The houses along the road began to look unfamiliar so she guessed she had missed the turn she was supposed to take to the left. After flipping her car around in the closest driveway she paid closer attention to each street along her right for any signs of familiarity. Finally one seemed to stand out more than the others so she decided to take a chance it could be correct. She began counting the houses as she remembered there were only a few estates between Riccan’s home and the end of the street.
This task proved harder than she remembered from her dream. There were subtle changes to the plantings as though they had grown up since she had seen them. Most likely that was exactly what had happened since she was not sure how long ago her dream had taken place. It only felt like a few months, but it could just as easily been a few years. She turned her head just in time to see the gate she had been looking for tucked back from the road.
If she had traveled just a few more feet along the road she would have missed it. She pulled into the driveway and then had to laugh at herself. Now what? she thought, If I announce myself he probably won’t have any idea who I am. I need to come up with a way to meet him which would feel more organic and less contrived. She backed out of the driveway, confident she could find it again now that she had seen it in real life.
On the interstate heading back home she was not thinking about the freedom of the drive. She rolled up the window to prevent being distracted by the wind and any bugs which happened to fly in her open window. Her thoughts were focused on how to get to know Riccan again.
She knew he was involved with the NHRA, but she had a hard time thinking she would be able to get close enough to him to make any difference. Besides, he would most likely be one-track minded on winning the competition rather than trying to meet a girl. She wracked her brain to think of any other details she had read about while she had researched him online.
Suddenly an idea struck her, he was involved in search and rescue missions. If she were to find out about any cases nearby she could volunteer to assist as well. It seemed like a long-shot, but it also seemed like the most likely to succeed.
Before long she took the exit to her home town and navigated the streets to her home. She never lost her thrill of excitement to think about going home. As she pulled into the driveway she saw her mom weeding the front yard. It was such a familiar and comforting thing to have everybody back to doing their ordinary tasks.
Then it hit her that it was probably still not back to normal for the Taivas family. She had wondered if they would come to visit her now that she was back at home to ask her questions about what she last remembered about their son. The fact was that she did not remember much of anything except them sailing on calm seas until the unexpected storm blew in. Everything after that became a confused blur of two distinctly different memory timelines.
Maybe she would spend the rest of the afternoon trying to think of any details she might have missed with regard to Neal. She owed it to his family to at least try to remember. Her day had started on such a positive note and now she felt downright depressed as she thought about another family suffering even more than her own had while she was in the hospital.
She waved at her mom as she got out of her car and walked up the front sidewalk to go in the front door. She could see her mother still had a way to go with her weeding so she was eager to get into her room to try a few things she had been thinking about for a while.
Amanda sat down in the middle of her bed with her legs crossed in front of her. She carefully removed the necklace from around her neck and held the crystal in front of her so she could more easily focus. Assuming the crystal had power of its own she had to have enough belief in herself to make that power manifest. She stared without blinking at the crystal and willed the energy to come out of the stone. She took several deep breaths as she maintained her concentration.
As if the energy could no longer resist her onslaught it appeared to leap out of the crystal. Amanda was so surprised to see it actually work she almost dropped the necklace from her grasp and she did lose her focus on the energy. The sphere immediately popped back into the crystal.
Because she had proven to herself there was actual power in the crystal she had renewed faith in her dream and her conviction became stronger to master the other levels of using the stone. If everything from her dream were actually true then she knew children mastered the next few levels with relative ease.
She concentrated on the crystal and this time the sphere moved out swiftly. Without waiting to congratulate herself she moved on to moving the energy and then returning it to the crystal. She did not have time to mess around with the steps she now knew she could do. With her eyes closed she tried to remember Alena’s directions for finding her children. She wanted to use an altered version to try to find Neal.
Her heart contracted as she thought about the possibility of her children. She had been so convinced they were real, but Dr. Medin’s medical examination had put serious doubt to that part of her dream actually being factual. Instead she tried to refocus her energy to the person she might be able to find. Neal did not have his own crystal, but maybe her need to find him would give her enough power to succeed. She had heard before that motivation was a key ingredient to learning to use the crystals in unique ways.
Amanda imagined how she had last seen Neal and kept his image clear in her mind. She attempted to put Neal’s image inside her crystal and then expand what she saw around him. Without any training on this technique she was just making it up as she went along. Unfortunately the improvised method did not produce any results, but it did manage to give Amanda a migraine headache.
She sighed in failure and put the necklace back on her neck with shaking hands. She had to close her eyes since the light pouring through her bedroom window was making her slightly sick. Amanda crawled off of the bed and pulled her window blinds shut.
