Jay was right. The children had been bound to this world by unfinished business, by bodies that needed to be buried and loved ones who needed closure. And maybe by vengeance and the need to see Sarge brought to justice. They couldn’t tell her who they were because they were sworn to secrecy, and even in death, they were held captive by their promise to a madman.
Sam tugged on her sleeve. “Mom, are you listening to me?”
Sadie patted his hair. It was growing so quickly. “I’ll always hear you, little man.”
“Aw, Mom,” he said, scowling. “Don’t call me that.”
She hugged him close. When he pulled back, he traced the first half of an infinity symbol over her heart. “S is for Sam.”
She added the reflecting half. “S is for—”
“Sadie,” he interrupted. “Sadie and Sam for all eternity.”
With a loud whoop, he jumped on his bike and sped away.
As she watched him, she wiped away a stray tear.
“You all right?” Matthew asked, joining her on the deck.
She smiled. “I am now.”
Unexpectedly, he slipped his warm hand in hers. “Thank you,” he whispered.
Lost in overwhelming emotions, they watched Sam and Cortnie for a long time, thanking the universe that fate had intervened and their children had been brought back to them, alive. They were the lucky ones.
The fate of the other children weighed heavily on her heart. They had not been as lucky and neither were their parents. Except that now they had closure. That had to count for something.
“Mom!” Sam shouted.
She shook away the gloomy clouds. “What, honey?”
“Listen to what Marina taught me. One fine day in the middle of the night…”
“Two dead boys got up to fight,” Cortnie joined in, grinning.
In unison, they chanted, “Back-to-back, they faced each other, drew their swords and shot each other. A deaf policeman heard the noise, got up and shot the two dead boys. If you don’t believe this story’s true—”
Sadie smiled. “Ask my blind uncle. He saw it too.”
Sweet innocent laughter wafted in the air, and in that single moment of fate, all was infinitely perfect in the world.
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Acknowledgments
Thank you to my early editors and readers: Francine, Marc, Kelly, David and Eileen, who offered wise advice and smart editing suggestions.
A special thanks to Lynn Hoffman, wine expert and author of bang-Bang, who suggested the perfect wine for this story. Cheers!
Thank you to ALL my fans—readers, book clubs, schools, libraries, bookstores, reviewers, etc—for trusting me to provide you with an entertaining and hopefully emotional story.
And my eternal thanks to my husband Marc and daughter Jessica for always believing in me and my work.
“One fine day in the middle of the night” (Journal Versions)
Source: http://www.folklore.bc.ca/Onefineday.htm#Onefine
Note from Cheryclass="underline" The following version was taught to me by my childhood friend, Cathy Magill, may she rest in peace.
And now for a sneak peek at book 1 in the Divine series…
DIVINE INTERVENTION
Prologue
It always began with the dead girl in her closet.
Every night when little Jasmine opened that closet door she expected to see lovely dresses and hangers—not a child her age strung up by a pink skipping rope, her body dangling above the floor… unmoving.
The dead girl had long blond hair. Her blue eyes stared blindly and were surrounded by large black circles. Her mouth hung open in a soundless scream. The pink rope was tied tightly around her neck, a thick pink necklace of death. A purplish-black bruise was visible and ugly.
The most unusual thing about the girl, other than the fact that she was swinging from a rope in Jasmine’s closet, was that her skin and clothing were scorched.
Gagging, little Jasmine stepped back in horror.
When the girl’s lifeless body swayed gently from a sudden breeze Jasmine let loose a cry of terror and raced down the stairs, searching anxiously for her parents.
“Daddy?”
Her throat was constricted and dry.
“Mommy?”
Then she screamed. “Mommy, I need you! Help me!”
In the lower hallway, the shadows quickly surrounded her.
Then she saw them.
Red eyes flashing angrily at the end of the hall.
Jasmine took a hesitant step backward. She tried to run but her feet would not cooperate. Her small body began to shake while the eyes followed her.
Glancing over her shoulder, she noticed a listless form moving toward her, arms outstretched—pleading.
The girl from the closet wasn’t dead anymore.
Blistered hands reached for Jasmine.
The girl’s mouth yawned and a horrendous shriek emerged.
Trapped and terrified, Jasmine began to scream…
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