Chapter 15

Legacy

Nick frowned. “Andrew’s pretty efficient. You think he’s forgotten about us?”

Derek glanced at the time. “I doubt it.”

Nick was already moving and, after a brief second of considering why Nick was moving, Pete was right behind him. They raced along corridors and down stairs, cursing the size of the house and its layout which meant the shortest distance between two points was still too great.

In the kitchen, Andrew put a line under the last item on his list then rose to go pin it on the board. He caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to stare, open mouthed, into the snarling face of a demon.

“No-Kami-No-Matsu ..!” he exclaimed and the demon hesitated for a fraction of a second.

In that sliver of time, golden lights sparkled in the air and clustered around the butler. He must have fainted because, the next thing he knew, he was standing in the hall outside the kitchen door, no lights of any color, and footsteps were pounding toward him.

“Are you okay?” Nick demanded, skidding to a halt.

“I’m not sure,” Andrew replied in a weak voice. “There was .. something in the kitchen. It was a god, now I come to think of it. No-Kami-No-Matsu. In my kitchen.” He leaned against the wall. “I think he was going to kill me.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” Pete began, “but what stopped him?”
“Golden lights,” Andrew said. “A wonderful, sparkling display of golden lights like the ones Dr Rayne saw in his room. I think they picked me up and moved me out here. They saved me.” He paused. “I’d like to sit down now.”

“You don’t go into that kitchen again until we say it’s safe, okay?” Nick warned.

“Absolutely,” Andrew fervently agreed.

Pete supported him back upstairs where they sat him down in an alcove of the library. Derek handed him a goblet of brandy and, with one look, warned him not to argue. For once, Andrew chose to drink on duty.

“Now what?” Pete demanded on the other side of the room. “That was a damn close call.”

“When Andrew has recovered a little, we’ll ask him what happened. He must have done something differently to the crew on the aircraft because they are dead and Andrew was saved,” Derek responded. “Nick, check the kitchen monitor. Determine the current situation in there.” He took Pete’s arm and turned him toward the window. “You’ve worked closely with Andrew the last few days, established a rapport. You know as much as I do about this situation. Go sit with him. See if he will talk with you.”

“But – ” Pete began.

“I’m his employer,” Derek cut in. “You and he are both in service industries.” His grip tightened for an instant. “He is not a suspect to be interrogated. Be gentle with him. He has had a shock.”

Pete nodded and wandered over to the alcove. His arm still ached from Derek’s grip and he started to get a glimpse of the steel beneath the polite, apparently amiable outer coating.

Derek watched and, when he was sure Pete was concentrating on his task, slipped thru to the control room.

“Well?”

“Seems empty,” Nick replied, gesturing curtly at the screen. “Maybe the leaf blower isn’t such a bad idea after all.”

“Fetch the sword,” Derek ordered. “Somehow, we have to convince one entity to get the other back inside .. and then to keep it there.”

“Voluntary imprisonment .. with no hope of parole.” Nick shook his head. “It’s tasted freedom. It may not want to go back.”

“It has no choice,” Derek declared.

*****

“Just who the hell do you think you are, making decisions like that for everyone here?” Jack demanded as he slowly walked toward the stage. “And, Bartholomew, don’t tell me it’s for the best because .. it really isn’t. Believe me, I speak from personal experience. Maybe .. half the people in this room would like to lose their gifts. Maybe they don’t see it as a gift at all, but a curse like you did. But, for every one here who wouldn’t mind, there’s another who would. I’m one of ’em. An’ so is Alex. Think about it. If Alex didn’t have the gifts she does, you wouldn’t be standing there talking to us. She hasn’t been allowed a say in this decision of yours. No one here has. And when other people chose what they think is right for us .. they do it for all the right reasons but it isn’t good. You knew that when you gave me back my memories.”

“I didn’t do that,” Alex told him.

Jack blinked. “Then who did?”

“You were right the first time. It was Gretna, not me” she shrugged. “It has the power to heal, if you let it.”

