Chapter Eighteen

Piper and Zach sat beside each other drinking coffee and eating the huckleberry muffins and bacon Harri had left for them on the counter. They smiled often, and Piper thought about the turn of events in their already speedy romantic relationship.

“So what now?” Piper asked.

“Don’t know.” Zach took a sip of coffee and smiled.

“Do you think we’re moving a little too fast, Zach?” Now it was Piper’s turn to take a sip of coffee.

“Well, let’s see. You’re thirty, and I’m thirty-two, both of us still single and unattached, as far as I know—not that it matters at this point—an obvious attraction between us from the first moment we locked eyes.” Zach hesitated. “I guess I’d better clarify that. You had me from the first moment my eyes locked on yours. I can only hope you felt the same way.”

“Obviously so, considering we just made love after knowing each other for not quite twenty-four hours.” Piper smiled as she pinched off another bite of muffin. “So much for giving up on men.” She pushed her plate away and pulled her coffee mug in front of her. “So how did you know Mom and Harri were gone and we were all alone?”

Zach left the counter to get more coffee. “Truth?” He gave Piper an impish grin over his shoulder.

“You stinker!” Piper tried unsuccessfully to look serious. “You didn’t know, did you?” She held her cup out for a refill.

“Well, I didn’t know for sure, but I came down to the kitchen and saw the muffins and the note from Harri that said, Help yourself.” Zach raised and lowered his eyebrows and gave her his biggest grin, his dimples as big as the Grand Canyon, second only to the smile he’d given her after they’d made love.

“So…I helped myself—to you.” Zach put his cup down and stood beside Piper’s stool at the counter. He twirled her around to face him and bent down to kiss her—a long, hard kiss. Holding her chin in his hand, he looked into her eyes. “Would it have mattered?”

“Well, yes. I would not have let myself give in if my mother and aunt were here, and I’m pretty sure Harri was talking about the muffins when she said to help yourself.”

“Oh!” Zach had a twinkle in his eye. Then he took a step back, eying her seriously. “Did you say, ‘give in’?” He cocked his head and frowned at her.

“Okay. It wasn’t as if I was forced into making love.” Piper reached out and pulled Zach to her, giving him a quick kiss and her most innocent look. “You caught me off guard. I was really into my painting and didn’t have time to even think where my mother was.”

“Well, even if you might not have been smitten with me, I was totally enamored with you and had a very hard time sleeping knowing you were just down the hall in that big bed all alone. You know, I can dream, too.” Zach sat back at the counter, popped the last of his muffin into his mouth, and then picked up both plates and loaded them into the dishwasher.

“Now. What’s on your agenda, my love of almost a day?” Zach walked back and pulled Piper to him in a bear hug. He released her and looked at his watch. “Let’s see. We boarded yesterday about one o’clock. So… What can we do to celebrate our anniversary in two more hours?”

Piper opened her mouth to react to the statement, but Zach pulled her back to him and covered her lips with his, stopping all further conversation and potentially sarcastic remarks. She pushed away when she heard the front door open.

“Well, it’s about time you two got up and at ’em. Your mom and I have visited the cemetery again and have just met Hank’s construction crew. They’ll all be here shortly to start back working on the saloon—the cat house—or The Nugget, as it is formally known.” Harri went to the fridge and took out a bottle of water.

“Did you sleep well?” She smiled sheepishly behind her plastic bottle as she drank, like she knew what had happened after she and Cayce left.

“Where’s Mom?” Piper looked toward the parlor, ignoring her aunt’s question.

“Oh, she’s with Cowboy Number Two. If Joshua knows what’s good for him, he’ll get his tail out to his ghost town before Hank steals his woman, if it hasn’t already happened.” Harri took another big gulp. “I think I hear them on the porch now.”

Piper hurried into the parlor in time to meet her mom and Hank as they entered. Cayce was all smiles at the sight of her daughter, and walked straight over and hugged her.

“This has turned into a great trip, thanks to my daughter, even with the invasion of the black fog.” Cayce looked past Piper to Zach, who had settled on the loveseat. “I’m glad you’re here, too, Zach. I need another protector for Piper.”

