Springfields The Power of Hope

Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

Late Autumn 2010

Hope stood at the graveside of her great grandmother and wondered why her life had taken such a downward turn. All the plans she had growing up had all come to nothing, and now a person who had a great influence in her life had died. She wasn’t ready to come back to Springfields, but here she was and she knew deep in her heart there was a reason for it other than the obvious. Hope wasn’t the carefree girl she once was, life had dealt her a blow and she was still recovering.......

Hope’s plan was to go to medical college and then onto research, the kind of research that would show her how to amalgamate her medical knowledge with her herbal remedies and in doing so making medication better for the patient. That was Hope’s ambition, but the medical profession had other ideas; they ridiculed her for what she wanted to do and generally made college a place Hope didn’t want to be, and so after only two years she decided to leave. Hope packed up her things, got in her car and drove around the UK, searching for something, not knowing what. Whilst visiting a local craft fair she met Maple. Maple was from a family who lived off the land, selling their own produce and crafts. They were instant friends, having a lot in common. Maple was able to understand what was lacking in Hope and so took her under her wing and taught her all she could about life. They travelled round the country fairs, which really lifted Hope’s spirits. Maple had so much to teach her and Hope was more than willing to learn whatever she could.......

“Hope, you coming?” shouted her mother.

“Yes, Ma, be right there,” said Hope, taking one last look at Sylvia’s grave.

Hope slowly turned and walked after the line of people going back to the Mason House. She wasn’t sure how long she was going to stay. It had been almost a year since she had been back to Springfields and Hope wasn’t sure she was glad to be home.

There was a very sombre atmosphere in the house, which would be normal in other societies, but not for the clan; they believe only the body dies, the spirit continues on, going back home to the Universe. Hope looked around the dining room; people were just standing around with their heads down, not talking to anyone, which was very unusual. She started to mingle with the people of the village, asking them how they were, as she hadn’t seen them for some time, but no one wanted to talk about anything. Hope decided to look for her mother and find out what was going on.

“Ma, can I talk with you a moment?” asked Hope.

“Of course, dear,” said Elisha. Hope noticed her mother had aged quite a bit since she had been away, which heightened her concern even more. They walked out into the garden arm in arm. Hope loved the touch of her mother; it made her feel good.

“What’s bothering you, Hope? I know this is a sad time, but ... you look troubled.” Elisha looked at her daughter with a very concerned look on her face.

“As you said, Mammy, it is a very sad time, but people do seem to be more than just sad over Great Gran’s death. What’s going on?” It seemed like an age before Elisha answered.

“Things haven’t been very good around here for a while; your Great Gran said she had been seeing things. It started as little things, then she got worse, talking to people who weren’t there. We just thought it was her age. The crops haven’t done so well this year either. No one knows why they feel down, they just do.” Elisha looked concerned. At that moment the twins came running out to greet Hope.

“Hope, you’re back, why didn’t you tell us?” both said together.

“I haven’t had a chance to see anyone. I arrived just in time to go to the funeral,” laughed Hope. She hugged each of them. “You have both grown so much since the last time I was here.”

“A long time ago,” said Tammy looking sternly at Hope. They all laughed and walked into the house. Elisha turned to Hope.

“We can talk about this later,” said Elisha with a smile. Hope nodded in agreement.

That evening after the twins had gone to bed, Hope was in the sitting room with her mum and dad—Elisha and Bobby.

“Ma, you were going to tell me what has been going on here?” Hope asked.

“Do we have to do this now?” Bobby sighed.

“Sorry, Da, but if not now, when?” Hope looked sadly at her father.

“I know, Hope, but I don’t want to start dragging up the past,” said Bobby.

“The past has nothing to do with it, Bobby. You said yourself things have been different in the last few months,” said Elisha.

Hope stood up. “Perhaps we can talk about it tomorrow, Ma, when I go and see Granny Mason; didn’t get a chance to speak with her at the funeral.” She headed towards the door.

“Okay, dear, that would be fine. See you in the morning.” Elisha couldn’t lose this foreboding feeling.

