No sooner had she returned to the living room to sit with Riccan than the girls came racing down the stairs, full of energy for the new day. She smirked conspiratorially at Riccan for the close-call before she turned to smile at their daughters. “Good morning, you two. How did you both sleep?”
“I slept like the dead!” Jena announced proudly. “No more nightmares!”
“Thank Jehoban!” Juila agreed eagerly. “I finally got to sleep through the night in my own bed!”
Everyone laughed, and Riccan stood up to hug his daughters and asked, “Who’s hungry?”
“Me!” the girls cried out in unison.
Chapter Three
DR. STEPHEN GASCON held the investigation report in his hands as he tried to regain his composure. After all, the detective was sitting across from him, and it would not do to lose his temper in front of his employee. As soon as his eyes had fallen on the word “Tuala” he knew the rest of the report was also going to be true.
“I think you realize this does not look good on your record,” Dr. Gascon spoke in his most officious tone. He slowly set the papers down on his mahogany desk and took his reading glasses off of his face.
“Excuse me? I reported everything as it happened, sir.”
It was easy to see how the investigator took offense at his statement, just as he had intended. He wanted the man to be on the defensive, so that this conversation would end, and he could figure out his next move. “Really? The only thing I got out of this is that you probably got drunk or fell asleep because what it sounds like you’re suggesting is that a woman went into a cave and disappeared. Does that sound like something a reasonable person would believe? I think not. I don’t believe I’ll be requiring any further services from you. Good day.”
“Are you firing me?”
“Can you blame me?”
“I did everything you asked…”
“You lost the woman you were supposed to be tracking!” Dr. Gascon stood up and towered over the investigator who remained in his seat.
“I didn’t lose her! I swear she disappeared in the cave!”
“I think you should probably leave before I have you committed.”
“What about my payment?”
“Ha!” Dr. Gascon picked up the papers from his desk and ripped them in half and threw them at the investigator. “I don’t pay for fiction! I pay for facts! Now get out of my office before I have you arrested for trespassing.” He pointed toward the door to emphasize his point and stared fixedly at the man until he finally relented.
He could hear the man grumbling on his way across the office but did not bother to confront him about it since he really wanted him to leave as soon as possible. There were too many coincidences with Shemalla, Amanda, and Tuala. The plan he was formulating in his mind needed to be rock-solid if he were going to pull it off.
As soon as he heard the second set of doors slam from the reception room, Stephen knew he would be undisturbed. He rushed across the room and promptly shut and locked his office door which had flung back open with the force of the investigator’s slam. He then carefully located all of the shreds of paper and began piecing them back together on his desktop. Once finished, he reread the report and whistled at what could possibly be going on.
Obviously, the hair-raising electrical sensation he had felt in Central Park was the same as the investigator had felt at the entrance of the cave. On the verge of sounding crazy himself, he had to conclude that there were portals between Earth and Tuala in at least these two locations, possibly more. He was going to have to do more research in locations where people had often gone missing to see if there were any correlation between what he believed to be true and what was actually happening.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Valentina’s thoughts were interrupted when she heard a knock on her bedroom door. “Come in,” she called as she rolled over on her bed, fully expecting her mother to enter the room. She tried to hide her surprise when, instead, she saw her brother, Jon, poke his head around the edge of the door.
“I was hoping you were awake.”
“Yeah, I’ve been up for a while. What’s going on?”
“I wanted to ask your advice about Sofia.”
“What about her? Is she making you feel uncomfortable?”
“Yes, but it’s my fault, not hers.”
“Okay, sit down and start from the beginning because you’re not making much sense.” Valentina patted a space next to her as she scooted up against the wall to make room on her twin-sized bed for her brother.
“I don’t have any experience with having a girlfriend, and I think I’m messing everything up.” He plunked himself down on the bed and folded his arms across his chest dejectedly.
“Well, none of us have any experience, Jon. We’ve spent all of our lives just trying to fit in and not doing a very good job at it. At least now we know why we never felt quite right.” Valentina’s hand moved up to touch the tree-of-life pendant hanging just above her breasts from the leather thong around her neck. Most people did not even notice the gemstones set in a silver setting since it had a protective spell surrounding it.
With his attention caught by her movement, Jon stared at her pendant’s clear stones with gold flecks. He knew it was right to come to Valentina with this problem. She always instinctively knew the direction of his thoughts. They were different from everyone around them because they were aliens from another dimension. They were from Tuala and not from Earth, but they had been sent to Earth when they were eight years old to save their lives. Their adoptive parents knew nothing about their true heritage, and they were afraid to share their problem with the only family they remembered having up until recently.
“Are you afraid of getting close to Sofia because we know the truth about our mom?”
“Partly.” He shrugged non-committedly. “Mostly, I wonder if it’s fair for me to get involved with her if we end up leaving here to go back to live in Tuala. I mean, it’s not like she would leave everyone she knows here so she can be an old soul in Tuala. She would never fit in.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. Mr. Stel told us about how his relatives were from Earth, and they had no problem assimilating to life in Tuala. Besides, Mrs. Stel’s aunt lives there, and it sounds as though she hasn’t had any problems loving her life there. If you want this, Jon, then you can certainly make it work out.”
