Anna's Visions (27 page)

Tori felt a pair of strong arms gently lifting her
head up, and she saw Wes’ tear-filled eyes. “Here,
Tori,
drink some of this. He held a glass of water to her lips and she quickly drank
it, her mouth as dry as cotton balls. He laid her back down. “Thank God you’re
okay.”

Then Tori saw Tommy kneeling on the floor beside her.
She threw her arms around him and sobbed. “Tommy, thank you. You saved my
life!”

A thought ran through her mind that struck her a bit
ironic. She had hung the lead tip cane on the banister for a decoration because
she couldn’t stand the sight of Grammy using such an ugly thing…and it had
become the weapon that saved her life. When it made contact with the back of
Cody’s head, his skull cracked louder than the second step.

As those thoughts raced through her mind, she realized
that Tommy was still talking to her. “It’s okay,” Tommy said softly. “It’s all
over. Everything’s going to be fine now.”

The first police officer leaned over the couch. “What
happened here? Do you know the man on the floor?”

Tori looked up and replied, her voice seeming to come
from somewhere far away. “He shot me – and I shot him. I guess he was a little
off target and got me in the shoulder. I had a shotgun and it wasn’t hard for
me to hit him. When I tried to get past him in the hallway, he cut me with a
knife. His name is Cody Baxter. He’s the jerk I got mixed up with in Florida –
the guy I thought I had – I thought I would never see again.”

The officer asked, “Where did you get the shotgun?”

“In Momma and
Daddy’s closet.
I bumped into
it while I was trying to hide.”

Momma sobbed. “That’s why we never wanted you to go
into our bedroom. We were afraid you’d find the loaded gun.”

“Well, thank goodness you found it this time,” her
daddy added.

A moment later, a man who looked like an old-time
detective dressed in a trench coat and carrying a large flashbulb camera
hurried into the house. All he needed was a cigar stub sticking out of his
mouth and he would have been a dead-ringer for Colombo.

Two paramedics followed Colombo into the living room.

“What happened here?” Colombo looked around the room,
his eyes searching all their faces.

The officer who had asked Tori the questions explained
the situation.

“Please, sir,” Tommy said, “Tori
needs
to get to the hospital.”

“Another ambulance is on the way to get her, son, but
I’ve got to do my job.”

Tommy continued, “But I’m the one who killed the guy.
Tori shot him, but he was still alive and was about to stab her again when I
whacked him one – and I tried to knock his brains out! Tori
was
just trying to save her life – and her baby’s life.”

Colombo rubbed his eyebrow. “Hold on, boy, I’ll get to
you in a minute.” He turned to the officers. “Did you two get this boy’s
statement?”

Both officers nodded, yes.

The paramedics hurried toward Cody’s body.

“Don’t touch him yet,” Colombo ordered, snapping
several pictures of the scene. Then he began walking upstairs still flashing.

After Colombo had taken pictures of Cody, the
paramedics loaded Cody’s body onto a stretcher, covered it from head to toe
with a blue blanket, and started to wheel it out the door.

Tori struggled to sit up, asking one paramedic, “Is he
really dead?”

“A doctor will have to officially pronounce him dead –
but there was no heartbeat and no respiration,” he replied matter-of-factly.

Tori winced. There was no heartbeat or respiration the
last time, either.

Tears streamed down Tori’s face as she looked at one
officer. “Jill–”

“I know,” he interrupted, “She’s been taken–”

Momma shrieked, “He shot Jill, too?
Oh,
God no!”

Tori’s feverish mind finished the officer’s sentence.
She’s
been taken to the morgue.
More tears streamed down her cheeks and Tori
seemed to hear someone whisper, “Till death do us part,” as her body shook with
sobs.

Anna’s Note

February 12, 1979

Tonight is one of the most beautiful nights I can ever
remember seeing. The moon is full and so bright. I feel no pain in my arthritic
limbs either. I even feel young again, young enough to dance! A full moon has a
way of controlling everything and everybody.
One of God’s
wonders.

