A Twist in the Tale (2011) Read online

  A Twist in the Tale

  By Mel Comley

  Published by Mel Comley at Amazon

  Copyright 2011 Mel Comley

  Kindle Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This book is dedicated to my mum, Jean.

  I’d also like to thank Tania for creating the cover.

  Other books by Mel Comley are:

  Cruel Justice

  Impeding Justice

  Final Justice

  It’s A Dog’s Life

  Passion, Fire and Fury

  A Time For Change

  A Time To Heal

  High Spirits

  Keep in touch with the author at

  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mel-Comley/264745836884860

  http://melcomley.blogspot.com

  http://melcomleyromances.blogspot.com

  Help from the other side

  “Oh come on, Claire, what harm can it do?”

  “I’m afraid I just don’t believe in all that mumbo jumbo, Sara.”

  “But this one is supposed to be ‘the best’ ‘the real deal’, a genuine psychic medium.

  “I don’t care if he’s a medium, small or large. I’m still not stepping foot in that place.”

  The next thing I knew Sara’s hand was in the middle of my back thrusting me through the shop door.

  The waiting room, I suppose you’d call it, was so tiny, a cat would have a hard job swinging a mouse around in it. The walls were plastered with pictures of the medium’s celebrity clientele.

  Mystic M, thanks for all your advice, marriage and work still going strong! One famous soap-star had written across her photo.

  Mystic M, changed the wife, the dog and my way of thinking thanks to you. Was penned at the bottom of a photo of an actor from a famous TV crime show.

  When I saw the final picture I pointed and nudged Sara. “What do you make of that?”

  Before she could answer, the door on the right was wrenched open and a man I his early thirties poked his head into the waiting room.

  “Ah, ladies, do you want to have a reading taken together or separately?”

  “Together…” I shouted.

  “Separately…” shouted Sara at the same time.

  Daggers were still shooting from my eyes at her when Mystic M took me by the elbow and lead me into the dark room he called his ‘inner sanctum.’

  “You appear shocked. I take it you’re not pleased to be here.” Mystic M smiled and pointed at the chair opposite.

  I sat down with a bump and clutched my handbag in my lap. “It’s just that…” I paused not knowing what to say without offending him, “well, put it this way, I wasn’t expecting Mystic M to be a man.”

  “Oh I see. You’re one of those women who think only women psychics have a divine gift to enhance and enrich another person’s life.” He gave me a challenging smile.

  “Not at all,” I bit back defensively. “Look, I think I’ve made a huge mistake coming here. I only came to keep my friend company. I’ll send her in now.” I rose from the table but his hand grabbed my arm.

  “I’m sorry. At least give me a chance. How about I do your reading for half price to make amends for my rudeness.”

  “You don’t have to do that. Really, it’s nothing personal. I’m just not in the right frame of mind for all this.”

  “I understand. I get a lot of skeptics through my door. Come on, what harm can it do? Shuffle the cards, choose three and lay them face down on the table.”

  I sat down again and shuffled the cards almost dropping them at one point because my hands were shaking so much.

  “There’s no need to be nervous.” His voice was as sultry as the surroundings.

  Huh, easier said than done, mate, you’re the one with all the answers!

  I placed my chosen cards in front of him. He turned them over one by one, a range of expressions covering his face. I couldn’t help wondering which card matched which expression.

  Silenced filled the room for several minutes until I finally asked, “Well?”

  “Ah, I see patience isn’t one of your virtues.”

  Cheeky sod.

  “Which card tells you that?” I asked my tone full of sarcasm.

  “It was merely an observation.”

  Feeling like a chastised schoolgirl I waited some more.

  “The upside down ‘death card’.” He paused before he continued. “To put your mind at ease, the definition of this card simply means a death of a situation.”

  I nod and glance down at the table urging him to say more.

  “Past relationships have been fraught and disillusioning. Am I right?”

  Again I nod and remain focused on the cards.

  “I don’t want to dwell on your past as this card here, the ’full moon’ tells me that you’ve moved on with your life, even though it’s taken you months to get over a pointless relationship.”

  My mouth dropped open amazed at the accuracy of his words.

  “Interested now, are you? Do you want me to tell you in which direction your life will go next?”

  His dark brown eyes sparkle with mischief.

  “Go on.” I urge in excitement.

  A smile stretched across his lips and I find myself mesmerised by its intensity. Calm down girl, you’re off men for good, remember? You’ve had your fill of them, especially the tall, dark and handsome variety.

  “You picked this card here for your future ‘the sheep’ it tells me that you’re about to bump into the man of your dreams. He’ll be caring and considerate and tall, dark and handsome to boot…”

  “Hmm…A wolf in sheep’s clothing then, just like all the others,” I muttered with contempt.

  “There’s more, the card also indicates you have a maternal instinct crying out to be fulfilled and two children will shortly come your way.”

  “What? That’s it, I’ve had enough of this baloney. For your information I can’t have children.”

  “I’m sorry but the cards are never wrong. Please, will you let me know when my premonition comes true?”

