The ground began to crack and shake as Helen took to the air. Her white wings were gorgeous and at any other time would have been a distraction. A crack began to form in the dirt by the headstone, and little by little, the casket made its way to the surface.
I reached out with my other hand and forced the lid off. Krista’s body was perfectly preserved as if it had just been buried there the day before. She looked gorgeous and so peaceful with her hands crossed over her chest. Suddenly the earth around us started to sing in unison, words that I didn’t understand but repeated to the best of my ability. I knew I was getting some of them wrong, but I had a feeling God would forgive me.
The wind started to pick up, just as my mother had predicted. It seemed to breathe life back into the dead girl’s body, nature’s way of giving CPR. Then, unexpectedly, the fire burnt out and the world went silent. I thought that I had done something wrong and tried to relight the flame, but nothing would come from my hands, no matter how hard I tried. Suddenly I felt torn. My body lurched, and I fell to the ground. My knees hit the earth hard and pain radiated through my body. A burning sensation in my soul caused me to cry out. Then it was gone. All I felt was the pain from my fall. I pulled myself to my feet and looked at my mother. She appeared concerned but was clearly too afraid to break the circle and run to my aid.
Helen touched down on the earth, her eyes gray and weary. I gave her a confused look. This hadn’t happened in the trial runs. What did it mean? Had it worked? Did we bring her back?
“We wait,” she said, wrapping her arms around me.
Nobody moved. I was about to give up hope when I heard it. First, it was a soft cough, then a sharp breath, and finally… words.
“Can you hear me?” Krista’s voice cracked as if she was parched.
“Oh, my God!”
I flew from Helen and bent over the casket. Krista was blinking, she was breathing, and she was alive!
“I knew you would be the first face I see, dark one,” she said, smiling awkwardly up at me.
I reached in and took her hands in mine, helping her sit up. I heard gasps and cries as I attempted to help her from her prison.
“You going to be able to do this?” I asked her softly.
“I haven’t walked on my own two legs in eighteen years, Dawn. I have a feeling it isn’t like riding a bike.” She laughed hoarsely.
I motioned to Shawn to come into the circle. He lifted Krista from the casket and held her tight to his chest.
“Don’t worry, little lady. We’ll get you to the house, where you can change into something chicer and more up-to-date,” he teased her.
She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck.
I looked back at Adrianne as my mother comforted her. She was hysterical with happiness; then again, I think I would have been too if I’d just seen my child raised from the dead eighteen years after she was murdered. I walked over to her and slipped an arm around her shoulders.
“You’re coming back to the house?” I asked as she sobbed.
“Yes, yes, I have some clothes for her in the car.” She smiled at me. “Thank you; thank you, all of you.”
Peter gave me a polite nod. I had the feeling that he was smiling inside. Then, with another gust of wind, the reapers were gone. I would never forget what they had done for us that night.
We will return if we are needed.
Peter’s voice echoed in my head. I felt a sudden peace. With the reapers on our side, how could we lose? More would be coming; I knew that for certain.
****
Upon returning to the house, we were welcomed with cheers from Adam as he jumped around squealing about how we had done it. I found myself wondering what he had managed to get into, but then I realized he was just excited.
Krista ate more than I could have done in three meals, shoveling food into her mouth without chewing. It was actually quite disgusting to watch, but then again, she hadn’t eaten in over eighteen years. She was amazing; her voice far more angelic than it had been in my visions. She thanked all of us and held onto her mother with all her might. It was an unexpected and unsurpassable reunion.
It took her a few days to get walking again. She hadn’t been kidding when she said she wasn’t sure how to use a real body anymore. She had to be retaught a lot of basic movements without sending gusts of wind through the house and breaking the glass. The control of her power was even more erratic than mine.
I was sitting in the living room watching a horror movie one evening when Krista walked in. She had taken to the new style nicely and had on a pair of flared jeans and a purple baby doll shirt with “Angel” written in sparkly silver letters across the chest. She took a seat next to me and looked at the screen. I took my eyes away from the TV long enough to watch as her eyes grew wider and her mouth opened in shock.
“You really like this stuff?” she
