In The Shadows (19 page)

Tonya promised to call Brandon the moment she got on the road so they could talk more. She loved talking to Brandon and had gotten used to talking her time away with him on the phone as she traveled alone.

When Brandon got off the phone, he discovered Katy and their father had cleared the table. Katy had gotten dressed to go to the shelter with Claire and her family. As they sat around the television, they made plans to go shopping or fishing the next morning. Katy had to choose between fishing and shopping on Black Friday. Brandon asked Katy not to be out too late since they had a busy day ahead of them.

She was excited about spending time with her family and knew this year, if she went shopping, she would have her Christmas presents bought, wrapped, and distributed before she left for home. Katy tried to convince Brandon to put the Christmas tree up before she left, and he promised they would get it done after they returned home on Friday.

Katy had put all the dishes away and covered the remaining food while she ushered Brandon and her father off to the living room. Claire called and was put on hold while Katy checked to see if she could leave. After seeing them sprawled out over the living room in front of one of the many football games that would come on that day, Katy knew they would hardly miss her. Once Katy got in the car with Claire, they chatted nonstop all the way to the hospital to pick up Janelle.

* * *

Natalie and Janelle were on their way to the hospital when Tonya called Natalie’s cell phone. The girls were happy to hear from Tonya. Janelle’s visit would be shortened that day as she was waiting for her mom to pick her up to go to the shelter. Helping the less fortunate was a family holiday tradition that she had grown accustomed to, but she had to see Danielle before she left. Tonya invited the girls to the tournament on Saturday if they didn’t have plans already.

Danielle was having a nightmare, and all she could remember was running through the woods, and her hands were cut and bleeding. She used her hands as a shield while running through the heavily wooded area. Danielle knew eventually he would be coming after her; she just wasn’t sure when. What she did know was that she had to keep running, or he would find her and kill her.

Danielle had had the same nightmare over and over again. She would always run from the shack she’d been kept in but would never look back. Danielle would always hear people calling her name from a distance as she lay on the ground covered in mud. This time she could barely hear people talking in the background. The voices were so faint that she couldn’t make out what they were saying as she strained to listen.

As the girls made small talk, they hoped for a miracle as they prayed for Danielle’s recovery. At the end of the prayer, Natalie bent down to kiss Danielle on the forehead as Tonya had instructed when suddenly, Danielle stirred in her sleep. The moment Natalie’s lips left Danielle’s forehead, Danielle’s arms began to twitch by her side. Both girls jumped back in amazement and couldn’t believe their eyes.

Janelle ran out to get a nurse as Tonya had done on several occasions. Once the nurse came in to check her vitals, she announced there’d been no change in Danielle’s condition. The girls refused to believe the nurse’s findings. Natalie even argued with her and swore that Danielle moved on her own.

“No, you don’t understand,” Natalie said, pleading with her. “She moved on her own. Why won’t you believe me?”

The nurse kept writing in Danielle’s chart.

“Why won’t you believe us? It was so real. She actually moved,” Janelle was now joining in the argument with Tonya listening in the background.

The nurse, then focusing on the girls, recognized Janelle to be the daughter of one of the nurses. “No, I believe you, but the tests don’t lie. They are 95 percent accurate. What I can do though is leave a message with the doctor and alert him to what happened. I’ve seen this before where patient’s reflexes are stimulated by familiar voices, touch, or sound. You girls enjoy your visit, and I’ll make sure the doctor gets this report,” she said as she returned to her post.

The girls had mixed emotions about what had taken place. Janelle was convinced her mom would be able to help them. She promised Natalie she would speak with her mother about the incident.

Natalie stayed and read to Danielle even after Janelle left for the shelter. Natalie was still stunned by Danielle’s ability to move. It wasn’t that she doubted Tonya, but seeing it for herself made her believe even more. She now had hope that her friend would be returning to them soon. Natalie finished reading the chapter Janelle had started and said a prayer before she left.

When Natalie exited the room, she was happier than she’d been in a long time. She would continue to pray for a miracle and that was to have Danielle completely recover and return home to her family. As Natalie was walking toward the main entrance of the hospital, she was stunned to see Joey and his mom getting on the elevator. She wondered if they were there for a visit as she walked past the elevator doors just as they closed.