“Mom, I don’t need protecting. I’m thirty years old, you know.”

The way Piper crossed her arms and tapped her foot gave Cayce a flashback of her as a little girl even though she was taller than her mother.

“You say that only because you weren’t here to experience the black fog firsthand. It lost some of its terror in Harri’s camcorder footage.”

“I’m a pretty big guy, Piper, and I’ll be the first to admit I was scared to death,” Hank confessed as he left the front window where he had been looking out. He now headed for the front door. “Here comes Bill, my foreman. I want you guys to meet him,” he called over his shoulder as he reached for the door. “Now, here’s a protector. Come on in, Bill. I want you to meet everyone.”

Bill was so tall, he had to duck under the top of the doorway, most likely a habit. His muscular body filled out his frame.

“I’ve just got a minute, Hank. You know the boys won’t stay in the cat house without me.”

“You mean they’re scared?” Piper asked.

“Yes, ma’am.” Bill took off his cap and held it like a gentleman with old-time manners. “And they have a right to be, after what they’ve been through. A couple of them are on the verge of quitting after spending the night in the camp up the valley. I think they might move closer to town, but I’m not sure that’s a better idea. Heard you had a little activity last night in the hotel.” Bill’s eyes gave away his joy in knowing Hank and the group had been scared.

“Before you start telling your tale, Bill—and I know you’ve piqued everyone’s interest—I want to introduce everybody.”

Hank made the introductions and asked Bill if he wanted coffee, then headed into the kitchen to get himself a cup after Bill declined his offer.

“So what happened in the camp, Bill?” Cayce took a seat on the sofa.

“Oh, Peg really showed out. She didn’t like the men being so close to her cabin or the mine. She sent that doggone train, or the sound of it, right through the middle of camp about every two hours and just howled every time the men came running out in their long-johns. When they finally did get settled and thought the train was done, the saloon music started. It echoed in the canyon all the way from here.” Hank gave a low chuckle. “I’ve heard a couple of them whistling and humming ‘Down by the Old Mill Stream’ all morning. Can’t seem to get it out of their heads.”

“Would that be Peg Leg Annie’s train?” Zach asked.

“That would be the one,” Bill answered. “Well, nice to meet you all, but I better get back over to the house before Belle…or whoever…starts slinging boards. If your black fog appears, I’ll be heading to Idaho Falls or wherever to hunt up a new crew.” Bill replaced his cap and walked out.

“That is a big man. I expected him to have a big old booming voice, but it wasn’t any deeper than Hank’s. Still, if the black fog comes back, I want to be next to Bill.” Piper looked at Zach and gave him an impish grin.

“Wait a minute. I’m not exactly a runt, you know.” Zach looked serious.

Piper walked over and sat in Zach’s lap, putting her arm around his shoulder. “Yes, I’ve noticed that.” Piper felt Zach’s biceps, which he immediately flexed to show off for her.

Cayce stared at them. “And you two met when?” she asked with a suspicious grin coupled with a slight frown.

Piper blushed.

Zach looked a little uncomfortable. “Piper, you should show your mom and Harri the painting you did this morning.”

“A painting?” Cayce cocked her head to one side. “Not a sketch? That was fast. Have another dream, Piper?”

“Yes, and you won’t believe the outcome. I’ve got some details to finish, but you can get the gist of it.” Piper left the settee and moved toward the stairs, where she stopped and turned. “Do you want to see it, Mom, Harri?” They followed her up the stairs with Zach bringing up the rear.

“It’s beautiful…in a morbid, sinister kind of way.” Cayce stepped back to look at the painting from a distance. “Not exactly what I’d imagine you painting, but it does show your talent as an artist.” She moved closer again. “You certainly caught the mood. How did you feel when you woke up from such a dream?”

“How do you think I felt? I went to sleep hoping to dream about Yu so I could paint her, and this is what intruded into my mind space.” Piper gestured toward the painting. “I felt just as gloomy and dreary as the picture implies. I just wish I knew what it meant.” Piper put her hands on her hips and continued to stare at the picture.

