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Chapter 8

Joseph reset the chairs around the table as Rachael was centering the tablecloth. She sat first and began to shuffle her cards and Joseph noticed for the first time that unlike regular playing cards he had seen, these cards were longer and more oblong. There were lines criss crossing diagonally on the back and they had kind of a rainbow color to them.

Rachael fanned the cards out in front of her with the backs facing up. She reminded him of a dealer in a casino except for the way she was dressed.

"Are you right handed or left handed?" She asked him voice sounding gentle and calm.

"Shouldn't you already know that?" He asked then realized he had let that slip. He was sure now that she would know he was not into this stuff. He did not want to be rude because she was a victim but he was losing patience on this frivolity.

"Sometimes a question is asked not because the person asking needs an answer but to help the hearer be more receptive." She said calmly but he could sense a bit of frustration in her voice. He supposed she must get that kind of thing alot from people.

"I'm right handed." Joseph said, trying to keep the frustration out of his voice.

"Then using your left hand, and only your left hand, pick eight cards without looking at them and hand them to me. When you choose a card try to feel the vibrations of it and if something inside says to pick this card then pick it." Rachael said and he thought her voice took on the edge of a teacher trying to teach a small child. He just looked down and the cards looked exactly like each other, he felt nothing special or calling out to him. Finally he just randomly picked eight cards then stacked them together before handing them back to her.

While he was busy picking the cards Rachael had stood and went to a table against one of the walls and lit some incense. This time she lit two sticks and blew on the tips to encourage them to burn before placing them in a holder. She chose frankincense and myrrh and the room was quickly filling with the fragrance. She felt that that combination would banish all negative energies and the spiritual nature of being used in the Bible also made it special.

Rachael returned to her seat and Joseph handed her the cards. She set the pile down in front of her and closed her eyes as she held her hands above them. Joseph fought the urge to roll his eyes but tried to remain patient.

"We will be using a tarot spread of my own creation. It allows me better access to the Divine through the cards when I use this spread. I named it 'The Holy Grail' because it looks like a cup." Rachael said as she began to place the cards in a certain pattern on the table. She placed one card in the center then a second card was placed sideways. A card was placed to the left of the central card then a card was placed to it's right. The next card was placed on top of the left card then a card was placed below the one that was sideways. Lastly two cards were placed above the center card and the right hand card.

Joseph looked at the design and although it was upside down to him it would look like a cup of some kind if he were looking at it the way Rachael was.

"The first card will be the present card," Rachael said as she turned over the center card she had placed first. "This card represents what is currently going on around you now." The card showed an old man sitting with two dogs at his feet. There was a couple that looked like they were talking in the background but all around them were golden pentacles, like on the table cloth, except they looked like coins. They seemed to be obstructing the view when Joseph tried looking at the images.

"This is the Ten of Pentacles and this card means prosperity and good fortune. This can mean that some good news is coming your way and it involves money." Rachael said as she used her index finger to touch the card and looked as if she felt she was channeling some kind of power from it.

"I don't understand, does it mean I'm going to win the lottery?" Rachael frowned at his remark and he tried to clarify it so he did not sound as cynical as he felt. "What I mean is, how is money coming my way"

"It's too soon to tell I just know this card is talking about good fortune is coming. Since pentacles is used it usually means money but is not limited to that."

"Does that convince you that you can trust me and that if we can get a veterinarian to check out your dog, maybe get some bloodwork done that it will help a lot of people."

"Let's see what the other cards tell us." Rachael said and Joseph sighed deeply. How much longer was this going to take? He knew this was just wasting time.

"This card is called the Table," Rachael said as she pointed to the card laying sideways.

"But you haven't turned it over! How can you know what card it is? Are these cards marked in some way that you can see what they are?" Joseph asked.

"No," She said laughing and he felt embarrassed. "The position, or place, of the card in the tarot spread I call the Table. Every card in a tarot spread has a distinct meaning like the first card represents the present, the table represents what is before you.

See I call it the Table because usually you go to a table for one of two major things. You might go to a table to eat a delicious meal, which is good. You might also go to the table to pay bills, not a very pleasant thing. So with the table it means that there is some obstacle you might have to face and the result of overcoming the obstacle can be good or bad."

