by Lakes, Lynde
“What do you know about the fire?” Cort growled. “I saw you drive off the site that night. What were you doing here?”
Kimo’s face flushed and he looked down at his work boots. “I was gonna get even. But I couldn’t.”
“Why should I believe you?”
“No reason.” Kimo met his gaze. “But it’s the truth.”
Cort studied Kimo’s steady eyes for a long moment, waiting for a blink or wavering gaze. Seeing neither, he said, “Get your tool belt and report to Tom.” Kimo deserved a chance, but Cort sure as hell hoped Brandy talked to the abuse counselors and got their advice before she trusted her hotheaded husband again.
****
Lani pulled the living room drapes aside. Darkness closed over the valley, and soon everyone would arrive for the séance. She smiled, hearing the distant shuffling of Grandfather’s footsteps as he puttered around the kitchen. It felt so right to have him home again. And important. His presence at the séance was as necessary as Cort’s. Now that grandfather was back she wanted to get this over with and jump into that dark chasm of the unknown and walk through the forbidden doors to whatever or whomever lurked beyond the blackness.
Where was Cort? Dr. Millie had stressed that his participation was crucial. He should’ve been here by now. Lani paced a few steps, then rested her brow against the windowpane. Since the trailer fire, all had remained tranquil. But now that Cort was gearing up full steam ahead to resume construction, how could she keep him safe?
She began pacing again. What would happen here tonight? Her stomach knotted at the thought of invading the murky realm of the dead. But since she couldn’t accept what was inflicted upon her, her only choice was to seek the truth and live this nightmare on her own terms. Lani paused by the window and tapped the sill. No headlights shone from the road and there was no hum of an approaching car.
Grandfather came into the living room and sat down in his easy chair with his paper. “Honey, a watched pot never boils.”
Lani let the drape fall back into place. “I was just watching the stars come out.”
Grandfather chuckled. “Sure you were.”
It was her fault he didn’t know there was more at stake than her normal eagerness to see Cort. She hadn’t told him about the fire at the construction site, or how Cort had almost died in it. Lani rubbed her arms. Where is he?
She froze at the sound of a car coming up the road. But it wasn’t Cort’s. Dr. Millie and the spiritualist had arrived.
When Lani returned from the kitchen with refreshments, she heard a deep, familiar voice. Cort filled the entryway, warming her heart with relief and joy. She hurriedly placed the punch and cookies on a side table and told them all to help themselves.
Cort shook Grandfather’s hand. “How was your trip to the mainland, Keo?”
“Stimulating. But I missed Lani and my home.”
Cort’s smile broadened as he looked past Grandfather and met her gaze. The secret message in his eyes quickened her heartbeat. He wasn’t angry anymore. When she returned his smile, he closed the space between them. His familiar embrace was like sipping wine, warming, intoxicating. As he gently brushed her cheek with his lips, she inhaled, drawing in the musky smell of his shaving lotion. Mentally, she felt him touching her, intimately caressing every curve and valley, as he had when they’d made love. A rush of warmth flooded her cheeks.
Grandfather cleared his throat.
Her cheeks got hotter. After a deep breath to regain her composure, Lani took Cort’s arm and guided him forward. “I don’t believe you’ve met Dr. Kahaluu.”
The doctor extended her hand. “Please call me Millie. I feel as though we already know each other.”
Cort sent Lani a quizzical look, probably wondering what she’d told the doctor about him. Lani smiled. That would be her little secret.
“This is Dr. Douglas Elele,” Millie said, gesturing to a tall man wearing a flowing robe. “He teaches courses in mythology, witchcraft and sorcery at the university, and he’s had considerable success in séance experiments.”
Cort and Dr. Elele shook hands, then Cort draped his arm around Lani’s shoulder. Somehow his closeness made her feel protected. But could he shield her from the danger of whatever might happen?
Dr. Elele rubbed his boney jaw and asked, “Have you ever been to a séance, Cort?”
“No, sir, this is first for me.” His voice carried no hint of emotion. Lani would bet he intended it to be his last.
“Do you believe we can reach spirits?” Elele asked.
