filled with the scent of flowers, touched my cheek. And then, suddenly, there she was. She had long, billowy chestnut hair, dark brown eyes, and she wore a dress that seemed to capture the colors that swirled around her.
She smiled, and the light grew even brighter, but I could still see her clearly. Rationally, I knew I should be afraid. What was happening in front of me should have had me running from the room screaming. Instead, I felt weirdly at ease—comfortable, even.
“Hello, Alice. I’ve waited such a long time for this.” Her voice skimmed over me, through me, and the sound of it was as joyful as ringing bells.
“Are you an angel?” I asked.
Another laugh. “Not hardly. I am your great-great-great-grandmother. We need to talk about something vitally important.”
My mouth moved, but nothing came out.
“I won’t be able to stay long. Listen carefully, and take my words to heart. Your daughter is special. She’ll need to be raised in a home of pure love, and she’ll need the guidance of one particular man. Your soul mate. It is of the utmost necessity that you find him before she is born, so you can secure her future. Your future.”
I tried to process everything she said, tried to make sense of her message, but at that moment, I couldn’t. “Who are you? How do you know these things?”
“I already told you. I am Miranda, your great-great-great-grandmother. Your sister and Verda have the answers. Talk to them, but don’t forget what I said, Alice. You need to find your soul mate—there’s no time to waste!”
Then, as if someone had pulled the plug, she, the scent of flowers, the breeze and the colors disappeared, gone as quickly as they’d appeared. I closed my eyes for a second and then opened them again. Yep, everything seemed to be pretty much back to normal, as if I’d imagined the entire episode. Except for one tiny thing. My heart thumped, my breathing came fast and uneven, and goose bumps coated my skin. A rose petal floated in the air directly in front of me, as if held up by an invisible hand, and slowly weaved its way to the floor. When it landed, I leaned over, picked it up, and then stroked my finger along it, feeling its velvety smoothness, proving to myself it was real.
My baby moved again, another flutter of butterfly wings. As if she were equally entranced by what had just happened. Something so odd. So mystical. Awe-inspiring, even. And she’d called herself Miranda.
I trembled as I mentally replayed the whole scene. Soul mate? My daughter?
I had questions. Tons of them. And I knew who to get the answers from. My sister and my grandmother had a heck of a lot of explaining to do. It appeared Grandma Verda was right—we would be talking soon.
Tonight, if I had any say in it.
Chapter Four
“Elizabeth, it’s Alice again. You need to call me back ASAP. No matter what time it is,” I said into the phone. This was the third message I’d left for my sister in the past several hours, and honestly, annoyed didn’t begin to express my feelings. “It’s about Miranda, who appears to be a ghost, and who said you and Grandma were the people to talk to. Call me back.”
Not knowing what else to add, I hung up the phone and returned to my prior position of staring at it. As if by sheer force of will I could make it ring. It so wasn’t happening. I’d even tried wishing she’d call me back, but no dice. If wishes were real, why were mine so fickle?
Tiredness seeped in and I yawned, but I didn’t allow myself to give in to exhaustion. As much as I wanted to sleep, I needed to be awake and alert when my sister finally phoned. But I needed to do something. Sitting around doing nothing made the entire situation worse.
Grabbing the remote, I flipped on the TV and channel surfed for a minute. When nothing caught my interest, I shut it back off. I hadn’t called my grandmother yet. I thought about doing so now, even though I’d wanted to talk to Elizabeth first, but one
She smiled, and the light grew even brighter, but I could still see her clearly. Rationally, I knew I should be afraid. What was happening in front of me should have had me running from the room screaming. Instead, I felt weirdly at ease—comfortable, even.
“Hello, Alice. I’ve waited such a long time for this.” Her voice skimmed over me, through me, and the sound of it was as joyful as ringing bells.
“Are you an angel?” I asked.
Another laugh. “Not hardly. I am your great-great-great-grandmother. We need to talk about something vitally important.”
My mouth moved, but nothing came out.
“I won’t be able to stay long. Listen carefully, and take my words to heart. Your daughter is special. She’ll need to be raised in a home of pure love, and she’ll need the guidance of one particular man. Your soul mate. It is of the utmost necessity that you find him before she is born, so you can secure her future. Your future.”
I tried to process everything she said, tried to make sense of her message, but at that moment, I couldn’t. “Who are you? How do you know these things?”
“I already told you. I am Miranda, your great-great-great-grandmother. Your sister and Verda have the answers. Talk to them, but don’t forget what I said, Alice. You need to find your soul mate—there’s no time to waste!”
Then, as if someone had pulled the plug, she, the scent of flowers, the breeze and the colors disappeared, gone as quickly as they’d appeared. I closed my eyes for a second and then opened them again. Yep, everything seemed to be pretty much back to normal, as if I’d imagined the entire episode. Except for one tiny thing. My heart thumped, my breathing came fast and uneven, and goose bumps coated my skin. A rose petal floated in the air directly in front of me, as if held up by an invisible hand, and slowly weaved its way to the floor. When it landed, I leaned over, picked it up, and then stroked my finger along it, feeling its velvety smoothness, proving to myself it was real.
My baby moved again, another flutter of butterfly wings. As if she were equally entranced by what had just happened. Something so odd. So mystical. Awe-inspiring, even. And she’d called herself Miranda.
I trembled as I mentally replayed the whole scene. Soul mate? My daughter?
I had questions. Tons of them. And I knew who to get the answers from. My sister and my grandmother had a heck of a lot of explaining to do. It appeared Grandma Verda was right—we would be talking soon.
Tonight, if I had any say in it.
Chapter Four
“Elizabeth, it’s Alice again. You need to call me back ASAP. No matter what time it is,” I said into the phone. This was the third message I’d left for my sister in the past several hours, and honestly, annoyed didn’t begin to express my feelings. “It’s about Miranda, who appears to be a ghost, and who said you and Grandma were the people to talk to. Call me back.”
Not knowing what else to add, I hung up the phone and returned to my prior position of staring at it. As if by sheer force of will I could make it ring. It so wasn’t happening. I’d even tried wishing she’d call me back, but no dice. If wishes were real, why were mine so fickle?
Tiredness seeped in and I yawned, but I didn’t allow myself to give in to exhaustion. As much as I wanted to sleep, I needed to be awake and alert when my sister finally phoned. But I needed to do something. Sitting around doing nothing made the entire situation worse.
Grabbing the remote, I flipped on the TV and channel surfed for a minute. When nothing caught my interest, I shut it back off. I hadn’t called my grandmother yet. I thought about doing so now, even though I’d wanted to talk to Elizabeth first, but one
Similar Books