After breakfast Elisha and Hope set out for Amelia’s. The energies did seem a little better, but Hope wasn’t sure if it didn’t have something to do with the sun shining so bright. They walked down the path to Amelia’s in silence, neither knowing what to say to the other. Hope skipped along the last part of the path to her granny’s,—old memories coming back. She had always had a special bond with Amelia and Amelia had always known Hope had the gypsy spirit in her. She had told Elisha as much when they were talking about Hope travelling around the country with Maple.

“Granny, you home?” Hope called out as she opened the door. Amelia came through from the kitchen, a big smile on her face. She hugged Hope for a long time.

“It has been too long since I’ve seen you and I’ve missed you greatly,” said Amelia.

“Oh, Gran, it hasn’t been that long,” Hope sighed.

“Well, you’re here now and it’s good to see you. Sorry we didn’t get a chance to talk yesterday.” Amelia smiled at Hope.

“Gran, I know everyone is missing Great Gran, but I’m sure this isn’t the reason for the heavy energies. Everyone seems so down. When someone dies in the clan they don’t celebrate their death, but their life. Yesterday at the funeral everyone looked like they were dying,” said Hope.

“I’m not sure, Hope. Your Great Gran was saying she was seeing things, but quite honestly we didn’t take much notice as she was going a little senile towards the end, or so we thought.”

“When did it all start?” asked Hope.

“Not quite sure really, it was very gradual. It wasn’t until your Great Gran started going on about seeing spirits that we started to notice how bad things had got. Elisha, you’re not saying much.” Amelia looked at Elisha who was deep in thought.

“Sorry, I was miles away. Some tea would be nice.” Elisha wanted to change the subject. She started to think about when it had all started—back in the early spring. The kids had gone back to school after the spring break, and usually everyone was happy to be able to get on and do the things they never got done when the kids were at home. But this time nobody seemed happy. Amelia came through with the tea and Elisha started to tell Hope what had been happening...........

First day back at school, it was a lovely day. You would usually see a lot of the mums out and about in the village, but all was very quiet. That afternoon the school bus pulled in with the kids. All the mums were waiting at the bus park. There had been a section of trees cut down and an area cleared for the bus to pull in to pick up and drop off the kids from school. Only this day, one of the mums was left wondering where her son was. Chrissie asked Ted the driver if he had seen Samuel, and he hadn’t. She went home and phoned the school, but he wasn’t there. Chrissie decided to get in her car and go to the school, looking out as she went to see if Samuel was walking home. It was only a mile to the school, but because of the main road the village had decided to get a bus, so that the kids could be kept safe from the traffic.

Chrissie arrived back at the village, but Samuel wasn’t with her; she was shaking and crying. The police were contacted, and with all the men from the village, went out to search for Samuel, thankful for the lighter nights. They found nothing.

Samuel was missing for two days. On the third day the bus brought the kids home from school, and there sitting in his seat was Samuel. He got off the bus, none the wiser to the fact he had been missing for two days. One of the other mothers had phoned Chrissie; she ran over and swept him up in her arms, crying.

“Mum, what’s the matter?” asked Samuel.

“Where have you been Samuel? Everyone’s been looking for you for two days.” Chrissie was trying to control her tears, but she was so relieved. Samuel looked at her very puzzled.

“I went to school this morning and now I’m home,” Samuel said very slowly.

“Come, let’s go home.” Chrissie held Samuel’s hand tightly; she didn’t want to let him go.

Two days later and another child went missing for two days, and just like before, the child returned having no idea what all the fuss was about. The police suggested a couple of the mums accompany the driver each day, and to have a head count as the children got on and off the bus, but still more boys went missing. The children’s names were ticked off as they got on the bus, but at the other end the children were gone, and always on the way home. Six children in all—all boys—went missing for two days and returned not knowing anything about it. We have been unable to find out why or where they went. And then, just as suddenly, it all stopped.

The three women sat in silence for a while thinking about what could have happened.

“So no one has an explanation at all?” asked Hope.

“Nope,” both Amelia and Elisha said together.

“Have you asked the clan?”

“We did, and the other strange thing is none of the boys that went missing were clan, they were all village boys,” said Amelia.

“And it just stopped—nothing more?” said Hope.

“Oh, there was more,” said Elisha with a sigh.....

“A week after the last boy was taken, it started all over again, only this time it was girls, all from the village. There were whispers around the village, asking if the clan had anything to do with it; but of course they didn’t. The last girl to be taken was Tammy,” said Elisha.

