Somewhere In-Between ~ An Adventure in the Afterlife

CHAPTER 31 - FINAL RESTING PLACE

Lizzie and Carl made their way down the street, chatting about what happened while Bob and Max waited for them at the burial site. Flowers had been set up at the grave already, under the tent. Max looked up and saw the tunnel of light leading way up into the open sky. Max remembered looking at photos of waterspouts. It looked a lot like that, but much less intimidating. Now that they were in a quiet place, Max could actually hear a sound coming from the light. It was like the sound of wind mixed with the faint, echo of music – but no music he'd ever heard before. He couldn't tell if it was instrumental or vocal.

Bob walked up beside him. "You're having second thoughts, aren't you?"

Max wasn't prepared for this discussion. "Yeah. I know it sounds stupid, but..."

"I understand, trust me. This place is tempting. Everything you know is here – everyone you care about. It's hard to leave that behind."

"It's not just that, though," Max shook his head. "I feel like I might have a purpose here."

"What purpose?"

"Bertha told me everyone has a purpose. Liz is finally starting to understand what hers is, and that's great. But I think I know what mine might be, too." Max put his hands on his hips. "I think I need to stay here, Bob. Carl, Liz and I... We make a pretty good team, don't you think?"

Bob grinned, raising an eyebrow. "You're an odd team, that's for sure."

Max smiled, crossing his arms and looking up at the vortex of light in the sky. "Do you know if I'll ever get another chance? You know... to cross over?"

Bob gazed at the swirling light above. "I'm not sure, kid. There are still things I'm trying to understand, myself. Bertha would know more than me on that subject."

"Say, who is Bertha, anyway?" Max turned to face Bob. "She said she didn't want to show me who she really is. I don't get it. Why the big secret?"

Bob smiled. "Trust me, kid... and trust her, too. Once you find out who she really is, the relationship changes. Right now you see her as a friendly wise woman dropping in occasionally to help you out in a pinch or to give guidance. That's how she wants you to see her, and that's the way it's going to stay."

Max shrugged, giving up. "Whatever, okay. I still don't understand what the big deal is."

People started to gather. His father wheeled Perry under the tent. His mother repositioned the seats to make room for the wheelchair. The Pastor rushed over to help. More people showed up to the gravesite than expected. There were enough seats for immediate family, but most people ended up standing. Lizzie and Carl tried pushing through the crowd to get as close as possible. Lizzie pointed up at the vortex, whispering to Carl what she was seeing. His eyes were wide as he heard the description, amazed.

Lizzie then scanned the crowd, looking for Max. He saw her look of desperation, and when their eyes locked, she waved at him to follow her. Telling Carl she'd be right back, she pushed out of the crowd and walked to an empty area, to speak privately with Max.

"Oh my gosh," she shook her head, not knowing what to say to him. Tears filled her eyes. "I can't believe what happened back there at the funeral home! Can you believe it?"

"It was pretty neat, yeah." Max said.

Lizzie laughed. "Neat? Max, you were incredible! I don't know how you did what you did – but you saved that boy, and you saved the rest of us in that room!"

"And you saved my sister, Liz." Max smiled. "Thanks for protecting her! If you hadn't done that, I wouldn't have been able to concentrate enough to do any of that."