“Okay, so the town did it. The valley. Something in the water. Whatever. It doesn’t change what I’m saying. You force these people to surrender their psychic talent, you rip away half their being. They came here because they are who they are, not because they’re like everyone else. If they were .. what’s the point of coming? You do this, you’ll poison this valley, Bartholomew, just as much as they’re killing the town. It’ll lose its voice an’ it’ll never call to anyone ever again.”

Alex’s shoulders tensed.

“There could be someone with your gift on his or her way here right now. You want to deny them the peace an’ solitude you found? You really want to condemn them to the life you lived before you found this valley?” Jack climbed the steps and halted, looking into Alex’s tortured eyes. “I don’t think you do, Bartholomew. I think it’s your pain talking. Now I am sorry you hurt. I am sorry you made that sacrifice for this community. We all are. But only you can let it go. Only you can say .. enough, it ends, now.”

He turned to survey the strained faces, the voices strangled by sudden fear.

“And as for you .. you have to get a grip, people! I will confess, here an’ now, before each an’ every one of you, that I am no gardener. I just do not have it in me. But it seems to me that this valley has that covered. It’s more than just alive in a nature kinda way. What it needs from me, and from you, is our psychic energy. It may have called to you, drawn you here, but it did it for a reason. It needs you so that it can survive and help others. You have to stop thinking you’re better than others. You’re not. You’re just different. The valley wants to help you but you’re killing it.” He shrugged. “Bartholomew didn’t come back. Your attitude pulled him back. This man,” he gestured, “loves Gretna. Don’t hate him for wanting to do this. He was the most in tune with it, the valley, the whole reason for being here. He’s here not to hurt you, or even threaten you, but to give you a warning. You’re not bad people. You’re still learning and what you have to learn now is .. balance. And, y’know what, you can say thank you by creating the Bartholomew Memorial Farm out to the east between here an’ the road. You should all learn to work the soil because .. what you give, you get. You feed it, it’ll feed you. Balance.”

He looked back. “Isn’t that right? Isn’t that what you really want?”

Alex’s shoulders sagged. “Yes.”

“I can help you.” He put his hands on her upper arms. “Let it go. Give it to me. Life’s kicked me when I’ve been down and I know I can cope with it.”

“No. It is mine,” she said. “Like you, I know who I am.”

“Then leave an’ go to that place where there is no pain. Gretna doesn’t want you to suffer any more, an’ neither does God.”

Alex looked toward the light spearing in thru one of the high windows. Then her eyes drifted down and along the row of faces she knew so well. Alex sagged for a moment and sucked in a breath.

“Jack ..?” She blinked, clinging to him. “What happened?”

“It’s okay. You’re back now,” he said, holding her tightly.

Noah looked to the light too. “Goodbye, Bartholomew. Till we meet again, my friend.”

*****

Pete leaned forward, his hands clasped together, his elbows resting on his knees. Andrew gazed ahead, unseeing, the brandy goblet only just cradled in his hands.

Pete shrugged. “I guess you’ve finally gotten to see something, up close an’ personal. Story to tell your grandkids, when you get round to having ’em.”

Andrew focused and frowned. “They’d have terrible nightmares,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, I just bet they would,” Pete grinned. “Welcome back.”

Andrew gave a weary smile. “I guess it is some kinda rite of passage. I’ve finally earned my place in this house. I’ve always felt welcome an’ useful, appreciated, but .. now .. it’s different. I’m a survivor.”

“No doubt about that, man. So .. you up to telling me what happened in there?”

“I’ve already told you.”

“Well .. yeah but not in detail. Y’see, Andrew, you did something which meant you got saved. The flight crew probably reacted in exactly the same way you did but they didn’t do what you did. An’ they died, horribly. We need to know everything. So .. talk me thru it.”

Andrew paused to gather his scattered thoughts. “Okay. I put the groceries away. I was thinking what to do for lunch – My God, lunch!”

“Forget that. Kitchen’s outta bounds for now. If we have to, someone’ll fly over to the mainland for takeout. You were thinking about lunch .. and ..?”

