With Love; Now & Forever (15 page)

There had been a few moments of silence before Lissa burst out laughing as she turned to her husband. “Marcus! We found a live one! Grandma must approve!”

They hit it off from that moment and although they had never met again in person, they kept in contact through emails and phone calls.

Coming back to the present, Rick slapped his thigh, “Of course!” It would make sense that since Ana turned away from him to solve this problem, that the spirits would lead her to someone he trusted. He wasn’t too dense to see that it wasn’t that Ana didn’t trust him to help her but instead she was doing it to protect him, to keep him safe. Like a ton of bricks, it hit him how much she loved him and wanted to keep him safe.

Aware that he would never find out where Lissa was staying, public figures knowing how to keep their identity safely hidden, he decided not to even try to call the local hotels but he couldn’t just sit back without doing anything so he pulled out his laptop and e-mailed Lissa. He sat back and prayed that she checked her e-mail, soon.

* * *

“Okay, we’re going to start our meditation and then go into prayers of protection. I know you’re scared but I need you to be as relaxed and open as possible. I’m here to help you so I need you to trust me, do you understand?” Lissa asked gently.

“I do, I will.” Ana nodded before closing her eyes.

Lissa started the meditation and then moved into the prayer. As she was finishing the prayer, Ana began smelling the familiar scent of Austin’s cologne.

“Austin is here, he is somewhat agitated, telling me that that he is sorry, he didn’t want any of this to happen. He’s telling me you did the right thing by telling your friends about what happened that night and wanting to comfort you. He is very upset, there’s another person here, another man, he’s very angry. He’s furious with what Austin is saying. They’re so
hostile
to each other. This other spirit keeps repeating ‘she’s mine! I want her! I searched my whole life for her, it’s not fair that you got her heart!’”

“Who is it? Can you see who it is?” Ana was scared and confused.
“He’s obscuring his features, he appears older than Austin. They definitely both have a strong presence.” Turning away from Ana, Lissa pursued a different aspect. “Do you know this person, Austin? Can you help us solve this mystery and help show the soul to the light? Ana needs peace.”
Ana watched Lissa’s face crinkle in disgust as if tasting or smelling a foul scent. At the same time, the room’s lights started flickering as if they themselves were irritated.
“I will talk to you if you can calm down. I’m not here to agitate you, I’m here to help you
and
Ana. Do you realize that you’ve passed on? You been tormenting Ana the past few days, if you love her, why are you tormenting her? Please, let us help you. Wait, you’re speaking too fast. Austin, please let him speak, I can’t get a clear message with both of you talking.”
Ana watched in disbelief as Lissa had a three-way conversation with two unseen people. The lights slowly stopped flickering and returned to a steady glow.
“Thank you. Now do you remember how you died? Oh, heaviness in my chest, please Rebecca, take the pain away, guide me so I can help this soul. Better, thank you. You passed by heart failure? Thank you. Can you tell me your name? Why don’t you want to tell me? No, no one here hates you. We just want to understand and help you. Bartholomew. Okay, thank you.”
Ana gasped and felt her heart drop. “Barry?”
“Barry, is that your nickname? Are you related to Austin, Barry? You’re his father?” Lissa looked at Ana, surprise in her eyes when Ana nodded.
“Why are you hurting Ana if you loved her?”
Ana started crying, hopelessness overcoming her. Austin’s father had torn her apart from her first love and now threatened to take her away from her second. Lissa continued her séance, unaware of Ana’s distress.
“Let me help you let go of the grief and pass into the light. Your anger is keeping you here and there is nothing good that can come of you hanging on to it. There are loved ones that are waiting to welcome you and guide you. Please…”
The lights in Lissa’s room burned brighter and Lissa tried to calm the distressed Barry. “You were
not
meant to be with Anastasia! She is living and you are dead, you need to let go of this earthly obsession and move
on!”
At her last word, all of the light bulbs in the room exploded simultaneously, throwing shards of glass everywhere. Ana screamed and threw up her hands to cover her face as the room fell into darkness. Crying, she heard Lissa’s calm voice float over to her. “Are you okay, Ana?”
She responded, her voice wavering, “Yes, are you okay?”
“I’m fine but don’t move, there’s glass everywhere. Let me get my shoes on and open the curtains.” Ana heard the tinkling of glass as Lissa moved in the room.
As Lissa opened up the heavy drapes, sunlight spilled into the room sparkling across the millions of shards that littered the furniture and floor like freshly fallen snow flakes. When Ana saw the destruction in the room, she burst into tears again, allowing the hopelessness to overcome her.
“I’m so sorry, Lissa. I had hoped that if I could find a psychic that I wasn’t close to, that they could help me, now I see that I put you in danger too. I’m so… sorry!” she started hiccupping with the power of the sobs.
She heard Lissa’s voice near her and felt her hands start to gently wipe the glass off of her cheeks, simultaneously wiping away tears.
“Hush now. It’s all good, as they say, we have more information than what we did before and this is nothing!”
Looking up at her incredulously, she swept her arms out, gesturing around the room. “Nothing? How can you say that? The room looks like it’s been privy to a war!”
Lissa looked around the room and shook her head, chuckling. “I’ve seen the devastation of war and believe me, this is nothing. A little broken glass, oh, ouch, a cut on your cheek that we need to clean up but nothing as devastating as a war!”
Ana raised a hand to her cheek and pulled it away, bloody. “Just like Rick.” she whispered, staring at the blood in disbelief.
Hearing the distressed tone in Ana’s voice, Lissa tried to distract her. “What we need to do is get cleaned up, go get some lunch while the hotel cleans up this mess and figure out a game plan. Are you up for that?”
Ana looked at her, stunned. “You mean you still want to help me?”
Lissa burst into laughter. “Oh, Ana, you must not have done much research on me! I’m married to a German man and
my
heritage is of Greek descendants. We are very stubborn and don’t give up! Make your way to the bathroom and get cleaned up while I call room service and let them know we had a power surge. I’ll be there shortly and we will find some good comfort food.”

