The Ferryman (13 page)

“My dear,” he said as he picked up her hand and kissed it, “I can see that you’ve been an extraordinary mother. You’ve been a mother to more than your own children. It takes a big heart to do such a large job, and I can see that you have one.”

He didn’t stop there. He conversed with her and listened to her opinions on the state of the world. He leaned closer to her as she spoke and nodded his head at all the right times. She did most of the talking. It only took about fifteen minutes, but Karen studied his technique and how Nancy responded to him. He was smooth.

“You’re a very caring woman,” Fortune said with emphasis. “You have so much love to give children — and they need love. That’s the most important thing of all. No amount of anything else will make up for the lack of it. Money and toys are nice, but without love children live empty lives. You can’t give them enough of it.”

“I knew you understood.” Nancy’s eyes were locked on Fortune’s face. “You’re very intuitive and not at all like these harsh women.”

“Let me deal with the harsh women and the other problems in this world. You’re needed elsewhere. There are children on the other side of death without mothers or anyone to care for them. Did you know that? They’re alone. Those children need love, also. They need someone who knows how to protect them from harm and meet their needs. They need you.” Nancy reached up to wipe away the tears that were beginning to form.

“How do I get there?” Nancy asked both of them once she had dried her eyes. Fortune let go of Nancy’s arm, which he had cradled in his own, and turned to Karen. It was at this point that Karen realized Fortune didn’t know exactly what to do to help Nancy, but at the same time she understood that there was something inside of her that did.

“Stop fighting the bus and get on it,” Karen replied evenly as the bus came up the street. She wondered how she knew that bit of information, but it was clear to her when she sighted the bus that it was exactly what needed to happen for this chapter of Nancy’s existence to end.

Fortune took Nancy’s hand and gently held it until she stepped onto the bus. As she turned to wave, she vanished from the bottom upwards. Her feet in their sensible shoes were the first things to go, and the little tufts of flyaway hairs that stood up from the rest were the last.

“Hmmn,” said the familiar voice from behind Karen.

Karen turned around to see Fate dressed in a long deep blue evening gown and pearls. She wore long teardrop-shaped earrings that dangled and glistened. Her hair was piled high on top of her head in an elaborate knot that looked as if someone has embroidered it into place.

“Oh, you cheated,” Fate admonished. She smiled in a manner that made Karen want to get on the bus and vanish, also.

“It’s not really cheating to get a smidgeon of help,” Fortune replied.

“I told you to finish the job,” Fate said to Karen as the muscles in her neck bulged slightly.

“The job is done,” Karen insisted.

“You didn’t finish it,” Fate said loudly.

“What’s the difference?” Karen asked as she took a few steps forward. “Unless this is some sort of a test?”

“Don’t be silly,” Fate replied as she scrunched her brows together. “Honestly, I don’t know where you people come up with these ideas.”

“Then I don’t see how it matters who did the work or how it got done,” Karen said. She did her best to appear unconcerned, but her voice cracked at the end of the sentence.

“And you!” Fate shouted at Fortune.

“What have I done now?” he asked as he turned his palms upward and raised them slightly. His knowing expression made innocence appear unfashionable.

“Stop it! You know who I am! Don’t try to play with me.”

“I’m not the one playing games,” Fortune replied, his voice getting louder. “I don’t go running all over the world doing all sorts of mysterious things!” The sky began to darken as his voice grew in volume.

“Don’t you?” she snapped. “You never show up unexpectedly and suddenly change everything? The whole course of events could be planned out neatly and you go messing around with people. Good luck. Bad luck. Just a little turn of events that gives a person the idea that they don’t have to make an effort because things will turn out a certain way no matter what.” More clouds moved in, and Karen began to hear the faint sounds of thunder. The wind started to blow, but it felt like a dry storm. The sort of storm that was filled with electricity and the potential for a good fire.

“People will believe what they will. I don’t control anyone — unlike you!” Fortune pointed at Fate and then dropped his hand casually at his side.

“That’s unfair and absolutely not true!” Lightning jumped from cloud to cloud above their heads, but there was still no sign of rain. It was like electric hopscotch overhead.

“Isn’t it?” As Fortune spoke, his outfit changed from a tuxedo of satin and fine cotton to a tight black leather jumper. The new clothes grew over his old ones like a skin graft on time lapse. His cane morphed into a whip, and chains sprouted from the seams of the leather in a few places. Thunder clapped loudly, and the glare of lightning bounced off his leather outfit with each strike from above.

“You’re showing your ugly side,” Fate said with a laugh. Fortune’s eyes darkened from the familiar pale blue into a deep black that was indistinguishable from his pupils. Karen took a step backwards as soon as she saw the change taking place.

“I wouldn’t have an ugly side if it weren’t for you,” he said as he deftly put his whip into motion, making it dance with the storm. “You bring out the worst in everyone.”

