Paul was babbling, saying oh Liddy you musthave dreamt it…then he was gone for seconds again and back with a glass hisshaking hand spilled.
“Take this.” He gave her a pill, held herhead as she drank, then took one himself with the water she didn’t finish. Heclimbed back into bed, up on his elbow holding her, whispering and babbling, Don’tgo walking out there, broken glass, broken glass.
“I saw her,” Liddy whimpered over thetorrent of his words. “Sasha is dead and she’s here. Maybe sheleft our door open…”
“It’s just us, Lids.”
“No, I really saw her.”
The pills started to work. Paul fell toLiddy’s side and stayed that way, with his head on his pillow clinging to heras the blurry warmth of the drug finally crept over them.
Liddy’s cries eased. Paul, simmering down, triedto comfort with stories of once sleepwalking in summer camp, and being surehe’d seen a ghost too.
A long time passed, but eventually, theyslept.
36
Something mechanicalblared, jolting Liddy from a fitful sleep where a huge underwater chasm was suckingher down into blackness. She squinted her eyes open then squeezed them shut fast;with a moan plowed back into her pillow.
The bed shook as Paul lurched to slam offhis alarm. Sunlight glared in from the drapes they’d forgotten to close.
“Hell,” he said thickly, falling back tohis pillow, exhaling like a dying man. His hand, cold marble, moved to her hand,then to her chest still heaving from the dream.
“Lids…”
“I’ll call Minton,” she whispered with hereyes closed.
She felt him press his brow to her shoulder,then rolled to him, feeling her heart start a fast knocking as if she’d beenrunning. “It felt so real,” she said painfully. “I know this sounds crazy, but it’sas if that girl is really dead and wanted me to know.”
He exhaled in a long breath. “You weresleepwalking.”
“It was horrible. There have been otherthings I haven’t mentioned because…I’ve been afraid. I hate this, I haveto snap out of it.”
“You will, we’ll get through it,” he said,squeezing her hand. He rolled away, and with a groan got his feet out of bedand onto the floor. Sat with his back turned and his head down, shielding hiseyes from the light.
Liddy lay, still seeing like a shot to theheart Sasha hanging from that rope, her head down, her body moving slowly,right to left. It had seemed so real! The light had been silver bright from themoon and she had seen it, was remembering it now, happening before her eyes.
She felt Paul look back to her.
“Lids, don’t…”
“What?”
“Stare into space like that.”
A hysterical little laugh bubbled up. “Youmean like I’m seeing a ghost?” She gave another bitter laugh. “I am. Shewas wearing a blue shirt. It seemed so real.”
Paul shook his head; said nothing.
“That’s the second time I saw a blue shirt…thefirst was in a dream waking that Sunday morning, the day we saw the loft.”Liddy inhaled. “The shirt drifted against my face, choking me.”
“Call Minton.”
“Yeah, he’ll fix it.”
Paul grimaced, then shuffled in to shower. Liddyclosed her eyes, listening to the sound of the pounding water, seeing the dark,underwater chasm of her dream pull her down again.
She blinked it away. Took a long, deepbreath and checked the time. It was 7:15.
Too early to call Minton? No. Shrinks got crazedhysterical calls at all hours that just went to voice mail. Liddy reached forher cell phone.
The good doctor’s recording was a slooow,infuriating drone that could make anyone crazy who wasn’t already.
“I am in conference at the moment.” Yeah,you’re still in bed, ha. “If your call is an emergency, I urge you to call9-1-1. If your call is not an emergency, leave your name, your number, and ashort message…”
Was it infuriating or hilariously funny tohear you’d be queued up with fifty other bridge jumpers? The message made Liddycrack a smile, which was a blessing. It snapped her out of herself.
She practically spat out her message. “Irealize this is off-schedule, but could you see me sometime sooner thanTuesday? Like, today, possibly?”
She disconnected, struggled out of bed, pulledon her kimono and brushed her hair. Life is tough. If you don’t laugh it’stougher. Joan Rivers said that. Oh she was God’s gift, that woman,especially if you’re terrified that you’ve really lost it, gone seriously offthe deep end, hanging by your chewed finger nails. As for calling Kerri, whatwould she say? I saw Sasha running in the street - then I saw her hanging in ourapartment that had been locked up tight?
Maybe save it for Minton.
Liddy trudged to the kitchen and force-marchedherself into busyness: started the coffee, emptied the dishwasher, fast-cookedeggs and slid them into a pita pocket. Grab ‘n Run healthy breakfast, yessir. She’dalways done it for Paul; wasn’t about to let little things like sleepwalkingand seeing ghosts and encroaching insanity stop her from doing it now.
Her hands still shook, though, and her heartkept up its tight, painful thudding. On her way to the kitchen she’d avoidedlooking out at the “hanging place” - as her frightened mind now called it -where Charlie Bass had done it, and Sasha too in whatever God help me lastnight was.
The smell of coffee was a balm, though, andas she poured it into Paul’s travel mug Liddy bucked up enough to glance shakilyout the kitchen door. The “hanging place” was now a realtor’s too-prettypicture, bathed in sunlight slanting through the arched windows, with no signof…either of them. Charlie Bass’s beam he’d used for his rope was gone, disappeared,plastered over. The column Sasha Perry had swung from just stood there, a white,cast iron exclamation point glowing in the loft’s openness.
“Oh!”
Pain hit and Liddy looked down. Must have gonehalf back to needed sleep staring out because the coffee filling Paul’s mug hadspilled and burned her hand. “Dammit,” she whimpered, rushing to the sink andpouring cold water on it. She leaned her elbows on the sink’s edge, watched thewater splash and go down, down into that dark