“Put it out of your mind, sweetie.” Cayce waved her hand to signify dismissal of the dream. “When it’s time, you’ll be shown.”

Zach stood by the door, watching the scene. He sensed the dream and the reproduction of it frightened Piper. He wanted to protect her, but he carried a secret that was becoming heavier to bear the more deeply he fell in love with her.

It all seems so perfect, but it’s not. I’ve not been honest with her. How will she react when she finds out why I’m really here?

Put it out of your head, Zach. It’s too early for confession, if it can ever come. You’re no protector. You’ve proven that once already.

He turned away from the group and headed out the door, hurriedly retracing his steps to the parlor.

A few minutes later, everyone stood outside, shielding their eyes from the sun with their hands and looking up at the high-pitched roof of The Nugget.

“What are they doing?” Piper directed her question to Zach, who had rejoined the group after talking to Bill and Hank.

“They have to finish the roof. It never got done after Hank’s roofer fell the other day. Those two young guys volunteered after Hank promised a bonus when it’s completed.” Zach pulled his sunglasses from his pocket but handed them to Piper, who was cupping her hand over her eyes. Then he pulled the bill of his cap back around to the front and pulled it down to shade his eyes. “Hank is making sure they’re properly tied off this time.”

After a few minutes of watching, Piper left the group and went to sit on the porch. When Zach joined her, she took off the sunglasses, folded them, and put them in his shirt pocket, patting his chest and letting her hand linger for a while as her eyes melted into his.

“Let’s go inside and find something cold to drink.” Zach looked at his watch. “Besides, it’s almost time to celebrate our anniversary.” He took Piper’s hand and coaxed her out of her chair.

The kitchen became a scene from a sexy romance novel as Zach and Piper held on to each other, kissing as passionately as a couple who had been together for months rather than just one day. They were so wrapped up in each other they did not notice the dark shadow watching through the back window.

Sensing movement, Zach opened his eyes and saw what looked like a reflection in the window. He blinked, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him, but when he stopped blinking, she was still there, staring at him. Even through her veil, her eyes made him uneasy; he was unable to pull his gaze from hers. Her eyes were light, too light, and had a magnetic effect on him. The figure grew bigger and seemed to be moving closer, and he thought for a second she would appear right in front of him in the room.

Piper pulled her lips away from him. “Zach? Is something wrong?”

Zach shook himself out of the reverie that was more like a nightmare in full daylight. Holding Piper in his arms, he turned their bodies to face the window.

“Look!” He pointed in the direction of the window, but when Piper looked, the reflection had disappeared.

“What? Was it Charlie?” Piper continued staring at the window.

“No. It was a lady dressed in black, with a black veil over her face. I think it was Belle. She stared at us and then faded away when I told you to look.” Zach pulled Piper closer as if he could protect her. “How eerie is that?”

The shadow made Zach uneasy. Deep down, he knew the figure was not a good spirit and wondered what she was up to. Even through her veil, he could see haunting, transparent eyes aimed at his as if she were trying to control him through her hypnotic stare. Zach had felt the same sense of uneasiness when showering in Belle’s quarters, as if someone was watching, something that made him hurry. He knew he would be on guard, his senses on full alert, determined not to fall under Belle’s hypnotic spell.

That afternoon, Piper packed up her art bag with easel and paints and headed toward the cemetery alone, since Zach had volunteered to run to the nearest hardware store to pick up new nail guns and air compressors for Hank. As Hank had told him, “For some strange reason, these things just stop working. I’ve never had this problem on any other job.”

Hank’s carpenters had to resort to the old hammer-and-nail method until Zach returned. He had tried to convince Piper to go with him, but she told him she really wanted to use the plein-air technique she had been trained to use in Europe. Her first project would be the beautiful Jesus statue her mom had shown her that afternoon. The mountains looming behind the statue would be the perfect complement to Jesus, and her mom had told her the best time, as far as the sun was concerned, would be late afternoon.

