Destiny's Gate

by Lee Bice-Matheson

  “So you are our protector, Dad. Thank you for doing that, especially while I’m away. Paige needs your help.” Mom stood and brushed the hair off my face, planting a kiss on my forehead.

  “Without a doubt, I will continue to do so, Lori. Now, Paige, what about you? Remember you told me about the healing rock? Tell your mother.”

  Mom sat down on the little kiddie chair again and said, “Healing rock...oh, Paige mentioned that already, Dad.”

  Grandpa looked at me and nodded his head in encouragement to continue on.

  “I was guided by Grey Owl...and an older man — I only see his face. He has long, white braided hair and told me to touch the healing rock by the brook — it’s red, black, and white. Healing from what though, I really don’t know.”

  Mom grabbed my hand and said, “Healing your soul, perhaps? It sounds like many people and spirits are looking out for you, and that is a big relief for me. Here you are today, looking healthy and happy. We have so much to be grateful for.”

  Before anyone could respond, grandma shouted, “I was told this is a mother-daughter day. What are you doing up there Ted? And how did you get up there? Get down here right now and let Lori and Paige have their time together.”

  Grandpa whispered, “Uh oh. I’ll never hear the end of this. What was I thinking and how did she find us?”

  “I know very well that room was Lori’s hideaway,” grandma continued. “Who do you think gives it a wipe now and then so she’s not sitting amongst dust bunnies?”

  We all laughed as grandpa edged down the stairs. Mom held on tightly to his right arm and grandma stood at the bottom to brace against any falls.

  “That was a real nice visit. C’mon Helen, let’s get ourselves some tea.” They toddled off down the hallway, chattering away to one another.

  “Your grandma won’t be happy with grandpa. Hopefully they’ll let it go until we have to fly back. I am so happy we came home for your birthday. Is there anything else you want to share with me, Paige?”

  I held my breath, is she ready to hear about the transition of lost souls and about Allan and Dexter? What could mom do to help me when she is leaving again so soon? I responded, “Nope. Astral travel is pretty big.” I winked.

  “Well, you have my cell number if you need me, or just think of me and call my name. I’ll eventually catch up with you. That’s part of my gift — I can speak telepathically, especially to you, my daughter. The bond between a mother and child is the greatest. Do you remember times at school in Scarborough when you were going to say something rude to a teacher, and a little voice told you not to?”

  I gasped, “That was you?”

  “Yes, I did not want you to get in trouble,” mom tucked her hair behind her ear.

  “Looking back, you were so right to do that!”

  “Well, we had better get back to the group. As your grandpa said, or I’ll never hear the end of it from your grandmother,” mom joked as she stood up and started down the attic stairs. Hesitating before leaving, I surveyed the room and was relieved there was no hint of Bradford or his nephew, no cold spot, no foreboding feeling, nothing at all. Perhaps I had cleared the manor permanently.

  Hanna diverted her eyes and appeared hurt as I entered the kitchen. She must have felt left out of the family meeting. It was the first time I thought I had betrayed her, and after all Hanna had done for my family over Halloween, and been through, including putting herself in harm’s way for all our sakes.

  I offered an empathetic smile and emphasized to Hanna, “It was so nice to have some time with my mom.” In return, I heard telepathically, and your grandfather. I understand Paige. Hanna began to briskly stir the scone batter.

  Hanna’s brunch consisted of sausage croquettes, poached eggs and hash brown potatoes followed by lemon scones, leaving my stomach feeling upset and bloated. Later that morning, grandma insisted on taking a walk with mom and I, leaving dad behind with grandpa. I wondered what they would chat about. We walked single file to the kitchen door when I excused myself and encouraged mom to go with grandma alone; after all, they needed mother-daughter time as well. As I bid them goodbye, I quietly slipped back to the dining room and overheard grandpa talking to dad about mom and me. Although I felt rather guilty eavesdropping, I wanted to hear what they had to say.

