"George?" Jimmy said.
Tabitha looked up, her eyes filled with a mixture of anger, sadness, and fear. Jimmy's mother turned to look at him, tears streaming down her face.
Jimmy looked into George's face. His head was back at an odd angle, cradled in her arms. Jimmy noticed the pool of blood on the floor and then saw that George's shirt was covered in crimson. A dark red hole was in the middle of his chest.
"No," Jimmy said.
It was then that Jimmy fainted and collapsed onto the hardwood floor.
Jimmy was in and out of consciousness for days. He had flashes of activity around him. He had no idea how he ended up in the bed in the room where he had been staying at Warren and Tabitha's home. He just knew that he awoke one time and found Sapphire sitting beside his bed in the darkness. They smiled at each other, but then he immediately slipped back into darkness. When he next awoke it was daylight, and there was shouting and noise from downstairs. He was out again, and when he awoke it was evening and his mother was beside his bed with a bowl of chicken and rice soup. He sipped a few spoonfuls and drank some water, but was too weak to say much.
Finally, he awoke in his bedroom and it was night time again. The darkness seemed absolute, and the house was cold. He could hear sobbing somewhere in the house and thought it might have been his mother, but he wasn’t sure. He looked around the room and found himself looking at George.
George was sitting in a chair. It was the same chair Sapphire had been sitting in on the first night they had been together in that room. He was dressed in the same shirt and pants he had been wearing the other night, and he had the same smile on his face that he always had whenever he talked to Jimmy. The only thing that was different was the hole he had in his chest, and the fact that Jimmy could see through him.
"So," George said, "is this the outcome you had planned?"
Jimmy shook his head. He tried to speak, but his voice was little more than a whisper. He felt hot tears leaking from his eyes and burning their way down his cheeks.
"I know," George said. "It's not so bad, by the way. I get to talk to Sapphire. She's nice, but she's not like me or any of the rest of us here. You've changed her. She's dead, but she's not dead. She's a ghost, but she's also real. She straddles two dimensions now. It's never happened before."
"And what are you?" Jimmy asked.
George gave a sad smile. "Oh, I'm definitely a ghost. I am as dead as they come. And don't think that I am doomed to walk the Earth or anything. No, there are ways to move on over here, compadre. I just wanted to stop by and say goodbye."
Jimmy felt the tears spring to his eyes again. "Can't you stay a while longer?"
George stood up. His legs appeared to vanish a couple of inches below the knee. Jimmy could see the dresser that was behind him through his torso. George shook his head.
"There's so much more to life and to the universe than what we know," he said. "I kind of always suspected that, but now that I see it, well, it's even more amazing than you can imagine. I have a lot to explore."
George smiled again.
"I'd shake your hand," he said, "but I don't think that's possible."
"How is any of this possible?" Jimmy said. "How is Sapphire possible? How can we do the things we do when we're together?"
George shook his head. "You keep asking questions. Just accept things. There are more questions once this life is over, you know. I don't have any more answers than I did a few days ago. The difference is that once you've left your body, you can go and explore those questions and find the answers.
"You and Sapphire have completely changed things. No one knows why. I did ask. It's hard to ask people questions here given how many still refuse to accept the fact that they’re dead. The few that know Sapphire and know what’s happening were just as confused as you are. What they do know is that it hasn't happened before and that they don't know what it means for any of us."
George shrugged.
"That doesn't help," Jimmy said.
"Well, very little does," George said. "Now, I have an entire afterlife to explore. You take care. And when you get over to this side, which I hope is not too soon, come look me up."
And with that, in the blink of an eye, George just vanished. Jimmy put his hands to his face and wept. At some point he realized that he probably should have asked George how he was supposed to look him up in the afterlife. Then again, maybe it didn't matter.
Jimmy wept for a while and then fell asleep.
Hours later, there was a knock at his door. Jimmy sat up and told whomever it was that they could come in. Tabitha peeked around the corner of the door and then stepped into the room. She closed the door behind her and stood there awkwardly, shifting in place.
"Hi," she said.
"Hello," Jimmy replied.
"I don't really know what to say," she said.
"It's hard for me to know what to say, either."
Tabitha walked across the room, passing by the foot of the bed. She sat down in the chair.
"You did...things," she said.
"I know," Jimmy whispered.
"Just how powerful is it?"
Jimmy shrugged. "Well, think about it. You met Sapphire. You know that when she’s here with me, she's not some ethereal ghost made out of ectoplasm. She's real. She gives off body heat. She's really here. Well, that has only happened since she met me. And each time we connect, it gets stronger. At first, we could only meet up at the bridge. Then we could connect through telepathy. Then, a few days ago, she appeared right here in this room. And that afternoon we realized that when we’re together, we can somehow alter reality."
Tabitha shuddered. "Alter reality?"
"I don't know how else to explain it,” Jimmy said. “It's like we can see the world the way it is behind everything that you see. It's like being able to see the energy that everything, every molecule, gives off. And you can just suddenly reach out and touch that energy, shape it, change it, and bend it."
"And when you moved my laptop?"
"I don't know. Apparently the power is growing. Something happened when Sapphire and I met, and it awakened something in each of us. And now the power grows all the time."