Amanda wandered miserably into the kitchen to get medicine for her head from out of the cupboard. Every movement she made was starting to make her feel nauseas and she imagined how nice it would be to already have a glass of water so she could go back to her room when suddenly one appeared next to her hand. “Oh,” she said with surprise. “I guess that works, too,” she whispered as she picked up the glass and returned to her darkened room to recover.
Chapter Fifteen
THE NEXT FEW days were spent either with research or journaling. Her failed attempt to locate Neal with her crystal did not deter her from searching her memories for any clues. One idea kept resurfacing which did not make her feel good at all: what if an Elder had found him?
Amanda had finally decided to believe that everything she remembered was actually true even if it did not seem possible. There were too many things which had happened since waking up to try to think they were just dreams. She listed off her reasons:
1. The clothing from Barla.
2. The birth crystal necklace (which actually worked).
3. Seeing both Drs. Medin and Gascon and knowing who they were without any introductions.
4. Knowing about Riccan Stel, as well as being able to find his house even though it was not published anywhere.
There were just too many things she knew to be able to convince herself it might only be coincidence anymore. Once she actually came to the realization she believed her own truth an unaccountable peace seemed to descend upon her.
Grabbing the laptop her parents had gotten for her off of the nightstand, Amanda lifted the screen and pressed the power button. As she waited for it to boot up she set it on the bed beside her so she could go across the room and pick up the shirt which Barla had given to her. She wanted to see if there were any identifying marks in it for where it was made or who had been the maker. When she had been wearing the clothes in Tuala she had never thought to look for anything of the sort. Now she needed more proof of her adventure.
After thoroughly searching the normal locations for a tag, Amanda was about to give up hope when her eye caught sight of som
ething inside the sleeve. With a rush of hope she turned the bottom of the sleeve inside out to get a better look; sure enough, there was a small tag with a circular emblem, but no words. It was not much, but at least it was something to start with in her search.
She refolded the shirt, replaced it on the chair, and then picked up the pair of pants. Further investigation did not reveal anything on the pants. She tried not to feel too discouraged since she had actually found something on the shirt, she refolded the pants and put them next to the shirt.
Amanda returned to the bed and rested her back on the headboard. She pulled the laptop onto her legs and clicked on the internet button. Over the past month she had become quite adept at searching for everything on the internet. She was still in awe of the technology which had been created during her time ‘away,’ which was how she had started to think of her last seven years. She could not really say she had been comatose since she believed she had lived another life, or possibly two lives, during that time. ‘Away’ seemed to be the best description which also made her feel less pathetic for having lost so much time.
She clicked on the image search button and typed in ‘clothing designers with circular emblem’ to see if she could find anything which looked like what she had seen on her shirt. After scrolling through at least ten pages of random circular images she decided it was not to be found.
With a sigh of disgust she switched gears and went back to the regular search page and typed in ‘police scanner news, Miami-Dade area’ thinking she might find a live feed of police activity. There were several links to places like the Miami-Dade Police Department, but she was more interested in smaller websites dedicated to only scanner news. She kept scrolling down the page, clicked on page two, scrolled down some more until she finally found something which looked promising. She clicked on the link and waited for it to load. After checking to make sure her sound was turned on she clicked on the ‘live feed’ button and clapped her hands with joy as she began to hear live police action.
After several minutes of listening to sirens and police/dispatch chatter she realized her parents would probably ask questions about her newest obsession. She dug through her nightstand drawer and located a pair of earbuds. She plugged the cord into the computer and put the buds in her ears. Now she would be able to hear the scanners without alarming her parents or making them suspicious of her activities.
She left the page running and clicked to create a new tab so she could continue to listen while she searched the internet for other things: namely Riccan Stel. She had probably already seen every post on the internet which pertained to him, but she could not help but keep looking. He had seemed so real in her memories, but now she was not so sure he knew her at all. She clicked on a picture of him standing in front of his airplane, he looked so happy. She wanted to have him be that happy with her again.
They had only spent a few wonderful days together, but Amanda was sure if they had been together longer then a relationship would have formed. She felt a connection with him which was stronger than anything she had ever known, including her engagement with Neal. She felt a stab of betrayal for even thinking such a thought, but she could hardly lie to herself.
What she had experienced with Neal had paled in comparison to the relationship she had been forming with Riccan. It was almost as if Riccan had been the second half of herself, she could talk to him about anything and everything. Riccan had been thrilled with her children whereas Neal had told her repeatedly he had no interest in having children. Amanda, herself, had not been sure about children until she had her twins and now she wanted desperately to have them back.
Everything she had been thinking led her straight back to Riccan. He was the key to her finding a way back to Tuala. If she could convince him of her knowledge of the other world then he would surely take her where she needed to go to look for her children…again.
