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Wielding magic in a fantasy worldISon my bucket list. It’s just something that hadn’t been at all possible, because it was a fantasy.
Until now.
Lisa, for once, is utterly speechless. I hear some more garbled noises coming through the phone. She finally manages to spit out, “I’m… shocked. But also… proud. Holy crap! You deserve to let go and travel the world more than anyone I know. I can’t believe you quit. How'd that go?”
“A story for another day. I’m not ready to relive that shitshow just yet. Plus, I’m sure you’ll hear all about it when you’re back in the office next week.”
“Fair enough. Ok.. So… You’re not going to forget about me, are you?”
I know she’s joking, just making sure I’ll keep in touch. A part of me hurts so badly, knowing I’ll be unable to talk to her for however long. I need Lisa. She’s my light and sounding board.
“Even if I tried, you wouldn’t let me. You’d fly across the world to hound me about… getting sundered.”
“Damn right, I would. So when does this trip start?”
“As soon as I get my place cleared out,” I hesitantly say. I’m not quite clear on when our timeline to leave is, but I also don’t want to miss the chance to say goodbye to Lisa if I can.
“Want some help?”
This is what I was worried about. I try to keep my voice casual as I kick an errant pile of leaves. “Thanks, but I’m ok. I’m going to use it as a cleansing experience. Go through everything and let each thing go individually.”
“That’s gonna take months.”
“That’s the idea,” I say.
I grin as my petty plot solidifies in my head. If Sunder wants to play dirty to move up the timeline for himself, then I’ll purposely slow it down.
“It’s definitely going to be a long, long process.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Mira
Getting my affairs in order for an extended absence took the two weeks Sunder worked so hard to save us and then one extra for good measure. I may or may not have relished in hemming and hawing over every single decision as I sorted through my belongings, much to Sunder’s dismay.
In the end, despite having lived here for eight years, I didn’t want to keep anything. The sentimental things I had were all relics from my marriage, and I didn’t want to bring anything involving Tim with me into my next life. I dumped it, along with everything else.
Everything, in the end, was donated or trashed.
It was remarkable, I noted as I watched the last of the trash get carted away, that so much of my life could be ditched at a moment’s notice.
I paid the fee to break the lease on my apartment and transferred all my liquid assets into various investment accounts. When I come back, I’ll be a little bit richer.
Hopefully.
I told my friends and the only family I had left, my sister, that I needed time to go travel and find myself, which isn’t far from the truth. Tim’s upcoming nuptials provided a convenient excuse for the seemingly rash decision. I played up the midlife crisis and depression bit and promised to check-in whenever I could.
Surprisingly, my sister Marissa took it hard that I wouldn’t be around for Christmas. We only talk a couple of times a year. But she was supportive and understanding of my decision.
The hardest goodbye was to Lisa.
I openly sobbed, and we ended up deciding that we needed just one last time together before I left. We met for coffee, with Sunder awkwardly lurking around the corner like the worst ever CIA agent. I could tell Lisa was concerned by the way she patted my back. “You’re not crossing the Stargate,” she whispered into my hair as I hugged her. “You can still like, find the internet in India.”
I suppressed my grimace.
Because I definitely wasn’t going to India. And there’s definitely no internet in Illuemera.
“I know,” I whispered into her ear. “But I’ll still see you for breakfast before we leave, right?”
