Chapter 10: The Farewell

Here it is; Jade’s journey is done. I’m still looking for a better story title, so if you have one, I welcome the suggestion.

If you happen to be someone who wanted to read the last chapter first to see if you want to read the rest, take the author’s advice and read Chapter 9 instead.

Thank you again… and enjoy.

Chapter 10: The Farewell

xxxxxxx

Jade surveyed herself in the Parson’s full-length mirror as she tied the black ribbon in her hair. She let her hands down and sighed, running her eyes over her outfit, making sure she was presentable. Ruth’s dress flowed to her feet, concealing her hardy boots. Her skin, sharp green eyes and mahogany hair were the only facets of color that showed; the rest of her was black, all black.

A gentle knock at the door echoed through the room. “Jade? Are ye ready?”

“Yes, Miss Nesta,” Jade replied.

Nesta opened the door and stepped through, also wearing all black. “We ought to be goin’ soon.”

Jade nodded. “I’m ready to go now.”

“Good. I’ll be ready to go in a minute.”

Jade nodded as she walked into the Parson’s living room and sat on their couch. She looked around the empty house and let out a breath. Mary and Andrew had already gone to town an hour ago so Andrew could stop by the church and pick up some notes he needed for later. Now the house sat empty and waiting, but waiting for what, Jade didn’t know.

She shook her head. It was a miracle this house and the church were still in one piece. Almost all of the buildings in Anwen had been broken into and damaged during the Night a few days ago. This house and the church were two of the few that had escaped the Night almost completely unscathed.

She glanced down at her arms. Her cuts had scabbed over, and her bruises were turning into colorful collections of blue, purple and yellow.

She shook her head again. There was another miracle: she was still alive.

Speaking of miracles, is it time for us to go yet?

Just as she thought it, the bedroom door opened, and Nesta stepped out. “Alright, let’s go,” she announced.

Jade stood and smoothed her dress before following Nesta through the door. Nesta began to walk down the dirt path, but Jade tarried a moment on the Parson’s porch, drinking in the silence as she gazed at her hometown.

This was the first day since the Night that silence hovered over the town. Once again Jade could hear the crickets and birds chirping; once again she could hear the wind rustle the grass and wheat. Those sounds had been drowned out for the past three days by hammers banging nails into wood, making nearly sixty plain coffins. The wood had not ceased flowing into the town from the next town over, and nearly all of it had been used for the dead.

What wasn’t used for coffins was being used for houses. In fact, some women and children were helping to rebuild Jade and Nesta’s house as the men worked on the coffins. The Parsons said they were free to stay in their house until the new house was ready, which would hopefully be done in a month or two.

Jade’s eyes drifted over the broken buildings in the far distance, and she couldn’t help but think about the terrible things she’d seen that night. At least now, things were getting back to normal- as normal as they could be. Things would never be the same, but they would not stop trying to regain that level of normalcy, so that perhaps by the next generation their children would be able to live in peace.

And now, they could. The Twelve were gone. Life was being rebuilt. The importance of the Seal would be taught to their children. The future children of Anwen would experience a whole new level of peace and security unlike any generation before, thanks to the miracles that had happened on that Night.

“Jade?”

Nesta’s voice brought her out of her thoughts. Jade looked at Nesta.

“Are ye alright?”

Jade nodded, and a faint smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “I was just thinking.”

“Well, come on, dear! Ye want to have time to talk, don’t ye?”

Jade nodded and picked up the edges of her dress as she stepped down the stairs of the porch and onto the dirt path behind Nesta.

Jade looked at the buildings ahead as they walked through the countryside. “I was just thinking about the Night. It’s hard to believe it’s been three days already.”

Nesta nodded. “Strange how time just goes on.”

“Yeah.” Jade let out a sigh.

“What was that for?” Nesta asked, turning to her.

Jade shrugged. “I don’t know. It just… I can’t believe it’s over. I’m happy it’s over, but... it just feels… I don’t know.”

Nesta smiled and chuckled. “Don’t worry, Jade. I know what ye mean.”

After another few minutes of walking with scant conversation, they approached a modest house. Jade followed Nesta onto the porch and looked down at her feet as Nesta knocked. The boards sank a little under her weight, but held firm. Shiny new nails held the boards to the porch tightly. Jade smiled.

