Suddenly he grabbed my hand. “Be still, Mommy. He’s coming up the stairs.” I noticed he had a flashlight with him, the small blue plastic one that came up missing from my nightstand a few weeks ago. He clicked it off and sat next to me. He was in no way relaxed; in fact, he was so tense that he felt stiff.
What to say to that? I knew the mommy thing to do was to correct him, tell him that there was nothing out there, but I couldn’t lie to him.
I heard the heavy footsteps coming up the massive wooden staircase. Whatever it was, it didn’t make it a secret that it was coming. It was like it wanted to terrify my son. It enjoyed it. I heard one of the doors open down the hallway with a slam. Try as I might to stay calm, fear grew in the pit of my stomach. I had to get AJ out of here, out of this dream!
“AJ, we can’t stay here. We have to go. We have to leave.”
“No, Mommy. He’ll hear us.” He grabbed my hands, his big eyes wide with fear. “Quiet.”
“Trust me, Ashland James,” I whispered to him. “I won’t let him get you.”
He didn’t trust me right away. He had to think about it, but the creature’s footsteps were getting louder. “Okay, Mommy.”
We slid out from under the bed, and I picked up my son and held him tight. I kissed his cheek as his arms went around my neck.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you.” The creature ransacked whatever room it had entered, probably Callie’s. The Black Wolf must have been destroying the place because it made a great show of snorting and howling in between crashes. If we were going to make our move, it had to be now. The Black Wolf wasn’t going to be satisfied with breaking furniture for long. And just as I thought that, I heard its heavy feet stomping in the hallway again. It grunted and yapped threateningly before it entered Louis’ room, where the Devecheauxs were staying. I planned to take the back stairs down and hide in the Moonlight Garden until I could find a way out of this dream.
As I stepped out into the hallway, it was darker than I remembered. Was this Baby Boy’s fear or some horrible magic the Black Wolf brought with it? “Close your eyes, AJ,” I whispered. To my horror, the creature stopped its stomping and crashing. It must have heard me! I raced out into the hallway and my son’s arms tightened around my neck, but it was too late.
The Black Wolf’s massive shape filled the hallway between Calpurnia’s and Louis’ rooms. There was nothing to do but stare it down. If I turned my back on it, it would pounce on us. If I tried to get past it and take the main staircase down, it would pounce on us. At seeing me, its glistening black eyes sparkled and its black fur bristled. It bent its head down and took a step toward us, its white teeth shining as a deep, guttural growl hit me.
“No! Get away from us,” I said in my most menacing voice. “You can’t be here. We defeated you at Idlewood!”
It took another step and snarled as it lifted its head. A horrible howl filled the house. I screamed, and Baby Boy began to cry in my arms. “You have no power over us! Get out of my house!” I said, trying to show bravery.
And then we weren’t alone. A man stood beside me. The hallway became warmer, and I gasped as his face became clearer.
Muncie!
He put his hand on my shoulder but kept his eyes on the Black Wolf. The creature appeared prepared to take another step toward us, but Muncie shook his head and raised his other hand to it, commanding it to stop.
“No. Ou pa ka fè mal fanmi mwen!”
The Black Wolf growled but didn’t move. Its black eyes stared at me with pure hatred. Oh, it wanted me. It wanted both AJ and me. But Muncie wasn’t moving. Whatever Muncie said to the creature, it listened to him.
“Ou pa ka fè mal ti gason l’ak ti fi! Yo se mwen!” The creature howled at those words, but we weren’t waiting around to see what would happen next. Muncie placed his hand on my shoulder and shouted again, “Soti la. Pa tounen!”
“Muncie…” I whispered. My knees buckled, my heart raced, and my son wept on my shoulder, his little arms tight around my neck.
“Go! Go now!” Muncie shouted at me as he released me. The Black Wolf charged at us, and I took off running with AJ screaming in my arms. We didn’t take the back stairs. I don’t know why, but I raced out the open door. AJ hugged me even tighter, and then we were on the ground. We didn’t fly, we didn’t float. We were just there, near the front porch where I first met Ashland.
I huddled on the ground with AJ. I prayed the Black Wolf would not follow us, but I feared for Muncie too. I heard Muncie and the Black Wolf scream and then nothing.