* * *

Lissa and Ana were sitting at a little café two blocks from Lissa’s hotel, waiting for their wine to arrive. Lissa had insisted that they needed something to calm their nerves so that they could focus on their next move and after it arrived, Ana let the robust flavor of the wine fill her taste buds and warm her belly.

“Are you feeling any better?” Lissa asked.

“I am, thank you. How about you?” she asked, concerned that Lissa might have changed her mind. “I feel fine but I have to tell you that Rick is here.” “What? Rick is here? Did your guide, Rebecca, tell you

that?” She felt the panic again and took another drink of her wine.

“Breathe, Ana. No, Rebecca did not tell me. I had a suspicion it was Rick Montgomery that you were involved with but I wasn’t absolutely sure until today.”

“You contacted him?” Ana felt her stomach drop “No, actually he contacted me, it appears that you have some people in your life who love you very much. Your assistant, Sally, told Rick where you were and when he saw the article in the local paper about the missing girl and the Florida medium working on the case and put two and two together. He flew here to be with you, to help you.” she answered calmly.
“He can’t help me and I’m worried that neither can you. I’m cursed, no one can help me.” Ana quietly answered.
“Nonsense! You feel that way because you’ve never dealt with this kind of thing before. I’ve dealt with it most of my life and Rick has too, we have the knowledge and experience to help you, if you let us.”
“I don’t want anyone else to get hurt because me!”
“It’s not because of you, it’s because of some misguided soul that is holding on to the belief that he should be with you! He’s the one that’s wrong, not you. But as long as you keep giving him the power he will win.”
“What do you propose?”
“Let Rick and myself help you, let’s settle this, once and for all.”
“I don’t want Rick to get hurt again.” Ana whispered closing her eyes.
“I don’t want to get hurt again either, which is why we need to stop this
now
for us to be free.”
Ana jerked at the familiar masculine voice she often heard in her dreams. “Rick!”
“Ana, don’t push me away again. I want to help.” he declared, making it clear he intended to stay.
She stood to embrace him and he moved to sweep her up in his arms. They held each other until Lissa’s voice broke their embrace.
“Okay, we are now drawing odd stares, have a seat, both of you, let’s figure out what we need to do about Barry.”
Rick sat down next to Ana, holding her hand as if he were never going to let her go. He felt the softness of her skin and the smell of her overwhelmed him with emotions that were difficult to control. All he wanted to do was hold and kiss her, show her how much he needed her and loved her.
She felt the zing of electricity shoot through her the moment they made contact and though she still feared losing him, she felt stronger with him. She wanted to end this so they could be together, not only physically but emotionally too. He was more than just a toy or an amusement, he was her new life. She missed their walks and their conversations in England which felt like took place a thousand years ago. He was her friend, her friend that she was in love with.
The waiter, seeing Rick join their table, quickly came over and took his order. As they waited for their food, Lissa filled Rick in on her reading that morning, Ana listened in stunned silence, reliving the morning’s events through Lissa‘s narration.
“Wow, Barry! Honestly I would have never guessed it was him.”
Feeling embarrassed at the topic of conversation, Ana tried to defend herself. “I swear I never did anything to lead him on, he was like a father figure to me!” She choked.
