Chapter 29: Meditation
I’m not sure how long I’ve slept off the schlag. The sun beams as brightly through the window as it did when I originally arrived. For all I know, it could be the next day.
I roll out of bed and stumble across the room. Opening the door, I peek my head through the crack, listening for Mona. But I only hear the usual old-house, creaking noises.
Finally, I’m able to indulge in a well-deserved hot shower.
When I return to the bedroom, I gather my things. I hold up my clothes, inspecting the dust and dirt. Reluctantly, I slide back into them. They’re nasty, dirty, and sweaty. Unfortunately, I need them as my relics, to keep me connected in time.
As I slip on my shoes, I take in my surroundings. The room, larger than my first bedroom, has a masculine feel. Black-and-white photos of various cities hang on slate-blue walls. Books cram the shelves.
I grab the miniature box from the desk and place it and Mom’s bracelet on the bed. Tired and too disheveled, I guess I couldn’t think about them before this moment. Even still, it doesn’t really matter what’s in the box, because I cannot see its life path without a Seer—without Sam. I need my team.
Knowing can wait a little longer, so I shove the relics back into my pocket, slip on my coat, and head for the front door.
•
Finally, I’m back on true time. I’m sitting on Sam’s bed, between two large stuffed animals. I can just imagine the look on Sam’s face when I admit to her that I need her help.
I hate admitting when I’m wrong, but I’ve never really had anyone to rely on. Ray’s always been so elusive. I’ve unknowingly become a loner, making it difficult to accept help from others. Now that I have people, a family of sorts, I’m not quite sure how to act.
Nervously, I rotate Sam’s antique watch around my wrist.
Terease scolds Sam and Bishop in the next room for allowing the old me to escape via the window.
What will my consequences be when Terease finally catches up to me? But I can’t worry about that now; I know I’m very close to finding my mom. I can feel it.
Terease’s screams float toward the front door of the apartment. In the space between the floor and the door, a dark shadow slithers away. “Find her!” Terease barks. The front door finally slams shut. The apartment breathes a sigh of relief and brightens. Her veil of darkness creeps away, probably following her down the hall.
The door to the lemon-yellow room pops open. Sam walks in stiffly. “Good. You’re here.” She isn’t the least bit surprised to see me and is all business. “Now, show me what you’ve found.”
“Wait, where’s Bishop?”
“He’s coming. He went to fetch Stu,” she says and walks over to adjust an annoyingly cute poster of kittens.
“Stu? Where’s he been?”
“Expelled.” She paces the room, inspecting it for further adjustments.
“That’s it—expelled?” I imagined so much worse. Maybe a mind-erasing machine in a dungeon under Olde Town is a little far fetched.
“Yes—well—sort of. I’m sure he’ll tell you all about it.” She dismissively waves her hand.
“Okay, so why do we need Stu? I’d rather not drag him into this.”
“He knows a lot about this kind of thing,” she says as she picks up a pair of silk toe shoes from the floor and places them in a duffle bag. She walks to the corner and repositions a cello case.
“And what sort of thing is that?” I’ve never told anyone what I’m looking for.
“Look, Sera,” she says curtly, turning to face me with a hand on her hip. “I’m not stupid. In fact, I’m quite intelligent. Sometimes I wonder if I’ll ever find my equal.”
I almost burst out laughing, but I hold it in because I know she’s just trying to prove herself to me, just like I’m always trying to prove myself to Bishop. Maybe Sam and I aren’t so different.
She rolls her eyes but continues. “Bishop told me about how you used the relicutionist to find someone who crossed paths with a bracelet and it hadn’t worked.” She adjusts her stance. “And I was also there the night you told everyone about the first time you wandered, which happened to also involve a missing bracelet.”
“So?”
“So,” she huffs, “I put two and two together and figured out that you found the bracelet and are looking for your mom. Like I said, I’m not stupid.” She walks over and sits, ramrod straight, on the bed.
“Now, show me what you’ve found,” she insists, holding out her palm.
I smirk. There’s something endearing about her confidence.
“Actually, it’s two things.” I empty the contents of my pockets and hand over both: the bracelet and the small CeCe box.
Together we move to a spot on the floor, facing each other. Sam lays the items out to inspect them. She opens the tiny box. A squarish, flat piece of bronze with an open void in the center falls out and onto the carpet. I squint to get a better look, but it doesn’t look like anything I can put a name to, like a ring or a necklace. It’s just a square piece of metal.
The bedroom door swings open. On edge, I jump, thinking of Terease. Sam remains calm, continuing to inspect the relics when Bishop strolls in. With their mental connection, she must have seen him coming.
