came flying around the corner and through the door right after Dolores. This was the moment Margo would either choose to stick around or run from me in terror. I grabbed the bag I kept right by the door and headed out after them.
I loved the space out back and even though it's where I did most of my raisings, it didn't feel like a place to work. As you headed out the door, you stepped right onto a large wooden deck with a pretty wrought iron table and multiple urns filled with all different kinds of plants. In one, I had two different types of jasmine, one an Arabian and the other a Carolina. In another, I had a Moonflower vine slowly creeping up the post’s porch and scrambling along the roof line. The flower only bloomed at night, but the scent was heavenly. In others I grew tobacco, even though I hadn't been very successful yet. In another I grew 4 o'clocks. If I put them in the ground, they would take over everything, but I still loved how they smelled. I walked down off the patio and into the soft green grass leading to the slab. It wasn't much or even very decorated, but my magic permeated the place. The slab rested about waist high on me and contained slots for the chime candles I used. I normally switched out the cloths I used, so today I spread a mossy green cloth down on the slab. Dolores made herself comfortable underneath the arbor several feet away. I made it so the bench faced away from the slab. I didn't want the families to see how I used my magic or the rituals I performed to resurrect their loved ones.
At the courthouse, the body was already there. The laws were a bit trickier away from the courthouse, so I was forced to use my magic a little bit differently these days. Plus, after the two times the bodies had tried to overpower their families, I tended not to bring their actual forms here.
So today would be a little bit different. Her son, Anthony, would be here, but in spirit form only. I could have gotten the body with a little extra paperwork, and Dolores really wanted me to, but with the age of it, I didn't think it would be wise.
She had reluctantly agreed so I would do my best to ensure Anthony's spirit was as intact as I could make it. The magic was a little bit tougher with this kind of work. To pull a spirit back that had been gone that long, I had to reach deeper inside the veil between the living and dead. It was tedious and meticulous and I had to be very careful nothing else escaped. This was the first time I'd ever performed a spell like this. Normally people visited me within weeks of their
loved ones' departure and this meant their spirit was still lingering here.
Not so with Anthony.
I set out everything I needed and went to speak to Ms. Dolores. She sat with her hands in her lap and a peaceful expression on her face. I sat down beside her and explained what would happen.
Dolores reached over and patted my hand. "My dear, I'm old. I've missed my son for two decades and you're about to give me the chance to speak with him again. If it meant you had to burp frogs or do cartwheels across the lawn, I would be fine with it."
"I'm terrible at cartwheels," I admitted.
She laughed a little but sobered quickly. "I'm afraid."
I squeezed the soft papery skin of her hand. "Don't be. I won't call you over until your son has acclimated. This is the first time I've reached for a soul this long gone so it may take him some time before he realizes where he is. If anything seems off, I will let you know. I hope you're able to talk with him."
A tear slipped down her cheek. "I hope so, too. I'm so glad you agreed to do this for me."
"I'll try my best," I said and left her sitting there.
I walked back over to the slab and pulled out the class ring Dolores had given to me. He was wearing it the day he died and it would act as a focus for me to find his soul. I slowly lit the chime candles around the slab, slipped off my shoes so my toes could curl in the grass and pulled out my sage wand. I lit the bundle, gently blew out the flame and repeated the process of purification the same way I had hundreds of times before. But this time, I focused more attention on the inside of the slab where the ring lay and where Anthony's spirit would be secured. Once it was done and I had allowed the sage smoke to slip over me, I took a deep breath and began to slip into the alpha state.
“Anthony Gray,
Awaken and stay,
Your mother is here to meet you.
Anthony Gray,
Cross through the veil,
And allow your mother to greet you.”
Again, not my best work, but I was still trying to shake off the sleep that had dragged me under earlier, and the exhaustion from the prior raising. I kept my breath deep, slow, and steady. I repeated the chant over and over in a whisper. A light wind rustled my hair, but I kept my eyes closed as I continued the spell. When I felt the presence of a spirit, I closed the binding with a single word and opened my eyes.
Anthony Gray had been a handsome kid. It was hard to tell what color his eyes were because spirits usually were only one or two colors, usually in the gray or blue palettes. He had long, shaggy hair and a mouth that looked like it had smiled a lot when he was alive.
He blinked at me in surprise. "Where am I?" he asked in a surprisingly clear voice.
I grinned. Holy crap. I'd done it. I gave him a quick perusal, but he looked intact and exactly like the picture his grandmother had given me a few days ago.
"My name is Helen Reaper," I told him. "Your mother is here."
He glanced at his surroundings. "You're expending an extraordinary amount of energy to keep me here," he observed. "Be careful your energy doesn't run out. The spirits behind the veil are...restless."
I stared at him as my heart picked up its once slow and steady race. That sounded...ominous. "I'll keep it in mind," I said, being cautious to not show any fear. I double checked the bindings and ensured they were secure before I went over to Dolores.
She gasped as she looked at me. "Is he here?"
I nodded. "He's a little confused but lucid. Would you like to speak to him?"
As I stepped down from the arbor, I glanced to the left only to see Hank staring at me intently. There was something about the way he was looking at me. I quickly glanced away and vowed to give him a piece of my mind when this was over. For right now, I needed to keep all of my focus on maintaining my hold on Anthony. I helped Dolores down the stairs of the arbor.