The door opened. Mrs. Drake broke into a wide grin. “Ah, Nesta! Jade! It’s good to see ye.”

“And ye, Eva,” Nesta returned. “I say, is Gavin here?”

Eva shook her head. “I’m afraid he had to tie some things down at the bakery before we go.”

“Are ye goin’?” Jade asked.

Eva shook her head. “Nay, child. I need to stay here and look after Luke.”

“How’s he doin’?” Nesta asked before Jade could.

Eva smiled. “Why don’t ye come in here and see for yerself?”

Jade returned the smile and walked in behind Nesta, and Eva closed the door behind them.

Jade’s smile broke into a wide grin as she saw Luke. She quickly stepped to his side and knelt. “How’re you feeling, Luke?”

He smiled. “Better. I’d say I’m up to the level of terrible, which is a considerable improvement.”

Jade laughed. “Well, you did die.”

Luke’s smile faded. “It wasn’t really that I died, more than I fell asleep. Leastways, that’s what if felt like.”

“Did you dream anything?”

Luke smiled. “That’s my secret.”

“Oh, come on, please Luke? You’ve been holding out on me for three days. I want to know what you saw.”

“I can’t tell ye!” he said, trying to hold back his laughter. “Do ye really think I’d die and then tell everyone the secret to what it feels like?”

Jade sat down on her heels and folded her arms across her chest. “Fine, be that way.”

He laughed, then winced. He let out a slow breath, then fixed Jade with a gentle gaze and playful smile. “I’m just jokin’, Jade. Do ye really want to know what I saw?”

“You have to ask me that question?”

He grinned. “I saw him.”

“Him who?”

His eyes sparkled. “Who do ye think?”

Jade’s eyes went wide. “You saw him! What did he say?”

“At first, he didn’t say anythin’. I asked him, ‘Am I dead?’ and he said, ‘No, now yer more alive than ever.’ And I asked him, ‘What’s goin’ to happen to Jade?’ and he just stared at me. I pleaded with him to send me back. I told him ye needed me, because ye didn’t have anyone else besides Nesta. For a long moment he just stared at me, and finally, a beautiful smile spread on his face, and he nodded. Then he whispered some instructions to me, and said, ‘Go now. Jade needs ye.’ Then I got real tired and fell asleep, and when I woke up, ye were above me.”

Tears leapt to Jade’s eyes. “Ye gave up being with him for me?”

Luke smiled. “For a little while. But only because he wanted me to.”

Jade enveloped him in a warm hug. “Thank you.”

“Gently,” Luke reminded her.

She chuckled as she straightened. “Say, what instructions did he give you?”

“Land sake’s, Jade, do ye want to know everythin’ he told me?”

“Of course!”

He chuckled. He gently took Jade’s hand in his, and looked deep into her twinkling eyes. “He told me, ‘Protect her, love her, and make sure she walks in the Way.’”

Jade grinned. When Luke recited the words, they seemed to be incredibly sweet and savory, as if each word was dripping with honey. What made these words even sweeter was that they were for her, too. “Thank you, Luke.”

He grinned. “I think we’re goin’ to have quite a few more adventures before our time here is up.”

Jade nodded. “I hope none were like this first one. I don’t want this to ever happen again.”

“None of us do,” Luke agreed. “Especially those of us who died.”

They laughed, but quieted as they heard a bell ringing in the distance.

“I guess it’s time to go,” Jade sighed.

“My best wishes with ye,” Luke said.

Jade stood and turned to Luke’s mother. “Is there anything you’d like me to do for you, Mrs. Drake? I could take flowers for Harvey, if you like.”

Mrs. Drake shook her head. “Thanks for the offer, Jade, but Mr. Drake is goin’ to be doin’ that. He’ll be headin’ up there with ye. Luke and I will be payin’ our respects to Harvey as soon as Luke is well enough.”

Jade nodded. “I suppose I’ll be seeing you later, then.”

Mrs. Drake nodded sweetly. “Soon, I hope.”

“Thank ye for yer hospitality,” Nesta said. “We’ll be seein’ ye soon.”

