Banshee Song Book One

Chapter Twenty-Five

"It never gets any easier, does it?"

"No, Uncle Shawn. It does not."

The two men stood side-by-side and stared silently at the tiny mahogany coffin. They ignored the bitterly cold rain that assaulted their faces and ran off of them in sheets. Colin closed his eyes to shut out the hateful sight of the miniature coffin being lowered into the ground. Unbidden memories haunted him. Brianna. The stench of failure assailed his nostrils, reminding him, taunting him.

They stood and watched stoically as the first clumps of dirt hit the coffin with a cold finality. John Thomas was dead. The burial concluded quietly, punctuated by Hope's muffled sobs. Colin looked around him at the faces gathered there. Bo stood silently supporting his sobbing wife; his own grief painfully visible in his dark eyes. A little off to the side stood John and Marlena. John's still face portrayed none of the anguish he felt inside. However his tense, stiff posture spoke volumes about the emotions that he kept tightly reined in.

Colin's gaze fell on the young couple, Shawn and Belle, and beside them, Brady and Chloe. Their faces easily reflected their pain, their disbelief. Colin briefly remembered finding Chloe and Shawn's unconscious bodies on the hospital balcony. Had it been three days ago? My, how the time does fly. Chloe and Shawn regained consciousness a short time after he and Uncle Shawn found them. However, they didn't know what had happened or why they had collapsed. Colin mentally added the incident to his long list of mysteries.

Colin breathed a heavy sigh. Chloe. He had hoped to protect her by coming here, but already she had suffered so much. Could he help her, when he had failed with so many others? His parents, Brianna, John Thomas. There was blood on his hands and not all the oceans in the world would make them clean again. His cousin Bo was right not to trust him; he didn't trust himself.

Colin watched as Chloe tried vainly to comfort her love Brady. Her sadness was clearly evident in her large blue eyes. A small, wry smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. She was so like her big sister, so like Brianna. Chloe's eyes held the story of her soul, displaying the depths of the emotions that she felt. Just like Brianna.

Brianna had never needed to talk to express herself; it was plainly written in her large green eyes. Colin flashed briefly to the young girl who had lain beside Chloe on the hospital floor. Ariel, Marlena had called her. She had had those same eyes. And the same mass of red curls. But it was sheer coincidence. His Brianna was gone, buried. And no amount of wishing would bring her back.

The last of the rich soil covered the grave and the priest concluded the ceremony. The somber mourners said their goodbyes and turned and quietly left the cemetery where a tiny tombstone marked the final resting place of John Thomas.

"Hope, honey, how are you holding up?"

Hope gave a small, sad smile. "I don't know, Gran. I must still be in shock. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. As bad as this is, I keep thinking that it's going to get worse."

They were at the Horton home, along with their closest friends and family who had attended the funeral. Caroline and Maggie had brought food over, knowing that no one would feel like cooking.

Alice looked on her beloved granddaughter with concerned eyes. Jennifer was also concerned by her cousin's cryptic response. "Worse? I don't see how it can possibly get worse. Hope, you lost your baby boy. A boy you loved more than life itself." She stated tenderly.

Hope sighed, her heart heavy in her chest. The impending doom that she had felt in the hospital had not let up since the untimely death of her son. It was still there, an oppressively heavy force weighing down her gentle spirit. "I don't know. But my life experience has taught me that if it can get worse, it will." She answered bitterly.

Colin bumped into Marlena just as she was finishing a serious conversation on her cell phone. "Is anything wrong?" he inquired.

Marlena smiled. "Just the usual problems with Ariel. You remember meeting my newest patient? Of course, she was unconscious at the time."

"Ariel, ah yes of course. That bright red hair is quite unforgettable." Colin smiled. "So there are problems with Ariel?"

"Usually, she spends her time in a kind of catatonic state, completely cut off from the outside world. But then there are times when she's awake, where she seems almost lucid, yet she's highly agitated. She has been like this for the last few days and I'm not sure how to help her. I'm almost positive that she suffers from PTSD." She paused as a thought occurred to her.

"She has these strange markings on her arms and wrists. They appear to be some sort of Celtic symbol. Maybe you could take a look at them."

"I would be glad to. But I must say, Celtic lore and symbols aren't really my forte." Colin grinned. Marlena gave him her thanks and then excused herself to find her husband.

"There you are." Marlena said softly. John looked up from the photo album that he was holding. The book was filled with pictures of his son, J.T. Bo had given him the album as a peace offering, and also so that he could have a chance to know his son.

Marlena looked over his shoulder at the many pictures. There was J.T. in the sandbox, J.T. with his favorite blue ball, J.T. naked in the tub, J.T. asleep in his crib. "He was a beautiful boy."

"Yes, he certainly was." John replied softly.

"And this is how we should remember him. Don't think about how you were robbed of the chance to raise him, to know him. Be grateful that you helped bring him into this world. Be grateful that he was a part of your life, if only for an instant."

"Powerful words" came a voice behind her. Marlena and John turned to see Bo and Hope coming up to them. The four friends stood silently, no words were needed to convey the depth of their shared grief and sadness. They all had lost that little boy.

Their silent moment was interrupted when Craig came up to them. "I'm glad you're all here." He said quietly. "There's something I need to tell you."