Honor wasn’t surprised by the décor in Cody’s room. Images of Spiderman adorned his bedspread and were featured in posters on all four walls. Spiderman action figures, along with his various nemeses, lined his shelves and over-filled his toy box. A Spiderman lamp sat next to his bed, and a large, rope spider web hung over it, to keep out the bad dreams—and ghosts.
Honor sat on the floor as Cody showed off some of his favorite action figures. She pretended to examine each one with interest, while secretly trying to sense Amy’s presence in the room. Finally, she decided to put her plan into motion.
“Hey, Cody, come sit with me for a minute.”
Cody crawled into her lap, still holding a Spiderman figurine.
“Sweetie, is your Mommy here right now?”
Cody shrugged. “She doesn’t talk to me when people are here.”
Honor nodded. “I get that, but just in case she is listening right now, I’m going to talk to her and I think she might be able to hear me better if we’re sitting together, okay?”
“Okay.”
Honor felt a bit foolish, but took a deep breath and began, “Amy, my name is Honor Macklin and I love Josh and Cody. We’ve come here to pack up their belongings so they can move to Florida, where we plan to live together.”
Cody joined in. “I like Florida, Mommy. Honor’s house has a swimming pool!”
Honor continued, “Amy, I know you love Cody and I’m sure you wish he would continue living in North Carolina, so I’m sorry for the pain this decision must be causing you. But I promise I won’t let his memory of you fade away.”
“Honor’s going to sing me two ‘Happy Birthdays’, one from her and one from you, Mommy.”
Honor smiled at Cody and kissed the top of his head. “You bet I will!”
She didn’t know if Cody could feel his mother’s presence any more than she could, but decided to keep going.
“I want to help Cody remember you as he grows up. I promise to make sure he knows that you loved him so much that you postponed your eternal journey to stay with him as long as you could.”
Honor hugged Cody a little tighter. “Amy, we’re only going to be here a few days, but I’m hoping you can visit Cody while he’s sleeping and tell him all the things you want him to know about you. When he wakes up, I’ll write it all down, so that your memories will never be forgotten.”
Honor looked into Cody’s blue eyes. “Do you understand what I want you to do?”
“Sure. You want me to tell you what Mommy Amy says.”
Honor nodded. She hoped Amy heard and understood what she was trying to do.
“Amy, you may already suspect this, but Cody is extremely sensitive to the spirit world. We’re going to try to nurture that in him as he grows up. So if you want to stay in this world and see Cody from time to time, please tell him about a public place you like to go, and we’ll try to bring him there to connect with you sometimes.”
Then, remembering Hannah’s words to Darcy, Honor added, “And whether you choose to stay here or travel down the lighted path, I promise you that I will do my best to be a good mother to your child.”
Once again, Cody chimed in. “I love Honor, Mommy! She reads me stories and hangs my pictures on her refrigerator and buys me pancakes.”
His words warmed Honor’s heart. She had no idea if Amy heard anything either of them had said, but she was satisfied with her effort. To break the somber mood, she raised her hand into a claw and teased, “And she tickles him!”
Cody squealed with laughter. They played in his room until they heard a big horn blast in the driveway.
“It sounds like Daddy is back with the truck!”
By the time they got their coats on and went outside, the driver had backed the truck into the driveway and was separating the storage cube from the truck bed. Soon he drove off, leaving Josh and Honor alone to pack.
Cody kept himself amused, playing in the packing materials while they worked in the living room, kitchen and then Amy’s old room. Honor was surprised that Josh had left the room exactly as it was when Amy had occupied it.
“I didn’t need the space and I felt bad giving her stuff away,” Josh explained, “but I guess everything in here can go to Goodwill.”
“We should keep her mementos. They might be important to Cody one day.”
“Good point.”
They wrapped her personal belongings and keepsakes carefully in a box, which Honor labeled Amy Douglas.
Later, when they tucked Cody into his bed, Honor kissed him goodnight. “Don’t forget to listen carefully if Mommy Amy comes to visit.”
Josh cocked his head, curious.
Honor winked at him. “I’ll explain later.”
Josh kissed his son goodnight and turned out the light, pausing at the door. Honor rested her head against his shoulder and he wrapped an arm around her.
“Are you doing okay?” she whispered.
“I’m fine,” he said. “It just hit me that I won’t be tucking Cody into bed here anymore. That seems strange, but not sad. I’m looking forward to living in Florida.”
They turned and walked down the hallway to Josh’s room.
“So, what are you and Cody up to?”
As they undressed for bed, Honor told him about her attempts to contact Amy.
“I doubt it worked, but it would be cool if Amy could say goodbye to Cody and move on, knowing he’d always remember her.”
“I doubt Amy can communicate like the spirits at the hotel can, but it’s nice you’re trying to do that for Cody. It’s no wonder I love you so much.”
Honor slid between the cool sheets, thankful she had remembered to pack her flannel granny-gown. Josh pulled her close to him and kissed her; then kissed her again, more passionately.
Honor gently pushed him away. “Not tonight, okay? Amy might be watching.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah, sorry. I’ll make it up to you when we get back home, okay?”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
Josh turned on the bedroom TV and Honor curled up on his shoulder. She didn’t remember falling asleep, but suddenly Cody was at her bedside, whispering in her ear.
“Wake up, Honor.”
She glanced at the clock and groaned. Five o’clock. Groggy, she swung her legs over the side of the bed. “It’s too early to wake up, Cody. Let’s get you back to bed.”
She picked him up. “Your skin is freezing. Did you kick off your blanket?”
Yawning, she carried him back to his room and turned on the light. His room was freezing cold. Honor’s eyes flew open with understanding. She gasped, her heart pounding. Amy really had been here.
“Mommy Amy said I have to tell you everything before I forget,” Cody mumbled.
“Okay, but first let’s warm you up.”
Honor wrapped a blanket around Cody and carried him to the cozy living room, grabbing her oversized purse from a table along the way. She sat on the couch with Cody on her lap, then reached into her purse and pulled out a small tape recorder.
“Okay, Cody, tell me everything you can remember.” She pushed the record button.
Honor was astounded by Cody’s vivid memories of the visit. He repeated a few stories from Amy’s life and talked about which of his personality traits were most like hers, including the fact that she had always been sensitive to the spirit realm.
When Cody grew quiet, Honor prompted, “Did she say anything else?”
He yawned. “She said she can’t come to Florida, so she’s going to follow the bright light to heaven. She can watch over me from up there, because angels can go anywhere they want to.” He yawned again and closed his eyes. “And she said to tell you to write down your promise and don’t ever forget.”
“My promise?” Honor asked, momentarily confused. Then she remembered. “I won’t forget.”
She glanced at the clock. It was almost six. Cody had fallen asleep, so she carried him back to bed, tucked him in and kissed his forehead.
Next, she retrieved a new journal from her purse. On the first page, she penned, “The Memoirs of Amy Douglas; Angel Mommy.” Then she played back the recording and transcribed Cody’s words to paper. When she was finished, she ended the journal with, “I, Honor Macklin promise Amy Douglas that I will be a good mother to her beloved child, Cody Douglas Lancing.”
Honor closed the journal and stretched, tired, but happy with what she had accomplished. When Josh woke up, he found her in the kitchen, rummaging through boxes, looking for coffee mugs.
She smiled at the sight of him. “I made a pot of coffee. I think you’re going to need some caffeine before I tell you how I spent the morning!”