Tom is lighting the logs in the beautiful fireplace. I
love him more tonight than I did the day I married him. And I didn’t think that
was possible. I think I’ll sit on the sofa and snuggle beside him.

Anna West-Morgan

Chapter Twenty

It was hard for Tori to know what was real and what
was a figment of her tortured mind
. At one point, she looked
groggily up and saw the concern on Tommy’s face. He had never stopped being her
friend, in spite of all she had put him through over the years. She was filled
with remorse, knowing that even after all that, he had still risked his own
life to save her – and her baby.

Finally, Colombo finished taking pictures downstairs,
upstairs, and came into the living room holding a shell casing. “I dug this out
of the doorframe,” he said, dropping it into his pocket. “Well, that’s all we
can do for now. Thanks, everyone, for your cooperation.” He shook Tommy’s hand.
“Son, you’re a brave man. This young lady owes you a lot.”

Tommy blushed, looked down at the floor, and then
briefly glanced at Tori. “Well, she’s my neighbor – and friend.”

Tears rolled down Tori’s face as she saw the
expression on Tommy’s face. His look told her everything she needed to know.
All was forgiven – but she knew things would be different between them from
then on. She saw Tommy in a new light, and she’d never forget what he had done.
Someday she’d find a way to repay him, but at that moment all she could do was
smile at him in gratitude. Through her tears, she saw him smile and nod in
silent understanding. No words needed to be spoken.

Finally, the second ambulance arrived, and the
paramedics began preparing Tori for the transfer. Just as they were carefully
putting her on the stretcher, she felt fluid gushing down her legs and forming
a puddle beneath her.

“Oh, my,” one of the paramedics said, “It looks like
they’re going to have something to talk about in the emergency room for quite a
while after you get there, young lady. They don’t often treat bullet and stab
wounds at the same time they’re delivering a baby.”

The paramedics carried Tori out to the ambulance as
Wes and Tommy ran alongside. They loaded her in and Wes called out, “I’ll be
driving right behind you, honey.”

“I’ll be driving right behind Wes,” Tommy said and ran
across the back yard.

Tori watched the reflection of the swirling blue
lights and listened to the siren blasting. She smiled through her pain. God was
sending her son back to her. Just like Grammy said He would.”

It took less than ten minutes to get to the hospital,
but they were some of the longest minutes of Tori’s life as the pain of her
contractions grew stronger and more frequent. .

When they pulled up in front of the emergency room
entrance, two orderlies rushed outside. The paramedics opened the back door of
the ambulance. The orderlies pull the gurney out and quickly began to wheel
Tori inside, making Wes run to keep up.

Everything was a blur to Tori. She hurt everywhere.
Once inside the emergency room she heard the paramedics give a nurse the
information. Then a doctor rushed to Tori’s side. “We’ll get you stitched up,
and then get you up to the labor room, honey. It sounds like you’ve had one
heck of a night. Is this your first baby?”

“Yes,” Tori managed to answer.

“Well, first ones take their good old easy time in
getting here. I’ll have you patched up long before the little one decides to
make its grand entry.”

“I don’t think this one is going to take long,” Tori
said as the doctor began to stitch.

Her contractions were coming harder by the time she
was ready to be wheeled to the labor room. Things were happening so fast she
couldn’t focus on all the movements. She was being pushed through double
electronic doors, pushed down a hall, and into the labor room. Wes was on one
side of her and Tommy was on the other.

Just as they started through the labor room door a
nurse held up her hand and said, “Only one person is allowed in the labor
room.”

Tommy said, “I’ll be waiting in the lounge, Tori.”

Tori looked up at Wes’ worried face. “Go get Grammy!
She has to be here when our baby is born!”

Wes clasped Tori’s hand. “No, Tori. I can’t leave
you–”

“Wes Asner, I can have this baby without you, but I
need Grammy to be here. Go – now!”

Wes hesitated only a moment, and then said, “Okay,
I’ll be back soon. Hold on until I get back.”

