Judgment (Game of Lords Book 3), page 29
Next up the steps came Christopher. “Hey girls, how’s everyone . . . Hey Katie, how are you?”
Katie was thrilled and scared at the same time. “Hi Christopher,” she said cheerfully, trying to act as calm as possible.
She stayed seated in one of the deck chairs and stayed there the rest of the afternoon, watching as her friends jumped in and out of the water, flirting with the boys. Katie kept up a brave smile, even though she felt left out.
As the afternoon waned, Christopher said to her, “Katie, why don’t you come in?”
Katie couldn’t relax. She was too terrified to take her glasses off and terrified he would notice her curved spine. “Oh, thanks Christopher, I just don’t feel that great today.”
She did not get out of her chair the rest of the afternoon. Mercifully, as the sun began its descent into late afternoon, the boys left.
As she walked home she sighed, then started to cry. I missed my chance to talk to Christopher. I could have had fun with him today.
She was beginning to feel desperate and prayed as she walked. “Oh God, please help me. I want to be normal. I am so tired of feeling ugly and having to hide. Please help me, please?”
But the help that Katie wanted was not going to come. For reasons known only to God she was one who had to endure a lifetime of suffering. She held on to hope, though. There was still time for her to find the love she dreamed of. High school was next and Katie imagined it would be the most exciting time of her life.
Chapter 8
A week into the school year a new development in her escalating disability surfaced. While walking to school, Katie noticed that it was difficult to lift her right leg. By late September she was slightly dragging her right leg behind her as she walked. There was no way to hide this. It was out in the open for everyone to see. Inside, Katie was in a rapid downward spiral.
Bridget caught up with Katie in the hallway after lunch. “Katie, did you see the flyer for the school dance?”
Katie saw the flyer but she wasn’t planning on going. “Yes, I did. Are you going, Bridget?”
Bridget took on a commander’s face and said, “Going? Of course, WE are going.”
Katie protested, “Bridget, I can’t go. My leg and . . . I just don’t feel comfortable.”
“Listen, Katie, it’s up to you, but I think we should go together. It will be fun!”
Katie thought for a moment. “Okay, I’ll go.”
Bridget came over the afternoon of the dance and helped Katie get ready. She put on a pretty yellow dress and then slipped on the new yellow shoes her mother bought for her. Bridget ran down the steps first, to call Katie’s parents.
“Mr. & Mrs. Donelon, Katie is ready.”
They came to the bottom of the steps and waited with Bridget for Katie to come down.
As she rounded the corner of the landing, Mr. Donelon was the first to speak. “Oh, Katie, you look beautiful.”
Her mom, fighting back a tear, went over and hugged her daughter. “Katie, you look fabulous.”
After the pictures were taken Mr. Donelon drove them to the dance.
All the way from the car to the door, Katie tried to minimize her noticeably awkward walk. Before long they were in the door and within minutes they were out on the dance floor with a large group of people. Katie quickly forgot her problems. She felt like she was able to blend in on the dance floor.
“Hey, Katie, look at me,” Bridget yelled as she started making some funny dance moves. Katie loved it and felt normal for the first time in a long time. She was dancing, laughing, and giggling with the other girls and boys on the floor.
The night was going along fine for her until the thing Katie dreaded more than anything happened. She grabbed two glasses of punch, one each for her and Bridget. But while she was trying to sit down her dragging foot caught hold of the table leg and she tripped. She stumbled into the table while the punch spilled over the tablecloth and her dress.
There was a brief silence. For a moment, people nearby stopped talking and looked over. Two boys quickly came to help her up. Bridget ran over and grabbed her glasses off the floor.
A concerned Bridget asked, “Katie, are you all right?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. I feel so stupid.”
“It’s okay, Katie. Here are your glasses.” Bridget glanced down at the red punch splattered all over Katie’s dress and shoes.
Katie put her glasses on and looked down at her dress and shoes. Then she looked up at Bridget, her eyes revealing the depth of her embarrassment.
Bridget knew it was time to go. “C’mon, Katie. Let’s go get you cleaned up.” Bridget quickly ushered her to the hallway coat room.
“I want to go home, Bridget.” Katie had not yet seen Christopher Collins; all she could think of was getting out of there before he saw her.
“Hold on, Katie, let’s go into the bathroom and see if we can clean this up.” Bridget already knew it was hopeless. The stain was there for the night.
Katie started tearing up. “Bridget, please. Call my mom. I want to go home.”
“Okay, Katie, I’ll go home with you. Sit down over here and I’ll go find a phone.”
They called Katie’s mom, who picked them up and brought them home. That was the end of any real hope for Katie, the end of her dreams. It was the beginning of the days that, in her mind, would never end.
Bridget and the other girls downplayed what had happened at the dance. But Katie could not. It was seared into her memory forever.
The eventual worsening of her dragging foot and curved spine and mounting speech and vision impairment meant leaving school during her junior year. She chose instead to be home-schooled by tutors. Her life from that point was immersed in visits to doctors and therapists.