“I couldn’t decide so I sat down at the table and I wrote a list of household supplies I need to buy. I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t see anything. I finished the list an’ got up to pin it on the board. That’s when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It startled me. I turned quickly to see what it was. And .. it was him. A god from Japanese mythology. In my kitchen. I felt .. so awed by .. right in front of me .. that I didn’t really think. He looked just like the pictures in the books I have at home but .. so much more, y’know? Shogun type armor. One of those winged helmets. Bamboo breastplate. Yet so exquisite. Everything was lacquered an’ polished. He shone! He was .. magnificent. I said his name. Exclaimed it. I wasn’t really scared, more amazed an’ surprised. And, y’know, I think he was surprised too because he just stopped. Dead in his tracks. That’s when the golden lights turned up and I began to realize that I was in big trouble. He would’ve killed me but the lights kinda swarmed all around me and then … Well, I think I passed out. The next thing I knew I was where you found me an’ the lights had gone.”

Pete slowly nodded. “Y’know what? I don’t believe the flight crew did react in the same way you did. You were damn lucky, Andrew. You have a hobby most people wouldn’t begin to understand. It saved your life.”

“Why?”

“Because you weren’t scared when you saw him. You didn’t say ‘what the hell?’ or ‘who are you?’ You said his name and you felt amazed, awed. It came thru in your voice, an’ that makes all the difference. I say to you, here an’ now, ‘stop, police, put your weapon down’, you don’t react because you know I don’t mean it. You’re not running, you don’t have a weapon. But, if I say it like I usually say it, you’d hear me an’ you’d react. Stop! Police! Put your weapon down!”

Andrew flinched back.

“Y’see?” Pete shrugged. “It isn’t necessarily the words, it’s the voice. Maybe saying his name brought the golden lights to your assistance. You got any idea who that might be?”

“Is it a person? Another god?”

“I’m no expect but .. this No-Kami guy first shows up as a black mist. I’m figuring that the golden lights are someone else. You sit there, rest up, an’ think for a while. I’m gonna find a cup of coffee somewhere. I’ll be right back.”

Andrew watched him leave. The shock of his near escape was starting to make him tremble. He flinched again when someone came to stand next to him.

“How you doing?” Nick asked.

Andrew gulped down some brandy. “I’m not sure.”

Nick took Pete’s recently vacated place. “I won’t say it’ll be easy but you will get over this. You told me you understood the risks. I don’t think you did, but you do now. Next time – an’ there will be a next time – you’ll be better prepared for it. Look at it this way, you’re here, alive, you escaped or were rescued. Could have been a lot different but it isn’t.” He hesitated. “Don’t resign over this. We need you, Andrew. Finding the guy who can cope with what goes on in this house is a one in a million shot. You’re that guy.”

Andrew straightened his shoulders and nodded. “I’ll stay. You’re right. I will get over this. Nick?”

“Hit me,” Nick invited in a steady voice.

“Do you have any books here on Japanese mythology?”

“Uh huh. Wanna look at one?”

“Yes. I’ve got a job to do.”

*****

Rachel checked out of the hotel and went to find a taxi to take her to the airport. She’d been all over London yet hadn’t had any time to shop.

Thank goodness for duty free stores and shopping malls at Heathrow, she mused. If I don’t take a gift back for Kat, I’ll never hear the last of it.

*****

“She’ll be fine,” Jason remarked as he came into the lounge. “I’d let her rest today but there’s no reason why Alex can’t enjoy what’s left of her vacation from tomorrow.”

“That’s great. Thank you,” Jack replied. “It’s a relief.”

Jason regarded him as he scratched thoughtfully at his chin. “So that was the gentle approach, was it? You stand up to ’em and give it to ’em straight. I learned a lot from that exchange, Jack.”

