Chapter Seven
Karen and Skalany found Joseph and Abigail quickly enough. Karen's instincts had proved correct – the two of them were in the basement, standing near the gaping hole leading to the newly discovered lower level, and they were locked in a passionate embrace. Karen caught Skalany's eye as she glanced back at her, but Karen was at a loss for a plan of action.
Watching from their position on the staircase, she saw Abigail nod. "Yes, Joseph, I will marry you. We will be together finally, even if Zebidiah refuses to give his blessing to our wedding."
Karen and Skalany glanced at each other again. Karen was about to say something when a shot rang out, knocking Joseph from his feet. A rapidly growing crimson stain of red spread across Joseph's chest.
Karen and Skalany twisted to face the shooter, though Karen knew before she looked that it would be Zebidiah. He had a rage-filled expression etched across his face – one that quickly transformed into vengeful satisfaction with the outcome of the shooting.
Karen fought to quell her own anger as Zebidiah's roiling oppressiveness surged off him in huge radiating waves of malevolence, sweeping past them to encompass the entire room.
Karen and Skalany recovered from their shock and started to split up, one to subdue Zebidiah, the other to help Peter, but all Zebidiah did to stop them was wave one hand. It was powerful enough to send a blast of cold, unearthly energy at them. It slammed them into the nearby concrete wall, then they tumbled helplessly down to the base of the staircase.
Karen cried out when she landed on her shoulder. Something shifted in a way it wasn't supposed to. Pain shot up and down her arm, stealing her breath away. She glanced over at Skalany, but Skalany was unconscious. Karen let her head drop back down to the floor as she struggled to breathe and control her pain. Unable to get up, she watched the scene unfold before her.
Abigail had screamed when Joseph was shot and knocked from her arms. She dropped to her knees beside him and pulled his head into her lap. "Joseph, oh my dear Joseph, what has he done?"
After a moment, Abigail's features relaxed. Joseph – no, Peter – was apparently still alive, thank God, then Abigail tensed again as Zebidiah approached them. It was obvious Zebidiah wasn't done with Joseph yet.
Abigail rose from her kneeling position, leaving Joseph on his own for the moment. Karen could hear Joseph's groans and ragged breathing, even as far away from them as she was. Abigail seemed oblivious to the blood on her hands and clothing, intent on stopping Zebidiah as she placed herself between Zebidiah and Joseph.
Zebidiah began speaking to Abigail in a soft, pleading tone. "Abby, I've been in love with you since the day you first came to live with us. How could you betray that love by wanting him, instead of me? I can give you a much better life than he could ever dream of. Please, Abby, marry me instead."
When Abigail didn't react, he dropped to his knees and extended his hands towards her, begging in a hoarse whisper, "Please, marry me."
Abigail stepped forward and placed her hands upon his outstretched ones and drew him up to stand before her.
"Zeb, I will be forever grateful to you. I shudder to think what would have happened to me if your family hadn't taken me in. My love for you will never change... but I am a grown woman now – old enough to make my own decisions and I have chosen Joseph to be my husband."
"NO! You love me!" Zebidiah demanded as his hands shifted to hold hers in a viselike grip. "You must love me!"
"I do love you, Zeb. I do." One of her hands slipped from his hold and she placed it upon his stubbled cheek. "But not in the way you wish for me to love you. I want to be with Joseph. Without his love, I would simply die."
Zebidiah jerked away from her tender touch as his anger began to rumble to life again.
His expression shifted and he snarled, "Don't you remember, Abby? We've had this conversation once before – when you actually ran from me, intending to go to him!"
Betrayal tightened the delicate features of Abigail's horrified face. "You – you struck me... " she stammered in a voice hushed by Zebidiah's revelation.
She pulled away from his hold and took a step backwards. One of her hands automatically flew to cover the back of her neck while the other covered her lips, as if to keep them quiet, almost as if she could prevent herself from saying them, then they wouldn't be true.
Zebidiah went to her side, but apparently he knew her well enough to keep from touching her again. His whole being begged for forgiveness as he said quickly, "It was an accident. You fell and broke your neck. You died in my arms."
Tears filled his eyes.
