The Crystal Circle: A Paranormal Romance Novel (19 page)

“He probably won’t be back.” She announced. She thought for a while and then saw everyone looking at her and continued. “He’s the one who planted in my mind the memories of Lynn. He sent the followers to Eilat, to make sure Saul, Dave, and I walked our paths. But -”

Saul put in, “Michal, despite the tight supervision, you operated in accordance with your conscience, on the basis of the inside knowledge of your soul! You saved me from being killed by Gidi, and saved Dave from being killed by me. The killing was expected. So it goes. The cat and mouse chase, killing and more killing, for many generations.”

Dave said, “Michal, you ended the cycle of bloodshed. It was unexpected, but... the permission is granted. You succeeded in breaking the rules, the rules of the Crystal Circle of Raz’el.”

Michal stood up and straightened. Her emerald eyes shone. “Friends, loved ones. I haven’t broken the rules. I changed them! From today, the information will be more flexible. I believe I can guide you to remember and apply in life what we learn here.”

Violetta asked, “And what about the challenging, the hardships, the growth from the pain of loss?” She looked with a sad smile at Dave.

“There’s no need to try again and again to challenge each other. Even if we signed up to it in our contracts, thousands of years ago, it was only if both parties requested it. Things change. The world is changing. Have you noticed? It becomes more violent on the one hand, and more moral on the other hand.” Everyone looked at her and, one by one, began to nod. “We need to grow, but not necessarily through pain and struggles, but through bringing together the people who feel their way blindly through the fog. That is, guiding people around us.”

Dave sat down and looked at her intently. “Guiding? How?”

“Leading by example.” She sighed and smiled. “You’ve been doing it marvelously with the camp residents and their children. Saul,” she smiled at him, “my dear, I saved you for a very important reason. Now you have to learn to give. You have enormous talent to guide groups and become a leader, and you’ll succeed! You can instruct people in the intricacies of business and teach them a thing or two about compassion and giving. You know there are unlimited resources in the world, right?”

Saul nodded. He was looking at her intently. “Yes, if I succeed, it need not necessarily be at the expense of others. There’s enough for everybody!”

“Yes. Giving is the secret to empowerment. In money and in everything that we have. Physical and spiritual.”

Yossi said, “Michal, there’s no room for error? You broke some rules here. This is a mistake that shocks systems. Raz’el retired -”

Michal interrupted him. “He retired to clear the way, regardless of me. He moved on to the next group. There’s a rotation after 3000 years, I guess...” Everyone laughed. “Of course there’s room for error. We’re human beings after all. But in one thing you can never go wrong: your heart feels the love and knows when it’s fake. Keep that.”

Violetta said, “Michal, my job was over long ago. For years, Dave’s been facing his life relatively admirably, considering the constraints he undertook, but he’s alone. You have to bring David back into the arms of his parents, who have despaired over the years.”

David and Michal’s parents, Mark and Miriam, nodded and looked at her with love. Violetta had taught them a lot about what was important in life. They were grateful to her. Michal looked at all of them and stood up. Upright, she seemed to them like there was a halo or a crown hovering over her head, where rays of light radiated from the crystal ceiling. She thought:
Responsibility, yes, but also progress.

“Be blessed and preserve our love in your hearts. It will show you the way,” said Michal. They embraced in a loving circle, and finally turned toward the exit path. For the first time, Raz’el did not escort them out. It was Michal who said the Crystal Circle’s words of farewell. And then...

She was herself again. Michal looked into the eyes of her daughter and began to sob. “Eden, my baby, I’m so sorry...”

As she hugged her, the muffled voice of the little girl sounded, “Mom! I’m not a baby anymore!”

Everyone in the room burst into laughter accompanied by tears. Michal looked up and met Yossi’s gaze. She whispered, “Yossi. I -”

Yossi hugged his wife and said, “Michal, how I missed you. My only love.”

She shuddered and buried her head in his arms. The shell-like warmth of his strong arms wrapped her softness. It was the first time he’d spoken that way in front of strangers, in a soft and trembling voice. Gaya approached Michal shyly, and Michal hugged her tightly to her chest. How she’d grown! How long had it been, anyway?

A minute later, Yossi said, “It was hard. Michal... maybe the hardest time our family has ever known.” She nodded and conquered her tears. Yes, she now remembered everything: the party in Tel Aviv, Linda Weiner and the identity that she’d stolen unintentionally, all these passing weeks that were so intense and crazy.

“Look who’s also here, Michal,” said Yossi and he opened the door to the conference room. Her father and mother entered the room, much smaller and older than she remembered.

They embraced and Mark said simply, “We thought we’d lost you too.”

The word ‘too’ was as clear and heartbreaking as ever. She thought of the brother she could have had. He would have been... thirty-four today, just like Dave. If her brother David was alive, he must have suffered leg injuries in the accident... like Dave. Her heart began to beat as fast as a roller coaster. She opened her eyes and looked up at the tall man who entered the room with his strange gait, reddish-brown hair, and eyes that laughed with the color of a honeysuckle. Dave.