As Wes rushed out the door, a nurse took Tori’s hand.
“Tori, you’re going to be fine. I’m Nurse Jillian and we’re going to take good
care of you and help you have your baby. Don’t worry about a thing.”

Another contraction wracked Tori’s body with pain, and
she instinctively whispered, “Jill, I need you!”

“Hold on, honey,” Nurse Jillian said softly, “I need
to get you into a gown and some warm booties.” Nurse Jillian had Tori undressed
and redressed before Tori could have counted to ten. Then Nurse Jillian said,
“I need to examine you to see how much you’ve dilated.

She was quick with the examination, too. “You’ve
dilated ten centimeters, honey. You’re baby is about ready to meet the world!”

Tori barely heard the nurse’s words as another wave of
contractions swept through her. She screamed, “Jill! Don’t leave me! I can’t do
this by myself. Please don’t leave me!”

Tori was
delirious with pain, shock, and sorrow. She was
giving life to a new soul and had lost her lifetime soul mate in the same
night. It was more than she could bear. At that moment Tori wasn’t sure she
wanted to live if it meant going on without Jill. The entire world seemed to be
collapsing around her and all she could do was scream Jill’s name in pain and
frustration.

Through the fog in her tortured mind, Tori heard a
familiar voice. “I’m here, Tori.”

“Jill, is that you?” Tori said, although her voice
seemed
faraway
.

“It’s me, Tori. Don’t worry, I’m not about to leave
you.”

For the first time in Tori’s life, she knew what
Grammy’s visions were like. It was as real as anything she ever experienced –
and she was filled with joy and sorrow by the revelation. Jill would always be
with her in spirit and would be able to communicate with her, but Jill would
never be able to see Tori’s son and he would never know what a wonderful person
Jill was.

Tears rolled down Tori’s face and soaked the pillow.
“Jill, don’t leave me – please!”

She heard the voice again. “I’m here, Tori.”

Tori returned to lucidness, but the overhead lights in
the labor room momentarily blinded her. As her eyes adjusted to the brightness,
she was glad that Nurse Jillian was holding her hand. She turned her head to
thank her – and found herself looking directly into the tear-stained face of
her lifelong friend.

“I’m right here, Tori,” Jill said softly as she
reached up to stroke Tori’s face. “I’m not going anywhere!”

Tori’s mind reeled. Was she hallucinating again?

“I’m here, Tori. Everything’s going to be fine.”

Through Tori’s tears, she saw Jill was in a wheelchair,
her head bandaged in white gauze. She was deathly pale, but her smile was
angelic – and at that moment, Tori had never seen anyone more beautiful.

“Oh, dear God!
I saw you go down – I thought you were dead!”

“So did Cody. And I
would
be dead if he’d been
a better shot. But we can talk about all that later. At this moment you need to
concentrate on having your baby.”

“If he had been a better shot, I’d be dead!” Tori
said. Another contraction hit her and she squeezed Jill’s hand unmercifully as
the pain coursed through her body. When the pain subsided, Tori asked, “Are you
going to be okay? How bad is the wound?”

“It’s not all that bad. I’ve got a concussion, a large
gash, a few stitches – and they shaved this side of my head,” she answered as
she ran her hand over the right side of her head. “I’ll need bed rest for about
six weeks, then I’ll be up and running. About the same time you’ll be going
full steam ahead again.”

“Should you be out of bed now? Does anybody know where
you are?” Tori frantically asked, fearing that Jill risked her well-being by
coming to her.

“Not really,” Jill said with another angelic smile.
“Everybody left my room because they thought I was asleep – well, they should
have made sure there wasn’t a wheelchair in the room. Anyway, I sneaked off so
I could be with you. Nothing and nobody was going to stop me!”

Just as Jill finished her sentence, Nurse Jillian
hurried to Tori’s bedside. “I’ve got to get you across the hall and into the
delivery room. Dr. Harrison just delivered one. When there’s a full moon the
delivery room is hopping.”

“Ooh,” Tori cried, biting the back of her hand. “I’ve
got to push!”

