A Short Fiction Story
By Disa Wylde
Waves from the ocean crashed
against the rocks outside of the hotel room. The sound was much more
soothing than that of the blaring alarm clock Zed was used to hearing
each morning. The
aroma of strong coffee wafted through the air. He was glad he had set
the automatic coffee pot to brew the night before. Now he could just
lie in bed and wait for it to finish brewing.
His peace of mind was soon interrupted by thoughts of the
usual daily grind of his warehouse job. The noise, the lights, the
hustle, always rushing to meet deadlines had taken it’s toll on him
and he just needed to get away for a while. Or maybe he just needed
to get away.
He
jumped up, grabbed his coffee, slid open the sliding glass door, and
walked out onto the patio. The air was shockingly crisp as it met the
skin on his face. The beach, even in October was still something to
behold. The water stretched for miles in either direction. Looking
straight ahead it almost seemed as though he could fall off the edge
of the earth should he choose to venture out so far.
He had
been uncharacteristically drawn to the ocean for the past few months
and he was beginning to understand why. He was instantly calmed by
the magnificent view. He felt so small in relation to the vastness of
the ocean that his troubles seemed almost insignificant. It was just
what he needed to clear his mind and figure out what he wanted to do
with the rest of his life. The sound of the waves was rejuvenating.
Suddenly, a light breeze drifted over him.
He
closed his eyes and
took three long, deep breaths. Slowly his thoughts stopped racing and
his mind cleared. In his mind's eye, he began to see swirling purple
streaksand
then the all
too familiar bright
white rectangular screens began to appear. At first, he saw one
screen and then another appeared on top of it, and another
crisscrossing and expanding until finally the screens became one
steady block of light.
Suddenly, a
vision of a woman appeared on the screen. The same woman he had been
seeing in his visions for the past few months. She
had the brightest blue eyes, a warm, welcoming smile, and long dark
hair. Once again, she disappeared as quickly as she had come, never
giving any sign as to who she is or what she wants.
When he opened his eyes, he noticed some movement in his peripheral vision towards the right. He looked in that direction and caught a glimpse of a Siamese cat disappearing behind the trash compactors in the parking lot.
*********
As
evening fell Zed trudged down the sidewalk accompanied only by the
amber glow of the street lamps. He pulled the collar of his jacket up
closer around his neck then stuffed his hands into his pockets. A cat
darted in front of him, and he stumbled over it. As it wandered off
through the alleyway unscathed, he realized it was the same Siamese
cat he’d seen from the hotel patio. Zed was in search of a bite to
eat and was disappointed that the street seemed almost deserted. Each
store along the row had their closed signs displayed in the windows and there was no light or activity
coming from inside.
As he continued walking down the sidewalk,
the cat appeared in front of him again. She curled her dark tail
around herselfinto
the most regal pose and stood there looking at him, waiting. She had
brilliant blue eyes which stood out intensely against her dark face.
Zed knelt down and rubbed two fingers and his thumb together.
The cat came right to him, snuggling up close so that he could pet
her, then she began to wind in and out of his feet. After a few
minutes she walked slowly ahead of him, then stopped and looked back.
The air felt heavy and Zed sensed the cat was beckoning him to
follow.
He noticed candlelight flickering in a window up ahead and the cat stopped in front of the store, staring into the glass door. When Zed approached the store he saw the Open sign. He gently pushed the door open and the cat ran inside. A comforting chime sounded and the air felt lighter. The sweet and spicy fragrance of incense permeated the air and he realized it was a bookstore with a little café inside.
”Welcome,” a woman’s voice called out, “I’ve been expecting you.”
Zed
scanned the room looking to see who was speaking to him. He saw rows
upon rows of crystals on the shelves in the windows, a tiny sign
towards the back of the café with the word “Readings” printed
across it. At the counter stood a woman with eyes just as blue as the
Siamese cat’s eyes and hair just as dark, too. Her smile was warm
and friendly. She seemed so familiar.
”Hi!”
Zed blurted out and pointed to nowhere in particular. “Does this
cat belong to you?”
The
cat had disappeared again.
”Does
a cat really belong to anyone?” She asked.
Zed unzipped his jacket. “I guess not,” he answered. “I’m starved, are you still serving food? Just a turkey sandwich with melted Swiss and some hot tea would be nice.”
”Of course, have a seat and I’ll bring it right to you” she said.
Zed walked over to the tables and chose the one right under the “Readings” sign.