“Muncie,” I whispered as I continued to hold AJ. I got to my feet and peered up at the top-floor window, the white curtains blowing in the breeze. “AJ, it’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”
And then Muncie was there too. As AJ and I held one another, Muncie put his arms around us. My fanmi. No more Black Wolf, he said with his mind.
“Thank you,” I said as I looked into his warm brown eyes. He kissed my cheek and rubbed Baby Boy’s head. My son leaned on my shoulder and smiled at him.
“No more doggy?”
“No more,” Muncie said with a smile, then stepped back and vanished before our eyes. He left warmth behind him, and I felt love. A peaceful love. I felt lighter and knew that what he told me was right. The Black Wolf had been defeated once and for all. Its torment of my son was finished.
“Let’s go home, AJ.”
“Okay, Mommy.”
Still holding him, I walked back inside the house. It sounded like there was a party going on somewhere in the distance. When we stepped back inside, the house had regained some of its color. There were no more shadowy rooms, no more white curtains or creepy plastic spiders. All was slowly becoming as it should be.
I walked upstairs to Baby Boy’s room and laid him on his own bed, then curled up beside him. I held his hand and rubbed his chubby fingers until he closed his eyes. And then I closed mine.
When I woke up, he was looking into my face. “Doggy all gone, Mommy?”
“Yes, Ashland James. He is all gone.” As he tucked up against me, I stroked his sweaty hair and whispered, “Thank you, Muncie.”
Chapter Nine—Carrie Jo
“Ashland? Are you awake?” My husband must have spent the night on the couch. He rubbed his eyes and peered at me as if he didn’t trust what he was seeing.
“Yeah, what time is it, babe? I can’t believe I crashed down here.” Sunlight streamed in through the window that overlooked the herb garden. The scents of thyme and rosemary wafted in. I didn’t remember leaving that window open.
“It’s early, but I’ve been up a while.” I glanced at my watch. “It’s about 8:30.” He sat up and rubbed his neck. Our big blue couch, Old Faithful, was comfy for sitting, but Ashland preferred a firm mattress. “You crashed out here, huh?”
“Yeah, sorry.” He rubbed his eyes and accepted the coffee I offered him.
“No problem. I fell asleep with AJ, anyway. It’s probably a good thing I did, too. He had a nightmare, Ashland. He wasn’t lying to us; that thing was here.” He took a sip of coffee and then put the cup down. I couldn’t stand to see that crushed look on his face. “No, it’s okay now. Muncie came, and the thing is gone.”
Baby Boy sauntered in with bits of cereal clinging to his pajamas. After what he’d been through last night, he didn’t have to beg me to watch the Builder. I clicked on the television, and he began his regular stay-home morning routine. He dumped out the toy box and danced to the theme song like nothing had ever happened. I took Ashland’s hand. “Hey, he’s going to be fine. He’s a brave kid. But you should know, he’s dream walking…and he’s good at it.” As quietly as I could, I told my husband about the spider, the wolf and Muncie. He breathed a sigh of relief, but something about him didn’t feel right this morning.
“Good morning, y’all,” Detra Ann called as she walked in the front door. I heard her mules clicking on the floor and smiled at her as she sailed into the room. She looked picture-perfect as always in her Bohemian
tunic and leggings, and her blond hair was shiny and straight. Baby Chloe was on her hip and looked much happier without the wig. “There’s my favorite Chloe!” I stood up and clapped my hands. Immediately, the baby began rocking up and down on her mother’s slender hip.
“Chloe, you’re killing Mommy. Here, go see Aunt CJ. Geesh, Ash. You look like an unmade bed. Tell me what you guys got into while we were away…working on Baby Number Two?” Detra Ann slid her oversized sunglasses to the top of her head as she grinned at us both. Henri toted the ridiculously expensive diaper bag and plopped down beside Ashland.
“Uh, bite your tongue, lady. AJ is enough for now,” I answered quickly.
Henri slapped Ashland on the back. “Man, I’m tired and the day hasn’t even gotten started. You ready to help us move?”
“Already?” Ashland asked with a grin on his face. “I thought that was a few weeks away.”