His sparkling eyes catch mine, lingering for a second longer than usual. I blush, but this time I don’t look away. His perfect smile broadens, revealing a speck of a dimple.
“Glad you’re back, Miss Parrish.”
I try to regulate my smile, my heart, and whatever other body part he seems to have control over.
Stu struts in behind him. “Hello, ladies. I understand you require my services.” I roll my eyes. Sam giggles and relaxes. Stu seems the only person capable of softening her rigid exterior.
“I’ve filled Stu in on what’s going on,” Bishop says.
“Glad to help.” Stu puffs out his chest a little.
“Glad you made it out alive,” I respond. His personality obviously remains intact.
“Yep, yep.” He tucks his shirt into his pants and adjusts his belt. “It’s hard to keep the Stewster down.”
“Sam told me you were expelled. What’s the other half of the punishment? She won’t tell me.”
“You’ll see for yourself in a few minutes, if we don’t get this party started.”
“Um—okay.” I’m confused, but whatever.
The boys sit down on either side of me and inspect the relics.
“What is all this stuff?” Stu asks.
“The bracelet is something that belonged to my mom. My dad gave it to me for my last birthday. I lost it with my luggage when I moved here from Miami.” It gives me pause, wondering what had happened to everything else in my luggage, but I focus back on the issue at hand. “It was returned to me in Venice.”
“Returned to you by whom and when, exactly?” Bishop sounds suspicious. He pushes the objects around with his fingertip.
“Um…” I’m not sure what to tell them. Will they believe me?
He looks up, questioning me silently with his eyes. I guess this is where the trust part’s going to happen—the team part. So, I just let it. Just like jumping off a catwalk above a pool and my big jump from the bell tower in Venice. I pray Bishop will grab me on the other side again.
“Okay, here’s the deal.” I settle myself for a long explanation. “When we were in Venice and we were—separated—after—well, you know.” I twist awkwardly, thinking back.
“You mean, after he tried to kiss you?” Sam snorts.
Bishop and I glare at her. She shoots us a smug look. Stu’s expression is lost, though I see he’s slowly connecting the dots. I skirt around the subject before he starts with the questions, sending us off track.
“Anyway, a lady gave me the bracelet. She said, ‘Reassemble this and it will guide you to your heart’s desire.’ When I asked her name, she said she was my friend.”
“What did she look like?” Bishop asks
.
“I couldn’t tell. She was covered head to toe, wearing a gold cape, black gloves, and a full face mask.”
“You’re saying a complete stranger gave you back a piece of jewelry that’s been missing for weeks? And somehow that person knew you wanted it back to find your mum?”
“Yes.” Suddenly I’m unconvinced that it really happened that way.
Everything seems to be crashing into a confusing convergence, all precipitated by the mystery lady in Venice. She presented me with the extra leverage I needed to start sifting through the pieces of information. She gave me back the relic, but how did she know what I wanted? Who was she?
Maybe it was me from the future? I can’t be sure. I could have added the Lady in Gold to my now defunct list of weird and unknowns, but the puzzle pieces are falling into place so quickly now. Somehow, my destiny is finding me, and I hope my mom is on the other end, waiting.
“Sera?” Bishop catches me in thought.
“It’s strange. I know. But who it was doesn’t matter. I think I’ll find out when I’m meant to.”
After everything I’ve witnessed in the last twenty-four hours, it turns out that everything, even the bad stuff, like getting catapulted from a commuter train and busting a lip, happens for a reason. I touch my lip. The scab has finally healed over.
“It doesn’t look broken.” Sam holds up the bracelet. “The Lady in Gold said to put it back together. That doesn’t make sense."
“Yeah, I don’t know why she said that. It’s not broken. It’s as perfect as when it was given to me.”
“Okay, where did you get this piece?” Stu asks, pointing to the relic that was in the tiny box.
“Well, it’s a long story, but I found it in the Relic Archives under the entry ‘CeCe.’ It supposedly has something to do with my mom—according to a drunk bum.”
They stare at me as though I’ve lost it.
“Is that the most reliable source, Sera?” Bishop asks gently.
“I’m not sure if it’s connected, but I thought it wouldn’t hurt to find out why some random person thinks my mom is somehow related to this CeCe person.” Or is CeCe.
“Wow, Sera, you really get around, don’t cha?” Stu chuckles.
Sam clears her throat. “Okay, let’s begin, shall we?” She’s serious again.
She meditates very quickly on each object, not giving any indication about what the life paths reveal. After the last object falls to her palm from its hovering ballet, Sam huffs with an annoyed tone.
“What? What did you see?” I ask.
Wander Dust Page 29
