Garda - Welcome to the Realm (7 page)

I was almost there when he threw himself up against me, holding me back.

“Mitch, she’s gone.”

I pushed at him, I needed to get to her. She was alright. She had to be alright! “No! Let me get to her, Joe!”

“Mitch!” He grabbed me by the shoulders, stopping me, and put his face into mine. “She’s gone, man, she’s gone.” His voice softened as the words exited his mouth.

I shook my head, my knees threatening to give out under me. The sound of an ambulance siren reached my ears, and I turned to it.

“No! The ambulance is here! They can help her! Move, Joe, I need to get to her.”
“Mitch! Her neck was broken, she’s dead. She’s dead man…she’s dead.”

The words did not reach me, but the appearance of pain and anger in his face did. No longer could my legs hold me up. I staggered, and Joe put his arm around me and pulled my arm around his shoulder.

He walked me back to my car. My lungs burned, and I couldn’t breathe. I felt like my life had just been sucked out of me.

“I killed her. Oh my God, I killed her,” I mumbled as Joe stood me next to the hood of my car.

“No, you didn’t, Mitch, they did.”

There was no voice of reason I would listen to. I knew in my heart that I had killed her. I buried the heels of my hands into my eye sockets and bent over. I choked on the spit in my mouth and started coughing. The coughing turned to a strangled yell, and I dropped to my knees. With my hands on the ground in front of me, I hung my head as the tears began to fall.

~ Corey ~

Lights flashed around me and people ran past. All of their faces displayed shock of one degree or another. A woman held her hand over her mouth while she tucked a child’s face into her stomach. A man dressed in dark blue pants and a light blue shirt ran past to a body lying on the ground. The items wrapped around his waist made him wider than he was. He seemed familiar, but I couldn’t recall his name.

My attention turned from the familiar man to the person lying on the asphalt. Who was lying there so still? There were too many people around, and I could not see the face. As I stood there, I felt like I should be doing something, yet I had no idea what.

I panned the area; cars with flashing lights were parked haphazardly on the roadway and shoulder. I realized then how quiet the area was. The people before me appeared to be talking or even yelling, yet no sound came to my ears. It was disconcerting to know that I should be able to hear something, and yet the only sound that came was a deep husky voice from behind me.

“Welcome home, Coralenna.” The sound shocked me; I spun to face the voice.

Two men stood about twelve feet away. One of them was about fifty with gray hair and a friendly but concerned expression on his face. His shoulders were broad, and his body displayed a solid athletic build.

Intense light green eyes stared back at me from the other man who appeared to be in his thirties. I had the distinct feeling that I should know him, but again I could not place him. He was shorter than the other man, with wide shoulders and short, wavy light brown hair.

“Do I know you?”

“Not really.” His deep voice was calming, although I felt tension coming from him even at the distance where we stood.

“Then how do you know me?”

“Because I have been watching you for years,” his voice was smooth and very masculine.

“Stalking me?” I glanced to my side as someone ran past.

“Protecting you. My name is Brock, this is Montgomery.” He motioned to the older man beside him. I glanced at his companion and nodded.

“Coralenna, come with us, and we will explain everything,” the older man said.

“Why are you calling me that?” I cocked my head to the side as I spoke.

“It is your God-given name at birth. Come, we have much to teach you.” His voice was soft and kind. He held his hand out to me, but I wasn’t ready to go just yet.

I turned to study the scene behind me. “How come I can hear you, but I can’t hear anything else?”

“You are on the other side now. You will learn to hear them again soon; it is one of many things we will teach you.”

A tremor passed down my spine as I realized what he must mean, “I’m dead.” I spun back to the younger man, his fierce sea foam gaze observing me closely.

“Yes, you are.”

I swallowed and turned away. I watched a man fall to his knees, the pain on his face so evident that I wanted to comfort him. I felt like I had to help him, and I took a step forward.

Brock materialized in front of me, blocking my path. “Not now, Coralenna. We must go.”

I jumped back into a fighting stance, my arms up, my hands lightly fisted. “How did you do that?”

A small chuckle came from behind me before Brock answered, “I just can, you will be able to soon, too. It is time to leave.”

“Where are we going?”

“Home, Coralenna, we are taking you home.”

Montgomery stepped up beside me and smiled pleasantly. Without thought, I returned his easy smile, feeling at peace until I glanced over the scene again.

“Did anyone else die?” I watched people running around. The man was now on his hands and knees, his head bowed as if he were crying. Was he crying for me? Why?