“Lynn, I’m so glad you survived. They told me what you did. You’re amazing!” He came to her and they embraced. He playfully ruffled her hair and then turned around to her family. “And who are these people?” he asked, looking at them curiously.

“My beloved family, this is Dave. He saved me when I was at the bottom of the hole. Dave, this is my family.”

Dave smiled sheepishly. He recalled Lynn telling him that she had no family. She’d sounded so sincere about it. She looked at him and saw his suspicious, damaged, and painful look.

“I...” she began, “I lost my memory when I left Tel Aviv. I probably decided I was Lynn - Linda. And the fragmented memory that was inside me... was hers, the real Linda. But my memory came back just now. It’s crazy, but I... I already know who I am, Dave. Actually, my name is Michal. Michal Rafael. This is my husband, Yossi.” She said the last sentence carefully, afraid of hurting him.

Dave looked at Yossi for a second and then looked away.

“This is my elder daughter, Gaya.” Gaya didn’t answer, just hid her hand behind her back. “And that’s my little one, Eden.”

“Not so little, Mom,” Eden muttered cheekily.

“And these...” she pointed toward the adults standing at the side, “are my mom and dad, Mark and Miriam.”

“M&M,” Miriam giggled, saying the usual family joke. Dave looked at them and put his hand to his mouth. Miriam and Mark. There was no doubt that he once knew them, or people very much like them. But... who were they? They looked at him in silence.

At that moment, as a wondering silence prevailed among the people present in the room, Superintendent Illouz came in and said, “Lynn - Michal - we need to get you back into custody.”

Everyone froze and looked at him. He cleared his throat and looked embarrassed, adding, “Sorry folks, currently, Michal needs to give us more testimony. I believe she’ll be home soon.”

The girls clung to her, and she hugged Yossi desperately, without understanding how things had deteriorated to this situation. She kissed her parents and left with the policeman.

When they reached the end of the corridor, he put her in a small interrogation room and said, “Michal, I’m glad your memory came back. Therefore, we have a few more things to ask you.”

“I’m not being released to go home now?

He smiled sadly and touched her shoulder for a second, then returned to his official voice. “It could be a few more days. Or weeks.”

She bowed her head in silence. “What else do you want to know?”

The inspector activated the recording device and began, “Michal, tell us about Raul. How he managed the bank, what he did with the deposits he was managing?”

Michal began, at first hesitantly and then with more confidence, explaining Raul’s business, that there were meetings he’d always conduct alone and client accounts he’d handle personally, the meteoric rise of the branch, the female clerks who came and went, her role in the system, and even the tenth-year celebrations they held in Tel Aviv. As a senior official at the bank, she was able to answer his questions. She didn’t remember any abnormal movement in the accounts, nor any account that had deposits or withdrawals of amounts over one million shekels. She, like the police, found it very strange that Raul would appear in her life in Eilat in the guise of Saul.

“I don’t think he disguised himself as a gangster in Eilat. I really believe that he didn’t know who he was beforehand. That’s what he told me, that his memory had gone since he arrived from Tel Aviv, and I really think he was telling the truth. Why would someone who stole millions, as you insinuated, find it worthwhile getting involved in petty crimes in Eilat instead of packing up and disappearing abroad? It’s not likely.”

“I agree with your analysis, Michal,” smiled Illouz, gently combing his mustache, “but I have a feeling that his wife isn’t convinced. She was sure you both decided to disappear with the money together. She didn’t rely on the police and hired detectives of her own.”

“Detectives?” Her weary green eyes opened wide, gazing into the mouth of the interrogator.

“I don’t know what she suspected – an affair, theft, escape, or all of those - but a known investigation agency had people following you in Eilat. Didn’t you notice them?”

“I noticed. I just didn’t know why,” Michal whispered.

“Once we discovered it, we simply detained the investigators for questioning, and they told us about your hiding place. The information came to us right along with the note that fell out of your pocket on the day of the raid.”

“And what about the arson and explosion of the generator? And my stolen bag?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” the inspector said, “unless it has to do with this man, Guy, a friend of Gidi’s.” Michal shuddered at the indirect accusation and didn’t answer. “He was Gidi’s right hand man and always followed you and Raul to ensure Gidi would eventually come out of it with all the money, and give him his share. He’s probably the one behind the arson, which, by the way, I’m now hearing of for the first time.

“How is Saul, uh... Raul?” she asked hesitantly.

“Gidi and Raul have been interrogated here since this morning. Guy too. They’re alright. They’re facing long years in prison. I believe that you’ll also be facing legal charges, but I’m glad you’re cooperating and, indeed, you’ve opened our eyes. I believe that in a few months, perhaps weeks, you could be released. It’s up to the judge.”

He stood up and turned to leave, then went back and looked at her, lean and long- limbed, but looking as lost as a little girl, slumped in the black chair. “You’ll see a lot of your family, don’t worry.” His voice softened and he smiled. “Your husband has moved Heaven and Earth to try to find you. He won’t let you get away again.”

08/16/2013 - Two months since the disappearance, Tzalmon Prison

“Sit, Dominguez.”