“Yeah, well .. to be honest, Alex is the expert an’ she probably would have played it very differently,” Jack responded. “When it comes to the last stretch, all any of us can be is ourselves. I learned too. I learned .. I like who I am an’ how I got here really isn’t so important as I believed it was. What matters is who I am now. An’ I’m an okay guy. Yeah, I got faults but I’m getting there. I’m learning. I was gentle with him during all the time he spent with me last night an’ today. It was just … I’ve been there an’ I’ve had my life deliberately altered to fit with what someone believed I wanted, what I thought was best for me. I was living a lie, Jason. I know that now. I was more a fraud then than I ever was before. I couldn’t go back to cheating people an’ that is all I know how to do without my gift.” He shrugged. “Bartholomew never meant to do it. He was just scaring you a little.”

“It worked. Before .. when Alex was here last time, we were very arrogant. Confident in our ability to protect ourselves. It had worked for years. Some of us knew Gretna was being choked by it. So we decided to stop. We let the world come in. But we didn’t really change, not us, not our attitudes. Gretna was still suffering. We’ve got to learn to be a little more humble. Creating the farm will connect us again with our home.” Jason hesitated. “You know the house at the north end of town, on the curve of the road out here, the one with the little tree out front?”

“Yeah,” Jack nodded.

“It’s empty,” Jason said.

*****

Derek, with Pete riding shotgun, fixed lunch. Andrew was working on his part of the investigation with Nick providing security. As speed was of the essence, Derek made something quick. Hamburgers. No frills.

In the library, Andrew was reading fast, skimming over the words, turning pages rapidly. “I know it’s here somewhere,” he muttered.

“What are you looking for?” Nick asked.

“Well,” Andrew began, turning away from the table to face him, “you know how gods are usually arranged. It’s very incestuous. Brothers go with sisters. Parents mate with their own children. And what are to us common enemies – day and night, war and peace – invariably end up as marriage partners who love each other deeply.”

Nick nodded. It sounded about right to him.

“I told you the story of how Amaterasu gave up the sword. That’s general knowledge, no secret, you’ll find it in just about every book on the subject of Japan’s gods. But there’s a related story which isn’t so widely known and I’d forgotten it until Pete said about the black mist and the golden lights. The story goes – as best as I can remember it – that the three gods of the underworld, brothers by the names of No-Kami-No-Matsu, No-Kami-No-Tashi and No-Kami-No-Butsu were all in love with the daughter of the Sun Goddess. It was opposites attract. They lived in darkness and she was of the light. And, for the same reason, they could never get to meet her. So they hatched the plan to capture the sun, figuring that Amaterasu would be forced to act. While she was busy dealing with one brother, the other two would kidnap the daughter and take her into the underworld to light their darkness. They put the plan in motion. What they didn’t know was that the daughter had already met one of the brothers, she had fallen madly in love with him, an’ she knew about the plan because he’d told her. She told her mother. The lovers thought they could see a way to be together forever. As is the way with families, the other two brothers argued and, when Amaterasu offered the sword instead of her daughter’s capture in return for them freeing the sun, they accepted it, being more greedy than in love. When she went to retrieve the sword a few hours later, the lovers begged her to hide them so she put them in the sword and escaped with it.”

“That sounds promising,” Nick commented.

“Yeah, it does, but I can’t find the story in this book, Amaterasu’s daughter isn’t mentioned in any other story, and I’m damned if I can remember her name. You know I told you that No-Kami-No-Matsu possessed the sword? I think I got the name wrong. I’m sure he was one of the lovers.”

“That makes sense. He’s the black mist an’ she must be the golden lights.”

“Right,” Andrew nodded.

“Lunch is served,” Pete said as Derek carried in a tray. “You find anything?”

“I’m still looking,” Andrew replied as Nick put another book on the table.

“Try this one,” he said.

“Eat while you work,” Pete advised.

“But don’t drop anything on the pages,” Derek warned.

“In that case, time out,” Nick decided. “No situation is ever that dire, right, Derek?”

They sat at the table and munched their way thru the hamburgers and drank the coffee. Andrew was obviously eager to get on with the task.

“Well, can I help?” Pete asked. “These two guys have to check on that translation. You said lunchtime, Derek,” he reminded.

“So I did. If you’ll excuse us?”

“Sure. Go ahead. Andrew an’ I have this covered.”

