Table of Contents
Excerpt
Praise for Debbie Peterson’s
Love Letters from Heaven
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
A word from the author…
Thank you for purchasing this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Her fragile heart couldn’t chance acceptance despite the sincerity—maybe even the truth—she saw in his eyes. She swallowed past the knot in her throat. “In Normandy, when we first met face-to-face, you said you’d stay out of my life if that’s what I desired, isn’t that right?” The words came out in a pitiful sort of whisper.
William dropped his hands and took a half-step back. He shook his head. “Don’t do this, Katie. Please for the love of Heaven, don’t do this to us.”
His pain tore at her soul. Despite the agony, she couldn’t give him what he wanted. She couldn’t. “I need…I need you to…to go away. I can’t. Please understand…and don’t come back.”
He dropped his gaze for a moment. His agony, his suffering, shot like a blazing arrow through her heart.
As he lifted his head and gazed into her eyes, she saw both acceptance and resignation mingled with his pain. “So be it.”
Katie opened her mouth to take back her words. Somehow she must take away the anguish and the sorrow she inflicted.
But she was too late. Far too late. William had already disappeared.
Praise for Debbie Peterson’s
BOUND BY OATH AND HONOUR
“The romance is sweet and exquisite, a tale of star-crossed lovers from different realms who ultimately want nothing more than to be together for eternity. Their journey—through a perilous ancient war, as well as the longings of the heart—makes this book an engaging tale from start to finish. Ms. Peterson has done it again!”
~Author Mae Clair
~*~
“A thrilling plot that keeps you flipping eagerly through the pages and loveable characters whom your heart breaks for…Amazing story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.”
~PLeslie, Netgalley
~*~
“Involving time travel, romance, flirts, guardians, ancestral lines, there is something here for everyone who enjoys a fantastical romance.”
~Archeolibrarian
Love Letters
from Heaven
by
Debbie Peterson
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.
Love Letters from Heaven
COPYRIGHT © 2018 by Debbie Peterson
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Contact Information: [email protected]
Cover Art by Debbie Taylor
The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
PO Box 708
Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708
Visit us at www.thewildrosepress.com
Publishing History
First Fantasy Rose Edition, 2018
Print ISBN 978-1-5092-1888-2
Digital ISBN 978-1-5092-1889-9
Published in the United States of America
Dedication
For Phyllis.
Thank you for the incredible adventure.
Chapter One
The Double D Diamond Ranch, Torrance County, New Mexico
Katie Adelton snatched the keys from off her antique sideboard and stepped outside. As she headed for her car, the low rumble of thunder drew her gaze toward the sound. Dark, ominous clouds covered the sky from horizon to horizon. Before she could unlock the car door, those clouds released a torrent of rain that came down in buckets. She didn’t care. The weather’s mood matched hers and somehow she found that fitting.
The short drive to the home of her parents Diane and Andrew didn’t allow a final rehearsal for what she would say once she arrived. She had made the decision to divorce Chad. How would they take the news of that announcement? After all, they loved him like a son. Would they support her choice or would they suggest she reconsider? Maybe they’d tell her she and Chad needed a cooling off period or worse yet, a marriage counselor. The thought made her gag.
No thank you. She’d gone well beyond all of that and there would be no turning back now.
She turned onto the dirt road leading up to her childhood home. All the while Katie’s heart hammered inside her chest and climbed up her throat. The pace of it doubled as she spied her mom and dad sitting on the old oak swing to the right of the front door. The covered porch gave them shelter from the rain as well as a comfortable place to enjoy the stormy weather.
Over to the left her Uncle Jake—strong as an ox and twice as tall—stood just inside the hay barn with his cell phone glued to his ear. With that silly smirk on his face she had no doubt he spoke with one of the many women vying for his attention. Well, she wished whoever he spoke with the best of luck with that one.
She caught sight of Toby. Her younger brother sat in the cab of his pickup truck with the door wide open. The moment he turned his gaze toward her, he gave her an enthusiastic wave. She returned it—minus the enthusiasm she just didn’t have.
Once she parked her Jeep Cherokee, she sucked in a deep breath, and exited the car. As Katie ambled toward the house, her mom gave her a welcoming smile. All the while lightning lit up the sky while booming thunder rolled across it. The smell of rain and damp earth acted as a much needed balm to her soul.
“Hello, Katie! You’re just in time,” Diane sang out.
“Time for what?” she asked as she climbed up the porch steps.
“This morning Toby and his friends made a CD of the songs they’ve been working on for the big dance. He wants us to hear it,” Diane said.
Her dad chuckled. “Says it will make them famous.”
Katie grinned. “I bet.”
“They’re all original,” Toby hollered out. “Well, except for the final track, but that’s nothing. Wait ’til you hear it.”
“Okay, so why are we outside for said activity? I mean, you all know it’s pouring rain, right?” she asked.
