A Chance Encounter

by Lindsay McKenna

  “Let me put my stuff in the bathroom, and then we’ll go downstairs,” he heard himself say. Lord, he wanted to do anything but that! He wanted to lift Katie in his arms, carry her to that sumptuous bed strewn with pillows and make passionate love to her. A charged excitement sparked between them in that instant and it took every fiber of strength in Taylor Grant to pull away from her. Did Katie know what she was doing to him? Turning him inside out with a burning hunger to make her his own? Did Katie realize that her slightly parted lips gave her a breathless vulnerability that made him want to protect her? That her lapis lazuli eyes, deepened by the black fringe of lashes, pulled him into their hypnotic depths? He wanted to lose himself in the yielding warmth of her feminine body. He wanted to rest his head against her breasts and allow her just to hold him. Taylor craved everything about her. Whatever she might be. It didn’t matter what secret she carried within her, he thought, setting his bag down in the bathroom. No matter what Katie told him about herself, it wouldn’t deter him from exploring, enjoying, drinking in all aspects of her delightfully enigmatic personality….

  Katie glanced at her watch; it was almost three. She shut her eyes, wishing this tiring day were over. It hadn’t been easy. Several reporters returned to badger her into giving them a story. Maud drew up into her fiercest stance and finally shooed them out the store just as Taylor returned from a brief errand.

  Taylor glared at the reporters trooping out into the hot afternoon sunlight. Maud wagged her finger at him as he halted by the desk.

  “This is all your fault, you know, Mr. Grant! Those reporters are like jackals and they practically drove Katie to tears. You ought to be ashamed of yourself!”

  “Maud, it’s all right,” Katie soothed, managing a wan smile for Taylor’s benefit. “Come on, I have to get the back room set up for our patients. They’ll be arriving soon. Taylor, are you coming?”

  He nodded and decided not to say anything to Maud. She was right. He had started this whole business. He followed Katie into the next room. It turned out to be a classroom with desks, a lectern at the front and a huge chalkboard. With Taylor’s help, Katie pulled out a small table.

  “What’s going on?”

  Katie went to the washroom in back and scrubbed her hands with soap. “People bring their sick animals every day at three so I can lay hands on them,” she explained. Picking up the towel, she dried her fingers and then joined him.

  He frowned. “Laying hands on? Like you did with Joe Collins?”

  “Yes. Exactly the same.”

  Taylor crossed his arms over his chest. He watched as Katie picked up a piece of chalk and drew a human form on the board. “You’re an artist, too.”

  “A poor one, believe me. Okay, lesson number one in metaphysics, Taylor. Around everything organic and inorganic there is an energy field. It’s electromagnetic—or, put more simply, it’s like an electrical field around us. Metaphysicians call it the “aura.” She chalked an outline around the human figure she had drawn. “This first field is known as the “etheric.” And if you unfocus your eyes and look past my shoulder as I stand against this blackboard, you’ll be able to see a clear outline of my body—it should appear shaped like a colorless blanket, following the shape of my body.” She turned to him and stood still. “Want to try it?”

  He grimaced. “Come on, Katie….”

  Her eyes flashed. “Unfocus your eyes!” she insisted. “It isn’t any big deal to see the etheric aura. Anyone can. It won’t shock or scare you. All you’re doing is using your eyes to ‘see’ one of the electrical fields that surround all of us.”

  Grudgingly Taylor unfocused his eyes. His brows dipped and after a few seconds, he shook his head. “I can’t see a thing, Katie.”

  “That’s to be expected at first. But if you were more relaxed, you would. You were trying too hard.”

  His mouth became a grim line. “I don’t believe in what I can’t see,” he said stubbornly.

  “Fair enough. But keep an open mind for a few more minutes while I review the mechanics, will you? Because then, when I lay hands on the animals, you’ll realize what is happening. It isn’t magic or any such nonsense.” Now she drew an eggshell shape around the human figure on the” chalkboard. “This next field is called the “astral body.” It’s our emotional body, Taylor. And it changes color according to our moods.” She drew several other oval shapes outside the two she’d already drawn. “These are known as the “mental” and “causal fields.” I’m not going to explain them at this point, because it gets quite complicated. Suffice it to say, Taylor, there is more to us than meets the naked eye.” She laid the chalk down and faced him with her hands raised.