Nick backed away, waiting till Pete was bent over the book, then he stepped thru the wall into the control room, Derek right behind.

“What am I looking for?” Pete inquired.

Andrew told the story again.

“So it’s the daughter’s name.”

“Yes. It’s similar to the story of Hades and Persephone in Greek mythology, only she was the daughter of nature, the seasons.”

“Sure,” Pete nodded. “Although it sounds to me more like the rookie cop who fell in love with the chief’s daughter. They never ended up in a sword though, just in some really deep shit.”

In the control room, Nick told the story to Derek who nodded. “It sounds extremely plausible. If we can discover the name, maybe we can summon the lights.”

“In a way, they are working in tandem,” Nick remarked, sitting at his workstation. “Like two plow horses who don’t always get along, they’re pulling in the same direction.”

Derek frowned at this. “I don’t think that’s right,” he said. “How’s the translation doing?”

“Almost but not quite. Another hour.”

*****

When the hour was up, Nick checked again and nodded then sent it thru to the printer. Almost at the same moment, they heard a strangled cry of triumph from the library.

Derek took the single sheet and went to the holographic wall. Pete was grinning, Andrew was pounding a fist on the table.

“I think they’re found the name,” Derek declared.

They chose their moment and stepped thru.

“Should we be cracking open the champagne?” Nick asked.

“Hell yeah!” Pete agreed. “We found the story. Andrew got it pretty straight. He is one hell of a guy!”

“I don’t know about that,” Andrew demurred modestly.

“Show me,” Derek requested.

“It’s here, sir. The story of the three brothers and the daughter of the Sun Goddess. The lovers were No-Kami-No- Oh.”

“Problem?” Nick ventured into the suddenly hot silence.

“No, far from it,” Derek replied. “Now it makes sense.”

He put the translation on the table.

“You said, Nick, that they were, in a way, working in tandem, like two plow horses pulling in the same general direction despite not always getting along,” he continued. “It didn’t sound like lovers to me. According to this, Akemi and No-Kami-No-Tashi were deeply in love.”

“Tashi?” Pete echoed.

“I was wrong,” Andrew said, blushing with embarrassment.

“But you were also right,” Derek countered. “You correctly identified the entity resident in the sword. Consider the facts,” he invited. “On the charter jet, the flight crew were killed without mercy, yet we heard a second voice on the recording. I would say that the demon didn’t realize that Akemi was also speaking to the souls of the dead men. He didn’t know she was present. Perhaps it was because he was also speaking at the time. In this house, she has healed my wounds and saved Andrew from the demon. That doesn’t suggest working in tandem to me. The opposite, in fact. Akemi and No-Kami-No-Tashi were in love and wanted to be together. Amaterasu did put two spirits into the sword but not those of the lovers. At the last moment, No-Kami-No-Matsu tricked his brother and took his place .. because greed and lust burn hotter than love at times.”

“Isn’t this just speculation?” Pete pointed out.

“When one is attempting to explain the rationale behind the motives of gods who are thousands of years old, it is difficult not to speculate,” Derek responded. “However, we can be assisted in many ways. Akemi’s own words, for example. Here’s the translation.”

Nick and Pete leaned over Derek’s shoulders to read.

“Listen to him but listen to me also,” Derek read aloud. “Obey but do not enslave yourself to his will. Once he retreats, find peace in true death. This is my gift to you. He is not to be trusted. He cheated me of my happiness, do not let him cheat you as well.” He shrugged. “That’s the best the computer can do.”

“Wow,” Pete breathed. “So, when Andrew said his name – ”

“He was surprised. He thought that people would believe he was his brother but Andrew recognized him.”

“By accident!” Andrew pointed out.

“Lucky break for us,” Nick grinned.

“So .. I know I sound like a stuck record, but what do we do now?” Pete asked.

“Free me,” said a musical voice behind them.

*****

“Peri ..?”

“Yeah.”

“This has been the best vacation ever,” Kat sighed happily.

“It certainly has been remarkable,” Merlin agreed.

“Where did you go?” Kat asked bluntly.

