Lucy worked steadily for what little time was left in her day before she could head to the safety of her home to regroup. She had hoped that Thomas would return to tell her more about what had happened earlier, but he must have gotten held up somewhere because he never did.

As her little car pulled up at the end of the dock that lead to her grandmother's house, she gave a silent sigh of relief. Here was her normal, she knew that her grandmother had made them a delicious supper. They would eat and then she could spend the rest of the evening working on her grandmother's birthday present. It was an old ornate four poster bed frame that she had found in the attic. It had seen better days, but it had been in the family for years. She was going to restore it to its former glory and then buy her grandmother all new bedding, bedding fit for a queen. It was something her grandmother had told her she had wanted for a long time, and now she had the money to make it happen.

As Lucy got out of the car, Shy, their protector, came prancing down the dock towards her. It amazed her that, for such a bedraggled dog that had led a rough life in the few short years he had been on earth, he managed to carry himself with such assurance and swagger. So much in fact, one automatically thought he was larger than he was, and he reminded her a lot of Zebadiah in that sense. Shy also reminded her of Zebadiah because he didn't trust anyone, and she had a feeling that Zebadiah didn't trust many people either. However, despite his trust issues Shy had chosen Lucy and her grandmother, Etta, as his to protect, and she was glad that they had him, especially since their house was in the middle of nowhere.

Her grandmother's house looked old and dilapidated on the outside, like an old shack that sat over the water, but inside was an oasis of color and antiques that was welcoming and warm. Her grandmother had been born in the house and had lived there her entire life, and she wouldn't consider living anywhere else, although Lucy had tried to convince her to move to the city with her many times.

Lucy once again thought of Zebadiah as she started down the pier, pausing to look out over the still marsh water. The evening sounds of frogs and cicadas all faded, as did the gentle breeze that stirred the warm night air and moss hanging over head. She wasn't thinking of any one thing but all of it thrown together, his eyes, the feel of his hand, his smile. She frowned when she remembered the vision of breaking glass and seeing red, it wasn't good, but she didn't think that it was a given, only a warning; but of what she couldn't be sure.

"Baby Girl, why are you just standing there looking at nothing?" her grandmother asked from the doorway of their house.

"I met him today Etta," she said, not hearing the words as she said them, it was as if she was in some sort of trance.

"Yes, I know." Her grandmother walked up to her, placing her hand on her arm. "Come eat and tell me about it?"

The contact startled Lucy as she looked over at her grandmother's weathered face. "About what?"

"About him," she explained as she led the way into the house.

Lucy blushed, she had never really talked about boys or men with her grandmother before, or with anyone before, it was new territory. "How did you know?"

"You just told me," Lucy followed her into the house and moved to the kitchen in the back of the house to wash her hands. Then, still in a dream like stupor, she joined her grandmother at the table without paying any attention to the delicious meal spread there.

"So, tell me about him," the woman insisted. She was small like Lucy and her eyes were just a gray as was her hair. The only difference was her lined face.

"He was large, dark, and cold." Lucy shivered at the memory, astounded that such a man had her hypnotized.

"But?" the older woman asked as she watched the beautiful young woman in front of her eat absentmindedly.

"He smiled, he was told I was a witch, but he still treated me with respect."

"Who told him you were a witch?" Etta's voice was sharp, and Lucy only shrugged in response.

They sat in silence for a moment, both with their own thoughts.

"What did you see?" Etta finally asked her.

"I saw me," she said so softly that her grandmother had to strain to hear her.

The woman nodded as if that was expected. "And?"

"There were two little girls and he was happy."

"And you, were you happy?" Etta's eyes couldn't miss the glow that covered her granddaughter's face.

"Yes, I was, and I was pregnant." She nodded happily at the memory, as if assuring herself that she had it right in her head, but then she frowned as the other memory invaded her happy glow. "I also saw red." She knew it was a bad omen, and the frown on her grandmother's face proved that fact.

"Which vision came first?"

"The happy one." Lucy looked up at Etta, waiting for her to explain, and she was relieved when she saw her nod.

"That's good, it's a warning only, there is an evil that surrounds you both. You will have to be on your guard until it shows itself." Her grandmother leaned forward. "Was there anything else?"

Lucy blushed at the memory of the third vision. It was an intimate image of her and Zebadiah entwined in a large bed, she hadn't been able to see where one body started and the other one stopped.

Etta gave a knowing smile. "Keep that one to yourself," she chuckled, and Lucy's blush deepened. "What is his name?"

"Zeb, Zebadiah Abbott." Lucy let name roll off her tongue, it sounded so familiar now.

Etta was thoughtful for a moment, as if considering whether to tell her something or not. "When you were born your great aunt told your future and I always puzzled over it, but now it makes sense." Etta shook her head as she took a moment to remember her sister who had embraced their gifts and honed her skill, making it her life's work.

"Tell me?" Lucy begged, searching for something that would help it all make sense in her head.

"She said, 'Her life will be blessed, and she will be content when the name which begins with the ending and ends with the beginning arrives.' It's rather impressive," Etta said with a sad smile.

A sudden knock on the screen door startled them and Shy gave a little growl. The fact that he hadn't attacked the door could only mean that it was Thomas.

"Come in Thomas!" Etta called, moving to the kitchen to get another plate.

"Did you psychic abilities divine that it was me?" he joked as he entered the house, giving Shy a wide berth.

Etta laughed. "No, Shy did." She gave him a hug and he kissed her cheek before she handed him a plate. He was about to refuse when he saw what she had made.

"Only a little, Hope has dinner waiting," he said as he dished up and started to eat quickly.

"Then why are you here?" Lucy asked, watching him with amusement.

Lucy looked at her grandmother and they both agreed in an unspoken moment that they shouldn't tell Thomas as they gave him a few minutes to eat.

"I wanted to get your take on Abbott," he said with a full mouth. 

"I hardly had a chance to judge," Lucy said offhandedly. "He sounded like he was reasonable, and he treated me with respect even after he was told I might be a witch."

"You're bound to like him because he's going to let you have your own way with the third floor." He grinned as he pushed his plate away, having finished eating in record time.

Lucy smiled and nodded. "I'll add that he is possibly a wise man."

"He makes me nervous. I would hate to cross him." Thomas looked up at Lucy. "Did he make you nervous?"

"No, I sense he is a fair man," Lucy said, knowing it was what he wanted to hear. "But I agree, I wouldn't cross him or mess with what is his. I have a feeling he doesn't easily forgive." She suppressed a shiver as she said it.

They spoke for a few more minutes before Thomas nodded as he stood, he had gotten what he wanted, an assurance that he wouldn't have any trouble with Zebadiah Abbott.

"You better head home before Hope sends out a search party," Lucy suggested then watched as he left as quickly as he had arrived.

She couldn't help but think that, while Thomas would have no trouble with Zebadiah, she would have a heap of it, along with a broken heart. Because even though her aunt had foretold it, and her own visions had confirmed it, she still had a hard time believing that a strong and powerful man like Zebadiah Abbott could love an outcast like herself.

"He's a strong man, he's up for the challenge," Etta said softly from the other side of the room.

Lucy didn't ask her how she knew what she was thinking, there were just some things that were better left unexplained.