I drove almost home noticing the one road on the left, the one that Isaiah had taken me on. I turned and drove all the way into the small town passing the sign 'Welcome to Shady Grove'. I stopped at the small store with the deli and got out. The air was silently still. The place looked like a ghost town, no one in sight. I walked in and immediately felt eyes burning into my soul. The old woman was there and she greeted me by taking my hand and guiding me over to where she had been sitting. I looked around for Isaiah, but he was not there and why would he be.

"Sit down my child." The old gray-headed lady had requested; her voice raw and hoarse like. We sat at a table with two empty cups sitting on little saucers.

"I was looking for Isaiah; has he been around today?" I had asked, looking around eyeing the others that were trying so hard not to look my way.

"He may come in a little later, dear." She patted my hand. "While you're here, do you care if I read your soul?"

"I.....I .....guess it would be alright." I stuttered. "No one has ever asked to do that before." I was stunned by the request. She had the old man from behind the counter to bring us some hot tea. He walked over and poured us both a cup. Steam rose from each cup. She proceeded to place a few tiny leaves in my cup. They swirled around becoming moist in the liquid.

"Go ahead my child, take a few sips, breath in the steam." Her voice now so smooth, translucent and calm. "Let your muscles relax," she chanted.

I did as I was told. I took a small sip, then breathed in the steam, taking another sip. The tea was herbal, with a touch of mint. I sat the cup down in front of me. She took it in her hands and pulled it closer to her, looking in. She looked a little confused at first, then gave a slight smile. Her eyes grew wide. They looked as if they had been dilated now; the pupils so big and black.

"So what is the verdict?" I asked.

"Elita, I see you have been through a lot in your lifetime. Your visions are so true, you should follow them. I'm sorry for the loss of your so to speak family, however you will be surprised of what is in store for you. You have a great talent, a power that some wish they had; you just need to learn how to use it." She paused for a second and then asked, "Can I ask Elita, do you have a birthmark?"

Who is 'Elita' and how would this lady know that I have a birthmark? I never show it to anyone. The only one who has seen it is Andrea and Jake and of course my parents, but other than that no one knows about it. It was rather ugly and big, somewhat unusual. It went from the middle of my lower back over to my side. If you looked really close there was a weird imprint in it, as if it was a secret code, a message of some kind. Maybe that was one of the signs that I should have been looking for. I looked at her suspiciously. "Yes, I have a birthmark, who doesn't."

"May I see it?"

I hesitated, "Why?"

Just then the door opened and Isaiah was standing in the doorway. Practically pushing his way between the table and chairs he grabbed me from the table. "What are you doing here?" He scolded.

"I was driving back home and thought maybe you would be here." I tried to pull my arm away from him, but he held on firmly. Blood pumped hard towards the pinched area between his fingers.

"You shouldn't be here." He looked over to the older lady. "Why are you reading her soul?" he demanded to know as he picked up the cup and dumped it on the table. The tea formed a small puddle and started to run off the edge of the table.

"She said I could......she's the one Isaiah." She hissed at him, with squinting eyes.

I looked around the room then. I could feel all eyes upon me, burning a hole right through me. Suddenly I felt like I didn't belong there, yet a part of me wanted to stay so bad. How awkward is that? Isaiah pulled me, practically dragging me out of the store, letting the door slam behind us.

"Get in the car!" He ordered.

He didn't give me a time to ask questions.

"Get in. Follow me." He went and got into his Camaro. I followed him out of the town, passing the sign 'Now leaving Shady Grove Ya'll come back soon,' and onto a back road about ten miles out. He came to a stop and got out. I got out behind him, stomping my feet hard into the ground, with one hand on my hip, the other hand pointed directly towards him.

"What was that all about?" My face steamed with heat.

I could see the steam come up from his body and out his ears. He shook his head at me. "What the hell were you doing there?"

I didn't realize that it would be such a big deal. "Looking for you," I said, although that really wasn't the real reason, but he didn't have to know the whole truth. Did he?

"You have no business going there, at least not by yourself."

"I can handle myself, Isaiah." I stepped back rolling my eyes. "Who is the woman?" I wanted him to tell me because I heard her say that I was the one. How does she know me? Why did she call me Elita? Does she have something to do with the woman in my dreams?

"You don't want to know. If only you knew what you were getting yourself into."

I threw both hands on my hips now. "Which is?"

"Just drop it Shayla; what did you want?"

I can't believe he was acting this way. "Nothing, just forget it. I gotta get back therapy starts in about an hour. I can't be late." I got back into my car and drove off throwing my hand in the air.

An hour later I was sitting in the circle. My sessions for therapy have reduced to once a month. Although after today it may need to increase again. We were fifteen minutes into the session when Isaiah decided to join the group. His eyes were still lucid. There was something a little different about him, as if he had just taken something to calm him down. He sat and listened mostly, not saying a word. He couldn't take his eyes off of me.

During the break, I walked out of the room. When I came back in he was talking with Dr. Givens. We didn't have time to talk with each other. The group came back together and I sat across from him, because I just couldn't bare to have him next to me for the moment. Dr. Givens glanced over at me and then back at him.

"So, Shayla, did you have a nice week off from school?" she asked.

"I guess."