  “So, Kevin, I don’t know quite how to begin this conversation. Do you know about...?”

  “Do I know about...what’s happening here at the manor? Of course I do. You don’t really think Lori and I could be married as long as we have without my knowing about her gift? And I know Paige has it as well, from the time her nightmares started before we moved to the O’Brien Estate. They were so frightening she would wake up screaming and in a terrible sweat. Lori would run and fetch a towel to swab her forehead. That’s another reason why we moved here. Lori insisted on it.”

  “You mean...she felt this is a safe place for Paige to learn about her gift and heritage?” grandpa asked softly.

  “Yes. I agreed with Lori, and Paige seems to be adapting to living here quite well,” dad added.

  “Well, that clears up a lot of what I wanted to say. What a great family to have married into, eh?” Grandpa sounded remorseful.

  “I love my wife to the ends of the earth. I first knew of her gift when we were dating. Lori and I were at a cafe and she was staring out the window. An odd expression overcame her face and she spoke in a raspy voice about an elderly woman passing by the window, heading to a clothing store. She said that the woman was going to die within two days. Then she shook her head and snapped out of it and asked me to repeat what she had just said. Lori looked stunned as I said, she is going to die within two days. She told me that the woman was an old friend of hers and asked me what she should do with the information. I said it would be crazy to tell the woman and explained she might die from fright just knowing that alone!”

  “Good call, Kevin. When we get information from the Other Side, it’s not always something we can act upon. What happened...did she die?”

  “Yes, within forty-eight hours. She slipped in the bathroom and hit her head on the tub. Lori was devastated when she found out. There were two patients where this same sort of situation occurred. One was an older man who was a grandfather, and had his daughter and grandchildren come in to see me regularly, as well. Lori loved him — he taught her how to gage the weather patterns. John came in once a month to see me and he would sit with Lori in the waiting room, after his adjustment, and talk about the wind patterns and cloud coverage and the feeling of changes in the barometric pressure. Then one day he came in for his adjustment and when he left Lori ran into the bathroom and cried like I’d never heard her before, as a wounded animal might do. It sounded like she had been seriously injured. I asked what happened — she couldn’t talk for several minutes. Eventually she blurted out — he’s going to die soon! I found out two days later he had died within a day of her premonition. It took us time to get over it. We could not figure out why Lori had been given the gift of impending death.”

  “Well I can explain that. We’re from Scotland and born with second sight — I was born on Halloween and it is my heritage to see who is going to die. In the past, our ancestors were given this gift to console their families ahead of time and get them used to the idea. But nowadays, people would think you’ve gone mad! We were all once very spiritual. I’m glad you stopped her from telling anyone.”

  “After that day, Lori looked up to the heavens and decreed that she never wanted to know again who was going to die and when; it stopped. Ted, the next experience that happened was stranger yet. We had a new patient — a brother to another of our regulars that affected Lori immediately when he walked in; she likened it to being punched hard in the stomach. She grabbed her stomach and couldn’t speak for a minute or two, so I led the new patient into the examination room and asked him to fill in the forms there. After the consultation,
I walked him out to the front desk and took his payment because Lori couldn’t be in the same room with him. That was a really bizarre situation for Lori and me, until later that day. A police officer came in for a treatment and told us that some guy tried to shoot his girlfriend. He was radioed to investigate because the neighbours had called to complain about the shouting. When he arrived, the suspect was pointing the gun at his girlfriend. The officer stepped in front to protect her from harm. Luckily, he was only nicked by the bullet on his right hand, and the girl was saved.”

  “You mean the same guy that you treated earlier in the day, the new patient, was the same guy that tried to kill his girlfriend?” Grandpa’s voice quavered.

  “Yes, and Lori knew he was going to do something horrible but she did not know what. It scared her for a long time after that. Lori said she felt nauseated and very weak when he walked into the Clinic. Anyway, Lori’s had many experiences. I know what you’re talking about, Ted.”