"I guess I understand but that is overly simplistic because a table is not limited to just those two options." Joseph said, trying to correct her dichotomy.

"As I recall, Occam's Razor points out why add needless things to the equation when they are not necessary. Here the table only needs to show good or bad. I'll leave it up to you then to decide how you want to personify those in any way you choose." Rachael said and Joseph could almost feel his jaw dropping.

"Wait a minute, how do you know about that?" Joseph inquired.

"I wasn't always a psychic. Sometimes the universe has other ideas in mind for us. Shall we proceed?"

"Go ahead."

"The next card is..." Rachael said as she turned over the sideways card and as she saw it she gasped. Joseph leaned in to see what would cause that reaction but having the card sideways made it a little difficult to see at first. It looked like a man sitting on a throne with his arms crossed across his chest. Above his head there were golden cups lined up in a row.

"What?" Joseph said, trying to urge her on.

"This is the Ten of Cups it's known as the wish card. It means something that you have been longing for is about to come true. Your wish will be granted. Combined with the Ten of Pentacles it is a powerful omen. The two tens mean they are related to each other and the good fortune that is coming your way is that the wish you've been wanting will be granted." Rachael said taking several deep breaths as if to calm herself and Joseph wondered why she should care? Why was she acting like that because the way she seemed you would think it was a prediction for her.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Sorry but you don't know the power behind that. The universe is telling you something so important that you need to pay attention. I can tell you are not a believer but believe me the Divine is reaching out trying to get your attention. Alright, the next card is," Rachael turned over the card that was to the left of the center card and had an old man in a red robe sit on a throne. Joseph figured it was another sign that this card was part of the wish card because both cards had the same imagery on them. Rachael frowned at the card and again put her finger on it.

"The Emperor reversed,"

"Reversed?" Joseph interrupted.

"Reversed cards have the opposite meaning of the card. Not everyone believes in reversed cards but I do. The Emperor card means authority, power but reversed it would be the opposite. The place it is in is the past so this card talks about times in the past when you felt vulnerable and weak. This shows quite a change coming for you because you're at a turning point where things are going to become more positive and where you once were weak the wish that you've been wanting will boost you up and make you stronger."

"So the good fortune I receive is gonna change my life?!" Joseph said still highly skeptical because he could not remember feeling weak or powerless. Then it occurred to him that he had broken up with his girlfriend and was choosing to stop dating for a while. Perhaps that might fit the card but it could be one of dozens of other things as well. This is what annoyed him about fortune telling because it is so vague that you can make up any meaning to make it seem real.

"The next card is: the six of pentacles reversed," Rachael said.

"Oh great another reversed card."

"Reversed, this card talks about selfishness and greed. I get the feeling this card is warning you to be careful because the good fortune coming your way may have bad consequences."

"I understand basically don't let the good fortune go to my head, right?" Joseph said realizing this was just common sense advice and not really fortune telling. Nothing of this reading was impressive to him in any way. Basically he was being told that he had been through some bad times in the past but good times were coming. This was true for just about anybody and the message of don't let the good go to your head was another example. Nothing about this waa really any revelation of what is to come.

This reading was the equivalent of going to a restaurant and ordering a steak and the waiter brings you a steak. It is not anything supernatural and nothing that could not be reasonable inferred. Joseph would have preferred something with a little more substance to it. Since he was not used to tarot readings he wondered if they were all like this.

"This next position referees to fears so this card represents what you are afraid of. The card is: the seven of pentacles." Rachael said and Joseph looked at the card and although it was upside down to him it looked like a man standing at a bush looking at it and the pentacles were growing on it.

"Are those growing on that bush thing? I'm afraid of what I'm growing?" Joseph guessed.

"Not exactly but you are close. What this means is that you are afraid that all your hard work will be for nothing. Whatever you have been struggling on won't amount to much." Racharl said.

"Like my trying to save pet owners and their animals and the person who could help me is wasting time with a tarot reading." Joseph implied and Rachael sighed before trying to move on. He knew she understood what he was driving at but still refused to accept it.

"The next card represents the enemy or ally card which could be someone that is trying to help you or hinder you. This card is: the eight of pentacles reversed... This is powerful because in this reading you have the six, seven, and eight of pentacles together."