Abigail nodded. "Yes, I remember now. I fell when you struck me. Oh, my Lord, Zeb, why?" Her eyes went wide with bewilderment.
Zebidiah moved closer, his hands extended, but still refrained from touching her. "It was an accident! I swear I was only reaching for you to stop you from going to him – to stop you from leaving me. I would never do anything to deliberately hurt you. You know that, don't you? I love you!"
He rubbed his forehead and sighed. "I love you more than life itself, but you can drive me to outrage faster than any person I've ever known!"
"And... Joseph? What happened to Joseph?" she asked in a hushed whisper.
Zebidiah's demeanor shifted into something darker. He hesitated, and rubbed his hands together, as if he didn't want to answer her, as if he didn't want to see her reaction to that truth.
Finally, he shook his head and said, "He walked into the room a moment after you died and attacked me in a murderous rage. I was – I was only defending myself."
Abigail stepped closer to him in bold defiance. "So none of this was your fault? Is that what you are telling me, Zebidiah Bixler? That none of this was your fault?"
Zebidiah tried to catch Abigail's gaze. "Abby, darling, listen to me, we can take these bodies and make them our own. Please, Abby, please marry me and we can make this right. We can correct a blaring mistake that should never have been made. We could be so happy together!"
Abigail shook her head as she backed away from him, as if seeing his true nature for the very first time. As her voice trembled with an aching loss, she said firmly, "I cannot marry you, Zebidiah. I was meant for Joseph then, and I am meant for Joseph now. Besides, these people whose bodies we have borrowed have lives of their own – "
She stopped when Joseph groaned, then she moved to kneel beside him, but she was savvy enough to keep her eyes on Zebidiah.
"NO!" Zebidiah Bixler cried out. "I killed you before and I will kill you again before I allow him to have you instead of me!"
With Abigail's rejection, Zebidiah's fury became a molten, violent thing, ready to erupt with death and destruction. Zebidiah brought up the gun still in his hand and cocked the weapon.
Karen forced herself up, despite the knowledge her left shoulder was probably dislocated. She had to stop Zebidiah from killing Joseph and Abigial – no, she had to stop Kermit from killing Peter and Jody.
The air in the basement was frigid and she shook as the cold seemed to seep into her joints. She bit her lips and got to her knees. Skalany groaned and looked like she was starting to come around, but Karen had no time to deal with her. She had to stop a murder.
She pulled her service revolver and aimed it at Zebidiah, but all she could see was Kermit, and she found herself unable to shoot. Her hand shook as she held her aim.
Somehow, in his semiconscious state, Joseph saw what was about to happen. He pulled Abigail down and rolled over on top of her to protect her from Zebidiah. "No, I will not lose you again, Abigail!"
Zebidiah's murderous rage seemed to consume him. "I'll kill you again. I'll kill both of you again if it will keep you apart!"
He was about to shoot when his gun suddenly turned red-hot and he dropped it in pain and shock. Karen spun around to see Kwai Chang make his way down the steep staircase with assistance from Strenlich and Blake. TJ followed a short distance behind, carrying a large brass dish in his arms.
Strenlich and Blake went to help Karen and a very groggy Mary Margaret move away from the stairs so that Caine could proceed. Strenlich took one look at Karen's shoulder and he sat her down. "It's dislocated," he said as he moved into position.
She nodded.
"This is going to hurt like hell for a moment, Captain, then it will be better."
Karen nodded, trusting that Strenlich knew what he was doing. He shifted and her shoulder slipped back into place, but not before Karen cried out. She thought she was going to pass out for a moment, then she felt herself strengthen. Strenlich had been right. It did feel better.
She forgot about herself as she watched Caine quietly limp towards his son with TJ at his elbow helping to support him as he carried the brass dish under his other arm.
TJ took a position at Caine's back after handing him the brass device. With his weapon drawn, but lowered to his side for the moment, TJ eyed Kermit with dread. Karen knew exactly what he was thinking – he was battling the same dilemma she'd just faced and failed. Yet, there was something in his gaze that hinted he would wound Kermit in order to save two other lives and she breathed a little easier. He had the courage to do what she could not.