Her art bag was heavy, but Piper was accustomed to carrying it great distances after traipsing over the countryside in Europe. As she trudged up the valley, she felt sad looking at all the piles of logs and rotted wood, leftovers of the lives of miners and their families. One building in particular made her stop.

Piper crossed to the log remains, put her bag down, and stepped over rotted logs that had been burned. She pulled away some burned boards, hoping no rattlesnakes or other animals were hiding beneath, and discovered a large, rustic cross which, though singed, was still beautiful in its own way. She put the heavy cross over her shoulder and turned, ready to pick her way back through the burned timbers to her art bag.

“Get out!” A deep, demanding voice roared in her ear. Then something moved through her body, knocking her down. She fell on the rotted and burned logs, dropping the cross in the process.

“Ouch!” Piper pulled her knee up and examined the long scrape, at the same time looking around to see who or what had caused her to fall.

“Get out!” boomed the voice again, even louder, sending a wave of panic through Piper’s body. At the same time, a strong breeze blew by her, knocking her hair loose and whipping it across her face. Then she felt a burning sensation on her arm. She held her arm up and noticed three long, red scratches running the full length of her arm, from elbow to wrist.

Maybe I scratched my arm when I fell or when I dropped the cross.

Piper rose to her feet and quickly retraced her steps away from the cabin ruins. As she headed up to the cemetery, Piper completely forgot about the cross. When she reached her art bag, she remembered the cross and turned back, but hesitated, trying to decide if she really wanted to retrieve the cross.

The breeze turned to a wind, a wind that was isolated in the church ruins. She looked around, but no tree limbs or long-stemmed sage grass moved. A loud, popping noise close behind her made Piper cover her ears and convinced her to leave the cross and the ruins, at least for the time. Her nerves were on edge, but she turned up the canyon road, refusing to be deterred from her mission by the terrifying voice or the scratches.

When Piper arrived at the cemetery, she saw the magnificent Jesus standing watch over the departed and felt at ease again. Her mom had told her the story of the mass grave of aborted fetuses, and Piper had been sickened by it.

How could mothers kill their unborn children? Or did they even have a choice?

She looked around the cemetery and spotted the gleaming marble angel of Sara’s grave. Making her way to it, she decided to paint the scene from the perspective of the precious little spirit Sara, whose soul should be with Jesus. Piper had been taught that all children who have not reached the age of accountability go to heaven. Her mom explained the existence of spirit children on earth as trapped energy or spirits that linger, often separated from their souls by either extreme happiness in the place where they had lived and their desire to stay longer, or perhaps from a sense of unfinished business. The little girl Chloe, whose spirit her mom and Harri had come in contact with at Spanish Oaks, Joshua’s antebellum inn in South Mississippi, had left behind the energy that needed to be reunited with her mother. Once this was accomplished, Chloe had passed over, never to be seen or heard again.

Piper wasted no time once her easel was set up and her palette of paints laid out. As usual, she put a brush in her mouth and one behind her ear. She did not want to waste time cleaning a brush before changing paint colors, an effort to take advantage of her inspiration while it was at its height. Piper’s emotions always ran high when she painted, and she became oblivious to anyone or anything going on around her. She also knew the sun would last but a couple of hours longer. She would not finish the painting that day, but she would have her outlines in place so she could work on it later, if she desired. More than likely, she would return each day at the same time so the light was always the same until the painting was finished.

Piper had the mountains outlined behind Jesus, the focal point just off to the right of the center of the canvas. Everything in the picture would draw the eye of the beholder to the statue. She knew this would be some of her best work, and several times she got behind Sara’s grave and squatted down, getting the perspective of a seven-year-old girl looking up at the Savior.

Once when she was squatting on the ground, she felt someone watching her from the back of the cemetery. She turned quickly and saw a shadow dart behind a tree.

“Charlie? Charlie? Is that you?” She put the hand still holding the wet brush over her eyes and continued to look toward the tree. The first thing she saw was the brim of Charlie’s forest ranger hat.

