The Inner Realm
Page 28
“I don’t believe you.”
“Mike, I’ve had visions of this day for as long as I can remember, and whether you believe me or not doesn’t change the fact that I am now with you.” She leaned forward and gave Mike a quick kiss on the mouth.
“That’s true.” He waved a hand around the bush. “So what do you think of Earth so far?”
“Scrubbery. Not much different than Cillian,” Vala said.
“Wait ‘til we get home, and leave off asking any questions until I have Mother and Dan filled in.”
“I will,” she said, still smiling.
She moved in close and Mike kept hold of her hand.
As they walked along the well-worn track, Mike wondered how he was going to tell his mother and Dan where he had been all this time. They would have been worried sick.
Mike and Vala didn’t speak again until they climbed the steps onto the back deck.
“Stay here,” Mike said.
Vala, eyes wide, kept twisting her head in all directions as if she tried to see everything at once, but somehow she managed to nod.
As Mike coursed through the back door, Dan, his back to Mike, walked down the hall with baby Derek humming happily. A lump lodged into Mike’s throat. Had his family gotten over his disappearance already? His heart told him they loved him, but his mind screamed at the contentment in Dan’s voice. Why weren’t they devastated over losing him? He had been gone for months.
Dan turned to retrace his steps back to the dining room and paused. His face hardened before he strode forward. “Where did you get to and where did you get those clothes?” He looked Mike up and down then tilted his head at the table. “Your dinner is cold.”
A bowl of pasta sat on the table. He returned his attention to his stepfather. Baby Derek smiled and cooed. Mike could not help but smile at the baby. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Dan’s face soften. Mike extended his smile to him. “How long have I been gone?”
“You’re over an hour late.”
“Oh.” Mike contemplated his words for a moment, noting the confusion on his father’s face. He concluded he must have returned at nearly the same time he left. “Where is my mother?”
“Changing. Derek was sick all over her.” As Dan spoke, Mike’s mother appeared in the hallway.
“There you are,” she said as she joined them. She gaped at his clothes, and all color drained from her face. “Where did you get those?”
“I think the both of you better sit down.” Mike pulled out two chairs, helped his mother sit and Dan sat next to her. He hoped his smile of encouragement would settle them as he yanked out another two chairs opposite. “It’s going to be a long story, but first there’s someone I’d like you to meet.”
A question in his mother’s eyes had Mike shake his head. “No.”
She slumped a little.
Dan frowned. “No what?
“No, it’s not who she was expecting,” Mike said. Crossing to the back door, he threw the screen door open. “Come in.”
He stepped aside holding the door to make room for Vala and her dress. His mother stared and Dan stood.
“Why didn’t you tell us you were going to a fancy dress ball?” Dan said. “You didn’t stay long.”
Mike’s mother pulled him back into his chair. “Sit down. They didn’t go to any ball.”
“What do you mean?”
“Let Mike tell us.” She jumped up and smiled at Vala. “What a lovely dress. You’re from the palace?”
Vala gave a shy smile. “Thank you, yes. I worked as you once did. I was a handmaiden.”
“I want to hear all about you. Who were you handmaiden to? Do you know Anabel and Noor?”
“Hang on, Mother, let her sit down before you start interrogating her.”
“What’s going on here?” The frown deepened between Dan’s eyes.
“Just wait a sec.” Mike pulled out the small parchment and handed it to his mother. “This will help explain a bit.”
Once she had read it, she regarded Mike with admiration before handing it to Dan. “I think you had better start at the beginning,” she said to Mike.
Mike waited until Dan read the note. “Okay,” he said. “I just ask you both to keep open minds.”
While relating his experiences, Mike learned his mother had already told Dan about her and his father’s origins. Dan not only believed her, but was all right with it. All evening they sat and talked. His mother and Dan kept interrupting with questions for either Mike or Vala, which veered Mike off track many times, but he slowly got through his tale.
Vala told them Mike was a sulky child when she first met him.
“Thanks a lot,” Mike said.
“That’s how you looked to me. Go on, admit it, you did sulk a little when we made you ride the horse.”
“I guess. But I soon got the hang of it, didn’t I?”
“Yes, although I didn’t say anything, I was impressed with you natural talent.”
Mike’s mother and Dan sat back as Mike told them about the god’s servants. They appeared tolerant of the news, but when Mike relayed his journey to the Inner Realm, disbelief filled their faces.
“You can’t be serious,” Dan said.
“The stories of Peteor walking the streets of heaven were children’s tales,” Mike’s mother said.
“No, they’re true,” Mike said. “And yes, I am serious.”
“It’s true,” said Vala. “I saw and talked with one of the servants. He wouldn’t let me come here, but a god came and whisked him away.” She grinned at Mike. “And Mike couldn’t stop me.”
***
During the telling, his mother made tea and fed them fresh scones. Derek had been put down to sleep twice, but once again sat on his mother’s lap as Mike and Vala finished with their stories.
Mike held out his arms to indicate he would like to hold the baby.
He held Derek up so he could see his little brother’s face. “I have a lot to teach you, baby brother.”
End
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A Note from the Author
I come from a family of twelve. One mum, one dad, six girls and four boys. I was born in Cairns, Far North Queensland, and I’m the third youngest. I spent most of my childhood years in Brisbane, Queensland and yes, we were ragamuffins. You’d think that with nine siblings, a kid would never be lonely, well, that’s not true. I was often lonely and I spent a lot of my time daydreaming about living a very different life. A life with aliens and/or witches.
I wanted to meet My Favourite Martian and I would have loved to travel the universe and through time in the TARDIS with Doctor Who. I still would. I also wanted to be like Samantha in Bewitched or Wendy the Good Little Witch, oh, I could go on and on, but I won’t. I’m sure you get the idea.
Did you know that I live in North Queensland, Australia now? I do. We have a nearly finished house my husband and I are building ourselves. We have our own energy and water companies, Helios Power Ind. (homebuilt solar), and Hebe Water Co. (rainwater tank).
We also have our very own, sometimes demented, three-legged, part Dingo, dog, Zeus. He tried to catch a train, but the train caught him instead. In his defence, it was a cattle train and he might ha
ve been hungry at the time.
You’d be right in thinking we are into the DIY thing in our family. I even have my own publishing company, DCFBooks, and I’m proud to say that I am now an Independent writer/publisher.
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