As Abigail helped to lay Joseph back to the floor again, Joseph's face was damp with sweat and his chest heaved with great gasps for air. It was obvious he was trying to control his pain long enough to protect Abigail from harm.
The room literally seethed with barely repressed anger and the ever-increasing level of oppressive energy. It was so strong Karen found it difficult to breathe.
"Oh my God," she whispered as Zebidiah began to rise into the air in front of Caine.
Strenlich straightened for a better look and muttered, "What the hell?"
A howling, frigid wind began to blow and it whipped small, untethered items into its rapidly growing maelstrom. Zebidiah continued to rise high into the air. His facial expression was so distorted by rage and hatred, influenced by his crazed emotions, Karen thought he no longer even resembled Kermit.
Caine stood as he took long deep breaths and raised the conical-shaped brass dish between himself and Zebidiah. The dish itself was extensively engraved with Chinese writing and ornate images. Time had tarnished the metal to a darker cast, but the inherent beauty of its original design and artwork, along with its effectiveness, remained unchanged.
Caine addressed Zebidiah. "You will listen to me – you have no choice as long as I hold this dish."
Zebidiah grimaced as he tried unsuccessfully to overcome the effects of the dish, then screamed in futile frustration as the swirling winds around them died down somewhat.
Caine waited patiently. Maybe, Karen thought, there was a chance he could put an end to this nightmare. He began to speak, "Over one hundred years ago, you fought this battle, Zebidiah Bixler. You did kill the very people you claimed to have cared for. Your problems were not resolved by their deaths, or by your own. Most assuredly, that is the reason why you have not moved on and why the three of you have gathered here in this place again."
Something in Zebidiah's expression and manner eased slightly with Kwai Chang's slow, steady speech and the undeniable effectiveness of the device in Caine's hands. It was as if the fire in Zebidiah's rage began to quench itself, being replaced instead by reason. The chill in the air lessened as the last of the dying winds finally ceased.
Zebidiah lowered himself to the ground to stand before Caine. Caine met his gaze. "If you kill them once more, do you think your torment will finally be resolved? I think not – if you kill them now, I believe you will entrap your spirits in this place for another length of time. Sadly, in this instance, the cost for such actions will be high, for there will be additional victims – those individuals whose bodies you now inhabit.
"Zebidiah, you died a bitter, old man. Do not carry such hatred into your next life. Learn from it and leave here now with that knowledge. Please, you must allow your spirit some peace. It is time to move on."
Zebidiah dropped to his knees, overwhelmed with emotion. He nodded as he held his head in his hands, his chest heaving in great gasps of air. "I did wrong back then, just as I was about to do again now. God forgive me, I was going to do it again!"
Zebidiah let his hands drop away and he shook his head. "I loved Abigail so much. It became a blinding obsession for me. When – when she was gone, I thought I'd go mad. My love had somehow became a murderous abomination in that instant. Joseph came in and saw Abby die. I was still in shock – hers truly was an accident. But when Joseph attacked me, I was beyond reason. I couldn't stop myself and I strangled the life out of him – for I held him solely responsible for causing her death. If she hadn't loved him, she would have never left me.
"After I regained my senses somewhat, I made plans. Being in charge of the city's underground railway system, I contrived some reason why this section of tunnel could not be used and directed work to other areas.
"I came down here often at first to construct that brick wall separating Abigail and Joseph's bodies from the upper access portal. Then, I would come down on other occasions over the years, just sit on the opposite side of that wall and talk to Abigail.
Occasionally, I would ask her forgiveness or simply tell her about my life.
"Other times, I would rant on for hours in pure madness until I was hoarse and could speak only in whispers. Even then, I wouldn't stop. I'd go on until I collapsed from pure exhaustion, until my anger, loneliness, and that horrid sense of bitter betrayal was finally spent for a certain length of time. Eventually, though, it would return again – with a vengeance and I'd have to go back down to that underground mausoleum once more to purge my inner demons.
"Finally, in my last years, I asked my cousin and confidant not to bury me in our family plot at the cemetery when I passed on. Instead, I asked to be buried on the other side of that wall, so I could at least be close to Abigail in death. I guess my guilty conscience was strong enough to keep me from being placed at her side."