“I hope so. Thanks for comin’.”

“Our pleasure.”

Jade and Nesta exchanged a couple more valedictions as they parted, waving goodbye as they began to walk toward Main Street.

“I sure am glad Luke’s alright,” Nesta said for the fiftieth time in three days.

“Mm-hmm,” Jade agreed.

“Jade, are ye alright?”

“What? Oh, I’m fine. I’m just thinking.”

“About what?”

“About… what Luke said he saw.”

“What did he say he saw?”

Jade grinned. “It’s our little secret.”

Minutes later they came to Main Street, where more and more people were gathering. Finally, Reverend Andrew arrived and stood on the edge of the fountain.

“Thank ye all for comin’. The procession will begin shortly.”

Jade glanced around. This was all there was? There was barely anyone here! There were maybe thirty total- maybe. Barely any compared to the almost hundred that this town had had only three days before.

The group fell silent as the procession began. Everyone began to march through Main Street and across the town towards the mountains. Jade glanced around; she had never been up this way before. They were heading to the mountains in the opposite direction of the Great Deep.

The group hiked over the rugged terrain for more than a half hour, across the flat valley until they started to ascend the mountainside. This mountain was much smaller, grassier, and more gradual than the other Jade had scaled. In minutes the front of the group was already rounding the top and descending down the other side.

Jade and Nesta reached the top, and Jade stopped short in surprise. There was a large cemetery there, covering the side of the mountain that was an even more gradual decline than the side they had ascended. Tombstones studded the mountainside, old and weather-beaten, grim even in the dazzling sunshine.

“Come, Jade,” Nesta said, linking her arm through Jade’s and leading her through the cemetery with the rest.

The closest graves were freshly dug with white tombstones that contrasted starkly with the other gray ones. The procession filed through the rows of stones until they all came to the older half of tombstones. There, they stopped and turned to face Reverend Parson, who had stopped midway through the fresh graves, facing them with a worn Book in his hands.

“Today we gather to remember all those who have fallen under the hands of our enemies. Though they have fallen, they will all live in our memories…”

Jade looked between the people in front of her to the fresh graves covering the mountainside. She recognized many of the names on the tombstones. Some she had been sure had had the Seal, but the evidence before her was undeniable. The Holy Book was right; there was only one who could tell where the heart truly was.

She looked at Andrew Parson, breeze blowing his hair into his eyes and threatening to pull off his hat, giving possibly the hardest eulogy of his life. Despite the hat he had pulled low over his eyes, he still squinted in the sunlight, but he ignored it as his voice drifted over the faithful remnant.

The reverend plunged into a long list of all the names of those who had been killed. Jade tried not to listen and looked at her surroundings, trying to avoid reminders of all the pain.

Reverend Parson finally began to pray, and the eulogy was finished. People began to mumble amongst themselves and wander among the tombstones, some to convince themselves it had really happened, others to say their last goodbyes.

Jade scanned the tombstones grimly. She wouldn’t say any goodbyes today. She wasn’t ready yet.

Her eyes fell on one tombstone, and she nearly stopped breathing. She slowly walked to it and fell to her knees before it.

It was Laura Olson’s.

A few tears slid down Jade’s cheeks. “Laura, I’m so sorry.”

For a long minute, she talked to Laura, just like she did in the old days. She glanced over and saw Mr. and Mrs. Olson’s graves right next to hers, and she began to talk to them, too, just like she used to.

After a couple minutes, she ran out of words. She glanced around; most of the people had already gone back. Only a few were left, paying their final respects.

She felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Are ye done, Jade?”

She sniffled. She didn’t want to go, yet. She felt like there was so much to say, but she couldn’t think of the words. She shook her head. “You go ahead. I’ll follow in a few minutes.”

Nesta nodded. “Try not to stay too long.”

Nesta walked up the hill, where she met up with a couple others. Jade saw her politely exchange greetings with them, and they left together.

Jade glanced around again. She was alone, except for the few that were walking up to the top.

Jade lowered her gaze to Laura’s tombstone, thinking of so much she wanted to tell her. For a long minute, she simply sat there gazing at the tombstone, trying to think of what to say.

