By Disa Wylde
“The movers must have forgotten to take this stuff out of the attic,” Keith said as he descended the ladder. He shook his head and ran his hands through his dark, wavy hair causing the cobwebs and dust to scatter amidst the beams of sunlight streaming in through the windows.
“What’s up there?” Jana asked.
“Well, I’m not too sure. A lot of boxes and some stuff that’s covered up with old sheets. It’s pretty dark up there and the lightbulb has burned out. Have you got any new ones or should I make another trip to the store?”
“Oh, I think I used the last one in that lamp in the living room, but it’s no big deal, I can pick up some more when I go back into town. Thanks for all your help today, it’s really made a big difference having you here with me.”
“No problem. I knew it might be kinda hard for you coming back here so soon after the funeral. You want me to stick around a little while longer or will you be ok here for the night?”
“I’ll be fine, I really appreciate it. I’m just going to go through some of this stuff then relax with a hot bath. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Jana closed the door and watched through the window as he walked down the winding path and disappeared down the road. She and Keith were childhood friends, playing barefoot in the dirt and wandering aimlessly for hours through the neighborhood and surrounding woods for more summers than she could count. She often wondered why he never moved away, but now she was grateful that he hadn’t. With the recent passing of her father, Keith was a tremendous comfort and a huge help as they dug through all of the family’s belongings and tried to sort through them.
She turned on the portable radio and began unpacking boxes. The time passed quickly as she worked alone. The lights flickered. A sudden clap of thunder startled her and her eyes darted to the window just as lightening ripped through the ominous sky. She rummaged through the box marked “kitchen” and found a flashlight, candles, and matches to keep close by just in case the power failed. The thunder continued and the rain pounded the tin roof of the shed out in the back yard. Exhausted from the day’s work, she headed up the stairs with emergency supplies in hand.
When she turned the corner she noticed that Keith left the attic ladder down. She turned on the flashlight and climbed up to the attic. It was a spacious attic filled with what appeared to be several cardboard boxes and old suitcases stacked against the wall and covered by old sheets. Straight in front of her she noticed a sheet draped over what she thought must be some piece of furniture that was just a bit taller than she was. She walked towards it and lit a few candles. She removed the sheet and dropped it on the floor causing a cloud of dust to appear.
Jana gazed into the huge obsidian mirror in awe. As she stood staring into the mirror she felt a slight breeze blow across her left arm and she had a sudden urge to reach out and touch the mirror. As soon as she touched it she saw a lush garden and a woman sitting at a round wrought iron table with two chairs of the same design. She walked into the garden and was instantly warmed by the brilliant sun. The woman had a brown leather train case sitting near her feet and she appeared to be studying some small pieces of paper that were spread out on top of a satiny purple cloth. As Jana drew closer, the woman looked up, and she noticed they bared a strong resemblance to each other. They both had the same flowing auburn hair and light green eyes. The same porcelain skin and dainty features. They both looked about the same age.
“I’ve been expecting you, Jana,” the woman said as Jana approached her. She gestured for her to sit down and flashed a warm, welcoming grin. “I am Jada, your great grandmother.”
Jana sat down in the other chair, her head swimming with questions. “I, I didn’t know I had a great grandmother named Jada. What, how could you have been expecting me?” she asked in confusion.
Jada’s smile widened as she glanced at the cards before her, “I saw it here, in the cards.
The Page of Cups told me that I would be delivering a message of love to a seeker of love. Your father was my grandson. When he died it sent a ripple through the universe. You have returned to your childhood home, a home that belonged to your father, to his mother, and to me. Your bond with your father is equal to the bond I had with him when I was alive. I am not surprised you have not been told of me, as my daughter was ashamed of the abilities of our family, therefore she did not embrace them and did not encourage them in your father. As each generation attempts to ignore these abilities, our family is in danger of losing them altogether. That is why you are here sitting with me today, so that I can be sure you are made aware of your history, so that you may pass the knowledge of your ancestors on to your son.”
“My son?” Jana asked, “I don’t have a son. I’m not married. I don’t even have a boyfriend.”
“Ahh, but you will. I see it here, in the cards,” Jada said as she pointed to the Page of Cups, the Empress, the Four of Wands, and The Sun.
“Jana, Jana?” Jana heard Keith calling her name and suddenly she was back in the attic, staring at the solid black obsidian mirror. “Jana, are you alright?”
She shook her head in confusion, “What? Keith? What are you doing here?”
“Well, the storm was really getting strong out there and since you don’t have the phone hooked up yet, I thought I’d come and check on you. Are you all right? You don’t look so good.”
“Yeah, I’m ok. The strangest thing happened.” Jana proceeded to tell him the story about her great grandmother.
“Oh, yeah, your father told me all about your great grandmother, the tarot reader. You didn’t know about her? Your father loved her so much for all she taught him that he decided to name you Jana in her honor. He knew that giving you her name wouldn’t go over well since most of the family didn’t approve of what she did, but he figured Jana was close enough. I used to come check on him from time to time after your mom died and we’d sit and talk for hours. He always told me that you looked just like her. He wanted to share the knowledge with you but your mother wouldn’t stand for it. He said there were signs that you had inherited the family’s abilities, and I’d say from the experience you just had, there’s some truth to that.”
“Well, I need some time to process all this,” Jana said. “You wanna get a pizza or something?”
As they walked towards the attic stairs, Jana felt a breeze blow across her left arm and she followed the urge to uncover the boxes lined up against the wall. A cloud of dust wafted through the air and she knelt down to open a brown leather train case. There inside she found a satiny purple scarf. She carefully unwrapped the scarf and found a pack of tarot cards. She turned the cards over one by one to find the Page of Cups, the Empress, the Four of Wands, and the Sun. She looked up at Keith, and he took her hand in his. At that moment, she knew that Jada, and what she saw in the cards, was real.
The End