He put his hands to his head and pulled at his hair. "I never dreamt we would be given this opportunity to meet and talk again. And what did I do with it? What have I become?"
Caine stepped closer to him, softening his voice, "Zebidiah, you will have another chance to redeem yourself in the next life, but you must move on in order to do that. You must leave now. For you are causing great pain and discomfort to Kermit, the man whose body which you now possess. His body has been exposed to forces no living being can easily withstand. You have nearly killed him with the vast energies you have channeled through him. So you see, you must leave him now in order to save his life.
"Your time here has passed, Zebidiah. It has been expended for this cycle. Take what you have learned today and apply it to your next experience in this world. It is the best you can hope for," Caine said as he took another painful step towards him.
Zebidiah looked wistfully towards Abigail as she held Joseph tightly in her arms. He held out a trembling hand and whispered, "My sweet, sweet Abigail, I am truly sorry for what I did to you and Joseph. Perhaps, one day, the two of you will be able to find it in your hearts to forgive me this terrible sin."
Karen watched Zebidiah, his pain twisting Kermit's features in a way that she would never see normally and her heart went out to him. Kermit looked pale, very pale and she worried about him, especially after what Caine had just said.
Abigail looked at him, then back down at Joseph. She brushed Joseph's hair from his forehead and her chin trembled. When she glanced back up at Zebidiah with tear-filled eyes, she nodded. "Yes, Zeb, I forgive you. Listen to what this man has told you. It is time to move on."
Zebidiah sighed and nodded. With his heartfelt apology finally said and accepted, Zebidiah's spirit then left Kermit. Kermit's body dropped to the hard cement floor of the basement.
Blake stepped forward and knelt beside him, frowning at what he found. Without a word, he removed his jacket and draped it over Kermit, then he glanced back towards Abigail and Joseph as he reached for his cell phone.
As if it soothed her, she continued to brush her fingers through Joseph's sweaty hair. Joseph reached up and took her hand in his. He brought it to his lips to kiss softly. Her other hand went to his cheek, gently caressing the firm line of his jaw.
Caine touched Abigail on the shoulder. She met his gaze and nodded in understanding. Her eyes filled with tears as she whispered to Caine, "Tell the others we are sorry for what we have caused them."
Caine smiled sadly as he leaned closer to her, "They will understand and be glad you are finally at peace."
Abigail nodded. She turned her attention back to Joseph, who was watching her through half-hooded eyes as he struggled with a weakening body.
"I love you so much, Joseph Ashbury," Abigail murmured, then she started to cry.
"As do I you, beloved," he said softly. "I can see now what was perverting our precious love into an angry, violent beast. Zebidiah Bixler's bitterness and jealousy began to taint our own spirits while we were here. You know in your heart, I never laid a hand upon you in anger while we were alive. Never in anger – that must be why I couldn't understand what was happening to us here. I was confused by what was corrupting our love, which had always been rock-solid. I can now see the truth for what it was."
Abigail was openly weeping by this time as her fingers brushed through Joseph's matted hair. "My darling, though we have fought many a time since we first came to know each other, words were the only weapons we used against each other. We knew we could depend upon our deep abiding love to be the healing balm for any wounds our angry words might have caused – "
Joseph stopped suddenly as a wave of pain caused him to bend forward. A tear slipped down his cheek as Abigail held him tightly. When he started to speak again, she tried to shush him, but he wouldn't hear of it.
With a much weaker voice, his southern accent became even more pronounced. "We haven't much time left, my darling." He took a ragged breath and continued. "I am truly thankful we died together, my precious Abigail. For I know I wouldn't have lasted a single day without you in my life. Although we never had a chance to see what our years together would have revealed, we did have a glorious time in the sunshine that was ours and ours alone."
Gently, she kissed his sweaty brow as he relaxed a little and she began speaking with her lips still touching his forehead, "Yes, Joseph, I shan't begrudge the brief time we shared in this world. No, not in the least."
She pulled away enough to look Joseph directly in the eye as she said, "For it is only a raindrop in the ocean compared to what now lays before us, my love. We shall have eternity together."