  “If, any of it comes true, you mean. Sure, I’ll let you know,” I said marching for the door.

  We left about an hour later after Sara’s reading.

  That night I tossed and turned, unable to push aside the happy pictures of me strolling along with a handsome bloke on my arm and a couple of kids in tow.

  I woke up resembling a zombie and found myself daydreaming in the car on the way to work. That was until I smashed into the car in front of me.

  I got out of my car and rushed to see if the driver of the vehicle was injured. “I’m so sorry…YOU!”

  Rubbing his neck the driver said, “Hello, Claire, fancy bumping into you.”

  “I think you’ll find that’s the other way round.”

  “Accidents will happen. Bumped into any other tall, dark handsome men since yesterday?” Mystic M asked looking amused.

  His words sent my head spinning. You’re about to bump into a kind, considerate, tall, dark and handsome guy.

  I’m sure mind-reader could also be added to extraordinary powers because he was nodding and smiling at me. “That’s right, our meeting was written in the cards.”

  “You what?”

  “I saw you involved in a car crash with a man driving a red BMW, and that…”
He pointed over his shoulder at his red sports car. “I believe is a red BMW. Oh and by the way, I also have two children. Gemma six and Todd aged four. So how about it then?”

  “How about what?” I asked floored by his question.

  He laughed. “How about a dinner date, you never know what destiny has mapped out for you. The M stands for Matthew by the way, Mystic Matthew.”

  Well, who am I to argue with destiny?

  Lunchtime Grilling

  “Meet me at Luciano’s at one o’clock on Friday.” The voice ordered before hanging up.

  No please or will you, just be there. Great, well that’s something to look forward to then, not.

  That was a couple of days ago. Here I am, nervous and tired due to lack of sleep. The curiosity factor had been too great to ignore.

  We spot each other as soon as I enter the restaurant, she signals for me to join her with a dainty hand, dripping in jewellery. She’d chosen a quiet table for two tucked away in the corner.

  So this was Dan’s wife. Unrecognisable from the way he’d described her. Mind you, that made sense I supposed, how would any man describe ‘the wife’ to his mistress of five years?

  “Hello, Karen, please take a seat.” Her smile stretches tight across perfect white teeth.

  Close up her beauty astounds me. With an unsteady hand I pull out the chair opposite her and lower myself into it.

  This was certainly no dowdy housewife as Dan had claimed. Sophistication radiates from every pore or was it all an act?

  I feel cheap in comparison dressed in my boot-legged jeans and plunging top.

  “I’m so pleased you agreed to meet me. I must admit I had my doubts whether you’d turn up or not.” The words tumbled from her sultry red painted lips.

  I feel thrown off balance. I’d expected to meet a feral cat ready to scratch my eyes out.

  “Why? I mean, why did you want to see me?”

  “Curiosity…and to set the record straight,” she said her brilliant blue eyes burning like a branding iron into mine. Her gaze didn’t waiver as she sipped her wine.

  Dan had neglected to tell me his wife was aware of our affair. How long had she known?

  “Is Dan aware that you’re meeting me?” I asked.

  “Why would I bother letting him know a little fact like that?” she retorted before adding, “Does he know that you’re meeting me?”

  Touché!

  “No. I’ll tell him the next time we meet.”

  She laughs softly. “And when is that likely to be, may I ask?”

  Feeling like I was knee deep in a metre hole I thought, the truth is I never know when our next rendezvous will be. I’ve been at his beck and call since the day we met, five long years ago. The minute he calls my mobile I drop everything to grab a few special moments with him.

  My friends got tired of me long ago.

  Her placid nature flummoxes me and I nervously scan the room hoping for someone to rescue me.

  “Your reluctance to answer tells me you don’t know when your next meeting with my husband will be. Am I right, Karen?”

  I cough feeling nervous and urge myself to remain calm.

  She continues, “You seem unnerved by our meeting, I assure you I mean you no harm.”

  Now I know how a fly feels when trapped in a spider’s web.

  “You must admit the situation is a little strange.” I sit up straighter in my seat giving her the impression I’m more confident than I am.

  The waiter arrives to take our order and she gives him a smile that oozes sex appeal. Whereas I’ve trained myself not to lead men on, I’m true to only one man. Ironically, that man happens to be the husband of the lady grilling me. The waiter took our order and left.

  “I’ll be honest with you I wanted to meet to find out about your affair. Not the intimate details of course, I have a vivid imagination…”

  Shocked, I feel the colour flooding my face, I ask, “Um…what kind of details were you hoping to hear?”

  She dips into her designer handbag and pulls out a list of questions, informing me they require a yes or no answer.

  “Do you live in a flat?”

  “Yes.”

  “Does Dan pay for the flat?”

  “No.” I reply indignantly.

  She shakes her beautifully coiffured head in disbelief or is it pity? I’m not quite sure.

  Dan had never offered to pay towards my bills, but he’d insisted I live close by. Easy to get to you in a hurry when I need you, was how he’d put it.