Hope drew in a breath, “Is she okay?”

“She has been having nightmares. In fact all the kids that were taken have been having nightmares, but they don’t remember what the nightmare was about or why they were having it. I wish Tilly was here she could help them with their dreams,” said Elisha.

Tilly was the clan’s medicine lady and healer; she had a way of gaining access to your dreams, allowing you to confront your fears and so stopping the nightmares. Tilly had passed away last year of natural causes.

“Ma, didn’t Tilly tell you how to enter people’s dreams?” asked Hope.

“Don’t you think I tried; it’s as if something is blocking their minds.” Elisha looked very sad.

“You did what you could, Ma,” Hope said trying to reassure her mother. “And since Tammy came back there hasn’t been any other abduction?”

“That’s right, but still the air is heavy with impending doom,” said Amelia.

Elisha and Amelia chatted with Hope about what had been going on, giving all the details they possibly could. Amelia looked at the other two women and burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny, Ma,” asked Elisha rather sternly.

“Well, doesn’t this scene remind you of another time things were strange in Springfields?” laughed Amelia.

Elisha looked sad. “That’s what’s worrying me, Ma.”

Amelia was thinking about the times she, Elisha and her mother, Sylvia, had been gathered in her living room, trying to solve the Secrets of Springfields. What a bad time it had been, putting wandering spirits to rest and resolving the anger from the past. Some good had come of it, as it brought Amelia and Robbie closer and they finally got married. Elisha had bought the land that Headley House once stood on—it had burnt to the ground in a freak lightning storm—and gave it to the clan for safe keeping. It was now known as The Haven. Sylvia, Amelia, Elisha and Hope had come to realise the inner powers they had and how to use them. All of them had been amazed at what they had been able to achieve. More amazing was how Hope’s energy had become greater than anyone could have believed or even thought possible, and there was more for her to learn; she felt it. Elisha had been told before Hope was born that Hope would have a strong energy and that it would be needed to help others.

However, it had pushed Harry, Bobby’s brother, and Harry’s wife, Abigail, back to London, much to the disappointment of Kathleen and Donald, Harry’s parents. Amelia asked herself, ‘Could this be something left over from that, or is this something new?’......

*****

That night Hope woke with a start, as if someone had shaken her awake. She looked around the bedroom, but no one was there. Then she heard whimpering. She got out of bed and opened the bedroom door. There in the hall was Tammy, glassy-eyed and wandering around aimlessly.

“Tammy, what are you doing out of bed?” Hope walked up to her slowly; she didn’t want to frighten her. As she got close to her, Hope could see that she was sleep-walking. Hope gently guided her back to her bed. Tammy got into bed and closed her eyes. The whimpering stopped and her breathing returned to that of normal sleep. Hope sat on the side of the bed stroking Tammy’s hair, wondering what had happened to her, when her mind jumped into Tammy’s. Hope could see she was in a dark room; there was a bed, a sink and a chair. She looked at the bed and Tammy was asleep in it. Hope walked over to the bed, when someone came into the room. She didn’t recognise the person and the person didn’t see her. The person was a woman and she walked over to Tammy, felt her forehead. On the table were some papers and the woman started to write on a piece. She then checked Tammy’s pulse and wrote the result down. Hope had no idea what was going on or where she was. As the woman walked toward the door she said, “I’m sure you’re the one,” then walked out of the room and closed the door behind her.

Hope walked over to the door and tried to grab the handle, but couldn’t, she tried again and again, but her hand just went straight through the handle like she was a ghost. It seemed like an age that she was there watching Tammy, then ‘bump’ she must have fallen asleep and slipped off of Tammy’s bed. She looked up to see if she had woken the twins, but she hadn’t. Hope sighed. She watched the twins sleeping for a while and then went back to bed, but she couldn’t sleep; what she had seen was going round in her head.

Hope must have dozed off for a while, for as she came to, the sun was shining and the birds were singing. She looked at the clock; it was 9:30am. She jumped out of bed. Hope couldn’t believe her mum had let her sleep so late. At home the house stirred about 5:30am, with her dad getting up to see to the farm. She got dressed and went downstairs. Hope found her mother in the kitchen. “Morning, Ma. Why did you let me sleep so late?” asked Hope.

