The Empire

by C. L. Alden

  “What’s going on?” he asked. “Where are we?” He sat up and looked around, appearing a little dazed and confused. Darcy waited for him to clear the sleep from his brain. She watched him go through the mental gymnastics she just had, and wondered how he was going to react. “Did we—” he stopped before asking the question. She saw the internal battle he was having with himself. “How did we—” he started again and stopped. His brain wouldn’t allow him to accept the questions he wanted to ask. He looked around and then back at her. She tucked the hand with the bracelet in it out of sight. He stared at her for a moment. “How did we end up here? Did we fall asleep?” He looked really confused.

  “I think we did.” she said, hoping that he wouldn’t ask any more questions.

  He looked at her as if he expected her to say more. After a moment he continued, “Huh. That’s odd, isn’t it?” Again he was looking at her as if he were searching her expression for some answers.

  “Too much wine?” She offered, trying to chuckle naturally.

  “I guess…” he agreed, with a half hearted laugh. Darcy thought he sounded a little nervous. He stood up and offered her his hand. “I apologize for being a terrible date and falling asleep on you.”

  “No worries. I fell asleep too.”

  “Did you—” he stopped himself and shook his head.

  “What?” she asked.

  “Did you dream?” he asked tentatively.

  “No, did you?” How could she get into a conversation about everything that just happened when she didn’t understand it herself? She wished she could believe that it was a dream, but she was holding proof in her hand that it wasn’t. The less said the better, she thought. At that moment, she felt like she was grasping onto reality by the tips of her fingers.

  “I had a doozy, except it didn’t feel like I was dreaming. It’s hard to explain…maybe it’s like an acid trip—I’ve never done acid, mind you, but it was like I was in another time. We were dancing…”

  As they walked to the car and all the way home he recounted the entire evening just as Darcy had experienced it. As she listened to his retelling, she wondered if there was a reason why they went back, so to speak, to those time periods and why everything they saw seemed to be focused around the Barrett family?

  When he was finished she asked, “Why do you think you dreamt about meeting your ancestors?”

  “I don’t know…maybe it’s because of all this planning committee stuff. I know my family was responsible for helping to build this town. Maybe it was just my subconscious reminding me that like my forefathers, I have a responsibility to see that our town prospers.”

  “Maybe…” Darcy felt like there was more to it than that, but what that was, she wasn’t sure.

  SUNDAY

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  She stood on a large flat stone in what she somehow knew to be the smaller circle of two concentric rings of standing stones half buried in the forest litter. Some stood taller than her, some half her height. Above her, blue sky could only be seen in patches through the limbs of tall pines, oak and birch. The cool air had the damp, musty smell of decaying leaves and dirt, which was oddly comforting. She could see mushrooms sprouting up through the leaves in little patches and along rotting logs of fallen trees. Where was she? Nothing about the area looked familiar. She was somewhere in a forest, wearing the aqua ball gown. What the hell was she doing in the aqua ball gown? That dream thought brought an instant flood of images from earlier in the night. All the stuff she still couldn’t make sense of. She looked around for Eddie. The stones around the slab looked a lot like the shape of the sundial stone. Was there a connection? There was an odd humming that she felt rather than heard. It encircled her. She could feel her body absorbing and radiating it, like a pulse; steady and rhythmic. She could feel it pushing deeper and deeper into her, circulating through and pushing back out into the world around her. With each beat she could feel an energy pulsating through her and around her as if she were just one point of a giant web. The tiniest disturbance anywhere around her could be felt in small ripples. She felt an amazing comfort being connected to everything around her; from the tiniest drop of water to the towering trees above. They were all part of her, and she was part of them.

  Voices heard in the distance rattled her. Suddenly she felt scared. The fear was being communicated to her and from her by the communal energy. On an instinctual level she felt the need to hide, though she didn’t understand why. She stepped off the stone and and ran out towards the larger ring. She crouched behind one of the standing stones that had toppled into its neighbor, hoping that she wouldn’t be discovered. The voices stopped. After a moment, she stood up and realized that she was at the back of the balcony at the Empire. As usual the theater was dark, except for the stage with the tables.

  “Come listen, Darcy girl.” her mother whispered from their usual seats in the front row balcony.

  She walked down to the front row and sat down beside her mother. She looked down at the stage. Same setup as before. Angry voices talked over each other. She saw the old guy from the cafe standing in front of the stage.

  “Listen Darce, and remember,” her mother said.

  Darcy focused on the scene before her, leaning over the balcony slightly so that she could hear better. It reminded her of the ruckus at the cafe with Eddie.

  “We’ve got to do something!” she heard a voice say from the audience.

  “We’re not going to sit by and watch this happen!” A man said walking toward the stage.

  “Nothing has been decided.” One of the panel members answered.

  “It’s not right!” Someone else from the audience shouted.

