I awoke the next morning laying on the floor of the recording studio, right alongside a couch. I had either fallen off the couch somewhere through the night or didn't quite make it to the couch, while attempting to crawl across the floor.
I wasn't sure which scenario it was and at this pint, I didn't really care.
I felt like absolute crap. My head was pounding and my mouth felt like it was full of sand. Shitty sand.
I looked around. There were beer cans everywhere.
"Quite a party," I said aloud, as I pulled myself slowly up on the couch.
"I must have had a good time."
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I suddenly got a flashback to the way my life had once been. Waking almost every morning, feeling exactly as I did at this point.
I shook my head, snickering at myself. "I guess what they say is true. We never really do change."
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I got up and walked ever so slowly, to the bathroom. As I relieved myself, I thought of the mess that was awaiting me upstairs.
I honestly felt like saying the hell with it, pack up some clothes, give the house away and move as far away from Maynard's Rock as I could possibly go.
Australia was looking pretty good at this point. I honestly did not want to face the disaster zone, upstairs.
"Always wanted to see a kangaroo," I snipped, as I opened the medicine cabinet. There were ibuprofen in the cabinet. I opened the bottle, took three and washed it down with water, that I drank directly from the tap.
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I slowly walked up the stairs to the main floor and headed for my bedroom. I never even looked in the other rooms. I decided to start with my bedroom and move back toward the kitchen.
Or maybe I would just fall on the bed and pass out. The latter was looking pretty appealing.
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As I opened the door to my bedroom, I was held in place by shock.
"What the shit?"
.
Everything was exactly the way it should have been. All the clothes were put away. Furniture back where it belonged, drawers back in the bureaus and even the bed was made. The only things missing were what had been broken.
Even the floor looked like it had been cleaned.
.
"How long was I out?"
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Slowly I walked back up the hall, checking each room, as I passed it.
Every room was the same. Everything was as it should be...
For the most part.
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I stood in the kitchen and opened the cupboards. Even the doors that had been damaged, were mysteriously repaired. The dents in the walls were repaired, although every room would need a paint job.
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"What the hell is this?"
.
The cupboards were all empty, which was a reminder that I had not dreamed what I saw the day before.
Through the window I could see the cardboard boxes on the veranda. There were more than there had been the day before, along with a variety of broken lamps and destroyed pictures.
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"Wasn't a dream," I commented as I looked around.
I was dying for a coffee, but my coffee maker had been one of the victims of the carnage.
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I took a deep breath and walked back down the hallway, toward Whisper's room. I knew she could be the only explanation.
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I slowly opened the door and stood in the doorway.
Spirit and Ghost were asleep in their beds and Whisper was sitting up in hers, reading a book.
I walked to the bed and sat down near her. She laid the book on the bed, clasped her hands in her lap and stared at me.
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We sat in silence for a long time.
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Finally, Whisper spoke.
"Do you want me to leave, Daddy?" she asked, sadly.
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I looked at the beautiful little girl on the bed. The little girl that had become as real to me as anyone else in the world. The little girl that I looked at as my daughter.
"I never want you to leave," I said, finally.
"I never want you, to not be a part of my life. I love you more than life itself."
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She forced a brief smile.
"But what if I have to leave?"
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"What do you mean sweetie?"
I was worried. Whisper looked very concerned.
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"What if something was supposed to happen and when that something happened, I had to leave?"
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Now, I was concerned. Obviously there was something she was not telling me.
"Sweetie, what's wrong? What are you not telling me?"
I moved up closer to her on the bed and took one of her hands in mine.
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"I know why they sent me back Daddy. I know why I am here."
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I was almost afraid to ask.
"Why?"
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"So that I could help you and Evangeline be together."
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I thought about the complete disaster Whisper had caused just a day earlier.
"Well I don't think you are doing a very good job, considering the mess you made."
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"I know. I am so sorry."
She looked up at me and I saw a tear rolling down her cheek.
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I sat on the bed and pulled her into my arms.
"Besides sweetie, there is nothing wrong with me and Eva being together. It will not change anything between you and me and I know in time Evangeline will love you as much as I do.
I just have to find the right time to tell her about you."
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Whisper was shaking her head the whole time I was speaking.
"They will take me back Daddy. As soon as you and Evangeline are together, they will take me back."
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"Back? Back where?
And who are, they?"
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"My mommy and daddy. They will take me back to the white place."
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I shook my head.
"The white place? What is that?"
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"It is my destiny, Daddy. They will take me back there and I will be an angel."
She started crying.
"But I don't want to go back. I don't want to be an angel. I want to be here with you."
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I was confused. I did not fully understand what Whisper was saying, but then again, where was the sense, in the fact, that I was sitting on a bed, talking to the spirit of an eleven year old girl.
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I took a deep breath and put both arms around her. I may not fully understand what was happening, but I did know one thing, for sure.
"I won't let anyone take you from me," I said, finally.
"I promise you that."