“Ana, no one is trying to blame you, you were just a child, a young girl the same age as his son.
You
shouldn’t feel ashamed,
he
should!” Rick grasped her hand tighter, trying to reassure her.
“Rick’s right, this is something that he built up in his mind, some midlife delusion possibly. We need to get this worked out from his perspective and to be brutally honest, it’s his problem, not yours.” Lissa assured.
“But how?” Ana asked.
Lissa looked at both of them. “Does Barry have any living relatives?” When Rick looked at Ana, her eyes went wide and fear.
“Oh God, no! We can’t involve Georgia! Jennifer and I agreed that she should be left in peace, the knowledge of what Barry did would devastate her!”
“Have you ever thought that she might already know?” Lissa asked quietly.
Ana shook her head vehemently. “No, she never knew and I don’t want her to know now!”
Rick squeezed her hand again, “Are you sure she doesn’t know? You never encouraged anything to happen between you and Barry but wives have a sense of when their husbands stray. You’re sure she didn’t find out and decide to forgive him?”
Before Ana could respond, Lissa broke in. “It wouldn’t be the first time a dedicated wife decided to look the other way and since nothing was ever consummated, she might have done just that.”
“Oh God.” Ana repeated, releasing Rick’s hand to cover her face. “I don’t know that I can do this.”
“Ana, you need to be strong. I think you need to call Jennifer, I know you’re close to her and she can help. She can talk to Georgia and work things out for a reading…”.
“Hasn’t Jennifer been through enough?” Ana spat out angrily.
“Honey, you told me that she knows the circumstances. She’s going to understand this.” Rick took her hand again, linking their fingers so she couldn’t pull away. “She’s a strong woman, I’ve known her many years, would you prefer that I call her?”
“No! Thank you, this is my problem and I’ll take responsibility for it.” She sounded stronger than she felt.
“You’re not in this alone, I love you so that makes us a team.” Rick smiled reassuringly.
“And you have a new friend that isn’t going to leave your side until this is resolved. Marcus is always up for an adventure, where does Jennifer live? I hope somewhere nice, he’s been tied up with his work and a little getaway would be good for him.”
“London. It should still be nice at this time of year but the evenings are a little chilly so pack some warm things.” Rick explained.
“Oh lovely! We haven’t been there in over a year. I’ll call Marcus and have him pack to meet us in London, any recommendations on housing, Ana?”
Ana smiled, seeing how both Rick and Lissa were trying to lighten the mood while they talked and made plans, as if they were planning a couples getaway, instead of trying to banish a malevolent spirit. Before Ana could say anything, Rick broke in.
“Actually, knowing Jennifer, she’s going to insist on everyone staying at her home. After Ana calls her, I’ll get on the phone and run by our ideas and dates with her.”
“Oh, I hope she has enough room. I hate to make a hostess feel cramped.” concern filled Lissa’s voice.
Ana started to giggle, “Oh, we won’t be cramping her, she loves people and when I was there, I had my own wing!”
“Your own wing! Does she live in a castle?”
“Not yet!” Ana laughed, then remembering her private conversation with Stavros, didn’t elaborate. “She lives in a beautiful manor and there’s enough room there for a hundred people.”
Lissa returned Ana’s smile and asked questions of Jennifer’s home, excited to be staying in a manor. Their food arrived moments later and as they dove into the delectable meal, they began to form their plan.