  Grandpa did not respond. He arose and offered to make dad a cup of tea. I quickly exited the dining room and headed for the stairwell. I heard telepathically, come and join us, Paige. Don’t hide. I turned around and there was grandpa smiling at me. I have to say it gave me the willies that he knew where I was but after our chat in the attic, why should I be so surprised. I obediently walked back into the living room and sat next to dad.

  “Where did you come from? I thought you were out walking with your mom and grandma?” dad asked sounding alarmed.

  “No, I had an upset stomach so I stayed behind.”

  “Were you listening to us, Paige?” commanded dad.

  “Yes, sorry, I shouldn’t have eavesdropped like that.” I looked at him and felt rather sheepish but was disappointed by his reaction, like I had betrayed him.

  “That’s okay, Paige,” dad said, as he held my hand, his face softened. “I just thought your grandpa and I were having a one on one conversation, which is pretty rare. Don’t worry, dear.” Dad gave me a peck on the cheek.

  “Tea for three!” grandpa announced as he set the tray down. “We have a gift, don’t we, Paige?” He glanced at dad then me.

  “I guess so.” I was dazed that dad knew about all of this and was at a loss for words.

  “Paige, I’ve known about your mother’s gift since we were dating. And it didn’t bother me one bit. I have always known there was something special about her and expected you to show signs of it someday. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You’re lucky to be gifted...I wish I had it too. Your mom shares things with me and I just smile and encourage her not to be afraid of it. Only something miraculous could be behind this ability...not evil.”

  Sighing, I relaxed and thought, he’s right. There’s nothing to be ashamed of, it is a gift, a miracle in fact. Sensing mom and grandma as they entered the manor I put my finger to my mouth and pointed towards the kitchen.

  Grandpa welcomed them back, “Well that didn’t take long, ladies!”

  Mom and grandma appeared in the doorway and acknowledged how lovely it was to have tea ready for them. I grabbed two cups and poured it, making excuses that dad and I were still too full to have any. And that is what I called a save!

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  A Spiritwalker

  While the six of us were wrapped up in conversation after a midday snack, I could not stop thinking about how great it was to have Hanna join us as part of the family. I had grown to understand her more in the past few months. She was intense and always thinking of our safety, which brought me to a more acute awareness. Something was trying to get my attention, an energy swirling around me, distracting me, making it difficult to listen to everyone else. It became rather annoying so I focused harder on mom as she described her latest research article on non-native women living in Italy and their experiences.

  Despite my best efforts, I saw a vision of a man standing talking to me and swinging his right hand at me, pointing. At first, I did not know who it was until I really concentrated on the face; it was Dexter! He was calling to me, from where I had no idea, and it looked as if he was in trouble. Now why would I help Dexter after all he had done to me on Halloween? Then I heard a voice stating, Dexter is not himself! He needs your help now. I must have looked spaced out as grandpa and mom stopped talking and stared at me. I felt foolish and made a hasty exit stating I had to go to the bathroom. Luckily, the conversation resumed as normal.

  Gazing at my dishevelled long, curly, auburn hair and wild eyes in the bathroom mirror, I wondered what to do next. It was one of those moments when I felt I had to trust my instincts. I could run back into the living room and tell everyone what was going on, or I could go and help Dexter out of loyalty and trust he was back to normal. With this possibility in mind, I glanced out the tiny bathroom window and saw a well-tanned man with long black hair tied in two braids over his shoulders, a scoop neck black tee and a black vest and jeans; he was leaning against a tree, his arms folded and one leg crossed over the other, smiling at me. Next, I heard my clock radio click on and the singer Pink belted out the song, Don’t let me get me. It gave me the willies. When I looked out again, the man with braided hair was gone.

  Out of desperation, I looked upwards and asked aloud, “Who was that?” My hands were raised above my head.

  I heard a reply — a spiritwalker.

  Shaken, I asked, “A spirit what?”