“Nope. We’re moving up our move-out date, and then you’ll have your house back without all the extra guests,” Detra Ann said, grinning at us. “Everything is finished and move-in ready.”
“Wow, you guys. We’re so happy for you, but I think we’ll always have extra guests here,” I said cryptically as I walked around the room with Miss Grabby Hands on my hip. I kissed her cheek and sat down on the floor with her, hoping that AJ might be interested in actually playing with her. He wasn’t, especially when it came to sharing his blocks. I coaxed him into giving her the yellow ones since those were his least favorite. Chloe banged on them a few times and then quickly put one in her mouth.
“Ugh, she swobbers.”
“And so did you, Mr. Smarty Pants,” I reminded him. He cut me those eyes that said, you don’t know what you’re talking about. And then I realized my son’s eyes were blue again.
“AJ, go see Daddy. He wants to give you a hug.” He did as I asked, but Ashland was clueless. “His eyes, Ashland. Look at his eyes.”
With a half-sob, he hugged AJ, pushed back the hair from our son’s eyes and kissed his forehead. “Wow, you’re a handsome fella.” AJ took off and ran back to his toys. For the next minute, none of us said a word. Something good had happened. Or at least I took it as a good sign.
Finally, Detra Ann slapped her knees. “Well, there’s no time like the present. I think the moving truck is here. Do you mind helping us, Ashland? Carrie Jo, if you would keep Chloe occupied, that would be great.”
“Sure thing.” I flicked a tear away from my eye and nodded. “I can do that. But you be careful in those shoes, Detra Ann.”
“I’ve got backup sneakers in my tote bag.”
“She has everything in that tote bag,” Henri complained with a half-smile. “And it weighs a ton.”
“Wait a minute. Do you really need a moving truck? I think we could get everything in our vehicles. Might take a couple of trips, but we could do it.”
“You haven’t seen her closet, Carrie Jo.”
“Or his,” Detra Ann barked back. “No man should have that many Hawaiian shirts. Unless he lives in Hawaii.” Henri shook his head and walked out of the room with Ash right behind him. Clearly, she was ready to argue; there was trouble in paradise, apparently. I heard Henri and Ashland talking as they met the movers and headed upstairs. Detra Ann didn’t get up, and I didn’t know how to interpret her facial expression.
“Carrie Jo, do you think I’ve made a horrible mistake?”
“What do you mean? Everything is going to be fine, Detra Ann. You guys have the store back, the charges against Henri were dropped, and you have Chloe now.” Hearing me mention her name reminded Chloe that we were here, and she started crawling to us.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about the past, you know, about TD and how much I loved him. I sometimes wonder, being here and being so close to the place he loved, if he sees me. If he thinks I betrayed him somehow. That I didn’t wait long enough before…”
“Detra Ann Devecheaux, don’t you dare go there. Terrence Dale would have loved Henri, and he certainly would have loved Baby Chloe. You can’t think like that. You didn’t choose for him to…to leave, but it happened. TD isn’t here for you to love, to be happy with. He’s gone. He would want you to be happy.”
She dug into her bag and pulled out a neat hankie. “I know that, but I wonder sometimes. I just wonder, Carrie Jo. Why couldn’t I go with him?”
Now I was worried. My friend had overcome so much. She’d fallen into a deep, dark hole after TD’s death, one that Henri helped lift her out of. Surely she wasn’t having second thoughts. Not after all this time.
“I think I saw him when I was in the hospital with the baby. I swear I saw him. He was leaning against a wall, watching me.”
“Well, if he was, and you know I’m not doubting you, he was there to show you he was happy for you.”
“You think so?”
“Absolutely. TD didn’t have a mean bone in his body, and he loved you with all his heart. You know, I’ve thought about him a lot too recently. I can’t prove this, but you remember that car wreck he was in, the one that killed his girlfriend back in high school?”
“Ashley? The girl he saw as a ghost?”
“Yeah, well, what if he wasn’t supposed to survive that?”
Detra Ann caught her breath. “What do you mean?”
“What if TD had been living on borrowed time all along? Kind of like David Garrett.”
“I never thought of that. Do you think it’s possible?”
