Forty-Four Box Set, Books 1-10 (44) (45 page)

“Hey, Simon,” I said.

I pulled out a barstool and sat down across from him.

“What are you making?”

“I’m marinating a roast for dinner,” he said. “I was working late last night and didn’t get around to it, but whenever you marinade, if at all possible, try to do it the night before.”

“I’ll remember that.”

He looked around.

“So, did you have a good talk with your sister the other day?” he said softly. “I was happy when I heard that you got to talk to her.”

I nodded.

“Yeah,” I whispered. “I miss her so much.”

He added a few different spices to the mixture.

“You guys are close, huh?” he said.

“Yeah,” I said. “We just have each other really. Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

“Just a brother,” he said, smiling. “He drives me crazy, though. He’s an actor in Los Angeles and I only hear from him when he needs money.”

I wandered over to the cookbooks, browsing through them. I pulled down a Kathy Casey book. I opened it, skimming the recipes, trying to find one with some unusual ingredients.

Simon sealed up the roast in a plastic bag, put it in the refrigerator, and took off his apron.

“Sorry, Abby, I wish I could stay and cook with you today, but I have to get back to work. Have a great day. I hope you find something to make.”

“Thanks,” I said. “I’ve been thinking about that. I’ve always wanted to make a seafood dish like
bouillabaisse
or
paella
. But I would need fresh clams, maybe some mussels. Can we get those?”

“Sure,” he said. “We’ll get whatever you need. Leave a list for me tonight and I’ll have Jack pick everything up in the morning when he’s out.”

“That would be great,” I said, flipping through the book and hiding my eyes. “Thanks, Simon.”

He nodded and left through the back door.

I found a recipe and started writing down ingredients, even though I wouldn’t need anything.

Jack was leaving in the morning, and I would be right there with him.

CHAPTER 33

I had a plan. Now I just had to make it work.

I walked along the shore, the cold wind blowing back my hair. I made it down to the tip of the island again, hoping Jesse would find me. But he didn’t.

As I walked, I thought back on Kate. I missed her terribly and couldn’t wait to see her again. I began feeling like it was possible.

I suddenly remembered her job interview. She had been in New York when Jack kidnapped me. I had totally forgotten. I wondered if she had been offered the job. It almost didn’t matter though. If I lived through this, I was pretty sure Kate would stay with me in Bend for a long time. The only way she would leave was if I agreed to come along.

I turned back. The sun was hitting one of the farthest islands, lighting it up. The wind was in my face and birds floated in the air just past the shoreline.

After a while I sat in the sand, up from the water. It was a good place to study the boat, although I wasn’t sure what more I needed to learn. I knew what I had to do. First, I had to get on board without being noticed. Then I needed to find a place to hide. I felt confident I could do those things. The part that worried me the most was the timing. I couldn’t get on the boat too early. The more time I gave them to discover that I was missing, the longer the odds would grow against me.

I headed back to the house.

CHAPTER 34

I slowly walked into the library.

Nathaniel was in his chair, smiling.

“Abby,” he said. “Good evening.”

“Hello.”

I took my seat and he got up, going over to the bar.

“Just water tonight,” I said.

He filled a glass with ice and poured in water from a small bottle. He handed it to me.

“Thanks,” I said.

He sat down again.

“Before we begin I wanted to review our agreement regarding any future communications you might have with your sister,” he said.

I was relieved he wasn’t talking about his feelings for me, but the tone of his voice made me nervous. I worried that he had become suspicious of my reference to Claire.

“I would be more than happy to make it a habit, these phone calls,” he said. “But it is contingent on two points: first, that we continue these little chats and, just as important, that you for your part hold nothing back. I expect full disclosure, if you will.”

I put my glass down on the table and sat back.

“Full disclosure?”

“Yes,” he said. “You haven’t been completely honest in this room. And in order for me to allow you more phone time, you need to start telling me the whole truth.”

He had a sly smile on his face. I had no idea what he was talking about. There was clearly something he wasn’t telling me. Maybe he knew about my plans for the morning.

I looked over at him, but couldn’t think of anything to say.

“Come now,” he said. “Your face has grown very pale. No need. I am not angry with these new developments. Just the opposite.”

“I don’t have the slightest idea what you’re talking about,” I said after a long pause. “I’m not sure you do either.”

He stood up and walked over to the cabinet against the wall, opening it up. Inside was a large television. I didn’t know what he wanted to show me, but it made me uneasy.  

“Please, come and sit over here. I wish to share a home movie we made. Or should I say, we tried to make. We had unusual technical difficulties for some reason. Maybe you can help us figure out why, Abby. I would like your opinion on this.”

I went over to the studded leather chair next to the TV and sat down. Nathaniel stared at me again before taking a seat.

“You see, I haven’t told you everything about this house, Abby. For instance, I haven’t mentioned that we have an extensive medical library on the premises. Or that there is a complex security system in place that not only keeps out intruders but can even track them through the use of body heat. Things that you probably would never know about, unless there was a reason.”

I reminded myself to breathe.

“Anyway, as part of the security system, we have some of these heat-sensitive cameras downstairs. In the basement.”

My heart pounded wildly. I knew now where he was going, what he had on me, and why he had said I wasn’t being honest.

“We store some expensive equipment down there and the cameras are for insurance purposes,” he said, dragging the moment out with pointless details. “They automatically start filming when their sensors are triggered.”

He finally clicked the button on the remote control.

“So imagine our surprise when we did our daily reviews of the tapes and found this.”

I stared with large eyes at the screen at the recording of me playing basketball.

With Jesse.

***

But as he played it, I saw that the video was a mess. Although I immediately recognized the scene, there were lines and snow covering the entire screen. The picture quality was terrible, as if someone had recorded a distant channel using rabbit ears and aluminum foil. The audio wasn’t much better, coming in and out. I could barely even tell what we were watching.

