Free Amethyst by Heather Bowhay Page B

until I was standing
safely on the ground and the woman was placed in an ambulance. I barely had
time to whisper words of gratitude to the fireman, who was looking at me rather
severely, when Ally almost plowed over me. Jessica joined in, and they hugged
and scolded me as an EMT placed an oxygen mask over my head. Luckily, I didn’t
have to wear it long. I didn’t have any shortness of breath, and I felt fine.
Jessica whispered something about how I could attribute my abundance of oxygen
to my Essence.
    Once the
paramedics deemed me fit to go, Ally and I hung around awhile longer, assisting
where we could. When it looked like the fire department and paramedics had
everything under control, we said our good-byes to Jessica for a second time.
With a meaningful glance, Jessica said we’d talk soon. Max, Madison, and Laci
showed up just as we were leaving. They looked disheveled, but not nearly as
sooty as I did. On the way home, Ally informed me those three had carried
people out of the building, while she and Jessica tended to the victims. Ally
marveled at their speed and aptitude and was clearly impressed at having
witnessed Jessica’s skills firsthand.
    Once we were
finally home, we collapsed onto the couch. As Ally thumbed through the mail she
said, “That was crazy insane! Talk about an adrenaline rush.” She paused and
frowned. “Oh yuk. It looks like we’ve gotten our first official bill – from the
power company. Hey, here’s another letter from your mom. Should we call
and tell her about the fire?”
    “Absolutely not.
No need to scare her.” I leaned over and grabbed the letter. “She’s upset
enough about that comatose college student.” Rubbing my eyes, I said, “I can’t
believe this whole day. First, Essence and Amethysts. Then epic apartment
fires. I can’t take much more. What I need is a long hot shower to get rid of
this filth and maybe this headache, too.”
    “Lexi, what you
need is a day without a premonition.”
    “Tell me about
it,” I mumbled, ripping open the envelope from my mom. Something green fell
into my lap as I pulled out the letter. I read it aloud to Ally and shook my
head at the postscript. “P.S. I’ve enclosed $150 spending money. Please give
$50 to Ally, and keep the rest for yourself. Spend it on something fun. Please
don’t tell your dad as we had some kind of silly agreement. It will be our
little secret.”
    “Your parents
crack me up.” Ally laughed. “Didn’t you say your dad transferred money into
your checking account today, and that’s how you paid for our dinner?”
    “Yes.” I sighed.
“Two hundred dollars and he made me promise not to tell mom because they had
some kind of agreement . Secrets,” I muttered. “Here’s your fifty bucks;
spend it wisely.” I tossed it in her lap.
    “I’m going to
write a nice thank you letter to your mom. Snail mail, of course. Do you think
she’ll ever convert to e-mail or texting?” Ally asked.
    “Not in this
lifetime.” Looking at my hundred dollar bill, I shook my head. “But I love her
anyways.” I leaned over and hugged Ally. “You too. Thanks for adapting to the
last minute plans. And thanks for covering when I ran into the apartment
building.”
    “No problem, I
knew you were on a premonition mission.” She giggled at her rhyme. “But I’m
still curious about all this Essence stuff. Sure would have come in handy
tonight. I’ll be expecting you to get a full report and find out what exactly
an Amethyst can do. What you can do.” She leaned against my shoulder.
    Suddenly solemn,
I rose from the couch and said, “I’ll talk with Jessica soon. Promise. But
right now, all I want is that hot shower and a bottle of Excedrin.”
    “Can’t wait…Ms.
Amethyst,” she shouted after me.
    I shook my head
warily and kept on walking. Once I was in the shower, scalding water washed the
soot from my body and the smoke from my hair. I only wished it would wash away
my frustration and anger as well. Here