Nurse Jillian turned the bed sideways aligning it with
the doorway. “Don’t push, Tori. Not yet!”

Tori began to pant hee-hees, doing her best not to
answer nature’s call and push. Again, the activity around her became too rapid
to keep focus. Her legs were put in stirrups, a sheet draped across her
abdomen, cold Betadine poured over her bottom.

A female voice said, “I’m Nurse Bea, and I’ll be
helping Doctor Harrison.”

“Okay,” Tori managed to say.

“You’ve crowned, Tori,” Nurse Bea said. “It has dark
hair.”

Tori managed a smile. “Like his daddy’s.”

Dr. Harrison walked into the delivery room and said,
“Well, I hear you’re going to be famous around here for a unique situation.”

Tori smiled through her pain. “Well, Doc, you know how
I like to be the center of attention – and I’ve got to push!”

“Don’t push until I get over there with my catcher’s
mitt. We don’t want it flying across the room.” Dr. Harrison hurried across the
floor.

“Then you better hurry–”

“Okay, now push!” Dr. Harrison said.

Nurse Jillian raised Tori’s shoulders up until her
chin rested on her chest, and Tori pushed with all she had.

Nurse Bea gasped. “The baby has a caul over its face.”

“That’s the inner fetal membrane,” Dr. Harrison
replied. “That’s the second time in all my thirty years of delivering babies
that I’ve had to tear the membrane off a baby’s face.”

Nurse Bea added, “And
look
–
on the forehead, centered just above the eyes. It’s a tiny drop of blood.”
Nurse Bea made the sign of the cross.
“The all-seeing orb of
a prophet!”

Tori smiled, remembering what Grammy had said about
visionaries skipping generations in their family, but she didn’t say anything.

The baby cried loudly.

Tori propped on her elbows as Dr. Harrison lay the
baby across her abdomen and clamped the umbilical cord. Tori cried and laughed,
and lovingly gazed at the tiny infant who was screaming, kicking, and flailing
her arms and legs.

“A little girl!”
Tori said.
“Oh, my.
Wait
till Grammy sees you! She’s going to love you to pieces.”

Tori smiled as Dr. Harrison gently handed the baby to
her, saying, “Here you go, Tori.
Your brand new baby girl.”

Tori was
still surprised that Dr. Harrison was handing her a baby
girl, but she was ecstatic that their child had finally arrived in spite of
everything that had occurred.

As Nurse Jillian took Tori’s precious daughter from
her arms to clean the infant off and bundle her up, Tori fell into a deep
sleep.

When she awoke she was in an empty room. Apparently,
she’d been moved to a private room on the maternity ward. Her first thought was
of Grammy. Where was she? Where was everybody else?

As she tried to grasp the situation, she looked up and
saw Dr. Harrison come into the room carrying her daughter in his arms.

“Are you awake,” he said with a smile. “You’ve been
through a lot, young lady, but now I think it’s time for you and your daughter
to get better acquainted.”

He placed the baby into Tori’s arms, gently patted her
arm, and then slowly turned to leave the room. “I’ll check back with you
later.”

Tori gazed into her daughter’s tiny pink face and ran
her fingers through her dark hair.
“Hi, little precious.
I’m your mommy. We haven’t named you yet because you sort of took us by
surprise, but we’ll come up with something special, don’t you worry.”

A moment later, Tori felt a cool gust of wind sweep
gently across her face. She looked up and shivers ran through her entire body
as she saw Grammy standing next to the bed – but she looked different. Her body
stood straight and tall and her fingers weren’t crooked and bent. Her smile was
radiant and her eyes sparkled.

“Goodbye, my sweet girls,” Grammy whispered. “I love
you. I’ll love you always.”

Tori gasped as Grammy’s figure slowly begin to fade
away until there was nothing left and she was again alone in the room with her
precious child.

Tears filled Tori’s eyes as the meaning of what she’d
just witnessed became clear to her. Tori sank back into her pillow, closed her
eyes, and she remembered the words Grammy had often said to her through the
years. “Celestial beings visit their loved ones here on earth.”