“Outta town, just .. tying up a few old loose ends. Actually, I’m kinda looking forward to going home for a rest.”

“Me, too.”

“Really?”

“Not for a rest, but just going home,” Kat replied.

“Okay, I’m listening.”

Kat blushed. “James an’ I .. we’re gonna keep in contact,” she confided.

“Just make sure – ”

“I know – no magic.”

“I was gonna say just make sure your Mom’s okay with it. She should be. I’ll have to give a report an’ I will tell her that James is a sensible guy who has your best interests at heart. As for magic,” Merlin concluded, “I know neither of you will risk it again, not now Aquila knows the names of the usual suspects and where you both live.”

*****

She was radiant, glowing with light. Her long, dark hair floated in an invisible, unfelt breeze.

“Akemi-san,” Andrew bowed, and slapped at Pete’s arm. “Bow!” he muttered.

Derek straightened. “Akemi-san, if we do this, No-Kami-No-Matsu will be unrestrained. You balance his evil with your own power of good.”

“The sword was meant to be my haven but it is my prison,” she said. “And he is my jailer. I hide from him constantly. It was only when he was at rest that I was able to escape. And then he followed. He always follows. He wants to possess me and I will not permit that. But I cannot go far from the sword. My mother placed me there. You can free me to be with my lover. No-Kami-No-Tashi waits still. And, once his brother knows I am gone, he will follow again and leave this world. He has no choice. My mother bound his spirit to the blade as well. He is consumed with desire for me and, for breaking my mother’s command, my lover will have revenge for his brother’s trickery. His spirit will be no more.”

“How do we free you?” Nick inquired.

“Will it to be so in the name of my mother,” she replied.

Derek glanced over his shoulder. “Andrew?”

“Me, sir?” Andrew gasped.

“Why not? You are the expert here.”

Swallowing, Andrew stepped forward. Akemi bowed her head.

“Er, guys … ” Pete began, staring back at a man high column of black mist.

“Quickly, Andrew,” Derek murmured.

“In the name of Amaterasu, Sun Goddess, I will you, Akemi-san, to be free,” Andrew said clearly.

She vanished in a shower of golden light and there was a deep throated roar of rage behind them. Pete blocked his ears but it was suddenly cut off in mid-bellow.

“Is anyone dead?” he asked.

“Nope,” Nick replied.

“Is it over? Has he gone?”

“Yep.”

“So .. the sword is now just a sword?” Pete ventured.

“No,” Andrew stated firmly. “It’s the sword of Amaterasu. Don’t ever forget that.”

“Not if I live to be a thousand,” Pete declared in a solemn voice. “Okay, Derek .. how exactly should I phrase my report?”

*****

And, so, the various travelers began heading home to San Francisco.

Rachel arrived on the island first and her first impulse was to call Kat. She didn’t. Kat was on vacation and she was with Merlin. Nothing would happen to her except she’d have a really great time. It hurt like hell but Rachel began loosening those strings. She didn’t untie them completely but .. loosening them now would mean it didn’t tear her apart in three years.

“Hi, guys,” she smiled. “Miss me?”

“Actually, yes. We always miss you when you’re not here but … ” Derek glanced at Nick. “I know I would have appreciated your expertise. How was the conference?”

“What I heard of it was good. You would have enjoyed it,” Rachel replied. “I made some notes.” She looked from one to the other. “Why would you want my expertise? I have no experience with weapons.” She looked at them again. “It was just a sword .. wasn’t it?”

“Didn’t you attend each day, diligently researching how others in the field are approaching this type of work?” Derek asked.

“Ah .. no, actually, I didn’t.” Rachel ran a hand thru her hair. “Something came up.”

“Like it did here,” Nick grinned.

“What?” Rachel and Derek asked each other.

“I’ll just say .. the sword is just a sword .. now,” Nick replied, “an’ let Derek fill in the blanks. You missed Pete. He’s been staying here. Catch up with you later.”

“Derek ..? Pete? He’s a homicide detective! Is everyone all right?” Rachel exclaimed.