As soon as she saw Anthony, I increased my grip on her arm as she went weak. "It's okay." I whispered to her.
"My baby," she whispered.
Anthony's chin wobbled whenever Dolores came into view. "Mom." His eyes widened at her appearance. "How long has it been?"
She gave him a shaky smile. "Over twenty years, darling. I was already an old lady when I had you and now look at me."
Her son grinned. I pulled a chair over so Dolores could sit. I needed to maintain contact with the ground through my feet, so I chose to sit directly on the ground cross-legged style. Normally I tried to give the clients some privacy, but the son's cryptic warning had made me a little nervous. I wanted to stay close just in case anything went wrong.
I did my best not to listen and instead let my thoughts drift as Dolores spoke to her son.
I could feel his thread tethered to my magic. As long as it was steady, there was nothing to worry about. I would know if something was going wrong.
Hank was still sketching away in his book, though every once in awhile I could feel him looking in my direction. Whether he was appalled or genuinely curious about what was going on, I didn't know. From the reaction many of the townspeople had around me, I was going for appalled. People thought death was unnatural.
But I disagreed. It was the most natural thing in the world. While death was the end on our world, it did not necessarily mean the end for the victim. There was no way for me to know what happened on the other side, and I had never once asked a spirit or a reanimated person.
There were some mysteries I wanted to remain unsolved.
I shifted my legs around and let me toes dig into the cool dirt under the grass. The earth kept me grounded and stabilized my energy. I was already feeling the tug of Anthony's spirit feeding on my energy. I wouldn't be able to hold him without a struggle for too much longer. Dolores should have rescheduled. I had another half hour max before things got weird.
When it was time, I stood and helped Dolores up. She said goodbye to him, even though her voice was wobbly. Anthony was no better. You could hear the tears in every word he spoke. He apologized for his accident as if it had been his fault. His mother chastised him for it and blew him a kiss as she allowed me to help her back to the arbor.
"I'll be back in just a few minutes," I told her once I helped her get comfortable.
"It was all I needed," she said. "This was all I had been waiting for."
"Dolores?" I asked, a little unnerved.
She speared me with her vivid green gaze. "I'd been longing for the opportunity to speak with him for two decades. You were able to give me that opportunity. My life..." she waved a hand. "It's complete."
"Just stay here," I pleaded with her, my heart beating rapidly as I rushed back down the steps.
Anthony was sitting cross-legged. "She's going soon, you know," he said as casually as speaking about the weather.
"Are you really Anthony Gray?" I whispered. I had done everything right but something about him was...off.
His eyes flashed a deep purple. "I was. Things change when you've crossed over. You slowly lose pieces of yourself. You are no longer whole." He glanced back in Dolores' direction. "Although I hope for her sake, I did a convincing job."
I swallowed hard.
Anthony smiled. "You need to relinquish me back to the veil. Immediately. You grow weak and my brothers and sisters are hungry."
With a whispered hiss and frantic hand motions, I forced Anthony Gray's or whoever he was spirit back into the veil. I felt the tear beginning to mend itself. My candles blew out abruptly.
Right before I fell, I heard Hank's frantic shout.
5
Chaos reigned supreme in the house when I finally came to. Red and blue flashing lights made a strobe effect on my living room wall and the house was full of EMT's. Margo sat right beside me and as soon as she saw me stirring, she gave me a happy lick across the cheek. I tried to sit up, but my head and body felt like they were stuffed full of cotton.
"Helen?" Hank's voice alerted me. I tried to turn my head but winced.
His hand touched the back of my
hair. "Don't try to move yet. The EMT's need to check you out. You took quite the fall."
A quick glance outside let me know it was pitch black. "How long have I been out?"
"At least two hours," he said.
"The EMT's have been here for two hours?" I blinked at him in confusion.
He moved around the couch to sit next to me. Hank lifted my legs up and put them in his lap as if we'd sat like that a thousand times. I was too flustered to remark about it. "There's more," he said, his mouth a grim slash against his face.
I wasn't sure I wanted to know. If Dolores' cryptic comments and the presence of medical personnel were anything to go on, I knew exactly what had happened. "Dolores?" I asked finally.
Hank nodded. "She slipped away right in her seat. Quiet. The medics think it might have been some kind of stroke. Maybe just old age."
Maybe a hungry spirit who was not quite her son. I swallowed hard. “I screwed up,” I whispered. “It’s all my fault.”
Hank squeezed my knee in warning. “Helen, if you’ve never listened to me before, listen to me now. Keep quiet. Something isn’t quite right here.”
My eyes widened. I nodded. Hank gave my leg a friendly pat and we waited for one of the EMT’s to turn their attention to me.
He had a kind face. Kind for a werewolf, that was. You could usually spot them in a crowd. They were a little hairier than the average guy and their eyes tended to run toward the yellow gold side of the color spectrum. Plus their smiles were usually a little too wide. It didn’t mean they were bad, but the children’s story Little Red Riding Hood had kind of nailed it.
“Ms. Reaper?”
I nodded.
“My name is Rex Lupin. I’m going to check you out and make sure you’re okay. Is that all right?”
I nodded again.
“Would you like to tell me what happened?”
Hank squeezed my leg once in warning. I stuck to basic facts and blamed it on exhaustion. I told him I’d had two appointments that day and must have used more of my magic than I intended to. Once I’d released the spirit, I fainted.