"I hear you had some friends to come and visit you for the week, how was that?" She asked as she started taking notes on her pad.

I knew Isaiah had told her about the week, maybe all of this was just because I had ignored him for the week. But it wasn't my fault, not entirely; he was the one who left me in town. He was the one who was acting like a spoiled little brat, that didn't want to share me. "It was nice to see my best friend. It was also difficult to let go a part of my past."

"Why did you go back to the accident, Shayla? Why did you take them there?" she questioned.

How could she possible know that? How would Isaiah even know about that? He must have followed me throughout the week. Was he stalking me now? I was flabbergasted about the thought of her, of him even knowing about it. I started to stutter, "How....how did you....I....I...just thought they would want to know what happened. So I took them by there."

"How did it feel to tell them?"

"It was hard, but I have to face reality...." I paused and then glanced up at Isaiah. "I'm sorry for ignoring you this week. You are a good friend and you should have been with me. I didn't know Jake was coming."

"You kissed him, he kissed you back. You still have feelings for him, or you did." Isaiah spat out.

He had to see us that night as well as the day we spent in the woods. He had to have seen us kissing. But how? Where was he? Why didn't I see him? "How do you know that I kissed him? Isaiah you have been watching me this whole week haven't you?" A part of me was angry, mad. How could he? Why would he be following me? "Why are you spying on me?"

"Why did he hurt you?" He changed the subject.

"He didn't hurt me." I protested, taking up for Jake.

"Really. Why did you leave the hotel crying? You were crying so hard, I wanted to hold you. What did he do to you?"

I was stunned. "I will not talk about this here, not here Isaiah besides it is none of your business it's not like you own me and it's not like we have something happening between us. You're not my boyfriend and at the moment you are not my friend period."

"Why not Shayla? Why can't we talk about this now," he demanded. "You go into my hometown looking for me. Prying your little nose into things that you know nothing about," his voice now becoming so harsh to my ears. "You could have gotten hurt."

"Like how am I going to get hurt?"

Dr. Givens could not help but notice the tension between us. "Let's talk about this after the meeting, shall we."

Ten minutes later, everyone was gone. Dr. Givens sat down between us. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing, forget it." I said. I was now boiling inside like an over cooked boiled egg. How could he possibly know everywhere I was? How could he see me?

Isaiah bulked up, almost out of his chair. "Oh! So it's nothing is it? I know what you're up to. What I don't understand is why?"

"Isaiah you need help. I don't think stalking me is helping either one of us." I stood up inches from his face. "Maybe you can help him," I asked Dr. Givens.

"I just wanted to make sure that you were alright. What did he do to you, anyway?" He stepped back.

"Nothing." I rolled my eyes. I could tell that he wouldn't go for it. "Really nothing. I wanted him so badly, but his heart belongs elsewhere. I need to find her." I changed the subject. "I don't expect for you to understand it. All I know is to follow the signs. Something told me to turn down that road this morning. Something told me to go into the café. I knew the woman was going to read my soul. I dreamed about it a few nights ago. She called me Elita though; she said that I was the one. What did she mean by it Isaiah?"

"I don't know. Maybe you shouldn't believe old women that are on the verge of dying." He tried not to look at me, as if he knew what I was thinking. "Maybe she thinks that we are made for each other, who knows?" He stood and left the room, refusing to answer my questions.

But I knew that there was something more. I knew that the woman saw something in the cup of tea. However, Isaiah interrupted us; it was like he knew that she was going to tell me something. Maybe he knew all about it and if he did why didn't he want me to find out.

"So what really happened between you and Jake?" Dr. Givens asked.

"I felt so safe with him. I felt like I could forget everything. I wanted him. I needed him. It was just a feeling. I got caught up in the moment, a fantasy. I would have given it all to him, but he pushed me away. He doesn't love me the way he did before. It hurt. I knew he had moved on but to visually, emotionally feel it. It hurt. We are two different people now. It is completely over, so how do I go about finding the woman?"

"I don't know. Try to dream of her again. When you see her ask her."

That sounded so simple, if only it was that easy.

***

I dreamed of her that night. But she was not in the old house where I usually see her. She was outside somewhere walking back and forth. She was arguing with an older lady. It was the woman in the deli, the one who read my soul. They knew each other. 'I just wanted to give her a better life.'

'I could have given her the life she needed. She belongs here, not there where they will never understand her. They are not like us Kamilah.'

'I know but at least she will be able to have a normal life.'

'Normal, how could you think that? She is going to be left out, different. How could you just give her away? She has the power; she can change our lives, Kamilah.'

'I couldn't keep her here. I know what you have planned for her. She deserves more than that.'

'Fine, have it your way. I will get Elita back though. She will return back home. I will make sure of it.' She walked over to a shelf and pulled out a book and started to chant a verse. Maybe it was a curse, a spell of some kind of wickedness. She left the room, forgetting to put the book back. A few minutes later, I was in a field. The woman from my dreams was burying a book. She stopped and looked up at me.

'It's here, search the area and you will find it. Go back home, find this old house. The book is buried about twenty feet from the back door, just under the evergreen tree and the black lilies. It is my journal. This will help you in more ways than one. Now go.' She disappeared in the moonlight just as she had entered my life.