I sat back, relieved.

“Well, I admit the recording is not the best. There are some serious technical problems that we’ve never experienced before. It’s almost as if some sort of interference occurred. But what is clear, is that you are having quite the conversation with yourself.”

He turned up the volume. It was a very odd, one-sided conversation. I was talking and pausing and talking again. It was hard to make out most of what I said, but enough was there to realize something unusual was going on. At least Jesse’s voice hadn’t been captured.

“I guess I’m just a little lonely,” I said.

“That’s exactly what I thought. I said that to Jack, as a matter of fact. I was ready to dismiss the whole thing. And would have. But then I noticed the strangest thing.”

I stared at the screen.

It was only for a few seconds, but the recording was crystal clear in this section. I saw the basketball. Dribbling on its own and then flying through the air and into the basket.

“Swish,” Nathaniel said, smiling. “Nothing but net.”

I didn’t say anything.

“As you can understand, this certainly caught my attention,” he continued. “Although, I must confess, I didn’t know what to make of it at first.”

He rewound it and played it again.

I guessed the whole thing took just over a second. But it was impossible to deny. I was playing basketball with a ghost.

 “Let’s take another look, shall we?” he said. We watched it once more and then he got up and walked over to the TV.

“But I think I have figured it out. It looks to me that you are in fact playing basketball with someone. Someone we can’t see.”

I inhaled slowly.

“It has to be. Sure, it defies logic, but watch it again. The tape doesn’t lie. And you are talking to someone, Abby. Through the entire game.”

I didn’t know what to say. Jesse was caught on video, even if you couldn’t see him.

“I don’t think you’re alone here, Abby,” he said, pointing to the screen. “I think you’re with your old friend, Jesse. He was a basketball star back in the day, isn’t that right?”

It was a disaster. Nathaniel had found out what I had been trying to hide from him.

Jesse.

“I need to know more,” he said.

I stared over at the dark window.

“I am guessing that you started seeing him after your accident. Not only did your vision change, but you developed psychic abilities. You see spirits, don’t you? Ghosts, if you will. That’s what I think. And I bet Jesse here isn’t the only apparition that you see. You see others too, don’t you?”

He was smiling and happy and his energy circled quickly around him like water down a drain. He sat back down, pulling his chair up close and looking right at me.

“This is Jesse, isn’t that right?”

I shook my head.

“Remember what I said, Abby. Full disclosure. Surely you can’t deny what we have captured on this recording. I am sorry if this has startled you. But this is incredible. And so unexpected.”

I tried to think of something to say, but had nothing to offer.

“This is more than I ever dreamed possible. Not only have we brought you back from the dead, but you have bridged the two worlds. It’s phenomenal! This is an extraordinary scientific breakthrough. Absolutely extraordinary.”

He sat back in the chair, his hands manic, the excitement almost too much for him, waiting for me to respond. He was like a child waiting for Santa Claus to come down the chimney.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said finally.

I stood up. I had to get out of there, get away from him. I didn’t care what he had on tape. There was no way I was going to talk about Jesse. He could think whatever he wanted.

I walked away quickly, without looking back.

“There will be time, Abby,” he said loudly as I reached the door. “I will want to hear more. Much, much more!”

I ran up the stairs, down the hallway, and into the bedroom.

CHAPTER 35

I was expecting Nathaniel to follow me, but he didn’t. I sat watching another episode of
The Fugitive
, trying to figure out how I could possibly explain the basketball moving around on its own like that.

But there wasn’t any explanation.

There wasn’t anything to say.

It didn’t matter, I told myself. He was insane. He could believe what he wanted, but I was pretty sure the recording wouldn’t stand up to real scientific analysis. It was too easy to fake these things.

It didn’t change the fact that I had to leave. I would be on that boat in the morning. I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

It could be my last chance.

CHAPTER 36

I was up before dawn. I waited for the stars to fade and for the sky to lighten a little. I then put on my sweatshirt, some track pants and running shoes, pulled up my hair, and headed downstairs.

I was happy to find Simon in the kitchen, starting on breakfast already.

“Hey, Abby, you’re up early,” he said, looking up from the stove. He was cooking a huge frying pan full of eggs.

“Yeah, I’m going for a run,” I said, taking the iPod out of my pocket and fiddling with it.

“Looks like it’s good weather out there for you,” he said. “Maybe you’ll get to try out the soccer field this morning. It’s out there waiting with your name on it.”

I forced a smile. I figured that Jack’s name was on it more than mine.

“Yeah, maybe I’ll go do that after I’m done running on the beach,” I said. “It’s time to start getting back in shape. I’ve been feeling too cooped up lately and it’s starting to affect my mood.”

“So, no breakfast?”

“Maybe later, thanks.”

“Oh, by the way, I got your list and gave it to Jack,” Simon said. “You’ll have your fresh clams by this afternoon.”

“Thanks,” I said, smiling.

I walked out the kitchen door and down the shore for a few minutes, pretending to warm up. I gripped the corkscrew in my pocket. I didn’t know if I would need it, but it gave me a little added sense of security.

A cold, sharp wind was blowing in from the west, and there was no fog.

I glanced over at the island in the distance. I turned up and sat down in the grass. I wanted to make sure no one had followed me outside before I made a run for it.

No one had. I took a deep breath and walked casually over to the dock, looking back at the windows in the house. When it felt right, I sprinted down the wooden planks and stepped down into the boat.

I went quickly over to the cabin and slid down the short, narrow stairs. It was dark under the small galley table. I figured it was the best place to hide. It was out of view, and even if Jack were to come down here, he wouldn’t see me.