Cadence had lost more people in the last year or so than ever before in her entire life. Through it all, it had been her grandmother’s comforting voice who had helped her keep it together. She had explained the Ternion to her. It had been in her upstairs bedroom where Cadence had Transformed, where she’d had her first meaningful conversation with Aaron. Over her Thanksgiving dinner, she’d joked with Elliott about how awful the Green Bay Packers were. As a child, she’d spent countless holidays with her family in her grandma’s living room, huddled around the fireplace, running through the back orchard chasing fireflies. The thought that all of that could be over was almost more than she could take. If it hadn’t been for Elliott’s hand in hers, reminding her that death and life were not so distant from each other after all, she might have lost it right there on the airplane before she even knew for certain something was wrong. But whether it was the power of suggestion or just a new attunement to the universe, she began to realize something had certainly shifted.
Attempting to contact Aaron once they reached the airport proved futile, and as the captain explained to Elliott that there was an SUV waiting for them just outside, Cadence numbly made her way out of the plane, still clutching her friend’s hand. If everything was okay, Aaron would’ve told her by now.
“Maybe he’s not here yet,” Elliott offered, reading her mind.
Cadence nodded as he helped her into the passenger side of a Jeep Patriot, not their typical model but one that would do in a pinch, but she could feel her stomach churning. Her grandmother’s Queen Anne was only a few minutes from the small airport they’d landed at, and Cadence was silent the entire time, Elliott’s right hand resting on her fisted left.
They pulled into the driveway, something Cadence had done thousands of times before without a thought, and she gazed up at the house. An eerie silence hung over the two-story edifice, and as she stepped out of the vehicle, a wave of sorrow hit her; it was as if the house had lost its soul. It seemed like an empty shell of a structure now.
The Lamborghini in the driveway was a good indication that Aaron was already there, and she absently wondered how long he’d been there, if he’d actually driven, why he hadn’t told her he’d arrived… and a thousand other questions that didn’t really matter.
Elliott came around the driver’s side and took her hand as she forced her feet to move toward the house. The front door creaked open, and as much as she hoped it would be the smiling face of her grandmother standing there, she was not surprised to see the much more serene blue eyes of her fiancé, looking at her with pity and his own grief. His hands were in his pockets and his eyes barely left the porch. The deluge of questions was pushed aside as Cadence flung herself over the steps and into his arms. None of their bickering mattered now as he enveloped her in his protective embrace.
Cadence could have stood wrapped in his arms for days, avoiding the inevitable question she had to ask and feeling like nothing in the world could harm her there, but after a few moments, she pulled herself back far enough to look up at him. “Is… is she gone?” she asked, just above a whisper.
Aaron nodded, and she could no longer hold back her tears, burying her head in his shoulder once again. A barrage of memories came rushing at her all at once, snapshots in time, scents that would forever remind her of a woman who loved everyone and never hesitated for a moment to do whatever she could to help anyone. Cadence struggled to pull herself together, realizing that she needed to find out what had happened, but each time she attempted to catch her breath, she felt her body spasm with another fit of tears, and if it weren’t for Aaron’s even breathing and the feel of his hand stroking her hair, she was certain her knees would buckle.
After a few minutes, she realized he was whispering in her ear, and she tried to still herself enough to comprehend what he was saying. “It’s okay, sweetheart. It really is. She lived a very long, happy life. She wanted to go. She’s with your grandpa now.”
She knew each statement was true, but somehow that didn’t help ease the pain of knowing she’d never see her grandmother’s smiling face again. If she hadn’t suddenly remembered Elliott was standing behind her and Aaron hadn’t seen him in months, she may have stood there and sobbed all day, but the realization that she was being selfish was enough to cause her to regain some composure, at least for the time being. Taking a deep breath and wiping her eyes, she stepped back. “Aaron, Elliott. Elliott, Aaron,” she said gesturing as if they had never met each other before.
Both of them managed a chuckle, and as they stepped around her to embrace, Elliott said, “Hey boss man. Good to see you.”
“Likewise,” Aaron said as he clapped his best friend of many years on the shoulder. “Great to have you back.”
If either of them felt any explanation of Aaron’s absence the night before was necessary, they didn’t go into it right then, and Cadence wondered if maybe they’d talked about that on the phone the night before. As Aaron gently took hold of both of her shoulders and peered into her face expectantly, she took a deep breath and asked, “So where is she? Is she inside?” While she couldn’t imagine what it might be like to look at her grandmother’s lifeless body, she also knew it was best to face these things head on. Unfortunately, too much experience with death had taught her it is always best to see the body.
“I told you, she’s gone,” Aaron repeated, his voice soft and soothing. “She’s literally gone, Cadence.”
“What do you mean?” Cadence asked, looking at him out of the corner of her eye.
Brushing her hair back over her shoulder and softly stroking her cheek he clarified. “Cadence, your grandma went through the portal.”
