Page 2 of No Artful Refusal
“Hello.It’s Devyn Norris.There was fog the day Ginny went missing,” she said.“Ginny went off her normal trail, got lost, and fell down a steep hill.”
McKinnon swore.“You’re the psychic.Mr.Culpepper said he’d called you.”
“Yes.But you know the area I’m talking about.”
“Mm-hm.”McKinnon hesitated.“It’s outside of the grid we’re working.It’s not on the route her husband told us she’d taken.”
“I understand.Will you please look anyway?”With her informants pressing insistently, Devyn was near begging.“You’ll find her caught in a tangle of trees, alive, but fading fast.”
“She’s been out here three days,” McKinnon said.“It’s a miracle you think she’s alive.”
“I know it.Sheisalive.But time is running out.”
Devyn’s next call would be to Mr.Culpepper letting him know where to search.She only hoped the search teams would get there first.
“I’m going,” McKinnon grumbled.“I can’t believe I’m saying it, but we’ll go right now.”
“Thank you.”
All Devyn could do now was wait for news.She didn’t expect anyone to call her right away.The priority was Ginny.Getting her out of the park and to the hospital.Reuniting her with her husband and kids.Starting the recovery.
She looked around her office and knew she wasn’t going back to bed.Although her sources had quieted, she remained restless.She took the time to document Mr.Culpepper’s call, her decision to help, and how the abyss had delivered the information.Over the last several months it seemed her communication with her psychic sources was changing.Nothing easily defined, just a sense.
Thankfully, not a sense of detachment or pressure.On the contrary, her bond felt stronger than ever and somehow lighter.She’d been carefully journaling every encounter to sort out her feelings from her searches so she could spot any trends that might indicate trouble on the horizon.
She hadn’t quite finished when her phone hummed with another call.Recognizing Culpepper’s number, she answered right away.
Ginny’s husband sobbed and sputtered.“They found her.Alive.Just as you said.Exactly where you told them to look.”
“I’m so glad.”
“The park ranger said the fog must have rolled in and confused her,” he continued.“Somehow, she slipped off the path and fell down the hill.She’s alive.Already apologized for worrying us.”
“I’m glad you have her back,” Devyn soothed.“Give her my best wishes for a speedy recovery.”
“I don’t know what to do.”He paused and blew his nose.“Sorry.I just don’t know how to thank you.I mean, obviously, we’ve paid your fee, but there must be something more we can do.”
The one thing Devyn asked for—to keep her name out of any press coverage—was rarely granted.So she’d stopped making the request.These days, she was strong enough to cope with the fallout.“Just be well and be happy,” she said.“That’s all the extra I need.”
“Okay.Thank you.Again.Forever, thank you.”
Smiling, Devyn fixed herself a cup of tea, and went to her screened-in porch for some restorative solitude.Cuddled under a crocheted throw her mother had made, she embraced the quiet and thanked the sources who reliably rose from the abyss in wisps and images to guide her.To help others.
She hadn’t always appreciated her unique and unusual gifts, but every day she was more thankful now that she’d found a way to accomplish good things.To add to the beauty as well as the mysteries of the world.
Being psychic had never been a picnic.As a child, her untrained gifts had caused so many problems.Once she’d learned to control her talents, she tried to hide them.The ridicule for being different was brutal.
But hiding hadn’t helped, only backfired.
It had taken years of training and loads of practice developing a thick skin, but she eventually found the right balance.Her successes had become a career, built between word of mouth and a website that focused on counseling rather than her psychic skills, allowing her to use her gifts to help others without constantly battling against the judgment and backlash of skepticism.
Healthy skepticism, she had to admit.There were plenty of people in the world who made big claims and couldn’t deliver.And many who used true extra-sensory talents solely for their own gain.
She had to accept the hurdles they created.No way to control those people or easily undo the damage they caused.Devyn’s gift was true, the real deal, regardless of outsider views.She had to walk her own path.
She finished her tea, watching in wonder and awe as the sunrise painted her backyard in soft sweeps of yellow and gold.Inside, her cell phone sounded with the ringtone she set for her friend and mentor, Marlene.
Reluctant to move, she scolded herself for leaving it behind.
