Page 46 of Gift from the Source
My world tilts, knocking me from kneeling on my heels to slouching against my tree. I roam my hand all over the bark for some comfort until it finds its way back into our pocket dimension and my fingers tangle into our blanket. The fabric is softer than any material in the estate and I let the delicate fibers ground me to a piece of him.
“You have a choice to make, sweet Willow.”
“Another one? Haven’t I made enough difficult decisions today?”
“You have and I’m so sorry for that.”
“Sorry,” I scoff. “If you’reso sorry, why did you let him die? Why did he have to leave me?”
“I will allow him to explain that to you one day,” her other-realmly motherly voice wraps around me like a hug and I sit straight up.
“You will? I’ll be able to see him again?”
“You will be able to speak with him.”
Speak. I can still talk to him.
I’ll take it.
“What choice do I have to make?” I ask, ready and willing to do anything.
“I can take all this pain away from you. I can make it all stop. For now.”
“H-How?” I stutter.
“Your birthday gift, the one he left you. The stone, he briefly explained, has many, many possibilities and it will do most of the work. I will give your soul the relief it needs.”
I stare down, running my fingers over the wooden box that matches my willow tree to perfection. The delicate hinges creak as I open the lid slowly and my already shaky breath tumbles out of me when I fully focus on the stone.
Yeah, he showed it to me already, but the last thing I truly cared about in those moments was looking at a necklace. I wanted to look at him.
Be with him.
Now the beautiful purple gem that’s wrapped in silver takes my breath away.
“He…he was going to give this to me today. Why was that any different than option two?”
“All choices made affect more than just yourself. Someone in our realm made a choice that affected the way in which CC would perish. That changed the location of where he spent his last moments. He chose to spend them with you.
“Originally, he would not have made it here to tell you goodbye. You never would’ve seen him. That is what changed the outcomes. Your motivations would’ve been different. Without seeing him, but finding your gift, you wouldn’t have run. You would’ve hunted. You would’ve been fueledby the desire for the truth. Watching him, being with him in his last moments, has squashed that rage and morphed it into fear.”
I open and close my mouth repeatedly. The need to argue with her and tell her she’s wrong is strong. I have plenty of rage and I’m just as angry as I am crushed, but I stop myself.
It’s hard for me to admit she’s right because I’ve never been one to back down. Right now, though, all I can think about doing is running. I want to run so fast and so far, I’m never found.
“Why did this even have to happen? How could you allow it? Why did he have to die?” I mumble through my clogged throat and tear-soaked lips.
She’s already told me he’d tell me one day, but I need something now.
“All your answers will come one day, Ultima unum. This I vow. I will not tell you now, though, as I will honor his request and the decision you helped him make. Rest assured, he will be with you again, just not how you desire it.”
I sob.
I let it all out as her denial to give me answers cuts me to the core of my being. I want them. Need them. But I also just need it all to stop. I don’t know how much more I can take before I die right in this spot as well.
“Please take it away.”
“I will. You need to know and understand everything that is about to happen, Willow. It is not as you believe it will be.”