 Chapter Thirty-Eight

When Janelle ran to the car, she was all excited about how Danielle moved and responded to hearing her and Natalie talk. Janelle explained in detail what had taken place in Danielle’s room. Everyone was happy to hear the news. Janelle’s mom seemed very hopeful Danielle’s condition was improving and would follow up when she returned to work.

Claire and Katy were all excited and hoped this meant Danielle would soon come out of her coma. The excitement carried the girls all the way to the shelter as they served one homeless person after another. The day was festive, and the mood was cheerful, and the girls knew what they were doing was for a good cause.

Katy had never been to a homeless shelter before, and she wasn’t quite sure what to expect. After Janelle and Claire showed Katy the ropes, she carried out her duties as if she’d been there the previous years. Before the serving line was started, there was a guest speaker who spoke for about fifteen minutes about their ongoing program and fund-raisers designed to help the homeless.

Katy hadn’t seen the lady before, but she was very well-dressed and seemed to be very popular as well. Katy noticed how the other ladies seemed to flock around her at every opportunity. Although they were with the guest speaker, the ladies were asked to get in line before the others, to be served.

Katy was at the front of the line with the plastic ware, salad, and salad dressing. She was also in a position to greet each person as they came through on her side. Claire was beside her, working on dinner rolls and bread just a few feet down.

When the speaker and her group came through, Katy was caught a little off guard as the well-to-do women appeared almost oblivious to the fact that she was welcoming them to the center and politely placing food on their plates. Katy examined each lady’s immaculate attire and knew they all were either very wealthy or their husbands were. What Katy saw next almost caused her to drop the tongs in the salad bowl.

She knew she had never met this lady before, but there was something about her that stood out. She was dressed in a pumpkin-colored dress with a floral jacket. Her nails and hair were flawless, and her makeup precise.

Katy continued placing the food on her plate, and when she looked up again at the lady that had spoken earlier she noticed the earrings seemed very similar to the ones Brandon had a picture of. Katy was sure the earrings weren’t the exact same ones but knew the odds of seeing the same pair of earrings in the same day. She had only glanced at the photo when she was talking to Claire earlier on the phone. Getting busy with the serving line, Katy soon let the discovery escape her.

The day was uneventful in a good way, and the people were just thankful to have a place to go and a hot meal to eat. As Katy and Claire’s family packed up to leave, the cleaning crew was just getting set up. Katy felt so accomplished and so elated she’d given some of her time to people who were truly in need. She couldn’t wait to share her exciting evening with her family and friends back home. Katy smiled proudly as she waved good-bye to Claire and her family as they backed out of Brandon’s driveway.

* * *

Carlos had come home to spend Thanksgiving with his and his wife’s families. Since Andrea’s disappearance, Carlos had spent as little time as possible in the Tuscaloosa area. He knew being there would bring about memories of their time together and that was something he didn’t want to relive.

After dinner, as the ladies sat around listening to music and sipping on wine, Carlos excused himself and told Tamara he’d be back later that evening. During halftime, Carlos called to see if Brandon was home as he entered the city limits. Brandon was surprised to hear from Carlos and invited him to come over and watch the game with him and his father.

When Carlos was dropped off, he was met at the door by Brandon. Once inside, he shook his uncle’s hand and couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen him so happy. Carlos knew of the tension that had grown between Brandon and his father over the years. They both almost seemed relieved that they’d moved on and started focusing on the future.

As Carlos sipped on a beer and enjoyed the game, he marveled at the ease of their conversation and how comfortable he felt there. After the game, Brandon and Carlos went downstairs and shot a game of pool. Growing up, playing pool used to be one of the main attractions at their family gatherings. Both were very skillful and competitive players and were ready for a good game of pool anytime.

Brandon had not thought earlier to question Carlos about the earrings but was glad the opportunity presented itself. Brandon knew Carlos was still having some issues dealing with Andrea’s death and wanted to approach the subject very carefully.

“Hey, Carlos, so how are things with you and the family?” Brandon said right before his shot.

After a long pause, followed by an even longer sigh, Carlos whispered, “Man, things are still pretty tough. Nothing will ever be the same again, but I am certainly trying to be there for Tamara and our child. I think it’s time I seek professional help. I love coming home to see our families, but it makes forgetting Andrea that much harder. I don’t know. Maybe I just need closure. It’s still so hard for me to believe she’s gone. I can still see her face in my dreams just like it was yesterday.”

