Page 98 of Living with Death
“And Jack?” she questions. “Is he also immortal?”
I look at the corner of the room, seeing Azrael there, silently asking his permission to tell her the truth. He nods, his dark eyes glowing.
“Jack…well, his name isn’t Jack. His name is Azrael, and he’s the Angel of Death.”
“What? Mabel Carmichael, you must think I’m crazy if you expect me to believe that.”
I smile. “Believe what you will, but it’s the truth. I promised I’d never lie to you after you learned about my childhood. Do you think I’d start again now?”
Her eyes narrow, and she swallows.
“Do you remember that night at the Grab & Go when we played with the Ouija board?”
“Yes.”
“Well, you didn’t want to believe that, but it happened, didn’t it?”
“I suppose,” she says, playing with the collar of her nightgown.
“That was a portal to Heaven, by the way. We’d made the restless spirits around us angry.”
“Remind me never to do that again,” she says.
I chuckle, but my heart sinks a bit. Sam doesn’t know it, but tonight is her last here on earth.
My eyes dart to him again, and I ask the question he always wants to ask. “Did you enjoy your time here?”
She looks at me, wrinkles around her brown eyes, and I remember when she wore only glittery eyeshadow. “Very much.”
“I wish we could have grown old together, but other than that, my life turned out wonderful. This house,” she looks around, “it was a good place to raise the kids. John and I danced in this living room, and little Trevor took his first steps over there.” She points to the place that used to have a lump when the carpet was here.
I wipe at a tear.
“Mabel had her first heartbreak in the kitchen.”
“Mabel?” I ask.
“Yes, I named my daughter after you.”
“Oh, Sam.” I stand and wrap my arms around her. She still smells the same. After all these years, she still smells like Sam. “I love you, and I’m sorry I missed out on your life.”
“I know that,” she says, squeezing my neck. “I’m just so grateful you gave me this beautiful home to spend it in.”
I pull away from her and wipe my face.
“It was you, wasn’t it?” she says. “You’re the one who sent the money every month.”
I nod. “I wanted to make sure you had the option to do anything you wanted. I didn’t want you stuck at that store if it wasn’t what you wished.”
She shakes her head. “I saved every penny and put the kids through college with it. Mabel’s a professor, and Trevor is a detective. They moved to the city. They have kids of their own now.”
“I’m happy to hear that.”
Sam exhales. “I can’t imagine you’d show me the truth after all these years if there weren’t a point to it.”
I give her a loving smile and grab her hand. “It won’t hurt, I promise.”
She nods. “Please watch out for my children. Meet them. Love them for a little while for me.”