Jon considered Valentina’s words and then sighed heavily. “Maybe Sofia’s quick acceptance of our bizarre background is what’s really bothering me. Don’t you think it’s a little strange how she has reacted to all of us? I’d be freaked out, and yet she’s not for some reason! Heck, I almost lost it when you and Behn first told me about our mom.”
“I remember it all too well,” Valentina teased. When she saw her brother roll his eyes at her, she knew she had achieved her goal of getting him out of his funk. “So you think Sofia should have gone running away, screaming that we were all aliens. And since she didn’t do that, you wonder if she’s the right person to get involved with? Jon, you have a lot to learn about girls!”
“I know! Why do you think I wanted to talk to you?”
“Okay, so let’s get everything straight. You like Sofia, right?”
“Yes.”
“You want to keep seeing her?”
“Yes.”
“She wants to keep seeing you?”
“Yes.”
“So what exactly is the problem?”
“Nothing, I guess.”
“Look, Jon, I think you’re not seeing this the right way. If Sofia didn’t know about our real lives, then I think you would be right to be cautious about getting to know her. As it is, Sofia knows all about who we really are, and she’s still interested. That should tell you something about her, don’t you think?”
“I guess.”
Valentina could tell he was not yet convinced but decided to leave it alone for the time being. Instead, she changed the subject by asking, “What do you think
about me getting together with Willian. Since Jena has given us her blessing, don’t you think it’s something worth looking into?”
“Well, I must say my first impression of him wasn’t very good.” Instantly he recalled the boy in question, lying on top of his sister, kissing her passionately. He held up his hands to keep Valentina from interrupting as he continued, “But, he seems to be a pretty decent guy. I’m still going to keep my eyes on him, though, and if he does anything to hurt you, you can be sure I’ll lay him out flat again!”
“Jon, no! That was awful! I don’t ever want you to hit him again.”
“I’m just saying…” Jon left the threat hanging but relented when he saw the look on his sister’s face. “I know you like him and I’ll try my best to like him too.”
“I think you know it goes a bit further than just liking him, Jon. My life-line is literally tied to his, and my future is already set to be married to him whether we like it or not. At first, I resented the idea of having no choice in the matter, but now I realize it’s pretty amazing to be so totally bonded to someone. I’m keeping my mind open to it, and I’ll just see where it takes me.”
“It seems as though you’ve changed more than any of us, Val. I never thought I’d hear you accept this so easily. What changed your mind?” Jon was glad to talk about his sister’s love-life rather than his own; it was a lot easier to be objective with her.
Valentina considered his question seriously before she answered, “I think it was Jena’s reaction to seeing our bond when she touched us at our mom’s house. She was genuinely happy for what she felt between us. I think she wished it could have been the same for her and Willian.”
“Maybe, but Juila sure was happy to see the two of them broken up. She really despised Willian, and I can’t forget about that because I think Juila had some pretty valid reasons for feeling as she did about him.”
“But Willian has changed, Jon. Be fair.”
“Oh, he’s changed in the two minutes you’ve known him, has he? Come on, can a leopard change its spots so easily?”
“Don’t start, Jon. Even Juila admitted he’d changed. Our bond changed him for the better.”
“As I said, I’m going to be keeping an eye on him to make sure he doesn’t slip back into his bad behavior.”
“Fine, but you’re wasting your time.”
“Good! I’d gladly waste my time if it meant it kept you safe.”
“I love you,” Valentine relented and threw her arms around her brother.
Surprised by her sudden change of mood, Jon delayed marginally in returning her embrace. It was good to have someone so close who he could trust. He hoped to one day have the same kind of relationship with Sofia. He pulled away from his sister and said, “I think I’ll give Sofia a call and see what she’s up to today. Maybe we could hang out together or something.”
“I think that’s the best idea you’ve had yet.” She pulled her arms back from her brother and made a shooing motion with her hands. “Go on, get out of here and get on the phone.” She smiled as she watched him scoot off the bed and hurry out of her room without even looking back. She also hoped it was wise for him to continue the relationship. She shrugged as she could hear her own words repeated in her head, Sofia knows what she’s getting into. “I hope so,” she whispered out loud to herself.
Chapter Four
TIRSHA’S ATTENTION WAS torn between her fascination with her almost-grown daughter and her rescuer, Petre. The only thing she knew about either of them was what other people told her. Of course, Corva was beautiful, polite, and smart thanks to Barla’s care in raising her since she was a small, orphaned child. She still had a hard time wrapping her mind around the fateful events of the day her house caught fire. One moment she had been upstairs while her toddler daughter waited for her meal downstairs in the kitchen, and the next moment she had been surrounded by smoke and flames.
In her desperate attempt to escape, she had accidentally teleported herself through time and found herself trapped in the nothingness between the dimensions. If it had not been for Petre’s intervention, she would have been lost forever and believed to have been killed in the house fire. Instead, she had to face the bizarre fact that she had lost a declan of time as well as most of her daughter’s childhood. The three-anon-old she remembered was only vaguely visible in the thirteen-anon-old’s facial features. Luckily, there was enough resemblance she could still see the daughter she recalled from moments before in her own recollection.