Jade sighed and stood. She’d come back later to tell Laura everything. She just needed time to get her thoughts together.

She was just about to walk up when her eyes caught another tombstone to the right, a long one with two names on it.

Jade gasped. She quickly stepped over to it. After a moment, her stunned body fell to her knees, and she began to cry.

The tombstone bore the name of her parents, and a small stone to the right of it bore the name of her brother.

She sobbed for a long moment, unable to believe it. She reached out a trembling hand and touched her parents’ tombstone.

It was real, hard and solid, and hot from the sunlight.

It was real.

Tears continued to flow down her cheeks. She had been told her parents had been killed in a fire. There had been no bodies, no remnants, no grave. She had never even had the opportunity to say goodbye to her parents.

But they hadn’t been killed by a fire. They had been killed by the Twelve. They had bodies, not piles of ashes. They had been buried. They had graves.

She could say goodbye.

“Mama? Papa?”

She touched the engraved letters of their names again, as if that would somehow bring back the feeling of the touch of her mama’s silky hair, or her father’s prickly mustache.

“You don’t know how much I’ve missed you. I’ve missed you so much.”

She cried for a long time, thinking about how hard everything had been. How unfair it was. How coldhearted people were. “I’m so happy you’re here.”

She let out a deep, shaking breath. “I’ve got to tell you, things have been really hard. I found out Luke betrayed me, along with everyone else. That was really hard… Luke is my best friend. Nesta’s house got burned down. The town nearly killed me. I almost got killed by a demon, and in fact, Luke actually did. But everything’s alright now. You’re here, they’re rebuilding our house, and Luke is alive! Everything’s alright…”

She sighed. “I’m sixteen now, papa. I’m a young woman now. I wish you could see me. I’ve grown up so much.” She let her gaze rest on her mama’s name. “Mama, I hope you’re proud of me. I’ve tried so hard to be everything you wanted me to be.”

Jade smiled, recalling the scolding her mother used to give her for being unladylike. After she was gone and Jade moved in with Miss Nesta, Jade had put extra effort into being kind of girl her parents would have been proud of. Jade wasn’t ashamed of her shortcomings, because she tried, and kept trying; she was a firm believer that so long as you learn from your mistakes and don’t dwell on them as you strive toward your future, mistakes can be beneficial.

Jade sighed. “I have so much to tell you, papa, mama. So many things have happened. I’m so happy I can tell you now.”

Her gaze fell on her brother’s tombstone, and she sighed again. “I have many things to tell you too, David. Many things have happened that you’ll want to know.” She smiled. “I miss you so much, but don’t worry, I’m not alone anymore. I have Luke Drake. He’s become a real brother to me since you’ve been gone. He’s going to look after me.”

Jade sighed, and a smile spread across her face. “And you know what else, David? I’m not alone, not only because Luke is with me, but I have someone else who will never leave my side. His name is Jesus.”

Jade looked at the two stones. There was so much to say, but she didn’t have time to say it all now. Nesta was expecting her. If she knew Nesta, Nesta was probably worrying about her already. Jade sighed.

“I have to go. But I don’t want to. It’s so wonderful knowing you’re here.” She paused. “I love you all so much. You’ll always be my family.”

Jade let her hand drift across the tombstone, feeling the hot stone under her fingertips. She brought it across the smooth, polished top and brought it down so it crossed both her father and mother’s names before it met the grass.

“Don’t worry, mama and papa. I’ll be back soon to tell you everything.”

She turned to David’s stone. “And don’t worry, brother. I’ll be back to talk to you, too.”

She slowly stood and brushed off her dress. After one last look at the tombstones, she began to hike back up to the top.

She reached the crest, but before she continued down the other side, she turned back, wanting one parting look before she went back.

There were the tombstones, glistening in the sunlight. Jade grinned, feeling her heart fill with gratitude and contentment.

“Goodbye, mama and papa. Goodbye, my brother. I love you. I’ll be back to tell you everything real soon.”

Xxxxx

“Having believed, you were marked in him with a SEAL, the promised HOLY SPIRIT, who is a DEPOSIT guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession- to the praise of his glory.”

Ephesians 1:13-14