The Rosaries (Crossroads Series) (32 page)

“It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Stewart. Thank you so much for coming to talk to us.”

Lorna smiled and nodded once, “No problem at all. Unfortunately I don’t have good news for you…Ms. Jackson has lost a lot of blood and is very weak. She had a cranial trauma that hadn’t properly healed yet, and this new blow to her system is compounding the problems she was probably already having.”

Natalie nodded, “Yes, she was attacked once before, by the same man.”

“Unfortunately, this new trauma has created a very intense shock, and her heart is giving signs of severe distress.”

“Will she be okay, though?”

“It’s too soon to tell, but if she can make it through the night our hopes will certainly increase.”

“May I stay here with her tonight?”

“We don’t usually allow anyone in intensive care, but I think I can make an exception. If you’d like to stay you are welcome to.”

“Thank you, I would really like to stay. Is it okay with you, dad?

“Sure, Honey, do you need anything? Oh yes, by the way” Phillip said as he pulled a silver cell phone from his pocket, “the police have recovered this phone at Catherine’s house. Since Catherine never owned one, I wondered if it is
Lakeisha’s
, so I brought it along to give it to you at the exhibit.”

“Thank you, Dad. I’ll give it to her when she wakes up. And no, I don’t need anything. Please let Ryan know that I appreciate him coming here.”

“I think he had something in store for you, a surprise I believe.”

“Dad, I think Ryan wants to marry me to save his family from a financial catastrophe.”

“Ryan Wheeler? His is one of the most solid families in the southeast.”

“Only on the surface, Dad. They are experiencing some very hard times.”

“I think he is planning on meeting us for dinner.” Phillip said looking at his watch, “Or was planning to, anyway. I’ve been missing in action, your mother is probably furious…I only left to come back to the gallery and tell you to join us for dinner, since you weren’t answering your phone. She is probably worried out of her mind. I will call her on my way back and explain. I really should run.”

“Bye Dad, I will call you in the morning.” She kissed her father and watched him until he turned the corner, before she said: “Please, give Mom my love.”

Phillip beamed at her, “I will, Honey. I will.”

After her father left, Natalie walked back to
Lakeisha’s
room and sat on the faux leather chair in the corner. She was so tired that within minutes she fell asleep.

After taking Melody back to her room, Paul wearily dragged his feet until he reached his own. He was exhausted. In the course of a few days he had gone through an assortment of emotions, from the bittersweet feeling of giving his daughter away in marriage, to being the one who killed his great-niece’s husband in order to protect her. He needed a hot shower and a cold beer, both of them good means to warm the cold right out of his old bones.

He intended to extend his stay. He certainly couldn’t leave Melody to deal with the hassle of going back alone and arrange to have her husband’s remains flown back for the funeral. He also needed to call Olivia. Even if she was on her honeymoon in Scotland, and probably having the time of her life, Paul knew that Olivia wouldn’t forgive him if he didn’t call her to update her on all that had happened. After he got out of the shower, he wrapped a towel around his waist, and picked up the phone.

“Hello” Olivia’s voice sounded happy and vibrant.

“Olivia, it’s Dad. How are you, Sugar?’

“I’m wonderful, Dad; what about you? Are you ready to fly back tomorrow? Did you confirm your reservations with the airline, or do you want me to do that for you?”

“Olivia, I’m not leaving tomorrow. There has been an accident.”

“What kind of accident?” Laughter left Olivia’s voice the moment the magic word was uttered.

“It’s Mario, Olivia…he died today.”

“What?! You are joking, right?”

“I wouldn’t joke about something so tragic, Honey.”

“But…what happened? Is Melody okay?”

“Melody is fine; well, I guess she isn’t fine, but she is safe and sound.”

“Dad, I’m calling the airport right now to see if Graham and I can fly back into
London
tonight.”

“No, Olivia, please don’t do that.”

“Dad, I’m coming back.” There was steel in her voice; Paul knew better than continue the argument. “Okay, Sweetheart. Call me when you get in.”

“I will. Let me run now, so I can call and make arrangements…Dad, are you okay?”

Paul smiled; never once did he talk to Olivia without her asking how he was, no matter how good or bad anything else was. “I’m fine, Olivia. I miss you.”

“I miss you too, Dad. I will see you tonight or at the latest tomorrow. We’ll keep in touch.”

“Okay, Honey. Goodnight. I love you.”

“I love you too, Dad.”

He hung up the phone and got dressed, ready to leave the room in minutes.

When he knocked on Melody’s door, she didn’t answer at first, then he heard her get up and coming to open. Her eyes were swollen and her face was blotched from crying. Paul said nothing and just took her into his massive arms. Melody cried openly against his chest, deep sobs rattling her whole body. Paul let her cry, then lifted her chin gently and kissed her forehead. “Would you like a little company?”

Melody nodded, and stepped back to let him inside the room. She plopped back on her bed, a rag doll that had been pushed around once too many times. Paul sat on the chair at the small desk, picked up a pen with the hotel logo, and started fiddling with the top.

“He’s gone, Paul. He’s really gone. Deep down I knew something was wrong, but I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. What am I going to do now?”

“I don’t know, Child. I just don’t know. Mario had us all fooled. Or maybe, he was the one who was fooled into believing that power and ego are more important than the people who cared about him.”

Melody nodded, and Paul saw that tears were welling up in her eyes again, so he decided to change the subject. “Say, I was about to go down and look for a place to have a beer.
Wanna
go with me and keep this old man some company?’

Melody smiled, “No, Paul; I really appreciate the invite, but I think I will stay in. I’m really not up to seeing people right now.”

