

The White Light

By

Peter Cacciolfi & Pattimari Sheets

This book is fictional, and if anything in this book matches or resembles your life or anyone you know, it is only the imagination of the authors and not a factual story and is purely coincidental.

ESBN # 978-1-105-50680-2

۩ Lu lu Publishing February, 2012

Copyright, Pattimari Sheets

Dedications

To all those who have been to the light, realizing it may not have been their time and returned, and all those who inspired us by telling us their stories.

Also – to Peter & Pattimari's children whom they love very much.

Acknowledgements

Jeanne Trachman

For helping with the proof reading and encouragement.

Char Johnson

Char brought this book's idea to light.

Prologue

It was twenty years, easily twenty years, from that cold winter December morning when Toni Riccio put her Christmas request into her old antique desk. She had been nineteen at the time, and had just finished reading a hundred year old book called The Wizard. Within the pages it read that if one makes a wish and slips it into a drawer of an old desk; one at least fifty years old, then the written desire would come true. She knew for a fact that her desk was over 100 years old since it was her great grandmother's.

The author of The Wizard hadn't given a time period when Toni's wish would come true, but it plainly said it would in time. She had laughed as she slipped it in the desk, and then marched over to her next door best friend, Tessie Sanderson, whom she had known since the age of five. She giggled as she told her about what she had just done. Tessie was sitting on the floor giving Toni a smirky smile as she listened about her friend's written wish, and then wrapped her arms around her new puppy, Teaser, laughing as she whispered in her ear, "Teaser do you believe this crazy friend of mine? She thinks her request is going to come true, and if it does, then my request is going to be right there with her if it does come true." She twisted around and looked at Toni and said, "What was your request?"

"I'm not telling you Tess if you're going to make fun of me, but if you really want to know my request then you must write one too so that you can be right there with me when it comes true."

Tessie rushed over and pulled out a sheet of paper and pen from her pretty white desk, scribbled her request and then threw it at Toni and said, "Okay, if you're so smart, let's go put it in your antique desk. We'll place mine next to yours, and then we'll see if it comes true or not. Okay? What do you say?"

They both jumped up and hurried next door, and soon after Toni placed Tessie's request in the desk, and then she told her to touch it. "You must touch it...you know... to make it come true."  
Tessie touched it with her long slender fingers and then drew back her hand and said, "Okay, I did it. Do you think we should wait to see if our wishes come true or should we walk over to the mall and buy our Prom dresses? I mean we have only two weeks before the prom so don't you think that's more important than this silly old request?"

Agreeing to go to the mall, off the two went to see what was happening and to take in the sales usually going on at some of their favorite stores. Following their spree they sat down at their favorite fast-food restaurant and had a frosty. Their conversation centered on the types of people who were shopping, visiting, walking or otherwise doing their own thing and studying the fashions on display on the passersby. It had always been fun to 'people watch' because there was always something new and different going on and they didn't want to miss a minute of it. Getting caught up in their events at the Mall and the fun that came from laughing at some of the mad styles, the wishes and the old desk were forgotten. After all it was just a fun gesture, a superstition of sorts - wasn't it? It was like finding a four-leaf clover when young and thinking of having good luck, or at the other extreme seeing a ladder in front of you and walking under it bringing bad luck. There have always been these sorts of beliefs or omens around for centuries and it was practiced by the very religious or gullible people who thought they would come true. Tarot card readers were thought as having wielded strange mysterious powers, as were palm readers, but making a wish and placing it inside an old desk? Not a chance! After all, it was not one of the popular beliefs; as a matter of fact Tessie never heard such foolishness in her entire life. If not - then why did she go along with the request from Toni? Probably because they were such good friends and what did it matter anyway? Why not go along with a simple innocent request - for what harm could possibly come of it?

On the walk home the two parted company, each went to their respective homes and never mentioned the events that took place again. The night came and went as did the next few days, and neither Toni nor Tessie had any contact during that interval of time because of the lives they lived and the jobs they had. They had always managed to come together at some point in time during the weekend and it was rapidly approaching.

On this particular Saturday afternoon Toni decided to sleep over at Tessie's house. The two carried on as they had for many years, always enjoying each other's company, but on this day Toni seemed off her course somewhat. When she shared her discomfort with Tessie, it was passed off as work-related fatigue; both have had the same feelings from time to time depending on their work-loads during the week, but this feeling seemed different and Toni said so. She couldn't explain what was happening because she had no clue, but after talking about it she set it aside and went on with her visit in their usual way. Yet she knew something wasn't right so Tessie was glad she was staying overnight with Toni.

When Tessie leaped out of bed the next morning realizing it was late, she hollered out to Toni that they'd be late for their appointments, but after getting no response, she stepped over and touched Toni's arm and it felt cold as ice. She screamed and ran into Toni's parents' bedroom and pleaded for them to follow her because she couldn't wake Toni. The three shook Toni several times until Toni's father, Sam, simply picked her up and moved her to the other side of the bed and still she didn't wake. Suddenly, Toni's mother, Francine, quickly called 911 and within minutes the ambulance arrived and Toni was whisked away.

Upon arriving at the hospital, the attending emergency doctor quickly realized that Toni was in a coma. Although they didn't know what was wrong they began running tests on her. It seemed she was unconscious for no known reason. While the testing was being done, Tessie was questioned by doctors as to whether they had taken any drugs. Each time Tessie screamed loudly, "No...no...absolutely not! Neither Toni nor I would take drugs."

Toni wasn't responding yet she knew the doctors were working on her because she could see them, and hear them, but couldn't bring herself to open her eyes or even utter a word.  
She kept seeing a brilliant white light in front in her and the light made her feel warmly protected, as well as loved, and she had a overwhelming urge to move toward it, but the loud crying coming from her best friend and mother kept her from going toward it. Holding back the urge she finally struggled so strongly that she was able to open her eyes and when she did she began crying because she had finally made it back. Tessie and Francine screamed out in happiness, immediately both Tessie and Francine reached across the bed and hugged Toni. What happened to Toni was difficult to comprehend for it demanded the complete recovery from whatever led her into this coma-like condition. What was known because of the screams coming from Toni was that there was a white light like nothing which could be found on earth. Toni's outbursts told the doctors in attendance that she couldn't see beyond the intensity of the light, and she was afraid. She wriggled all over the bed trying to escape something that appeared to be grabbing on her because she was flailing her arms wildly as if to thwart them away and off of her. As Toni emerged from her stupor she was wet with perspiration and her heart was pounding wildly to the point where she had to receive an injection to slow down her pulse. She quieted down, looked around and saw faces familiar to her, but still she clung to her bedding as if she was still in fear of being dragged away to some place she obviously feared, but that story would be coming soon, as Toni relaxed her death grip on the sheets, straightened out her body, slowed down her breathing so as to produce a normalcy, exhaled as if completing a marathon, and allowed her head to sink deeply into the pillow provided for her on the hospital bed. Following another deep inhale and exhale Toni spoke out with an obvious inquiry, "Where am I Tessie, Mom, what just happened?"

"That's exactly what we would like to find out Toni," brought the response from Tessie preceding a deep sigh of relief. "You had us scared half to death. We thought you had left us for a minute and we were all pulling for you to return where you belonged"

"Toni, my dear daughter, we feared for the worse. We didn't know how to help. There was nothing we could do but watch you in what appeared to be agony. We didn't know where you were or what was happening to you. We were helpless so please don't do that again. Ever! Please!" pleaded Toni's mother.  
Toni drew in another incredible breath and slowly exhaled, this time followed by a faint smile. This seemed to indicate that she was regaining her composure and might soon be able to break the silence and try to piece together the seemingly horrible events that just took place. Her trials and tribulations being observed by an outsider would have led one to believe that this young lady had just had a bout with the Devil and came out the victor. Perhaps that is exactly what happened; time will tell.

Chapter One

It had been some time since Toni and Tessie had seen one another. Toni became a CEO for a large oil company and was transferred to Texas where she was in charge of the large refineries while Tessie remained in California teaching Psycho therapy in the Psychology Department at Berkeley University; each having enviable positions. They e-mailed one another now and then, but hadn't actually gotten together for a few years until one Christmas morning when Tessie and Toni decided it was time to came home for the holidays and have their reunion. They thought it might be fun to meet in their old stomping grounds since their parents both remained at their respective homes in which they grew up. Tessie's parents thought it would be nice to accept Toni's parents' offer to join them for their Christmas dinner, along with her parents as well, and while they were there they ventured into Toni's old bedroom where Tessie pointed to the old antique desk and laughed. "Do you remember when we put those wishes in that old desk? I'll never forget that experience."

"Ironically enough, I was just thinking about that last night. Hey, let's see if the notes are still there." Toni said as she moved over to the desk giggling with Tessie right there behind her chuckling. It felt just like old high school days when they'd hang out, have fun dreaming and planning about the present and future. Now here they were again, face to face beaming from ear to ear as if they had just been transformed back to their teen-age days. They pulled out the drawer and before Toni grabbed the notes Tessie asked, "By the way, what were our wishes? I've long since forgotten or did I just ask to..."

"An event as important as that was? Toni giggled, "I haven't forgotten; you asked that you could be with me when my wish came true." Toni chuckled as she opened the envelope and read out loud her request. 'Wizard I wish to venture with you into the unknown; to visit the parallel universes that hold the existence of dual worlds.'

Across the room the lamp's brightness shone through Toni's hair giving it the color of honey, making the blueness in her eyes shine like a clear blue sky. It gave the look of a far away princess looking beautiful in her long evening dress, but the truth of the matter was that it was her silky night gown with the light shining on it until it looked florescent pink. Her flushed cheeks appeared as if she was glowing with happiness as she read and remembered her wish twenty or more years ago. "Wouldn't that have been an exciting event Tessie?" Toni asked.

"Whatever made you ask for such a wish? I hadn't known you to be interested in anything of that sort." Tessie asked abruptly.

Toni scooted closer to the desk and smiled, "I remember reading an old Wizard book with directions on how to get a wish fulfilled. Out of the blue, I thought I'd play around and try it, but as you and I both know, it never came true, but nonetheless, it filled one of our days with dreaming about such a thing."

"It may have filled your day with dreams of it coming true, but if you recall I never knew what wish you asked in that note, but nonetheless I asked that I would be right beside you when it did come true. Do you remember?" Tessie laughed.

"A brave soul you were?" Toni chuckled.

"Don't give me credit for bravery too fast because I never believed the whole thing anyway. I guess I just wanted to be part of the great fun." Tessie laughed as she took the notes from Toni's hand and threw them up into the air, and almost immediately the room darkened and then lightened again. "Wow, did you see that? Do you see...?" Tessie hollered.

"Spooky...No, more like weird... Boo!" Toni screamed.

Tessie jumped back and as she did she noticed the painting on Toni's wall of a willow tree she had painted in kindergarten was now worn and tattered, giving it a look of a hundred years old. "My hunch is that we're imagining things Toni, but nonetheless, take a look at that painting of your Willow Tree on the wall? Does it look older than it did a few minutes ago?" The painting seemed to have recreated itself into a growing ageing body adding colors and nuances to its branches and darkening the trunk with such magnitude one would expect to see it push its branches out of the frame and drop leaves to the ground.

"I don't know, but hey...oh my God! Look at my bedspread; it's yellow instead of the original color of blue." Toni shrieked. The yellow was intense as a ripe lemon. The subtle blue had faded before their very eyes and was being replaced with a growing spray of colors like waves spreading across it as if showing off its skills until the brilliance of lemon yellow completed its course, but there it was right before us.

"Look what's happening, and look at butterflies spread across it too?"Tessie asked startled. The butterflies spread out their wings and laid them open only to be drawn in and absorbed by the newly created and enhanced color. If one looked closely, the butterflies could be seen as a dim silhouette, barely visible but undeniably there. The two jumped up off the floor and looked around the room and the whole room had changed. It now had an old bed frame made of metal with the most ornate and interesting iron-works that appeared to be hand-made. The bends and twists defied the imagination because where in modern times could such a work of art be created? It had to come from out of the past. Yellow flowers and green vines found themselves wrapped around each pole in such a way as if to be planted in the ground and coming up from the earth to adorn the frame. Toni jumped back and cried, "Tess, what is going on here? I'm getting freaked out. Are you seeing what I am seeing or are my eyes alone playing tricks on me? Is it playing with you too?"

Tessie screamed, "Toni, look at the floor? It's no longer your nice plush carpet that your parents carefully selected for you because the colors were in perfect harmony with your likes at the time they were installed; it's now hard wood flooring. This is freaky because this wood is such that could have only come from a certain location and such that it would have taken weeks just to install; it's happening before our very eyes."

"Never mind the flooring, take a look at yourself in the mirror; you're wearing a long old fashion dress – almost like in the early 1800's." Toni said and then looked at herself and saw the same type of outfit on her own body. These dresses were long and extended because of the cage-like structure underneath the material giving it the effect of being swollen. The materials were of elegant imported silks and cottons unknown in modern times for these dresses were fitting at the President's Ball or other such events. The color patterns were adorned with ribbons and floral patterns, interspersed with lace obviously hand crocheted. Now here they were, each admiring one another but so stunned by the event that Toni was sickened. Even at this heightened brilliant array of looks and beauty it was too much for either of them to comprehend because they were exhausted by the suddenness of all the commotion and it frightened them while exciting them; they simply couldn't wrap their minds around the goings on.

Silence fell. Toni broke it at last. "I feel ill Tess. I think I'm going to lose my..." She said as she ran to the bathroom and saw an old fashion toilet and screamed. "Tess, come here...come quickly and take a look at this toilet." She leaned over the old tub and lost every bit of what was in her stomach and then wiped her mouth with a cloth hanging over the curvature of the design. It had brass fittings with angel-head creatures, claw feet of bi-metals that looked as if they were gripping the floor to keep the body of the structure from slipping. Perfectly finished porcelain interior with hand-painted borders surrounding the outer dimension of the tub were in great profusion with works of art likened to the Sistine Chapel; art created only by a great master. The flush bowl of the toilet was raised at least six feet from the ground with a tube attached to its center so as to allow a gravity pull forcing water down to eliminate the matter within the bowl. The flush mechanism consisted of an ornate pull chain which activated the flushing action allowing the water to flow. It too was heavily designed obviously not made for a common household, but for someone with means. She turned on the facet and began cleaning up the waste when the lights dimmed again and then brightened, and that's when everything went back to normal. The two stood and looked around the bathroom, bedroom and themselves and saw it as it was minutes prior. Out of fear or need they tightly hugged one another and didn't utter a sound; they were too overwhelmed by the events loosed upon them which created an emotion that had no immediate solution. What had just happened could only have been reproduced in a horror or fantasy movie where the characters were delusional or simply being tortured by some evil being. So here the two were, closely embraced and unable to rationalize what they saw or imagined and if their story was related to others, offer proof of anything they told. When the shock abated, but not gone, Toni released her grip on Tessie and rushed out the door, down the staircase, and into the living room where Toni's mother was relaxing in the quietude of the Christmas spirit alone in her thoughts.

"Is everything okay Mom?" excitedly asked Toni with wide eyes.

"Why Toni, what's going on? You look like you just saw a ghost. Is everything okay with you two?" returned Toni's Mom.  
"Has anything unusual happened since Tessie and I was upstairs?  
"Well, if you mean the TV - it quivered a little, but it does that from time to time; other than that all things are quiet and peaceful as they should be this time of year" responded Toni's Mom, Francine. "I love the holidays and I'm extremely happy to see you and Tessie together again just like old times, but what's all this excitement? What's going on with you two? Are you getting into mischief like you did when you were kids," reminisced Francine.

"Oh my goodness," exclaimed Toni. "Something happened to Tess and me, but, no, it's a long story; one that we will tell you later."

"I'm not sure what you mean dear," assured Francine.

Toni ran back upstairs to make sure Tessie was still there and in good shape what with the events that had just taken place

"Tess, Tess," exclaimed Toni. "Do you realize that what just happened to us only happened to us? I mean they didn't happen to Mom sitting downstairs. Nothing happened anywhere but here with the two of us. Did we lapse into a state of insanity for a short time? This is your field, my friend. Have you tried to come to terms with what has happened? Can you explain this manifestation of our minds? Are we mentally ill?"

"Oh, my God, Toni, do I look like a mind reader or a sear out of the past? Do you honestly think I can explain what just happened to us? I'm as dumbfounded as are you my dear friend. I have not the slightest idea what just happened. I can honestly say it was too fast and furious to explain, and I might add it was exciting while it was unfolding before our very eyes, and I am happy that no harm came to us, but only the shocking jolt it gave our brain and psyche. What a strange happening!"

As Tessie and Toni stood in awe at the events of the recent past the thought of the old antique piece of furniture entered their minds at about the same time. "The wishes!" they exclaimed at the exact moment. "It was our wishes, or at least my wish with your okay that sent this event to us," exclaimed Toni. "We were given a glimpse either into the past, or into an alternate dimension, whatever that means and wherever that is. We have leaped, so to speak, out of our realm of current existence and were allowed to pass to another time and place" exclaimed Toni.

"Oh, my, God, Toni, duel worlds – get it? You know the wish? Nonetheless, I must agree with you," assured Tessie. "There were case studies of such events in some of the courses I had to take while in college, but they seemed far-fetched back then - how could anyone rationalize another existence just by thinking about it?

"If I wasn't a believer before, I'm leaning closer to it now. My mind is so confused right now that I'm unable to make a sound judgment of the happening. Are we to expect these things to happen again and again? And if so will we have to be together when they do? Surely they won't happen when we're back at our jobs? All these questions must be addressed, but how do we attend to them when we can't explain or understand them? Toni, I think I'm afraid!" nervously iterated Tessie to her friend, "I'm truly afraid of what might happen in the future."

Peter

Chapter Two

A month later, after Toni and Tessie returned to their individual homes; Tessie in San Francisco and Toni in Texas, the incident never happened again.

One morning Toni had just gotten out of a meeting with some oil specialist and a group of men that discussed a new product in the business. One man younger than the others and all of them under thirty, whose name was Bob Steinman, a careless experientialist, a brilliant technician, as well as with a daring philosophical mind approached Toni and invited her to dinner to discuss some of the products that her company might be interested in. She readily accepted and once settled at their table sipping on wine, he asked her if she had ever experienced any near death experiences. The question was sudden and Toni wasn't comfortable sharing her years ago experience with him, but she did mention that she had heard of such things and proceeded to ask him why he asked. He became uneasy as he paused for a moment and then said, "I'm not sure. I mean I just met you today but during our meeting I kept seeing a bright white light above your head. At first I thought it was the sunlight coming in through the window, but when the receptionist closed the shades I continued to see the white light. The first thing that came to mind was when I experienced that same white light in my near death experience. I don't know why I'm telling you this except that...I...well, never mind. Shall we order?"

"No, please don't stop or feel uncomfortable about your experience." Toni said with great eagerness.

"I don't think I wish to discuss this subject any further," he said unwillingly, "I just asked on an impulse."

"I wish you would. You see, I haven't been straight forward with you because I did have a near death experience over twenty years ago. In fact, during that incident and while unconscious I saw the doctors working on me and heard every word they said. I don't believe they ever understood why I went unconscious but once my consciousness was regained and sharing with them my experience of hearing and seeing them while in my coma-like state they only looked at me as if I was strange. Never mentioning the incident again to anyone except my childhood friend I was uncomfortable about it as you are now so please...."

"I suppose you know that when someone has experienced such a thing that all those having experienced it know the other like the back of their own hand?" Bob said with excitement and leaned closer to Toni placing his hand on hers and further stated, "I felt connected to you as soon as James Weiner introduced us. However, I didn't think any more about it until I saw the white light above your head. It shined so brilliantly that it immediately took me back to my near-death experience, but being in a meeting among my colleagues I had to dismiss it without delay. Later, when I saw you exiting the room a power overtook me and I had to approach you to invite you for this drink and dinner. It's so unlike me to mention such an incident to anyone, yet it came out of me like a flowing water stream and before I could stop myself, it was done. Then when you seemed taken aback from it, I didn't know how to wiggle my way out of it. Sorry I sounded so curt earlier, but I'm pleased you trusted me enough to come forward with your incident."

"I do realize others have had near-death experiences and have told about them, yet the fact remains that they are still unexplainable. Sure, some psychiatrists rationalize why this phenomenon happens, but this is only speculation on their part for where does their knowledge come from, and who gives them the authority to identify an event of such magnitude without knowing the facts," responded Toni. "What happened to me was real and although I could see and hear what was going on all around me I could not offer one iota of proof of what was happening to my mind or body, and I would defy anyone to prove that they know either."

"I'm with you, Toni. I have done research and have come to the same conclusions as have you; it's such a nebulous, cloudy field of study, it can only be rationally explained by someone who completed the journey, saw what was to be seen, and was allowed to return for whatever reason. Then, if that person had answers that might be the proof, but if someone, on the other hand merely speculated, that would be proof of nothing more than what that 'expert' learned in his studies; nothing of true value."

"Wow! Is this heavy stuff, or what? Toni exclaimed. "Does oil have anything to do with these events?" she laughed heartily. Bob also saw the humor in the statement and could not contain himself and burst into laughter as well bringing their dinner dining experience back to a less heavy subject. Concluding their get-together on a much lighter note, Bob escorted Toni back to her house and wished her a good night, vowing to meet with her again before the conferences were over. Toni returned the verbal gesture and assured Bob that their togetherness would continue, for sure, for there were obviously many roads to be explored in this relationship; that feeling was shared by both.

Because of their near-death experiences Bob and Toni became so connected that they talked over the phone every night before going to sleep, e-mailed one another every morning, and often visited one another; either Toni flying to California to stay a week with Bob, or him flying to spend a week or more with her. Within that year they were seriously thinking about one of them relocating so they could share a house together and maybe write a book about their experiences or teach a seminar. Their goal was to help those with their own past experiences that weren't as comfortable with their events as were Bob and Toni were.

Tessie called at least once a week after their Christmas happening and she too got involved in perhaps helping them with seminars. She confessed she had always wanted to help those that claimed to have experienced UFO kidnappings, and the like. It was believed in her field that those victims created these incidents in their own minds and hallucinated yet were convinced they were real. After Toni and her experience that Christmas night, she wondered if this was a true statement or not. In fact she wondered so much that she began reading everything she could on the subject. Her office looked as if she had more books in it than furniture or anything else.