“Because,” Toby said as he stepped out of the truck. “For one, there’s no better sound system than the one I have right here. Two, we should enjoy the lovely cool temperatures while they last. Heaven knows it’s been hotter than a firecracker this month. Besides, since when did a little rain from the monsoon season bother you, huh? Hey, Jake, you coming or what?”
Jake shoved the phone in his pocket. “I’m ready. Let ’er roll.”
Toby leaned into the truck and tapped the button on his stereo. In a flash he jumped up into the bed of the pickup and shook the rain from his dark blond hair. As the first song began, he bobbed his head. His foot began a slow rock as he snapped his fingers to the beat of the music. All the while heavy rain flooded the ground
like nobody’s business. Pools of water gathered in every low spot possible. Once filled to the brim, the water overran the boundaries and crept toward the house, just like it did every year.
While the rain fell, Toby played the fool and made like a rock star. Despite her mood, Katie laughed as he played his air guitar and danced back and forth across the bed. The first song ended to the sound of the praise and applause he so obviously expected.
Before the second one began, her brother wiped the relentless rain from his face and turned his gaze toward her. “Hey, Katie, could you come here and put it on track four for me real quick? Listen close, Jake, this one’s for you.”
The moment Katie stepped off the porch, a flaming bolt of lightning blended with an earsplitting roar of thunder. The enormous bolt hit the big mesquite tree out front and it shuddered. The gnarled bark belched out fiery shards that flew across the water. Katie turned her face away from the blinding light. In that same instant, a shock of electricity assaulted her. The jolt rattled her from the top of her head and all the way down to her feet. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. Darkness that both suffocated and frightened her followed the attack.
Even though she fought her way out of the gloomy shadows, some sort of strange sensation had overtaken her. She blinked several times before she could focus on anything. As her vision cleared, confusion beset her. Some woman—whose face she couldn’t see—had fallen limp as a ragdoll onto the muddy, rain-soaked earth. Where on earth did she come from? She hadn’t been there a moment ago, had she? Regardless of how she arrived, the woman needed help. Now!
Yet, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t move from the spot upon which she stood. She’d never felt so helpless or bewildered. She looked first at her parents and then at Jake. Why didn’t someone help the poor thing? Had some kind of fog gripped all of them at the same time? Once again she gazed at each person in turn—and that’s when she noticed the oddity.
Everything moved in slow motion. The world around her moved so slowly in fact, she could count the raindrops as they fell. Right now she didn’t understand the strange phenomena, nor could she explain it.
“Jake!” she screamed out. Surely her big, strong uncle could pick the woman up and take her into the house. “The woman needs help!”
She drew her brows together. Did he not hear her? If he did, he ignored her completely. Perhaps a feeling of helplessness had possessed him as well. Though his lips quivered, the wide-eyed man couldn’t utter a single word. If the situation hadn’t been so serious, the family might’ve laughed over the fear that—for the first time in his life—had rendered him speechless.
Toby bounded out of the truck. At a snail’s pace that seemed surreal and defied all sense of logic, he shot past her. All the color had drained from his face. He knelt beside the woman and moved the disheveled hair away from her face. His eyes all but bulged out of his head as he sucked in a breath. “Dad! I think lightning hit Katie…and…and she’s not breathing!”
She shook her head. “Don’t be ridiculous, Toby. I’m standing right here. I’m fine.”
No one acknowledged what she said. They didn’t even look in her direction. What was the matter with everyone?
At once her mother stood up. She had a white-knuckled grip on the swing’s massive chain as she stared at the girl. “Oh, Katie, no! Andy, quick! Do something!”
Her father hurtled over the steps and rushed toward the fallen woman. “Diane, call 911,” Andrew shouted. “Tell them to hurry!” He dropped to his knees and turned the woman over as her mom ran into the house to make the call.
Horror overcame Katie as she stared at the lifeless figure on the ground. The woman wore the same clothes she had on. The layered, shoulder length, auburn hair matched hers to perfection. Dull blue eyes that didn’t blink stared up at the sky. But no…surely that couldn’t possibly be her lying there. Not when she stood right here. Katie’s hands trembled as she covered her mouth. They felt dry…
“Katie.” At once the calm, husky voice compelled her full attention. “Don’t be afraid.”
She turned around. A broad-shouldered man dressed in the army fatigues of World War II stood within a rainbow of luminous light. She knew him well. No doubt about that. In fact, he’d been with her the entire week without once leaving her side. As always, he had come when she needed him. Her most cherished friend—and from the earliest memories of her childhood—opened his arms wide in invitation. Until this moment, she had never glimpsed his face. Somehow that never mattered. The companionship, comfort, and support he gave without question, regardless of circumstance, seemed enough.