“No, you saved the child,” Montgomery answered. He pointed to the side of the road where people sat around a young boy who was crying and holding his leg.

I nodded, “Okay.”

Montgomery took my arm gently at the crook of my elbow and turned me. A feeling of happiness and contentment passed through me at his touch.

“We have been waiting for you for a while, young lady. You are going to love it here.” He winked.

I glanced over my shoulder one last time. The man that had run past me earlier was now bent down next to the other man, his lips were moving and I thought he said, “No, you didn’t Mitch, they did.” His heated look rose to where we all stood.

Who was at fault for my death? Should I be angry for being dead? I felt only peace and some minor confusion. The man’s glare met mine, and I wondered if he could see me. No one else seemed to be able to, but as our view seemed to lock together, his jaw tightened before he moved his attention to Brock. Brock stepped closer to my side, and the three of us turned and walked away.

Not four steps were taken when the scene disappeared, and I found myself in a room. It was neither hot nor cold, nor too bright or dark. The soft sky blue of the walls pulled at me and reminded me of something, yet I could not figure out what.

The room had floor-to-ceiling glass windows along one wall, beyond it a vast yard. Water could be seen way off in the distance. Was it a lake or an ocean?

Around the large room were small sitting areas. Plush couches and chairs in soft fabrics and muted colors filled each area, and the scent of flowers reached my senses, although I didn’t see any in the room.

“Where are we?”

Montgomery sat down on the nearest couch. “You are home, my dear,” he said with an easy smile. “Come sit, let us talk.”

Part of me was hyper, and I didn’t want to sit, but the place was so peaceful that maybe I would calm down if I did. I walked to the chair beside him, the cushion hugged my body as I leaned back, and I sighed at the comfort.

“They are nice, aren’t they?” Montgomery chuckled.

I glanced around the huge room again. “This can’t just be my home. How many people live here?”

“There are many. I believe each hall holds over two hundred. There are three hundred halls, although we are a bit low in numbers these days. The temptations of life have driven our numbers down.”

“Numbers for what?”

“Gardaí,” the voice of Brock came from behind me. I had forgotten he was with us. He stepped around the chair and sat on the couch opposite Montgomery.

His glower kept hold of mine as he moved. He reminded me of a tiger stalking its prey with his smooth lithe movements.

“Gardaí?” I looked away from Brock, he won the staring contest.

“
We are called
Garda Síochána
, or Guard of the Peace translated into English. You will be trained to be a Garda, or a guard as you might think of it.”

While Brock continued to be a man of few words, Montgomery seemed more than willing to answer my questions. I directed the next one to him.

“What language is that?”

“It is Irish, have you ever heard of the Irish Police?”

“Yes. We’re like police?” I asked hesitantly.

Both of them chuckled, and I glanced at Brock, the small grin on his face and the way the skin crinkled around his eyes were familiar and way too attractive. I frowned at the thought.

“No, we are not police, although it is our job to protect the living.” Montgomery crossed his left leg over his right and waited for my attention to come back to him. Brock’s smile had disappeared, and he had resumed the stare down.

“Were one of you my Garda?” My question encompassed them both with a glance.

Montgomery turned his head slowly towards Brock. I noticed Brock tense.

“You are my charge.” The husky tone of Brock’s voice implied more than that.

“Well, if I’m dead, you must not have done a good job.” I’m not sure why I wanted to piss him off, but the fact that he hadn’t taken his glare off me the whole time irritated me, attractive or not.

His eyelids lowered just the tiniest amount, but I saw them. Montgomery threw his head back and laughed.

“This was your time,” Brock said, sounding angry, and Montgomery stopped laughing and considered him with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, we will have to discuss that later,” Montgomery replied.

As interesting as that sounded, I needed to figure a few things out before I started digging around. “So why me, how did I get picked to be one of these Garda people?”

“Because you are strong, you have the heart of an angel, and you are a fierce warrior fighting for what is right. You also believe.”

“Believe? What, like in God?” I could see Brock staring at me from the corner of my eye, and I met his gaze head on for a moment before Montgomery responded. I wanted to tell Brock to stop. He was making me nervous, even in the peaceful setting.

“Yes, you believe in God, heaven and hell, in the good and bad, and you lived most of your life that way.”

“What do you mean most of my life? Did I do something wrong?” I watched the two men as they exchanged a glance.

“No,” Brock’s answer was short. He clenched his teeth tightly, and I saw a muscle tick in the side of his jaw.

