The Stone of Blood (40 page)

“Am I losing you Toby?” Ms. Lillie asked. “Is it getting too complicated?”

I sat there for a moment quietly. Ms. Lillie could tell that I was thinkin’ really hard.

“Because if it is too complicated I can try and explain it better!” She continued.

“No Ma’am.” I answered. “It’s not too complicated. I didn’t know all the names and things like that before, but I think this is where the stuff I’ve found out about starts to take place, right?”

“Go on Mr. Toby!” Ms. Lillie replied. “Go on with it then child!”

“Well, from what I can figure …Obadiah must have made plans to leave
Paris
for
America
. And he made arrangements for the stone to be passed from the Kings of France to the Catholic Priest Flaget …who would bring it with him to Bardstown. But it wasn’t called Bardstown then, it was called
Salem
. And he also had plans drawn up for a
new city
of Lystra to be built near here, for both he and his people to live and to protect the
‘Sang
Pierre
’,
the Blood Stone
.” I related.

“But somethin’ must have happened Ms. Lillie.” I said as I paused. “Cause once they had settled here, the
new city
of Lystra was destroyed! Is that right?” I asked questioningly.

“Yes. That is right!” Ms Lillie said as she gave me another hug. “Very good Mr. Toby, that is very good!”

“Was it Nathanael who done it?” I asked. “Was he the one who destroyed the city?”

“Nathanael it was Mr. Toby.” Ms. Lillie answered while shakin’ her head. “Nathanael was no longer the good man that he had once been when he was promised the hand of Audrei. Because his love for her was changed.”

“Because you know Toby, people don’t always see themselves as being the bad guys.” Ms Lillie continued. “Most times they see what they do as being for the ‘
greater good
’. And they
rationalize
their evil doin’s away. You follow me?”

“Nathanael saw Audrei as his.” Ms. Lillie continued on. “She was his possession and he felt that he had claim to that stone! So when Obadiah realized his heart had changed, he made arrangements to have the stone change hands as well! And he didn’t tell Nathanael anything about it!”

“He and those who had remained loyal to their cause simply …slipped quietly out of
Europe
.” She continued further. “Setting sails for
America
. And for a long time thereafter, Nathanael hunted that stone. And as he grew older …since he was no longer near the stone, his hatred for Obadiah and those who had taken Audrei away from him grew stronger as well!”

“Did Nathanael ever find the stone?” I asked.

“Oh he found it alright!” Ms. Lillie answered. “But it took him pert near to the end of
America
’s Civil War to do it!”

“Was he a soldier in the Confederate army?” I asked wonderin’ if he might be the ghost in our barn.

“No sir. He was with the
Union
!”
S
he answered. “Butchers they were! The whole lot of em’ …those who surrounded Nathanael that is! Dark times they were, Mr. Toby …dark times!”

“Ms. Lilly?” I asked. “How do you know about all of this?”

“Well now…” Ms. Lillie said. “…that is another good question!”

Ms. Lillie opened up her arms and motioned for me to come closer to her and to get another great big old hug! But this time she held on to me tightly and rocked me slowly back and forth as she spoke.

“Obadiah was my great granddaddy Mr. Toby.” she said. “My daddy was his grandson! His name was Jeremiah!”

“So your daddy told you this story?” I asked. “Does that mean that you’re a ‘
werewolf
’ too?”

“Little Miss Honey girl sure was right about you now, wasn’t she?” Ms. Lillie said as she released me from her hug and rose up from out of her rockin’ chair. “You certainly do ask alot of questions for a boy!”
she said
as she laughed to herself and shook her head. “Now where did that girl get off too I wonder?” Ms Lillie said as she walked into the kitchen and looked out through the screen door to see if she could see where Cricket had gone.

“What about Mr. Jones?” I continued. “Was he a ‘
werewolf
’?”

“Mr. Jones was a good man, Mr. Toby. But he wasn’t a ‘
werewolf
'.” Ms. Lillie said. “He just so happened to be in need of someone to help him out. So I helped him. And it also just so happened, that he lived right next door to a young boy by the name of Toby at the time!” she said as she smiled.

“What do you mean Ms Lillie?” I asked. “What did his livin’ beside
me
have to do with anything?”

“We’ve been watching and waiting and praying over you for a very long time Mr. Toby.” Ms Lillie said as she turned from the screen door and grabbed my shoulders in her hands and looked me in the eye. “We had to make sure that you were kept safe, until it was time. Yes.” she said as she shook her head. “Until …it was time.”