It was still a hard idea to comprehend where mere minutes in her lifetime could have been so many anons for her daughter. The pain Corva must have felt thinking she had been left without parents made her want to cry in despair. If only she could figure out how the fire had started, maybe then she could find some sort of closure to their strange story.
Seeing Corva practice her crystal skill lessons sent a pang of envy through her unexpectedly. She should have been the one to first introduce Corva to the magical world of the elemental energy. She had been planning on starting her training in a couple of mesans until the fire shattered the notion. Instead, Tirsha imagined Barla had been the one to train Corva. As if her thoughts had manifested the person, Barla sat next to her.
“She’s really very talented. You should be very proud of her; she’s at the top of her class, you know.”
“Really? That’s amazing. Although I had nothing to do with it, I should be congratulating you on teaching her the basics of getting started.” Tirsha managed to give the compliment without too much of her disappointment showing.
“Me? No! I wasn’t the one to teach her. I hired a tutor for her.”
“Oh,” Tirsha replied lamely. For a moment she wondered why Barla had let someone else tutor Corva, but then she realized Barla had probably been too busy with the other orphaned children in her care to have the spare time to hold individual lessons. “Is it true Rasa has been confirmed as the heir to Elder Wilken? I didn’t think women were allowed to hold that station.”
Barla pulled her shoulders back slightly with pride as she answered, “Rasa is the first woman to be honored with the position.”
“Why? Weren’t there any men to take the post?”
Feeling slightly miffed, Barla replied, “It was Jehoban’s request. I’m not going to question His plan.”
“Really? Jehoban asked Elder Wilken to take Rasa?”
“No, Jehoban asked Rasa to go to Elder Wilken to be his successor.”
“How did that happen?”
“Rasa was chosen to be one of Jehoban’s students when she was six anons old. She went to live on Acaim and was raised by Jehoban. It’s only natural for Him to want to use the skills He taught her in a manner which pleased Him.”
“I had no idea, Barla. You must have been so proud when Rasa had been selected. Why didn’t you go with her, though? I thought that’s what usually happened when a child was chosen.”
Still feeling slightly defensive, Barla looked away from Tirsha and focused on watching Corva practice creating objects on the table in front of her. “It was a hard decision, but we had to think about what was best for the whole family. In the end, Rasa decided to go alone. Ahn had just been appointed as the Harbor Master, and Gravin had all his neighborhood and school friends here.”
Tirsha reached over and touched Barla’s arm in sympathy. “I’m sorry, Barla. I didn’t mean to imply you were wrong for the choice you made. In a way, it makes me feel better because you know what it feels like to miss out on your daughter’s childhood.” She glanced meaningfully over at Corva and back to Barla. “I’ve missed out on too much, and I don’t know how to make up for the lost time.”
“You don’t have to try to make any of it up, Tirsha. Having you back is enough. Just enjoy the time with your daughter and don’t take any of it for granted.”
Tirsha felt tears forming in her eyes, and she simply nodded agreement.
Instantly, Barla felt bad for thinking Tirsha was accusing her. Of course, thi
s woman had come through a terrifying ordeal only to find her life had been completely changed in an instant. She was bound to have moments of bitterness and regret because she had no recourse other than to ask questions. Barla was going to have to keep this in mind with every conversation to avoid getting her feelings hurt.
“Tell me about your experience with Petre,” Barla asked. She wanted to change the subject to something more neutral.
Tirsha shrugged and tried to find a way to explain the circumstances when even she did not quite understand what had happened. “I don’t really know how it transpired, only that Petre was there with me and I knew I was safe somehow. I’ve never felt anything like it, so there’s nothing to really compare it to. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I do. I’m just wondering what it was like in between the dimensions. Were there smells, sights, any sensations at all?”
“Cold! The bone-piercing cold was what I recall most of all. Then it was the loneliness which almost threatened to drive me mad until I could feel Petre’s presence.”
“Did you physically feel him then?”
“No, it wasn’t anything like that. It was more…” Tirsha shrugged again and began to wring her hands together as she tried to decide how to clarify the unexplainable. “I guess it was more like my life-line felt a link with his. I don’t know; it sounds so stupid when I say it out loud.”
“Not at all. Do you realize you and Petre are the first people in history to ever survive in that environment? I’d say you experienced a miracle. Surely Jehoban has some special plan for you for Him to give you such a blessing.”
“Maybe.” Tirsha looked meaningfully back to her daughter and said, “I don’t feel very lucky, mostly lost and confused. My whole life has been turned inside out. My husband is dead, my daughter is grown, and I’m living among strangers.” Both of her hands flew up to her mouth at her last statement, and her eyes grew round with worry over her rude comment. “I’m so sorry, Barla! Please know I appreciate you taking me in; I don’t mean to sound ungrateful.”
Ascension Vision- The Levels of Ascension Box Set Page 60
