“I’ll tell you what. Those things sure have an aversion to bug spray. And those comic books of yours.” Dean nodded to Justin. “Those damn things ’bout saved my life. Just before sunset, I hitched a ride with a wagon load of people, and we went south for a day to avoid the horde. Figured I’d catch up with you all later,” Dean explained.
Ella finally found her voice. “OMG, OMG!” She waved her hands at her mascara, which was already running down her cheeks. “This is the happiest day. Ever!”
“Remember Sergeant Wilcox’s safe deposit box?” Luther asked. “Turns out, he was filthy rich.”
“Good to see you put the money to a worthy cause,” Dean said with a twinkle in his eye.
“Get this, I’m the owner of a bakery, once they finish installing the equipment,” Luther announced. “Sheena gave me Power of Attorney. I didn’t want to say anything when we were looking for Ella. She offered me a business deal the night we stayed at Last Chance.”
It was the second time he’d mentioned Sheena. Scarlett interrupted before Dean could say anything. “You’re Sheena’s tall, dark, and handsome?” Another piece to the puzzle.
“Your last name must be Lewis. I never put two and two together,” Luther said. “So, Dean, if you don’t have anything better to do, why not be my biz partner?”
“Don’t know a thing ’bout baking,” Dean admitted, rubbing his chin. “Reckon I owe you one. They kept me in quarantine for days, thinkin’ I was about to turn on them. I was lookin’ pretty peaked. I told them about Wilcox and Meyers. Turns out, Wilcox was a local hero of sorts. Things had a way of happening. Anyhow, when a surgeon from Last State came to perform a stent operation on one of the Enforcers, I managed to get one for myself. Got a clean bill of health,” Dean said proudly.
“My man, why would you owe me anything?” Luther’s brow furrowed.
Dean clapped Luther’s shoulder. “Knowing how partial you were to those god-awful Hawaiian shirts, I hauled them along, hoping to catch up with you in Boom Town. Imagine my surprise when Immigrant Station informed me of the gold contraband hidden inside. Sorry to say, the Enforcers ended up confiscating half of it, and then I had to pay the surgeon. Yep, ol’ Luther here was the smartest one of the bunch all along.”
“What comes around goes around. Found the rapper bling in Oakland. An annoying little voice kept saying ‘take me.’ I’ve got to admit, those uh-glee shirts bolstered my mojo,” Luther hyped.
“Dude, no wonder you always went back for the shirts. I thought you had gone cray-cray on us,” Justin chirped.
“Justin, is there enough money to get you and Ella into Last State?” Dean inquired.
Ella answered instead. “They didn’t care about the gold. They’re only taking certain skillsets. And, and, so Justin took days and days of tests. Justin’s a genius!” Ella beamed.
“I kept telling you guys that,” Justin touted with red-tinged cheeks. “So that’s what the rush is about. I can only take Ella if she’s my wife before I’m an official Last State citizen, which is like, tomorrow!”
Scarlett thought she saw a ripple blurring the room, blurring the air. A change had occurred. Her inner voice told her it was a ripple in time, followed by a ripple of sadness, which was followed by a ripple of happiness. But, the light overshadowed the darkness.
“And you?” Dean questioned, looking at Scarlett.
Scarlett nodded. “The only reason they’re taking us is because of Twila.” The blood tests had revealed she wasn’t the child’s birth mother. Scarlett had told them she adopted Twila when she was an infant since there wasn’t a way to disprove it. It was evident they were only interested in the child. After several psychological tests, it was decided it would be detrimental to Twila’s emotional state if she were separated from the only mother she had known. Something about the last visit with the doctors had been disconcerting, reminding her of Zac’s warning: Texas wasn’t what it seemed. Surely, it’s better than Creeperville, U.S.A.
“Well, I hope you visit Luther and I at the—” Dean turned to Luther. “Say, are we really opening a bakery?” It finally seemed to dawn on him.
“Yup, and we live on the top floor, just like they did in the old days,” Luther said.
Justin interrupted, “Quick, hide me. Here comes the wedding nazi.”
“Our wedding coordinator is sooo bossy.” Ella rolled her eyes.
A grayed-haired woman in a lavender, chiffon gown whisked the bride and groom to the dance floor for the first dance. Scarlett watched, absorbing the moment. With trembling hands and heart, she grabbed the nearby chair. How can this be happening? How did all of us make it here? The area between her brows quivered until she acknowledged the Silver Lady.
The Silver Lady’s words came silently. “My dear one, think not this is mere coincidence. Your undying hope that goodness would prevail propelled by the warrior-dragon blood pulsing through your veins is what intertwines all of you—lifetime after lifetime, Soul Mission after Soul Mission until the end of the Hu. With the help of your soulmates, the Grand Plan to save Hu-manity is alive.”
At that moment Scarlett—believed. Everything. She fought back the tears and questioned The Grand Plan’s motives. If you planned it, why did Ella’s baby have to die? So cruel.