  “Let’s have some faith, that they’ll do the right thing.” Another panel member answered back to which the audience grumbled in disagreement.

  “We’ll make them do the right thing!” An audience member stood up and shouted. Cheering erupted from the audience.

  “No more interference!” A stern looking woman at the center of the panel stood up and shouted back.

  Darcy turned to her mother, “What are they talking about?”

  Her sea chicken alarm clock drowned out the answer. No more interference with what? This time she could remember some of her dream—a ring of stones, an aqua gown... She pulled the covers over her head, not eager to get out of bed and start her day. She had no idea what time it was, and didn’t care. She wasn’t ready to analyze last night’s shenanigans. She didn’t want, no she couldn’t accept that it was real. Why was this happening? What did it all mean? More and more it felt like the things that were happening were somehow all connected. She couldn’t see how yet. She thought about the dream; the standing stones, the incredible feeling of being connected to every living thing around her. It felt so natural, like she was finding a piece of herself that she had lost. Then voices and fear—what was she afraid of? And why did she end up back at the Empire? What were they watching? Who were those people? She recognized the familiarity of the scene, but couldn’t recall any details of the previous dreams she had about being there. Why was she dreaming about these people and the Empire over and over? What was her mother trying to tell her? Whatever time it was, it was much too early to be thinking so much.

  The faint scent of coffee brewing downstairs was just the nudge Darcy needed to get out of bed. She found her father sitting at the dining room table, a mug of coffee in his hand, reading the Sunday paper that was spread out before him. The downstairs had an open floor plan. As you walked down the stairs, the first thing you saw were three large picture windows in the living room that overlooked the ocean. The dining room was to the right, and separating the dining room area from the kitchen was a tall bar / countertop area with stools.

  Today she had absolutely no plans, and that was exactly what she needed given the events of the previous night. Holy hell! Nope. Coffee first. Freak out later, in private.

  “Good morning!” Hank said as she came down the stairs. Sunday Morning
was on the TV, so it had to be at least nine.

  “Mornin’” she said heading right to the coffee pot. Coffee first.

  “So, what’s on the docket for today?”

  “Absolutely nothing!” She heard her cellphone beep with a text. It was from Ali,

  “So? How was Fast Eddie? :) ”

  That was a loaded question! “Lunch? Wagon Wheel? Tomorrow at 1?” She texted back.

  “That good, huh? ;)”

  She had no idea, Darcy thought.

  “See you at 1” Ali added

  Darcy texted a thumbs up and grabbed her coffee.

  “No cafe for you today?” she asked her dad.

  “Nah. It’s usually quiet this time of year on the weekends. In a couple of weeks we’ll be closed on Saturdays and Sundays til Spring.”

  Darcy took her mug to her favorite chair, a big cushioned rocking chair that sat facing the ocean in front of one of the picture windows.

  “How bout we grill steaks tonight and maybe get a bonfire together down on the rocks? Not sure what the pit looks like though.”

  “That sounds great! I’ll take care of the pit and scavenge for some wood.” Roaming the beach sounded like a perfect way to spend the day. For the remainder of the morning, she sat planted in her rocker, drinking coffee, watching life along the ocean front, and listening to the steady and reassuring voice of Charles Osgood.

  The shoreline in front of the house is not a nice sandy beach like the Southern California beaches she was now used to. The Maine coast is rocky. Sometime in the early 1970’s homeowners along Mussel Ridge Beach had dumped truckloads of large granite blocks to stave off erosion that had already claimed the road and electric trolley car tracks that used to run along the shoreline in Mussel Ridge to Shoreton and Weskeag. Below those blocks was a beach that was made up of large embedded stones, smaller smooth rocks and gravel made up of sand, pebbles, empty shells, and other detritus that acted as filler, making it a little easier to walk around.

  About three o’clock Hank hollered down that he needed a couple things from the Hannie’s uptown. Darcy headed up over the granite blocks to clean up a bit. The pit was in good shape. She had collected a large pile of branches and brush that she was currently breaking down into usable pieces. The last time she could remember having a bonfire down there must’ve been a summer about ten years ago when her brother Joe and his now wife, Ellen, were home at the same time she was. That was a drunken night! They had invited some old high school friends—Ali was there, and some neighbors. As usual, Hank grilled, and Maggie entertained. She had lots of good memories of cookouts and parties there along the shore.

  Hank handed her the list: 4 baking potatoes, sour cream, salad mix, asparagus and beer.

  “What kind of beer, Dad?”

  “Shipyard or something...Surprise me.”

  ***

  Hannaford’s was uneventful. She didn’t see a soul that she knew. She picked up the items on the list and headed over to the beer section. She grabbed a six pack of hard cider for herself and not being a beer drinker, she watched several guys pick up the same New England brewery beer, so she grabbed a six pack of that and headed to the checkout line.

