Baton Rogue, Louisiana
United States of America
Planet: Earth
Galaxy: Average
Jake Stafford stared silently at his mother’s corpse as she lay in the silver casket. He couldn’t bring himself to cry. It wasn’t that he didn’t love her. She was a good mother, and his heart was filled with an indescribable loneliness. But something was bothering him. Before she drew her last breath, she’d whispered, “Forgive me.”
“For what?” he’d asked her, holding her hand.
She’d been pale and abnormally thin in her hospital bed. The cancer that raged through her body had beat the chemotherapy treatments. A single tear had fallen from her eye. She’d tried to speak, to reveal a secret she had kept from him, but she never got the chance. The flat line on the heart monitor told him all he needed to know. He wouldn’t get his answer.
A chill ran up his spine as he pushed the memory from his mind. He slowly walked away from the casket. He figured he should be relieved she didn’t get to reveal her transgression. Even so, he couldn’t ignore the impending sense of doom that hovered over him.
His entire world was about to change, and he didn’t have any idea how or why. He sat next to his father and tried to pay attention as the pastor gave the eulogy, but he couldn’t concentrate.
After the funeral, he and his father were summoned to his mother’s lawyer’s office.
“Good afternoon, Clark. Jake,” Tom Jenkins said. “I’m sorry about your loss. Jennifer was a wonderful woman.”
“Thank you,” Jake’s father said.
They sat across from the lawyer.
Tom cleared his throat. “This is awkward. I didn’t come here to read you the will. I will be doing that tomorrow.”
Jake held his breath, his heart pounding in his chest. This had something to do with his mother’s secret. He just knew it. He forced himself to remain calm as Tom opened his mother’s file, aware of his father’s tension. Had she asked him for forgiveness, too?
“Jennifer said I was to wait until the funeral to give you this letter,” Tom told them as he pulled out a sealed envelope from her file. “I don’t know what’s in it. It’s addressed to both of you. Would you like me to leave you two alone so you can read it?”
Clark glanced at Jake uneasily.
Jake shook his head. “I can’t read it.” Something deep inside screamed at him to leave the room. He didn’t have to hear the letter’s contents. He could refuse and live his life never knowing what his mother’s transgression was. But he was thirty years old. He was an adult. His mother hadn’t been perfect. He was going to have to deal with the facts of whatever it was she had done, and if she took the time to write the letter, then it was important he find out what it was. “I’ll listen,” he finally added.
Clark shifted in his seat. “I’ll read it.” He glanced at Tom. “We’d like to be alone.”
“I will leave the room so you two can have your privacy,” Tom said as he handed Clark the envelope.
Once the door to the office was closed, Clark opened the envelope and unfolded a single piece of paper. He scanned through the contents of the letter, his face white. Glancing up at Jake, he warned, “This isn’t good news.”
“I gathered as much,” Jake sourly noted.
Clark cleared his throat and began reading the letter:
To my beloved husband and son,
It is with deep regret I write this. I often struggled on whether it was best to keep quiet. Surely, it would be easier to let things continue as they are, but I would cheat Jake out of his inheritance if I failed to tell the truth. Thirty-one years ago, I dated a young man by the name of William Nichols while I was dating Clark. Clark knew I was seeing William, but what he didn’t know was that I got pregnant with William’s child. Upon telling William, he refused to have anything to do with me. I was scared so I talked Clark into eloping.
Clark, I did not love you in the beginning of our marriage, but over time, I not only grew to love you but I also grew to think of you as my best friend. I am sorry for not being honest with you. Many times I wanted to reveal the truth, but I was afraid you’d leave me, as you would be right to do. In my selfishness, I kept my sin to myself.
About twenty-four years ago, I received a letter in the mail from William’s attorney. In it, I learned Jake was the sole beneficiary of his will. I had assumed that William forgot all about me and his child, but he didn’t. I wouldn’t even bother with the contents of the will, except I discovered William was worth $130 million. I never touched this money. It is in his bank account, and Jake is the joint-owner of it. Jake, the money is yours at a bank in Cincinnati, Ohio. The information you will need to access your account is below. Please forgive me, Clark and Jake. It was never my intention to hurt either one of you, but I fear it is unavoidable. My only hope is that over time, you will find it in your hearts to forgive me. I love you both.
