More Things In Heaven And Earth

Chapter Fourteen

"There is some realm where feelings become birds and dark sky, and spirit is more solid than stone." - John Gardner

"Good morning, Raziel. To what do we owe the pleasure of your company this morning?"

"There is something we thought you should see."

"We?"

"Freyja and myself."

This didn't bode well for me. Freyja was as dear as a sister and probably the best friend I'd ever had--not something I would have imagined saying about a goddess just a year ago. If she'd come to me alone, I wouldn't have given it a thought. She'd be just as likely to be gushing over the sweet joy of the lives of the characters in the latest Jan Karon novel as sharing any major news from the outposts of the Realms. Raziel, on the other hand, had a history of initiating far more challenging conversations.

I handed the dish towel I'd been holding to the archangel. "Here. You finish drying the dishes. I'm going to let Michael know what's up." I walked away before he caught me laughing at the expression on his face.

Michael stood with two of the other men in front of the opened hood of an old Ford van. They all stared into the machine's inner workings like necromancers peering into a crystal ball. "Gotta step out for a few, love. The Great One showed up on "urgent business"." I tried to sound lighthearted and, even to my own ears, thought I'd done a pretty good job, but no one knew me better than Michael.

He reached for my hand. "What's going on?"

I smiled for him. "He just says he wants to show me something."

"Are you OK?"

"Yup!" I chirped. It was true. I was OK that day. That day I didn't cry tears I couldn't stop. I wasn't trembling uncontrollably or jumping at tiny noises. I could remember everything I'd done in the immediate past. I was OK. I was far better than I'd been on some other days. "You don't..." He let go of my hand. "Nevermind. I love you," he said.

"I love you, too." I left him there and returned to Raziel.

She's coming!

The Prophet!

She has no business here.

Sing praise!

What do you think you're doing? This is beyond your ability. Don't anger us further. We will consume you. My invisible tormenter was back. His voice much clearer than the rest. I pushed all the voices to a corner of my mind.

Focus on what's here, I told myself.

"Alright, big guy. Let's rock and roll," I said to Raziel. He folded the towel carefully and hung it over the edge of the sink to dry. I was impressed. He'd worked faster than Donovan or Michael, but not as quickly as Atsheena. Not bad for a beginner. "Where are we going?"

"We shall travel to Freyja's realm."

Whoa. I had never traveled between realms before. I'd had visions, but never actually, physically, moved from one world to another. Of course, Raziel heard my thoughts.

"It was much harder to travel, before."

"I see," I said, not seeing at all. "So now we can just drive over?"

"No. The realms are everywhere, but the gateways are only at intersecting places. We cannot drive. The gateway is not large enough to accommodate an entire vehicle. We must walk." He was very literal.

"I see," I said again, biting back laughter. "Well, I'll just get my coat then."

The archangel led me out of the side door nearest to the kitchen and toward the woods that bordered the northern edge of the property.