“I’m skeptical. But for Lani, I’ll go along with this.” He squeezed her shoulder, and the gentle pressure reassured her.
“Good,” Elele said. “As a central figure in Lani’s dreams, we need you here. Let me explain what I hope to accomplish. A séance doesn’t always produce results. However, many times a medium or spiritualist can induce spirits to materialize. I’ll try to reach Lani’s mother, father, or other closely related spirits who want to communicate with her.”
Millie added, “I’ve had some success using regression hypnosis in my practice, Cort. However, in spite of Lani’s exceptionally sharp childhood memories, something blocked her from going all the way back to her birth. So this séance is our next option.”
Cort shifted his weight, looking uneasy. “How long will it take?”
“Depends.” Elele looked amused. “After an hour I generally become too drained to be effective, so if we’re not successful in reaching a spirit within that period, we’ll stop and try another time.”
Millie glanced at her watch. “It’s almost nine. May we use the kitchen?”
“Of course.” Grandfather gestured for everyone to go ahead of him. “Is there a way to tell when spirits are in the room?”
“Generally, the cooler the room becomes, the greater the chance that spirits are here,” Elele said as he began to unpack candles from his satchel. “I’m not talking specifically about a temperature coldness. It’s as likely to happen on a warm night as a chilly one. The feeling is indefinable, like a breeze when you know there’s no wind. Or perhaps like the wisp of coolness you might experience if an icy breath was aimed at you through a bamboo reed. The sensation may start at your feet and then swirl up your body. It’s not always the same. We’re never sure what we’ll encounter.”
Lani reached for the comfort of Cort’s hand and clung to him.
“If the family story about Lani being Pele’s daughter is true,” Elele continued, “she could possess a form of mana or supernatural power. Descendants of gods or goddesses sometimes do.”
“Or,” Millie said, “Lani could have extrasensory perception, which would explain her premonition of the trailer explosion.”
Cort’s cynical expression told Lani he wasn’t buying any of this. Although comforted by his presence, she wished he didn’t have to hear all this. She didn’t want him to think she was a freak of nature.
“Does it scare you that Pele could be your mother?” Dr. Elele asked in a wavering voice.
“More concerned than scared. It’s not an easy thing to contemplate. But something is going on.”
“The spirits may help us to discern what that something is.” Dr. Elele pointed toward the kitchen table. “Everyone sit down. Cort on the right of Lani. Keo on the left. Millie, take that chair next to Keo. I’ll be between Cort and you.”
All but Elele sat down. Lani clenched her hands into a tangle of pain. Cort patted them. She mustered a small smile. It meant a great deal to have him with her, an indication of a deeper commitment than he was willing to admit, especially after he’d made it perfectly clear he didn’t believe in séances.
Elele lit the thirteen candles he’d scattered around the room, including the three he’d placed in the center of the round table. He switched off the lights. The flames from the candles flickered and cast monstrous leaping shadows around the room.
As the five of them clasped hands, the antique clock in the living room struck nine. Lani shiver
ed at the ominous sound.
Dr. Elele began to chant in Hawaiian. The hypnotic beat echoed off the walls, mesmerizing Lani. She closed her eyes. As Dr. Elele’s voice droned on, her body grew light as if it were about to float away. To ground herself, she tightened her hold on Cort’s and Grandfather’s hands.
The wind began to howl and the old house creaked under the assault. A loose window rattled. The hallway door slammed. From the back of the house, Lani heard glass breaking. She flinched as an icy hand touched the back of her neck. The cold sensation slid slowly down her spine. A dark cloak of foreboding wrapped itself around her. If she didn’t stop the séance something terrible would happen. “I want to stop!” Although she shouted it, no words came out of her mouth.
She opened her eyes. Everyone else had theirs closed. Grandfather looked as if he were taking a nap. Cort’s lips formed a thin line. Millie looked serene, and Dr. Elele seemed enthralled by his own chanting voice. Lani tried to let go of Cort’s and Grandfather’s hands. Invisible magnets held her. She tried to stand. Her knees wouldn’t straighten.