“We’re fine. What came up in London?” he asked.

Rachel stepped back. “I’m not saying another word to you, Derek Rayne, until you answer my questions.”

“Of course. Would you like some tea?”

She nodded, her eyes sparking an amused warning, her mouth clamped tightly shut.

The other travelers had to come lesser distances but had always been scheduled to return home later. Merlin and Kat weren’t the last to get on a plane though. That was Alex.

She spent her last two days in Gretna trying her hand at channeling again. Jack tried it too and produced a small canvas which amazed him. Then she packed her bag and cleared up the cabin.

“Jack .. aren’t you packing?” she asked, noticing a certain lack of activity in the other bedroom.

He hesitated. “No,” he said at last.

“But – ” she began, confused.

“Alex .. I’m staying. I need to be here. I’ve known it since the first day. Gretna needs me, I need Gretna .. an’ the people here need me. I’ve seen both sides. I started out as a fake an’ then developed my gift. They’ve always had it. Gives me a different edge, y’know? Plus I can do the ghost thing an’ they can’t. And .. I will come back to San Francisco at some time. You haven’t seen the last of me. I just need a new challenge an’ I’ve found it here.”

She nodded. “Yeah. I hoped bringing you here would make you a better person, more settled, more calm. It worked.”

Jack took her hands. “You an’ I will always be friends. You do know that, don’t you? If you ever need me, for anything, you just have to call. An’, next time you come up here on vacation, you can stay at my place.”

“Thank you. Jack .. when Bartholomew took over my body and I was resting .. I remember what you told me. The one thing you can never say when you’re awake. I love you too, and I’m very happy that you’ve found your place in the world. You deserve to be here. You deserve to have some roses in December.”

She took her bag to the rental car, hugged him, then got behind the wheel.

“Say goodbye to Noah, Nic and Jason for me,” she smiled.

“Count on it,” Jack said, his ears still burning from her earlier words. He stepped back – stepped away – and raised his hand to wave. “See you around, Alex.”

Alex waved too then drove away, and, inside, a tiny piece of her heart broke.

*****

Kat sighed deeply as she stepped onto the sidewalk. Then she shivered. “It’s cold!”

“Y’know .. that’s most likely exactly what Lucifer thought when he was thrown out of Heaven an’ ended up in Hell,” Merlin remarked. “S’why he started all those fires.”

“C’mon,” Kat giggled. “You shouldn’t joke about the Devil.”

Merlin nodded. “You’re right, of course. Shouldn’t set myself up for payback, should I?”

“No,” Kat said in a serious voice.

“So .. apart from cold, how’s it feel to be home?”

Kat thought about it. “Do you really think my Mom’s gonna believe these blonde highlights in my hair were caused by the sun?”

“If she doesn’t, tell her it was an early birthday gift from me .. which is the truth. Your Mom doesn’t like to take me on unless there’s a real need. An’ hair’s hair, Kat. It grows. They’ll only last so long.”

“Thanks, Peri. An’ thanks for the vacation an’ all the clothes, an’ for being so .. you. I had a really great time.”

“So did I. C’mon, let’s get a cab an’ load up these cases.”

Kat nodded, then pointed. “Is that ..? Alex!”

Alex looked round and smiled as she approached. “Hi, you two. You just arrived back?”

“Yeah,” Merlin replied. “Wanna share a cab?”

“Yes. I could use the company,” Alex admitted.

Merlin looked but didn’t comment. No one spoke of what they did on vacation during the journey home to Angel Island but the trip wasn’t silent. The conversation was general – the weather, the food, the rooms they’d stayed in. No one said anything about the people they’d met or the things they’d seen.

It wasn’t until they’d put down their bags in the foyer and taken a deep breath of the familiar atmosphere that they’d nodded and smiled gently. Now they were home. There was a moment of calm silence, then footsteps were hurrying toward them.

Rachel beat Nick down the stairs by a slim margin and rushed toward Kat, her arms open. “Oh, hi, honey! Did you have a great time? I missed you! You look fabulous! Wow, that is a nice tan; I think I’m jealous. An’ look what the sun’s done to your hair! It suits you!”