…I saw their faces then …faces of those who had watched over me throughout the ages of my life …eyes that watched over me even now …keepin’ me safe …family …friends …neighbors …faces I had seen along the streets of my town …faces in the Library as the sound of the book fallin’ had led me to the meanin’ of my name…

“But how can I help you Ms. Lillie?” I asked comin’ back from my thought. “What is it that you need me to do?”

“We need you to play your part in this here story, Mr. Toby.” Ms. Lillie answered. “Whatever that part might happen to be! You have been given many blessings from God my dear boy. Just as all of God’s children have been given many blessings! What we need you to do is what you were put here upon this earth to do! And let His will be done! Help us find the Blood Stone.” She continued. “And help us release Audrei and our people from its hold!”

Ms. Lillie walked back over to the screen door and held it open with her arm. Cricket stood beside her horse across the way and waved at me as she patted his neck.

“You see that pretty young girl over there, Mr. Toby?” Ms. Lillie asked me, “…the one who looks at you with those big beautiful clear blue lovin’ eyes? What she needs and what I need and what Audrei needs is a wonderful ending to this story. What we need is a …
happily ever after
.”

Twenty Two

Of Faith and Chime

C
ricket walked her horse around the yard as I sat down outside in Ms. Lilly’s front yard swing and drank from a cold glass of lemonade that she had poured for me, and I swung back and forth slowly as the cool winds blew through the leaves on the trees.

“It’s turned out to be a really fine day now aint it, Mr. Toby?” Ms. Lillie asked as she sat down on the swing beside me. I shook my head ‘
yes
’ as I looked around at all of the green grasses and up into the deep blue sky.

“Now you look like a young man with a whole lot of questions still on his mind.” Ms. Lillie said.

“Yes Ma’am.” I answered. “Alot has happened over the past week or so.”

“Well then, have out with it boy!” Ms. Lillie said as she patted my leg. “What’s on your mind?”

“It’s kinda hard to grasp it all Ms. Lillie.” I stated. “I mean, it wasn’t a week ago that if you’d have told me that I’d be over here talkin’ about savin’ people from a
curse
of a ‘
werewolf
’…I’d have thought you were crazy!” I said as I shook my head and rolled my eyes around and kinda laughed. “There’s just alot to make sense of is all; witch’s spells, families of ‘
werewolves
’ and that ghost out there in our old barn! You’d have to admit that out in the
real world
; people would say that this was all just a bunch of crazy talk!”

“The real world?” she said as she wrinkled her chin and shook her head. “Maybe. Crazy? Most definitely!” she said as she laughed and clasped her hands. “A ghost in your family’s barn?” Ms. Lillie asked as she tilted her head to the side in question. “What ghost do you mean boy? What did you see?”

“Well, it was a while back ago, when we first moved out here to the country.” I related. “Me and this other girl that I know saw it out back in our barn. It was a Confederate’s ghost, at least that’s how I remember it. I just remember him kneelin’ down at the window of the loft and I remember him lookin’ at me.”

“Well, now.” Ms Lillie said as she sat back in the swing. “Well …what do you know about that!”

“You didn’t know about the ghost?” I asked.

“No sir. I did not.” She replied.

“Would you know whose ghost it might be?” I asked.

“Well, I got my suspicions.” Ms. Lillie said solemnly. “Something I remember my daddy telling me about a long long time ago.”

“What did he tell you?” I asked.

“Well …the story goes that it was durin’ the summertime of the latter part of the Civil War, right after the Battle of Cold Harbor that was fought out there in Virginia. There were heavy losses on both sides of that battle and a bunch of our boys didn’t make it back.” she said. “But one of Obadiah’s boys did make it back!” Ms. Lillie said. “His name was Cornelius …no wait …it was a bible name that started with a ‘
C
’…yes! His name was Caleb!” she said once she’d remembered. “He was my daddy’s uncle as I believe he was.” Ms. Lillie related. “That would make him my great uncle.”

“There were ‘
werewolves
’ fightin’ in the Civil War?” I asked.

“‘
Werewolves
’ have fought in many a war, Mr. Toby!” Ms. Lillie said as she grinned sweetly. “Well anyways…” she continued. “Caleb was a Scout you see for the Confederate Army and he had alot of contacts with the local folks around these parts.” Ms. Lillie continued. “So when word got to him that the
Stone of Blood
was being transported by order of the new Bishop from Bardstown to
Louisville
, well …he set out to follow it …and to bring it back!”

“Did he get it from em’?” I asked.