“Stop!” she cried again. Still, no one seemed to hear her. An earsplitting, hurricane-like wind raged through the room, spiraling around, extinguishing all the candles except the one in the center of the table. Its flame flickered, then grew strong again. The floor quaked beneath Lani’s feet. Tremors shook her body. A giant banyan tree appeared from nowhere and wrapped its aerial roots around her, and maile vines braided into her hair, holding her head fast.
Lani darted a glance at the entranced faces around the table. Dear God! She was alone in this horror…
Chapter Twenty-Five
Lani’s heart pounded. Outside, wind thrashed tree limbs against the house, and rain pelted the windows. The table swayed before her. Eerie shadows of beings no longer a part of the living world writhed on the walls. Hollow moans and wails echoed from the dark corners of the room. Bodiless spirits spoke in ancient Hawaiian. The multitude of voices pounded against her eardrums; if only they would speak one at a time so she could catch the words.
Lani’s nostrils burned from the smell of sulfur. The room temperature rose, and the heat was stifling. Suddenly, the wall in front of her ignited into a vision of a fiery volcano. Terror knotted her stomach as the molten crater changed into the image of a snarling woman’s face. “Look!” Lani shouted. “Everyone, open your eyes!” Desperate, she glanced again around the table.
Candlelight shimmered on captivated faces. No one moved. It was as if she hadn’t spoken. Lani’s skin felt icy one minute, hot the next. The face of the woman disappeared into the flames. Then the flames rolled into a ball and ricocheted from wall to wall over her head. The room grew hotter. Sweat soaked her hair and trickled down her face. She wanted to escape, to run. A smoky ray of light enveloped her, imprisoned her.
Like a comet, the tail of the fiery ball whipped across the curtains, licking them, igniting them. The outside door blew open and a torrent of rain entered and poured over the curtains like a waterfall. Lani saw two Hawaiian women’s faces. One in the fire and the other in the water; slowly, they took on full forms. She couldn’t see them clearly, but the frightening intensity to their aura existed beyond anything of earthly magnitude.
Fire flamed from the fingertips of one, while water blasted from the fingers of the other. More fire, more water. The images cleared. Lani recognized the women. They were Pele and one of her sisters Hiiaka-Wawahi-Lani, the Water Goddess, at bitter odds with each other, just as they had been in the stories she’d read.
They writhed and rolled together in frenzied waves of fire and water. Steam sizzled and rose above them.
Finally, the water overcame the flames and the blaze evaporated into an orange vapor, leaving the room dark except for the one flickering candle. The water gathered into a wave, rolling and curling upon itself. As it left, the door slammed behind it.
Lani’s relief lasted only a second because the orange haze formed substance again. Pele stepped out of it, leaving a blackness behind her. Her hair was adorned with garlands of o’helo berries and the scarlet pom poms from the lehua tree. As the goddess came toward Lani, the maile vines around Pele’s neck rippled in a breeze from an unknown source. Thorn-covered vines and delicate ferns snaked around her arms. Her lips moved. Lani strained to hear the words, holding tightly to the men’s hands with clammy fingers.
“Remember,” Pele said in a raspy whisper, “you live by the spirit! You live by me. Serve me. Serve your people. Save the sacred bones of your ancestors! Only then will your spirit be free.”
The misty form jetted sideways and hovered over Cort. Lani wanted to throw her own body in front of his, but a force held her immobile. “Please don’t hurt him. I love him. I’ll do anything you say.”
Wavering, the form wrapped a fiery golden mist around Cort. Lani whispered fervent prayers for his safety.
At last, the image moved away from him, faltered above the center candle for a moment, then vanished into the flame. The manacles that held Lani fell from her body. The long, strangling roots snaked away into the dark corners of the room. Letting go of the men’s hands, Lani stood and grasped the edge of the table, steadying herself until her legs felt strong enough to carry her to the light switch.
As the room flooded with light, everyone opened their eyes. Dr. Elele looked at his watch. “Thank you for reminding me of the time. Even though nothing happened this time, don’t be discouraged. Sometimes it takes several tries to make contact.”
“But you did contact spirits!” Lani gestured wildly. “All kinds. It was like descending into the fires of hell.”