Signed,
Jennifer Stafford
Jake felt numb as the man whom he thought was his father handed the letter to him. He mutely took it, barely seeing the details of the bank account. In a matter of minutes, his entire world had crumbled down on him.
“We should get to the burial,” Clark softly stated as he stood up.
“Are you kidding?”
“She is your mother.”
“But you’re not my father.” In his anger, he crumpled the letter in his hand.
“Biologically, no. But I will always think of you as my own son.”
Jake stood up, not believing what he was hearing. “How can you want to go to her burial after learning about this? She betrayed you. She lied to both of us.”
“I know. It will take time to work through forgiving her. Today, at least, we should honor her memory.”
“No. I’m not going.”
Clark looked as if he was ready to argue but stopped. “You are free to make your own decisions. Just keep in mind that forgiving her is the best thing you can do for yourself. It’s not good to spend your life filled with anger and resentment.”
Jake watched as Clark left the room. He marveled at Clark’s calm demeanor in this situation. Too bad he couldn’t imitate it. The rage filling him was intense, and there was only one way he could safely release it. He grabbed his car keys and headed for the gym where he worked. He needed time to think things through before he acted.
***
Throne Room
Planet: Raz
Two days later, Katherine was having a difficult time deciding what she most wanted to do on Raz. Now that she knew her sister was the queen, she had to choose another vocation. In fact, it was this very matter that made her come to the Throne Room to consult the Great Magician.
When Katherine saw Amanda enter the room, she groaned. Amanda was the last person she wanted to see right now.
“Hi, Kathy!” Amanda cheerfully greeted.
She rolled her eyes. She always hated that nickname. What made it worse was seeing Amanda wearing her new diamond crown and elegant, long green dress that accentuated her curvy figure. Amanda looked every bit the queen, she sourly noted.
“What are you doing here?” Amanda asked.
“Oh, nothing much. Just waiting to see the Great Magician.”
“I’d be more than happy to help you find a husband.”
Katherine gave her a sharp look. “That’s not what I wanted to see him for!”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“Well, you did.” Katherine didn’t know what bothered her more. Amanda’s insinuation that she needed help finding a man or the fact that she was trying to be so nice about it.
Amanda stood quietly by her sister for a moment. “I wish you lots of luck,” she finally said before going to her purple throne and sitting down.
Katherine grudgingly watched her sister as she adjusted the hair around her shoulders. Didn’t Amanda look perfect enough already?
Matthew walked into the room and handed Amanda a list. “Try to be fair with each of your suitors,” he said.
“Of course, I’ll be fair.” She laughed. “But I will only marry someone I love. I want the kind of marriage our parents have.”
Katherine growled softly to herself. She should have realized Amanda would have a list of men wanting to marry her. It was bad enough to deal with this before she was declared queen, but now it was unbearable. If Katherine hadn’t been so determined to see the Great Magician, she would have left the room.
Matthew went to call in the first suitor.
Katherine’s anger swelled when she realized it was Coyno, the one young man on Raz she had had a crush on since she was a teenager. She’d thought there was a chance he might actually like her, too, but obviously, she was wrong. She should have realized he didn’t care enough about her to marry her when he never proposed. She shook her head, feeling like a complete idiot.
Coyno bowed before Amanda, who giggled.
The Great Magician opened the door to the Grand Oak Room and motioned for Katherine to enter.
Relieved, she hurried into the other room. She sat down on the comfortable large brown chair he motioned to.
“Princess Katherine, what can I do for you today?” he asked, his blue eyes young despite his ancient appearance.
“Now that I know I won’t be queen, I don’t know what to do,” she confessed as she rubbed her hands together uneasily.
He nodded and took out his crystal ball. “You have been prepared to rule Raz since you were a child. It is understandable you find yourself at a crossroads.”
She held her breath as he gazed into the crystal ball. This was it. The answer was in that ball. Soon, she’d know what to do with the rest of her life. His eyes became the same milky white color that the ball did.
When the ball went back to its clear color, his eyes resumed their natural blue color. He set the ball down and sat across from her. “What you require does not exist on Raz.”
Her eyebrows furrowed. “Are you saying there is no place for me?”
“No, I did not say that. I said your destiny is not here on Raz. You are meant to be somewhere else.”