“Thanks, Mom,” Kat said with just a hint of relief in her voice. “How was the conference?”

“Good. An’ my speech went down very well. Come upstairs, I’ll tell you all about my adventures if you tell me all about yours. Thank you, Peri.”

Merlin couldn’t reply because Nick was hugging her tight enough to crack bones but she waved a hand to show she’d heard.

“Alex?” Derek asked. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine. Just a little tired. I’ll .. come upstairs and tell you all about my trip to Gretna.”

“You had a good time?” Nick asked Merlin. “You look sensational.”

“I’m very relaxed so, yeah, I had a good time. I think the consensus is that we go upstairs an’ tell all about it. I will, if you will. What happened with the sword of Amaterasu?”

Nick grinned. “Upstairs.”

He took her hand and followed everyone else to the study. “I brought you back one of those pagan virility symbols,” Merlin remarked. “I thought you could hang it over the bed.”

“Male virility?” he queried.

“Absolutely,” she purred.

“Later .. but not that much later.”

In the study, Derek called Andrew for coffee while everyone got settled. He and Nick told them about the sword and what a big part Andrew played in resolving it. When Andrew came in with the coffee, he received a round of applause and broad smiles of congratulations. Blushing, he left the tray and hastily retreated.

Then Rachel told them about Toby Johnson. The conference was, like it had been in real life, almost an afterthought.

“So .. did anything untoward happen to you in Hawaii?” Derek inquired.

“Peri tied up some old loose ends,” Kat replied. “She was outta town a long time.”

Nick swung round. “What old loose ends?” he asked.

“You left Kat alone?” Rachel accused.

“Thanks, Kat,” Merlin grinned. “No, Rachel, Kat wasn’t alone. She was with James.”

“And Laurence, an’ Laurence’s parents,” Kat quickly added.

“What old loose ends?” Nick repeated.

“Unfinished business which is now definitely finished,” Merlin answered.

“Work?” he frowned.

“Nah, this was more entertainment than work,” she said with a smile.

“Nothing bad?”

“That depends on how you define bad, I guess.”

“I want details,” Nick warned.

“Alex? You’ve been very quiet,” Derek commented. “Didn’t your trip to Gretna go as planned?”

“Not exactly. Most of it did – I got to try channeling which is one reason I wanted to go back – but .. something came up. Actually,” she corrected, “several things came up. Jack got his true memories back. He was haunted by the ghost of Bartholomew. Everyone came very close to losing their gifts but .. Jack was amazing, or so I’m told. At the time all this was going on, and for some time before it, Bartholomew was using me as a vessel. And Jack decided to stay in Gretna.”

“What?” Rachel exclaimed.

“I know. I took him there so he could experience the community, to let it calm him down a little. It worked better than I ever imagined. Instead of him becoming calmer, he energized the entire town.”

“What is he going to do?” Derek frowned.

“Build and run a movie theater. He said he needs a new challenge, Derek. I wish him well. But .. I will miss him so much.”

“And the others are all okay with it? Nic and Noah?” Rachel asked.

Alex nodded. “They’ve already found him a house of his own. They took to him straight away. Jason, Nic and Noah send their regards.”

“And Marcus? Is he still there?” Nick inquired in a stony voice.

“No, he and Jennifer left a while ago. No one knows where they went or what they’re doing,” Alex replied.

“Wherever they are, they’re learning good lessons,” Merlin commented. “There’s always someone around to slap ’em down when they step over the boundaries of acceptable behavior.”

Nick glanced at her, and slowly smiled. That was all the detail he needed.

“Well,” Derek concluded, “as Detective Pete Miller told me only the other day, it’s great to travel but coming home is even better. This house, despite being unexpected host to two entities, felt empty without you. Welcome back.”

Alex smiled, the hurt of losing her friend starting finally to ease. She was home again, with the people she loved most, and, while there would be thorns, she knew she would have beautiful roses in December.

Poltergeist: The Legacy

Roses In December

© Jay Brown, 2002

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