Chapter 9
In May of that year, Katie got the news that her grandmother had suffered a heart attack and had been taken to the hospital. Katie stayed home with her dad as her mom rushed to the hospital. Katie prayed and prayed that night. Her grandmother believed in her and Katie needed her more than ever.
It was 9:00 at night when the phone rang. Katie listened as her father told her mother that he was sorry and hung up the phone. He turned to Katie with a somber expression and said, “Katie, I’m sorry, your grandmother passed away tonight.”
Katie was crushed. She took Ruby up to her room and cried for a long time. Ruby lumbered to the bottom of the bed and lay down to sleep. Katie looked at her aging dog and realized that she, too, was getting old. She felt so alone, so vulnerable. She rolled over, hugged her pillow, and cried herself to sleep that night while listening to her mother crying in the nearby bedroom.
In September of that year her lifelong pal Ruby got too old and had to be put down. This hit Katie very hard. She felt like the wheels were coming off. She’d had Ruby since she was a little girl and she had lost her best friend and confidant. Ruby always took away her loneliness. Katie’s mom asked her if she wanted another dog but she said no. She was getting much worse and could no longer even care for herself.
Her hunchbacked condition was now severe. She had lost almost all mobility in her right leg. Katie could not dress herself, feed herself, bathe, or go to the toilet by herself. A home health aide visited the house four hours every day. She had been humiliated before but that was nothing to what she had to endure now on a daily basis.
Katie celebrated her thirtieth birthday with her parents. She wished she could help them out once in a while, instead of always having to be helped. Lately, she was feeling more and more like a burden.
Bridget and Katie gradually lost touch as their lives were miles apart. Bridget was busy with her marriage, children, and her career as a lawyer. Katie missed her terribly. Besides her parents, Bridget was the only person left who could easily cheer her up. And while she did hear from her periodically it was not nearly enough.
By now, Katie was getting tired. Everything was getting more difficult. She had suffered a series of strokes over the past year and could barely move around. But she kept trying as her grandma asked her to.
It was a cold, snowy day in January when Katie suffered another stroke. She was at home with her parents at the time. She heard her mother’s voice calling to her as she closed her eyes and saw only darkness.
Chapter 10
The darkness faded, and light filtered in through Katie’s tightly closed eyelids. She was moving fast and could feel the wind hitting her face. Katie opened her eyes and was stunned at what she saw. Ten feet ahead of her, three Angels and two women ran full speed through a field.
Katie looked down at her legs and realized she was running right behind them. In the corner of her eye, she saw something move and looked to her right to see another man running next to her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw another woman and an Angel running not far behind. Katie was in the center of a pack of runners racing across an open field. Katie had never run so fast in her life. She noticed she and everyone else were barefoot, but it did not matter. The grass in the field was smooth and soft.
Katie realized she was in a race. She also realized she was in a bathing suit, as was everyone else. She pushed herself to run faster and caught up to one of the Angels in front of her. He looked over at her and laughed as she passed him. They ran to the top of a hill, went right over, and began heading down the other side. Katie’s eyes opened wide as she saw the ocean in the distance. At the bottom of the hill the grass blended into a smooth, sandy beach.
Within moments they were racing across the sand. Katie pushed herself more and overtook the two women now. There were only two Angels in front of her and she was right on their heels with only one hundred yards to go. Everyone was laughing and gasping while trying to run their absolute fastest.
Katie passed one of the Angels and as she was about to catch the last one he plunged his feet into the surf and after taking twenty high steps he dove into the ocean head first with a flying flat belly dive.
Katie didn’t stop. She raced right behind him step by step through the waves, and as she dove into the surf, she felt a rush of freedom she had never experienced in her life. Everyone followed right behind, and within minutes, twenty people laughed and splashed each other in the surf.
Katie screamed as a wave knocked her down.
An Angel reached down to pick her up and said, “Hello, Katie, welcome to Heaven. “
“Wow . . . that was amazing.” She was still trying to catch her breath. “Oh, that was so much fun!” She felt exhilarated. She had not yet considered where she was or what had happened.
“Thank you,” she said. “Who are you? Wait . . . did you say ‘welcome to Heaven?’”
“I am Rosie, your Guardian Angel. And yes, you are in Heaven. And all these people are my friends. I asked them to join us because I knew that a first class race would be the coolest way for you to enter into the Afterlife.”
“Oh gosh, I never ran so fast in my whole life.” Katie was still thrilled at what had just happened. After over twenty years of being disabled, running through an open field was an incredible feeling, a dream come true.
Katie processed what she had heard and looked up. “Rosie, what happened to me? Did I really die?”
Rosie sat down on the warm sand. “Sit down here, Katie, and I’ll tell you all about it.”
Katie sat, as Rosie told her that she had a stroke which took her life. She was concerned about her parents but Rosie assured her they were okay. They knew how much she was suffering and how tired she had grown. They feared she might not be with them much longer. “Katie, your parents love you and they are going to miss you terribly.”
“Will I be able to see them again?”
“Absolutely you will, Katie. But not just yet. There is a way you can look into the lives of those you love, a viewing room. We will do that soon. Someday your parents will be here with you. Heaven is so wonderful that it will seem like a long time. But when they do get here, it will be a marvelous reunion.”