  “We can use a technique known as Kirlian photography to take pictures of our etheric field. They show the energy coming off our bodies as a luminescent pattern. I have several books on the subject, if you’d care to take a look.”

  “Oh, I will—rest assured,” he added quietly. “Go on, you’ve managed to rouse my curiosity.”

  Katie smiled, spreading her fingers. “All right, we are all in our own electrical field. When I lay hands on another, whether it’s a human or an animal, there is a meeting and blending of energies.”

  “Sparks don’t fly?” he queried, grinning.

  Katie laughed like a delighted child, clapping her hands. “In some cases, that actually happens. But most people just feel a magnetic attraction to each other. They can’t see it or touch it, but they perceive it. And what they are perceiving is the field around another individual.” Her eyes glinted with humor. “And in some cases, when this occurs, there is instant love, hate, trust or distrust.” She shrugged. “When you asked me to help you with Joe Collins, and I knelt across from you, I immediately felt protected in your presence, Taylor. You make me feel safe.”

  “That’s all?”

  She blushed. “What do you feel when you’re around me?” she countered.

  Taylor grinned, letting his arms relax and fall to his sides. “That, princess, is a leading question.”

  “It wasn’t meant to be,” she said, flustered.

  That same male smile creased the corners of his sensual mouth as he studied her. “What I feel toward you shouldn’t be put into words. If I were to do that, I’m sure you’d turn red as a beet.”

  Nervously, Katie chewed on her lower lip. “Let’s stay off the physical for a few minutes more, okay? I need to explain what happened when I touched Joe Collins.”

  Taylor nodded and seated himself on the edge of the desk next to her. “First I have to believe that we all have this electrical field around us—”

  “That can be proven with the use of the Kirlian photography.”

  “Okay. What’s next, professor?”

  Taylor was too close. And too sensual! Heart pounding, Katie moved off of the desk to draw another picture on the board. This time she sketched a prostrate form, with another form kneeling beside it. “This is the part I can’t prove to you. You’ll just have to take my word for it, Taylor. I’m sure that as Kirlian photography is refined over the next few years, we’ll be able to actually see healing take place.”

  “Healing? As in faith healing?”

  Katie gave him a thoughtful look. Should she go into the specifics? Finally, she bowed to her intuition and threw caution to the wind. “My mother, Ruth, as I just told you, was a nurse. She noticed that when she touched her patients, her hands would become exceedingly warm—even hot. And her patients mentioned this to her, too. But the most interesting result was that after my mother touched a patient—even for a minute or so—he felt better afterward.”

  Taylor crossed his arms, scowling. “In what way, Katie?”

  “The patients perked up, had more energy and entered a better frame of mind.”

  “And you have this same gift?”

  “It’s not really a gift. Anyone can do it.”

  “I see. So when did you become aware that you had this talent?”

  “After many years, m
y mother decided to find out exactly why her touch affected her patients so positively. That was when she delved into metaphysics and began to investigate various theories. She learned that many Eastern philosophies embrace the theory I’ve just drawn for you on this chalkboard. And when I was nine years old, my mother began to teach me the fundamentals of metaphysics, too.”

  “Why?”

  “Because whenever I got sick as a child, my mother would lay her hands on me and heal me. I was absolutely fascinated with the idea that the laying on of hands could help others. And so, when I was nine, I laid hands on Tommy, my next door neighbor. We had been playing in an old gravel quarry. Tommy fell off his bike and tore up his knee. He was lying there, the bent and twisted bike wheel pinning his leg. I was distraught. When I tried to move him, he screamed in pain. We were too far away to get help, and we weren’t supposed to be in the quarry anyway. I knelt down and put my hands on his leg. And I concentrated on helping him. My hands got hot. Tommy quit crying, and we just stared at each other because he could feel it, too.”

  “Feel what?” Taylor demanded.