Kissing her hand as he held it, he said in a breathless whisper, "I only wish I could have found at least one red rose for you."
She shook her head, her fingers still brushing his brow. "The roses of our time are long gone, Joseph. Just as our own time has passed those many years ago. Being in your arms again is enough. Simply hold me for another moment... that is the only thing I desire before we leave this mortal place."
The two displaced spirits shared one final farewell kiss and then they were gone. The only lingering sign they had ever been there was the faint scent of roses drifting across the still air.
Karen found her eyes full of tears and told herself it was from the pain of her shoulder, but deep down she knew she'd been touched by the plight of the three spirits. She swallowed hard to keep from giving in to the urge to sob. It was sad, so very sad, but then she looked around and saw it was the living who needed her attention now. The dead were far beyond that. She wiped away a stray tear as she stood and looked around to those she could help first.
oOoOoOoOo
Joseph and Abigail's kiss ended, and Peter and Jody looked at each other in confusion. They pulled away from one another, then Peter groaned. Blake could only imagine what was going through his head.
"Peter?" Jody whispered loudly. "What – what the hell is going on?"
Peter only shook his head in pained bewilderment. He kept his left hand pressed against his shoulder and Blake thought the young man looked close to passing out again.
Jody glanced down at the blood on her hands, then at Peter's bloody shoulder. "Oh my God, what happened here?"
Skalany was up by then and so was Simms. At least, Simms looked like she wasn't in as much pain now as she helped Skalany pull a distraught Jody away from Peter.
"It's a long story," Simms said, "but it's okay, Jody, just come with us, so Caine can take care of Peter."
Strenlich helped the three women move away without collapsing. "Just sit tight. Help will be here soon."
Then he went back to Peter and Caine, kneeling across from TJ who hadn't left Caine's side. By then, Blake was on his cell phone again, "Broderick, send the EMTs directly down here the moment they arrive, along with an escort to clear the way. It's a zoo down here."
Blake looked down at Kermit. The man was in a bad way, his icy skin colder than Blake ever remembered a person having while still alive. His pasty white coloring and the extremely low body temperature scared Blake. Kermit's pulse and breathing didn't help to reassure him either. Kermit needed to be in a hospital right away.
Peter Caine didn't look much better. He had lost a great deal of blood in the short time since he was shot. Blake sighed.There's another one who needs to be in a trauma center.
Finally, there was Caine. Blake wasn't sure the true extent of his injuries, but judging by the drawn cast to the priest's skin, he wasn't doing all that well, either.
Blake pulled out his cell phone again and punched in the phone number quickly. "John, these people are freezing cold. We need all the hot coffee you can tote down here, plenty of blankets, and the emergency first aid kit to use until the paramedics arrive. And we need it now!"
"On its way, Blake," Broderick answered briskly. Before he hung up the phone, he was already commandeering personnel to carry out the orders.
"Pop..?" Peter whispered as he looked up at his father beside him.
"Yes, Peter?" Caine leaned closer.
"You really look like hell," he whispered as he started to chuckle, then grimaced in pain.
"Be quiet, my son, and save your energies for healing," Caine said as he tapped Peter gently on the chin.
Simms left Jody with Mary Margaret and walked back over to Caine. She was holding one arm tightly with the other and Blake wondered how she was managing as she knelt closer, asking quietly "How is he doing?"
"He will... survive," Caine replied distantly.
Caine closed his eyes, then slumped to the floor. Strenlich caught him easily, as if he'd been expected that to happen and he eased him down to lie beside Peter. It was a good thing Strenlich had been there because the captain was in no shape to stop Caine from hitting the floor.
Armed with several blankets sent down by Broderick, uniformed cops began passing them out. TJ took one and draped it over Caine's unconscious form, and then two more to cover the shivering Peter. The last one was reserved for Kermit. Blake tucked it tightly around Kermit and prayed it would be enough to help.
One of file clerks came rushing down with a thermos of coffee and several Styrofoam cups and began to pass out steaming cups of coffee. Blake licked his lips, grateful the room had started to warm up in the few moments since the spirits left, but he didn't relax. He wouldn't until he knew his coworkers were going to be okay.
oOoOoOoOo