Jacob's Mother—Chapter 40

Chasing the Sun

Photo by Adam Dillon on Unsplash

Jacob’s Mother is a serialized novel. Start with Chapter One.

Chapter 40: Chasing the Sun

When Julia placed her arm around the dying woman, and the vines slithered across her own body, locking the two of them in a permanent embrace, she felt peace. This woman, Moya, was brave and a good mother, even if she didn’t realize it. Julia rested her head on Moya’s shoulder, and the vines crawled around her neck. Moya was shivering, but Julia felt no cold. She wasn’t even wet, even though she was submerged in the water. No one deserved to die alone, and if she could be a comfort to another mother in her time of need, it was the least she could do. Perhaps this one kindness could redeem her for some of the bad she had done in her life.

Julia smiled at the bluish glow that came out of her body. The voices had told her all along that she was special. They told her that her life would end in this cave. She never believed them. She feared them. She didn’t think they were real. Now she knew that they were real. There were good voices and bad voices. She smiled, realizing she wasn’t crazy. She wasn’t crazy.

She held Moya as she took her last breath. She watched as the water filled Moya’s lungs and she twitched in surprise with it, trapped in the vines.

Then the light went out, and the two mothers sat together, in darkness and underwater. Julia squeezed Moya’s shoulder to let her know she was there as she died. To let her know that she wasn’t alone. There was an intense pressure, as if the weight of the world was pulling them down into it’s core.

Then release!

The bright light came, and the vines were gone. The light shut out everything else, and they seemed to glide through it. Julia never let go of Moya’s shoulder, until they found themselves standing on the green hills of Wicklow.

Julia looked around at the landscape. This was her favorite place in the world. The tender feelings from all the moments she felt with Craig flooded over her. She hoped Jacob would try to find him. She breathed in the fresh air and felt young. Moya stood next to her smiling.

A man stood at the top of the hill. He waved to Moya. Moya turned to Julia, and said, “Thank you.” She hugged her tight, then she ran to her husband.

They embraced.

Julia watched them kissing and touching each other’s faces, and she felt happy for them. Her body was pulsing with love, as if she could feel all the love that anyone had ever felt for her, and it was infinite.

She could feel the love of her son, Jacob. She saw them holding hands in the park when he was small. She saw him cuddle up against her on the couch as they watched Wheel of Fortune and drank Coca Cola. She could see him smiling at her when she found him in a game of hide and seek. She could see him, crying in his car over her when she was hospitalized. She felt his love, even though he didn’t know how to share it with her.

She hoped that someday she would see his father, Craig again. She hoped that Craig was having an adventurous life, filled with surfing and art and family. He was a good man.

Then Moya and her husband turned and joined a multitude of shadowy people that were wandering on the hill. Julia followed and found that she was welcomed by all the voices she had apprehended all her life, and she realized there was nothing to fear.

Julia was sad to leave her granddaughter behind, but she could also see her whole granddaughter’s life at once, and knew she would grow into a boisterous laughing woman. She could see Addie, strong and solid, a practical woman who feared nothing and heard no more voices from another place. She saw Addie laughing with Jacob in a car and jumping into the ocean, shrieking with delight. She saw her embracing friends. She saw her in a cap and gown. She even saw her Aideen walk right by the Gancanagh in a pub and straight into the arms of a nice husband, without a second look at the smoking man. She saw Addie thumbing through a photography book with a weathered old man who looked like he experienced ten lifetimes of adventures. For once in her life, Julia felt proud. She protected her granddaughter. She smiled turning to follow her new friends. The sun was rising, and her people were walking towards it, forever chasing the light.

The End

Author’s note: So concludes Jacob’s Mother. Thank you so much for joining me on this journey. I would love to know what you think.

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Jacob’s Mother is an original publication by Laura Ellis. This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law and fair use.