  “The heat and the other sensations that accompany the healing energy that flow through me,” she explained simply, trying to decide whether Taylor was going to laugh openly, or retain that deadpan expression.

  “Show me.”

  Without hesitation, Katie placed her hands on his outstretched arm.

  Taylor was aware of how lightly her hand touched his flesh. Almost immediately, he became conscious of an intense heat flowing from her hand. And then a decided tingling sensation traveled through his arm and up into his shoulder. His eyes widened momentarily. Katie’s gaze was unwavering and serious.

  “You feel it, don’t you?”

  His mouth tightened. “It must be because I’m holding my arm out. That’s placing unusual stress on the muscles in the shoulder,” he muttered, breaking contact with Katie.

  “It isn’t.”

  Taylor rubbed his forearm where the tingling persisted. Katie clapped her hands sharply and then shook them at her sides. “What was that for?” he asked.

  “To dispel any energy that lingered on my hands. It’s similar to when a doctor washes his hands after surgery. In a few minutes, when I work on the animals, you’ll see me do it after every healing.”

  Taylor remained silent, watching her. Disbelief mingled with shock. “Why didn’t you defend yourself when I challenged you just now?”

  Katie lifted her chin. “The truth needs no defense. I am what I am. Nothing more, nothing less. I have no need to prove myself to anyone, Taylor. What’s important is that I know it works. If I can provide relief to those who experience pain and suffering, that’s all that is important to me.”

  Taylor was moved by her sincerity. She decidedly was the most complex human being he had ever met! Staring down at her delicate artistic hands, he shook his head.

  “I warned you, Taylor,” Katie said softly, “that once it becomes widely known that I can heal, there will be fear and misunderstanding. And the greatest sadness is that since healing works—since it helps alleviate suffering—why should people be frightened of it? It’s fear of the unknown, Taylor. Fear of that which can’t be easily understood. And that fear will put my life under inquisition….”

  Chapter 7

  Grudgingly Taylor admitted that Katie was right. Five people arrived with ailing pets. They sat quietly at the desks. One at a time, Katie called them up with their animal. Taylor sat back, arms crossed over his chest, watching.

  The first to stand was a woman near ninety. She carried a scruffy gray cat, which looked to be the same age. Katie’s face broke into a welcoming smile as she took the cat into her arms.

  “How’s General this week, Mrs. Beaumont?”

  “Just grand, Katie. Why, I’ve even taken him off the kidney medicine.”

  Katie sat on the edge of the desk and stroked the gray tomcat. “With Dr. Abram’s permission?”

  Mrs. Beaumont nodded, touching the pin that held her black hat at a jaunty angle on her silver hair. “I asked him—just like you told me.” A beatific smile spread over her wrinkled face. “General’s eating now, thanks to you!”

  “And to Dr. Abrams,” Katie reminded her, smiling. She held the cat for about a minute before handing him back to his owner. “I think that’s all he needs for now.”

  “May I bring him next week?”

  “Will you feel up to it, Mrs. Beaumont? I can always walk down the street and visit if it gets to be too much—”

  Mrs. Beaumont patted Katie’s hands, now resting in her lap. “Just give me a touch and I’ll make it back,” she said, her blue eyes twinkling.

  Katie laughed, placing a hand on Mrs. Beaumont’s arm. “You’ve got some color in your cheeks, Mrs. Beaumont.”

  “Thanks to you, young lady. I can remember when I was a child, Dr. William Adams used to ride up on his old mule, Henry. I had a fever, Katie. Only the Lord’s will—through Dr. Adam’s healing touch—kept me alive. We all looked forward to the laying on of his hands, when we were sickly.” She smiled. “Hands like yours. Hot when they touched you. And afterward, that tingling sensation that flowed through your body, making you feel so much better, everywhere….”

  Katie turned her head to gauge Taylor’s reaction. His eyes were narrowed to near slits, his mouth pursed into a thin line. He was fighting her then, fighting what and who she was. Well, what did she expect? Returning her attention to Mrs. Beaumont, she squeezed the old woman’s arm, then released her. “You’re in great shape. I’ll see you next week.”

  The next visitor was a slender boy of ten, a small cage gripped tightly in his arms.

