Epilogue
By Julie and Rachel
Two
days later, Brian, AJ, Howie, and Kevin stood around the freshly dug grave
where Lucy’s remains were to be buried.
There were a few people there besides the Boys, including the librarian
that Brian and Kevin had met a few days before. A local minister said a few
words, but the burial was far from a normal funeral. Still, it was rather emotional for the guys,
especially as they watched the librarian standing there, tears shining in her
pale blue eyes, her wrinkled hands clasped tightly together.
Soon,
the small mahogany coffin was being lowered into the grave. The few guests that were there all stepped
forward and tossed a handful of dirt into the hole. Then, some men came and started scooping dirt
into the grave, filling the hole. Once
again, Lucy O’Malley was being buried under the ground, but at least this time,
it was a resting place where her body would be protected, and it would be known
where she lay.
Soon,
the grave was nearly filled, and most of the people had left, but the four Boys
still stood there. Brian read the
inscription on the tombstone, which marked the grave.
Lucille Anne O’Malley
February 23, 1931 – July 14, 1938
Rest in Peace
After
standing at the gravesite for several minutes, Kevin cleared his throat and
turned around to face his bandmates.
"You guys ready to go see Nick now?" he asked.
"Yeah"
he heard four hoarse voices reply.
Without
a word, they all turned away from the gravesite and walked towards the
car. Brian took one last glance at the
gravesite and whispered, "Rest in Peace, Lucy."
***
"Hey
Nicky!" the guys greeted as they entered Nick's hospital room.
Nick
looked up from the boring Scottish television show he was watching and grinned,
"Hey guys"
"Whatcha
all dressed up for?" Nick asked as he cast a curious glance over at his
bandmates.
"Well
we had little Lucy O'Malley buried today." Brian responded
"Why
didn't you guys tell me?" pouted Nick as he turned the TV off and looked
at his bandmates waiting for an answer.
"We
didn't want you to know because you would have wanted to go and we didn't want
to have to tell you that you couldn't."
Kevin explained.
Nick opened his mouth to reply but quickly shut
his mouth and his eyes grew wide as the temperature dropped.
Brian
saw Nick pale a few shades, and he turned to see the ghost standing in the
doorway. Nick swallowed hard, and Brian could see his hands start to shake.
“Nick,
don’t worry, he doesn’t want to hurt us,” Brian whispered. Nick nodded, taking a deep breath. All four guys cautiously watched as the ghost
stepped into the room. Suddenly, he
stopped and turned around. Brian’s
breath caught in his throat as a little girl ran into the room. The ghost’s blank expression turned into a
huge smile, and he grabbed the child in his arms and swung her around.
Brian
could hear the girl’s lilting giggles, and a chill ran down his spine. But the sight before him didn’t scare
him. It filled him with happiness, for
after all those years, Ste O’Malley had finally been reunited with his beloved
daughter.
Brian
watched as Ste finally set Lucy down and turned to him and the rest of the
guys. He nodded to Nick and then stepped
up to Brian, extending his hand. Brian
slowly reached out his hand to Ste’s.
His hand went ice cold as it passed directly through Ste’s.
Surprised by the coldness, Brian jerked his
hand back. Ste just smiled at him. Brian offered a smile back. Then Ste bent down and took Lucy’s hand. He
looked back over his shoulder and gave the five guys one last glance, then
headed for the door, Lucy walking alongside him.
Before
they reached the door, Lucy turned and grinned at the guys, waving to
them. Then she and her father continued
to the door, and suddenly, as they walked through the doorway, they
disappeared.
Brian
smiled, knowing that he had helped bring two lost souls back together. Now they could finally leave this Earth
behind and go to where they truly belonged, to be together for all eternity.
The End