by C. J. Carson
“Allie, I am coming over, keep the doors locked. Don’t open the back door to get the flowers, leave them alone. I will check them when I get there.”
While I waited for George to get to the house, I picked up the phone and dialed 911.
“Hello, this is 911, what is your emergency?”
“Hello, my name is Allie Callahan. I just got home and I believe someone has broken into my home.”
“Please stay on the line, Ms. Callahan, I’m going to get your address and send a car over right away.”
George was at my door in less than ten minutes. When I let him in, he was holding the flowers he had taken off the back deck. “Okay, Allie, there is a note here.”
As he opened the envelope and pulled out the card, several dried black rose petals fell from the envelope to the floor. The note read: Lucky for you the window provided an escape from my grasp! Ado, until we meet again!
Shaking his head, George pleaded, “You need to call the police right now, Allie!”
I raised the phone in my hand. “Already done. They are still on the line and the police should be here soon.”
“Good, this whole thing is just getting out of hand. Something needs to be done to catch this guy.”
“George, I don’t know if I am imagining things, but it feels like there is a part of me that has been dormant, and somehow this experience has shaken me to the core. Somehow, that part of me is rising to the surface very slowly and there is nothing I can do to control it.”
He didn’t seem surprised when I explained all the strange things I was going through.
The doorbell rang, interrupting our conversation. George asked me to wait where I was while he went to make sure it was the police. As he looked through the sidelights in the doorway, he called out, “It’s the police, Allie.”
I raced to the door to find Detective Carpenter and another officer. “Hello, Ms. Callahan.”
“Hello, Detective Carpenter, please come in.”
They stepped into the foyer. “Ms. Callahan, this is Officer Antonio Moretti.”
“Hello, I’m so glad you’re here. This is George Pappas, an old friend of our family. Please, call me Allie.”
“Good evening, sir.” As his eyes moved around the room, he continued. “Allie, Detective Payne asked me to respond to your call personally, and call him after I spoke with you. Exactly what is going on?”
George spoke before I could respond. “Look, that maniac that attacked Allie knows where she lives. She found several messages on her answering machine this evening, and he left some flowers with a threatening note attached!”
Detective Carpenter turned to me. “Where did he leave the flowers?”
“On the deck outside my back door, but George brought them in.”
I led him to the counter and went to pick them up.
“No, don’t touch them again until we have a chance to examine them. I am going to call Payne. Please sit down at the island and don’t disturb anything until my team can check out the house.”
Carpenter called Payne on his cell phone to brief him. “Payne, he was here, but it’s possible he didn’t enter the house.” He shook his head. “No, he left some flowers outside.” Jake handed me the phone. “Detective Payne would like to speak to you.”
I took the phone.
“Hi, Allie, are you okay?”
“I guess so. This whole thing seems so surreal. I mean, I can’t believe this guy figured out where I live. I don’t know if I am more nervous or angry.”
“Okay, Allie, we are going to figure this out, I promise. I am sending over a forensic team and when they have completed a check of your home, I will speak with Jake again to put together a plan.”
As soon as I finished speaking with Detective Payne, Detective Carpenter turned to me. “Are you sure there is no chance he may have gotten in the house?”
“I don’t think so. I mean, do you think he would have left the flowers outside if he had got in?”
“It’s hard to say. Have you noticed anything out of place in the house or is there anything else you can think of that seems strange?” The concern in his voice was growing.
“I haven’t noticed anything in the house, but there was a limo parked a few doors down when I arrived home this evening. I noticed it because it’s not a car you would normally see around here. The windows were darkly tinted and the running lights on the roof of the interior were on, making me think someone was sitting in it.”
“How long was it parked there?”
“I don’t really know; not long after I got home. It was there when I pulled into the driveway this evening, but when I got the messages on my answering machine, I ran to look out the window in the front of the house and it was gone.”
“Give me a minute; I am going to call Payne again.”
As Detective Carpenter moved to the great room to make his call, I turned to George. “I am so glad you’re here. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t come.”
“Look, Allie, I think I am going to stay here tonight. There is no telling what this lunatic will do next. I’m really worried about you.”
“Thank you, George. I don’t want to be in this house alone right now. I think tomorrow I will ask Claudia if she can come and stay for a few days until we figure this all out.”
After speaking with Detective Payne, Detective Carpenter returned to the kitchen. “Allie, Payne is looking into the limo. We are going to go through the house with you and make sure nothing is out of place. We will dust for prints and bag anything we find and send it to the lab. Payne has asked me to stay parked outside tonight and keep surveillance. We will reassess the situation in the morning.”
“Thank you, that would make me feel a lot better.”
George interjected. “I am going to stay for the night as well and help keep an eye on things. Allie is like a granddaughter to me and I want to help in any way I can.”
“That would be fine, sir. Allie, I’m not sure you should stay here alone after tonight. Is there somewhere you could stay for a while?”
“I have guests coming over tomorrow for dinner and I don’t want this guy to drive me from my home.”
