My name is Lucy Preston. I am a history professor at Stanford University. I am on loan for a semester at San Diego State. I live alone. I might be just like you. Except from the time I was a little girl I knew I could talk to the dead. Earthbound spirits my grandmother called them. The ones who have not crossed over because they have unfinished business with the living and they come to me for help. In order to tell you my story, I have to tell you theirs.
Lucy was so glad she took Amy's advice, she needed a night of fun after the long first week at a new school. The Pelican Bar was an upscaled tiki bar with strong drinks, deep fried food, but great music, and a packed dance floor. Lucy's feet were killing her and she couldn't wait to get home and take a bath. Her tiny subleased apartment's biggest amenity was the jacuzzi tub, that Lucy had been too tired to try out, so far.
She couldn't wait to call and tell her sister that she had danced and even had a small drink. At home she didn't normally allow herself the luxury of being young, she worked hard to be more like her mother. Lucy had always done what was expected, and she liked things she could control.
Lucy had only been in San Diego a little over a week; she relied heavily on her GPS, but tonight it had been acting up. Before long, Lucy realized she was completely lost. She could barely see past her headlights, the road was surrounded by trees and no streets lights. She looked down at her phone but the screen was black.
"Oh come on, don't do this," she hissed to her dead phone.
Lucy looked up at the road, a figure stood in the middle. Lucy screamed, slammed on the breaks; her tires squealed, she tried to hold the steering wheel straight, but she lost control of the car and started to slide along the guardrail. Loud angry metallic screaming and sparks flew up from the passenger side. Lucy eased her foot off the gas peddle and prayed. It only lasted for mere seconds but for Lucy it was an eternity, her heart still raced, her skin crawled, she was worried she would throw up.
Lucy slowly opened the driver's door, she moved cautiously, assessing how she felt, besides shaken. She was a little sore from hitting her head on the window, but other than a small bump, she felt fine. She stepped out of the car and had to hold on when her knees tried to buckle. The accident had flooded her body with adrenalin, now safe, the effects left her weak.
Most of the damage to her car was on the passenger side, the rear door was caved in and would need to be forced open again. Large gouges ran along the side, and the window was cracked. The good news was that all the damage was to the frame and it might not be pretty but it would still drive. Her insurance could take care of getting it fixed.
Lucy looked around the dark road, but the figure was gone, the road was empty. The forest around her was silent, a thick mist seeped through the trees onto the road. Less than an hour ago the San Diego August had been humid and in the high eighties, even at night. But here deep in the forest surround by mist and shadows, the temperature around her dropped, Lucy shivered and wished for her coat.
Lucy's shoulders tensed as the darkness around her engulfed the remaining light, the car headlights flickered and went dark. Even the overhead dome light went out. The silence was broken by leaves rustling behind her, Lucy spun but no one was there.
"Hello? Is someone there?" Lucy called into the dark, with no answer.
A sudden gust of cold howling wind and leaves formed a large dust devil in the middle of the road. Lucy held up her hand to block the debris from her eyes. The wind whipped around her hair, her dress lashed around her legs, and it got stronger as it moved toward her. Lucy took a step back, but was stopped by her car. She turned away from the wind, Lucy tried to move to the open car door but wind rushed up from the other direction, strong enough to make her stumble toward the back of the car. Lucy held onto the frame of the car and pulled against the wind. As suddenly as it had started the wind died down and the woods went eerily quiet.
Lucy stood up straight, she looked around but in the dim light she wasn't able to make out anything. Lucy was looking down the road; goosebumps spread along her skin, the fine hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and shiver ran down her spine. Lucy slowly turned her head around, and screamed.
The woman was inches away from her, her gray face caught in a silent scream. She was covered in mud and dirt, her blond hair tangled and matted with leaves. Her eyes were white and opened wide. Her clothing, torn and ragged, hung loose around her petite body. She reached out a hand toward Lucy, the nails broken and bloody. Lucy saw purple marks around the woman's slender throat.
"Oh," Lucy gasped.
"Help ME!", her mouth didn't move, the words were coming from every direction.
"What is your name?" Lucy kept her voice even while her heart threatened to rip from her chest. She had done this thousands of time, but each time was different.
Since she was young she had known that she was different. Her grandmother helped her understand her gift, even while her mother condemned it. Lucy was never allowed to talk about the ghosts that walked around and she wasn't supposed to tell others what the ghosts said to her. Her grandmother helped her control her gift and accept that her calling was helping others. When she was a sophomore in college, she made plans to meet her grandmother and they would travel around helping people. On her way to tell her mother she had received a phone call, her grandmother had a massive stroke and was in a coma. Lucy rushed to Rittenhouse Hospital, making it in time to say goodbye. Her spirit had kissed her cheek and told Lucy she would see her on the other side. Lucy had lost herself in her studies and followed in her mother's footsteps from there on. She ignored most of the spirits unless they were directly affecting her life. She had closed her eyes to their pain, even while it killed her to do so.
But the woman in front of her now sent waves of sadness that crashed into Lucy. Tears streamed down both of their cheeks. Lucy could feel the woman's confusion and longing for someone, the feeling so strong that it felt as if Lucy had lost her own love. The woman moved closer, she flickered and disappeared.
"Find him," the words echoed on the wind.
The forest erupted in sound; birds flew from the trees and called into the night, insects buzzed and crickets sang. Lucy jumped when the radio sprang to life, the song was familiar, I want to spend the rest of my life with you by my side, Forever and ever. It was a country song she remembered from high school, Lucy hadn't heard it in years, but she would never forget, Amazed by Lonestar. Before her GPS had failed she had listened to a jazz and blues, Lucy had turned off the radio as soon as she realized she was lost.
Lucy shook her head and ran her hand up and down her arms to chase away the chill. She wondered if this ghost would follow her, or if she was trapped in the area. Lucy wiped away the tears. Could she walk away after she felt her bones and heartache for some lost love? Lucy had never felt a love like the one the ghost had shoved into her mind, Lucy was not sure if she ever would. But whoever this woman had loved, it had been something special. Lucy couldn't trap this spirit here when she knew could help her move on. Her decision made, Lucy climbed back in her car, the engine turned over without any problems.
Lucy looked down at her fully charged phone, she rolled her eyes and muttered, "damn ghost."
She had no problem finding her way back to her small apartment. She knew she had a lot to do, but first she need that bath and a glass of wine. Lucy sank into the warm tub and pulled up a web search on her phone, prayed she didn't drop her phone in the water. Her practical mind told her to make her accident report, but the hollow ache in her chest persisted she searched the empty stretch of road for her ghost. The image of a smiling blonde woman filled her phone, under the headline Soldier's Wife Found Dead, the story was from February, 12, 2012. Lucy put her phone down and sank into the warm water. It had been five years since the woman's body had been found, and now Lucy was supposed to knock on some soldier's door and tell him his wife was looking for him. If she was lucky she would only get the door slammed in her face. Tonight she would relax and enjoy her wine, tomorrow would come soon enough.
"I hope this Wyatt Logan is open minded and understanding," Lucy grumbled to herself.