“What’s going on here?” Karen shouted. Her arms began to tremble and after a few moments her legs felt unsteady. She placed her palms on her temples and pressed in slightly. How did she wind up here with these two?

“Everyone loves his good side,” Fate replied to Karen with a smirk. “People like to feel lucky or blessed, but he causes just as much trouble as the relief he provides.”

“It’s not because I want people to suffer!” he shouted as he snapped his whip against the ground. He looked like he was having a masochistic temper tantrum.

“But they do.” Fate’s voice was overly sweet as she spoke in taunting tones. The wind blew her long dress tight against her body, the outline of her firm physique neatly displayed like a satin wrapped gift.

“I only want them to want me,” Fortune said as he threw his whip aside. “The more they hurt the more they want a sudden blessing. They crave it!” Karen watched the whip slowly straighten out and turn back into a cane. “I want people to remember how good it feels to be near me.”

“You do this for your ego,” Karen said quietly as she studied Fortune. “You like the attention.”

“I told you he was fickle,” Fate announced as she stood taller. “I don’t know why you can’t listen to me.”

“I solved your problem, didn’t I?” Fortune appealed to Karen. The thunder and lightning began to dissipate, and as the sky lightened Karen saw the blue in his eyes again. “I’m not bad,” he insisted. “I’m really not.”

“Bad is a relative term,” Fate said as she straightened out her gown. Karen noticed the sapphire and diamond ring on her left hand as Fate absentmindedly twisted it around in circles.

“I’m not sure I understand,” Karen said as she watched Fortune’s suit transform back into the dapper tuxedo. “How can you change so quickly?” Within two minutes he looked dashing again, and Karen found herself attracted to him once more.

“Then you do understand.” Fate smiled with satisfaction as she spoke. “Because he’s not really changing. It’s only you who see him differently. I see what he truly is and love him anyway.”

“You still love me?” he asked quietly with a tear in one eye. He reached his hand out in Fate’s direction and smiled.

“Of course, I do, sweetheart!” she admonished with a tender expression that made her appear much younger than Karen recalled Fate ever appearing before.

He ran forward and embraced Fate, kissing her passionately. Karen felt her cheeks go red with a mixture of embarrassment and jealousy. It was like a chemical thing. Her body reacted to him and the closer he stood to her the more she wanted him. It didn’t matter who he was embracing at the moment. Karen knew that at some point the embrace would end, and Fortune would need someone to fill his arms.

For the second time in two days Fate and Fortune left together arm in arm. Karen watched them leave and then made her way back to her car. She didn’t feel like shopping now. Maybe she would go to a movie where she could be alone, escape her life, and not think for two hours. She needed a break like that. Thinking was the last thing she wanted to do at that moment.

Karen was more confused than ever. Life was complicated, and it felt even more so now that Fate and Fortune were both involved in hers. The only thing she knew for certain was that Fortune was what she wanted in life, and Fate was what she got. But she wasn’t sure if one was any better than the other.

Episode 7

Fate’s Revenge

Karen sipped the last of her morning coffee and peered through half-open eyes at the clock. She had been up most of the night trying to sort things out. Her mind had been reviewing everything she’d learned about the legend of the Ferryman and how he had carried people into the afterlife. Everything she’d learned described the basic premise of his job, but nothing told her how he had gotten there or if he’d ever escaped those duties. Nothing mentioned Fate or Fortune playing a part.

Even after losing hours of sleep to ponder the issue she didn’t know why she was so attracted to Fortune. She thought about him constantly and enjoyed the way he drifted into her musings. It had been twenty-four hours since they’d last been together. It seemed too long to her. While Karen understood that he was already married, she still hoped they could be together. It was more than hope. She was convinced that they had a special connection. He seemed to appear whenever she wished aloud for him to be with her. His presence was like an answer to prayer. Things always seemed to be right when he was near her, also. It just felt right. She was happier and the world appeared to be a better place.

Karen slammed her mug against the hard surface, misjudging the distance from her mouth to the table. She slowly raised it to examine the bottom, but found no cracks in the surface. She placed it down carefully. In her highly fatigued state she didn’t want to risk accidentally knocking the cup onto the floor, so she gently pushed it back towards the center of the table. She’d had enough broken dishes for the week already, and she had chores to finish before Claude came home from school. She was so far behind on things.

Karen sniffed the moist air. She could smell the oncoming rain, and she was determined to make it to the grocery store and back home again before the deluge began. The past two days with Fate and Fortune, as well as her night of research had exhausted her. She was looking forward to some quiet time. She’d been meaning to visit the graveyard and take a long walk through the rows of tombstones. She missed the calming effect the place had on her. She also missed the scent of the earth and the way the gravestones always felt cool, regardless of the weather.