Chapter Three

One cool autumn night another incident occurred, only mildly, but nevertheless Toni knew it was another experience that she'd never forget. She had been walking along her neighborhood river bank where she jogged every morning, however this evening she had decided to simply take a nice walk reflecting on Bob relocating to Texas and him sharing a house with her, when out of the blue a strange greenish yellow bird flew down and landed on her shoulder and stuck its long brown beak under the collar of her jacket. As startled as she was with what was happening she found herself unable to react and as it was occurring \- she swore she heard it say, Soon...soon Toni...you shall have your wish come true. Be ready. She jerked her head and shook off the bird in fear that she was losing her mind, and in doing so she dropped to the ground to catch her breath but overtaken by fear she began to moan. Was she having a panic attack or was she simply losing her mind and had imagined that the bird spoken to her? She knew better. What she didn't know at that moment was that the bird was indeed real and as she shook free of it, the bird flew off to a nearby tree and secluded itself amongst the branches so as not to be seen. She convinced herself that it hadn't really happened and before she could question the incident any further she lifted herself from the ground, got her footing firmly on the path, and tore out of there in a dead run and didn't stop until she reached the front door of her home. Before she could react any further, and at that exact instance a bird was seen circling that house as if fixing itself at that location before flying off to a nearby loft, however in full sight of Toni. At that same instance she pushed in her key, nudged the door with her foot and opened it. She closed the door, fully out of breath and had a feeling as if she was going to faint, but instead stooped down resting on her hands and knees and lowered her head until she felt the blood coming back and flowing through her body and reaching calmness.

She dashed over to the phone with an unsteady thrust and called Bob, and when he answered she told him about the occurrence with the bird. He didn't scold her or tell her she was losing her mind; quite the contrary, instead reassured her and told her he was catching the next flight out and would be there as soon as he was able. But before Bob arrived Toni had felt urgency to rest, and decided she had no choice but to stretch across her bed and quickly went into a dream-like state.

She heard or thought she heard the phone ringing and it jolted her awake, but when she awakened she discovered much to her chagrin that she wasn't at home at all. No, she was in some strange city she couldn't immediately identify hiding behind a building that looked like it was made of glass and pointed on each end. The surroundings were modern in fact so modern that she had only seen this type of structure in science fiction movies. She slapped herself several times trying to wake up until she realized she was real, awake, and she was in a real city. While in this location her eyes or her mind's eye saw what looked like little car-like planes flying in the air and it was almost as if there were streets up in the sky because she could plainly see that they stopped at certain points waiting for another to pass before proceeding on. But how could this be she thought, for surely flying objects such as she was seeing couldn't just stop at will and then proceed again while afloat in the air. She couldn't tell whether or not these planes were occupied although there seemed to be total control in the airways with no incidents of fender-bending. She looked down at herself and saw that her clothing was made out of something that looked like plastic but also resembling leather. Her breathing was accelerated, her pulse was racing and she wanted to run, but to where? She didn't know. In fact she didn't know where she was or what city she was in because she had never seen anything like the surroundings she found herself in. No structures resembled commonly known buildings and these were made of materials foreign to her existed; this included the structure where she found herself hiding. As she leaned against the brick-like work the texture felt odd to her, but she was too confused at the time to be overly conscious of it right then. Besides all that was going on, Toni, in looking down, noticed she was wearing boots that had pockets in them and couldn't understand why they were there, so she reached down to see what was in them. No sooner after doing so she turned her head to the left and saw Tessie sitting down on a funny little bench hugging herself as if in fear, crying uncontrollably.

"Tessie! Tessie! Is that you? What are you doing here? How did you get here – where ever here is? Toni shrieked.  
She hurriedly raced to Tessie's side and threw her arms around her to comfort her but in reality she was offering herself some comfort because in fact she thought she was alone in this strange surroundings. But at least now she had a friend who might be able to rationalize where they were and what was happening. As they calmed down as much as they could the two began to converse more coherently. Each in turn tried to tell their story of what brought them to this strange weird place, but neither could come up with any answers. It suddenly dawned on them that they were experiencing another event that happened to them that Christmas time years ago when the rooms they were in changed to another time; this seemed to be a re-run. This time it was different because neither Tessie nor Toni knew where they were nor did they know the date. They only knew that the buildings were different and that the flying objects in the air were flying autos. Their comfort brought great relief to one another because at least they were lost together, but now they had to find out where they were; more than that they had to find out if there were any people around with whom they could communicate

They brought themselves to stand, checked out their bodies for missing or bruised parts, after finding none they tried to formulate a plan of attack. With all their brain power they could surely locate something that might offer a lead as to what was happening.

Bob was frantic after he arrived at Toni's home and found the house empty; with Toni nowhere in sight. Touring all rooms and the yard Bob was convinced that Toni was indeed not anywhere to be found. He checked her answering machine and looked for her cell phone, but the machine was empty and the phone gone. He tried to make a call to her but was surprised to hear such static which made listening all but impossible. What happened was that Bob thought he picked up a faint sound of a voice although undistinguishable, yet it sounded like a screech, but it could have been part of the static or it could have been someone on a short wave radio cutting in on the cell phone line. He hung up and tried the call again, and once again he heard or thought he heard a human sound; this time slightly more audible. He yelled into the phone but to no avail, or so he thought. Then he heard it again - like a Help! Help! Once again Bob yelled into the phone that he was there and that he heard the call for help. He asked if the person needing help was Toni. This time the response came in more recognizable. "Bob! Bob! Please...please Bob! Is that you?"

Bob was either trying to convince himself that Toni was on the other end when maybe in fact it was all in his mind, or she was indeed in trouble and was trying to reach out for him, in either case he was at a loss to know what to do. A thought suddenly came to him to call his cell phone carrier and ask them to identify the location of the call he had just made. He told them that his girl friend was in trouble and was trying desperately to reach him but the message was garbled. He needed to know the transmission point so that he could assist her in her need. The phone company could see the sincerity of Bob's request and sent out a finder. They were stunned when a signal was sent back that although they could recognize a call, they were unable to trace a location because none appeared to exist in all of their stations; they were in fact just as confused and puzzled as was Bob.

Toni and Tessie were in the open between two enormous buildings trying to use their cell phone to locate a signal. The phone registered nothing telling them that no transmitting station was within reach of their location. Toni would not accept that so she dialed Bob's number and yelled into it "Bob! Bob! Please Bob! Help! Is that you? Is that you Bob? Bob..."

When Toni and Tessie regained their sensibility they discovered that there were people all over the place and that they needed to do was walk up to one and ask where they were, so they did. They spotted a police officer and upon approaching him he offered a greeting and told the ladies that they didn't look so good and asked if he could help. They told him that they were lost and needed to get back home. When he asked where they belonged, Toni said she was from Berkley, California. When hearing that the officer informed them that they were close and only needed to get on the train and head north, for they were in southern California. Tessie thanked the officer and asked him how to board the train. He pointed out the tunnel leading to the underground boarding station and away they went.

"Can you believe this guy, Toni? I mean he thinks we're in southern California, giggled Tessie with a nervous voice.

"Do we look stupid? Anyone can see that we aren't in California at all...not at all...oh well," reiterated Toni.

Nevertheless, they entered the tunnel and went down below and sure enough there was the loading platform. One of the destination charts indicated train numbers and locations, and sure enough there was one bound for Berkley; it was train 74. After a short wait, along came train 74 and they were surprised.

"What do you think Toni? Should we get on board? It says Berkley so what do we have to lose?" quizzed Tessie.

"Hey, you're right. If we get lost, we will be lost together" The two ladies boarded the train but didn't realize they hadn't paid their fair, but it was too late for the train was about to leave so they got aboard, took a seat, and then the train began to move.

Two hours later the train came to a halt, and out the window they could read signs indicating that they had arrived in Berkley. Thrilled at their luck they disembarked and found their way up to the street level where they expected to look around and recognize the old home stead, but instead were surprised and shocked to find a city all right, but not one they recognized. Once again they found someone to quiz and once again that person assured them that they were indeed in Berkley. He asked them where they wanted to go and when they told him he put the street name into his GPS. It didn't find the exact street name, but one similar.

"Ladies, this is as close as I can come to the street you are trying to find, but just wait on that corner over there next to Marcy's store and the driver will take you to this street I have written out for you," the young man responded, then turned and smiled.

The ladies, although puzzled again, followed the direction given, got on board and tried to offer the driver money, but he said none was necessary, and that he would let them know when he arrived at their street. Not too long after the driver pulled over the mini bus and told the ladies that they had arrived at their location. Tessie and Toni got off, thanked the driver, and looked around to see if they could recognize anything. The street name was different, but some of the houses seemed familiar.

"I know this house Toni. I looked at it a while back hoping it was for sale; it looked good to me. Let's walk this way and we will come to my house. I know we will," assured Tessie.

"Hey, this is your place so I am just one step behind you; all the way my friend...all the way for sure," assured Toni.

So off the two went, down the street in search of Tessie's house. It wasn't too long before Tessie yelled out that the house across the street looked just like hers, but it wasn't quite the same; something was odd yet familiar at the same time.

"Hey Toni, this is it, at least I think it is. I'm delusional or my house has been altered since I left, and who knows when that might have been, owing to the strange goings-on we have been experiencing."

They approached the house and nearly everything seemed to match, so Tessie decided to play it safe and ring the doorbell. She did several times but got no response, so she decided to try her key and low and behold it opened the door. The two cautiously entered the home and looked around. What they saw amazed them for on the mantel were pictures of the two of them when they were in high school. "Hey, Tess, I didn't know you had put out this picture of us from way back when," stated Toni.

"Tell you what is so weird my friend, I don't remember putting it out either," came the startled response.

Not knowing what to do at this point in time, and being totally exhausted, they beckoned for the bedroom in great need of sleep. It was as if they were drawn to the upstairs rooms where they almost felt compelled to jump into bed and sleep. Each followed their sixth sense, did as their minds suggested and upon lying down found themselves falling into an uncontrollable deep sleep as if they were drugged. Losing all track of time from that point on, they slept deeply. They were awakened by the bright sun shining in on them. Tessie came out of it first so she looked around and things appeared different than when she climbed into bed. She slowly got up and studied the arrangement of all that was visible, and to her great surprise and amazement discovered that everything was hers, exactly as she had left it before she vanished, so to speak. She went screaming into the other bedroom. "Toni, Toni, wake up, wake up. We are home, I mean this is my house, I am home and you are with me" screeched Tessie. Toni came to and looked around and agreed with Tessie that they were in the Berkeley home. They walked down the stairs and cautiously opened the door and peeked out. Immediately Tessie recognized everything around her for after all it was her home, for you see, they had mysteriously arrived back in the Berkley they knew, and all was well, once again.

Chapter Four

It had been four weeks since the happening with Tessie and Toni and they had been confused for weeks, and mighty tired of not knowing from month to month whether they would end up in some place lost in a strange exotic land, or whether next time they'd even be able to find their way home at all. This concerned them constantly, but one morning a tall and singularly graceful young man rose to his feet when he saw Toni rushing down the company's hallway. "Oh Miss, are you Toni Riccio? You know...the one who works for Parks Oil Refining and Production Company?"

"Well, yes, who are you?" Toni asked as she stopped and turned to the man who seemed to be nervous and tense about something.

"Toni I have something to report to you...well, too vague to be a report, but nevertheless, I...well, I need to tell you that this time you won't be so fortunate to find yourself without fault in your actions regarding the new product that you accepted from Kim and Kim Oil Corp." came the astounding words from this total stranger who suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"What in the devil are you talking about Sir? I don't know you, and you stand here trying to call me on the carpet for a company I never heard of? Please excuse me...I don't have time for such nonsense for as you can see I am in a great hurry."  
The weary, resolute man stood staring at Toni's back and the way she swaggered away. His eyes were bleary with lack of sleep with a small pencil hanging from his ear. "You'll be sorry Miss...very sorry. I had something you needed to hear. In fact you needed to hear this now. Right now." The man mumbled to himself.

Within seconds Toni turned around and began walking back toward him. "What did you say? I hear you saying something for which I'd be sorry. What may I ask will I be sorry about? If you're insinuating or threatening me in any way, I want you to know that I will report you to that officer standing over there." She pointed, placed her hands on her hips, smirked, and began walking away again when he reached out and grabbed her arm. "I said you'd be sorry if you don't hear what I have to report to you, and you're welcome to report me to that officer for all I care, but like I said, you'll be sorry and I think you know that to be true. You'd better take heed and listen to me. You should understand that I'm not your enemy, you see I'm just a messenger."

Toni jerked her arm from his hand and said, "Then tell me you crazy mad man. Tell me now or I'm walking away again. You're making such a nuisance of yourself. Tell me if you think I should hear what you wish to report to me. Go ahead." She twisted her foot over the other one in a defiant stance and stood waiting until he decided it was time for him to finally speak.

"You are in danger so I suggest you go to that old antique desk of yours and put another note in it to release you from the spell you so carelessly placed yourself under way back when. You are one crazy lady to think you could play around with the Wizard because he is a wise man and he is the one who makes the rules."

Their eyes met and clung then they parted. Toni stormed toward her office door and when she stood in front of it, she turned around and saw that the man was gone. She figured he had darted into another door, but then again she felt a wave of fear go through her body and she wanted to run. But she didn't, for she couldn't think of where to run. She was standing in front of her door when Bob appeared and asked her what was going on. He told her that she looked white as a sheet. She flew into his arms and began to sob. "I think I'm losing my mind Bob. Things keep happening to me. I don't know if it's because of my near death experience or that damn wish I put in that old desk. I wish I could live that part of my life over again, and then I wouldn't have written that silly note the Wizard suggested I write."

"Tell me about your wish and what desk are you talking about?" Bob said as he released her and gently pushed her away from him so he could look into her eyes. "Let's go across the street, settle down, have a drink, and then tell me what it is you're talking about." He took her hand and she allowed him to lead her down the hall, out the door and across the street. Once settled in their favorite place, he reached across the table for her hand and when he had it tightly in his, he squeezed it and said, "Now honey, tell me what you're so upset about and what you wished."  
Several hours later, after Toni had finished telling her story about all the happenings she asked Bob if he thought she was losing her mind. He chuckled as he stood up pulling her up to him and whispered, "Not for a minute. Now honey, you know as we've talked before that a near-death experience can cause us to become more aware of things. You know, such as, visualizing things that normal people wouldn't be aware of. By the way, who is the author of that Wizard book that you read, and what exactly did it say? Perhaps we need to find it and read it again very carefully to discover exactly what your commitment was to the wish you made."

Toni stepped closer to Bob and said, "I'm sure it's still at my parents' house in my old room, but I don't remember who the author was, however I think he lived in another country and hit the best seller list here in the states. I found it at a weird little bookstore where there were many other strange titles granting this and guaranteeing that if only you dared open the pages."  
Bob took her hand and lead her out of the restaurant and moments later they were settled in his car since he had convinced her to let him drive home and then return the next day to get her car. She agreed and in a way was relieved that she didn't have to drive home, for at this point she was in no mood to do anything except ponder the future. On the drive home, he turned to her and said, "Perhaps we need to take a little trip to San Francisco and see that Wizard book you're talking about. There's something that disturbs you about it; something you don't understand or can't remember, and we need to get to the bottom of it. But Toni I need once again to reiterate that strange things do happen to people after a near-death experience and what is happening to you may have nothing to do with your book or your wish you made a long time ago. What do you think about us joining a group with other people that have experienced the same things we both have experienced? I know strange things have happened to me since that experience and I'd like to know if similar things have occurred with others who have had trauma resulting in death or near death. Seeing that brilliant white light is nothing to disregard because it is an experience that changes things within a person and in many cases alters their lives significantly. At least that's how it affected me, and I know it has done something to you as well. Sometimes I think we met because we were meant to meet. Do you think that?" He said as he pulled into the driveway, turned off the motor, looked at her with asking eyes and then opened his door.

Chapter Five

The phone rang at Tessie's home as she was settled in for the evening after another successful day of teaching and counseling. She read Toni's name on the face of her cell phone and immediately answered giving her usual greeting and exchanging a few niceties and renewing their friendship after their last experience in California when they didn't know they were in Berkley because it was so different.

"Tessie! Bob and I have spent a great deal of time going over the events of the past with each recounting our near-death experiences and trying to make heads or tails out of them. After Bob learned about the book The Wizard, and about our wishes placed so long ago, thought that the book should be read again more slowly and deliberately to see exactly what commitment we made by making that wish that day. We also thought it would be good to get away and visit Mom; that way we could say hello and at the same time retrieve the book. We thought it would be good if you could meet with us so that the three of us could detect any clues or mysterious entries that have caused us to slip in and out of reality. What do you think, would you like to meet us there in San Fran?"

"Wow! Good to hear from you Toni. I've been thinking about you too, probably at the same time you have been thinking about me; you know, like minds think alike or something reminiscent of that. It would be a very good idea to see what dastardly deeds we got ourselves into when we were so young and foolish back in the good old days. It would be comforting to know what is causing us to leap into the past and future, not knowing where we are or whether or not we will ever return from this horror we have loosed upon ourselves. Yes, we must meet, just tell me when you plan on arriving and I'll be there."

Arrangements were made and at the designated time the three met at Toni's mother's house. As usual Francine was happy to see Toni and her friends because the visits had been few and far apart and it was good to be back in touch, plus there were tasks at hand that needed their attention and it was imperative that the deed be done. While Toni and Bob were visiting downstairs with Francine, Tessie quietly snuck upstairs and searched for the bookshelf until she located The Wizard. It made her somewhat uneasy just to handle it for fear something would trigger a response and she would be sent off to Hell or sent to some strange land, but such was not the case, at least not at that point. She decided not to open it until Toni and Bob were present so that they could scrutinize the pages carefully and together, going over each page and trying to find passages that might have been responsible for the acts cast upon Toni and Tessie. What was more important was trying to find information that would tell them how to get themselves out of this bind and help their lives to be restored back to normal. What a horrible thought to even think they could have made a lifetime bargain with the Devil.

Tessie placed the book by the door so as not to have it present when in the room with the others. She made an eye gesture as to what she had done and received an agreeable response.

Following the visit the three almost in harmony suggested they be on their way because of the many things they had to do so they bid their farewells and much to the chagrin of Francine, began to exit the dwelling with the book in hand. As they began walking down the stairs, Toni said, "Bob, where did you park the car? Didn't we stop in front?"

"Now you know we did Toni. I honestly don't know where the car is; I don't see it anywhere, not even down the street. Should we call the police and report it stolen or at least missing?" suggested Bob. "I'll be right back. I'm going on farther down the street and see if I can find it."

"Wouldn't we have heard something just a few yards inside the house? I think I would have heard something," replied Toni.

"I know for a fact that the car was parked right in front of the house" demanded Tessie. "I looked straight to my right at the familiar front door noting the unusual window your mom had installed a long time ago, you know, with that unusual frame."

As they automatically turned to look at the door, they didn't recognize the window configuration to which Tessie referred, instead there was just a small oval window neither Tess nor Toni remembered. Of course they didn't remember the window for as it worked out they were no longer at the home of Toni's mother, and as they turned to ask Bob what he thought might be happening they noticed that he had not yet returned from his venture; he was nowhere in sight

. "My God! Can this be happening to us again Tessie? Is it really happening again? And where is Bob? Did he just vanish?"

"Before we get all panicky, let's walk down the street and see if we spot him. He may have found out something about his car and was simply delayed in getting back to us" suggested Tess.

The two quickly ventured down the street and looked up and down in both directions but Bob was nowhere to be found. He simply vanished or was he still at Francine's house after she and Tessie left the scene. They began to feel that sickening pulsation in their stomachs; that same feeling they had experienced not too long ago when they got lost in 'California'. They cautiously approached the house they had just exited and gingerly walked up the stairs. They were not sure what to do. Do they enter? Do they ring the bell hoping Francine would appear? What if this wasn't her home, what then? How do they explain to whoever answers that they need to see Toni's mother who lives there when in fact a stranger answers the door? This was an embarrassing moment cast upon them once again and one that they were not equipped to handle right then, for they thought their visit would be plain and simple; go for a visit, find The Wizard, exit and read in an effort to rid them of this hex they created for themselves a long time ago. They decided to brave it and ring the bell. As they did, a middle-aged gentleman answered and asked how he could be of help. The two, feeling sick and probably looking a little pallid to the man at the door said they were visiting and were looking for Mrs. Riccio who used to live in this neighborhood. The man thought for a moment and then told the two that he wasn't familiar with the name, and that he had lived on the street for many years. He told them they had mistaken the address. They were embarrassed to ask where they were so with trepidation they thanked him and apologized for their invasion of his privacy. He said he didn't mind and hoped they would find the correct street and house. Tessie and Toni walked down the steps hand in hand about ready to cry on one another's shoulders, once again not knowing what to do or where to go, but nonetheless they continued until they reached the bottom.

"We better get out of here and try to figure out what in the hell is going on Tess. This is getting to me big time and we need to get to the bottom of this thing that keeps happening."

"I agree, but where do we go? Nowhere, but here, right?"

"Let's just walk down that main street and try to settle our nerves, perhaps something will come to us; it must," pleaded Toni.

"Hey Toni, let's go sit in that little coffee shop and have some caffeine. Maybe that will stimulate our minds and clear the fog."

"A great idea!" The two ventured into the coffee shop and took a seat. A waitress promptly came to them and asked what they wanted. They ordered two cups of coffee. The waitress looked at them strangely and asked if they were from around the neighborhood because she didn't recognize them. They told her that they were just passing through and needed a break. As they sipped their coffee, they remembered the book and bravely opened it then looked over the chapter headings hoping for a clue as to what they should read first. The book seemed to emanate a strange aura recognized immediately by Toni. She held the book gingerly and asked Tessie whether or not she could see anything strange about it. Tessie said no, that is until she took hold of it and upon doing so it fell from her hands as if by some power other than her own. Each was fearful of attempting to retrieve the book again not knowing what might come of it. While enrapt in their fears and thoughts a slender gentleman quietly entered the coffee shop and sat close to Tessie and Toni with his back to them so as not to be recognized. He ordered coffee and just sat patiently trying to overhear any conversation wafting in his direction. Sensing their fears he focused on their table and saw the The Wizard sitting there almost as if in a state of levitation. He quickly got up and moved over to the table where Tessie and Toni were seated and spoke to Toni. "Once again we meet, Toni Riccio. The last time I tried to speak with you I thought you were going to bite off my head, so I had no choice but to make a hasty exit from your presence. Perhaps this time you will be willing to talk with me," spoke out the man.