“Carlos, I’m sorry to hear that you’re having such a hard time dealing with this. Does Tamara have any idea?”

“No, she’s clueless, and I hope to keep it that way. I just need to get myself together. I keep having the same dream repeatedly and feel like a professional can help me sort everything out. It’s something I have to do if I want to be able to move on without Andrea or knowing what happened to her.”

“Look, I know this has to be tough for you. Remember I am here should you ever need to talk, and the conversation will be confidential. Listen, I ran across something earlier this week and had not planned to ask you about it, but since you are here, it may not be a bad thing to follow up on. I spoke with Andrea’s sister, and she told me that a special pair of Andrea’s earrings were missing, and the family believes they were with her when she came to Alabama. The weird thing is no one has seen them since she left.”

“What? Earrings? I’m not sure if I can help, but if you’ll describe them to me, perhaps I could shed some light.”

Brandon walked slowly over to his briefcase and removed the folder containing the photo of the earrings. As he passed the photo across the table to Carlos, Carlos rubbed his fingers through his hair and took a seat in the chair.

Finally he spoke. “Brandon, these earrings certainly look familiar, but I can’t be 100 percent certain Andrea had these on when she was here. So much of our time seemed so surreal that it would be hard for me to confirm anything at this point.”

Although disappointed, Brandon thanked Carlos for reviewing the photo and reminded him again to call anytime if he remembered anything else. After they finished another game and a few more beers, Carlos called Tamara to come pick him up.

He knew he’d had more than his limit, but he’d found himself in that predicament more and more lately especially since he’d lost Andrea. The alcohol seemed to numb him and keep him from dwelling on his time with her. Carlos bid farewell to Brandon and his father before walking out the front door.

The alcohol took away a lot of the pain and memories. The alcohol made it easier to cope with Andrea’s loss. The one thing the alcohol would not take away was his constant nightmare.

Carlos had been having the same crazy dream for weeks about his experience at the cemetery during his last visit. He already felt he was on the verge of losing his mind, so he didn’t want to mention the graveyard to Brandon until he could seek attention and determine real from fantasy. He knew he had to get himself together before Tamara realized something was amiss. Carlos knew she had been concerned about him and hoped that night she’d simply blame it on the alcohol.

When Brandon saw Carlos and Tamara drive off, he returned his attention to the television set. It was getting late and would soon be dark. He wondered where Katy was and when she would be home. His father’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“So what’s eating at Carlos? Something seems to be troubling him pretty bad.”

“Oh, he’s been dealing with the loss of a very close friend, and I think it’s taking its toll on him. I’ve never seen him drink quite that much, but then again we’ve not seen each other in this setting in quite some time. Hopefully things will get better for him and soon.”

Brandon couldn’t tell his father everything and wouldn’t betray the confidence Carlos had in him, but he had to admit he was more concerned now than he was when he visited him last month.

* * *

It was 5:30 p.m., and the girls started packing up their things. Katy thoroughly enjoyed her time at the shelter and couldn’t wait to tell her mother all about it. The group of ladies was making their rounds before they departed the area. The more Katy stared at the woman with the earrings, the more familiar she looked.

Claire tapping her on her shoulder startled her. Katy was so focused on the group of women that she didn’t hear Claire asking if she was ready to go.

When Katy got home, she spoke to Brandon and her dad and immediately went into her room and called her mom and talked to her for thirty minutes. Katy was excited about being able to help the needy families that she just wanted to shout it out to the world. More people needed to spend more time helping others in need. Katy knew from then on, this was how she wanted to spend the holiday season, helping others.

When Sheriff Masterson heard Brandon’s phone ring he knew the call had to be from the lady in Brandon’s life. He smiled as he thought of his son’s happiness as Brandon stepped out of the room to take the phone call.

Tonya enjoyed hearing the excitement in Brandon’s voice as he shared the events of his day with her. She had definitely fallen head over heels with Brandon and could not wait to spend time with him on Saturday. It would be his first time coming to one of her games, and she had to admit she was a little nervous.

She and Brandon laughed and talked on the phone for nearly an hour before Tonya made him get off so he could get his rest for his fishing trip. As much as she hated to, she knew he needed to go after several stifled yawns. That night Tonya went to sleep after to saying good night to her family with a smile plastered on her face as she dreamt of Brandon.