"Just how far do you think it will go? I mean, being able to change reality is pretty amazing, Jimmy. That's power on par with a god. That's a lot of power to be housed inside a young man."
"Is this where you tell me that with great power comes great responsibility?"
Tabitha smiled. "Something like that. Can you imagine what is happening in Knorr right now? The word is already getting around about you. Most people will dismiss it as nonsense, but everyone will look at you differently."
"I don't know how far it will go," Jimmy said, deciding to ignore what Tabitha had just said. "Maybe once we bring this whole thing to a conclusion with Sapphire, and she moves on, the connection will be broken and the power will disappear. I don't know."
"Have you thought about what the effects of this might be?"
"What do you mean?"
"You and Sapphire are going against the very laws of nature, Jimmy. When you’re dead, you're supposed to stay that way. She comes back to life to be with you and you alter the fabric of the laws of the universe. Everything we do is connected, you know. What we touch ripples through lives and reality on a daily basis, like water when you toss in a stone. What are the ramifications of you bending reality like this? Maybe reality doesn't want to be bent, and when it snaps back, people could end up hurt."
Jimmy nodded and put his head down. He studied the patterns of the threads in the blanket on the bed.
"I don't know how to respond to that," Jimmy said. "I just know that the universe, or reality, has decided that Sapphire and I can do this and maybe that we need to be able to do this. Maybe that's why I kind of feel like this might only be temporary."
Things got quiet between them. They had dealt with the stuff that Jimmy had done that was well beyond the scope of human understanding. Death, on the oth
er hand, and people with guns, were very understandable.
"So," Jimmy said, already feeling the sobs and the tears burning at his throat and his eyeballs.
"So," Tabitha repeated. "George was shot, as you know. He was dead before the ambulance could get here."
Jimmy said, "I know."
Tabitha sighed. "The sheriff arrested both Stan and Devlin Little, along with two others. One of them was found in the backyard buried up to his neck."
Jimmy said nothing. Tabitha gave him a pixie-ish stare over the top of her glasses, but when she realized that he wasn’t going to give any more information, she shrugged.
"They’re saying all kinds of things about you flying and manipulating electricity, but they aren’t saying anything about Sapphire or explaining why they were here shooting up the place," Tabitha said. "I told the sheriff what we had been investigating and what we had found. He agrees that the evidence for Devlin having anything to do with Sapphire's death is slim, at best. He doesn't think he can officially charge him with that, but he thinks that he can get him on George's death. Needless to say, the town is in an uproar and people are scared. As you know, Devlin owns a lot around here and people are afraid of losing their jobs and everything else."
“So, chief, what's our next move? Sapphire is still in my head and hasn't moved on. So if we caught the person that did it, why hasn’t she?"
"Maybe she needs him to be convicted of her death," Tabitha said. "No more memories have come to her about that night?"
"I've been sort of out of it the past few days, as you know," Jimmy replied. "We haven't talked. I can hear this sort of buzzing in my head when she's listening in or when she wants me to know she's around. I can still hear it. And I am betting she would be talking to me if any memories had come up."
Tabitha chewed on her bottom lip for a moment. Her forehead creased and Jimmy realized she was thinking, mulling over the facts and how things had played out in her head.
"I think we need to find her body," Tabitha said.
Jimmy's eyes went wide. "What makes you think there's anything to find? If what Jesse said was true, she was washed out into the river."
Tabitha cocked her head to the side and looked at Jimmy as if he were crazy. "Did you believe a word of what Jesse said that day we talked to him?"
Jimmy closed his eyes and sighed again. He shook his head.
"Me, either," Tabitha said. "I think we need to see what we can do about finding her bones, or whatever else we can find. I also think we need to find her family."
"Didn't you put feelers out to people at the FBI and stuff like that?" Jimmy asked.
Tabitha nodded. "Yes, but nothing has come back. If there was a crime, it all happened and was investigated locally. They also didn't have everyone’s fingerprints back then. Well, maybe Hoover wanted to, but most of the FBI didn't and they were certainly not worried about a teenage girl in high school."
Jimmy shrugged. "How do we find her?"
"First, I think you two need to have a conversation. Maybe just mentioning her body will spark a memory. If not, I have a friend who has a dog that has been used to sniff out bodies. Maybe he can find something, but that won’t be easy with the river involved. If not, I also have a friend who has one of those scanners that they tried to use to find Jimmy Hoffa at Giants Stadium one time. Maybe we can use that."
"That's a lot of maybes," Jimmy said.
"Do you have a better suggestion?"
"OK. OK. Just sayin'."
Tabitha stood up and gave Jimmy a hug. It was so sudden that it caught him off-guard, but it also felt very genuine. Then she patted his shoulders and exited the room. Jimmy sat back and closed his eyes and thought of Sapphire. As he did, the room began to lighten again, and crackles of energy like lightning etched their way across the room. A deep, rumbling bass sound filled the air and the light got brighter and brighter. Moments later, Sapphire appeared, her eyes wide, a smile spread across her face.
Then she saw Jimmy’s face, and her smile faltered.