Toni totally in shock stood up and in a loud voice and threatening manner demanded to know what was going on and why she was being followed, especially in this altered state of existence. The man tried to tell her a while back that she was in trouble and that she should listen to what he had to say, so perhaps now she would pay attention realizing that there was no way he could be there unless he had special powers allowing him to find the two of them. As Toni began to realize that this man couldn't be with them because they were not in their regular world; she assured him that she would listen. She didn't bother to introduce him to Tessie because it appeared that he already knew who she was because of his somehow connection to the book, the hex, or the evil deeds cast upon them. "I tried to tell you Toni, that you needed to carefully study the book and if you read it with an open mind you would discover how to exit yourself from any further extra-world ventures. He told them that he couldn't tell the secret of the book because they'd have to make that discovery themselves. He further told them that they were where they were because he needed to have them as a captive audience so they couldn't run away from him. He suggested that they read the book in sections starting from the last chapter, then going to the first chapter, then back to the next to last chapter, then back to the second chapter, and on and on until the reading was completed. "It will be at that time where you might be able to unlock the secret mystery of the book allowing you to escape your bounds." Toni didn't know whether or not to thank the man or just exit and get away from him. He, in fact, suggested they leave and walk back the way they came and the coffee would be taken care of and not to worry but to leave and get back home.

"Let's get the hell out of here Tessie, and do what this guy suggests.

"I agree wholeheartedly so let's pick um up and set um down and exit this place. Hurry, let's get out of here."

The two left the coffee shop and on their way out looked back to watch the man who had invaded their privacy, but when they did they found him gone – nowhere to be seen.

"I don't know how many more traumatic experiences like this I can handle Tess. My poor heart can't take it" said Toni.  
The two did as they were told and walked back the way they came. As they headed up the street where they had always found Toni's house, they espied a car parked out in front.

"Oh, hell, Tess did that creep follow us before and is now parked in front of my mother's house," exclaimed Toni.

"I don't think so Toni because that car belongs to Bob and it's parked right where it was when we landed here, who knows how long ago," spoke out Tessie. The madness invaded their minds as they hurried to the house where Toni's mom used to live. As they looked around, their eyes focused upon the windows around the front door, and to their surprise it was as Toni had described before the change took place. The two quickly raced up the stairs, rang the doorbell and were surprised when Bob appeared to greet them.

"Well, it seemed that as soon as I left that you two decided to leave as well. When I got back you were gone and your mother, Toni, didn't know where you went. I'm happy to see that you're back."

Before getting into Bob's car, Tessie stood and gazed at her parents' house and wished they had been home instead of out of town because at that moment she would give anything to have their arms around her telling her that all was fine and she'd be okay.

Speeding down the street Bob turned to Toni and said, "You know I have to leave for my business trip tomorrow, and if I could I'd not go, but this has been scheduled for weeks and I can't miss it." He looked in his rear view mirror and said to Tessie, "I wish you could stay with Toni for a week, Tess."

"I wish I could too Bob, but that's impossible right now, however, after I do my workshop on Wednesday perhaps I can."

Chapter Six

It seemed like weeks since Toni had seen Bob and she needed desperately to feel his warm arms around her, but she also knew she had to take care of things she had missed while being away from her job. She had spoken to Bob by email while he was in Florida on business, and they had spoken about all of the happenings, but she needed his tenderness to bring her back to that calm wonderful place he always seemed to know how to do.

Early Saturday morning she got out of bed quickly, bathed and brushed her hair, and as she was accustomed to do when she was alone, she wrapped an oversized green plush towel about her slim freshly washed body. Nothing was quite as comfortable as a soft towel caressing her naked body. She went into the kitchen to make a hot steaming cup of coffee for herself when the doorbell rang. She flew to open it and there Bob stood, haggard and beaten. "Bob, when did you get in? I didn't get my usual email last night or this morning and I've been worried."

"I don't know," he said and continued to stand looking worn.

"Then I'll make my own observations, you've had an experience of some kind, haven't you? You look terrible." Toni said.

He did not answer and she looked up at him and reached half timidly for his hand, and said, "Come inside Honey. Come inside."  
He allowed Toni to lead him to his easy chair and as he sat down he let out a big breath, and said, "I've been in a fog Toni. I didn't know where I was or who I was. I kept seeing a white light coming toward me and for a half second I almost reached out for it, but I remembered you needed me so I turned away and called out to you." He leaned his head back and said, "But I'm here now."

"Just keep your head back... rest... I'll fix you a hot cup of coffee I just prepared. Do you want a sweet roll with it?"  
He shook his head as he closed his eyes and when Toni returned with his coffee she noticed he was asleep so she set the cup down on the nearby table, covered him with a small blanket, sat down in her chair next to him and waited. She observed his unshaven face and his wrinkled clothing and felt a touch of sadness for him. She wanted to move over and hug him but didn't.  
The phone sounded out and when it rang two more times, Toni realized she too had fallen asleep and didn't hear it at first. She leaped from her chair and ran to pull it out of her handbag. "Hello."

"Hello Toni. I called because I had the strangest dream last night. You and I were running and kept running until we were so out of breath that we fell down on a damp lawn at a big house that had the structure of one of those houses in a dark movie; you know the haunted type house? Well, we were... anyway..."

"Wait Tessie...who was chasing us? Toni asked.

"I don't know...I never knew in the dream, but I can tell you this – we were terrified. I mean we wanted to get away from whoever was chasing us yet it was more of a fear coming from inside of ourselves. When I woke up my clothing was soaked."  
"I wonder what it means Tess. Strange things are going on because Bob just arrived an hour ago and he could barely talk. He was exhausted from something that had happened to him."

"Where is he now? Is he still there?" Tessie asked.

"He walked right over to his easy chair and fell immediately into a deep sleep. I'm worried about him. It looked like he hadn't slept in days, was unshaven and wearing wrinkled clothes. He was unable to tell me what happened, but I'm hoping he will when he wakes from his sleep. Where are you?

"That's what I've been trying to tell you; I'm here in Austin. I rented a car and thought I might come by to talk about all these things going on with the three of us. I mean, only a week ago, you had that nightmare about a giant chasing you and before he caught up with you, you woke up. What does it all mean?"

When Toni clicked off from talking to Tessie, she turned to see if Bob was still asleep and noticed he wasn't in his chair. She hurried into an empty kitchen and then rushed to the bathroom door and saw that it was closed. Because he seemed preoccupied on the other side of the door, she blurted out that Tess had just called and was on her way over because she had had a bad dream."

Bob opened the door looking a little better than he had when he arrived, and said, "Oh, what kind of bad dream?"  
"Something about someone chasing us and after we were so out of breath we couldn't run anymore, we dropped on the lawn of a haunted-looking house and then she woke up. Strange huh?"

"Yea. She must have been in my nightmare last night because I was really there. There was a mad dog chasing me though. His teeth were sharp and he was just about to catch up with me on that lawn Tessie described so well, when he dropped to the ground dead."

Toni screamed, "You mean it happened in real life or you dreamed it? When he nodded and said it was in real life, Toni moaned and said, "What in the hell is going on, Bob? The book, we simply must read the book as we were instructed to do so we can stop this madness. We need to do it tonight, or at least try to follow the strange instructions given to us by that tall man who invaded my privacy at the office and then at Mom's house," She said.

Eventually Tessie arrived but at that time Bob was nearly recovered from his bad experiences \- what he termed was real, but how could that be for wasn't it just a dream and one apparently shared by Tessie as well? If these nightmares and day mares continue unabated they will wreak havoc on the health of all concerned. Things must change and soon for it can't be that one day you are here and the next day you are gone. Not only that, but it's not knowing where you are or whether or not you can come back. The only thing left to do in order to resolve this enigma is to follow the instructions that strange tall man said...you know like reading The Wizard, and then following the instructions."

Taking time for dinner and a time for recuperation the three sat down to work out a strategy because it was Toni who originally discovered the book and who supposedly read it so it should be her task to read the first chapter. In total agreement she soon set herself to the task; read with emphasis and enunciated the words so that there would be no misinterpretation as to what was being read. Along the way there were terms none of the three understood so Bob assigned himself the chore of taking notes of odd words, phrases or chants. Tessie was next to read so she turned to the last chapter and followed the method Toni had elected and read aloud. Again there were items unknown to the three so Bob made note of those, and he was next so chapter two was his to dig in. This time Toni took note of odd and unusual terminology, and wondered where all those words were while reading or thought she had read the first time. It was obvious mistakes were made for there was so much woven in and out of the pages and interpreted by having to 'read between the lines' so it was a miracle that anything could have been understood back then; it was obvious it wasn't understood now. But one can't cry over spilt milk, but instead they had to progress forward and work to come to some resolution to find a solution.  
"Had I known that I hadn't known what I was doing, perhaps I wouldn't have done it. I know I wouldn't have," confessed Toni.

"I doubt it Toni. You were always the daring one - besides you thought that The Wizard was a simple book and not the work of some 'Wizard' or Devil's Disciple or for that matter some such entity," assured Tessie. "Maybe if I had looked before I had leaped as the saying goes, I might not have submitted my wish to go along with yours, but then what would you have done all alone on your ventures? Tessie teased with a giggle following her statement.

"Yeah, I'd rather be lost with someone than be lost alone," returned Toni with a giggle and then became serious as she grinned.

Bob assured them that they would have changed nothing back then because they were two reckless and daring young girls looking for excitement wherever it could be found, and what better place than a mystical book and an antique dresser to conjure up thoughts of fun and adventure. Tessie and Toni agreed and made light of the situation, but quickly got back to the task of reading and interpreting. They worked into the night to the point where they were losing their thoughts and were too tired to take notes besides their tablet was filled with the strangest sayings.

"Time to quit for the night girls or at least it's time for me to quit considering my exercise I got running away from that mad dog" added Bob. It was somewhat in jest for it was not known whether Bob had a real-life experience or a dream. Toni and Tessie agreed that they should start over again with fresh minds and restored bodies so they retired for the evening only to fight again in the morning.

The night was filled with fretful tossing and turning, probably brought on by the unknown, and that being whether or not they would find themselves together upon awakening. They slept, woke up, looked around, and slept some more. They were relieved to find themselves in one piece and in the same place from which they started and that was a good sign. Perhaps reading and taking notes of the strange and unusual incantations and writings the spirits guiding the book allowed them some peace; probably not however for as the words were written and the spells cast so must those participating enter into the agreements made along the way according to the rules.  
Following breakfast the ritual began again, each in turn going over the chapters and taking notes until the chore was done. Here were three intelligent individuals looking over a mass of notes barely understanding the writings as they were read aloud, and now having to extrapolate some common sense out of what was known which at the time was very little or they thought very little.

"Okay guys, what's next? We have read, talked, shared, shook our heads in wonderment, and we are not much further ahead than we were before we started except that we had a story read to us and I might add one that probably none of us would have chosen on purpose," quipped Bob.

"What I don't understand,' stated Toni, "is why the slim man directed me to read the book by jumping back and forth through the chapters. I couldn't see much difference than just going from beginning to ending.

"I have nothing to add to what has already been said," chimed Tessie.

"All I know is that I am very confused by the complexity of the words and how they were woven and interspersed throughout the text. It's like it was written by a madman for evil purposes rather than for fun and enjoyment," added Toni quickly.  
"I guess if a person read the book and didn't pay too much attention to the terms and agreements and when finished replacing the book back on the shelf, nothing more would come of it, but in this situation, here I was, the all knowing, sticking my nose into the pot where it didn't belong and look at all the fun we are having trying to exit ourselves from this mess."

"No one is to blame. What's done is done. The only thing left to do now is figure out what to do now," Bob said and then paused for a moment, "Here's what has to happen next in order to resolve this mess; we need to split some of the terms and conditions we found in the book, and each do some research over the next week or two. Then let's return and compare notes; this is what I suggest," Bob added.

Because of the need for all three to get back to their jobs they decided to leave as they were not on a long-term vacation. In truth no one else knew what was going on in the lives of Toni, Tessie and Bob, so to just arbitrarily miss work for no apparent reason was taboo. So off to work they went and in the interim each set out to discover the unusual from their readings and then meet again at their designated time and place. Time marched on with little or no excitement, much to the happiness of the three, until the time arrived for their meeting. Phone calls were made to confirm the meeting and all were ready and willing to get their show on the road once again. The meeting was held at Tessie's house because it was close to a major research center at Berkley in the event more information was needed. The three met, enjoyed a lunch, some small talk, and then prepared themselves for the task ahead. Each took a turn in explaining their findings, and although most were confusing, they did settle on some things they thought might be relevant. First off, they identified the source of the sorcery. It seems that the term that came up many times; 'The Ju Ju Man' denoted the center of all this black magic. It began in Nigeria, Africa by the Yoruba speaking people. This trend carried over to Santeria, Palo Mayambe and Abaqa, found mostly in Cuba, Puerto Rico and Miami. Their gods and goddesses were known as 'orishas'. These facts became important because it afforded the group some ammunition as to where to begin to find answers to the happenings affecting their lives. They all agreed that the only practical location for them to do research on finding one of the 'orishas' was in the secretive world of Miami, Florida. This they also agreed needed to be done soon. The only way to bring about any resolution was for each to request a week off due to serious family problems, and since the reason was not totally a lie, it would satisfy their bosses' justification for granting the leave. And so it was that the three set off to Miami, but once arriving what would they do from there? None had been to Florida for any other purpose than sight-seeing and lolling around on the beaches, and that was some time ago. Does one just enter Miami and go into a store asking whether or not anyone could direct them to an 'orisha'? They thought not. Then how does one approach this most delicate subject without seeming like undercover agents trying to bust a voodoo sect? The place to start they rationalized was the office of the FBI, for surely they would have dealt with clandestine activities related to hexes and strange disappearances and deaths.  
The next morning the three approached the local office and sought out an agent who might be able to assist them in their quest. To their surprise and elation there was a special office given over to that very subject, and after explaining in some detail what was happening, the agent consented to offer some information that might be helpful. The first thing he did was assign one of his undercover agents to the case but only on a short time basis to meet a 'narc' who would introduce them to a known practitioner in the arts and sciences of Black Magic, Voodoo, chants and incantations, spells and other odd and weird activity. The meeting was set up, but the three were told that they couldn't dress like they appeared now. They needed street clothes that were torn and tattered and looked dirty and unkempt for they were entering the underworld of the little understood mind controllers. They also had to meet at night so identities were difficult.

"Look my friend, we have never been to this place before and we certainly haven't dealt with voodoo or any such people who delve in the black arts. After we meet with these people are we going to have a difficult time just walking away with the information they may or may not give to us?" Bob stated.  
'These people change from one day to the next. We at the FBI office never know how they will react for they are always in fear that we will invade their territory and give them trouble. We try not to interfere unless we are called in because of an injury, a hex placed on someone, or a death by whatever means," retorted the Agent.

"Might we be offered a window of time so that if you don't hear from us you might suspect that something has happened that might put us in jeopardy?" responded Bob with a slight chuckle.

"It's not likely anything will happen to you because of the 'narc' we are using to introduce you to one of the practitioners" was the response given back from the Agent. "But, I'll tell you what I will give you two days to do your dealings and if I don't hear back from you by that time, I will dispatch my 'narc' to investigate; how's that?"

Bob, Toni and Tessie were relieved that some amount of protection was being offered by the Agency and at least there would be some guarantee for their safety should they need help for whatever reason. None wanted another hex placed on them for they were in Miami for just the opposite reason; that being to find out how to remove whatever evil had been wrought upon them in the first place.

The next night coming arrangements were made to meet with Mapita Castro, a well-known lady of the underworld who surely would be able to help, for the right price. The agent from the FBI suggested they bring some money to offer up in good faith for services rendered. Mapita was an intriguing lady who was dressed in a long flowing gown-like wrap with a vast array of colors and patterns. Her upper blouse had puffy shoulders and was also loaded with all the colors of the rainbow. The donned straw hat had frayed edges and sportedholes here and there, and there was a bandana wrapped around it that fashioned itself under her neck where it was tied in a bow. She was not the sort of lady you would want to introduce to your close friends; that is unless you wanted to scare them off. The three were barely introduced to Mapita, who only motioned for them to sit and listen. When her instructions were given she motioned for them to respond to nod up and down for a yes if they were willing to tell her what she wanted to know or no with a sideways left to right movement of their heads if they were unwilling. They didn't come all that way to say no, so each responded with a yes. Before Mapita began she made a strange motion with her head and out of the shadows of her work station appeared Phillippe. This guy looked like a homeless man from any big city. He had dark skin but was not a black man, and his clothing was dull and drab, in shades of dark brown. They were torn and tattered. Phillippe stood about 5'5" and weighed in at about 189 pounds. His face was dirty adorned by a mustache and unshaven beard. His eyes appeared to be black, but being dark as it was, and only using ambient light cast off by the fire Mapita had prepared, it was not possible to know for sure, he was otherwise a spooky, scary person. All three felt the same about Phillippe and it was obvious by the expressions on their faces when he appeared out of nowhere. When the ceremony was about to begin, Mapita signaled that she would need an object from each of them and some up-front money. Bob dug into his pocket and came up with a special pin he had always carried with him - sort of a superstitious good luck charm. Along with that came a handful of 20's. Toni and Tessie each removed a piece of jewelry they had around their necks and handed them to Mapita, which she accepted, but when Mapita saw this stash of bills she again motioned to Phillippe who knew exactly what he was supposed to do. He spoke in his Spanish accent for Bob to get up from his sitting position and follow him. Bob was reluctant as was Toni and Tessie, but they had agreed to do as they were told, and so Bob followed Phillippe down the corridor and into a dark building. When he didn't return in what seemed like hours, Toni and Tessie asked Mapita what had happened. She told them not to worry and began questioning them as to their need of her services. They obeyed and spilled out every detail of what had been happening to them. Mapita appeared to be interested and kept nodding as she listened. It was difficult to know what was going on in her mind having never dealt with anyone like this person, so they weren't sure whether or not she was just giving them lip service or was in fact paying attention and taking in everything that was presented to her. When all was said and done, they asked for Bob to return. Mapita nodded her head, but Phillippe did not appear. Of course this was known to Mapita, for Bob was not available. In actuality he was being held by a group of men just like Phillippe. His arms and legs were bound and everything in his pockets was removed. He was told to remain silent or he would be killed, as he sat in total disbelief having no other choice but to obey so he did as he was told. He also saw no way to signal Toni or Tessie that he was in danger so they were probably going to be subjected to the same routine.

When Toni and Tessie were asked to rise they demanded to know the whereabouts of Bob. They were cautioned to not cry out or there would be repercussions against them. Soon after they were taken to the same room where Bob was being held and bound. Their possessions were removed from them leaving only their clothing they had on when entering the facility. After a while Mapita appeared and warned the three to cooperate or else. Toni asked what was wrong because what she had told Mapita was the truth and they were not there to spy or cause trouble to anyone. "All we wanted was information to rid ourselves of our hex. But instead we're in a deeper fix than we were." Tessie cried.

They felt helpless and had no options except to obey Mapita who had not yet established her desires. With the three securely bound they were hard pressed to do anything except plead their innocence and asked to be released. Mapita spoke to Phillippe in Spanish and only a few bits and pieces of her conversation could be understood, for none of the three captives had carried on with their language programs while in school and were now helpless to fully comprehend their fates."Who sent you to me?" questioned Mapita. "You don't look so innocent. You look like you are here to do something bad to me; is this the truth?" she demanded. Bob was unable to speak because he had an object stuck in his mouth and secured behind his neck so that his voice was inaudible. His head was also pulled back so that he appeared to be looking up at the ceiling; a most uncomfortable position for anyone.

"You have this all wrong. We came here for help, and we're not connected with anyone. Certainly we're not here to investigate your business. Help is all we need, and we were told that you were the best of the best and that you could tell us how to get us out of our wish made long ago after consulting with the book the Wizard; nothing more, nothing less," reassured Toni. "Why would we come from California to Florida just to interfere with your business, anyway? Think on that." She offered.

Once again Mapita broke away and spoke with her associates in Spanish. They didn't seem too convinced as to the truth or not so true statements being presented to them were questioned. They indicated that some considerations would be made providing the price was right. When Mapita returned to the conversation in English she informed the three that her associates weren't happy or satisfied because they were not special agents. She also told them that there might be a way to prove their innocence by coming up with more money. When Toni and Tessie heard this they were dumbfounded. How were they supposed to get money if they were bound and secluded in this Godforsaken hideout?

"Why do you demand more money from us?" questioned Tessie who had been silent throughout this entire ordeal. "We have nothing. You have taken all of our possessions. Whatever we had can be yours, so just keep it and let us leave," she cried out.

"Ah, but you have money in the bank, don't you?" questioned Mapita. "You can get it and give it to me, and then we can talk some more."

"Our money is in the bank systems in California so we don't have access to it here in Miami" replied Tessie. "We would have to find a bank that would honor our accounts from our distant banks for such transactions and they might be unwilling; what then?"

"Please release Bob's mouthpiece and allow his head to return to normal. He is trying to speak but can't," begged Toni.

Mapita looked over at Bob and could plainly see that he was in pain. She motioned to Phillippe to loosen the binding around Bob's mouth and neck. After doing so Bob gasped and gulped in large amounts of air restoring oxygen to his lungs. His blood pressure had elevated and he was not in good condition at that moment. After huffing and puffing for some time, the color in his face appeared normal once again. He shook his head from one side to the other trying to speak, but wasn't able to.

"You people have this all wrong!" he demanded. "We came to you for help and look what you have done to us. We must be released immediately because the person who brought us here to meet with you was instructed to check up on us if we failed to return in a short time. If we remain missing, he will get help and come looking for us. You now have to decide whether or not we are telling the truth, and if you don't believe us then you will have to accept the consequences of your actions." Bob blared.

Upon hearing this Mapita relayed what was said in Spanish to her associates. They immediately scurried around nervously as if not to know how to react to the information just presented to them. Mapita sensed the urgency in her friends and could sense what Bob was saying was in fact the truth. She sat in silence for some time as if trying to read the wave lengths emanating from Toni, Tessie and Bob's thoughts. She appeared very nervous at that instant and after readjusting her position, she announced, "We have decided to believe you and want you to know that we were only testing you and trying to protect our interests. We are going to allow you to leave, but you must promise that you will tell no one about what had happened. You must know that I'm capable of initiating some very bad and dangerous hexes upon you - should you deny me my request for your silence. How do you say? Bob asked for a couple of minutes to talk with Toni and Tessie in private, and then they would give her their answer. Mapita walked away, but not too far so as to keep all three within her sights. Bob stated his case and it wasn't too hard to imagine how the others would react. Assuring her that they just wanted to get out of there, out of Florida, and return as fast as possible back to California. The plan was initiated, and the three captives were asked to get into a van having no side windows, assuring them that they would be dropped off at a safe location, and that they would easily be able to find out where they were and could make their way back to their hotel. The plan was agreed upon by all and it was carried out with the art and skill of professionals; as if this act had been performed many times before. They found themselves in a downtown section of Miami, all tidy and neat so as not to arouse suspicion and led out of the van. With a simple inquiry they were told how to get to their hotel, but having no money they had to convince a taxi driver to deliver them to the hotel and wait - having Toni and Tessie remain inside the cab until Bob was able to draw out some money from the hotel management in order to pay the fare. This act was done, the cabbie was paid, Toni, Tessie and Bob were safe and sound in the hotel. They called the Agent, assured him that they were safe and back where they began, and all was well, but was it?  
After getting themselves cleaned up and their minds somewhat restored, they allowed themselves to work their way down to the restaurant/bar and each ordered a well-deserved drink. After their first swig they could feel an immediate sense of relaxation.