***
Across town, the black limo pulled up to the Summit, a high-rise building that housed the city’s most elite. A tall, muscular, distinguished man in his mid- to late-thirties, dressed in black jeans, a white shirt, and a black leather jacket, emerged.
The valet parking attendant took his keys. “Good evening, sir. Will you be using this vehicle later this evening or should I take it to the garage?”
“No, Henry, I am retiring for the evening, but could you please have it ready for me in the morning at eight o’clock sharp?”
“Absolutely, sir, eight it is.”
The man entered the lobby and moved to an elevator where he entered a code. When the doors opened, he stepped in. The elevator took him to the penthouse apartment where he exited, threw his jacket on a chair in the entryway, and went directly to a large office at the end of the hall. Entering the office, he sat at a large, oversized mahogany desk in a high-back leather office chair. Wall-to-wall mahogany bookcases from ceiling to the floor held volume after volume of leather-bound books. He ran his hands over his head and grasped the back of his neck, trying to compose himself before he picked up his cell phone and made a call.
“Hello, sir.”
Chapter 12
AS GEORGE WAS LEAVING EARLY THE next morning, Claudia was arriving and at the door.
“Hi, Claudia. I am extremely glad to see you this morning. I need to leave for a while and I didn’t want to leave Allie here by herself.”
“What’s going on, George? Why are you here?”
“I’ll let Allie explain. I have an errand to run. I’ll see you in a couple of hours.”
Looking confused, Claudia closed the front door and came into the kitchen. “Okay, Allie, why is George here this morning?”
“I really don’t want to spend a l
ot of time thinking about it, but in short, it appears the man who attacked me knows where I live.”
“What? Are you kidding me? What in the hell happened? Is it even safe for you to be here?”
“Slow down, Claudia. The police are keeping an eye on the house until we can sort this all out. I am not going to let this maniac drive me out of my home. George stayed with me last night and I told Jake, the detective who was parked outside all night, that I would have company tonight.”
“Jake? What are you on a first-name basis with the police now?”
“I guess so. Look, we have dinner to prepare. Are you ready?”
“But of course, I am. I have some things for a salad and the makings for a great cheesecake in the car.”
We spent the next couple of hours preparing our food for the evening. Then, of course, Claudia picked up her inquisition from the evening before.
“Hey, Allie, what is going on with you lately?”
I couldn’t hold it in any longer. “You’re going to think I’m crazy!”
“Try me.”
“Well, I keep seeing this little girl in a hospital gown. She seems to show up just when something is going to happen or is happening. I mean, it seems that way. I thought I was losing it, but now—”
The doorbell rang and Claudia laughed. “Saved by the bell, but we are not done here, Allie.”
It was George, back from his errand, carrying a carved wooden box I hadn’t seen in years. He brought it into the kitchen and placed it on the island. “Am I interrupting your cooking? It smells great in here!”
“No, George, you may as well join our conversation. I can’t hold this all in anymore. Something really strange is going on in my life right now.”
George reached across the counter and took my hand. “Allie, look—”
“No wait, George, let me finish before I lose the courage to talk about this. There are so many bizarre and weird things going on right now. It is like an awakening in my life. It’s strange, yet so familiar. I feel like I am going crazy.”
“She really needs to talk to you, George. I think you must be the only one that can help her through this. God knows I haven’t been able to make heads or tails of what is going on in her life right now. It is really weird.”
He looked at us both. “Allie, stop, I think this box may be an important key to what you are going through. It’s from your grandfather, honey. He gave it to me many years ago and told me to give it to you when you needed it. He said to wait for a sign and that I would know when the time was right. I’m guessing that would be now.”
George slid the box across the counter to me.
I remembered seeing this at my grandfather’s. “What’s the purpose of it?”
“Allie, to be honest, I’m not completely sure, but he asked me to tell you to go through these things and just let the knowledge come to you. He said your ancestors would guide you.”
As I ran my hand over the carvings on the outside of the box, a calming feeling came over me. “Well, that sounds like Grandfather for sure.”
Claudia could barely contain herself. “What an old box! How long do you think it’s been around?”
“I don’t know; I remember seeing it on the mantle at my grandfather’s when I was little. It just sat there collecting dust. I don’t remember him saying much about it, except it was made of redwood and it would be mine someday. I remember my mother saying it had been in my father’s family for years.”
“Well, there’s no time like the present.”
I turned the latch on the lid and slowly raised the top. The box seemed to be filled with different artifacts, and taped inside the lid was a faded yellow envelope with my name printed in black ink. I reached in, opened it, and unfolded the letter addressed to me.
“My amazing granddaughter,
“If you are reading this, it probably means your life is opening up to you.”
True to her nature, the inquisitive Claudia interrupted. “What does that mean, opening up? I wouldn’t quite describe what is going on in your life as opening up. It’s more like falling down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland.”
In frustration, I shot back, “Come on, Claudia, wait and save your commentary until I get through this letter.