Rosie looked up at the sun to gauge the time. “We have to get you checked in and I have to take you to your new home.” Rosie stood up and reached down to help her up. “Take hold of my arm, Katie.”
Chapter 11
Rosie flew up over the water with Katie in tow, then circled back slightly and flew along the shoreline. Katie marveled at the people and Angels all having fun on the beach and in the water. She was amazed to see people swimming with dolphins. She truly was in a magical place.
Rosie veered away from the shore and over a bountiful landscape of small hills, streams and fields, rich with fruit trees and all sorts of vegetation. Within a few minutes they circled in the sky and descended upon a cluster of twenty elaborate, hut-styled homes. They were arranged carefully and close to each other, yet there was plenty of space around each.
Rosie landed in front of one of them and said, “Here we are.”
Katie clasped her hands. It was the most beautiful house she had ever seen, a beautiful tan color, with a large green thatched roof that gave it a Hawaiian look. As she stood marveling at the house, she thought of the years of pain, the years of wanting to be like the others and not being able to no matter how hard she tried.
Now, standing in front of her own home and with the race to the ocean earlier, she realized her dreams were going to come true.
“Katie, go in to your house and get familiar with everything. I will be back this evening to check on you. Tomorrow we have a big day planned. For now, young lady, there is a refrigerator full of delicious food and there is a television, stereo, books, and all sorts of things you will love. There is an amazing life ahead of you now, Katie. Feel free to say hi to your neighbors, too. Everyone is friendly here.”
Katie said goodbye and waltzed into her new home. It was lavish and filled with her favorite colors. All over the house were vases of fresh flowers, giving it a delightful aroma she had never experienced. After checking out the kitchen and main rooms, she walked down a short hall to her bedroom and gasped at its beauty. She walked into a magnificently decorated spacious room with skylights and a balcony that opened to a view of the sea. In the center was a king size bed with a tropical blue and orange comforter. Katie ran three steps, leapt into the air and twirled to land on her back on the soft bed. “Ahhh, this is so nice!”
She stared at the ceiling, marveling at her new life and lifted her head to look around more, and that was when she saw it. On the other side of the room was a large oak-framed, full-length mirror. Mirrors had never been her friend.
She paused, afraid. For almost her whole life she loathed looking at herself in the mirror. Reluctantly, she gathered her courage and timidly walked over. Frozen to the core, she stiffly positioned herself in front, all the while keeping her eyes shut tight. Her first attempt to open her eyes found her lacking the courage. She took a deep breath, sighed, and opened them. Staring back at her from the mirror was a beautiful young woman. Her body was restored. Her beautiful hair hung over her shoulders, which were no longer hunched over but straight and normal. She stood tall and turned back and forth on her right heel. Her leg too was now fully functional. She was still in her bathing suit and she marveled at how amazing she looked in it.
Overwhelmed by what she saw, Katie dropped to her knees and began to weep. “Oh God, thank you for restoring me. It’s been so long and so painful. I can’t believe it’s over. Thank you God. After a long while, she dried her eyes, collected herself, and tried on some of the new clothing that lined her closet and drawers. She spent the rest of the evening exploring her home and nearby surroundings, taking a short walk down the pathway toward the sea.
Later that evening, Rosie arrived and they built a small fire on her patio and spent the night talking about Heaven and Earth. Katie had dreams that night like never before. In her dream, she saw a large Angel with a blurred face reading from an ancient looking scroll. There was a crowd in front of the Angel, Angels with white wings and other Angels with black wings. There were thousands of them. She heard the Angel speak the words:
When sea doeth yield the Golden Sword,
Forged and burnished from the fire.
The virgin warrior again will rise.
Bringing hope to listless band.
The Angel and the crowd faded and Katie now saw a seductively dressed female Angel with dark hair, racing in the air along a seaside bluff. Her sword was drawn and pointed as if she was charging at someone. Below her there were thousands of Angels, fighting with swords and spears. Katie watched the Angel soaring through the air and realized she was heading straight for a beautiful brown skinned Angel with brilliant white wings, dressed in white. She was going to impale her with the sword.
Katie shouted and at that moment the brown skinned Angel looked straight at Katie, drew her sword, spun around, and caught the dark haired Angel by surprise, thrusting her sword through her midsection. The Dark Angel bolted up into the sky over the ocean at the edge of the cliff, dropping her sword as she writhed in pain. Katie watched as the sword moved in slow motion. It was gold and it glittered as it careened through the air, landing some two hundred feet off in the surging ocean. The Dark Angel floated helplessly down and fell into the shallow water of the surf, with what appeared to be mortal wounds.
Katie awoke and jumped up, her face perspiring. It was the most vivid dream she had ever had. She had only one thing on her mind; who were those Angels and why did the sword seem to beckon her.
Chapter 12
The next morning, as the sun was peeking over the horizon and onto the wall of her bedroom, Katie heard a familiar noise, a dog barking. She jumped up from her bed, ran to the front door, and yanked it open. There at the top of the path was a familiar looking dog. Katie took three steps, then recognized her old friend. “Ruby!” she cried and began to run.