They motioned to the waiter to bring menus and after they ordered a light dinner they recounted the events of the past couple of days. It was hard to believe how their lives were transposed from their normal existence to such trauma as they had never experienced. Bob confessed that his neck was hurting and it would probably be in the best interest to lie down and rest hoping that would relax his muscles. He had never had his head placed into such a position and he didn't enjoy the after effects, but it was better than the alternatives; they did threaten to kill him if he didn't cooperate and who knows whether or not they were pretending for he wasn't going to test their evilness. Bob slept the entire night and was better the next morning, and felt that he could get himself back to Texas in preparation for his meetings.

Toni and Tessie tossed around a bit - no doubt wanting to keep one eye open; more out of subconscious fear rather than reality. They decided to get out of Miami and head back to California for they still had time left from their leave, and wanted to visit Toni's mother's house. They bid Bob goodbye and went their separate ways to meet up at Toni and Bob's house later when he finished his business appointments in New York City..

Chapter Seven

Toni and Tessie had finally arrived at Toni's home, showered and prepared for bed, and after slipping into their pajamas they stretched out on Toni's bed talking about their frightening experiences. Realizing they shouldn't have put their wishes into Toni's old desk drawer they began discussions about the unknown and what makes it so fascinating and mysterious; it has its own secret societies throughout the world and perhaps beyond.

"Toni, there are times when we should leave things as they are. Life is too confusing to try to figure out what's on the other side, and I think we've learned our lesson to not interfere with it and to let things happen as they should." Tessie said as she twisted around and fixed her head on the silky pillow.

Toni nodded, placed her head down on the pillow facing Tessie, "you've got that right Tess. I don't think I'll ever do such a silly thing again. We just exist as we are from now on, right?"

"But why," Tessie persisted, "Why should any of us exist?"  
Can we cease to be how God made us or on the other side of the coin can we change the way God made us?" Tessie replied.  
"We exist only to bring forth another like ourselves, and bring forth another like us is all we do, for we are the procreators and if not for us there would be no existence as we know it today, at least not on this planet. That's amazing in itself and it's something we do, and it shouldn't be for us to understand why when a baby is growing inside our bellies. We don't need to understand I suppose, for God gave us the responsibility to just get the deed done." Toni said and then turned on her back and stared at the ceiling of her room. "Sometimes it's too dangerous to try to figure things out, or better than that to try to change our destinies the way they were ordained. We must never forget this lesson Tess for we are merely the carriers, just a small piece of the much bigger puzzle and we should not get lost along the way for we are destined in what we do and once we have chosen that path we must never sway from within the guidelines.  
Tessie's thin young hands were loosely clapped in front of her. "There is a me and there is a you. That's all we need to know Toni, Tess said in almost a whisper. "Sometimes wanting to change our future isn't what it's all cracked up to be for once the die is cast so must the mold be. We have tasted the bitter pill that goes along with those who sway from the path. If we were meant to go to the other side we would have been given the way and would not have had to discover the error of our ways as we have done."

"Tess, do you ever want to give life? I mean would you ever want to have a baby one day? I'm not sure I do." Toni said and grinned while thinking about her belly swelling, and then having to be responsible for bringing another human being into an uncertain world filled with who knows what and the what is uncertain.

"I suppose I do one day but only after meeting the right man and only if and when we establish ourselves in a bond of marriage, but there's one thing I do know that I'm not doing any such thing until I am absolutely certain he is the right man for me if that fact can ever be established. I believe it can be."  
Toni pulled the covers up to her chin and began thinking about Bob and whether he would want any children and if he did, then would she still not consider having any. She knew she'd have to think deeper about that complex subject, but meanwhile she was going to enjoy her life with him. Thinking of him she wished he didn't have to travel so much, but knew he enjoyed it, therefore she wouldn't do anything to affect his job and having it keep him away. Toni was busy as a CEO at Parks Oil Refining and Production Corp too so with the two of them being busy with their jobs she didn't see how they would end up marrying and having children in the near future, but the jobs should never interfere with their being together and enjoying their lives when time permitted, for building a strong relationship, one with meaning, takes time, energy, and a strong commitment on the part of both parties; a devotion proving the true value of their being together. Early the next morning when Tessie opened her eyes, she felt poetic and full of energy. As she gazed at the morning sun coming in through the window she mumbled a poem and before she knew it she was racing with imagination that she had never known she had in the past. When the trees are crowned with fresh new leaves and the springtime arrives with its color of ray that is when love will march into your heart setting it aglow. When you look to the past, you will see it was no sin to wish upon a moment in time to have your adventures and your wish fulfilled. Go carefully now. Toni rubbed her eyes and sat up and said, "What were you saying?"

Tessie came out of her daze and looked over at Toni as if she had seen a ghost and said, "Oh my God Toni, I just created a poem, and you know that I have no talent in that area. Oh my!"  
"I just heard the poem and you're right, it was very good and that's not like you? What does this mean - is something strange happening again? Does this thing ever leave us alone? Yet...yet somehow it seems to have taken a turn to the positive."

"Scary though Toni. It was as if I was in a daze. I mean...I...I woke up with this feeling of bliss and while I was looking out the window the sun seemed to have taken a hold of me and before I knew it I opened my mouth and out popped that amazing poem."  
Toni scooted over closer to Tessie and wrapped her arm around her shoulder and whispered, "Do we dare leave this room?"

Tessie shrugged and moaned as she twisted her hands together. "Toni, I'm getting really concerned about these happenings. I mean the last one was horribly bad and we were in great danger and not knowing what the future held in store for us at that time. I know...I know...we got out of it, and like you said, I guess it was supposed to be that way, but nevertheless, I'm..." She frowned and said, "What? Why are you looking at me so strangely?" Toni looked with a sharp, swift gaze at Tessie looking pale and pointed to the mirror."Go look at yourself in the mirror Tess! Do it now!" She then leaped off the bed while she followed Tessie.

Tessie flung herself straight and made her body an arch of pain. She opened her mouth wide and put out a great groan that rose into a final scream. "Oh Toni, look at my face! It has aged twenty years! All those wrinkles are scaring me. Toni! Do something! Call someone! What am I to do?" She casted her hands over her rough red wrinkled face and cried, "I am aging as we stand here wondering what to do. Do something Toni, please do something before I turn a hundred years old and drop to the floor dead." She turned and threw herself on the bed and cried.  
Toni flinched and placed her front teeth on her hand until she squealed out in pain. She shuddered and snapped to attention when she saw Tessie fling herself on the bed. She knew she had to do something - anything, but something. She went to the old desk, dug in the drawer until she grasped the notes she and Tessie had written, and then hurled them out to the floor and stamped on them and all the while screaming to the Wizard, "leave us alone! I command you to leave us alone!" All at once the room lighted up so bright that it hurt Toni's eyes and made Tessie sit up in shock and when she did, Toni saw that she had returned back to normal. "Tess, you're back to normal. Go look! You'll see!"  
Tessie jumped up off the bed and ran to the mirror and what she saw made her cry out, "Oh Toni...Oh Toni...thank you! I'm back to me! Oh Toni, I'm back to me! I was really afraid Toni."  
Tessie was released from the ugly wrinkled up old lady and once again was looking her beautiful self. Her round brown eyes were sparkling happily and her hair was no longer a grayish white, but her warm brown hair with red highlights in it. Her face was creamy and smooth as a baby's bottom, and her body wasn't humped over but straight with her attractive slender body looking sexy and luscious as it had before the incident. Toni was never so proud of her best friend's good looks. She sat down on the bed and drew in a deep breath and moaned, then released it and wrapped her arms around Tessie as she sat down beside her; trembling. They sat for over an hour holding onto one another before they dared to let go, but when they did they were thankful the incident hadn't lasted for more than what appeared to be a few minutes, although for Tess it seemed like a lifetime. Both in a daze from it all they decided to go see someone with more knowledge than they did about Wizards and what engulfed them with their magic. Was it real? Was it magic? Or was it simply a figment of one's imagination? Neither Toni nor Tessie knew, but they both believed they had to find someone who did know and in a hurry too before something permanent happened to them, plus, they were certain they didn't want another incident that befell them in Miami; that was for certain. But seeking out such persons with special knowledge would not be easy for the underworld of magic and mystery and intrigue held its own deep secrets and should one delve too deeply into the unknown might bring about another event such as that which Toni and Tessie sought to overcome. What does one do? Perhaps the answer lies in New Orleans, yes, there are people there, honest and respected people who have spent a lifetime searching the Necronomicron, but beware its pages, potions, warnings, for they are not of this world as we know it. Its opening passage says 'enter if you dare and be prepared to accept the known and unknown'. Is this really what Toni and Tessie want especially knowing what trouble they were in from their earlier years and their earlier wishes?  
By late afternoon Toni suggested she and Tess go to a candle store that two of her colleagues had mentioned a few months back when all the incidents were happening. "It might save us a trip to New Orleans Tess. What do you think? I mean...some candles might do the deed we desire, plus Marylee said something about a friend of hers who went there and met with a practitioner who really helped her when things were happening in her life that were disturbing her. If you're game, I am."

"Sure, let's go. I think anything at this point is better than nothing."

Soon after Toni and Tessie walked into Candy's Candle Store, and felt a little creepy when the bell on the door rang out and then shortly after a bong went off. "What's that about?" whispered Tessie; then grabbed hold of Toni's hand and grimaced."  
As the two walked over to a row of scented candles a short pudgy man who wore his hair long, and looked as if it needed a good washing approached them and asked if he could help them. Toni smiled without replying, allowing him compete freedom to give them the salesman speech. "Hi, I'm Willy the owner's son. Can I help you?" He said as he twisted his mouth to the side then moved over and picked up a large candle that had three wickers in it with an angel picture carved on its pedestal. He held it up and said, "This yellowish brown one has a lot of power when lit. It sends out protection to the one who lights it and can keep an invisible circle around that person's body for several days. If one needs more than several days of protection, I suggest you buy five of them. Right now we have a special price if you decide to buy five - You can have all five for a great price of just fifty dollars."

Toni reached over and picked up a small gold box that looked as if was made of real gold with holes punched out around the center of it. She opened it up and peeked inside and saw about ten or more funny looking cones that right away she knew were incense. She lifted the box toward her nose and took in a big sniff and began to cough immediately. The salesman moaned and said, "Careful lady. Those are powerful candles. You shouldn't just open up any box in this store. Here, allow me to show you something my customers like," Willy said as he reached over on a top shelf and grasped an odd looking candle with a sharp point on it and different colors flowing down to the bottom of it; almost like a temple. "Basically, this candle is an enactment of the results one desires. Often the major reason my customers purchase this type of candle is to remove a bad person from their life; depending on how wicked the person is, but it can perform with differing degrees of severity, from very mild to very extreme."

He handed the candle to Tessie and she shrunk back, but Toni stepped forward to accepted it, and said, "Does it work on ridding oneself of a wish made and don't want anymore?"  
"Why sure it does. It can do whatever you wish it to do."  
"How does it work? Do we light it and then ask for the wish to go away? Or do we just light it with that thought in mind? Toni asked as she turned the candle from side to side looking at it.

"You kneel in front of it, make your wish, and then light it while you have the palms of your hands together as if in prayer, and you stay this way for one hour. Actually it is a Catholic Christian hoodoo and it calls for the total and unconditional removal of the unwanted person or a wish. It was also adapted for use in other religions, or completely non-religious contexts, and with a lessening degree of severity, if circumstances warrant mercy. Variations such as these arise because different folks have different reasons to work such a spell and because the conditions they are working under may differ. Some, as a rite, the Fiery Wall of Protection spell uses a full panoply of spiritual supplies, but in a pinch, you can get by with only the candles and Dressing Oils, and you can also substitute other ingredients as you see fit."  
"What are Dressing Oils?" Tessie steeped forward and asked.  
"Well, let me think for a moment as to how to explain it to you so you understand. Oh I got it, are you familiar with the healing oils that a minister uses when he prays over someone for healing?"

"Yes I am. Is that the type of oil, and if so where do I purchase it?"

"I have it right here, in fact, I'll give it to you as a gift if you buy the candle" Willy said with a friendly smile on his face.  
Toni grinned and said, "Great, but how much is the candle?"  
Willy wrinkled up his nose as he scratched the top of his head and said, "This particular candle is seventy dollars."  
Tessie having less faith than Toni said, "If it doesn't work are you willing to buy it back?" She took the candle out of Toni's hand and looked at it with suspicion, and then looked up into Willy's eyes.

"Why no, when you buy it, it's yours. I mean I don't know if you have the power to accomplish such a spell or to rid yourself of a spell. It takes great faith for this candle to work."  
Toni grabbed the candle back from Tessie and said, "I don't think my friend believes, but I certainly do or at least I do enough to get a stupid wish I made eliminated from my life once and for all." She turned and moved over to the counter, "We'll buy it. Wrap it up with the oil and we will be on our way."

Tessie followed behind Toni hollering with an upset tone and said, "I did wish to be right there beside you and guess what Toni? My wish came true, didn't it? So I guess I have as much faith about such things as you." She stopped when they reached the counter and looked at Willy and said, "Okay, we'll buy it."

Chapter Eight

Meanwhile back in Miami~

The 'narc' who had been assigned by the FBI agent who was willing to help Bob, Toni and Tessie with their quest to resolve an issue with some secret wish made long ago, returned to the origin of their visit, Miami, Florida, where Mapita Castro would be found in her familiar environment and sought her out to talk with her. When he caught up with her and her friends he quizzed her about the visit from Bob, Tessie and Toni. He told Mapita that he had promised the three he would follow up on their visit, knowing that they had come and gone, and was anxious to know whether or not their venture was successful. These words immediately put Mapita on guard because she didn't expect this visit and wasn't sure how to respond to the question. If the visitors had done as they promised and left the area and headed back to California then Mapita could tell a lie and say everything turned out well for all concerned. If the visitors had told the truth and revealed the harsh treatment afforded them and the torture of Bob, she would be caught in a lie and not know how to escape. Trying to be clever, she said out of curiosity, "What did those people have to say about me? Were they happy with my services? Did they tell you we had a wonderful meeting and I sent them away with positive thoughts and suggestions on how to resolve their problems?" Mapita questioned.

The 'narc' became suspicious at that point in their conversation and informed Mapita that he was advised to hear her story first before he told her his version. Mappta felt trapped and didn't know how to worm out of this deception. She thought quickly and responded "I'm sorry I'm not able to discuss the nature of our business because I promised to keep secret all that went on during our session.

"Mapita, are you trying to hide something from me? You do not impress me with your sincerity in your answers. I have a feeling you're not telling me everything that happened."  
Mapita was not sure how to answer, again, so she told the 'narc' that the meeting was concluded so the visitors were sent on their way. In addition, she knew they had reported in to their contact, so she was convinced the 'narc' was reaching for straws and didn't know anything other than what was just told to him, so she decided to avoid any further questioning and dismiss herself telling the 'narc' she had to go because she had a very important client coming and she needed to prepare herself mentally for the meeting. The 'narc' knew she was lying and he told her he would be back again, and at that point dismissed himself and was gone as mysteriously as he had arrived.

"Phillippe! Phillippe! You must come to me now!" Mapita screeched. "It is most important that you carry out my wishes and go on an errand. The 'narc' just came to me and wanted to know everything that happened when Bob, Tessie and Toni came to visit. I didn't tell him much of anything not knowing what was told to him by the visitors, so I tried to avoid any direct answers. I need you to find out anything you can from whatever source you have about what was revealed to the 'narc', and don't come back until you have some answers for me. I need to know what those guys told about what went on so that when he comes back I will be able to tell the story he needs to hear."

Phillippe was unable to find out anything about what they revealed to anyone because none of his contacts were in a position to have overheard anything negative nor positive, so he told her she was on her own as to how to respond on the 'narc's next visit whenever that might be.

Mapita summoned all of her workers together for immediate instructions. She told them that she was going to create a Ju Ju and she needed some of the items they had removed from the visitors. When they were gathered she put them into a small bag and placed it in front of her. Surrounding the bag she placed precisely around it special herbs, stones, small bones and pieces of cloth that had been soaked in Bob's perspiration during the time he was held captive. As Mapita was making preparations, she didn't feel comfortable with her potions, so she demanded Phillippe to go to a grave site and gather some dust from the soil. She was also going to need some salt and red pepper. Phillippe did as he was told for he knew the wrath that would befall him should he refuse to obey an orders given him. She was a master of sorcery and knew all the tricks of the trade. She also held some dark secrets that could wreak havoc on anyone who happened to get in her way or cross her path in the wrong direction. After studying the new additives brought to her by Phillippe, she felt more comfortable in what she was planning to do. She dismissed everyone so that what she was planning to do could never be copied. Along with the gris gris bag Mapita formed a stick figure or talisman and placed it alongside the other concoctions prepared before her. At this early stage of her procedure she placed herself into a semi-trance and sat motionless for quite a period of time. She stirred and made herself move slightly in order to gather some bird nest materials and horse hair braids. She ignited them along with some incense and dried moss and created a mist of aromas that magnified her power of concentration. Whatever else was placed into the burning embers was not known to anyone. Mapita was not certain either as when she gathered them up she was not fully conscious. Much of what she did was by instinct. As she moved her hands and wafted in the fragrances she was overwhelmed by the mixtures and found herself afloat in her thoughts. She began to chant and move her upper body and arms in strange motions, none repeating themselves. The song was in tongue and it was one designed to bring about Wangas-evil on whomsoever was framed in her mind. The person who dominated her thoughts was Bob. He was not cooperative when held in captivity and he was resistant to follow her orders, so he was a top priority for her Wangas.

"Seres malos ven a mi! Mas seres malos vena mi!" she chanted. Evil beings come to me. Many evil beings come to me" she repeated in English. She uttered other incantations neither audible nor understandable, but in Mapita's mind very effective.

The air surrounding the location encompassing Mapita began to stir in such a manner as to strike fear in anyone who happened to bear witness to what was happening. This was powerful stuff and when put to full effect was devastating.

"I wish a banging! I wish a clanging! I wish for Bob to be - under the power of only me. I wish for him to now be down – I wish for him to be on the ground. I wish for Bob to be quite still-I know with my wish he truly will," she commanded.

No time was set for what would surely befall Bob. The only thing that was certain was that some event would take place that would change his life and satisfy the hurt he had bestowed upon Mapita. That was the nature of her evil; of her power to control and spread her discontent with all who would cross her.

Mapita placed herself into a deep trance but was still able to move her arms and upper body. She kept herself captive to her own powers until she was satisfied what she had wished would be her final act, and such came to pass, for she awakened herself to a conscious state, looked around and observed the misty air surrounding her. She yelled out "Phillippe! Phillippe! You must come." And no sooner did she call, than he did arrive ready to serve. "You are now ordered to dispose of all that is here so that no trace remains of what I have created. My work is done for now. When you have completed your task you may leave" And with those final orders Mapita arose, stood silently for a brief moment, and dismissed herself to her chambers; satisfied with her work.

Chapter Nine

Just as Tessie was preparing her weekend at Toni and Bob's to burn the candle in hopes of ridding them of their wishes, her doorbell rang. She rushed to the door, jerked it open and looked up she saw a tall slender man looked at her with a grin on his face, "Hello. I'm here to deliver these to you." He said as he handed her the most beautiful vase of rose buds she had ever seen.

"Orange Rose Buds? They are beautiful! Who sent them?" She asked as she stood mesmerized by his handsome eyes.

"I am." He said as he handed her the vase and when she took it he smiled. "I happened to see you at the flower shop around the corner eyeing this precious, unique color of orange buds. I couldn't resist buying them for you and bringing them up since I saw you change your mind about buying them. It puzzled me because I knew you had the urge to purchase at least one, so I did it for you; six buds, meaning six days of good luck." He smiled.  
She flipped around and hurried to the kitchen, placed them down in the center of the table and said, "Thank you. I'm Tessie. What is your name?" She moved closer to him and looked into his eyes.

His handsome face full of proud emotion looked back deeply into her eyes and said, "I won't stay...I...I...well, I just wanted you to enjoy them." He said as he neared the door, opened it and stepped outside. "Here's my business card, in case you would like to get together for a drink, coffee, wine, dinner?"  
She stood and pondered over what just happened. She chuckled and mumbled to herself, _I did look at the candle last night and wished upon a handsome man coming to my door. I was just playing around though. Oh well, I guess this candle does work. I'll have to tell Toni and Bob when I get to their house tonight._ She picked up her handbag, grabbed the box with the candle and oil, and headed to her car. On the drive over to her friend's home, she reflected on the handsome gentleman who appeared at her door with the rose buds. She felt suddenly assured the candle was real, either that or it was just a coincidence. Had she not felt the warmth illuminating from him, she wouldn't have felt so impressed, but the sparks were certainly flying and what impressed her most was that he didn't linger. No. In fact, he did his deed and swiftly left; leaving behind his presence. She looked down at herself and saw blood on her brown pants and for a brief moment panicked. She pulled her car over to the curb and turned off her key and looked down to see what was going on. She noticed immediately that she had a cut on her thumb and realized most likely pricked it with one of the rose bud stems. She blew out a held in breath and turned her key. Things were getting so frazzled with all the happenings going on that she felt foolish to have panicked as she did, but also realized it was due to the entire goings on. No one would blame her of course, yet it left her feeling idiotic but relieved.

When Tessie arrived at Toni and Bob's door, she heard loud yelling and hoped she hadn't arrived at an inappropriate time. She only rang the bell once and then waited, and it seemed like a long time before Bob opened the door. His face was red and unshaved. Wrinkled clothing hung from his body like he had slept in them. Her first impression was that another happening take place and she had arrived in the middle of it, but soon after being invited in she realized she was mistaken. It was obvious they had been debating about something and it seemed to have gone on for more than a day. She held up the box, embarrassingly  
asked if they still wanted to light the candle to remove their wish. Immediately she knew that had been the sore spot between them, quickly laid the box on the table, and had only one question; that was whether she should excuse herself and leave. But she never asked. She simply sat down folded one hand over the other and waited. The distance between Toni and Bob caused Tessie a great deal of pain. Not being able to stand it any longer she looked at the two and said, "What the hell is going on?"