  “Hi, my name’s Katie. What’s yours?” she asked, leaning over and touching the boy’s silky brown hair.

  “Brandon Prater, Ms.—” 4

  Her smile broadened. “Call me Katie. May I call you Brandon?”

  His downcast face brightened slightly. “Sure.” He held out the small cage. “My friends say you can help sick animals?”

  Katie gently wrested the cage from Brandon’s small, protective hands. She placed it in her lap. “I try to, Brandon. What have we here? A gerbil? What a pretty color. I’ll bet you have a name for her?”

  Brandon’s face took on a look of hope. “Her name’s Suzie.”

  Katie studied the gerbil, which looked like a tiny, distended balloon. “Pretty name. What’s wrong with Suzie?”

  The boy stuffed his hands into his trousers pockets, shrugging. “Suzie just keeps getting fatter and fatter, Katie. Mom thinks she might have a tumor or something.” His hazel eyes gleamed with tears that he refused to allow to fall. “She’s my friend, Katie. I saved all the money I got from collecting aluminum cans to buy her and her cage. And now…” He took such a deep, adult breath into that slight body.

  “Mom thinks Suzie’s dying,” the boy continued. “‘Cause she’s getting so big so fast. And I don’t overfeed her.” His face turned earnest. “They said you could help when no one else could. That’s why I brought Suzie. Please, I love my pet. She sits on my desk every night when I do my schoolwork and keeps me company.”

  “I see,” Katie murmured, opening the cage and sliding her fingers beneath the rotund and sluggish Suzie. Picking the gerbil up, she studied it intently. Her blue eyes sparkled with repressed laughter.

  “How long ago did you buy Suzie?”

  “About two weeks.”

  Katie held Suzie in the palm of her hand, so the gerbil was at eye level with Brandon. “And in the pet store was Suzie in a cage with boy as well as girl gerbils?”

  Brandon nodded. “Yeah, they had a whole bunch of them together. I picked her because she was the prettiest.”

  Katie lifted her chin, meeting Taylor’s gray gaze with a smile. Then she turned back to Brandon. “I don’t think Suzie is sick, after all.”

  “No? Honest?”

  “Honest. I believe she’s pregnant, honey. No tumors. Just lots of little babies that Suzie’s car
rying inside of her. I’ll bet she’ll have them any day now.”

  Brandon’s face lit up. “Really? Babies? Suzie isn’t going to die?”

  Katie maintained a serious expression, gently depositing the decidedly pregnant Suzie back into the nest of wood chips in the bottom of the cage. “Your mother is in for a shock, but I’m sure it’ll all end happily.” She returned the cage to Brandon who now handled it even more tenderly. The act brought a smile to Katie’s face. “Just make sure Suzie gets lots of greens. Throw in a few dandelions from time to time and you’ll have a bunch of healthy baby gerbils on your hands.”

  “Gosh. Thanks, Katie!” Brandon dug furiously in his jeans pocket. Producing three quarters, he held them out to her. “This is all I have, but if you—”

  Katie took his hand and closed it around the coins. “There’s no charge for what I do, Brandon. Besides, I didn’t do anything!”

  Brandon was crestfallen. “You did plenty. Suzie isn’t going to die. Mom said that if I took the responsibility of buying Suzie, then I should pay all her bills, too.”

  Leaning over, Katie placed a kiss on his hair. “Normally, I’d agree with your mother. But all I did was diagnose Suzie’s condition. And even if she did need a healing, I wouldn’t charge, Brandon.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it wouldn’t be right. That would be like God charging us for breathing the air. Or sending us a bill for the use of gravity. Would that be right?”

  Brandon shook his head, perplexed. “No….”

  “You can’t put a price on love,” she told him seriously.

  Taylor asked the last three people if he could take photographs while Katie treated their animals. All agreed. It took Katie less than half an hour to finish with her ailing charges. Everyone thanked her profusely. Taylor sauntered back toward the sink where Katie was washing her hands.

  “My, you look serious, Taylor. Which are you—frightened, defensive or confused?” Her heart leaped as he leaned over without warning and pressed a light kiss on her parted lips.