Raul sat on the hard chair. His pallor had almost fully returned. He eased his wrists where the handcuffs were pressing into him. To his right and left were two of the prison wardens who had brought him to the meeting.

Prison warden, Elijah smiled at him. He was a thin man, very thin, and he obviously smoked a lot. On his desk lay a cup that had once held black coffee, but now contained several extinguished cigarette butts. The table was clear of papers, and the computer was running a flickering screensaver image of the warden’s family. A stabbing pain shot from the corner of Raul’s eye causing an uncontrollable spasm. He hadn’t seen his children for several years, and, in jail, his longing to see them devoured his days and nights. He’d asked Orna bring them to visit with her, but they still held a grudge and refused to come. He believed that Orna had a hand in it, perhaps in revenge for the suffering he’d put her through, but the reason didn’t matter. Either way, he missed them.

He swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on the warden’s words. “I understand from the reports that you’re beginning to adapt to life in jail. However, it’ll be a good few years before you can apply for parole for good behavior. As you know, the very important lawyer you brought failed to convince the judge you were a junior white- collar offender.

“In addition to the person you assaulted in Tel Aviv, you stole from the bank’s clients over a period of years. You blackmailed and deceived people in Eilat, and the weapon you used sure didn’t help either. You’re here for many years, Dominguez.

“However, you’re lucky to be here. My kingdom is detached from what happens outside.”

Raul looked up with interest. He heard a new tone.

“You have two options: you can join forces with criminal elements again, like you did outside, and believe me, there’s no shortage of them.” He looked at him long. “Then, one day, after your release, it won’t be long before you find your place under a tombstone... and without family. Or... you can take my offer with open arms.”

Raul didn’t hesitate. He’d been in the holding cell and prison for a month and a half.

It was enough time for him to remember who he was, to reflect on the deterioration in his life, family, and career, which he’d thrown away. Lynn’s comments on his enormous potential had sowed little seeds in his heart. He hoped that in prison he’d be able to focus on something good and useful. Maybe life would grace him and his family would return to him.

“I agree. What do you want me to do, sir?”

“You owe a lot of money, Raul. Even though you immediately handed over your foreign deposit accounts in which you’d deposited the funds of the innocent people of Migdal Haemek, you still have debts to different people and you’re facing another civil suit.”

Raul didn’t answer, just hung his head, reprimanded. “What I’m about to ask you, if you persist for years and agree to the deal, will allow you to earn and save money slowly, and at least begin to pay off your debts.”

Raul stared. The warden waited. Finally, Raul could wait no longer. “I agree! I do! What is it?”

“We have, in the progressive wing, which you’re not eligible for just yet, lectures and studies every morning. They’re designed for prisoners who are within a few years or months of being released, and we want to provide them with the tools to go straight. We lack an economics teacher, someone to teach these prisoners how to budget, how to manage the cash flow of a small business, how to manage family finances, including how to invest their money wisely, and not with types like you.” He laughed heartily and looked longingly at the snuffed-out cigarette, and then corrected himself, “the type you were -”

Raul’s eyes lit up. “I’m ready. I lectured at the bank, to both customers and employees. I have lectures from those times -”

“No,” said Warden Elijah. “Your past is dead. You also thought you were Saul, the biblical king who lost his sanity. You’re very lucky you didn’t commit your crazy revenge on David. Another miracle that happened to you is that the man you assaulted in Tel Aviv recovered after nearly dying on the operating table. Luck also watched over you when you were declared sane, after the best psychiatrists found that you, indeed, weren’t crazy after all, claiming you’d suffered a psychotic episode that’s now passed. You’re Raul. Not Saul. A new man. You’ll have a clean slate. Start from the beginning. “

“Meaning?” Raul smiled, and a stray tear appeared in his eye.

“Disconnect yourself from the past. Think about your future. We’ve received a letter,” he picked up a paper, read it and immediately returned it to the folder, “no matter

from whom, recommending you as the best person for the job, saying you have training experience, and the ability to lead people for good, not just bad. Don’t disappoint the writer of this testimonial. Don’t disappoint the prison psychologist, who believes in the potential of your rehabilitation. Don’t disappoint us. Despite all that you’ve done in your life, we believe you also have good intentions.”

Warden Elijah looked up, deep into Raul’s eyes. The two men were the same age, but Raul had always chosen the path of crime. Could he be trusted? “It’s true that you’d immediately profit from this position. Financially, it’s pretty ridiculous, but I expect you to understand the implications of this opportunity for the benefit of the people you teach, who would then go back into life outside equipped with the insight that it’s possible to save money and make a profit by means other than crime, that they have a way to make a living without exploiting or harming others. When you think about it, you’ll benefit, they’ll benefit, and our whole society will benefit.”

Raul got up from his chair, his eyes filled with tears. “Thank you, sir.” In a sudden surge of gratitude, he leaned across the table toward the warden. Two guards rushed to grab him and sit him back down.

“I’m sorry. There are very clear rules here: no physical contact between the prisoners and the staff.” Warden Elijah smiled. “Goodbye. I believe in you and trust you.”