Toni leaped up from her chair and rushed into the kitchen while Bob shook his head and said, "I don't think you two should light that candle. What the hell were you two thinking by going to some outrageous two bit store and paying an outrageous amount of money for one small candle, and then on top of that believing this was going to release you from your curse? Haven't you learned your lesson from the last wish?"

He jumped up and rushed to the kitchen while Tessie quietly picked up the box and tip-toed to the door. With her hand on the door knob, she twisted and just as she did Toni and Bob appeared back in the room and asked her to please stay. Her round mouth dropped ajar and she was just about to reply when Bob moved over and took the box and said, "Toni convinced me that we have no choice but to light the candle and try removing the wish so let's get started." He turned back around and said, "We're sorry Tess to have put you in such an uncomfortable position." Then he opened the box pulled out the candle and bottle of oil and set the candle on the coffee table and proceeded to rub the oil on his hands while Toni lit the candle. Bob rubbed oil on Tess' forehead and then moved to Toni and applied oil on her head as well, then he rubbed some on his own head and the three sat around the coffee table on the floor. The three stared into the candle after the flame began to dance with the flickering and that's when it went out. The lights in the house went out and then they heard a loud noise of what sounded like a hundred people hitting on a drum. The three sat in a frozen position and didn't let out a sound. After about ten minutes or more the lights to the house came on and that's when the doorbell rang. It startled them so much that they let it ring and didn't move. Perhaps it was in fear as to who was at the door, but no one moved. All of a sudden whoever was at the door started pounding on it until Bob couldn't stand it any longer and got up and opened it. There in front of him stood Willy, the pudgy man from the candle shop. He was in a panicky state because he had made a grave error. He yelled out to them to not light the candle and that if they did they must put it out

"What's this all about?" blurted Toni. "What's going on?"

"The candle, it's the candle. I packed the wrong one by mistake" he admitted. "The one you have can bring you very bad happenings if you had it burning for any length of time."

They assured him that they were just getting started and had just lit the candle when arose such sounds that they didn't understand what was going on or where the sounds were coming from. Willy assured the three that the candle performed as it was supposed to and the noise they heard were the sounds of those who had been to the light and had gone beyond. They weren't finished with their life on earth, and were taken in error, too soon. What you heard were their protests at being drawn into the light and not knowing how to bring themselves out of it.

What can we do?" asked Bob. "Can we help them restore themselves and return to wherever they were when they were drawn into the light?"

"We must sit with our legs crossed and our hands joined in unison, but we must hurry or it will be too late" urged Willy.

The four quickly got themselves into position as instructed, joined hands and waited. Immediately when the signal was given Willy began trembling violently. The others had all they could do to hang on to him, but they did. Willy's body all but jumped off the ground, and more abruptly did it begin than it ended, and his body settled down. His hands were wet with perspiration and his brow was soaked. He began to shake his head from side to side as if saying no to someone or something. Suddenly the candle was lighted for a brief instant and just as briefly was extinguished. It was at that point in time that Willy opened his eyes and drew a deep breath and broad smile.

"That's it! That's it! We did it! We were in time and because of that we saved all those people from certain extinction. Did you hear the noise?"

The three shook their heads indicating that they heard nothing other than Willy bouncing off the floor and shaking violently. Willy told them that he heard the noise and knew it was the people returning from the light, out of the tunnel, and back to their places. He stood up but with a little uncertainty, wiped his brow, smiled at everyone, gathered up the candle and placed it in a large bag he had brought with him. He left the room and just as quickly returned with a box.

"Please accept my apology. This is the candle you ordered" assured Willy. "If you have any need of my services, you know where to find me," and with those words he waved good bye and was gone.

When Bob, Toni, and Tessie moved to the door to say something to Willy, he was gone. They looked at one another in total surprise and amazement and moved over to the couch whereupon they placed themselves comfortably, laid their heads back and fell into a peaceful rest unable to talk about the event.

Too tired to function after all the excitement of the evening Bob, Toni and Tessie thought it would be best to delay involving themselves in the serious business of putting together a program to rid themselves of any curse or whatever befell them when their wish was made a long time ago so they all opted for a good night sleep. As they prepared for the event Bob's phone rang and he felt obligated to answer since it was from his director of affairs. During the course of their conversation Bob could be heard debating something and requested a delay, but the party on the other end of the call stressed the urgency of the matter and directed Bob to prepare to depart from his facility immediately. Bob informed Toni and Tessie of the phone call and what needed to be done, and that he had to pack a few things and head for the airport to conduct some very important business that couldn't wait. Toni pleaded with him to get a fresh start early in the morning but Bob told her that he had pleaded his case stressing his need to rest before flying out on an assignment but was denied.

Bob grabbed his bag and headed for the door. He delayed long enough to wish Toni and Tessie a trouble-free night and that he would catch up with them soon. Toni and Bob stepped outside the door where the two embraced and expressed their growing fondness for one another, and at that point Bob departed. After finding his car and placing his bag in the trunk he started out of the lot and headed to the airport. He hoped to catch a few winks on the plane so that he would be somewhat rested when he got to his assignment. En route Bob was distracted by a car approaching in the opposite direction because its headlights were on high beam and they were blinding. In his effort to signal the approaching auto of the problem he lost sight of the road due to a curve and felt the right front tire slip off the shoulder. Bob immediately corrected but the depression was deeper than he thought which caused him to overcorrect. His car veered sharply to his left and went into a fishtail to his right and then just as quickly to his left. At that instant he was upon the auto that was approaching him, the one with the high beams blinding him, and he plowed into that auto's left front fender. At that point Bob's auto slid counterclockwise knocking his passenger side door into the other auto's driver side door. The impact knocked Bob across the inside of his car crushing him against his right side door. From that instant his auto careened off the other auto's left side and flipped over two times landing on its left side. This condition cast Bob back toward the driver's door whereupon he banged his head against the window shattering the glass into a million pieces. Bob's auto came to a complete rest but there was no movement inside. A driver who was behind Bob witnessed the accident, pulled over to assist and immediately summoned an emergency vehicle to come to Bob's aid. When the Paramedics arrived Bob was unconscious. He was immediately transported to the local hospital and was given a thorough examination. The initial examination revealed a broken neck along with minor contusions and abrasions. Bob was subsequently placed in an operating room where emergency room doctors tried their best to correct the damaged third cervical vertebrae which was completely dislocated from the spinal column. At that point Bob was declared paralyzed. Only time would tell if his condition would be declared permanent.

Toni and Tessie arose the next morning and carried on with the business of the day, that being making plans to conduct a test run with the candle-lighting ceremony. They decided to wait for Bob's call so that they could work together to make sure everything would be done correctly. When no call was received that day or the next, the two called his office to inquire when Bob's chore would be completed, and he would be free to return to them. They were surprised to discover that Bob never arrived on the plane. They immediately made calls to hospitals only to discover that Bob had been admitted at Memorial and was currently in the intensive care unit and was unable to have visitors. Toni and Tessie drove to the hospital anyway to be with Bob. When they arrived they learned of the severity of his condition and Toni broke down into a hysterical cry. Tessie tried to console her friend but she was also too distressed to be of much help. They were given sedatives and were directed to a waiting room where they were told they could wait, but there was no time given as to how long that wait would be. Toni and Tessie were forlorn in their grief and could only hold one another and grieve at what looked to be a serious injury.

By late that night Toni was allowed to peek in to see Bob for only ten minutes and when she entered she saw that he looked worse than she had anticipated. She walked over and stood beside his bed while placing her hand across his forehead and whispered, "Darling you are going to be okay. They won't let me stay long so I will tell you now that I will be back tomorrow to see you, in fact, first thing in the morning when I wake up. Meanwhile rest and get well Darling." She turned and walked over to the door, turned and looked back to see if he had opened his eyes, seeing he hadn't she opened the door and quietly stepped out in the hallway. She gently closed the door and leaned against it and sobbed. She knew he was in serious condition, but she also knew, no matter what the outcome was that she'd love him and never leave him. Bob was a man whom she dearly loved and planned on spending the rest of her life with. She moved down the hallway and into the waiting room and gestured for Tessie to follow her. Tessie rushed over to Toni and said, "Is he okay? I mean is he awake or still unconscious?"

"He's still asleep, but I know he will wake up in a day or two. The doctor told us if you remember that sometimes the brain swells and it takes a few days for it to go down and when it does he might wake up, but he also said he might never walk again."

Tess put her arm around Toni as she moaned and then snapped to attention knowing she had to be strong for Toni, so she suggested they go to the park and feed the ducks. Toni shook her head and agreed it might be good to just sit by the pond.

As Tess pulled the car near the pond they got out and walked toward the water. The wind came in mild and soft as they sat down holding on to one another's hand. A small white and gray kitten came out from the crevices between the wooden wall and the cement floor, and lay basking in a bar of sunlight. They sat so still it thought they were part of the landscaping and leaped to catch a butterfly, then turning its head with its fluffy tail pointing high walked off. Neither Toni nor Tessie moved; only watched for a time musing on the motionless kitten that stopped and lay under a tree cleaning its face. Toni giggled at the way it would lick its paw to dampen it and then wash its face ever so tenderly with such patience that Toni wished she had done with Bob. Her mind drifted back to Bob and began to feel afraid because she knew in her heart Bob might never walk again. She questioned herself about how she'd feel or for that matter, how Bob would feel? After watching the kitten a little while longer she lost interest in him and her reflections of Bob, so she stood up and walked over to the car leaning up against the door while waiting for Tessie to catch up with her and when she did, she reached out and wrapped her arms around Tess and let all of her pent up emotions spill out and then sobbed. Tessie patted her back and whispered, "Go ahead and cry, Toni, you need to release the pain you've tucked deep inside of you. I'm not going to tell you that everything is going to be alright because we've been friends far too long for me to tell you something I don't know at this point, but I will tell you one thing I do know, and that is I'll be here for you; now and always."

Toni's heart felt as if a knife had been torn across it yet she was thankful that Tess was here for her. "Thank you Tess...Thank you Tess. I know that you will be here for me, and I want you to know I appreciate it. I don't know what I'd do without you during this horrible time in my life." She moved back away from Tessie and opened the car door and together they walked up to Toni's door. When they settled themselves in comfy clothes, they were just about to turn on the television set to vegetate for the rest of the night, when the phone rang. :"Hello."

"Hello, may I please speak with Toni?"

"This is she, "responded Toni.

"This is Dr. Mitchell from the intensive care unit at Memorial Hospital. I need to speak with you about Bob Steinman."

"Did something happen to him? Is he alright? Is he out of the coma? May I come in and see him," questioned Toni.

"Ms. Toni, Bob Steinman has opened his eyes and seems to be coming out of his coma. Yes, I can allow you a short visit. In fact, your being next to Bob might trigger a favorable response," uttered Dr. Mitchell. "I will be close by, so when you arrive at the hospital please have a nurse page me and I will come to you."

Toni yelled over at Tessie and told her the good news and that Dr. Mitchell suggested they come in and be with him for a short time. Toni and Tessie immediately headed to the hospital in rapid time, sped down the hallway in the intensive care unit and sought out a nurse. They informed her that Dr. Mitchell had called to give a report on her fiancé and he wanted to be paged. The nurse made a call to the doctor. A short time later the doctor arrived at the waiting station, greeted the two and asked them to follow him to the room where Bob was being treated. Upon entering Bob's room they saw he was stretched out in the bed with tubes and devices surrounding him, Toni's heart dropped to the bottom of her chest. She moved over to him with Tessie close behind and stood alongside the bed. Toni reached out and touched Bob's hand. There was no response, but she could tell he knew she was there. She got the courage to focus on his eyes. They were closed until she touched his hand and at that point he opened them and you could see he was trying to focus on Toni and Tessie.

"I am here, my Darling. I am with you. Tessie is here with me; we were so concerned. I hope you can hear me," Spoke Toni.

Dr. Mitchell moved close and explained some of the devices supporting Bob because he immediately saw in her eyes the trauma of seeing her fiancé all secured and unable to move. Toni seemed more at ease after hearing what was going on, and immediately had full confidence in the people attending to Bob.

"These monitors keep an accurate 24 hour record of Bob's condition and will trigger an alarm should anything change from the normal" informed Dr. Mitchell. "We can't make any promises about his paralysis at this early stage. There is swelling around his spinal cord and only nature can take care of eliminating that condition. We will take care of his every need until his condition improves. At that time we will make further tests and evaluate his status at each stage of recovery."

Toni and Tessie were satisfied with the wonderful care they were giving to Bob and felt reassured that he would be fine. Toni moved over to Bob again and whispered in his ear. "Bob, my love, please rest and be assured I will be by your side each day to help you work your way out of this. Soon we will be close together again, I promise" said Toni.

Dr. Mitchell motioned to the two ladies to follow him out to the corridor.

"Thanks for coming to see Bob, but you must leave now so that he has his proper rest. This medical team will watch over him throughout the night. We have a rotating staff to oversee all the patients in the intensive care unit. There is also a special room filled with computers monitoring every movement the patients might make. We leave nothing to chance, especially in this section of the hospital. Intensive care is critical and it is our job to guarantee the best treatment possible for everyone."

Satisfied, Toni and Tessie worked their way out of the hospital and to the car. They enjoyed the cool air and stood for awhile reflecting on their past and on the ills that had befallen them. They were anxious to find a way to put all this behind them so that they could get back to a normal life.

They drove home cautiously and paid attention to their whereabouts. Feeling more reassured than when they arrived at the hospital, they entered the house making themselves comfortable and then poured a drink of wine, and settled in for the night. Being too excited to sleep they decided to find a good light movie featuring laughter and comedy. Finding a good show they relaxed with no violence or tension coming from the television.

When the program was finished they decided to get some sleep, perhaps with confidence for the next day. With the right frame of mind and a positive attitude the coming day could then be faced squarely and with renewed confidence for the near future, not only for Bob, but for the two of them as well.

Chapter Ten

Early the next morning Toni was preparing coffee and just as she finished she reached up in the cabinet and grabbed two cups - the doorbell rang, and when she opened it there stood a man Toni had never seen before. She stepped back and asked him what she could do for him. "I'm Dennis Mays and here to see Tessie."

Puzzled at who the man was and why he would appear at her door to see Tessie, she paused and then politely excused herself without inviting him in and went to find Tessie. She was in the bathroom brushing her hair when Toni leaned against the opened door and said, "Do you know a Dennis Mays?"

Tessie flipped around and said, "Yes, he's that man I told you about who brought me flowers...you know...those rose buds."

"Well, he's here standing at the door waiting for you," Toni said and then followed Tessie back to the door.

Tessie looked at Dennis with a puzzled look and said, "How did you get this address?"

"There was a message attached on your door that you would be away for a couple weeks and this is the address you left so I thought I'd take it upon myself to pay you a visit here...you know to surprise you."

This action did not set well with Tessie and she told him so, and then she told him he was a bit too forward, and to please not contact her again. He frowned, turned to go, and then turned back around, "I'm sorry I followed through on an instinct to surprise you, but you must know I've traveled for hours to get here. Won't you at least have dinner with me tonight before I catch my midnight flight?"

Tessie took in a deep breath, and the anger broke and scattered. "No, I will not, and furthermore, please leave. I shall have nothing else to do with you."

Dennis shot her a forlorn look, leaned over and propped his forearms on the rail sitting in front of the door and said, "Don't you think you're being a bit nasty about this whole situation? I mean... I traveled a good distance to see you and you're treating me this way?"

Tessie shrugged her shoulders and closed the door feeling a bit concerned about this rude man she meet a week or so ago. It seemed to her that he had taken a turn for the worse since meeting him earlier. At the time she thought he was a gentleman and was kind enough to bring her flowers, but this was too much for him to come here unannounced. She bumped into Toni when she turned to go look for her, and when she did, Toni said, "What was that about?"

Tessie shrugged. "When I saw him a few days ago and he presented me with flowers, I felt he was a nice man who was simply attracted to me, now I'm not so sure," she moaned. "I mean, he's good looking, well dressed, and has those qualities one might admire because of the way he carries himself, but something seems missing now, and I can't figure it out. Do you think I should venture out with him to find out what his motive is in wanting to see me?"

"Boy, this is a tough one, Tess. He did come on strong, but then again - a man pursuing a woman sometimes has to take matters into his own hands and do what he has to do," Toni responded. "Why don't you hurry out and tell him you're sorry for being so suspicious about his? Otherwise you may never know what this thing is all about."

Tessie nodded and quickly ran to the door, headed to the main entrance, exited the building and spotted Dennis as he was about to get into his car."Dennis! Dennis! Wait!," she yelled out, "I'm sorry for being so abrupt... it's just that so many traumatic things have been happening to us lately that we've been on edge - not ourselves."

"Tessie, I too must apologize for my forwardness, but I couldn't think of any other way to greet you without appearing to be a stalker. I mean, not really a stalker, but a person who could see something wonderful in you and not knowing exactly how to get to meet you. I guess I was a real jerk in my approach; I am sorry. Is there a chance we can start over? I'll only be here for today and then I must be gone on business for a while. May I at least buy you an early dinner or late lunch right now and we can visit for a short while. I promise to be a better person and not be so forward," he urged.

Tessie thought for a brief moment trying to convince herself that this person might not be a bad guy, but just an overambitious one wanting to meet a lady. Thinking that there couldn't be too much involved if they merely sat in a restaurant, in an open area, and enjoyed a meal and conversation she decided to take a chance.

"Tell you what, Dennis, I guess we both got a little nervous back there, but you not knowing my situation and me not knowing yours caused a little friction and some angry words, so, yes, let's start over. I'll have late lunch early dinner with you."

Tessie told Dennis that she'd need a little time to get ready and Dennis responded likewise, so a mutual time and place were agreed upon and each departed. Tessie was confused on the one hand and intrigued on the other. Who was this guy and where did he come from?

After Tessie rushed back into the house, Toni was on the phone and seemed to be carrying on with some business at her work. When Toni hung up she turned to Tessie and said, "I have to go back to work tomorrow because it's urgent that I attend this special meeting and not only that but I have to catch up with a lot of other things."

Tessie shook her head agreeing and said, "If you don't mind, I'll stay another night and then leave tomorrow."

Toni smiled. "Sure another night is fine or more if need be, but enough of my business stuff, how did it go with your friend...ah...Dennis...is that his name?"

"It went well, in fact, I'm having dinner with him tonight hoping to find out what he's about. I'm glad you'll be around in case it doesn't turn out as I'm hoping. Oh no. I have to get back to Berkley. You know I only took off a couple weeks and that's just about up."

Later that evening Dennis picked up Tessie and they went to a nearby Chinese Restaurant. When they settled in and were sipping on hot tea, Tessie asked Dennis why it was urgent to travel all this way to see her when they hadn't known one another more than a day. He confessed that he really liked her and thought it might be a good gesture to be forward and surprise her. He explained he liked giving surprises to the one he was attracted to. He continued telling her that was why he presented her with flowers the first time, and then thought that the second surprise was to show her how important she was to him by traveling such a great distance just to have dinner with her. Tessie wasn't so sure he was being honest, but she thought she'd give him a chance to show who he really was. Time would show her and that's when she'd make her final judgment of him. After dinner was over and he walked beside her holding her hand, she looked up at him and said, "I do have to get back to Berkley tomorrow so perhaps when you get back from your few days of traveling, you might call me and we can do this again."

Dennis was pleased with her suggestion and smiled back at her as he opened the door for her.

.

Chapter Eleven

With Bob stable in the hospital Toni had an obligation to return to work, for in reality she was the CEO of a major oil refining company and that job carried with it a great deal of responsibility, so Toni returned and took care of business as usual. As she had been absent for some time there was much paper work that needed her attention. She set up a meeting of all her vice chairmen and other top corporate leaders in her company and told them what had been happening in her life. She then got back to the task at hand, that being getting the big wheels turning once again at her corporate office. Her updated presentation of world problems dealing with oil were addressed. Her co-workers made their reports and ideas were exchanged as to how best to try to stabilize the current market. The exchanges were vital and the timing was perfect, for although Toni was absent, she was not without her ideas as they kept running through her head in relation to the solvency of her company. As it worked out, the major aspects of the oil market were addressed and assignments were handed out so that by the day's end, all workers at the highest level of the operation were satisfied and set out to initiate whatever changes and directives were needed. Toni, although very nervous at her first meeting in a while, didn't show any weakness, but got right to the point and not only satisfied all of her staff, but felt quite proud of herself in what she had done that day. With a deep sigh of relief, she leaned back in her overstuffed executive chair, let her head fall back against the soft material, closed her eyes and put her body in a slumber-like position. Her thoughts at that point drifted to Memorial hospital and Bob. Although she visited him nightly, she had a feeling this day that something was about to happen. Although her instinct was strong she couldn't exactly put her finger on what she felt. She sat for awhile, then stirred and returned to work. There were papers to sigh, letters to write, and phone calls to make. One of the calls was addressed to Dr. Mitchell. Although he was not available at the time of the call, Toni asked to speak to someone else close to the case dealing with Bob. After a short while, the assistant doctor in charge picked up the phone. "Dr. Paul Murray here. To whom am I speaking, please."

"Dr. Murray this is Toni Riccio, the fiancée of Bob Steinman. I believe he is directly under your care in the intensive care unit and I have been communicating with Dr. Mitchell since he was brought into Memorial. I was just calling for an update on Bob's condition, and I realize discussing such matters over the phone is not in Bob's best interest, I just needed to know something," uttered Toni.

"You are correct, Toni. Bob is still heavily sedated and only opens his eyes briefly from time to time, but I can tell you about one strange utterance he made only this morning. He opened his eyes and yelled out the name Mapita. Does that mean anything to you?" Questioned Dr. Murray.

Toni dropped her jaw in hearing the name. Did he actually say Mapita?"

"That's what it sounded like, Toni. I know because the name was so strange having never heard it before, is she a friend?"

Toni was aghast at the news and was too shook up to continue her conversation with Dr. Murray so she thanked him for the update, apologized and excused herself before hanging up. Placing her hands over her face in disbelief she began to cry, and couldn't rationalize what was going on. The only reasoning was that Bob was having a nightmare about his captivity and still carried around some emotional problems with his torture. It was the only explanation of him blurting out Mapita's name. Another thought struck her mind and it was what if there was something else going on and that evildoer Mapita was once again trying to work her black magic on Bob, and perhaps on Tessie and Toni too?