“I thought you could probably do with the rest after your journey yesterday, you did look very tired.” Elisha smiled at her daughter.

“Yes, I was glad of the sleep, but not because of the journey yesterday, but because I was up half the night with Tammy.”

Elisha swung round to face Hope. “What happened?” Elisha sounded very worried.

Hope told her mother what had happened; Hope could tell by the look on her mother’s face that she was very worried. “What is it, Ma?” asked Hope.

“Your Great Gran kept saying they were after the twins. We asked her who was after the twins, but she never said.” Elisha put her face in her hands and cried. Hope held her mother, singing to her to calm her, something her mother would have done for her when she was small. Hope had no idea how long they sat there. It didn’t matter; they had to find the answer to what was going on here before something else happened.

Hope realised this was the reason she had come home, not only to say good-bye to her great gran, but because she was needed—she felt it overwhelmingly. Hope decided to have a walk through the woods to the spot where she and Douglas would go and play—their special place. Douglas was the son of Elisha’s best friend, Marjorie; he and Hope grew up together. Hope sat for a while just taking in the beauty of nature. How she had always loved being here, especially with Douglas. Her mind started to go back to the times they had together, making plans for the future, wondering what they would be doing when they reached the age they are now. Douglas had got where he wanted to go, but Hope was still searching......

Hope felt something stirring amongst the trees. She turned, but no one was there. The feeling got stronger and the energy she felt was familiar. She knew enough now to focus her mind—after all the previous problems Hope had been given guidance on how to connect with spirit. She sat, closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, becoming aware of each breath, slowing her heart rate and feeling her concentration go within. Hope opened her mind. All the outside noises faded away and she felt her mind blend with who was trying to communicate with her, and immediately she knew it was Tilly.

Hope felt Tilly was happy that Hope had continued her teachings and was following in her footsteps.

“Hi, Tilly,” said Hope. “I’m surprised it’s me who has been chosen for this task, as Mammy was the one who trained with you over the years. I’ll do whatever I can to help; we need to get to the bottom of what’s going on here.”

“First you need to get into Tammy’s dream and find out what these people want.” Tilly sighed.

“There is more than one of them?” asked Hope.

“Yes, I’ve been watching but I’m only allowed to guide. You must follow your intuition,” stated Tilly.

“Surely as a spirit you are able to solve this problem without me. You could find out what’s going on and then relay it to me.” Hope sounded so desperate.

“We’re only allowed to help. What if this is a life lesson for you? If I do the work I’ll be taking that lesson away from you. That’s not allowed.”

Hope sighed. “Nothing is ever easy. Very well, where do we start?”

“With Tammy’s dreams,” said Tilly.

Hope felt the energies lessen.

“Tilly, you still there?” But Tilly was gone. Hope sat for a while going over in her mind what Tilly had told her. Why would this be a lesson for her? And if it was, what could it be?

*****

Over the next week Hope visited all the families of the boys who went missing, collecting as much information as she could, which wasn’t much. None of the children remembered anything, and their dreams had stopped. The information she gathered was that they had all suffered the same symptoms: nightmares, times of sleep-walking and whimpering in their sleep. However, as time went on each child started to get back to normal. The only one still having disturbed sleep was Tammy, and this worried Hope immensely, so off she went to her special place in the woods.

Hope sat in her usual place on a fallen tree; the energy she got here uplifted her and allowed her to focus. As she sat and centred herself it wasn’t long before she heard the rustling of the leaves and felt the stirring of energies all around her. The hair on her arms stood on end and her heart started to beat faster. She wanted so much to open her eyes and see a spirit before her, but was concerned she would lose the connection. She asked with her mind, ‘Who’s there?’ Nothing came back immediately, so she waited. The rustling of the leaves grew stronger and the energy Hope felt started to make her nervous. Hope decided to do her chant, ‘Only those with love and light are welcome here both day and night. May all the Angels from up above surround this place with protection and love.’ Immediately the rustling stopped and Hope started to feel less anxious. Hope made a mental note to herself—‘remember to do your protection.’ She must say her chant each time and not forget again. A lesson learned.