A Twist in the Tale (2011)

Help
from the other side

“Oh
come on, Claire, what harm can it do?”

“I’m
afraid I just don’t believe in all that mumbo jumbo, Sara.”

“But
this one is supposed to be ‘the best’ ‘the real deal’, a genuine psychic medium.

“I
don’t care if he’s a medium, small or large. I’m still not stepping foot in
that place.”

The
next thing I knew Sara’s hand was in the middle of my back thrusting me through
the shop door.

The
waiting room, I suppose you’d call it, was so tiny, a cat would have a hard job
swinging a mouse around in it.  The walls were plastered with pictures of the
medium’s celebrity clientele.

Mystic
M, thanks for all your advice, marriage and work still going strong!
One famous soap-star
had written across her photo.

Mystic
M, changed the wife, the dog and my way of thinking thanks to you.
Was penned at
the bottom of a photo of an actor from a famous TV crime show.

When
I saw the final picture I pointed and nudged Sara. “What do you make of that?”

Before
she could answer, the door on the right was wrenched open and a man I his early
thirties poked his head into the waiting room.

“Ah,
ladies, do you want to have a reading taken together or separately?”

“Together…”
I shouted.

“Separately…”
shouted Sara at the same time.

Daggers
were still shooting from my eyes at her when Mystic M took me by the elbow and
lead me into the dark room he called his ‘inner sanctum.’

“You
appear shocked. I take it you’re not pleased to be here.” Mystic M smiled and
pointed at the chair opposite.

I
sat down with a bump and clutched my handbag in my lap. “It’s just that…” I
paused not knowing what to say without offending him, “well, put it this way, I
wasn’t expecting Mystic M to be a
man
.”

“Oh
I see. You’re one of those women who think only women psychics have a divine
gift to enhance and enrich another person’s life.” He gave me a challenging
smile.

“Not
at all,” I bit back defensively. “Look, I think I’ve made a huge mistake coming
here. I only came to keep my friend company. I’ll send her in now.” I rose from
the table but his hand grabbed my arm.

“I’m
sorry. At least give me a chance. How about I do your reading for half price to
make amends for my rudeness.”

“You
don’t have to do that. Really, it’s nothing personal. I’m just not in the right
frame of mind for all this.”

“I
understand. I get a lot of skeptics through my door. Come on, what harm can it
do? Shuffle the cards, choose three and lay them face down on the table.”

I
sat down again and shuffled the cards almost dropping them at one point because
my hands were shaking so much.

“There’s
no need to be nervous.”  His voice was as sultry as the surroundings.

Huh, easier said than done, mate, you’re the one
with all the answers!

I
placed my chosen cards in front of him. He turned them over one by one, a range
of expressions covering his face. I couldn’t help wondering which card matched
which expression.

Silenced
filled the room for several minutes until I finally asked, “Well?”

“Ah,
I see patience isn’t one of your virtues.”

Cheeky sod.

“Which
card tells you that?” I asked my tone full of sarcasm.

“It
was merely an observation.”

Feeling
like a chastised schoolgirl I waited some more.

“The
upside down ‘death card’.” He paused before he continued. “To put your mind at
ease, the definition of this card simply means a death of a situation.”

I
nod and glance down at the table urging him to say more.

“Past
relationships have been fraught and disillusioning. Am I right?”

Again
I nod and remain focused on the cards.

“I
don’t want to dwell on your past as this card here, the ’full moon’ tells me
that you’ve moved on with your life, even though it’s taken you months to get
over a pointless relationship.”

My
mouth dropped open amazed at the accuracy of his words.

“Interested
now, are you? Do you want me to tell you in which direction your life will go
next?”

His
dark brown eyes sparkle with mischief.

“Go
on.” I urge in excitement.

A
smile stretched across his lips and I find myself mesmerised by its intensity.
Calm
down girl, you’re off men for good, remember? You’ve had your fill of them,
especially the tall, dark and handsome variety.

“You
picked this card here for your future ‘the sheep’ it tells me that you’re about
to bump into the man of your dreams. He’ll be caring and considerate and tall,
dark and handsome to boot…”

“Hmm…A
wolf in sheep’s clothing then, just like all the others,” I muttered with
contempt. 

