Tears began to form in Jena’s big, blue eyes as she discovered her most cherished dream might actually become a reality. She nodded, not trusting her voice completely. Finally, she swallowed down the lump which had sprung into her throat and whispered, “More than anything, Dad. It would mean the world to me if I could.”
“I’ll talk it over with my father and see what we need to do to make it happen, then. Come over here and give me a hug!” Riccan pulled his arm out from behind Amanda and stood up from the couch. He grunted with the impact of Jena’s body hitting his as she hurled herself from the loveseat and into his embrace. He wrapped his arms around her slight body and felt her sobs as she cried, leaving wet streaks down the front of his shirt. It was the best moment of his life since he had discovered he had the two girls.
Amanda wiped her own tears of joy away from her cheeks. She had never seen Jena so happy, and it made her heart sing to know Jena would be able to pursue her passion. There were still things she wanted to know about what had actually happened with Willian. The last she had heard, the two were trying to make a go of getting back together, and now, suddenly, they were both content with ending things. Amanda cleared her throat and asked, “I can see this is going to work out perfectly, but what changed Willian’s mind? Will someone at least tell me that much.”
Juila took up the story as she could see Jena was still feeling overwhelmed by their father’s offer. “Willian did come here to Earth to try to work things out with Jena. He was actually being pretty nice, nicer than I’ve ever known him to be. Anyway, when he was at school on the last day before winter break, he literally ran into Valentina in the hallway. Of course, Val had no idea who he was so she didn’t think much of it except she had felt an electrical jolt from the contact. What neither of them knew at the time was that their life-lines actually merged at their contact.
“We’ve never heard of this happening before, but I guess there has to be a first time for everything. From what we could gather, Willian found out where Val lived and went over to her house to see if it had been a one-time occurrence. As soon as he came near her house, he could feel the pull to her stronger than anything he could ever explain. Val tried to keep herself from feeling anything since she discovered Willian was Jena’s betrothed.
“It soon became apparent to both of them it was a lost cause. They were going to wait until Jena, and I came home from Tuala to talk it over with us, but things escalated quicker than either of them imagined. When we,” she gestured to herself and Jena, “went to the Roanoke Colony with Grandpa, we walked up to the town and found Willian kissing Val. You should have seen it, Dad, Jena’s temper was heated enough to shatter a crystal drive! Anyway, Grandpa came over just in time to prevent anything catastrophic.
“We went inside Vinia’s cottage and found out the whole truth. As soon as Jena touched Val when Val was holding Willian’s hand, she knew they had not planned anything. Their getting together had been pre-ordained, and she was not going to stand in the way of their future. She asked immediately for the end of the betrothal and Grandpa agreed it would be for the best for everyone involved. I’d say everything has worked out perfectly, wouldn’t you?” She nodded her head in satisfaction at her summation of events.
Amanda had been watching Jena, who had resumed her seat, during her sister’s recitation of the story and had seen her wince at the point of Jena almost unleashing her power. She knew how it felt to lose her cool, but she also knew Jena’s new position would require her to be in control at all times. “Are you truly happy, Jena?” Amanda would be content as long as her daughter was as well.
Jena nodded emphatically.
“Okay, then I will be content with the outcome and let this whole thing with Willian go. Are you still going to be friends with Val, or are you guys done?”
“She didn’t do anything wrong! Of course, we’re going to remain friends. Besides, it would be kind of difficult since Juila is dating her brother.” Jena dug her elbow into her sister’s side. She knew Juila never called it dating, but the two had been getting increasingly close, so it may as well be called a dating relationship.
Juila blushed at her sudden inclusion in the conversation. This talk was supposed to be about Jena, and somehow it had been turned back on herself. She did not much like it, but she was willing to endure any amount of ribbing from her sister if it meant Jena was happy.
“Ahem,” Amanda cleared her throat to keep herself from laughing at her eldest daughter’s discomfort. “I guess I have some news to share with the two of you. I’d thought it would be longer before you knew, but since you’re home for the day…”
Both girls leaned forward intently interested in what their mother might share. “What is it?” Juila asked, eager to have the conversation changed.
“My sister has gotten herself in some legal trouble and her two daughters, April and Emily, have come to live with Grandma Diane and Grandpa Chris.”
“Really?” the girls asked in unison. “When can we meet them?”
The question in stereo was really quite humorous, and everyone burst out laughing. It felt good to finally have something to be joyful about with all of the tenseness which had been surrounding them for so long.
“I think we’ll wait until the end of winter break to allow the girls to get used to their surroundings before we bombard them with more people they don’t know. I think they’ve had a pretty rough couple of years, based on what I could find out.”
“What did Aunt Carrie do wrong?” Jena asked, suddenly serious.
“She got involved with drugs and got herself incarcerated. Your dad has done everything he can to try to get the charges dropped, but it appears to be a bigger deal than even money and contacts can take care of. Besides, she got herself into this mess, so she needs to get herself out.”
Juila continued to stare at her mother even as she directed a thought question to her sister through their shared mind-link, That doesn’t sound like something our mom would say. I wonder what happened to make her so angry?
I don’t know. Why don’t you ask her?
