Yes, I remember now. I’m connected to Leela by a soul thread. I have a role to play, but…I’m not sure what that is, and Priti has no clue either. All she can tell me is that my death was untimely. That I should have lived many more years and that my destiny has yet to be fulfilled.
The tower moves closer. Literally.
I come to a halt, my pulse pounding.
“It’s all right,” Priti says. “The Waystation is reacting to my presence. Come on.” She reaches for my hand. I allow her to take it and lead me through the dark doorway into the white stone building.
One blink and we’re in what looks like a tavern. There are people sitting at wooden tables drinking and eating. A bar stretches along the far end of the room, and I smell food. Real food.
“Priti, what is this place?”
“It’s called a Hearth. Every in-between pocket has one. Nature’s way of providing comfort to the lost. Not every spirit can find it, though. But you would have…eventually.”
“I climbed into a forgetting tree.”
“You would have woken up. It isn’t in your nature to stay asleep, Pashim. You would have seen her in your dreams, and you would have woken up. Your destiny is too strong.”
“What is it? My destiny?”
She shrugs. “No idea. Come along.” She leads me to the bar, where a young woman with long, dark hair is wiping down the surfaces. The air behind her shimmers now and then.
Priti approaches her with a smile. “Hello, Kumarali.”
The woman looks up with a smile. “Oh, hello, dear. Do I know you?”
Priti shakes her head. “No, but I know of you. We have someone we love in common.”
The woman frowns slightly. “I…I’m not sure who you mean. I…” She presses a hand to her chest, her frown deepening a little before it melts. “What can I get you?”
Priti smiles softly. “Two of the house specials, please.”
“All right, dear. Find a seat, and I’ll bring the food over.”
We pick a table close to the bar, and Priti sits so she has view of it.
“Priti, what’s going on? Who’s that woman?”
She sighs. “You’re not the only soul I came to fetch. She’s another whose life may not have been cut short but who I refuse to leave here a moment longer.” Her gaze drifts to mine and locks. “That woman is Leela’s grandmother, and we’re taking her with us when we leave.”
Supper isa filling meal of meat stew and soft bread rolls. How can I feel full like this when I have no body to fill? I’m dead.
“You need to stop thinking of yourself as dead,” Priti says, sipping her tea.
I look up from my half-full bowl. “Then what should I think of myself as?”
She tips her head to the side with a smile. “A free soul. One that is no longer trapped in the cage of flesh. Well…not unless you choose to be again.”
“Reincarnation?”
“It’s an option. There are many options now that I’ve taken over from Yama.” Her gaze flicks to the bar where Leela’s grandmother is speaking to another free soul.
“Why does she remember her name but doesn’t remember Leela?”
“Because she’schosento forget,” Priti says. “It’s different for every free soul. Some remember everything about their mortal lives, and others forget over time. Somechooseto forget aspects, and others cling to pain. There are choices even on this side of the veil that serve to shape us. Free will is eternal. Well…mostly.” She shrugs and sips her tea.
“And you learned all this as soon as you died?”
“Most of the information was just…there. Waiting for me to access it. There’s a lot of knowledge. I can feel it. But it comes forward when a question is asked.” She looks to the bar once again. “Leela’s nani looks…happy.”
