Page 23 of Tear of Destiny

I watch her intently as she talks. She seems so convinced of what she’s saying, so certain. But she sounds like that no matter what she’s talking about. Still, is it possible that there’s another key spirit here?

Ms. Antonio joins us and puts her arm around the old lady’s shoulders. “Are you enjoying talking to our visitor, Rosie?”

“I want a pet too,” she grumbles vehemently. “Even this girl is allowed to bring her cat. Why not me?”

Ms. Antonio remains totally calm and explains, “Rosie, pets aren’t allowed in this house, you know that. Nobody has one.”

“Not true,” she mutters.

Then Ms. Antonio nods to a young man who’s just brought one of the residents some new paints. “Andrew, can you take care of Rosie? Maybe she’d like to paint a picture of a cat. I know it’s not the same as a real one, but it might be fun anyway.”

“I don’t want a cat,” says Rosie. “I want a dog, like my old Bo.”

“We can do that,” replies Andrew. “You can paint your Bo andtell me all about him again.” He smiles kindly and guides Rosie to one of the easels.

“It’s not always easy,” Ms. Antonio says to me. “Some of the residents’ needs can’t be fulfilled, but they keep asking anyway. Naturally, we try to do everything we can to make them feel at home here.”

I nod and look over at Rosie. I don’t know what to think of her comments. Has she really seen a key spirit? And if so, whose? Is there maybe an elderly Tempes living here with their key spirit? I glance around, but naturally I don’t see anything.

Rosie is standing in front of her easel with an intensely focused expression, daubing paint on her picture, which looks nothing like a dog. Andrew, the caregiver, has turned his attention to one of the other residents. Rosie pauses with her brush in front of her painting and glances over her shoulder at me, and suddenly I notice her eyes. They’re light brown, almost glowing. She gives me a penetrating stare, as if she knows exactly what’s going on here. Eyes warm and bright, Kate said. Was that in reference to Rosie? Is this the inevitable encounter she mentioned in her trance?

Rosie giggles, puts down her brush, and walks quickly to the door. I want to follow her, but first I try to catch Kate’s eye. I indicate Rosie with a nod, and Kate immediately understands. She’ll buy me some time if necessary.

I hurry through the corridors, but I’m not sure where to look for Rosie. So I try random corridors until I remember where the dementia ward is, where I assume her room must be. But I never make it there. I turn into a corridor and stop. Rosie is standing there as though she’s been waiting for me, and as though she’s trying to pierce me with her gaze.

“Do you like animals?” she asks, looking at me in her peculiar way.

“Uh, sure,” I reply, and then I venture, “Especially foxes.”

She nods and doesn’t react to this information.

“I like dogs. But I’m not allowed to have one. I used to have one, Bo. He was a lovely little dog. I mean, my new dog doesn’t have to be big. A small one would be fine. But I want one with white fur. That’s important.”

Rosie looks at me with conviction. Her eyes are clear. She believes what she’s saying and doesn’t doubt herself for a moment. I try not to let it show that I can’t make much sense of what she’s saying, and she holds up her index finger and continues.

“I’d take good care of it. Better care than that young man with his bird. It keeps fluttering around and tries to hide, but I see it.”

I frown and look at her inquiringly. What does this mean? It sounds like she’s talking about a key spirit. But Rosie is clearly pretty confused. So how much of what she says can I believe?

I slowly lean forward slightly and say, “There’s a bird here? That only you can see?”

Rosie flaps her hand at me. “Don’t talk to me like I’m crazy. Everybody here does that. It’s not my fault that nobody wants to see what’s happening around them. The patients, the nurses, the doctors… they’re all focused on themselves and don’t even see what’s going on right under their noses. And they’re not interested in a bird. A dove if I’m not mistaken. I call him Rudy. But I don’t like him. He always looks at me so strangely, as if he knows something. You know what I mean?”

I nod slowly. “Where did you see the bird? And did you notice a person nearby? You said the bird belongs to a man.”

Rosie narrows her eyes. She looks at me intently and draws her lips into a thin line. “You ask a lot of questions. Like that man who came to visit once. He wanted to know all sorts of things. I think he had an animal too.”

My heart begins to pound anxiously. “Can you describe theman? What did he want? What did he ask you?”

Rosie hesitates for a moment. Then she turns around and walks a few steps before looking back at me and jerking her head for me to follow her. I gulp and wonder what she’s going to show me.

Chapter 10

Rosie doesn’t say a word, walking ahead at a pace I wouldn’t have expected in a person of her age. She bustles along the corridors with me following close behind. I’m still wondering what she wants to show me. My instincts tell me I’m on the trail of something important, but there’s also a hint of doubt in my mind. Can I really trust her?

Rosie turns into a sunny hallway. Porcelain vases with elaborately curved handles stand on chests of drawers against the walls. Paintings on the walls lend some color to the corridor and make it feel less sterile. There’s one of a beach with a bright blue sky. It’s a beautiful scene: the sunlight is really intense, and the play of light and shadow is enchanting. Seaweed, driftwood, clusters of trees, and I can also make out a number of human-made objects – bottles, a barrel, an old pair of shoes. It looks as if a storm has recently passed through and washed these things up on the beach.

Rosie stops in the middle of the corridor, and I slowly take a look around. There’s nothing particularly remarkable here, and yet I have this unmistakable feeling. Something stirs an emotion deep inside me – or is it a memory? I can’t put my finger on it.

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