She ran to him and collapsed into his arms. They kissed, and the kiss deepened into a passionate embrace. They tumbled onto the bed and the air around them came alive; the walls appeared to breathe, the ceiling expanded and contracted, and the world itself seemed to change and alter as their passion grew.
They did their best to forget what had happened, and, for a while, it worked.
After all of the pyrotechnics, flash, and thunder had died down and Sapphire and Jimmy had spent some time talking about what had happened, they sat on the bed together, both of them worried. Sapphire was devastated about George and could not stop apologizing. Jimmy cried, and they held each other. When he broached the subject of finding her body, her demeanor stiffened and a fearful glint filled her eyes.
"I don't know, Jimmy," she said.
"We have to deal with it," Jimmy said. "Finding it might also provide evidence that could put Devlin Little away."
"I think his killing George will do that," Sapphire said.
"Look, I know you’re afraid that if we find out what happened to you that things between us will stop. I'm afraid of that, too, but it's what's right, Sapphire. And doesn't your family deserve to find some peace, too?"
Sapphire's eyes filled with pain. "I can barely remember my family. I don't know what happened to them…after."
They were silent for some time, considering this fact.
"We need to find it," Jimmy said. "Do you have any idea where it might be?"
Sapphire shook her head and began pacing. The energy in the room suddenly drained, and it became very cold. She became indistinct and began to sort of flicker.
"Calm down," Jimmy said. "You're losing your hold on things. Relax."
He stood up and grabbed her on her next pass by the bed. She flung her arms around him and he held her tight. They kissed, and it was like all of the other times, only more real than ever before.
"Better?" Jimmy said.
Sapphire nodded. "Better."
"Now, stay calm," Jimmy said. "Just sit down and think. Does anything come to mind?"
Sapphire sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. After a few moments, she closed her eyes. Her breathing grew steady and slow as if she were falling into a trance. She shook her head.
"I remember it being cold," she said, her voice sounding strangely distant. "I remember being outside and being so angry. I couldn't stop talking to Jesse about how unfair it was that we got kicked out. I remember being in the car."
She shook her head and her brow creased, as if she were thinking hard. Her breath caught in her chest.
"I don't remember what happened," she said. "The car stopped and it was cold again and I remember shouting."
Her face creased with pain.
"I remember hurting and being scared."
Her breath caught again, as if in a sob. Then her breath started again, fast, filled with fear.
"I remember it being cold. Water. I remember water. Something else. Something cold and wet."
Her breath hitched again and she sobbed.
"I was scared," she said. "I remember being so afraid. Then it was dark and things made no sense. I was there, but not there. I could sort of see and hear things, but not respond to them. I was so scared. Time seemed to fly by and then slow down at the same time."
Her eyes flew open and Jimmy saw that they were shining with tears.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I can't remember anything else."
She sobbed. Her chest was rising and falling, her breath hitching and catching in her chest. Jimmy came to her and knelt down in front of her. She held out her arms and he enfolded her within his own. They kissed, and then that kiss stretched out as they lay on the bed.
Together, they made the pain stop.
Sapphire simply vanished a couple of hours later. Jimmy lay in bed, staring at the ceiling for a time. His head was spinning, and he could still smell Sapphire's perfume on his skin. After a while he stood up and got dressed and headed
out into the hallway. When he got downstairs, he saw that the windows had been boarded up and the broken glass was gone. There was a spot beneath the table that had probably been stained where George lay, but it was clean now. Tabitha was in the kitchen, and when she saw Jimmy she came over to him.
Jimmy told her what Sapphire had told him. Tabitha agreed that it was not much.
"I think she may have been buried in the mud beside the river," Tabitha said. "I think she was held under and drowned, and then buried along the banks of the river."
Jimmy cocked his head to the side. "How do you come to that conclusion?"
Tabitha sighed. "From what I can tell, spirits tend to become attached to the location where they were left. There are exceptions and some spirits seem to find ways to disassociate themselves, but Sapphire seems to have stuck to that location for a reason. I think her body was left there, buried."
"It makes about as much sense as anything else," Jimmy said. "How do we find it, though?"
Tabitha smiled. "We search underground."
The air was much cooler than it had been the other night, Jimmy thought as he shivered standing near the bridge. Inside his head, the buzzing sound that indicated Sapphire was awake and listening was growing. He was trying hard to keep his thoughts to himself, however. He couldn’t shake the feeling that what he and Tabitha were doing would upset her.
Tabitha stood on the banks with Jimmy. Nearby was a man with a gray beard bundled in a coat that, despite the cooler air, Jimmy felt was a bit extreme. A dog on a leash was sniffing the ground furiously. The man’s name was Ned, and the dog—Champ, a German Shepherd—was a trained cadaver dog. Ned insisted that the dog's nose was so well trained that even human bones that had been buried beneath the mud beside the river for more than fifty years could be detected.
Jimmy was not so sure, and he was not entirely convinced that this was something that they should even be doing. The buzzing in his skull got louder for a moment, and Jimmy put a hand to his forehead. He was still so tired. That last little reality-bending adventure had nearly wiped him out entirely.
Sapphire: A Paranormal Romance Page 24