Page 33 of Left Behind

Wiley moved to the foot of her bed. “Mom, you said you left the house because you saw Ella.”

Shirley frowned. “Yes, that’s right, I did see her out in the pasture. I couldn’t imagine her being this far down the mountain and afoot. It worried me, but then she walked into the woods and disappeared, and I kept looking for her.”

Aaron reached for her hand. “I’m so sorry to have to tell you this, but Aunt Ella passed away sometime this morning.”

Shirley gasped. “Oh no! She was lost! If only I could have found her before—”

Amalie stepped up between the brothers. “No, Mom. Ella was already in spirit when you saw her. She was walking the mountain, telling it goodbye, and had no idea that you would be able to see her.”

Shirley gasped. They all knew Amalie had the same gift of sight that Ella Pope had been born with. “Oh my God. How did you know this?”

Amalie’s eyes welled. “Because Ella appeared in the doorway of my office and called my name. As soon as I looked up, she said, ‘Help Shirley’ then blew me a kiss and disappeared…like smoke. I heard the rest of it in my head after she was gone and I called Sean, but they’d already found you. I told them to go check on Ella. Cameron found her in her bed. She’d been gone for a few hours.”

Shirley was weeping. “She was so dear to all of us and the last of the old ones.”

“No, ma’am,” Amalie said. “She’s not the last of anything. It’s just a shift in generations. Uncle John and Aunt Annie Cauley are now the elders, right?”

Shirley swiped at her tears. “Yes, you’re right, and thank you for that. Perspective is often a blessing, but we’re so going to miss her.”

B.J. was standing at the foot of her bed with his hands in his pockets, staring blindly at the wall above Shirley’s head.

“Ecclesiastes 3: ‘For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die.’ Nothing can change that outcome, Mom, and God knows Ella was given more years than most, but we aren’t going to forget her. Look how long we’ve hung on to Brendan and his Meg.”

Shirley smiled through tears. “Oh, B.J., when did you get so wise?”

He looked away, and when he finally answered, there were tears in his eyes.

“When I found the remains of our ancestor Meg. She’d been lost to us for so long, and in those few moments when I saw her like that, I felt the weight of a thousand years upon my shoulders, like I’d been born for that purpose, and that nothing I ever do will top the importance of bringing her back to bury her beside her loving husband, Brendan.”

Total silence followed, as everyone thought about Brendan Pope, the very first man to stake a claim on Pope Mountain, and his beloved wife, who had been kidnapped. Brendan had mourned her loss for the rest of his days, which none of the family knew until his journal had been found a few years earlier.

The silence was broken only after the nurse came in with a wheelchair and Shirley’s release papers. “Time to go home!” she said, unaware of the gravity within the room.

Sean and Aaron helped Shirley into the wheelchair, and then everyone headed for the exit.

Aaron took B.J. back to work.

Wiley headed to the pharmacy with the prescriptions.

Ella was already in her heavenly home. It was time for Shirley to get back to her earthly one, but she was quiet and tearful all the way back up the mountain.

“I can’t believe Aunt Ella is gone,” she said.

“I know, Mom. She was such an institution, I think we all thought she was immortal,” Sean said.

Shirley sighed. “I can’t believe what I saw was her spirit, though. She looked so…so solid…so real.”

“Until she disappeared,” Sean said.

“Yes. Until she disappeared,” Shirley said, and glanced out the window. “Looks like clouds are building up over the mountain. It might rain tonight.”

“Good. Maybe it’ll cool things off,” Sean said. “Dani is coming to stay with you for a while tomorrow until I can get back. I have two business appointments in the morning, both in Bowling Green, and then I’m going to pick up that knee-leg scooter Dr. Kline recommended before I come home.”

“I hate being helpless and dependent on other people. I’ve sure gone and messed everything up,” Shirley muttered.

Sean gave her hand a quick squeeze. “No way, Mama. After all you do, and have done for us, we are blessed to be able to return the favor. And you’ll heal and be good as new soon enough.”

“I guess,” Shirley said. “But just for the record, I’m sorry I won’t be able to help out with Ella’s funeral, or the family dinner, or anything.”

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