She shook her head at how pathetic she seemed, she always needed other people to help her find her loved ones. She really needed to work on being more self-reliant if she were going to go anywhere. She needed to become more resourceful. There seemed to be a reoccurring theme of losing those she loved. She understood everything happened for a reason and that, until you learned the lesson, then you would continue to be tested in the same area. She needed to figure out how to keep a hold of those she loved. First she would start with Riccan.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a news bulletin on the police scanner. She listened intently: ‘missing ten year old autistic boy, last seen walking along the canal southeast of Kendall at six a.m. Search volunteers requested to report to the Kendall District Station.’
Amanda ripped the earbuds from her head and instantly closed the laptop. She jumped off of her bed and crammed her feet into her shoes. Within moments of hearing the report she was running out the front door and over to her car. The town of Kendall was only about ten minutes from her home and she drove as fast as she dared.
This felt like the opportunity for which she had been waiting. She did not like to think of the family worrying for their son, but she hoped her plan would work. Right at the ten minute mark Amanda was circling the District Station in Kendall searching for a place to park. Finally someone pulled out of a space and she immediately pulled in. She probably looked like a madwoman, but she desperately needed to find a way to approach Riccan.
Amanda crossed the street and walked into the Kendall District Station. She checked in at the front desk and was directed to a conference room which, she was told, was the first room on the left down the hall. She followed the receptionist’s directions which were hardly required since the noise from the crowd made it pretty obvious where everyone was congregating.
Amanda pushed her way through the crowd as she scanned the room for any sign of Riccan. She had almost given up hope when she spotted him at the front of the room speaking with one of the officers. She was thrilled to see him and she continued to work her way through the crowd until she was standing just a few feet from the two men.
After a moment of listening to their conversation and trying to tune out the buzz from the people all around her, she heard Riccan say he would use his airplane for an aerial search. He was asking the officer to ask for a volunteer to go with him to be the ‘eyes’ while he flew.
Amanda pushed herself forward and said, “Excuse me. Did I hear you ask for an assistant in an aerial search?”
“Yes,” Riccan replied as he looked her straight in the eyes without any recognition. “Are you volunteering?”
“Absolutely. Let’s go!” Amanda enthusiastically agreed.
Riccan smiled at her eagerness and turned to the officer and said, “I guess I have my volunteer. We’ll leave immediately. Thank you for the advance report. We should be airborne by the time you are finished with your briefing. I’ll keep my radio tuned to your search frequency and let you know if we spot the boy.”
“Thank you for your assistance, Riccan,” the officer replied.
“Okay, ma’am let’s go,” Riccan said as he grabbed her elbow and towed her through the crowd and down the hallway the opposite way Amanda had entered.
She wondered where they were going until she saw the exit door ahead. They must be leaving out a back door, she thought to herself. She could hardly believe she was about to be alone with Riccan just as she had planned. It almost seemed to be working out too well. Surely something would happen which would ruin her opportunity. The nagging idea persisted all the way to Riccan’s vehicle.
“I hope you don’t mind riding with a stranger,” Riccan said with a grin as he opened the passenger door to none other than his white 4-Runner. Amanda shook her head as she realized it was the same vehicle as she remembered, it could not be a coincidence.
“It’s for a good cause,” Amanda stated as she hoisted herself up into the passenger seat. She watched Riccan run around the front of the truck and get into the driver’s side.
“My name’s Riccan Stel,” he stated as he started the
engine. “What’s yours?”
“Amanda Covington,” she replied with a thrill of excitement. This is actually happening!
“Have you ever been flying in a small airplane?” he asked as he kept his eyes on the road.
“Yes, my father is a private pilot.”
“Good! We’ll do just fine then. The airport is only a few minutes from here.”
Amanda watched as they headed west to SW 117th Avenue and turned onto the Ronald Reagan Turnpike where they drove for about five minutes before reaching SW 120th Street. She realized this was a perfect time for them to start talking so she asked, “Do you fly much?” As soon as it came out of her mouth she could have kicked herself for such an inane question. More important questions came to mind such as: When are you heading back to Tuala? and Can you take me with you?
Riccan did not seem to mind as he answered, “As much as I can around my work schedule. How about you?”
“I haven’t been flying with my dad for years, but it’s only been a few months since I went flying with a friend of mine,” she replied as she looked at her ‘friend’ driving the truck.
Riccan nodded as he saw his exit coming and he changed over to the far right lane of the highway. “Only a few minutes more and we’ll be in the air.”
They turned right onto SW 120th Street, left onto SW 122nd Avenue, right onto SW 128th Street Avenue where they slowed down for some traffic. Amanda was thankful Riccan was driving since she was not very familiar with this area. He seemed confident in his directions so she did not worry about it. After waiting through the light, they were finally on their way again. Riccan eventually turned left on SW 146th Avenue and less than a minute later the Miami Executive Airport was straight ahead.
Ascension Discovery Page 95