"So that doesn't happen often?" Joseph asked. He wished he knew more about these cards so he could figure out the statistics of drawing those cards in sequential order.

"It's another sign. It does happen but when it does it has a higher significance than drawing a six, seven, and eight of other suits. Since it's all of the same suit we see a general building here. Meaning that what starts as a seed or being small and insignificant is gonna grow until it is too big to handle.

So the card represents carelessness or laziness and combined with the other cards while it seems as though you should not let the good fortune go to your head it also means you need to be extra careful because there are forces trying to undermine you and if you're not careful they will get the better of you. Basically when things are going right pay close attention to detail because that is when the danger lies." Rachael said.

"Can you be more specific what exactly this danger is?" Joseph inquired.

"The cards say you are going to know what it is well enough but that it's too early to tell you right now. When you are ready you will know soon enough." Rachael replied. To Joseph this seemed like a cop out and instead of saying that she did not know she was trying to hide it to save her reputation. Of course she had no reputation with him and he felt all this was nonsense so pretending had no effect on what he thought in any way. If she was trying to convince him that this stuff was real she was doing a poor job of it.

"The next card represents what your hopes and dreams are. This card is: The Devil reversed! This is a good omen; it represents winning over a powerful vil in your life. It could be a trial or test or something that has been giving you a hard time and that you want to overcome the obstacle." Rachael said and Joseph just nodded agreeing with her but not because she was right he saw they were close to the end and he wanted to finish this reading quickly. He was tired of these what ifs and you will find out one day predictions.

If she could not tell him exactly what these dangers and trials were then what good was this reading at all. She might as well be predicting that one day he will trip and fall. A prediction like that would be the same as one day you will take a breath of air. Nothing significant about that but had she been like tomorrow you will be hit by a car crossing the street then that would be a better prediction! He could test that to see if it were true instead of playing a guessing game.

"The last card represents the ultimate future. This is long term goals realized or ultimately what is to come forth. You have... the page of swords reversed. Wow this card talks about winning a great victory! So to recap the cards are saying that things will get better and you'll get your wish but be careful because an unseen enemy is coming your way and if you are diligent enough you will overcome and win over it." Rachael said and she started to put away her cards. Joseph sat there a minute before responding.

"So will you help me win now by allowing us to check out your dog before any more pets attack their owners?" Joseph asked.

"Yes... but I need to be assured no harm will come to Cosma."

"Who?"

"My dog."

"I can be sure that the most they need to do is draw some blood and observe her for a day or two. Then she will be back home before you know it." Joseph said.

"OK I am trusting you. Rachael said as she finished cleaning up.

Joseph followed Rachael as she drove to her home. He was prepared to drive them both to animal control however when they arrived Rachael's dog was barking violently that even Rachael seemed startled by her dog's actions.

"Does your dog always behave like this around strangers?" Joseph asked.

"No she is never like this. She's just being overprotective I think."

"Will I be able to transport her or do I need to contact animal control to calm her down?" He asked.

"No, she'll be fine. I'll just drive her in my car and you lead the way." Rachael said and Joseph returned to his car and waited as she retrieved her pet and sat her in the car. They drove to Animal Control headquarters and Joseph kept looking through his rearview mirror to see into Rachael's vehicle. The dog sat placidly in the chair but Joseph could feel the eyes of the animal staring at him.

Finally they arrived and he tried to stay away from the animal as much as possible but even the attendants were having a hard time because of the violent behavior the dog was showing. Finally they gave her a tranquilizer and once she was asleep they loaded her in a dog crate inside.

They went over procedures and what they planned to do while the dog was in their care. Rachael seemed a little nervous but she went along with it while they explained the benefit of them examining her. And how it could help save the lives of countless animals that might be infected with a disease that was causing them to attack their owners.

Animal Control was thrilled that Joseph had brought them a possible live specimen because so far they have had no luck. This would give them a better idea of what was going on and as they told Rachael if her dog was infected this could help them identify the illness and find a possible cure. This was a bit of an oversimplification on their part but sometimes they needed to simplify things so that others could understand what they were doing without bogging them down with technical terms and procedures they would not understand.

The toughest part seemed to be getting Rachael to relax and leave her pet there. She was afraid that something was going to happen despite the assurances both he and the vets gave her. This was not uncommon because almost all pet owners felt the same way.