Something in her voice told Paul to not push her any further, so he stood up and kissed her forehead again before he left. “You take care, Sweetheart. I have my cell phone with me, if you need me. Olivia would beam if she knew I said that. I’ve always told her I don’t need those modern contraptions – I’m old school all the way, baby.”

Melody laughed in spite of it all. Paul always had a way to bring out the best of her.

He left Melody’s room and took the elevator down to the lobby. Aside from the front desk clerk, there were only two other people in the hall, a middle aged lady with hair the color of carrots checking in, and a man with no hair reading the newspaper in one of the oversized chairs near the sliding entrance doors. Paul walked outside and enjoyed the cooler breeze. Even in the summer, London was not warm – compared to his hometown in hot and sticky Louisiana, London felt downright cold to him, but it was pleasant for a mind-clearing walk and he inhaled deeply as he strode down the street.

He saw a bar nearby; from the outside he could hear music being played by a live band, so he walked in. The band played mostly alternative rock – definitely not Paul’s cup of tea, but it was good enough to take his mind away from the overwhelming chain of events that had taken place in the afternoon.

He sat at the bar counter and ordered a pint of Guinness, which he sipped with pleasure until he heard the stool beside him being moved. Unwilling to make conversation, he moved slightly to turn away from the other patron, but he froze the moment he laid eyes on the man sitting next to him. This time he was dressed more casually – a red shirt opened on his chest to reveal a unique gold pendant, black slacks, a red shiny belt, and black leather shoes that looked
like they had just been polished. He gestured to the bartender to bring him a Guinness too, and then he turned his attention to Paul. “We meet again, Paul.”

Paul nodded and smiled “I reckon we are.”

“You’ve done well, my friend. Everything is as it should be.”

“Is it, though? Did you know about my niece’s husband?”

The stranger nodded his head and took a sip of the beer in front of him. “I did. As I told you back at the store in Louisiana, people aren’t always who they appear to be.”

“I see. My niece could have been killed, or her sister.”

“Neither of them was supposed to leave, Paul, it is written that way.”

“What about the other lady? Will she be okay?”

“I can’t tell you that, Paul, but know that both of you have fulfilled your tasks.”

Paul smiled uneasy, “Oh yes, you told me that being there for Melody was my final task. Does that mean that I am going to kick the bucket now, too?”

The stranger laughed heartily, “Maybe you will, or maybe you won’t, Paul. Do you really want to know?”

“Well, that would give me the chance to straighten out some things…”

“Then go do it, Paul, no matter what happens. Life is on borrowed time, every minute of it, and every one of those moments you should always feel as if it’s going to be your last. Don’t wait until tomorrow to tell your daughter you love her – do it now; don’t wait to fix all of your earthly problems when it’s too late… there are enough lost souls who remain anchored on earth because they feel they didn’t complete one thing or another. Do your best to always be ready to go, and while you’re here, make sure you have a hell of a fun ride.”

Paul smiled, amused by the stranger, and renewed in his propositions. “I suppose you’re right. I will call my daughter back tonight, to see if she found a flight, and I will tell her how much I care. Who knows? The last time I met you, you preceded a small war; I don’t even want to think of what might happen when I leave here.”

The stranger stood up and announced that he would be right back; Paul knew better than that.
Elegba
had made his stop and things were now in place – it was time for him to move on and go assist other souls. Paul finished his beer, and then left the bar, breathing in the cool air with fully open lungs. He stopped a moment and reached his hand into his pocket to take out his
cell phone. He dialed Olivia’s number, and the moment she answered his heart leaped with joy. “Olivia? It’s Dad…I just wanted to tell you how much I love you.”

Natalie woke up with a strange feeling. When she opened her eyes, she thought she saw a shadow by the foot of
Lakeisha’s
bed. She touched the rosary still around her neck and tried to focus on the figure, but couldn’t see it anymore. She heard a soft moan, and her heart skipped. She looked at
Lakeisha
and saw that her friend was moving her head slowly, trying to open her eyes. She called the nurse and ran out into the hallway when nobody came. She almost ran into the head nurse, Lorna, who was standing in the hallway right outside the door updating charts.  “She’s waking up! Please, hurry!”

Ms. Stewart went in and confirmed that
Lakeisha
was waking up. She checked her vital signs and pushed a button to alert the doctor on duty. She was ready to send Natalie out, when
Lakeisha
grabbed her arm, and gestured for Natalie to stay. She pointed at the tube in her mouth, silently asking for it to be removed. Nurse Stewart thought about it for a moment, unsure what to do until the doctor arrived, but
Lakeisha
continued to make grunting sounds and pointing at her tube, so the nurse disconnected it, and gently pulled it out of her mouth.
Lakeisha’s
voice was barely perceptible and scratchy, so Natalie came closer and leaned over to hear what her friend had to say.

“It’s happening, Natalie…” she whispered in a raspy voice, her severed vocal cords too injured to create pleasant sounds, “The rosary is yours to keep now. Make sure you always protect it. You and your sister have a prime role in changing the consciousness of all.”

Natalie’s tears were flowing freely. “You will be here with me, telling me what to do to keep it safe,
Lakeisha
.”

Lakeisha
painfully moved her head, “No, I won’t, Natalie. She’s waiting for me, do you see her there?”

Natalie turned to see who
Lakeisha
was talking about, but all she could see was the white wall of the hospital room. “I don’t see anybody,
Lakeisha
…who’s there?”

“She’s not for you to see, Natalie…she’s waiting for me. Catherine said to tell you thank you for bringing her and her little girl together. Her final task, before she crosses over, is to see me home.”

Natalie jerked her head toward the wall, but again she saw nobody. “Is that who’s there? Aunt Catherine?”