The mysterious voice answered. “We see only what is written in the Akashic Records for that continuum. It changes with every thought and action. For Humanity is blessed and cursed with the ultimate gift of Free Will. Nevertheless, it was not the soul’s time. The soul will re-born in Ella’s womb when the time is right. A time when she is safe from the Ancient Bloodlines. For Ella’s untainted soul has all the quintessential attributes of Life Giver and Soul Mother of the new Hu.”
And Twila? Scarlett pressed, anxious for more information.
“Ah, Twila is the cosmic wild card. A teacher, healer, and Life Giver. It is too soon to know. Unconditional love nurtures the new Hu DNA. Only time will tell. Until then, believe . . .”
The Silver Lady dissolved into nothingness. Scarlett eyed the gang wistfully; they had a lot of catching up to do. Or not. Their pasts were encrusted in layers of fear, death, regret, and misery. Why go there? The future had so much more to offer.
Tears clung to Scarlett’s lashes at the sight of Dean dancing with the ecstatic bride. No bride had ever looked so lovely—until her inner vision captured the shroud of dark energy clinging to Ella’s ethereal body. It was then she recognized Ella’s grief veiled under the bridal gown’s glory. The unforgiving guilt freezing Ella’s heart: random flashes of Ella whirred through her mind, losing her family to the creeper sickness, leaving Justin, traveling across the country in a covered wagon, the fear of childbirth all alone, creepers trying to steal her baby when she was in a carriage. And Sheena, stealing baby Miguel, abandoning her in the desert . . . What? Miguel had bitten Sheena on the neck. Scarlett shuddered but continued. Scarlett relived Ella’s soul-crushing moment when she realized her baby’s soul had succumbed to the creeper sickness. A sudden pang of betrayal clenched Scarlett’s solar plexus. Why didn’t you warn me of Sheena? Scarlett beseeched.
“My dear one, what is the breaking point for each soul? What makes some strong makes others weak. This cannot be predestined. Among your soulmates, Sheena suffered the most, unable to forgive herself for the tragic loss of her three sons and husband. Judge her not for her weaknesses but for her greatnesses. Without her fearless facade, many Hu-mans would have starved. She served us well.”
It’s too much pain for Ella to endure, Scarlett silently cried out.
The Silver Lady answered. “Ah, I was waiting for you to see. This shall be your first task. Believe, for you are an empath of the new Hu. You must relieve Ella of her suffering before it poisons her untainted soul. Let the healing begin . . .”
She’d give Ella the only gift she could. And, Scarlett shuddered, absorbing murky layers of Ella’s pain, every piercing stab of it.
“Perfect. Now release it. Send it back to the cosmos to cle
anse and recharge,” the mystical woman said.
A dizzy sensation knocked Scarlett to the table. Luther caught her. A random flash of insight caught her by surprise. For an instant, she felt Luther’s pain. He had loved Sheena. She needed to help Luther release his pain as well.
“You all right?” Luther asked.
A tidal wave of grief flooded over her. Then, it was gone. Scarlett smiled as she tried to handle the waves of bliss that replaced the pain. “Too much excitement for one day,” was all she said.
“You can say that again.” Luther reached for another slice of lavender-iced wedding cake when the waiter walked by with a tray.
“Now Justin,” the Silver Lady continued.
Scarlett had never seen Justin so happy. He was fine.
“In your mind’s eye, peer deeper, my child. See how Dean wears his pain? The scars are there for all to see. Despite his heart-wrenching grief, he constantly processes it. Whereas Justin holds his pain in, compressing it into an invisible sheath as not to burden anyone. Hence, his overcompensating sense of humor. Yet, the pain festers, corroding his soul.”
Scarlett’s eyes fluttered back. Further still, until she saw a speck of dark energy trapped within white light. The lethal dot of yang energy raged with the power of a black hole as if trying to escape the yin energy it was encased in.
Oh! She saw! He’d been bitten. Infected. Scarlett couldn’t go any further—paralyzed by the venom.
The Silver Lady intervened. “You must not stop! Delve deeper. The monoatomic etherium gold restructured his DNA. He is no longer infectious.”
Mustering more courage than she felt, Scarlett continued. She focused on the center of her forehead until it pulsated. A small golden ball of light appeared in her inner vision. She held it there, willing the golden-light to expand. And when it did, she visualized the golden-light energy encircling the darkness eating away at Justin’s spirit. With a powerful cerebral thrust, she flung the golden-swathed energy to the cosmos. Instinctively, she filled her body with silver and golden light, preventing any lingering attachments. Cleanse and recharge . . . A vertigo sensation left her feeling a bit disconcerted, and she sat at the table pretending to smile while she recovered.
Scarlett finally regained her equilibrium. Awestruck. She gaped as the bride and groom’s auras transformed before her eyes. The brilliant colors swirled into 3D rainbows, dancing in the cathedral ceiling.
“Now, do you understand your Soul Mission? Arriving here is only the beginning. You must heal the new Hu souls whilst remaining hidden from the Ancient Bloodlines lurking in the etherworlds for your soul group. This is what you must teach Twila when she is ready.”
Twila ran into Scarlett’s arms. “Mommy, you gave Ella and Justin the best wedding present in the whole wide world!”
A New Beginning Awaits . . .
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