Everyone exchanged uneasy glances. Frantically, Lani searched the room for proof. She ran to the curtains, hoping to find the material singed and wet. It wasn’t. Stooping down, she touched the floor with her fingertips. It was dry.
Nearly hysterical, she spoke too loudly and too fast, trying to explain what had happened. They comforted her with gentle murmurings and sympathetic looks, but she saw in their eyes that no one believed a word.
Cort gripped her arm. “You’d better lie down.”
“No! You have to listen!” She tried to shake free of his hold. Cort guided her to the living room couch. He eased her down and placed a couple of pillows behind her head, then held her hand tightly, looking worried.
“How do I convince you?” She needed him, of all people, to believe her.
“Honey, it’s okay.” Cort’s eyes pleaded with her to accept what he seemed convinced was true. “You’ve been under too much stress.”
“It wasn’t a hallucination. It was real.” How could she make him understand? She yanked her hand from his grasp and got up. “I don’t need to lie down. I need someone to believe me!” She paced the floor. How could she prove this?
“Maybe we should leave.” Dr. Elele turned pale and regarded the room as if he sensed horrors he couldn’t see.
“Not yet,” Dr. Millie said, switching on her recorder. “We have to get to the bottom of this.” She touched Lani’s arm. “Please. Tell us exactly what you saw, or think you saw.”
“Don’t you believe me either, Millie?”
“I’m willing to listen.”
Grandfather and Cort looked so worried that Lani felt an irrational desire to laugh. “What’s the point of all this, if you guys doubt me?”
“Convince us,” Dr. Millie encouraged.
Lani’s stomach knotted. She resented that she had to, but if she didn’t tell someone she’d explode. “There were distorted ghostly faces in the darkness, angry faces—and moaning, like people in the most hellish pain.”
Dr. Millie’s eyes probed Lani’s. “Did you recognize them?”
Lani wrung her hands. “Hawaiians. Ancient Hawaiians.”
Dr. Elele’s made a sweeping gesture. “The aura in this room is gray as death.” His tone was ominous. “We should all leave this place, now!”
Dr. Millie ignored him. “You saw someone you knew, Lani, didn’t you?”
> “Pele and her sister, Hiiaka, the water goddess, locked in a bitter battle. When it was over Pele threatened to—” Lani shivered. Maybe talking about what had happened placed Cort in greater danger. “Please, I can’t go on.”
Suddenly Cort was at her side. He put his arm around her shoulder. “You don’t have to.”
“And she shouldn’t,” Dr. Elele said too quickly. “Lani needs time to be quiet and digest what she saw.”
Dr. Millie’s eyes danced with excitement. “No. We should pursue this.”
The vivid memory of Pele hovering over Cort, ready to swallow him in her flames, made Lani’s knees weak. “I can’t. Could we talk about this later, Millie? Alone?”
The doctor studied Lani a moment. “All right. We’ll take this up first thing tomorrow at my office.”
As they drifted outside, Lani insisted upon accompanying them. There were no signs of a storm, and the moon and stars shone brightly. It was odd for a weather front to pass so quickly.
In the pale glow of the porch light, Lani saw something shiny at the base of the banyan tree. As she moved closer she recognized it. “Grandfather, what’s your aumakua statue doing out here?”
He ran to the tree and tried to free the statue from the tangled roots. “Who did this? It’s wedged tight.”
Cort crouched down. “Let me try. Lani, get a towel to protect it, and something sharp. And a flashlight.”
After getting the items, she handed the towel to him. Her hands trembled as she directed the flashlight’s beam onto the statue. Cort stuffed the towel around the entangled object and tried to dislodge it. It wouldn’t budge.
He shook his head. “We’ll have to cut these two roots, Keo. There’s no other way. I can’t imagine anything being wedged in like this without breaking. It’s as if something lifted the tree up, then replanted it over the aumakua.”
Lani bent down next to Grandfather and Cort. “Maybe if we rub oil over the statue, it’ll slide out.” But without the help of oil, or anything else, her hand brushed against soggy, flexible roots, and she pushed them aside. When Cort saw what she was doing, he held the roots out of the way. She smoothed her hand across the statue. It moved. Excited, she cradled the statue and lifted it free.