Meridian. Part 6

"Whatever."

A loud clanging erupted, like the Tin Man had fallen into a pile of pots and pans. I leapt to my feet. "What is that?"

Tens chuckled, already moving into the hallway. "The phone. Auntie asked me to tweak it so she could hear it anywhere in the house."

"I think they heard it in Alaska." I followed him.

"h.e.l.lo?" Tension jerked his body tight as he held the receiver against his ear. I could almost see his wiry muscles coiling to attack. "Answer me!" He dropped his voice to a whisper, so I moved closer. "Listen up, you piece of s.h.i.+t. Knock it off." Tens slammed the phone into the cradle and rubbed his hands over his face.

"What was that?"

"A telemarketer."

"Hmm... really?"

He exhaled. "No. Auntie's been getting hang-up calls and weird breathing on the line.

Sometimes a robotic voice recites Bible verses. The calls are coming more often."

"It's probably kids."

"Maybe."

"You don't think so?"

"No, I don't."

38ani "Oh." I hadn't expected him to actually answer the question. "Then what is it?"

*"What is it? It's time for you to work on lesson number one."

"Where is Auntie anyway?"

"She went into town for groceries and thread before the stores close until after the first of the year."

"Why didn't we go with her? Why didn't you go? The weather can't be much better for driving than it was when I got here."

"She instructed me to stay here. With you."

An unspoken statement lingered just behind his words.

I nodded.

He sighed. "Listen, there are things you don't know."

"So tell me." I pleaded.

"I made a promise that I wouldn't tell you anything until Auntie thinks you're ready. But I think you should be prepared."

"Prepared? You make it sound like we're going to war."

"Things have been escalating the past several months with a local cult that masquerades as a legitimate evangelical congregation. There's a minister who is really good at convincing people to do things. He has it in for anybody who doesn't see the world his way." Tens paused and frowned. "Or it could be something else entirely."

"What else?"

"When you were home, did you get any phone calls?" He asked like he already knew the answer.

"No -oh my G.o.d. Yes. Lots in the weeks before my birthday. My mom freaked out completely." It felt like a lifetime ago.

"The Aternocti are hunting you. They know where Auntie is."'

"So they know where I am." I closed my eyes.

"That's what I'm thinking. And I don't have the first f.u.c.king clue how to keep them from hurting us."

"Oh."

He rubbed his hands through his hair. "Don't tell her I told you. Be careful, okay? Keep your eyes open."

39ani A church cult. The devil's minions. "Anyone else?" I asked, only half kidding.

*He didn't smile. "I don't know for sure." He held my gaze and I felt an odd s.h.i.+mmy in my stomach. I didn't want to glance away but I knew I wasn't the least bit invisible to Tens. He seemed to see all of me, and that knowledge made me nervous.

The Land Rover drove into the yard.

"She's back," I said.

Tens shoved his arms into a down coat and slammed out the door to help Auntie. I wondered if he ever did anything quietly. I unpacked groceries as Tens brought them in, three or four bags at a time.

"Just leave the jerky and dried fruit in a bag or two, okay?" he said.

"Okay." Whatever. I wasn't going to steal dried venison or banana chips in the middle of the night "h.e.l.lo, little one. Did you sleep okay?" Auntie brushed my cheek with her lips and I caught a whiff of fresh-cut gra.s.s and apple blossoms.

"Yes, thanks."

She turned to Tens. "I heard Peggy and Ruth talking. Winnie, she's a neighbor, has pneumonia. I'm going to go visit her, see if there's anything I can do for the family. It's so hard on the living when the dying pick holidays."

"Okay." Tens studied her for a minute. I couldn't decipher his silence.

Auntie shook her head carefully as if calling off a pitch. "Did you find what I asked you to?"

"Yep, they're ready for you." He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms.

Apprehension radiated from him.

"My timing is perfect, then. Come." She patted my cheek and tugged me along to the parlor.

40ani *

Chapter 9.

You have to practice consciously opening your window. Visualization is your biggest tool for coping. If you believe the soul can easily flow through you, then odds are it will. You have to live mindfully. Sit," Auntie commanded as she motioned to a wingback chair.

I perched on the edge of the seat, nervous about this first lesson. What if I'm not good at it?