“My amazing granddaughter,
“If you are reading this, it probably means your life is opening up to you. Your gifts must be evolving despite your efforts to choke them down. You are probably very confused and maybe a little frightened. Please don’t be scared, my dear, this is your destiny. When you were small, you embraced your gifts, but your years of restraint and control have forced them to retreat deep inside your heart. These gifts have always been there, and you can do wondrous and miraculous things with them. If you choose to continue to suppress them, you will miss opportunities to help others, but if you embrace them, it will add joy to your life and the lives of all around you.
“The contents of this box have been passed down for generations. Each object is a tool that will speak to you when the time is right. Keep them in a safe place. Use the things in this box wisely. To others, they are just old trinkets, but for you, they will become the keys to your future endeavors. They hold lessons from the past that may guide you with your gifts. It is most important to understand that they are not idle trinkets to be worshiped or praised, but they are like a book that only someone with your gifts can read. They hold crucial lessons from the past that you can access with your heart. They can help guide you through your endeavors to help others. Guard them with your life, as in the hands of someone who is not pure of heart, they can do great harm. Also, know that the shine of the stars you enjoy in the sky tonight has witnessed things for many years, and the light you see tonight has reached you only now, but they were projected from their origin thousands of years ago. Listen to the messages they bring you from the past, as that will also guide you to help others. You now have the ability to soar with the eagles, but always remember what I said to you many years ago as my small little bird, ‘Someday, I will be one with the earth again, but I will be all around you in the breeze, watching and guiding you with the eagles and our ancestors. Know that like your other ancestors, I have never left you in spirit and we are all here guiding you, whispering in your ear when you need it most. Just keep your heart open and let the knowledge come to you gently.
“Your loving grandfather.”
I looked up at George and tears were streaming down his face.
Claudia spoke first. “Wow, Allie, that is some pretty heavy stuff.”
As I examined it closer, I noticed there were a series of shelves in the box. On the top shelf was a small, carved totem of a bald eagle. As I picked it up, I saw myself flying above the trees, looking down at the earth.
“Grandfather said the eagle was my totem and that if an eagle visits you, it means you have clairvoyant abilities and you are about to experience spiritual growth.”
I sat there stunned, contemplating what all of this meant, as I saw images flashing through my head. I dropped it back in the box.
“Allie! Hey, Allie, are you okay?”
Shaken back to reality, a chill ran through me. “Yeah, sorry.”
Claudia grabbed my hand. “That is some intense stuff, not to mention the responsibility that comes with your so-called gifts.”
“You know, I really didn’t sign up for this. I guess I’ve been trying to run from it my whole life. I’m sorry I snapped at you.”
“Look, Allie, it’s still your choice to use your gifts or not. By the way, exactly what are the rest of your gifts?”
“I don’t know about a choice, and I don’t know about my gifts. It feels like I am peeling back an onion, one layer at a time. Each layer stings but reveals a new gift. With each gift comes a confidence and calmness. It’s really hard for me to understand myself, much less explain to both of you.”
George got up from the island and hugged me. “I have to go, kid. The shop won’t be opening by itself this morning a
nd you have a dinner to get ready for. Do you want me to come back tonight?”
“No, George, the police are going to be keeping an eye on the house and I am hoping I can talk my friend Claudia here to stay with me tonight.”
“I wouldn’t think of leaving you alone tonight and besides, we have a rockin’ night ahead of us.”
As he was leaving the house, George stopped and looked back. “Allie, I think I would do as your grandfather said, just let the knowledge come to you. He was a wise, old soul and I am sure his advice was solid and true. Let it go for now. I am sure you will understand all of this when the time is right.”
I moved over to the door and gave George a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you, George. I don’t know what I would have done without you all these years. I promise I will be better about calling you and keeping you in the loop. Okay?”
***
Across town at the Summit, the limo arrived at the front door. The handsome and distinguished man stepped out of the vehicle. “Hello, Guile.”
“Hello, sir. You are back early. Are you in for the rest of the day and evening?”
“No, I will be back down in about an hour. Could you please have the convertible ready for me?”
“Certainly, sir.”
The gentleman made his way to the penthouse, and went directly to his office to find the housekeeper vacuuming the room.
“Good afternoon, sir. May I get you anything, some coffee perhaps?”
“No thank you, Sara. I won’t be here long. I’m just here to pick up some things and heading out again for the rest of the day.”
Exiting the room and before closing the door, she looked over her shoulder. “I’ll give you some privacy. I can finish in here when you leave.”
“Thank you, Sara, I appreciate that.”
He moved to a wall-to-wall bookcase, pulled a large book down from the shelf, reached in the space where the book had been, ran his thumb over a small light and an entire section of the bookcase slid forward, revealing a safe room. He stepped behind the case and moved to the corner, opening a small safe mounted in the wall. Removing a small black box from the safe, he moved out of the safe room. Placing the book back on the shelf, he closed the entrance.