Close to Destiny (A Magical Love Story)

Chapter 53

May 21, during the night

"There's no reason to be afraid of the hat," Zachary Taylor said in his matter-of-fact voice. "You're not five years old, Katherine."

We were sitting at the same table as the other night at yet another one of Gabriel's parties. At least I assumed it was Gabriel's party because the atmosphere resembled that of the others. He and Sam, however, were nowhere to be found.

My eyes returned to Zachary.

"Why do I get that strange feeling?" I asked, my words heavy, sticking to my throat. Everything—including the formation of sentences—was in slow motion. "When I put on the hat... I feel dizzy, exhausted, afraid."

"You have to make it past that point, Katherine. It's temporary and worth the mental exertion. If you want to understand this whole story, you have to put on the hat."

"But for how long?" Many, much more important questions frapped impatiently against the doors of my mind, but I was unable to set them free. I felt as if the words I was pronouncing weren't even formed within my own brain.

Zachary took a sip of champagne and tapped his fingers on the tabletop as if considering a complicated situation. I watched the reflection of his thin fingers as they danced in the opposite direction of the real ones.

"It's not a matter of time, but of feeling," he said. "You will know when you've obtained enough information to better understand the story."

"That's what I wanted to ask... What story? Does this have to do with Destiny?"

"In a way," he said. "But it has more to do with you."

"That doesn't help me much."

He took another sip of champagne and smiled.

"You certainly want me to hold your hand the whole way, don't you?"

"No," I said. "I can do... whatever... on my own. The only thing is I don't understand what... well... what 'whatever' is."

"Calm down a bit, Katherine," he said, dusting off the lapels of his dustless velvet suit and leaning closer to me.

"I've been running in circles ever since I came here, ever since I met Destiny," I said, finally recovering my true voice. "Now, she's gone, and it hasn't stopped. Not only that, I think it's gotten worse."

Tears of frustration welled up in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. I pressed my hands against my aching temples. It was as if a French horn was wailing directly into my eardrums.

"Katherine, give this one more chance. You've come too far to abandon the quest. And what about your magazine article?"

"Look, I know this is about Jonathan and Victoria. Destiny told me the whole story, and I accept it even though any normal person would find it completely unbelievable. But that doesn't mean I'm going to live my life by it. There, I've said it. I won't go back to Will. I won't go back to him. I won't, I won't, I won't."

I jumped up, turned around and ran. Pushing through the crowd of beaded cocktail dresses and floating champagne glasses, I coughed on air that was thick with musky perfume and cigarette smoke. Then I was falling, falling, falling into oblivion.

That was all I could remember after waking up with a start. Yet another piece to the mysterious puzzle that had become my life. Why hadn't I asked Zachary Taylor the important questions? Such as: Why had he contacted me in the first place? What did his life have to do with mine? And most importantly, what did this hat have to do with anything? I could have kicked myself for wasting a precious opportunity.

Then I scolded myself for actually thinking I could ask someone questions in a dream to better understand a real-life situation. Was I finally losing my mind?

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