Toni sat down because she felt a weakening in her knees and thought it best to be in a seated position should her body give out and she fall flat on her face. Do I call Tessie she thought and tell her what the doctor just said, or just dismiss it as a bad dream resurfacing again? I just don't know what to do, and it's not like me not to be in control. I must call, for Tessie might have an idea on what this means. It was 6:00 pm California time when the phone rang at Tessie's home. "Hello, is that you Tessie?" Toni questioned as soon as she heard Tessie's voice on the other end. "Is that you Tessie?" she uttered again.

"Toni, what's going on? Yes, it's me. Why are you so excited? Is Bob okay? Did something happen at Memorial that is bad news?" she inquired, nervously.

"You won't believe this Tessie; because I'm having difficulty believing it, but just now I called the hospital to inquire on Bob's condition. I spoke with Dr. Murray, who is second in charge, and when he told me what Bob cried out in his sleep almost knocked me for a loop. Tessie Bob yelled out Mapita!" she moaned in a frightened voice. "What could this possibly mean Tessie? Please tell me what you think."

It took Tessie a moment to recover from Toni's news, because she too was taken aback by the name Mapita, and felt a sharp pain in her chest at the mention of her name. "Was the doctor sure he heard the name Mapita?" asked Tessie

"That's exactly what I asked him Tessie, but he said he was sure of the name because there was no mistaking a strange name like Mapita, and he jotted it down quickly in case it was of some importance."

"It had to be a nightmare; a bad memory of the past" reassured Tessie.

"That's exactly what I said. You took the words right out of my mouth. His captivity must have affected him more than we thought; that's why I had to call and get your thoughts" cried Toni.

"I'm in too great of a shock to think clearly about this right now Toni. Let me think about this after having a glass of wine to calm down, and I will get back to you," promised Tessie.

"Thank you my friend. Please give it some serious consideration and let me know any thoughts, good or bad, that you have," concluded Toni

The conversation ended and at that time Toni felt the urge to get over to Memorial so that she could be with Bob. What if he should awaken and no one is there to assist him? This was not a good time for him to be without a friend.

Toni arrived at Memorial without incident and headed straight for Bob's room. The head nurse recognized her right away and had her register before going into Bob's room. Everything seemed as it had been; there were still tubes coming and going everywhere around his body and the brace was still firmly in place around his neck. It was most important to keep the neck stable while the body was on the mend, especially in the case of a spinal injury.

Toni snuggled close to Bob's bed then gently placed her hand on his while squeezing gently to see whether or not there was movement; there was none. She gazed into Bob's eyes to see if he was focusing, although this was difficult to detect because they appeared to be focused but she didn't really know? She moved her hand across his eyes as in a wave to see if there was any awareness, but Bob just stared straight ahead. Toni's hope was that he would speak out a word or two; all she wanted was to hear him say the name Mapita again, but he didn't. Dr. Mitchell walked in and greeted Toni, and she said, "Dr. Mitchell. I'm so happy you're here. I spoke with Dr. Murray about Bob's condition, and he declined to tell me much about the case so I decided to come to the hospital to see how he was doing for myself but when I saw Bob and all the stuff connected to him that told me he was the same," said Toni.

"Bob has been resting comfortably and that's a positive sign, Toni. If he had been in any trauma the monitors would have indicated such, and since there has been no such activity we assume that he is at rest, and we'll know more as time goes on." reassured Dr. Mitchell.

"I assume Dr. Murray told you about Bob's verbal outburst of the name Mapita," Toni recounted.

"No, I hadn't heard," responded Dr. Mitchell, "however, things like this are not rare and we don't know what causes these outbursts because we can't interpret the brain activity. It's a mystery to us as it must be to you."

"The only difference, doctor is the name Mapita has been very significant to Bob. It's a long story, but just to let you know, that name is not associated with anything nice to any of us. It represents evil and a bad experience, so in that case, could there possibly be any ill effects from that name surfacing? "

"To be frank with you Toni, it's impossible for anyone to know. We would have to be at the monitor at the exact time the event occurred in order to measure brain activity, and even then we couldn't know what the elevation meant, so all I can say is that we must wait until Bob regains his mental thoughts after he comes out of his coma," stressed Dr. Mitchell.

Toni decided to remain at Bob's bedside holding his hand and reading a story to him hoping that the constant bombardment of words might be interpreted by his brain waves so as to trigger a positive response, and might shed some light on the need to mention the name again. After several hours of reading, resting and reading some more, Toni just sat there holding Bob's hand hoping something might happen, but Bob just rested peacefully as if he knew he was well protected from evil people and events. At some point in time Toni released her hold on Bob and knew it was time to leave, for she had another full day to put in at the oil refinery.

Chapter Twelve

While Dennis was busy in Los Angeles attending to some very technical issues concerning the Government, he had the urge to check in with Tessie to see whether or not she had any free time coming up. When Tessie got Dennis' voice message she was surprised that he actually called as he said he would, and also disappointed that she wasn't around to answer the phone. After settling down from a stressful day of teaching she decided she should return the call, and when she did the phone rang but no one answered, so it seemed the two were playing phone tag. Tessie left a message informing Dennis that she would be in for the rest of the evening should he wish to call. Shortly after the phone rang again but this time Tessie answered. "Hello!"

"Tessie, is that you? This is Dennis; I tried to call but you were away."

"Hi Dennis. Thank you for returning my call. Did you complete your assignment? I understand it was urgent."

"Finished what needed to get done, and now I'm just resting in my room wondering how things were going in Berkley. Are you enjoying your teaching?"

"There are many aspects of the profession that are rewarding, but as with any job, problems arise and one has to be prepared to deal with them."

After discussing small matters Dennis finally got up the courage to invite Tessie for another dinner and perhaps this time in San Francisco. He told her he could get a flight at SFO and if she could meet him he wouldn't have to rent a car. Tessie agreed that it was too much trouble trying to get around the airport to find a car rental and that she would meet him at the designated place. The day arrived and Tessie worked her way from her home in Berkley to South San Francisco and to the airport. She arrived with time to spare allowing her to locate the gate where Dennis would emerge. The flight from LA was on time and Dennis was one of the first to exit. Tessie yelled out to him and began walking over to greet him, exchanged a brief hug, and made their way out to the parking log. Dennis had only a small carry on so he didn't have to wait for luggage. Once in the car, Dennis directed Tessie up highway 101 into San Francisco. They went directly to the restaurant, pulled up to the front door, exited and had the car parked by a Valet. Dennis escorted Tessie in and was directed to a reserved booth. After being seated the waiter presented them with a bottle of preferred red wine. The menu was presented and orders were taken. "Wow, Dennis, this is some place you chose. Do you take all your girl friends here to impress them?"

Dennis, with a smile on his face, "Well, I must confess I have no girl friends, and I have been here only once before. It impressed me then and it looks like it will be a success again this time. Tessie. Oh, may I call you Tess?"

"You may call me Tess, but only if I can call you Dennis," she said with a giggle.

"Now that's what I like, a teacher with a sense of humor" was the comeback "You will note the waiters standing over by the pillars dressed in unusual costumes. You will soon discover who they are and why they are standing around, for this is a most unusual restaurant."

No sooner did Dennis complete his sentence than did one of the costumed men begin to walk around. As he began to move music began to play. The waiter, upon hearing his cue began to sing in the most incredible voice, for he was no ordinary waiter, but a member of the San Francisco Opera community. He was receiving some training singing at the facility while at the same time earning some money in his profession. He blurted out the aria Nessum Dorma from Puccini's Turandot. The music was so beautiful it was difficult to concentrate on the food for wanting to listen, and as one person completed the aria, he moved to the tables to serve food and drinks while another singer moved in to take his place, each expounding on their own special opera and each with a resounding voice that brought shivers to one's body. Tessie was overwhelmed with joy, not only because of the opera singers but also of the class shown by Dennis in his treatment of her. She enjoyed the food, music, atmosphere, and conversation. During the course of their repast Tessie asked, "Dennis, I understand that you are a CPA? Do you have an office of your own?"

"I must confess, Tess that yes I am a CPA, but I don't work out of an office. I'm sorry that I can't tell you exactly what I do, but I can say that I work for the Federal Government. Any more than that might get me into trouble, and I know you wouldn't want to see that happen."

"If I knew I would keep it a secret, but if it would get you in trouble, then I certainly wouldn't press the issue. Do you work in Washington, DC? Or is that top secret?" queried Tessie. "I know...you must be a spy!" she laughed.

Dennis didn't respond but laughed and left it at that. During the course of their conversation, Dennis asked as if out of the blue whether she and Toni had known each other for a long time and whether they had ventured out for a vacation or get away. Tessie was not quick enough to catch the nature of the questioning and continued to tell him that she and Toni had been friends since childhood. She told him that they often went out on short trips when they could coordinate their schedules. Dennis asked if she had ever been to Florida. He told her that he went there on special jobs from time to time and liked certain sections of the state. Again Tessie was not onto his questioning and said that she and Toni did visit there not too long ago, but it was on a business trip to Miami. Dennis broke in telling Tessie how he enjoyed it when visiting certain sections, but didn't venture too far off course, for there were sections of the city that were not too nice. At that point and with that response Tessie got an uneasy feeling about the way the conversation was heading.

"What would bring you to Miami, Dennis? Do you like the hot climate, or is there some other reason you would venture from wherever you originate all the way to Miami?"

Dennis decided it was now time to change the nature of his questioning. "I like New York city as well. Have you ever been there? I know a great restaurant there and you must allow me to take you there one day. What do you say?"

"I haven't been there, but always enjoy seeing the wonderfully tall buildings. Yes, you might convince me to venture out that far from home when school is out."

Time ran out and it was at that juncture that Dennis invited Tess to stay overnight. He had booked her into a nice hotel in the same one where he was staying, and assuring her that she would have her own private room. With such generosity, and dreading the thought of driving from downtown San Francisco to Berkley Tessie accepted the offer, and so Dennis paid the bill and asked to waiter to summon Tessie's car to meet them outside. As they exited the facility, the car was there for them so Dennis handed the driver a nice tip, then opened the door and assisted Tess inside. It was a short drive to the Hotel where the two checked in, entered the bar for a final repast, and departed for their individual rooms. Tessie thanked Dennis and promised to meet him near the front desk the next morning at 9am. Following a brief hug each departed for their rooms to enjoy a peaceful night following a wonderful fulfilling evening.

Tessie left her room all packed and ready to reunite with Dennis. Exiting the elevator she walked to the lounge and headed to the main desk. To her surprise Dennis was waiting, and he walked over, grabbed her bag, led her to the restaurant, and then found a quiet booth and sat down. A waitress came over and handed them a menu."Nice to see the sun shining in the city at this hour; there is usually a fine mist, but not this morning. It must be you who brought the sunshine Tessie."

"You're sweet. The weatherman knew we had to drive and fly back this morning, so he was nice to us; he knows how I hate to drive over the Oakland-Bay Bridge to Berkley." Tessie chuckled.

Dennis and Tessie's conversation was interesting and with a good meal under their belts they were off to a good start developing a relationship that might build into something lasting. However, something kept reappearing in Tessie's mind all the while she was visiting with Dennis. She was bothered about the inquiry about her visiting Miami, and although he didn't come right out and say so, the implication was clear. Of all the cities near and far, why ask about Miami? Could Dennis have any possible connection to the mystic Mapita? That would be astounding to Tessie, but yet, stranger things have been happening so she'd let it go for now. Nevertheless she continued to think about it. Do I just ignore my feelings about this Miami thing or should I question Dennis and perhaps put him on guard for something that might prove to be innocent? What if I am wrong and it just happened that Miami came up, after all it is famous for many things? These thoughts were troubling to Tessie, but she didn't want to spoil a good thing, and it appeared that she was developing a feeling for Dennis, so why blow it on a hunch? Deciding to let it go for now she'd just let nature take its course. Should this episode rear its ugly head again and develop a tie-in, she would be better prepared to deal with it. The atmosphere was too calming to cloud it up with bad thoughts or with probing about Dennis' work, so only pleasantries were exchanged, and following a wonderful hour in the restaurant, Dennis motioned to the clock and reminded Tessie he had a plane to catch and if she would be so kind as to drive him back to the airport he would forever be indebted to her. Smiling she told him that it would be her pleasure to drive him. Driving out of the city was easy for it was that period in between traffic congestion time; smooth exit to the terminals, and this time Tessie didn't have to park in the lot, but merely had to drive to the designated area where his airline was located. Exiting the car and retrieving his bag Dennis found himself in a slightly awkward position, not knowing if he should give Tessie a big hug or perhaps a small kiss on her forehead, or a gentle one on her lips. He decided to leave it up to Tessie and see what she wanted to do. After a brief exchange of words preparing for Dennis' departure, Tessie grabbed hold of him and gave him a big hug, and afterward looked him straight in the eye and gently touched her lips to his, without saying anything she turned and hurried to her car. She sped off to Berkley. Dennis stood there in wonderment because he was not sure if what he was doing was the right thing or not because he did have a hidden agenda, one which he couldn't discuss at this time with Tessie. Feeling a bit of guilt he snapped up his bag and headed for his boarding location

Chapter Thirteen

It seemed like quite some time had gone by since Toni heard from Memorial, but perhaps no news was good news. Toni had been very busy trying to manage a major oil refining business with many needed things calling for her immediate attention. In her business even one hour can make a difference in earning or losing thousands of dollars because the market is always in a volatile transitory state. However thinking about Bob she decided to call the hospital to see if there were any updates on him.

"Hello, may I please be connected to Dr. Mitchell or Dr. Murray."

"Dr. Murray here."

"Hi doctor, this is Toni Riccio, Bob's fiancée. I haven't heard from you so I thought I'd check in to see how Bob is doing."

"Toni there hasn't been much change in Bob, but you might want to come and read to him; it's always good to stimulate brain cells by creating sound waves - such as in reading. No one can tell the effect except it is known that sometimes a person in a coma will come out of it with proper prodding."

"Thank you doctor. I'll be there shortly. Should I ask for you when I arrive?

"I will be here doing my rounds, if you have need of my services, please have me paged."

After the conversation with the doctor, Toni completed her domestic chores and then drove to Memorial Hospital. She entered through her usual passageway and made her way to the intensive care unit. Soon after entering his room she noticed all was quiet except for a nurse who was placing some cloths on a table in the corner of the room. She greeted Toni, having recognized her from past visits and told her to call her should she need anything. Toni moved over to Bob's bed and noticed that all tubes had been removed and he seemed to be in a more restful state. Reaching over she grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently to see if there was any response. To her shock she felt a twitch so she excitedly summoned the nurse.

"His hand," Toni pointed, " I squeezed his hand and swore it twitched."

The nurse checked the monitors and confirmed that there was indeed a brain-wave pattern that was noted indicating that some reflex response was initiated. She quickly called in Dr. Murray.

When Toni saw the doctor walk in she wailed, "He moved doctor. I squeezed his hand and felt a twitch."

Dr. Murray checked the monitor as did the nurse and confirmed the same findings. He noted Bob's chart and told Toni it was a good sign because the passageway from the brain through the spinal cord was open, at least enough for an electrical response to Bob's hand. He encouraged Toni to continue to hold his hand while reading or talking to him, then perhaps there might be other signs of him coming out of his coma. Toni thanked the doctor as he walked out the door to finish his rounds. Toni affixed herself over Bob in such a way that she was lined up with his eyes. She moved her eyes from left to right and asked Bob to follow. Again she was taken aback because Bob, after several tries was able to look from his left to his right. Toni repeated this test several more times and each time Bob responded favorably. Then without notice Bob spoke. "What is that bright light coming out of your head?"

"Bob, oh Bob, you can talk. Oh thank you. But I don't have any light coming out of my head, it must be the light from the room you see."

"The bright light coming is too brilliant and it hurts. It's a tunnel and there is something pulling on me to enter. I feel that I must enter because it is so peaceful. I must go."

All of a sudden Toni realized what this bright light represented and demanded that Bob fight the light and not yield no matter how nice it looks. She knew that once a person decides to follow the light there is very little chance to return.

"Bob, please, this light is not yours. It isn't your turn because you and I have too much to do and you can't leave yet, so please resist and the light will go away; you must."

As quickly as it had begun the utterances ceased and Bob changed and became quiet. Toni squeezed his hand and told him that he had won - that he had saved himself from being drawn into the light. Again Toni summoned the nurse and again the monitors were read. This time there was a great deal of brain-wave activity confirming Toni's account of what had just taken place. The doctor was asked to come in and further notations were made. Dr. Murray was very pleased at what he heard and wished he had been on hand to have witnessed it - that way he might have been able to make an educated guess as to what had taken place. He did say that just the fact that Bob was able to yell out and respond to some unknown stimulus was a very good sign+*9 no matter what he saw or thought he saw; it indicated consciousness.

"Please stay with Bob and keep his mind open if you can. I will be close at hand should another event occur." The doctor left the room and Toni resumed her position at the side of the bed. She was very happy to see Bob aware of his surroundings, but frightened at the thought that had she not been there, he might have left this existence and entered into another realm. She spent most of the evening at his side and only left when she was assured he was asleep and the monitors were quiet.

Chapter Fourteen

After leaving Dennis at the airport, and doing a little grocery shopping Tessie headed home to cook a big pot of stew, maybe sip on some hot tea and settle down for the rest of the day. Lately she hadn't had any time to herself with the strange happenings going on in her life and was in dire need of a quiet evening alone. She pulled into her driveway and immediately saw Cecil, an old boyfriend. She blew out a held in deep breath, jumped out of her car, and hurried around behind her car to the trunk. She reached in and grabbed two bags with her handbag hanging from her shoulders. As she neared the door she called out to Cecil and right away he turned around and rushed over to take the two large bags out of Tessie's arms. Reaching into her handbag she pulled out her house key, opened the door and Cecil followed her inside. Once the bags were placed on the table, Tessie turned around and said, "What can I do for you Cecil? I don't mean to be rude, but I came home to simply spend time alone since I haven't been able to do that for weeks."

"Oh, lately you've been on my mind a lot so since I was in the neighborhood, I dropped by to see you, but since you seem to be so busy, I'll leave and come another day."

For an instant Tessie couldn't respond but she got control of her emotions and looked Cecil straight in the eyes, and said, "Now why would you want to do that? I mean you told me last year that you didn't want to see me anymore, and here you stand telling me you were thinking of me so you dropped by? What has changed Cecil?"

"I don't understand it myself Tess; all I can say is that while in Washington last week, I thought I saw you standing in line at the government building, and ever since you've been on my mind."

"Oh, I see. Well, as I said, I really was planning on a day alone and anything else would make me upset, so..."

"Tess, I'll go, but would it disturb you if I stayed long enough to share a glass of wine with you? I promise I'll leave afterward."  
Tessie shrugged her shoulders, pulled out a bottle of white wine, reached up into the cabinet and pulled out two glasses. "I suppose one glass of wine together would be okay, but you must leave afterward as promised because..."

Before Tessie could finish her sentence Cecil agreed to leave after finishing his wine. He accepted the glass, began sipping on it and right away commenced telling her about his experience with the FBI - a lifelong passion to be part of that great organization. He said he went through all the training required to become a special agent and met a lot of good people while doing his work to qualify, but in the end decided it wasn't for him. He told her he befriended a man in another department and after learning about his job, he was more interested in it, but when he checked the job out, he found out he had to go on a long waiting list, be thoroughly checked out, and then go to an in-depth schooling that would take a couple years to complete. Tessie asked him what he was going to do and he told her he needed to get back in touch with his friend, Dennis to see if it was worth the wait. When Cecil mentioned Dennis she became interested and asked if this Dennis had a last name. When he told her it was Mays, she almost dropped to the floor in shock, but instead asked him what department Dennis was in, and when he told her it was the CIA, she became angry and tilted the glass back and emptied the red liquid in one gulp letting it slide down her throat like a raging river. She set the glass down hard, "I'm afraid you're going to have to go now Cecil." Cecil frowned with a puzzled look on his face and said, "Did I say something that upset you, Tess?"

She shook her head no, "I just need for you to leave Cecil. I'm sorry I'm so rude, but I must have you leave now"

As abruptly as Cecil arrived he departed, but it had to be an act of fate that he should arrive at that time and decide to visit his girl friend of the past. He had to be a messenger sent from some unknown entity. How could this event explained to her be other than an omen? But was it an omen or a blessing? The answer to the question remains to be answered.

Tessie, now very much on edge in what she thought was going to be a very relaxing evening, could only pace the floor not knowing whether to be happy, sad or angry. She tortured her brain to figure out why Dennis the CPA was now suddenly a CIA Special Agent working for the Federal Government; two very different operations dealing with vastly different situations. Remembering his words, however, made Tessie reflect on her feelings, for he did say that although he was indeed a CPA, he didn't have an office and that he worked for a government agency and further that he couldn't tell her specifically which agency, at least not at that time. Such a paradox pondered Tessie's mind, for although Dennis was telling the truth, he also left out much of the story. Was it really on purpose or was he sworn to secrecy as to what his obligations were with the CIA; that remained the unanswered question? She knew it was a very private organization of the Federal Government and any unwanted information forthcoming from anyone about its members could be very dangerous for those serving in that capacity.

Tessie had to admit that she admired Dennis and that he proved himself to be quite a gentleman. He was kind and gentle, generous and thoughtful of her needs, but there was something she didn't feel comfortable about and couldn't get that feeling out of her mind - that one statement he posed to her about having been to Miami. Did he know for sure she had been there and that she, Toni and Bob had gotten into a whole lot of trouble? If so, then why didn't he just say so, not having to commit himself by telling how he knew or what he had planned to do about it, if anything? Do I call him again? Should I just drop this developing relationship or know that in his heart he wanted to share things with me but was unable to do so because of a sworn oath? These thoughts were not only puzzling to her but confusing because of her sensual nature for this man. Realizing that he was more than just a casual friend she couldn't allow her emotions to seep through, but deep down she assumed he understood and felt the same way, otherwise why would he shower her with gifts, when he could have come out and said that he was investigating an event that happened in Florida and he was informed that she was one of the victims? She might have been shocked, but it also might have been easier for her to accept.

Okay, so now what? Tessie couldn't blow this whole thing out of proportion and lose a potential lover and soul mate, could she?. Should she swallow her pride and go along with the game until everything is played out? Then she could play the innocent unsuspecting person. Tessie, after much back and forth conversations with her alter ego decided to seek help, and what better help than her best friend Toni. A call was put in and after what seemed like hours, the phone was answered.

"Toni, is that you? Tess here. I know it's late in Texas, but something has emerged that you must hear; it is urgent to me and probably will be to you as well."

"You know I have all the time you need, and by the tone of your voice it seems like this will be a long and involved one, so shoot."

"Okay, but I'll try to make it short. Remember my old boyfriend, Cecil?" Tessie asked.

"Why yes, why? Has he contacted you lately?"