  “Does he visit you more than three times a week?”

  “No.” Three times a week I wish. I’m lucky if I see him twice a month nowadays.

  “Has he ever told you he loves you?” she asks as our mushroom risotto arrives.

  “No.”

  “Does he ever talk about me?”

  “No. Never,” I insist, picking up my fork and playing with the meal I no longer have an appetite for.

  “Has he ever told you he intends leaving me for you?”

  “No. Never.” Hmm…why not, after being together for five years?

  “Do you know where we live?”

  “No.” Although Dan had always told me they lived in a modest area.

  She folds the piece of paper and returns it to her bag with a smug grin.

  “Is it all right if I ask you a question?” I ask with caution.

  “Just the one?” she says raising a quizzical eyebrow.

  “How long have you known about Dan and me?”

  She laughs. “Right from the word go. Not even Donald Trump has that many business meetings. Did Dan ever tell you we have kids?”

  I gasp. “No. He told me you were infertile.”

  “Well, we have two, a boy of six and a girl of three.”

  Ashamed, I look down at the table and mumble, “I’m sorry.”

  She smirks. “That’s what the other girl said when I told her about you. You seem surprised. Surely, you didn’t think you were the only one.”

  I’m rendered speechless by her announcement and she leans forward to whisper, “Have you finished?”

  I frown, puzzled by what she means.

  “Have you finished your meal? Only the next girl is waiting to be interviewed.”

  “Interviewed? You make it sound like there’s a job going.”

  “There is. Dan’s next wife. Fed up with his philandering ways, I left him for another man six months ago. Dan told me he had three lovers on the go and would I be a darling and pick a suitable candidate to be his next wife. Well, how could I refuse? Be a love and send the next girl over on your way out, will you?”

  I stumble out of the restaurant gasping at the fresh air. Her final words to me were that I’d failed the interview for being too gullible and that Dan would be looking elsewhere for his next wife.

  Although, she did reassure me there would be a vacancy or two for a mistress a few years down the line…

  Party Time

  “I think it’s far too soon for me to contemplate socialising again,” I said to Tania.

  “Christine, it’s been six months since you lost Pierce. Six months since you last stepped outside your front door.”

  I sighed and reminded myself that Tania’s heart was in the right place and she was bullying me for my own good.

  “Okay, okay, I surrender. You win! I’ll go to the party with you. What harm could one night out do anyway?”

  Tania squeezed me so hard I thought she’d dislocated my shoulder. “Oh, Christine, that’s wonderful news, you won’t regret it. I must go, I promised Steve I’d make a special effort with dinner tonight.” She chuckled then said, “We had a heart to heart the other day and he told me he’s sick of having burnt offerings served up for dinner every night. I told him it’s difficult to cook wholesome exciting meals when you’ve been slaving over a hot keyboard for ten hours a day. So, as it’s my day off, I thought I’d wow him with a fab meal, any suggestions?”

  Sadness and longing swept over
me. “Pierce always loved my Lasagne, what about having a go at that?”

  “Are you crazy? You’re lucky you’ve got Italian ancestry running through your veins. Pasta dishes always look as if they should be exhibited in an art gallery when you’ve prepared them. No, I was thinking of something far simpler, like gammon and chips, what do you reckon?”

  I supressed the laugh threatening to surface when I saw how pleased she looked with her own suggestion. “Sounds perfect, Tania. Remember, I’m at the end of the phone if you want any advice on how to open a bag of frozen chips or the packet of gammons.”

  She slapped me on the forearm. “You cheeky mare! Just make sure you get down the fancy dress shop ASAP, it’s going to be quite a party and they’re bound to run out of outfits quickly.” Tania shouted over her shoulder before slamming the front door shut behind her.

  At nine the following morning, in the midst of a violent storm, I stood sheltering in the shop doorway.

  “Come in, come in, my dear. I’m not quite ready to open yet, I’ll be another few minutes, but go and warm yourself by the radiator,” said the sweet woman with a face that looked like it needed ironing.

  “That’s very kind of you, please do what you have to do, I’m not in a rush,” I assured her watching her tinker with the costumes.

  Ten minutes later and she gave me her undivided attention. “Now then, what exactly are you after, my dear?” She raised her hand when I opened my mouth to speak. “Don’t tell me, let me guess. Snow White or Goldilocks?”

  That was sweet of her. I self-consciously ran my hands over my curves. Since Pierce’s death I’d turned to food for much needed comfort. My healthy eating regime and my svelte figure was a long and distant memory.

  “Actually, I was looking for something similar to this,” I said, approaching the more colourful costumes situated on the rail closest to me.

  “Oh I see.” She looked a little bewildered by my choice. “What size are you, dear?”

  I coughed to clear my throat and mumbled, “I don’t really know, I guess a 16-18. I’ve gained a little weight recently,” I said my cheeks flushing.

  “Haven’t we all, dear. At this time of year I always make the excuse it’s the thick winter woollies I’m wearing.” She winked as she took the correct size costume off the rack and handed it to me.