I’m not going to ask. You ask!
Fine, since you’re too chicken!
“Mom, did something else happen which you’re not telling us about?”
“What makes you ask?”
“Your last comment sounded slightly bitter. We’ve never heard you talk like that.” Jena shrugged.
“Hmmph,” Amanda snorted at Jena’s perceptiveness. She should have known her girls would have guessed there was more. “Well, I went to go see Carrie in jail in Roswell, New Mexico, while you two were away. She seemed very antagonistic toward me, and I finally called her out on her terrible behavior. Well, that just about made her explode, and she told me she wished I had died along with my twin sister.”
“What?!?” Juila cried out.
“What was she talking about?” Jena asked at the same time.
“Apparently, I had a twin who was stillborn. I never even knew about it, but my dad finally admitted it was true. He told me where Virginia was buried. I just couldn’t believe nobody ever said anything to me about it in all of these years.”
“Wow!” Jena exclaimed as she sat back in the loveseat. “I guess it explains how you could have twins yourself. I didn’t think it ran in the family, but I guess it does after all.”
“I guess I should have thanked Carrie for finally telling me the truth, but the way she told me was just despicable. The way she looked at me when she said it made me think of the phrase ‘if looks could kill’ then I would have been struck down at that moment. I’ve never seen her behave so badly. It was sad, really.” Amanda shook her head as she recalled the scene in her mind. At one time she and Carrie had been pretty close, she had no idea where they had drifted so far apart.
“On that note, I think I’ll go send a message to my dad about Jena,” Riccan announced in the sudden silence. He pushed himself off of the couch and smiled down at his daughters as he walked past them to go to his office. There had
been so many revelations in their family lately; he wondered what else could be told which would still shock them. Surely, they had heard all of the secrets there were to be discovered.
He sat at his desk and pressed the lever to open the secret compartment where his patil was located. It would not do to have anyone discover his link to another world, so he had taken great pains to make sure only a few people even knew of the existence of the computer. Riccan tapped on the message icon on the screen and was surprised to see a message from Rasa waiting to be read. Thinking it was odd they had just been talking about her, Riccan’s curiosity was piqued, and he opened the message.
Once he read it, he wondered how he would make the meeting between Valentina and Gevena happen. He made a quick reply saying he would see what he could do and then he hit the send command. His mind was still occupied with the meeting when he decided it would be better to have a face-to-face conversation with his father about Jena.
He tapped out of the message screen and selected the video button instead. After entering the coded sequence to reach his dad, Riccan waited several seconds for a response. He was almost ready to end the call when his father’s face appeared on the screen.
“Hello, Son. This is a pleasant surprise.” Daven smiled at Riccan.
“Hey, Dad. I wanted to ask you a serious question.”
“Go ahead; I’m ready.”
“Are you alone?”
Daven’s smile began to falter as he realized the seriousness of the question. “Yes. What’s going on? Are the girls okay? Amanda?”
“Yes, they’re all fine. I wanted to ask you a succession question. It was just brought to my attention that Jena wants to be my successor. Do you know if there’d be any problem with her request? I mean, Rasa has just set a major precedent, right?”
Daven’s expression cleared immediately, and he began to smile broadly again. “This is the best news I’ve heard in a long time. I’d consider it an honor to have Jena named! After all, she was raised and tutored by Jehoban! The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree; does it, Son?”
Riccan’s feelings were slightly hurt by his father’s obvious delight in Jena’s request. He did not ever remember his father being so enthusiastic about his own appointment as successor. It almost felt as though Daven thought Jena would be more qualified than himself.
Seeing Riccan’s fallen expression, Daven realized how his words must have sounded to his son. To mend any damage, Daven said, “I’m very blessed to have the two best successors in all of Tuala. When I die, I will know Pantano will be left in the best care with you, Riccan. I’ll send an inquiry to Elder Debbon right away to see what we have to do about Jena. Are the girls coming home tonight or tomorrow? Your mother has been pestering me incessantly to get them back here as soon as possible.”
Riccan chuckled as he could well imagine his mother’s insistence at getting her granddaughters back to her house. He was thankful they were getting to know the two girls. Especially now, he thought to himself. Dad will probably start grilling Jena on her knowledge of an Elder’s duties. He suppressed a shudder at his memories of getting the same treatment as he had been grown up. “Let Mom know they’re coming back tonight after dinner.”
Daven blew out a long breath and exclaimed, “Thank Jehoban! We’ll see you tonight, then. Blessings.” Daven nodded with another bright smile and then disconnected the call.
Riccan stared for a moment at the blank screen. His father seldom ended his conversations with that particular phrase. Their conversation must have been quite special to have him use the term. He did feel blessed as he returned the patil to its hidden location and returned to the living room with his news.
Chapter Seven
IT HAD BEEN four days since Jena had broken the betrothal and Willian had tried to be patient in waiting for Valentina to call him after they got back to Earth. He had spent every waking moment next to the phone only to be disappointed day after day with no contact. Surely Valentina felt the same thrill of exhilaration for pursuing their relationship.