  A spiritwalker. And then, silence.

  I dressed for the cold, ran out of the bedroom as fast as my short legs would take me, down the hallway through the east entrance of the manor and into the forest. I ran so fast I could not fathom where I was until I stopped in front of the guest house, shivering. Now what would I find in here? Dexter, my friend ,or Dexter, my foe?

  I watched as the front door creaked partially open. No one was in sight. Thud; I felt an ache in the pit of my stomach and worried I was in for another round of spirit mania. Against my better judgement, I put one foot in front of the other and pushed the door open until I stood just inside the doorway. There, in the hallway, lay Dexter surrounded by a pool of blood. I frantically dialled the manor number on the antique brass and black rotary phone which frustrated me immensely. Why didn’t my grandparents install a normal touchtone phone? Hanna picked up and I hysterically cried out — Dexter is dead! The rest was a hazy dream as paramedics arrived and carried Dexter out on a stretcher. I barely grasped the concept that an oxygen mask was placed over his mouth and nose, and an IV drip was inserted into his arm. The sight of Dexter’s bloodied head burned into the recesses of my mind.

  Grandpa insisted he and grandma would go to the hospital to attend to Dexter and ordered the three of us to stay home together. I vaguely heard grandpa as I replayed the scene of finding Dexter lying listlessly in his own blood. My mind raced with thoughts of who did this to him and why.

  “Paige, dear, you’ve had a terrible fright. Come and sit with me.” Mom held my hand and led me to the elongated couch, patting the seat beside her. As I sat down, she leaned over and tucked my hair behind my left ear, and hummed a song I had not heard since childhood. If I remembered correctly, it was called Hush, Little Baby. Tears streamed down my face, fatigue overcame me, and I slumped down into her lap, stretching out my legs on the couch.

  Grandpa rubbed the top of his head as he hastily exited, ordering Hanna to stay by the phone for updates. He stormed out of the manor to the car where grandma waited anxiously, in anticipation. Hanna stood frozen in the hallway solemnly nodding while monitoring mom and me, and then returned to the kitchen to clean up after the tea.

  Dad rushed into the kitchen and I overheard him relieve Hanna of her duties and insisted she have a rest while our family had some more tea together. When the kettle whistled, he called us into the kitchen. I noticed his hand trembled as he poured the boiling water into the Brown Betty. Mom and I settled into the breakfast nook by the bay window overlooking the snow-covered garden. My mind
raced with the memory of Dexter’s bloodied body and I was anxious after the day’s events. In contrast, it was a relief to look out at the sunlight glistening on the snow. When I closed one eye, it looked like sunshine glistening on top of waves.

  “Paige, that was a terrible act of violence for you to stumble upon. Are you all right, dear?” Dad placed our tea cups on the table and then motioned mom to stand up. He sat on the bench between us and clutched my forearm.

  “I...just can’t believe it. He was laying there, blood everywhere. I thought Dexter was dead,” I replied through broken sobs. “I will never be able to get that out of my head.” I threw my head down onto folded arms.

  “Well, let’s not get too excited, Paige. We need an update from the hospital. Grandpa said they had an oxygen mask on Dexter, remember, as he was wheeled away,” mom said, in a comforting tone.

  “Your mom’s right, Paige. Let’s hope for the best.” Dad picked up his cup of tea and slurped it so loudly, it gave us a much needed break from all the tension.

  Dad changed the subject and began to delicately explain to mom that I had overheard his conversation with grandpa about the family gift; mom’s gift in particular. I was embarrassed, until I sensed a sigh of relief from her.

  “It’s about time the three of us talk about life in the O’Brien way...in our immediate family,” mom said in a confident manner. “It’s okay, Kevin, we discussed it in the attic. Paige, I always knew you were gifted, when we lived in Scarborough. Do you remember when you were a little girl, about six or seven? You would stand in the kitchen after supper, and look up facing the cupboards — one by one the bowls would fall into your hands?”