"Yes, in fact he was at my door when I arrived back from taking Dennis to the airport, but that's not why I mentioned him. During our conversation, he mentioned Dennis and the odd thing about it was that he knew him. But even worse than that, he claims he is a CIA Special Agent, instead of a CPA. Isn't that strange?"

"Sort of, but why has it caused you confusion? I mean isn't it possible he couldn't or didn't want you to know just yet? I mean, think about it Tess, that's something many women would stand back about. You know, like a police officer's wife feels; all concerned and worried. But in the beginning of a relationship, it might have affected you two developing a relationship, or at least, Dennis may have thought so." Toni smiled and said, "Plus, have you told him about the wish we made or anything that you might have thought would disturb him?"

Tess had to sit down and pause for a moment over Toni's wise response. "Toni, you always did know how to calm my worries and again, you've done that; thank you."

"Honey, I'm sure it must have upset you in the first place when you found out Cecil knew Dennis, but then to also learn that he works for the CIA on top of it – that makes a forever moving shock in one day, so don't be so hard on yourself. But Tessie, do give Dennis a chance."

"Oh Toni, you are so smart. Thank you. Listen, I'll let you go because I know you are dealing with your own stuff and probably very tired. But before we hang up, how is Bob doing?"

"Oh Tess, he's doing quite well. I really have faith that he is going to come out of this horrible ordeal. I've been so busy at work that I can't spend as much time as I'd like, but I do go back and read to him as much as I can. Listen to this, he actually squeezed my hand the last time I was with him ."

"Listen Toni, don't feel guilty about not being able to spend as much time as you'd like with Bob. I mean after all, you do have a great deal of responsibility with your job and can't shun from that either, and what incredible news about Bob squeezing your hand; thank you for telling me and please keep me posted should any other amazing events take place."

After hanging up from Toni, Tess went to the cabinet, then poured a glass of wine, and sat down in her favorite overstuffed leather chair to ponder on her and Toni's conversation, as well as the discovery of Dennis working for the CIA. She realized there weren't any coincidences in life thereby making it a necessary act or omen of sorts, and also feeling connected to Dennis even with all she had just learned from Cecil, but was she just a pawn in this whole plot to catch a criminal and nothing more? She wondered. Still...On the other hand, I know there was sincerity with Dennis. Was he trying to protect me from harm and just trying to eke out just enough information to proceed with his investigation? Or is he even doing an investigation? Tessie turned and hurried to take a hot shower, and afterwards climbed into bed, hung up her dream catcher, and smiled as she drifted off into slumber land. She had been asleep for only a couple hours when her cell phone beeped which jerked her awake. She sat up and reached over on the night table and said, "Hello." "Hello Tess, did I wake my favorite lady?"

"Yes," Tessie confessed, "But since it's you Dennis, I don't mind."

"Ah, I like that response. Listen, I'm returning next week – will you have dinner with me?"

"Yes, and hey...It's different for me, but I like my response too because it is absolutely true."

" Good, because I have some things I'd like to discuss with you."

"Oh, what about?" Tessie said smiling.

"Just something I need to clean up about our last meeting; something that might stand between our relationship."

"Will you give me a little hint so I won't die of curiosity?"

Tessie heard a chuckle from the end of the receiver and smiled, but nevertheless, Dennis wouldn't give her a hint. After she placed the cell back on the table she laid her head back on the pillow and hoped what he wanted to tell her was that he was a CIA Agent instead of a CPA. She believed meeting Dennis was meant to be, was fated, especially his arrival after seeing her in the flower shop. Toni also believed it was fated and persuaded Tessie not to be too harsh with Dennis at this point, but it didn't take much persuasion because she knew it to be true as well. Dennis mentioned once that he felt delivered, guided, and directed to Tessie. He said that he had never sent a woman flowers much less have the courage to deliver them to her without knowing her. She raised her hands up to the ceiling and thanked the Universe and for watching over her and bringing Dennis to her. All was well with the world, she thought. With a lighter heart she knew she wouldn't have any difficulty falling asleep tonight.

.

Chapter Fifteen

Feeling more comfortable now that Bob was regaining some feeling in his hand Toni was able to concentrate on her job as CEO. Putting in extra hours didn't bother her because in doing so she was able to spend more time at Memorial Hospital with Bob. On her last visit Toni reached for Bob's hand and began her usual routine by squeezing gently and then focusing on his eyes to see if he was aware of her presence. To her surprise Bob was able to close his hand with an effort surely felt by Toni. She tried to hold in her feelings, but couldn't prevent the tears from streaming down her cheeks.

"Bob, you're getting better, and aware of my presence. I'm so happy. Would you try to talk to me? There are so many things we need to talk about and I don't want to do it alone."

There was a deliberate hesitation as Toni waited to see if Bob would respond. She looked him dead in the eyes and could see his focus on her. He seemed a little distant, but his eyes began to focus, and when they stabilized, he blinked as if to tell Toni that he was conscious and aware of what was going on.

"I'm here," Bob uttered. "I can see you and it gives me strength."

Once again her eyes swelled with tears, but she quickly dried them away. She wanted to be alert to what he might say. She needed to remain in command of her thoughts and emotions.

"Do you know where you are?"

"Hospital!"

"Do you know how you got here?"

There was fear exhibited in Bob's expression and his grip tightened around Toni's hand. He held on and just stared into space as if recalling something out of the past. Something in his memory he wished wasn't there."Mapita! It was Mapita!"

Rage flared up in Toni's face as she tried to comprehend the meaning of Bob's accusation. Not understanding what role Mapita could possibly have in Bob's accident she didn't quite know how to approach his statement.

"Mapita? You know you are in Texas and Mapita is in Florida. Why do you keep repeating her name? You have called it out many times."

The swelling welling up in Bob's eyes showed he was concerned for Toni and Tessie, for he not only had this strong feeling of what had happened, he could see the script playing out in his mind over and over again; he just needed to try to get it out so that Toni would understand.

"Mapita put a curse on me and wished me to crash my car. I had the wheel firmly when she made me turn off the shoulder and took over my hands and arms. I couldn't fight because I had no control. The wheel just turned. I saw the car and I couldn't stop. She tried to kill me."

"I've hated her since the day we met her, and always had a feeling she was evil, but we were so desperate for answers we made ourselves vulnerable to her power. Working her evil magic on us she never in truth wanted to help us -only to rob us of everything and anything we had. Now I want to put a curse on her. That's the way I feel right now because she could have killed you Darling. It was only a miracle you got out of that accident alive, and I hope she knows that, and knows I will not sleep until she gets what she has coming to her; I promise."

Knowing Toni was justified in feeling the way she did, Bob tried to reassure her in stuttered phrases that he would make a great effort to overcome his injuries so that he, along with Tessie and Toni, could bring her down.

Tessie and Dennis weren't mentioned so Bob didn't know that Dennis was trying to coax Tessie into relating whether or not she had been to Miami and if so was it for pleasure. Tessie tried to avoid the inquiry and retorted back that she had been to Florida but said nothing else.

"Tessie told me a story about her new friend. I want so badly to tell you all about it and I promise I will on our next visit, but for now I would like for you to allow me to hold your hand and tell you a pleasant story about us. This story will make you happy and will make you relax so that you can further restore your energy, because the next story will make you want to jump out of this bed." With those words Toni began her story, as pleasant and relaxing as her skills would allow, for she was not in the best condition either after hearing what Bob had to say. She fought back her emotions and followed through in such a way as to make anyone proud. When Bob was relaxed and in a sleep-like state she arose, bent over and kissed him on the forehead, and wished him a good night. She walked to the door, exited and vanished into the night back to her home.

Bob opened his eyes to only see darkness and realized it was still night time. The dream he was having and still remembered made him realize that a good spirit was trying to enlighten him on something of value; perhaps his mother or his father, or even his grandfather. He didn't know, but he needed to repeat some of the words in his dream so he wouldn't forget the significance of its message. Most people don't think about the way the sun surrounds them with light or warmth because they go along their busy day never thinking about what would happen if it should stop shining. People rarely notice the creatures of the earth running around in and out of crevices, fences, cracks in walls; merging, running, retreating in their quiet places within the inky corners of a forest or house never separating their experiences from themselves. Most people feel comfortable or don't with who or what they are. People are different than those creatures and envy them – people are more complex with a higher form of life for which it was meant in creation, but nevertheless they still covet the simplicity of animals or even the tiniest little crawling bugs that live their lives so much more uncomplicated. Bob pondered on the message and wondered if animals or creatures think like humans, capable of real happiness or do they just plod along in a mechanical manner?" Not important. What's more important is whether we live up to our higher level of life. We get so caught up in being envious or angry about trivial things when in reality we could be using what we were created to do which is to benefit all of mankind instead of our individual selfish selves. He turned his face closer to his pillow and started remembering the dream again and the words he repeated to himself once again. Most people don't even notice the moment, much less to appreciate all that they have; stars, sun, moon or the dazzling heavenly beauty around. Bob thought, No...dream you're right because we're always in pursuit of something more...something like...what we have is never enough. He tried scooting over to the bedside table to grab a pen and tablet, but instead in his weariness and paralysis it left him unable to move so he decided to repeat the words until he painted them in his mind, never to forget. Most of the time people just dismiss the beauty of life and complain about different things that don't fit into what they believe. In fact, most live their life by what others say and believe instead of taking time to think for themselves and view life as they see it; as their conscious spirit sees it – their soul. They want to belong to a group or something so they become robotic instead. Bob reflected on what his mother had shared with him many years ago, 'when someone belongs to a certain political party they stop seeking or searching for truth or the reality of the situation. They lock that door and themselves away within the walls of echo.' It was almost morning before Bob started feeling his eye lids getting heavy so he closed them into a wonderful deep peaceful sleep. He no longer had nightmares, he felt the presences of his mind resting in peace with the message he had in his dream. He had wondered as he dozed off and dropped into his deep sleep whether it was an angel trying to get him to view things differently rather than revenge to those that had caused him suffering He knew he wanted to get even for what fate and evilness had meted out to him, but his mind couldn't rationalize a proper response just yet, but perhaps in the near future he would have his answer. Should he forgive them? Be happy that he made it though his horrible accident and let anger go. Should he alert Toni to this thought or dream? He just didn't know the answer to all his questions yet so he drifted into sleep letting it all go.

Chapter Sixteen

A week had passed since Dennis had called Tessie and asked to see her; saying he had something to tell her. She thought to herself - _more like confess something._ She had no sooner got that thought out when her cell phone sounded out with music. She knew it was the tune she had put in on Dennis' number. She leaped up and snatched it from the kitchen table. "Hello."

"Hello Tess. I got in late last night or I would have called you earlier – are we still on for dinner?"

She chuckled and sat down in the nearby chair and placed her feet up on the next chair. "I thought so, are you having second thoughts about whatever it is that you wanted to con...tell me?"

"No...no second thoughts. May I pick you up at 8pm tonight?"

By eight o'clock that night Tessie had dressed in sleek black slacks and a bright red sweater. She felt brave and wanted to show it so she reached down and even went so far as to slip on her red shoes to match. She viewed her reflection in the mirror, feeling satisfied ,and then hurried to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of wine, and just as she was about to pour it the doorbell rang. When she opened the door she saw Dennis standing on her porch with red rose buds in his hand. She smiled as she opened the door wider and said, "I see the roses changed from orange to red – I suspect this is a good sign." She took them and said, "Would you like a glass of wine before heading out to dinner?"

He smiled his toothy smile and nodded no, telling her that he had a reservation and they were running late. As soon as she placed the roses in a vase she grabbed her jacket and out the door they went. Moments later Dennis pulled up in front of Star's fine Restaurant and then jumped out of the car, cornered the front to Tessie's side and opened her door. He reached in and took her hand and helped her out. Within minutes they were seated at a table near the back which was more private, and Tessie wondered if Dennis had requested that table in order to have no disturbances or people nearby listening. He pulled her chair out and after doing so quickly ordered the restaurant's finest wine before seating himself. When the wine came and the waiter poured them each a glass he set down the bottle in front of Dennis and left. Dennis turned to Tessie and said, "A toast to you my Dear." He took a big gulp of his wine, set it down on the table while Tessie sipped on hers and then said, "If I could read the future, I sure as hell wouldn't have made the mistakes I made with you, but it's never too late to correct them so here I go." He lifted his glass and took a sip.

"As my mom always said, _one doesn't cry over spilt milk, you just wipe it up and start over_ and that is what it sounds like you have done, but before you continue I want to tell you..."

Dennis lifted his hand up and said, "No Tess, let me get this over with before I pass out right here in my chair. I mean...my heart is beating faster than the blood can pump it out, or at least it feels that way. I'm not a doctor, but nevertheless, here goes. I lied to you Tess. Well...I didn't lie out right, but I held back who I am and what I do. Recently when I found myself falling in love with you I realized it was high time that I leveled with you...you know...my profession." He took in a deep breath and then released it and said, "I'm a CIA Agent Tess."

How could Tess be upset with his confession, after all, he had suffered enough over having to tell her he had lied, but for some reason she felt afraid. Not so much by his confession, but by his announcement of love for her. She hadn't known until that moment how afraid she was of feeling the same love for him that he mentioned having for her. She capped her hand over her mouth and then dropped it knowing if she dwelled on the fear it would simply worsen, so she suddenly blurred out, " "I love you back Dennis, but regarding you're being a CIA, I'm afraid someone beat you to that reality."

Dennis stiffened and said, "Who?"

Tessie proceeded to tell him about her friend who had innocently informed her that he had a friend while he was an FBI Agent and was so impressed with him that he wanted to change his profession to the CIA. When she told him who her friend was Dennis shook his head and said, "Yes, I know Cecil. He was a great FBI Agent but was never happy with it and I shared some things with him about being a CIA agent. So you knew when I called a week ago, and you still agreed to come on this date with me; that is a positive sign?"

Tess nodded her head and alleged, "Yes I know because you see weeks ago I knew something was wrong but nonetheless I continued to feel something for you that was more powerful than my hunches or fears. Deep down I knew you were an honorable man."

Dennis reached across the table and grasped Tessie's hand and said, "I was afraid to think you'd forgive me or even ask myself what if you didn't, then what would I do? But it was I who had a bit of doubt as to who you really are." He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. "You are better than I had hoped for Sweetheart. If I had a ring in my pocket right now, I'd ask you to become my wife."

Chapter Seventeen

Now that May had finally arrived Tessie found that she had plenty of time on her hands, and so much on her mind that she didn't know where to begin. Knowing in her mind that nothing had ever been resolved regarding the events that took place in Toni's mother's house the last time they were together, and that bothered her, for in her mind she realized that at any time an 'event' could happen placing her in some strange and perhaps dangerous situation. Fearing for the unknown, and not wanting to be alone, she decided to call Toni. "Hi, my good friend \- now that I'm on vacation I feel free as a bird. Mentioning a bird, how would you like to fly out to your mom's place for a few days?"

"What a racket you have; all this free time and naturally you have to rub it in," Toni said smiling, "You know you never need an invitation to come here; you are always welcome. It would be great being with you and then you and I can visit your mom and mine."

"Fine, then I'll see you soon, and oh, we have some things to go over when you get here; will tell you when I see you."

Arrangements were made for a flight into Oakland directly from Texas. Soon after Toni arrived, Tessie was there to greet her. The two did their familiar greetings, laughed and giggled because their get-togethers always brought back childhood memories. Ah, childhood memories, exactly what Tessie had in mind as part of the reason to have Toni visit. There has to be good with the bad, you see, for the memories of that place held both. After settling down from their excitement, Toni couldn't wait to tell her friend about Bob and all that had been happening. In her excitement Tessie also couldn't wait to tell in detail all about Dennis and the ins and outs of the mysteries surrounding their relationship.

"I guess we have seen just about everything there is to see and been places we have wished to visit in the past few years, wouldn't you say Toni?

"You said a mouthful, but I do wish things would get back to normal so that we might have some peace and quiet in our lives, don't you think?"

"I have a feeling things will get better; it will just be a matter of time, and I feel our time is coming. We'll be happy once all is said and done, but you know we still have some unfinished business to attend to Toni."

"I know we have unfinished business, but did you have something special on your mind?"

"As a matter of fact, something has been bothering me for a while now, but I have had to suppress my thoughts on that subject because there were too many other pressing issues, Toni."

"I hope I'm not thinking what you're thinking Tessie. I fear I know what's been bothering you and to tell you the truth, I believe you have been breaking into my thoughts lately; I just have that feeling. You do know that has happened many times in the past so the feelings are easy to recognize."

They knew what the subject was because that ordeal was never resolved, and until it was - not Tessie nor Toni's lives would ever be the same. Without speaking another word, Toni invited her over to her mother's house for a visit. Each knew what that visit would involve, other than just saying hello to Toni's Mom. When they arrived, all was peaceful in the neighborhood, but just being near that house reopened suppressed feelings of past events. It was like going into a house of horrors, having been there before and knowing where all the scary stuff was, but still being frightened when a ghost or goblin jumped out at you and loud music blurted out.

"I love your mother, Toni, but I hate this house. It sends chills up and down my spine."

"It's sad that I have the same feelings about this place as you do, but we are here so we might as well make the best of it and think only positive thoughts, okay Tess?"

They knew positive thoughts were difficult to come by, but they did manage to have a pleasant visit with Francine. Following their visit, Toni excused herself and retreated to the upstairs bedroom where she used to live while growing up, and while there it was impossible not to see and touch the old desk; that same old desk that held the wishes both had so foolishly made a long time ago. Just the touch made Toni shiver. Not wanting to open it, she just rubbed her hand across the surface and took a deep breath before going into the closet. There on the shelf was a box; yes the very same box purchased from Willy from the candle shop, you know, the one that held that special candle supposed to help them defeat the evilness of their wish. She grabbed it up and hurriedly returned to the downstairs living room where Tessie and Toni's Mom were finishing their tea and cookies. They visited for a short time longer and then announced they had important business to complete. They hugged Francine while thanking her for the tea and promised a return visit real soon. With those words, and with box in hand, they departed. Each knew the destination of their next visit, because it was Willy who might hold the secret of the candle's power. He seemed so sure it would work when he sold it to them for that outrageous price. Entering the candle store each looked around trying to find Willy. A sales person appeared and asked what they needed, trying to act like a professional sales person.

"We need to see Willy," they said in unison.

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Not unless you are a mystic and can help us ward off evil spirits," Tessie said in a low spooky voice.

The sales person exhibited a strange and fearful look and quickly dismissed herself saying over her shoulder to wait for Willy and she'd get him. After a short time Willy appeared, and when he saw Toni and Tessie, he put on his best smile and greeted them.

"My favorite haunted ladies. What can I do for you? The last meeting we had left me with fond memories if you remember."

"We remember! How could we ever forget? Tessie replied. "We need to talk to you about this box. Do you remember what's inside it? No it's not a head; we haven't come that far; it's that candle we bought from you and never used. We are here now to ask you to help us put it to the use for which it was intended, way back when."

"I...I don't have time right now."

"Okay, then give us back our money," Toni demanded. "You did overcharge us if you recall."

"Well...but it was the going price at the time."

"Plus, you never gave us instructions, so now we are here to get them, and you know what Willy? We have decided to allow you to perform the magic with us; how's that?" Tessie said with more than a suggestion.

"Tonight! We must wait until tonight so meet me at the building in back of the store because it is a special room. Plus, I will have to bring in four other people to help, for it will take seven of us for my séance."

"Your séance? I thought we had only to light the candle. What's with this séance?" Toni demanded.

"I looked over the book and if you remember reading the instructions back then, there was a mention of a gathering of people who had to perform a special incantation in a special way in order to break any spell brought about or wished for in the Wizard book."

"You're correct, and we did read that, but I guess we had suppressed it from our memory for fear something would happen to us before we could perform the ritual," confirmed Toni.

"It must be tonight because the conditions are just right. You must have known that otherwise why would you suddenly appear out of nowhere at exactly the right time?"

Toni and Tessie pretended to allow Willy to think their powers brought them together at the precise time, but they weren't aware of special timing, although when you think about it, was it just by chance they happened to schedule their visit exactly when they did. Was the Wizard weaving its spell as they prepared to get together, or was it just coincidence?

In order to prepare for the séance Willy had to have four other people because the rules call for seven people to be joined together at the table before the program could begin. Willy made a call to some friends and when he told what he had planned to do they thought it would be fun so it was scheduled at 11:30 pm because it would be shortly after that when the spirit world would be most active. The seven people met in the back room of the candle shop, and after rearranging the furniture he set up a perfect round table and placed the special candle in the center. It was placed directly on top of the book Wizard because that was the onset of this special wish Tessie and Toni wanted to have removed.

Candles were placed around the room and incense were burned in the four corners near the candles. The lights were dimmed, and all seven participants were seated; Willy with his back to the wall and Toni and Tessie opposite him. Two others sat next to Toni in between Willy and her. The other two sat in between Tessie and Willy so that there was Willy and two others on his left and two on his right. They joined hands and the two closest to Tessie and Toni joined hands with them. The mystic candle in the center of the table was lit. The other candles and incense were already burning.

Willy worked himself into a mood while the others were instructed to be silent, listen, and not move from beginning to end. "Our beloved Author of Wizard we bring you gifts from life into death. Commune with us and move among us. Move about us as you will. We have brought you here to ask you to remove a wish that Tessie and Toni asked for years ago and now they desire to have it gone. Vellent capiat, vellent capiat – they meant no harm; exire vellet, exire vellet – exit the wish; sint liberi, sint liberi – let them be free; non inferant illis mala, non inferant illis mala – do them no harm." Willy spoke these words in Latin, it being the ancient language. As the words vibrated throughout the room Tessie and Toni felt an electricity surge race through their bodies. They looked at one another but couldn't speak. They were afraid that something had gone wrong and couldn't yell out because they were forbidden to utter a sound.

Suddenly and without notice the room began to vibrate scaring the hell out of everyone, but Willy cautioned them to remain still while he continued his chants in Latin. The incense burst into a fragrance that permeated the entire chamber where the seven people were sitting. The candles flickered brightly and then dimly. The book Wizard shook and tossed the mystic candle aside and flung open its pages. The candle moved as if by some mystical power and landed back upon the open book. The air began to circulate in a helix rotation sucking Toni and Tessie up and pressing them against the ceiling. Their arms and legs were outstretched and they couldn't move a muscle. What was truly amazing was the look on Toni and Tessie's faces as they looked down at the table, for below them were the seven people in the original group including the two of them. But how could this be if they were at the table holding hands with the persons next to them and be pressed tightly up against the ceiling? The circling wind increased until all the candles went out. The participants were so scared their joined hands and arms were trembling, but they were more afraid of breaking the bond that held them together.

