by Shea Meadows
George reviewed the schedule. “We only have four houses for you to check out in person, two people who think they are being tormented by disincarnates are coming here, and about twenty over the phone consultations. Does that sound like too much?”
Ricky sighed again. “For now that’s fine. But keep asking me. There may be a time when I won’t want to stay quite that busy. Thank heavens Christina has been doing so well covering the police department requests for consultations. I can’t imagine how Moon did the majority of this on her own.”
“She had Beth Ann,” George said, “And even if Beth Ann came off as a little scatter brained, that was far from the truth. That woman could run circles around both me and Moon. And of course there was Chester, and the less said about him the better.”
Ricky was reflective for a moment, sighed and asked: “Anything else?”
George shook his head. “Nothing you have to worry about. I’ll run whatever comes up by you if need be, but David and I have a pretty good system going.”
Ricky stood up and stretched. “If you folks don’t mind, I have been looking forward to a nap on my favorite cushion in the mediation room. Someone from Spirit World is telling me they’d like a visit. See you later.”
Pigeon followed Ricky up the stairs and ran in ahead of her, choosing the same pillow that Ricky had targeted. “Not this time, sweetie cat, that pillow has my name on it,” Ricky said as she deposited Pigeon on the cat’s second favorite pillow.
Ricky lay down on the floor, with her head on the pillow she had claimed the first time she napped in this room. She let out a happy sigh, content with the smell of sage and jasmine that still clung to the space, even though no one had burned any of either recently. Soon she was floating up and out of her body.
The now familiar space of the cove in the Spirit World frequency was unoccupied when she arrived. Birds sang and large luminous butterflies and brightly winged moths fluttered around her. The sound of a waterfall echoed through the empty space. Where was everyone?
She walked around, looking behind trees, examining flowers, talking to a fawn and a nest of baby rabbits, then realized she was in a space where she’d never been before. The side of a mountain appeared in front of her with a round cave opening that radiated a pleasant pink glow. There was nothing to fear in Spirit World, so she went in through the narrow passageway.
She could hear the sound of a drum beat that seemed to match the rhythm of her heart. The walls of the tunnel were close together at first, and she could touch both sides without trying too hard. The opening was smooth and silky and seemed to move slightly under her fingertips. The space widened and the texture changed to crystalline, looking like rose quartz. Then she saw her, sitting with a big grin on a ledge at the back of the cave.
“Ricky you came!” Nellie said as she rushed toward Ricky and hugged her. For some reason Nellie had abandoned the adult look she had adopted when she first went to work with Moon and the guides. She now appeared younger than she had been when she died following her last incarnation.
“This is an interesting place. Is it something you came up with on your own?” Ricky asked.
Nellie giggled. “Actually it’s something you came up with. Can you figure it out?”
Ricky looked around and listened to the continuing drum beat, then smiled softly, radiating love, and put her hand on her growing baby bump. “So it’s going to be you. Are you coming as a boy or girl?”
“A girl and I didn’t break any rules to do it,” Nellie said with a smile. “You and David match my karmic profile perfectly. I was given the choice of being your daughter, or the son of a diplomat in Kenya. No contest. We are going to have such fun!”
“Will you remember me when you come back in?” Ricky asked.
“That’s where we did break a couple of rules,” Nellie said with a blush. “I’ll remember my life as Nellie and maybe a few things that happened between that life and being your daughter, and I’ll learn everything super quickly, but that’s about it.
“This time I have a good chance of growing up and getting married. Just think, then you’ll be Grandma Ricky,” she said with a giggle.
“Can I tell David?” Ricky asked.
Nellie thought about it for a minute. “Yes, but just him. Not anyone else until I’m big enough to talk about it myself.”
Ricky hugged her daughter-to-be. “I couldn’t be more excited if I tried. It will be a hard secret to keep.”
“There’s one more thing,” Nellie said as she stood with her arms around Ricky. Guess who my guide will be? Moon, it’s going to be Moon!”
Ricky laughed. “You’re serious? She’s coming with you? Her first job as a spirit guide in many incarnations. Makes sense, she’ll be there for you anyway, and we can all have new experiences together.”
Nellie chuckled. “David will be seriously outnumbered.”
“Yes he will, but he’ll handle it well,” Ricky said with a smile as a whole new reality of possibilities opened up before them.
Acknowledgments and Artist and Author Information
This cannot end without a word of thanks to those who supported this effort. I am grateful to the beta readers who selflessly wandered through the muck and mire of the early versions of this manuscript. I couldn’t have done it without your compassionate insights and sharp attention to detail.
I don’t know how my husband put up with the long hours I spent in our home office and my constant discussions with him as to how some scene should start, progress or end. It is not easy being married to a writer.
Thanks also to Durham Editing and E-books who provided valuable information and support as well as skillful formatting.
Not many first time novelists can boast cover art provided by a true artistic genus. Mishka Navarre volunteered her participation in this project with only a small hint from me on Face Book. You can read about her in the information below:
“Mishka Navarre– Artist: Mishka is a professional Costume Designer from Olympia WA, co-owner of Costume Atelier Masque & Pettycote and Staff Costumer at University of Puget Sound. She uses painting as a recreation as well as a visual and technical study to help in her Costume Design work. Many of her paintings are based on her own photography of theatrical productions and the world around her. Commission work considered.
[email protected]
http://home.comcast.net/~mishka.navarre/site/”
As for the author:
Shea Meadows has written many novels but this is the first she was brave enough to publish. She has had several short stories published online in anthologies. (If you’re a good online researcher you might find them if you dig deep enough.)
She lives in the same state as her protagonists but does not have a twin sister. She is interested in many of the subjects that were discussed in the novel and has trained in some of the modalities mentioned. You can find her on Face Book under her new “The Gemini Bridge” page and her new website which should be up sometime in the fall of this year.
She will be starting a new book on the continuing adventures of The Gemini Bridge characters tentatively titled “The Gemini Child.”