CHAPTER NINETEEN
A

fter hugging Lissa goodbye, Rick and Ana went back to the hotel where they had rooms. She felt uncomfortable, being alone with him

because she knew she’d hurt him by shutting him out but didn’t know how to tell him so.
“Rick, about the past few days,” she began.
He pulled her into his arms and silenced her with a kiss. He felt so warm and tasted so sweet, she found herself leaning into his kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. She sighed as he pulled away and searched his face, trying to read his thoughts.
“It’s okay, Ana, I understand. You were scared and confused and didn’t want to lose another man you love.”
She could see he did understand and felt her heart swell with the love she felt for him, it was staggering.
“I do love you, very much and I want to be with you.” Her eyes filled with tears.
“But, you don’t want to be with me until we get this resolved.” he spoke softly.
She nodded, feeling the wetness in her eyes spill over onto her cheeks.
“Then I wouldn’t want it any other way. I want our first time to be beautiful and incredible. I don’t want either of us distracted with concerns of an unexpected and unwanted guest but I don’t think you should be alone tonight. If it’s okay, I’d like to spend the night on your couch, just in case.”
Thrilled at the thought that she wouldn’t have to face the night by herself, she quickly agreed and they went to his room to pack up his things. When they got back to her room, she called Jennifer to explain what was going on. Ana gained even more respect for Jennifer, knowing that she was shocked and probably hurt at her dead father-inlaw’s actions but graciously and eagerly agreed to the reading. She told Ana she would go over to Georgia’s and explain that they needed to have a reading, but would leave out the reason. She was excited about having Lissa and Marcus staying with her but even more excited that Ana was coming back so soon.
As Ana got off the phone, she quickly sent Sally an email explaining that she needed flights booked for her, Rick and Lissa back to London. Even with the time difference, Ana wasn’t surprised to get a phone call from Sally twenty minutes later.
“Ana, I am so sorry! He just showed up here and told me you were in danger and I didn’t know what to do!”
“Sally!” Ana broke in, “it’s okay, I’m glad you did! You’ve been looking out for me and I appreciate it!”
Sally calmed down, relieved that she hadn’t hurt their friendship. They talked about the details and Sally promised to have tickets waiting for them at the airport. She would text the exact times and flights once she had them finalized.
“Thank God for you, Sally! I don’t know what I would’ve done without you this whole time. I owe you, again!” Ana exclaimed thankfully.
“Are you kidding me? This is more exciting than any book I could read or any movie I could watch! But I’m holding you to your girls’ night to fill me in with all the details and Rick still owes me an autograph!” She laughed.
“No problem! And I think I can talk him into getting you front-row seats to his next lecture.” Ana grinned at Rick and felt a thrill run through her when he winked at her.
The ladies wrapped up their conversation and Ana threw herself into Rick’s arms, embracing him with a huge bear hug.
“What is that for, love?” he asked as he wrapped his arms around her.
“Just to let you know how thankful I am that you’re here.” She closed her eyes and relished his warmth and his scent.
“Before we get comfortable, I’d like to do a meditation for protection, I don’t want any unexpected visitors tonight.”
She nodded and sat down on the couch, already comfortable with the words of prayer she had been using the past twenty-four hours. When they finished without any interruption, snuggled up in each other’s arms, talking of the past few days and what they both hoped would happen in the future.
Ana watched Rick yawn for a third time and noticed the dark circles forming under his eyes. “When was the last time you slept?”
“I think it was the day after you left, I’m not sure, time has been running together.”
“Well, let’s get some sleep, we’ll have time to talk on the plane and I’m sure Lissa will have some thoughts on how to proceed also.”
Rick nodded and Ana grabbed a pillow and the extra blanket out of the closet for him. Before she left him, she gave him a lingering kiss, loving and affectionate.
“Goodnight Mr. Montgomery.”
“Goodnight Miss. Cassadine.”
They smiled at each other, both content that they were under the same roof.