"Blow out the whirling wind great Wizard. We know you are with us. We feel the strength of your power. Blow out the whirling wind. I command you."

As suddenly as it began, the wind ceased completely and Toni and Tessie fell downward but weren't in fear of hitting the ground, for as they neared the table they were transformed into themselves. Abruptly the candles relit themselves and the mystic candle showed brightly.

"Thank you o' great Wizard, master of all. We wish you to return from whence you came," chanted Willy.

With those words the mystic candle jumped from the book and spun around while the open pages closed themselves and the candle spun itself atop the book and came to a rest. The lights in the room lighted brightly.

"It's over! We did it. The chant worked and the Wizard has returned to his secret world."

All six participants except Willy gave out a big cheer and thanked whatever spirit was among them for restoring them without harm. They were happy to be back but shaken significantly from their experience. Toni and Tessie said not a word for they knew no one there would believe what just happened. They felt no pain, but each knew their out-of-body flight to the ceiling was real, but it would remain their secret; at least for now. There weren't any words to thank Willy and their attitudes toward him were forever changed. They would remain friends for life. Toni and Tessie got out of that place in a hurry and went to Tessie's mother's home; they were apprehensive about going back to Francine's home just yet. Although it was late Tessie cautioned Francine that the two might be spending the night and not to be concerned if they came home late that night. Tessie's mom happened to be awake when the two girls arrived and greeted them. After their harrowing experience of that evening they didn't look their best and that's why they hoped to slip into the house and head for the bedroom for a well-earned night's sleep.

"Wow! You two look like you just saw a ghost. Where have you been?"

"It's a long story Mom" reported Tessie, "we'll tell you all about it in the morning. Right now we are exhausted and need to hit the bed for the evening."

"Well, okay, you two get on up to your room and I will have breakfast for you in the morning."

The morning came and went. Toni and Tessie had a nice visit with Tessie's mom but didn't trouble her with details. They created a sensible story that satisfied Tessie's mom and everyone was happy. After departing the house Toni and Tessie went down next door to Toni's mom's house. They were greeted as usual and had their visit and their usual cup of tea. They excused themselves and went upstairs to Toni's room. There loomed the old desk. Although it still looked ominous, the two didn't feel any threat or unusual vibrations as they had in the past. They opened the desk drawer and retrieved the wishes that had been restored after having been strewn around the room some time ago. They took their wishes down stairs and out into the back yard where the barbecue pit was located, and carefully lifted the lid of the barbecue rack and held the papers containing their wishes. They gathered some paper from the stack used to light a fire and placed them on top of the coals and lit them. After a short wait the coals began to get warm. It was at that time Toni and Tessie decided to perform a simple ceremony. They held their wish papers and gently placed them into the fire. Then Toni said, "Fire, fire, take these away to a place where they will be, out of our lives to a place we will never again see." The fire ignited the papers and incinerated the last remaining vestiges of their past. Now with only one thing remaining to do, Toni returned to the house, went back upstairs and retrieved the book Wizard, and gently carried it out to the yard and handed it to Tessie.

"It's your turn Tess. Do your thing."

Without hesitation Tessie took the book and placed it gently on top of the burning papers containing their wishes. As the book ignited, odd and unusual colors streamed from the pages. It was a most unusual display of evaporating flames they had ever seen. Even the pages within seemed to open themselves and burn in sections rather than as a complete entity. As the fire was burning and the performance was on going, Tessie chanted "Go ye now where you will never be found, for neither Toni nor I ever want you around. You performed well, now go to Hell."

They laughed and performed a little dance around the fire because for the first time in a long time they felt relaxed now realizing that they would never have to worry about being whisked away to some strange place again. They said their goodbyes to their parents, respectively, and headed for the Tessie's house in Berkley. After a short stay, Toni needed to return to Texas for there was a lot of work yet to be done with her business, plus there was Bob, and also no telling what she would discover upon her return to Memorial.

Chapter Eighteen

Toni arrived home late and immediately showered and went to bed thinking she'd call the hospital to check on Bob early the next morning. She crawled into bed exhausted, in fact too exhausted to sleep so she got up to fix a glass of warm milk when her phone beeped. She placed the bottle of milk back into the refrigerator and ran to grab it, "Hello."

"This is Linda Mayson, the hospital representative at Memorial informing you that there have some new developments regarding Bob Steinman. It might be in your best interest to visit Memorial at your earliest convenience."

Toni didn't know what to expect. She thought that whatever was going on Bob would be in good hands until morning and she would be better equipped to handle whatever news would be forthcoming, so she went to bed.

At Memorial, someone was watching the intensive care unit where Bob was lying, and at the right time entered. This person was dressed in a white jacket resembling one worn by a doctor, in this way not arousing any suspicion. He quickly approached the bed where Bob lay sleeping and placed a small object on his chest, just below the neck but up from his stomach. He then quickly removed his jacket and exited the room never to be seen again. He didn't need to be around because what he did was place a talisman as he had been directed by Morita. You see Morita was still involved because she didn't believe that Bob kept his promise not to tell anything about what had happened to him in Miami, and she was back to her evilness in trying to complete her work by removing Bob. It wasn't too long after the mystery man left the room that Bob began to stir. He had made significant improvement during the past week and was able to move his hands and arms. He was awakened because he had a burning sensation on his chest, and his instincts alerted him to react. Bob felt the object, lifted it from his chest and held it so that he could see what it was. When he saw the talisman figure he was a little puzzled as to its meaning, but then came to the realization that this was once again the work of Morita, the sorcerer from Miami.

In an instant after his discovery of the object Bob felt his body weaken and it seemed to lift from the bed but he knew this was impossible. Then he felt himself sliding feet first into what appeared to be a chamber. As he approached he was immediately struck be a bright light of such magnitude it was impossible to focus, for how does one focus when looking into a light brighter than ever known before? Shortly after being transported into the light Bob could feel his body in a sitting position even though he had been unable to sit since being brought into the hospital, but here he was drifting on this sea of tranquility going where he didn't know. What he did know was that he felt no pain in his body in fact he felt nothing but relaxation and peace. As he was adrift in this strange sea he noticed a person along with him who appeared to be directing this craft in a specific direction. It was impossible to know where because there were no reference points for Bob to affix upon. On his journey into the unknown Bob noticed other craft similar to the one on which he was being transported. Although he could not make out who was in the units he was aware of their presence. In fact the other people were known to Bob. Had he not been in his current state this idea might have been disturbing to him, but knowing the people beside him, in front of him, and behind him didn't bother Bob at all. As all craft were heading in the same direction, Bob didn't seem to care because he was at one with his environment.

Toni jumped to her feet from a deep sleep in a startled state. She had no idea why she was now standing alongside her bed. Then as if on autopilot she knew she had to get dressed quickly and head for Memorial, for she had now developed this gnawing feeling that all was not right with Bob. It took no time to arrive at the hospital as she was the only soul on the road at that hour. After arriving, she darted through the corridor and to the intensive care unit, and upon nearing Bob's room she could see great activity in and out of the room. There before her eyes were a team of doctors and nurses hovered over Bob in what looked like a life or death effort to restore Bob and bring him out of whatever malady was affecting his body. She grabbed a nurse who wasn't actively involved in the procedures being performed and asked in a desperate voice what was happening.

"Is Bob in trouble? What's going on? What has happened to him?"

The nurse had all she could do to break away from Toni's vice-like grip.

"Mam, who are you? You aren't supposed to be here. What do you want?"

"This man is my friend and I was brought here by a message that was sent to me telepathically. I knew Bob was in trouble. Please tell me what is happening."

"All I can tell you is that this man is in deep trouble. His heart stopped a short time ago and the team is trying to bring him back."

Toni's heart sunk to the ground and was so distraught she couldn't think straight. She was shaking like a leaf and felt useless. As her eyes fixed on Bob's bed, she noticed a small object laying on the floor close to the head of the railing supporting the mattress. She recognized it as something she had seen before and darted to it, then bent over and snatched it away. It didn't take her long to see what it was, and she knew immediately it was a talisman and the only person she knew who would place such an object in that room was Mapita. She knew Mapita wouldn't have done it herself, but instead directed one of her 'slaves' to do her dirty work for her.

"It's a talisman!" screamed Toni. "Bob has just had a hex placed upon him by an evil sorcerer."

One of the aides grabbed Toni and pulled her aside because she was in the way of the team. When questioned further, Toni yelled out again that Bob was being held by a curse. She needed to communicate with him before it was too late.

"Bob! Please hear my voice. You must stop where you are going, for I know you are in the light and you aren't supposed to be there." Toni repeated this call three times and then she waited. A strange feeling overtook her body as if to tell her that her message was received and to wait and word would be sent back to her.

Bob, in his most restful state felt a pounding on his chest. He grabbed the place where the talisman had been placed, but nothing was there. He knew someone or something was beckoning for him to stop his journey and return. Bob didn't want to go back to wherever back was. He was happy, peaceful, and with people he knew, so why would he want to return to somewhere else? Again Bob felt the thump on his chest, and took a greater awareness and at that instant he could hear a voice way off in the distance telling him to stop. Bob motioned to the helmsman to delay the journey and the craft stopped in the tranquil sea. Bob listened intently and then reacted to the voice. Toni, is that you? He called out to himself. Where are you and where am I? What do I need to do to return to you? His thought was intercepted and relayed back to him as if by the speed of light. "Return! You must return, now!" Bob had the helmsman turn the craft in the opposite direction and work his way back to the hole in space where their journey originated. The helmsman did as he was directed.

"The paddles! Use the paddles," yelled Dr. Mitchell, "It's our only hope."

The paddles were electrically charged pads that when placed on a patient's heart and when fired, would send a response to a person's heart in hopes of regulating it once it got off course. Bob's heart was off course and it was hoped that the shock would create a normal rhythm and restore him to his stable condition. I'm fighting! I'm trying to return. Please give me more time. Bob pleaded his case to himself. It wasn't to himself, however, for Toni intercepted his thoughts and told the doctors that Bob was coming back. She insisted they not give up for Bob told her he was coming home. Of course the doctors thought she was hallucinating and kept with their task. The last and final paddle made Bob jump up from the table and at that same instant, he became rhythmic again; beep...beep...beep; a sign that he was stabilizing. Toni got the message loud and clear and yelled out again that Bob was almost back and to keep working on him. I see the tunnel again. I am headed straight for it, but where is the bright light? This tunnel is dark and dull. Where is it leading me? Bob could feel himself talking but knew he wasn't in charge. Something else was motivating him to sail back, to return to Toni. As Bob saw the end of the tunnel, or the beginning, he didn't know which, he felt himself blow out of it and hover. He drifted to the ceiling and just stayed affixed watching the activities going on below him. He knew it was a prototype of himself - nearby was Toni frantic looking. He tried to motion to her that he was around, but couldn't move. He sent out his most powerful mental message to Toni. She felt a bump and looked around but no one was near, yet she knew Bob was sending her a signal that he was back. Again she yelled out, "Bob's back. He's with us again." she pleaded, but this time the doctors and nurses took note of her pleading. They studied the monitors and it was obvious she knew something they didn't for there was the proof; Bob's vitals were becoming more stable. Bob watching all the commotion from his elevated perch knew it was time for him to return to his body and assume the position he was in before being swept away into the light. He felt himself slowly blend into his body on the bed. At that exact time the monitors registered a normal rate for all aspects of his condition being observed. Bob was indeed back. Toni yelled out a sigh of relief as did the doctors and nurses, for it had been quite hectic for a time and a lot of people were very worried that they were about to lose Bob, but it wasn't to be, at least not now.

Chapter Nineteen

After Tessie called Dennis she told him she suspected he knew more than he was telling her about her being in Florida, and specifically in Miami. Dennis needed to meet with Tessie to get a load off his mind so he flew into Oakland and the two met. It didn't take long for the two to spill out their stories, to offer apologies and to get on with the work that had to be done to rid Miami of an evil woman and break up a gang of thieves and perhaps murderers. After the confessions were done and the truth was known that Dennis did indeed work for the CIA, the two needed to get down to the dirty work at hand. Tessie went into great detail about their visit with Mapita on the advice of a 'narc' and of the betrayal on the part of Mapita and Phillippe and all the rest of their clandestine plotters. Dennis knew immediately what he had to do. He called in a special meeting with his Florida cohorts and filled them in on all the dirty details of the sorcerer's operation. A clever plot was devised to send in a specially trained team of men to surround the entire neighborhood where Mapita worked. They staked themselves out at various locations where they were totally inconspicuous. Meanwhile, a special agent, posing as a limping wealthy visitor from Europe who was in immediate need of some counseling was the 'plant.' When he was allowed to meet with Mapita he told her of his needs and she agreed to take him into her chambers. He told her that money was no object because he had plenty; he just needed to get done what was on his mind. The sound of money perked up Mapita's ears. She had the gentleman sit, turned off all the lights except for one candle placed in front of Mapita at her table and began to make a chant. Little did the gentleman know that this chant was a call from her to Phillippe and his men? They easily overtook the gentleman and secured him at the same location where Bob was held. Mapita then informed him that she wanted money. He surrendered everything he had on him and told her not to hurt him and that he would give her all the money he had if she would spare him of any torture. Mapita was very happy and when he turned over his credit card to her and gave her the codes, she left him and charged to the bank given where she attempted to withdraw money from his account. The money did come out, but so did a score of special agents who were planted around the bank waiting for her to arrive. They knew her greed wouldn't keep her waiting long and they were right. She was immediately arrested and her compound was surrounded and all within the gang of thieves were arrested and the operation was shut down. The agents made special note to arouse the neighborhood as to what was happening so as to dissuade others from trying to move in on the operation. The special agent was released and was happy his buddies arrived when they did; he was getting tired of being bound. After all was said and done, the agents returned back to their normal routines having done another great deed in ridding the neighborhood of another criminal. Dennis returned home and called Tessie to tell her the news. He told her he had to see her especially now that all the hidden agenda were out in the open and they could get their lives in order.

Tessie had no sooner arrived home when her doorbell rang. She threw her keys and purse over on the kitchen table and rushed to the door hoping it was Dennis. She hadn't seen him since their confessions. That was before she and Toni burned the notes of their wishes. She felt relieved and a lot lighter spirited than before they had gone to SF. She peeked through the peephole and sure enough there stood Dennis with a toothy smile and standing tall with his hands in his jacket pockets. She opened the door wide and invited him in and after he was settled on the kitchen table chair, she moved over to him and asked, "How did your Florida trip go?"

He grinned and took her hand in his, pulled her over closer and then kissed her hand, "Better than expected, in fact, Mapita is sitting in jail as we speak. We had enough on her to put her away for years, but only time will tell whether she wiggles her way out of it. I doubt she will, but you never know with these people. But in any case, I've done what was expected of me which was to get all the mud on her I could; now it's up to the courts whether or not she will go free or sit behind bars for the rest of her life. You see, Tess, it's very difficult to prove the affect of her powers over people, but there are a few things we can prove and that was my job and I did it well."

Tessie wrapped her arms around Dennis' neck and kissed him square on the lips, and whispered, "You are the best Dennis and I'm very proud of you. My friend's fiancé is in the hospital fighting for his life because of that wicked Mapita, and I can hardly wait to call Toni and tell her what you've just said. Better yet, why don't we fly to Texas to meet with her, and then you can meet Bob. Toni said he was doing better and I'm sure he'll do even better if he hears what you just told me. I mean you've just finished your last assignment and I'm out for the summer so let's go see them and do something fun as a reward."

Dennis grinned and said, "Yes, let's do, but before we do, let me order in dinner for us."

e-book

Chapter Twenty

The flight from SFO to Austin was on time and as Tessie and Dennis got off, the first person they saw was Toni standing waving to them in the large pane window looking excited to see them. Tessie ran toward the door, jerked it open and then flew into Toni's arms, "Oh Toni, I'm so happy Bob is doing better, in fact Dennis is really looking forward to meeting him...do...do you think it would be okay, or should he wait a day or two?"

"Bob has been released of all his curses from the evil one, and the doctor says he'll be fine as a result of his auto accident as well, so yes, I'm sure it's okay for the three of us to go see him soon after we grab a bite to eat. I'm starving as I haven't been doing too well in the eating department lately, but my desire for food is returning, and that's good."

Toni looked up and saw Dennis approaching. She reached out her hand to shake his, but instead he pulled her into his arms and placed a kiss on her cheek, "It's good to see you again Toni. How is Bob doing?"

"Like I was just telling Tess, he is doing fine and it will be okay for the three of us to go see him, but let's go eat first. I'm sure you two must be starving."

After leaving the restaurant and arriving at the hospital, Toni turned to Tess, and said, "I'll go make sure it's okay for us to go in right now. I'll be right back."

Bob had returned from his near-death experience and was recovering nicely. The feelings in his arms and legs were being restored, and the doctors were confident that he would soon return to a near-normal condition. In a case like this, the most important factor is rest along with exercise, the exercise being in the form of therapy, learning to use the arms and legs again. It's not as if the brain was damaged; it's just a matter of getting the limbs used to working again. There was a lot of damage to the vertebrae, but the operation was a great success and whatever nerve damage there was might be restorative over time. It all boiled down to perseverance and a will power to overcome diversity.

Toni got permission to enter the room and talk with Bob, but they were cautioned not to get him too excited and to make the conversation light and enjoyable. They decided to save the heavy stuff for another time, after gets home.

"Hail, hail, the gang's all here," yelled Toni as the three entered the room. "We brought a bottle of wine to celebrate, and you can watch us from where you are," she giggled.

Bob broke into a broad smile as did the others, and so the celebration was on. After a wonderful restorative visit for all concerned and having carried on with light conversation to everyone's enjoyment it came time to say goodnight for it was necessary to have Bob ease into his recovery program without too much excitement. All three returned to Toni's house where the best thing they did for the rest of the evening was to watch a comedy movie on TV. They all slept like babies that night, and knew that everything was going to be okay. Bob was healing and would soon be home, and Tess and Dennis were moving closer into their relationship, and Toni was doing well in the oil business as well as looking forward to Bob and her relationship getting to a point where marriage was the next step. And the best part was all those who caused damage to others were put in a place where they'd never be able to cause harm to anyone else ever again.

Look for the next book in this series; Series Two - The White Light.

Poems

White Light

When the white light comes for you

it doesn't mean that you are through

Ask Bob and Toni and they will share

for both have already been there

It all depends on how you feel

or whether or not you think it's real

For loves important as you will see

look what it did for our characters three

When evil rears its ugly head black magic

and the like

That's the time for all concerned to take

a stand and strike

We've had some scares along the way

that makes you want to hide

But happiness for all of us is

staying on the ride

For now the story it is through

but life has just begun

Now Bob and Toni - Dennis and Tessie will

have their greatest fun

So don't despair - just hang in there

good things are coming for you to share

Peter Cacciolfi, copyright 2012

In the light

Is where there is a bolstering?

If not ready

Then

Move away from the brightness

Go back

To the land

You left

And

Then

Live a better life!

Pattimari, copyright 2012

Life & the Light

Enter the light but it's too bright

does this mean things are not all right?

Not unless you are ready to go

but don't you want to stay and grow

For if you you've found your love so true

deciding to go will make her blue

So hang around and have some fun

dancing & prancing in the warm sun

Until that time just enjoy your life

free from toil & undue strife

Seek the true love with whom to share

a wonderful life without despair

For we who have written this book

you see

have developed this love as true

as can be

Peter Cacciolfi, copyright 2012

Within the pages of the world's greatest love story houses the seed that germinated into the perfect relationship. The meeting was just the beginning of what has turned out to be a multitude of fascinating novels filled with love, hate, romance, and the beauty found in the hearts and souls of the good people. Please enter our world of fascination and be inspired as were we, the creators, for we promise you will not be disappointed.

Peter & Pattimari

Thank you for reading our book and if you'd like to order any of our other books, please contact Pattimari at: Pattimari@hotmail.com

Previews of The Mysterious Mystery  
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Prologue

An agonized whimper tore from Celle Marrow's throat as she looked in anguish at the darkening gaze her sister, Marcy, threw in her direction when she neared her mother's casket. No words were exchanged, but if looks could kill, her sister just eradicated her. Celle touched her mother's chalky face as she gazed down at her still body with moist eyes then stepped back to take her seat in the front row, straightened her shoulders with a touch of militancy while her hands smoothed the delicate black folds of her dress. Her blonde hair hung over her shoulders loosely. She looked up at her sister and noticed Marcy was wearing her mother's favorite black dress. It fit her tightly around the bosom and was cut low enough to show off her firm breast, as well as her tiny waist. She was taller than Celle and beautiful. If the two were standing near one another, one wouldn't know they were sisters because while Celle had blonde hair, Marcy had auburn hair that shined like a new penny. It was common knowledge that Celle wasn't as beautiful as her sister, but her father often told her, you're beautiful in your own right Celle. She knew exactly what her father was referring to, but even so, she was never jealous of Marcy's looks or her popularity. Her interest was deeper than Marcy's and although she enjoyed dressing and looking fashionable, her biggest desire was traveling the world learning about different cultures and volunteering her services to those in dire need of her medical expertise.

Over a year ago she had taken a five year sabbatical from Santa Barbara's General Hospital in order to satisfy her desire, and that's where she was, in Africa, when her father called to break the ghastly news about her mother.

Celle was in such cavernous thoughts that she hadn't noticed when her father sat down beside her; only when he tapped her on the shoulder was she able to come out of her trance and turn to him. "Oh Father...hi."

"I have a new investigator working on the details of the poisoning Celle. He may find something we can use." Celle looked unconvinced, and her father, Jonas, could hardly blame her. "If we can't find any more information then we'll go to someone else."

"You're reaching for straws Father. We both know who poisoned mother, but you won't..."

"Celle I don't want to hear another word about your sister. Do you hear me? I don't know why you think she's involved, but you're wrong Celle; dead wrong."

Celle hesitated and then shrugged. "Okay Father, I'll try not to mention it again, but why would mother change her will so suddenly? I mean father...look at the whole situation - she had you as her beneficiary and then out of the blue she put Marcy's name in your place and then removes me completely out of her will. Something is badly wrong Father, and I think you know it too."  
Jonas started to protest but restrained himself. He quickly stood up, leaned down and whispered in Celle's ear before walking over to his wife's casket. "You don't give up for a minute do you Celle? You know weeks before she died that she was going to divorce me. Now isn't that bit of information good enough for you? No, I don't think so because you just want to blame your sister."

Celle clutched on to her father's jacket and whispered, "Then why would she have taken my name off her will Father? Do you have a good answer to that question? I don't think so."

Jonas removed Celle's hand from his jacket, and then looked back at her in astonishment as he turned and moved over to the casket. She had never seen her father look so insecure and bewildered.

