Chapter 4
It was sultry, hot and humid down in New Orleans. Gabriel took a drink of sweet tea to wash down the greasy catfish he was eating. Michelle would have been proud of him for trying something new.
“You’re thinking of your wife aren’t you?”
Gabriel nodded as he wiped his mouth on a soiled napkin. “Yeah, how’d you know?”
“I can feel it.” Suriya smiled at him the way a teacher smiles at a slow student. “All matter is really energy condensed to a slow vibration Gabriel. If you are in tune to the vibrations you can tell what people are thinking or feeling. Your wife was exceptionally good at feeling the vibrations. She was a very sensitive woman.”
“Yeah, she was always helping other people out.”
“No." Suriya shook her head. "You misunderstand me. She was sensitive to the vibrations. Bastiaan had big plans for Michelle. She was one of his most promising and successful students. You should be very proud of her.”
Gabriel threw the remains of his meal in the trash. It landed with a dull thud. “I still don’t get it. How’d she get mixed up with someone like him?”
A pert nose wrinkled as Suriya examined her fuschia fingernails. “This isn't easy to explain Gabriel. Michelle was..., your wife was searching. She was searching for answers and meaning."
The wall behind the woman was as blank as Gabriel's mind. More and more he was regretting his impromptu trip to this battered and forlorn city. "She never told me any of this. I still find it hard to believe that she could have kept something like this from me." He sighed and leaned against the stack of impersonal hotel pillows. Seated across from him Suriya felt a wave of empathy run through her. Her voice was soft when she spoke. "You must understand Gabriel. Life is as you know it but it operates on many levels above and beyond what you would call your consciousness. Certain people are able to travel in between these levels. Essentially time becomes a loop. At your level very little energy is needed to exist but at Bastiaan's level..., the higher up you go the more energy you need. Energy is all around but it is not always readily available. People like Bastiaan collect people like Michelle to help them find objects that give off higher levels of energy. My previous master does not agree with the practice of using others. To your people Bastiaan is a very powerful healer but to us he is not playing the game by the rules. Right now, you think of your wife as dead but in reality she exists on a lower energy level than your own.”
Sitting across from Suriya Gabriel felt more confused than ever. None of this made any sense to him. “Can I see her or talk to her somehow?”
Suriya held his fetish up. The thin strip of leather fell across her delicate hand. “Not right now. I would like to help but you must trust me. Bastiaan…”
"Fuck Bastiaan. How could my wife have been a student of his?"
Delicate hands started massaging his shoulders. Against his will Gabriel let Suriya's unfamiliar fingers work their individual magic. It was almost as if he couldn't move. There was something hypnotic about this woman and her words. "Try and understand Gabriel. Your wife was very troubled. I'm not trying to pick a fight but after you bought that car..., Michelle was worried about you and the way you spend money. She didn't understand why that car was so important to you. You spent more time out in the garage fixing things on the car than you did with her. Michelle went to Bastiaan because she was depressed and traditional methods of fixing things had failed. Drugs aren't always the answer you know."
The wall in front of him made Gabriel want to smash his hand into it. "She should have told me. Her brother's a mechanic. He does a lot of custom body work. Before Michelle and I started going out she used to help her brother tinker with things. That's how we met. I took my car in to get it fixed. That was the same car I had back then. Michelle and I used to drive around together." There was a lost look in the back of his eyes. "I just don't get it. I don't understand any of this shit going down here."
The hands on his back were calming. Long fingers dug into tight muscles. "Bastiaan is trying to help reconnect you with Michelle."
"How do I know I can trust him? Michelle trusted him to help her out and now she's dead."
Suriya's fingers moved to the side of his neck. The energy transfer required a tremendous amount of effort but the man in front of her needed it more than she did. Warmth that had nothing to do with the massage flowed through Gabriel. Suriya swayed slightly before regaining her equilibrium. "My former master sent me to guide you Gabriel. He and Bastiaan had a falling out. My previous master does not believe that Michelle should have been made an acolyte but Bastiaan disagreed with him. I'm sorry for your loss. We'll do everything we can to help you."
"Like what?"
Despite the heat of the room Suriya was chilled. She knew she couldn't last much longer but she forced herself to remain calm for Gabriel's sake. He had been through a lot in the past couple of days. "We are also on a mission Gabriel. The wise man uses his enemies to further his knowledge but know this; knowledge is not power; it is power's prelude. Self-knowledge is what you seek Gabriel. When you know yourself your mission will be clear."
Gabriel felt a headache developing behind his right eye. The pain made it hard to concentrate. “How do I know I can trust you?”
“I told you to go to New Orleans and you went. When you had questions I told you what I was able to. Crossing the levels requires a tremendous amount of energy. My reserves have been depleted by all the transfers I have undergone recently. I have been freed by my master but my freedom has come at a price. Now I must seek out my own energy sources. Previously we shared. You must choose Gabriel. If you choose Bastiaan..., I am not denying that he can help you. But the help may come at a price that you are unwilling to pay. Keep that in mind. There are questions to ask yourself on the way to self discovery. Ask yourself. Ask others. That is my counsel. Never stop asking. I believe that you can see Michelle but it will come at a great cost to yourself and others. It may be best to let her energy remain undisturbed. I am sorry but I must leave now.”
“But…”
Even as he spoke a tiny wisp of smoke wrapped around his hand. Before her grip had been iron. Now it was barely discernable. Her face was serene and calm although she was rapidly disintegrating. Condensation dripped down Gabriel's glass. He took another drink and swore as her image faded leaving him alone with his phone and Bastiaan's number.
To be continued...