“Yes, ma'am.”
I retrieved the peroxide and washcloths from her bathroom and returned, as instructed. I screwed the top off and held the bottle over her foot. “Are you ready? I hope it burns.”
She leaned forward and slapped my free arm. “Yeah. Go for it.”
I poured a little peroxide over her cut and watched it bubble and spew. When she didn’t scream, I remembered it was alcohol that burned.
“Something weird happened to me last night,” she said in a mysterious manner, peaking my curiosity.
Since she didn’t scream I poured a little more. “Tell me about it because I can listen while I amputate your foot.”
There was a stubborn spot of dried blood next to the cut, so I wet the washcloth with peroxide and lightly rubbed it.
“I dreamed of Emelyn last night and she told me to tell you about the day we were born. It’s strange, I know.”
“It is, but I think that’s why I want you to tell me. I like strange.”
“I’ve never wanted to talk about Emelyn before. I don’t tell people that I had a twin because I don’t like explaining what happened, but for some reason, I want to tell you about her.”
“The suspense is killing me,” I said, prompting her to begin her tale.
“We were born in Kauai and there was a total solar eclipse that day. It couldn’t be seen here, but Hawaii was one place it occurred.”
As I continued cleaning her foot, she wiggled her toes and said, “Hey, that tickles. Are you trying to rub my birthmark off or what?”
It was a birthmark and it was a weird spot, so I angled her foot for a better view and said, “I’m sorry, I’m listening. Go on.”
“So, the darkness lasted like six or seven minutes and Emelyn was delivered first, during the complete darkness, but her heart never beat and she never took a breath. Several minutes later, I was delivered, just as the sun began to peak around the moon. While the light of the sun was returning, two butterflies floated into the delivery room and landed on my newborn arm. They just appeared, then flew away, to never be seen again. The Hawaiians believe in superstitions and omens and they told my mom it was an omen of something to come.”
It was no mere coincidence two butterflies appeared on my arm at the same exact time, halfway around the world. I studied the dark spot on the bottom of her foot, finally realizing it was a birthmark shaped like a butterfly with outstretched wings, making Sebastian’s prediction true. She was marked with the sign of Anteros and it found a way to reveal itself to me.
“I don’t understand, but Emelyn said that you would,” she said, confused.
“I’m sorry, I don’t understand your dream, or what it means,” I lied.
Her face became concerned. “Why do you look so sad?”
The time to say goodbye had arrived and it was going to hurt like nothing I’d ever known. “I’m not sad. I actually have good news because I have received a very promising job offer and I accepted.”
“That’s wonderful. I want to hear all about it.”
“It’s an advertising firm in New York City. They’re very prestigious and it’s a wonderful opportunity to further my career,” I lied.
She dropped her face, unwilling to look into my eyes. I smelled the salty aroma of the tears threatening to fall from her eyes. “Oh, I see, I guess this means you’re leaving.”
“Yeah, they want me there as soon as possible,” I fabricated.
She busied herself with gathering the peroxide and washcloths used to clean her foot and stood without looking at me. “That’s wonderful. I’m very happy for you and I know you’ll do very well for yourself.”
I caused the pain she was feeling and I never felt more like a fiend. As she hobbled toward the door, she said, “I guess it’s a good thing you didn’t stay here long enough to make any real connections with people, so your moving history may remain intact. I’m sure you have packing to do, so I shouldn’t keep you from it.” She opened the door, but stopped before entering. She peered at me over her shoulder and disguised her pain with a forced smile. “Good luck, Curry. I hope you find what it is you’re looking for.”
I didn’t want this to be the way it ended. “Chansey, please, wait.” I didn’t know what I was going to say, but it didn’t matter, because she didn’t stop. She hurried inside the house, shutting the door between us, so the tears could fall.
It took 139 years to find her and only a few precious days to lose her, so if leaving was the right thing to do, shouldn’t it be easier than this?
Chapter 19
The Emersons didn’t take the news of my departure well and their reaction made me realize Chansey wasn’t the only one I was leaving. I thought of the friends and relationships I had made through Chansey and a new wave of regret flooded me.
Chansey refused to see me after I told her I was leaving and she somehow managed to evade me each time I tried. I don’t know, maybe I allowed her to elude me with weak attempts because I couldn’t bare to have a bad goodbye, but if I was honest with myself, I just feared she wouldn’t ask me to stay.
I finished packing and sat on the couch, waiting for Chansey to come tell me goodbye. Every thirty minutes, I persuaded myself to wait another half hour and after sitting in silence for four hours, I realized it was pointless to wait any longer. The time to leave had arrived.
I walked to my truck, praying the whole way, she would run out and throw her arms around me, although I was certain leaving was the safest thing for Chansey. If she asked me to stay, I didn’t know if I’d be able to go, but I wanted to find out. I got into my truck and sat there, giving her just a little longer. I reached to turn the key in the ignition and hesitated, then placed my hand on my leg. I desperately fought to urge to use my long buried ability to reach out to her mind to persuade her to stop me from leaving. I wanted the desire to be hers, not one I placed there for her and I inwardly prayed, “Don’t let me go. Come on, Chansey, please don’t let me go.”
I thought my prayers were answered when I heard the screech of the kitchen door, so I opened my truck door and stepped out to meet Chansey as she ran toward me. I rounded the corner of the house in search of the girl I loved, but my hopes were deflated when I saw Anna walking toward me with a plate. “Curry, I made you some cookies. Its’ going to be a long drive and you won’t get any home cooking where you’re going.”
I tried to hide my disappointment. “Thank you, Mrs. Emerson. That was very thoughtful of you, but I’ll probably have all of them eaten before I get out of the state.”
“What’s wrong, Curry? Aren’t you happy about your new job?”
“I am.” She looked expectedly at me, waiting for an explanation and I hesitated before I said, “It’s just that I haven’t seen Chansey since I told her I was leaving and I had hoped to say goodbye.”
“I saw the disappointment on your face when you realized it wasn’t her coming out to say goodbye, but don’t worry, I don’t take it personally.”
“Why does she refuse to see me?” I asked.
“Chansey thought there was something between you and she is hurt because you are leaving and by the way you told her. She thought she deserved better than that and I’m afraid she just isn’t in a place where she feels like she can tell you goodbye. I’m sorry. I told her she would regret not seeing you.”
“It’s alright, Mrs. Emerson. It was my mistake, not yours. Would you please tell her goodbye for me and that I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt her.”
“I will tell her.” She hugged me and added, “Drive safely.”
“I will, and thank you, again. I have enjoyed living here with you and I miss all of you more than I can say.”
I didn’t expect it to be easy, but leaving Chansey proved more painful than I could have imagined. She walked away, choosing to not see me again and I didn’t realize how truly heart broken I was until this moment.
* * *
I spent the next two weeks watching her night and day and I spent every day fol
lowing her, monitoring her every move, ready to intervene at the first sign of danger. When she worked, I blended into the crowd in the casino, watching her every move, and I spent each night at her side as she slept.
I promised to keep her safe and I would do that by any means necessary without an ounce of guilt. I didn’t want her out of my sight for a minute because I was scared I would miss the moment she told a friend how much she missed me or how badly she wanted me to come back to her.