”Would you like a reading while you eat?” She asked, placing his order in front of him.
”I’m not sure,” he said. “I’ve never had a reading before. What sort of readings do you do?”
”Well, then. In that case this one’s on the house. I’m Isadora, tell me your name and we’ll get started.”
”I’m Zed, pleased to meet you.”
”Likewise, but I’m not so sure this is the first time we’ve met. I’ll get the Tarot cards and we’ll see if they have anything to say. Then we’ll go from there.”
As she was walking back towards Zed, Tarot cards in hand it suddenly dawned on him that she was the woman from his visions. He stared at her blankly, not knowing what to say. She placed a black velvet cloth down the table and sat in the chair across from him.
”Shall we get started?” She asked.
”Um, sure.”
She shuffled the cards while she spoke, “Do you have any specific questions or would you just like to see what the cards have to say?”
”No questions,” he mumbled, stuffing the sandwich into his mouth.
She cut the deck and laid three cards face down on the table.
She turned over the card on her left first, “The Lovers,” she said. “You have a choice to make which is weighing heavily on you. It’s a major life decision.”
”Yes,” he said.
She turned over the middle card. “Two of Wands,” she said. You are in a place of discovery. Things are happening to you that you don’t quite understand and you would like to learn more. The problem for you is to learn more of these things would put you out of your comfort zone. Your choice as indicated by the Lovers card is to either stay on the comfortable path of what you know or taking a risk to make a change.”
”Yes! That’s exactly what’s happening to me now!” he shouted in amazement.
She began to turn over the final card just as he was gulping down his last bit of food and drink. They simultaneously reached for his plate to push it out of the way and their fingers touched. A white, wispy mist appeared in front of them and they looked at each other. A strange sense of recognition washed over them both. Their eyes grew larger and they blurted out to each other, “Do you see that?”
”Yes!”
The mist began to materialize into the shape of a man and they blurted out together, “Dad!”
They looked at each other and shouted, “What?”
The air felt heavier and the spirit of their father began to speak to them. “Hello, my children. It’s great to finally get the chance to see you together. You’ve been intuitively drawn to each other for quite some time, but physically you were miles apart. I wanted you two to know each other growing up, but your mother would not allow it, Zed. I betrayed her, and keeping you kids apart was her punishment to me. Unfortunately, it was the two of you who actually suffered.
Isadora,
you went on to explore your abilities with the guidance of your
mother and have helped many, many people over the years while working
in this shop. With the passing of your mother, it is next to
impossible for you to continue to do it alone.
Zed, you have
tried to stifle your abilities due to the beliefs of your mother
until now. You have always known of these abilities but chose to
ignore them, not knowing how to cultivate them, and not knowing if
you should.
Now
that you are together, you can help each other. I love you both and I
trust you two will make the right decision.” Then their father
disappeared.
Zed looked at his sister and said, “I’ve been seeing you in visions for months.”
She said, “I’ve been seeing you, too. I wasn’t sure who you were, or where you were, but you seemed so familiar. I realized a few months ago that I need some help in this shop and for some reason I sensed you were the one who could help me. So, I tried calling you to me. Obviously you heard my call, because you’re here now. I didn’t realize you hadn’t cultivated your skills, I can help you with that, for sure.”
He said, “I live in Montana. I’ve been doing a warehouse job which is really getting to me. It’s not what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. I’ve felt a pull to the ocean that I couldn’t explain. I mean, I’ve felt it for months. I never really cared about going to the ocean before, especially at this time of year. Was that you calling me? Then I got here, and this Siamese cat kept showing up. It seemed like it was leading me straight to you. It ran into your shop when I opened the door, but where is it now?”
She just smiled and said, “Let’s finish your reading.” She turned over the last card. “The High Priestess. So, to recap. According to the first two cards, you have a major life decision to make, and you are stuck between staying with what you know, or moving out of your comfort zone. The High Priestess is saying to trust your intuition on this. You already have the answers you need.”
Zed sat a few minutes pondering the reading and all that had just happened. He stared blankly at his new found sister and wasn’t exactly sure what to say. Confusion and disbelief washed over him, but soon dissipated. He stood up and started walking towards the door.
”By the way,” Isadora said, “the store opens tomorrow at 11 a.m. Be here at 9:00 if you want to work together, brother.”
He opened the door and a comforting chime sounded. The air felt lighter, and he called back, “See you tomorrow at 9:00 sharp, sister.”
The End