“There’s
more, the card also indicates you have a maternal instinct crying out to be
fulfilled and two children will shortly come your way.”

“What?
That’s it, I’ve had enough of this baloney. For your information I
can’t
have children.”

“I’m
sorry but the cards are never wrong. Please, will you let me know
when
my premonition comes true?”

“
If,
any of it comes true, you mean. Sure, I’ll let you know,” I said marching
for the door.

We
left about an hour later after Sara’s reading.

That
night I tossed and turned, unable to push aside the happy pictures of me
strolling along with a handsome bloke on my arm and a couple of kids in tow.

I
woke up resembling a zombie and found myself daydreaming in the car on the way
to work. That was until I smashed into the car in front of me.

I
got out of my car and rushed to see if the driver of the vehicle was injured.
“I’m so sorry…YOU!”

Rubbing
his neck the driver said, “Hello, Claire, fancy bumping into you.”

“I
think you’ll find that’s the other way round.”

“Accidents
will happen.
Bumped
into
any other tall, dark handsome men since
yesterday?” Mystic M asked looking amused.

His
words sent my head spinning.
You’re about to bump into a kind, considerate,
tall, dark and handsome guy.

I’m
sure mind-reader could also be added to extraordinary powers because he was
nodding and smiling at me. “That’s right, our meeting was written in the
cards.”

“You what?”

“I
saw you involved in a car crash with a man driving a red BMW, and that…” He
pointed over his shoulder at his red sports car. “I believe is a red BMW. Oh
and by the way, I also have two children. Gemma six and Todd aged four. So how
about it then?”

“
How about what?” I asked floored by his
question.

He
laughed. “How about a dinner date, you never know what destiny has mapped out
for you. The M stands for Matthew by the way, Mystic Matthew.”

Well,
who am I to argue with destiny?

Lunchtime
Grilling

“Meet
me at Luciano’s at one o’clock on Friday.” The voice ordered before hanging up.

No
please or will you, just be there. Great, well that’s something to look forward
to then, not.

That
was a couple of days ago. Here I am, nervous and tired due to lack of sleep. The
curiosity factor had been too great to ignore.

We
spot each other as soon as I enter the restaurant, she signals for me to join
her with a dainty hand, dripping in jewellery. She’d chosen a quiet table for
two tucked away in the corner.

So
this was Dan’s wife. Unrecognisable from the way he’d described her. Mind you,
that made sense I supposed, how would any man describe ‘the wife’ to his
mistress of five years?

“Hello,
Karen, please take a seat.” Her smile stretches tight across perfect white
teeth.

Close
up her beauty astounds me. With an unsteady hand I pull out the chair opposite
her and lower myself into it.

This
was certainly no dowdy housewife as Dan had claimed. Sophistication radiates
from every pore or was it all an act?

I
feel cheap in comparison dressed in my boot-legged jeans and plunging top.

“I’m
so pleased you agreed to meet me. I must admit I had my doubts whether you’d
turn up or not.” The words tumbled from her sultry red painted lips.

I
feel thrown off balance. I’d expected to meet a feral cat ready to scratch my
eyes out.

“Why?
I mean, why did you want to see me?”

“Curiosity…and
to set the record straight,” she said her brilliant blue eyes burning like a
branding iron into mine. Her gaze didn’t waiver as she sipped her wine.

Dan
had neglected to tell me his wife was aware of our affair.
How long had she
known?

“Is
Dan aware that you’re meeting me?” I asked.

“Why
would I bother letting him know a little fact like that?” she retorted before
adding, “Does he know that
you’re
meeting
me
?”

Touché!

“No.
I’ll tell him the next time we meet.”

She
laughs softly. “And when is that likely to be, may I ask?”

Feeling
like I was knee deep in a metre hole I thought, the truth is I never know when
our next rendezvous will be. I’ve been at his beck and call since the day we
met, five long years ago. The minute he calls my mobile I drop everything to
grab a few special moments with him.

My
friends got tired of me long ago.

Her
placid nature flummoxes me and I nervously scan the room hoping for someone to
rescue me.