She gazed first into the handsome man’s captivating steel-gray eyes. Within those eyes she perceived an inner strength that invited one to share their burdens both great and small. Yet at the same time they were gentle and warm. She also detected a touch of humor lurking just beneath the surface. His face was a little more square than oval, and the short, army-cut style of russet colored hair emphasized it. His lips, just shy of full, were turned up at one corner. That crooked grin revealed a dimple as he beckoned her.
Katie didn’t fear him. Far from it. Nonetheless, she declined his invitation with a simple shake of her head. She feared what the invitation might mean.
He took a single step toward her, extended his arm, and offered her his hand. “I can see you’re a bit bewildered. You needn’t be. I promise you, everything will sort itself out. You see, I’ve been through this myself. All things considered, the experience is a beautiful one. You just have to let go of the fear.”
“I…I don’t know what you mean.”
The smile he gave her all but turned her into a thick puddle of pudding. “You will. Just give yourself a moment. When you’re ready to ask them, I’ll answer all of your questions, all right?”
She backed away. “Who are you? What I mean to say is…I don’t even know your name, or…or anything else about—”
The enchanting grin returned. “I think you know who I am, don’t you? As far as my name goes though, it’s William. William Malloy Griffin.”
“Katie! Don’t do this, baby girl,” her dad whispered. “Come back…breathe, Katie, breathe! Please…please don’t leave us.”
She turned away from her soldier. Her father’s desperation and sorrow tugged on her heart. With each breath he took, he willed her to live. She could feel it with every fiber of her being. He pressed on her heart in a rhythmic fashion and then blew air into her mouth. Again and again he repeated the action. As he gazed at her body, anguish filled his eyes.
“Toby,” he hollered out as he bent over her body. “Go get me a pitcher of ice water. Hurry!”
Toby leaped to his feet and raced to the house. He returned with a bucket of ice water, filled to the brim. Her father grabbed hold of it and splashed the entire contents over Katie’s face.
****
William dropped his arm to his side. The ice water did the trick. Without a backward glance, Katie left him standing there alone. In the instant her heart resumed its intended function, she returned to her body in one fluid, graceful motion. Her eyelashes fluttered a bit before they closed.
“Katie,” her father called out. “Open your eyes, Katie, and look at me.”
She did as he asked. For a moment she gazed at her father. A split second later she fell into a state of unconsciousness. Her father scooped her up as if she was the most fragile glass, carried her into the house, and over to the sofa. Her worried family gathered around her as they awaited the arrival of the paramedics. William supposed he should shout out a hallelujah that Katie’s life hadn’t been cut way shorter than the time decreed by destiny. However, the selfish part of him that wanted her at his side here and now didn’t see the need for it.
He heard the sirens and saw the flashing red lights well before her family did. Once the emergency vehicle turned down the muddy drive, Toby rushed just outside the door. He frantically waved the paramedics toward the house.
The first
man out of the vehicle didn’t waste any time getting inside. He dropped to a knee beside Katie. At once he opened his bag and got to work as his partner extracted a gurney from the back of the truck and then joined him inside the small living room.
“You say she quit breathing after the lightning struck her?” he asked.
Her mom dabbed at her tears and sniffed. “Yes.”
He wrapped a blood pressure cuff around her arm. “For how long?”
“I don’t know,” wailed Diane. “It seemed like forever.”
“I’d say about four, maybe five minutes. Might be less.” Andrew dropped an arm around his wife and tugged her close to his chest as she wept. He shook his head and swallowed past the obvious knot in his throat.
William had never seen Katie’s dad this shaken before. He couldn’t blame Andrew though. If Katie had been his daughter, he would probably react the same way.
The paramedic glanced at Andrew. “Are you the one that brought her around?”
“Yes. I tried mouth-to-mouth and CPR as best I could without any real training as to the way it’s done. When that didn’t work, I doused her with ice water,” Andy murmured. “I didn’t know what else to do.”
The man, whose nametag identified him as Hal, nodded as he pulled a radio out of his jacket. At once he called in his observations, readings, and preliminary treatment. After several exchanges with the staff at the hospital, Hal gave them an estimated time of arrival.
“Is she going to be all right?” Diane ventured.
Despite the worry William could see in Hal’s eyes, the man gave her a smile. “We’ll do our best to make that happen, ma’am. Now, do any of you know if she has any allergies?”
Once the men finished their administrations, they loaded Katie into the back of the van. Her mom insisted on riding with the emergency team. William waited until Diane chose her seat before he climbed in and hunkered down on the opposite side of the gurney.
The moment the engine, lights, and siren roared to life, Jake jumped in his pickup. Toby and Andrew climbed in beside him as Jake revved up the engine. All the way to the hospital, William held Katie’s hand. In that moment he knew she had already buried the brief moment they had just shared deep inside her subconscious. Unless some kind of miracle occurred, she wouldn’t remember it once she woke up. In fact, the memory probably wouldn’t surface until her mortality ended.
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