He rolled over on his bed, bumping up against Pesi, the pudgy, black Pomeranian dog who had taken to sleeping nearly in the middle of his mattress. Pesi let out a dissatisfied grunt at being moved, and Willian reached over and stroked the side of her head in consolation. She leaned her head into the caress and stretched out indolently, taking up more room on the bed.
Willian had been surprised to discover how much he enjoyed having the dog’s companionship since he’d never had a pet growing up in Tuala. He smiled at her lazy ways and then continued to reach for the phone, careful to avoid injuring the dog. Pesi backed up as she felt her space was being invaded and shook herself from side to side as if trying to remove his taint from her fur.
“Sorry, Pesi,” Willian spoke to the dog and rubbed under her chin to apologize further. Pesi closed her eyes and settled back down on the blankets. “I take it I’m forgiven!” Willian chuckled at the dog’s obvious behavior. If he did not know better, he would say she really understood what he was saying to her.
Once again, Willian turned to the phone and dialed Valentina’s number from memory. He held the receiver to his ear as he dropped back onto his pillow and waited for her to answer. It was slightly early to be calling, but he did not want to take the chance of her leaving the house for the day without talking to him.
“Hello?” Valentina answered.
“Hey, Val. It’s me, Willian.”
“Hi.”
Willian suddenly felt awkward as the silence continued. He had wanted to hear her voice, but he had no plans for a conversation. He had not really thought this call through very well. Feeling stupid, he sputtered, “How are you today.”
“Fine.”
She was not making this conversation very easy, and he was starting to wonder if he had made a mistake in calling at all. “I was wondering if we could get together today. We really need to get some things worked out, don’t you think?”
“I guess.”
“Are you okay? You seem sort of preoccupied.”
“I’m sorry; I guess I am. I was just talking with Jon about Sofia. Yes, I think we should talk. Do you want to meet at the park? Like in a half hour?”
“Sure!” he agreed readily and swung his legs around to the side of the bed. His rush to get up nearly flung Pesi onto the floor and she let out a loud squawk of displeasure. “Oh, sorry, Pesi. You’re okay, girl.” He dropped the phone as he grabbed her with both hands from where she was clinging to the side of the mattress trying not to fall onto the ground. He set her safely onto the floor and rubbed her back in apology. Once again, she shook her whole body and went bounding out of the room with the sound of her claws clicking on the hardwood floors as she ran.
Willian immediately grabbed the phone and shoved it back up to his ear. “Sorry about that.”
“What’s going on over there?” Valentina teased.
“I accidentally bumped Pesi, and she didn’t like it much.”
“So I heard!” Valentina chuckled as she imagined what must have happened.
“I’m going to jump into the shower and then I’ll see you by the tennis court at the park, okay?”
“Sure, sounds good. Bye.”
Willian was certain he heard Valentina laughing as she disconnected the call. He smiled himself thinking he would soon be near the only person in the world who made him feel alive just by her proximity. Just thinking about it made his body hum with electricity. He punched the button to end the call and threw the phone onto his mattress in his haste to get going.
The shower water was still cold when he got in, but he hardly noticed as he hurried through his usual routine. His mind was only focused on how fast he could get himself to the park. Hopefully, the meeting in person would be less awkward than their phone call had been. He was going to have to figure out what he wanted to talk to her about before he made a bigger fool of himself.
He chuckled at his thoughts. Just a few days before, if someone would have
laughed at him or put him at a loss for words, his reaction would have been anger. Valentina must really be changing him since he did not mind seeming foolish around her. Just her presence was enough to calm his spirit. This change, more than anything, let him know she was the right woman for his future. He needed someone who soothed his soul since he was going to be the Elder of his District when his father was finished with the job.
Thinking about his father made him wonder what his reaction to his new relationship status would be. Surely, Elder Daven had told his father about his situation. He was surprised he had not heard anything from him or his mother. They were not usually so distant when it came to his future. Granted, being on Earth did make it slightly more difficult for them to get in touch with him. Maybe they still did not know. Willian smiled at the notion of surprising them by presenting Valentina on his arm and introducing her as his future bride.
Willian’s smile faded slightly as he recalled how resistant Valentina had been to having her future planned for her. He would have to take things slowly if he wanted to keep her from bolting. Maybe it would be a good place to start in their conversation in the park.
Then another thought hit him, Valentina had not mentioned anything about her brothers coming with her. They were going to be alone together in the park. Before they had talked things over with Jena, they had agreed to always have a chaperone since they had a hard time keeping their hands off of one another when they were alone. The bond between them was so strong; it overrode all thoughts of reason. Maybe it was why she had suggested a public place.
Willian was going to have to control his base urges by firmly reminding himself he had to take things slowly with her. He did not want to screw things up with Valentina as he had with Jena; this was too important. Valentina was his missing piece, and he needed to remain whole.
He dressed hurriedly, brushed his teeth and hair, and then almost ran back to his room to get his shoes. If he had been back in Tuala, he would have used elemy to bring his shoes to him rather than have to physically retrieve them since his parents had advised him not to use his talents unless it was an emergency. While this meeting was extremely important, he could not rationalize it as an emergency.
Ascension Vision- The Levels of Ascension Box Set Page 62