  There was a car in the driveway when she returned. That explains the extra baked potatoes, she thought. She headed through the back door, into the kitchen and set down the groceries. She put the beer and cider in the fridge before heading out the back door to the deck to say hello. Hank was cleaning the grill grates with a wire brush and and talking away to—fuuudgge—Will! She thought about quietly turning around and going back inside for a moment to collect herself, maybe drink a cider or six, but it was too late. At the squeak of the door they both turned around. She pasted a smile on her face.

  “Hi! I’m back. Hey, Will. I didn’t know you’d be here.”

  “Hey Darce. Yeah, I saw your dad on Main St. yesterday and he invited me then.”

  Hank avoided eye contact with Darcy, but she saw the ever so faint smirk on his lips. He’d always liked Will.

  Darcy did her best to appear unaffected by his presence. “Who is this cutie?” Darcy asked pointing to what looked like a lab, golden retriever mix standing beside Hank, watching him as if she knew he was in charge of the food.

  “That’s Millie.” Will replied.

  “Hi Millie!” Darcy said, though Millie completely ignored her, keeping her eyes on Hank.

  “I just adopted her a few months ago. She’s still a pup and lacks all apparent social graces.”

  “That’s okay. If you’ll excuse me for just a moment, I’ll get the potatoes in and then I’ll be right out.” She said with a smile while turning around and going right back inside. The only sound she could hear was her heart pounding in her ears. Why? Why was he here? WHY? She wasn’t prepared at all to deal with Will and all that entailed. She went right to the refrigerator to grab a cider. Aw, hell no. Cider wasn’t going to do the trick. She moved to the liquor cabinet and pulled out the vodka. She found the biggest plastic cup she could find, gave it a very healthy dose of vodka and an extra splash for good measure, ice, club soda, OJ and a straw and moments later she was sucking down something akin to nectar of the gods.

  “Is there anything I can help you with?” Will’s voice made her nearly choke on the drink she was chugging down. She did the best she could to compose herself and turned around, setting the drink down.

  “Ah no, thanks. Really it’s just some potatoes and salad...Can I get you a drink?” she asked picking up hers once more to take as big a swig as she could get away with. He held up the beer in his hand. “Oh, well good.” She said trying to sound as natural as possible even though her heart was lodged at the back of throat, threatening to choke the life out of her at any moment.

  “Oh and I brought some cookies from Foss’s,” he said motioning to the pink box tied with string in his other hand. “I know they used to be a favorite of yours.”

  “Thank you. I hadn’t even thought of dessert.” she said catching his eye and suddenly feeling paralyzed. An awkward moment of silence passed. Will didn’t look away and she forced herself not to either. It felt like a mental game of chicken.

  “Well, I think I still remember my way around this kitchen. I’ll put the salad together.” Without waiting for Darcy to reply, he put the box of cookies on the counter, turned and grabbed the large salad bowl from the cabinet, headed to refrigerator, and began rummaging around.

  Okay, then. She tried very hard not to focus on the man overload that she was feeling right now. The unexplainable, unbelievable antics with Fast Eddie last night, and now she was faced with the only true love she’d ever known, and the only man she ever let break her heart. Will had been her center for as long as she could remember. He was calm, steady and constant. She had needed that. When she was younger, she was full of passion, and imagination and feelings to a point that sometimes overwhelmed her. She still was, to some extent. To keep her sanity, she had learned at an early age to push her feelings down. To bury them. Not the healthiest solution, but that was her control. His presence in her life didn’t stifle her emotions, but rather helped her to direct them. He grounded her. He balanced her out. She drew the calm she needed from him, and from her he had learned to open himself up and look around.

  Let’s get through this, she thought. She moved around Will to the sink and scrubbed the potatoes. Before she could ask, he placed the jar of bacon grease on the counter beside her.

  “Thank you.” She dried the potatoes, pricked them with a fork, slathered them with grease, and wrapped them in tinfoil before putting them on top of the stove she was preheating. She moved back toward the sink area and saw that Will was rinsing and trimming the asparagus, laying them out on a paper towel to dry. She laid out a sheet of tinfoil on the island countertop in front of the sink, and began arranging the asparagus on it, adding pats of butter, some garlic, salt, pepper and lemon juice. She wondered if the silence was as loud for him as it was for her? She couldn’t think of anything to
say. This was just about too much. Any more and she might start fearing for her sanity. She woke up that morning feeling mentally and emotionally spent from events she still couldn’t explain, and now this. She stole a quick look at Will. He looked perfectly relaxed as he washed tomatoes, cucumber and carrots for the salad. Just keep moving, she told herself. She pulled the steaks out of the refrigerator, unwrapped them, and put them on a cookie sheet to be seasoned. She took her drink and the tray over to the spice cabinet by the stove, and used the opportunity to finish her drink as she pulled spices from the cabinet.

  She heard Will take a breath in with a hiss and turned around to see that he had cut his finger.