“Maybe. Like I said, I can’t prove any of it. And I miss him too, Detra Ann. I just can’t make myself go to the Dale House or Bette’s museum. Seeing his face, and Bette’s, it’s just too much. We’ve lost so many people here.” I thought about Momma too but didn’t mention her. Detra Ann was depressed enough without me piling on my own heartache. Yeah, that was it. Depression.
“Thanks, Carrie Jo. I guess you’re right. You must be.” She sighed sadly and stared at her hankie. Chloe crept up beside her and gurgled.
Henri practically tiptoed into the room. “Hey, you want to come show us what to do?” he said with an awkward smile on his face. “Knowing you, you have this all planned out. You got a clipboard hidden in that tote bag?”
“I don’t need one,” she replied as she smiled back. “It’s all up here.” She pointed a manicured fingernail to her temple, and I laughed.
“Uh-oh. We’re in trouble,” I joked along with them.
“I’m on the way, Harry.”
He tapped the doorframe and nodded patiently. Detra Ann followed behind him, pausing once to smile at me. “Thanks,” she said.
“You’ve got it. Anytime, my friend.”
Yep, I was going to miss them when they were gone, but it wasn’t like they were leaving forever. Cotton City Antiques was only a few streets over, not in the next state. Yeah, but still. It felt like someone else was leaving me.
I couldn’t shake that feeling.
Chapter Ten—Lafonda
I didn’t bother tapping on the door; from the sounds of shuffling paper, I knew Mama was inside. My father was in his bed with a “fever” again if I was to believe my mother, which I did not. Since Jonatan’s arrest, Papa had fallen into a terrible state. He frequently forgot to change his clothes and no longer shaved or combed his hair. It was as if everything he had been, confident and kind, were things tied to his love for Jonatan and me. And although he did his best to help my brother, he had no real standing in this city, and I believed that this truth shocked him. No matter how many men Papa employed, how much wealth he acquired, none of it mattered. Max’s common-law wife wanted justice. How was it that Maggie Davenport could demand such justice but Jonatan would be denied?
This was Mama’s constant question, but Papa had no answers for her. I knew the truth, that even Maggie Davenport—who was the lowest type of citizen—was not of foreign blood as we were. For all our neighbors’ pleasantries, for all their pretenses, we were still foreign upstarts, and Jonatan would suffer for it.
My brother had be
en imprisoned for two weeks, and I was not permitted to go see him, which broke my heart. I sent many baskets of food, a pen and paper, but I had heard nothing from him. Mama did not go either, but Papa went every day. At least at first.
But I had not yet given up hope. My new friend, Philip Beaumont, worked behind the scenes to help free my brother. The only cost for his assistance was my silence on his garden search. Whatever it was that he had lost in the Moonlight Garden, he wanted desperately to retrieve it. Of course I questioned him about it, but he offered no answers and I was too fearful of losing his influential friendship to insist on them. Even though I had no idea what he sought, I thought it a fair trade. And with Papa’s current state of mind, I felt satisfied with our agreement.
I waited for Mama to look up, but she did not. “Mama, Mrs. Overstreet is here to see Memphis.”
She waved a hand. “Tell her she’s resting. She should come back later.” Mama barely looked up from her papers.
I did not have a chance to plead for kindness. Anne Overstreet’s tall frame cast a shadow over me; she had not waited in the ladies’ parlor as I had asked after all. I stepped out of the way and waited for Mama to look up. It was so strange to see her behind the big wooden desk instead of Papa. Mama had spent the whole day writing letter after letter to whomever she could think of, hoping to get some help with Jonatan’s situation. At least that’s what I assumed.
“Leave us, Lafonda.” Mama lifted her head now. She rose behind the desk, her back straight. Her usually tidy hair was disheveled, her fingers stained with ink. I pulled the door closed but not all the way. I intended to eavesdrop on this conversation. I heard her bootheels thumping on the carpet, but it didn’t deter me. With a glance up and down the hall to make sure I didn’t see anyone, I hung by the door and leaned close to listen. The conversation did not start well. Their angry voices rose quickly.
“My daughter is not a prisoner, Jacinta. Your son is, and my daughter is now married to a murderer! I am taking her home, away from this shameful place and this shameful family.”
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