She struggled to comprehend the meaning of his words. “How can this be? I grew up here. This is all I know.”
“If I reveal the details to you, I will take the thrill out of the adventure you are about to embark on. I don’t wish to do that to you.”
“Adventure? I thought only the queen and king participated in such things.”
“On this planet, that is true. There are many more planets out there.” With a grin, he patted her shoulder. “It’ll work out. Don’t you worry.”
She realized that she wasn’t going to get anything else from him, so she thanked him and left. She sighed. Why couldn’t he have given her a hint? Would it have been too much to at least tell her which planet she should go to?
“Hello, Katherine,” Coyno called to her as she headed toward the exit of the Throne Room.
As much as she didn’t want to, she found herself glancing in his direction. He was walking away from Amanda. She frowned, sensing his reason for suddenly taking an interest in her.
Matthew was letting in Amanda’s next suitor. She wasn’t surprised to see Reyno, for he had often made his attraction to Amanda known.
“Would you like to go for a walk?” Coyno asked Katherine when he reached her.
“No,” she replied, her cheeks burning with anger. “And I don’t appreciate being second best to my sister.”
“Oh…ah…” he stammered, his face red from embarrassment. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Then don’t say anything. Amanda’s not interested in you so you might as well leave.” She knew her tone was rude, but she didn’t care. She didn’t want to waste her time with anyone who would choose Amanda over her. It was just one more slap in the face that she didn’t need.
“Yes. Well, I’m sorry,” he said before he left.
Matthew, having witnessed the scene from afar, came up to her. “Are you doing alright?”
“Oh really, Reyno. You’re too much.” Amanda laughed from across the room.
“Can we at least get out of this room?” Katherine asked.
“Amanda will talk to him for awhile. She always did enjoy his attention,” Matthew replied.
As they departed from the room, she grunted at the long line of suitors who eagerly waited to see Amanda. “This is disgusting,” she muttered, growing more frustrated every minute.
“The den is clear. We’ll talk in there,” he said.
On the way there, they bumped into Cara, who was a couple years younger than him.
“Hi, Matthew,” Cara said, blushing.
He nodded politely. “Hi.”
“I was just coming to take this message to you. It’s for Queen Amanda.” Cara handed him the piece of paper. “Hi, Katherine.”
Katherine smiled and nodded to her.
“Is it urgent?” Matthew asked, not bothering to read it.
“No. It’s just a request from the Olympians. They want Queen Amanda to be their guest for a few days to celebrate her good fortune.”
“I’ll give this to her when she’s done with her current business.”
“Thank you. I’ll see you later then.” She smiled at him as if she was hoping for something more.
But Matthew, either oblivious to the hopeful look in her eyes or not caring, said, “Okay. Have a good day.”
Cara seemed slightly disappointed but graciously turned and walked back to where her parents worked.
“She’s not going to give up on you until you get married,” Katherine warned as they walked into the den.
“I know,” he groaned. “She’s a great person, but I just don’t like her that way.”
“I understand her situation. Poor girl.” She sat on the couch in front of the fireplace.
“I’ve never led her on. It’s not like I flirted with her like Amanda does with all the men.”
Katherine liked Cara a lot and thought it would be nice if Matthew married her, but it wasn’t her decision so she kept quiet. Cara was the daughter of Kent and Stacey Russell who came to live on Raz after one of her mother’s many adventures as queen. Her mother led such an exciting life, and now Amanda would, too. Katherine wished she didn’t envy Amanda so much.
“Did the magician find a suitable job for you?” Matthew asked as he sat next to her.
“Yes, I think,” she answered. When she noticed his questioning look, she explained, “He wouldn’t tell me anything specific because then it would ruin the fun of finding out what I am meant to do, but he did say I’m meant to be on another planet.”
“Wow. That could mean almost anything.”
“That’s the problem. And he didn’t say when I would find out either.”
They were silent for a moment.
“That is good news,” he finally said.
She furrowed her eyebrows. “How do you figure that?”
“You won’t have to live in Amanda’s shadow anymore,” he replied. “If you’re on another planet, you won’t be compared to her.”
“That’s true. I hadn’t thought of it that way. It would be nice to be appreciated for who I am for a change.”
Any place free of Amanda had to be a good place to be. Suddenly, she felt much better than she had in a long time.