"Don't animals die around me all the time? What's the problem?"

"You're sick because they pushed through and tangled in your energy. You have to give the soul the exit, or they'll keep hurting you. It's about giving them the right-of-way of yielding.

Now that you've turned sixteen, all souls, of every size, can sense you - humans especially. And until you're able to control your own energy-, to open and close the window for yourself, you're in danger." Auntie brushed at my curls.

Tens lingered in the doorway, watching.

"Close your eyes. Which is your favorite season?" she asked.

"Summer."

"Okay, I want you to visualize an open window. A breeze is blowing, it feels cool against the heat of the sun. You want to feel the breeze so the energy disperses as quickly as possible. Okay? What color are the curtains?" Auntie asked.

"Curtains?"' I cracked an eye open.

"Put curtains on the window. It makes it more real. Reality is in the details. Remember that." She put her hand over my eyes.

"Okay. They're white lace."

"Good. The curtains are rustling in the breeze. It's a big window. With a view of?" She let the question dangle.

"Oh. A sunset?"

"A sunset it is. Picture yourself in the room with the window, but you've moved far enough back from the window that you don't feel the breeze. You love this room, you're content in this room, you never want to leave this room. What's on the other side of the window, the view, will be determined by the soul pa.s.sing through you. Just go with whatever you see when that happens. Don't fight it"

I pictured my bedroom at home. I felt safe there. "Okay."

"Now you're going to focus on the window and staying on this side, right? There's plenty of room to go through it -it's a big window -but you like seeing the sunset from here."

41ani This all felt very Sci Fi Channel to me. "Okay."

*"Now, keep that up until Tens tells you to stop. I can't stay here or my own power will interfere with you using yours. I need to go pay my respects to my neighbor. Winnie was a good friend for many years. She won't be alive tomorrow."

"Can I come with you?" I opened one eye again only to have her put my own hands over them.

"No, you're not ready yet. We need to start you small. I think Winnie might grab hold of you and keep going. I'll be back by dinner. Keep watching that window until Tens thinks - ".

"I'm good." I had a feeling I'd be sitting here until she came back if I listened to him.

I heard the Land Rover start up and spin off. I counted to ten. Then to ten again. I opened my eyes and found Tens watching me. The expression in his eyes made blood rush to my face and brightened the tips of my ears with heat. "Okay, I'm done." I stood up and stretched my aching muscles.

"You sure?"

"Am I sure I'm done visualizing a window? Yes, I'm finished."

"Okay then, wait here."

"What?"

"There's more to do. I'll be right back."

I wandered off, listening to him grumble and head outside.

I was sitting on the couch flipping through an old photo alb.u.m when he returned holding a pile of rags. "What's that?"'

"Lesson number two. Baby bunnies. Help them transition." He said this so matter-of-factly that I wondered if I'd misheard him.

"What?" I stiffened.

"Custos found them this morning. Their mother was already frozen."

"And you want me to ..." He had to be playing an elaborate joke on me. No way had Auntie suggested he hand me orphaned bunnies to kill.

"Visualize the window."

I inched back into the far corner of the couch. The stink of rabbit urine and feces began wafting around the room. "You're serious, aren't you? There really are bunnies in there."

"What about this made you think I was kidding?" He peeled back a few layers of cloth to 42a reveal four perfectly formed brown baby bunnies with white paws and white blazes down ni their foreheads.

*My heart broke. They looked like my favorite stuffed animal. "You're sick. I'm not doing it." I leapt up, wanting s.p.a.ce between us.

Tens laid the bundle of rags in front of me. "You don't have to do anything."

"I have to let them die. I won't. Not so I can practice." Why didn't this bother him more?

"Animals die around you all the time. They're going to die anyway."

"Not if I can help it. I don't stand by and watch. I don't help them die." I tore down the hallway to the kitchen with Tens hot on my tail.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm searching for milk. Condensed milk, or cream, or something. "I threw open cabinets and shoved cans around.

"Meridian. Stop." Tens paused in the doorway, keeping his distance as if I were rabid.

"No. I'm not going to just stand there and watch them die." I found a can of condensed milk in the far reaches of a cupboard and ripped off the lid. I grabbed a spoon.