“How come I can’t remember my life?” I returned my attention to Montgomery.

“You don’t remember anything?” He studied me while I thought about it. Other than the scene I stood in at my death, I didn’t remember anything or anyone from my life. A chill passed over me as I thought about the man on his knees. Did I know him?

“No,” I shook my head with my answer, “I don’t.” Should I be distressed that I could not remember my life? I wondered.

“You will, be patient. It can be very confusing for people when they pass over. Most go straight to what you would call the gates of heaven. You are in the in-between, so it is a bit different. It takes a little while for the memories of life to come back to us here.”

“So I’m not really in heaven?” The thought that I had died and not gone to heaven bothered me, and I sat up straight in the chair.

“You’re in heaven, don’t worry, my dear. You are just in a place that we call the Realm. Those of us here can travel up to heaven or down to Earth.” He sat up and put his elbows on his knees, watching me carefully.

“Only the strongest of people can be in the Realm. Only the strongest and most valuable souls can be a Garda,” Brock’s voice was soft as he spoke, and our gazes locked.

Once again he stared me down, making me feel almost naked in front of him, like he was examining me, straight into my heart and being.

The sound of footsteps moving closer broke the connection, and I turned to the newcomer in the room.

“She’s here already?” the tall blond man asked as he entered.

I saw Brock shake his head back and forth slightly, and Montgomery tried to stifle a laugh.

“Yes, she is.” The tone of Brock’s voice implied there would be no further discussion. “Coralenna, this is David. David will help you get acclimated to your surroundings here.”

David glanced between Brock and Montgomery, his eyebrows rose at the tone of Brock’s voice, before he turned his attention to me.

“Hello, sweet Coralenna. It is wonderful to have you here with us. We have been waiting some time, although I thought it might be a bit longer.” He smiled at me as he spoke and turned to glance at Brock as he finished.

“A pleasure to meet you, David.” I reached out my hand to shake his.

“No formalities here. Come on, let’s get you away from these guys and get you settled in.” He ignored the hand that I held out and waved me to follow him. I dropped my hand uncomfortably to my side.

“Don’t worry, Coralenna, you’ll be fine. Get settled and then we will talk again.” Montgomery smiled and stood.

I nodded and let my view fall on Brock. The light shade of his eyes sucked me in for a moment, but I shook myself and walked away without saying a word.

David stood at the threshold to the room waiting for me to step up beside him. “Let’s show you your quarters first, then I’ll show you around the grounds.”

David stood about a foot taller than I did; his shoulders were wide, but nowhere as wide as Brock’s. His hazel irises sparkled with friendship.

“Sounds good,” I replied as we turned together and moved down the long hallway. On the left were doors and archways to other rooms, and to the right, another wall of windows that overlooked a beautiful garden.

“Wow!” amazement glazed my exclamation as I took in the view of flowers and stone paths outside the glass.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? You won’t find anything here that isn’t beautiful.” The grin he gave me seemed to have another message in it, but I turned away from him and took in the gloss of the hardwood oak floors.

He pushed a button on the wall that revealed the entrance to a glass elevator. We stepped in, and I moved right to the glass, resting my hands on the gold-plated railing. The sight before me took my breath away.

As far as I could see, there was only raw beauty. Gardens full of bright flowers and a stream running through the center were off to my right. To my left, I could see the large body of water again. Sand along the shore sparkled white next to the glorious blue waves lapping gently.

“Wow,” was all that came to my mind as I took in the sight before me.

“Told you,” David laughed. The elevator rose, and I continued to stare. “You have one of the best rooms here. It’s on the top floor, and your balcony wraps the building so you can see both sides.”

I glanced up at him with a huge smile on my face. “How did I get so lucky?”

His face grew serious for a moment, then he replied, “Because you are special, Coralenna, very special.”

I shook my head, “I’m not special.” A nervous laugh escaped me.

“But you are. Trust me on that.” He winked just as the door slid open behind me, and we both exited.

The hallway was just as luxurious as the one downstairs with polished oak floors and elegant side tables set along the length of it. The hallway went on for what seemed like forever.

“What floor are we on? I didn’t even notice,” I asked as we walked to the far end of the hallway past more doors than I could count. There were no numbers on any of them; the only difference was the knocker in the center of each. I saw a sailboat on one, a flower on another, and one had a lightning bolt. Quite a few had animals: dogs, cats, tigers, and even an elephant.