Page 26

TWENTY-FIVE

Kaely finally finished the profile. She emailed it to Adrian and printed out two copies. One to take with her to the station. And one to keep.

She didn’t really want to look at the clock, but when she did, she was sorry she’d done it. A little after two in the morning. She sighed loudly. Time to get some sleep. She realized that she’d never talked to Erin about what time they needed to leave.

She found a pad of paper and a pen in the kitchen and wrote out a quick note. Then she put it next to the coffeemaker. If Erin was anything like her, that would be the first place she’d head when she got out of bed.

After doing a quick cleanup in the kitchen, she turned off some of the lights, leaving a couple on for security, and then checked the front and back doors, making sure they were locked.

A sound caught her attention, and she hurried to the living room and looked out front. Someone was driving away. A dark colored truck. Should she be concerned? It hadn’t stopped. Maybe it was someone who was lost—or who lived nearby. She also scanned the woods.

“Don’t be silly,” she said to herself. “There’s no ghost.” Thankfully, everything was quiet.

She hurried upstairs, took a quick shower, and climbed into bed. She’d just fallen asleep when a loud wailing made her sit straight up in bed. Without thinking, she glanced at the clock on the nightstand. 3:33 a.m. Erin .

Kaely jumped out of bed and hurried down the hallway to Erin’s room. When she swung the door open, she found Erin sitting up in her bed. Her eyes were wide, and her face was wet with tears.

She approached her carefully, not wanting to frighten her in case she was still entrenched in the nightmare that had plagued her for so long. Erin turned to look at her. Then she reached both arms out. Kaely sat down and held her while she wept. Her body trembled.

“It’s okay,” she said softly, many times over, until the sound of crying stopped and Erin let her go.

“I... I’m sorry. I didn’t mean...”

“Erin, don’t be silly. We’ve talked many times after one of these episodes. You don’t need to apologize. I’m actually glad I’m here with you instead of feeling so helpless talking to you on the phone.”

“I know you were up late,” Erin said. “You need your sleep.”

“I’m just fine. Truly. Do you want me to make you some tea? I brought some chamomile. It will help you sleep.”

Erin stared at her for a moment before saying, “If you’re certain it’s not too much trouble.”

“I’m certain. I’ll make us both a cup. I’ll be right back, okay?”

Erin nodded. “Thank you.”

Kaely got up and hurried downstairs. It only took a couple of minutes to make the tea. She took it upstairs, handed a cup to Erin, and sat down in the chair in the corner with her own cup.

“Can we sleep in a little later in the morning?” Erin asked after taking a sip of her tea. “I’m so tired.”

Kaely smiled at her. “Funny you should say that. I left you a note downstairs asking you the same question.”

Erin offered her a tremulous smile in return, but it didn’t mask the pain in her eyes. Kaely so wanted to pray with her. Let her know how much God wanted to help her, but there was a check in her spirit, and until she was released, she’d wait. The Holy Spirit was the only One who knew when the soil of Erin’s heart was prepared for Him.

“How about we sleep until nine?” Kaely said. “We can grab a quick, light breakfast, go into town, and then have a late lunch. Will that work?”

“Sounds perfect.” Erin took another sip of her tea and then set it down on the nightstand. “I’m feeling sleepy. Do you mind?”

“Of course not.” Kaely stood up and walked toward the door. But before she left, she had a question to ask Erin. “Erin, do you remember what time it was that night... when Scott died?”

She shook her head. “No, I wasn’t looking at my watch when it happened.”

“What about when you had to leave his side and go inside the apartment to find the little girl had been shot?”

Erin frowned at her. “Why are you bringing this up now? What does it matter what time it was?”

“Just be patient with me a moment. When you were in that apartment, did you happen to see the time?” Kaely silently prayed that she wasn’t making a mistake. But she had a feeling...

“Of course not. It wasn’t really important, you know.”

Her voice was sharp, and Kaely could see that she was getting upset. She suddenly regretted that she’d brought this up. She started to apologize when suddenly, Erin’s face grew pale.

“Wait a minute. I... there was a clock on the living room wall. I happened to glance at it. I’d forgotten all about it.” She shook her head. “How could I have forgotten? I don’t understand.”

She looked at Kaely with an expression that almost ripped her heart in two. She was right.

“It was 3:33,” she said in a whisper. “Why didn’t I... I should have...” She shook her head as tears streamed down her cheeks. “The clock was behind the little girl’s father. I was looking at him. I... I didn’t look at it on purpose, but I did see it.” She turned her tear-stained face toward Kaely. “How could I have forgotten?” she asked again.

Kaely put her cup down and went back to Erin’s bed where she sat down next to the distraught young woman.

“You’ve been trying so hard to protect yourself from those terrible images,” she said. “The time on that clock just got mixed up with everything else. But your mind remembered. And your body reacted. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen this. I had a friend at the Bureau who used to wake up almost every morning at the exact time her mother passed away.”

“It seems impossible,” Erin said, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

Kaely got up and walked over to a tissue box on the edge of the dresser. She pulled out a couple of tissues and took them over to Erin.

“You’ve proven that it isn’t,” Kaely said gently.

Erin reached up for the tissues. “Thank you,” she said. After she wiped her face she asked, “Do you think I’ll stop waking up now that I know what caused it?”

“I’m not sure, Erin. But I do believe that the pain you have on the inside has to be addressed for you to feel better. You didn’t like seeing the therapist the police department sent you to?”

She shook her head and made a face. “There were several. The last one was the worst. She was weird. Kept talking about my feelings and asking me what I thought I should do. If I knew what to do, why did I need her?” Erin sniffed and wiped her nose. “When she asked me ‘how’s that working for you?’ I knew it was over. I can watch Dr. Phil on TV. I don’t need her.”

Although Kaely tended to agree with her, Erin definitely needed some kind of support. She wanted to ask her about speaking to a minister, but once again, she got a check. It was so frustrating to know what Erin needed and not be able to say anything about it. Why did it seem that people who need God the most appeared to be the ones who rebelled against Him so violently? Probably the enemy battling to keep them. Even Christians went through this. It was heartbreaking. But at least when their struggle was over, they were with the One who loved them the most. Their Comforter and Savior. The Lover of their souls.

“Why don’t you try to get some sleep?” Kaely said. “Just remember that I’m just down the hall if you need me.”

“Thanks again, Kaely. I’m really glad I came. I needed this more than I can say.”

Kaely nodded at her and closed the door. She waited in the hall for a moment before heading back to her room. Erin needed much more than she’d received tonight, but if—and when—she was ready to listen... that moment was in God’s loving hands.