Amethyst by Heather Bowhay Read Free Book Online Page B

It’s gonna sound bizarre,
but I’m totally serious here.” She spoke with unusual candor, and her emerald
green eyes pierced right through me. “Do you believe in the power of touch? The
healing power of touch, I mean?”
    Frowning, I
said, “Well…I don’t know. I guess I do now.”
    “What about
before today?”
    “I’ve never
really thought about it that much. But what Blake said about his mom always
making him feel better, I can relate with that. I remember getting bad
headaches when I was a kid, and whenever my mom held my hand, I always felt
better.” I glanced out at the lake where a man and boy were fishing from a
rowboat. All was quiet except for our shoes crunching on the gravel.
    “Good,” Jessica
said, breaking the silence. “I believe that when two people touch there are
unseen positive forces at work. Literally. Did you know medical experts say
touch also lowers blood pressure and relaxes people?”
    “Makes sense,” I
said a little bewildered at our conversation and a lot nervous about where she
was headed. Shadows of tree branches danced on the gravel path as if they were
waving me forward.
    She glanced at
me, and I noticed she was chewing on her bottom lip. “I also believe in the
power of touch as a way to heal or…to restore someone back to health.” I
narrowed my eyes, but she didn’t notice and kept talking. “Like with your mom’s
touch, I think you instantly felt better because she was passing her energy
onto you.”
    “So you’re
saying her touch gave me positive energy and relieved my headache?” I said
hesitantly.
    “Exactly.” She
wound her hair around the tip of her finger, like she was nervous. “But I also
believe that some people can knowingly heal another person – a person
who is seriously injured.”
    Slowing my pace,
I rubbed my forehead. My sweaty palms and spiked heart rate were not from any
physical exertion but rather from an eerie feeling threatening to sweep me off
my feet. I halted in the middle of the trail and turned to face her. She
stopped and looked at me expectantly. “You’re talking about your own special
abilities?” I asked, swallowing hard.
    She busied her
foot moving it around in a circular pattern in the gravel. “Yes,” she said. Her
hand shot to my arm, and she propelled me into a steady gait again. “Blake was
hurt, and I knew I could heal him on the inside, where he might have—”
    “Broken bones?”
I suggested with an edgy tone.
    She nodded
warily. “I go into this meditative frame of mind and focus solely on
transferring my healthy energy through touch.” She clicked her tongue against
the roof of her mouth. “You’re probably flipping out right now – thinking I’m
totally crazy, huh?”
    Kicking a large
rock to the side of the path, I said, “No, I don’t think that. I’m just trying
to take it all in. I mean, yes, I’m shocked. It would all seem so unbelievable
if I hadn’t just witnessed what you did with Blake. I definitely want to know
more, though.” I glanced into the woods and collected my thoughts. I knew I
should be appalled, but with my own ability to see the future, none of this
seemed that unreasonable. “If I’m hearing you right, you’re saying you have an
ability to heal people, and this incident with Blake was not the first time?”
    “Yes,” she said
with conviction.
    I suddenly
remembered an incident at the store. “What about that toddler with the goose
egg on her head a couple weeks ago? The one who was screaming when her dad
brought her up front.”
    Her eyebrows
shot up. “Yes, her too. She actually did have a concussion at first… ”
    “But you took
care of that,” I finished for her. She nodded, and we remained silent. I
realized my heart was pounding more from having met someone else with a unique
ability, rather than from learning about the actual ability.
    After reaching
the north end of the lake, we emerged from the protective cover of the trees
and stepped into the hot sun.