“Do you want to see what I’m doing? Come on over, Charlie.” Piper waved the brush, directing Charlie to come over. “I’m Piper, Cayce’s daughter. I met you last night. Remember? You really liked my friend Zach, and he liked you.”

Piper watched as the whole head peeked around, and then the rest of Charlie emerged as he walked slowly toward her, his eyes on the ground.

When he got almost to her, Piper returned to her easel and motioned him to come closer. “Well, what do you think?” She stood back to give Charlie a clear view of the painting.

“Jesus good. Mountain good.” Charlie dropped to his knees, sitting back on his heels, on the ground beside Piper’s easel, and cocked his head to one side. “Clouds not good.”

“Well, I have a lot more work to do before it’s finished.” Piper walked to the other side of the easel and stared up at the clouds. “What’s wrong with the clouds, Charlie?”

“Clouds not white. Clouds blue. Bubbles in clouds.” Charlie laughed. “Bubbles hide, but Charlie see.” Charlie cocked his head again.

Piper looked at the clouds, trying to see what Charlie was seeing, and she saw it. “Oh, my goodness! You are so right. I see the blue bubbles.” Piper took the brush from behind her ear and began mixing paints to add to the clouds in her picture. “There. Is that better?” She sat beside Charlie on her heels and cocked her head to the side just like he was doing so she could see what he was seeing.

He laughed again, and Piper laughed with him, her head still cocked to the side like her friend’s.

“You two look just like Forrest and Forrest, Jr., sitting with your heads cocked like that.” Zach had entered the cemetery from the back gate and walked up behind them.

“Charlie forest ranger, not forest.” Charlie pulled his hat down farther on his ears to signal his identity and then covered his mouth, snickering at Zach’s foolish statement. Zach and Piper smiled at each other, but soon Charlie’s snickering turned to wild laughter, and Zach and Piper joined him.

Charlie and Zach stayed until Piper finished painting. She took the canvas off the easel and put it in a wet box to keep the paint from smearing. Once packed, she slung the strap to the back over her shoulder and moved toward Jesus.

“Let me carry that for you, Piper.” Zach reached to take the bag, but Piper turned it away from him.

“I need to carry it, Zach. I’m used to walking with it, remember?”

“Oh, yeah. Plein-air technique.” Zach put his arm around Piper’s shoulder and walked beside her. He noticed Charlie didn’t move.

“Are you coming with us, Charlie? No telling what Harri is cooking tonight.”

“Charlie ’splore. Charlie night cat. Teesh say Charlie got cat eyes like Jezzie. Charlie see in dark.” Charlie pointed toward his eyes.

“Where do you explore, Charlie?” Piper asked.

“Secret.” Charlie put his finger to his lips as he whispered the answer.

“Be careful.” Piper knew her warning was silly; Charlie had spent his whole life traipsing through these woods and mountains in both daytime and night. Charlie headed off into the woods without a wave or a look back, and Piper began the trek out of the cemetery with Zach by her side.

“Where do you think he goes?”

“I don’t know.” Zach put his finger to his lips and whispered, “Secret.”

“He must have night vision like a cat to move around through the woods like he does. Teesh told Mom he doesn’t even use a flashlight.”

“He’s got those really light-colored eyes, blue or maybe green. He doesn’t look up much, so I don’t know which color, not to mention having that hat pulled down so far it’s impossible to see his eyes.” Zach pushed the old rusted, rickety cemetery gate open and let Piper go through first.

“I read about a boy in China who had sky-blue eyes. His night vision was so good he could fill out a paper answering questions in total blackness. Doctors were always testing the kid to discover what made him able to see in the dark, but they just decided it was a fluke of nature. I doubt Charlie is like the Chinese boy, though. He probably just knows the area from living here all his life.” Zach put his arm around Piper’s shoulder again. “He’s just like a blind person who uses his cane to get across busy intersections in cities and to find his way around his home, work, or any place that he’s used to. Charlie is an amazing little fellow. I like him.”

“And he obviously likes you. You should have seen his face light up when he heard your voice. But he’s a forest ranger, not a forest.” Piper laughed along with Zach, not at their new friend, but out of the simple joy of being around him.