Karma Finds Lily

     Lily made her living as a psychic medium.  Unfortunately, she was neither a psychic nor a medium; she was just really good at reading people.   Those who came to her for guidance truly believed that she could help them.  She knew exactly how to prompt them to give an accurate reading.   She only played the medium when she was sure of the relationship between her client and the deceased loved one that she “brought” through.   She didn’t charge any more than any other psychic medium and each and every one of her clients went home happy.  She thought she was doing them a service.  She thought she was helping them, and 

indeed she was, but on some level she knew what she was doing was wrong and she also knew that Karma was a bitch and would eventually be coming for payback.   Karma barged through her door much sooner than expected and brought with it a most unwelcome gift, or so it seemed.

     Lily woke up one gorgeous Friday morning to a sexy Irish brogue in her head.  She was sure she was imagining it, but he was still yammering away at her even after her third cup of coffee.  “Who are you, and why are you in my head?  Get out of my head right now!”   She demanded of the insistent disembodied voice.

     “In answer to your first question, love”,  the sexy voice drawled, “I’m Cernunos, Lord of the Wild Wood, Karma sent me.  She would have come herself, but she’s been very busy lately, so she asked me to come to you and to help you to see the error of your ways.”  He clicked his tongue at her, “You’ve been very naughty, love, deceiving all of those people who trusted you to bring them divine guidance.  You’ll only be rid of me when Karma calls me back.  Until then, it’s my job to help you make it right.”

“Make what right?  I did help every single one of those people.   When they left me they were happy.   They received the guidance they needed and messages from their loved ones.”

     “You committed the most grievous sin a psychic could commit.  You gave them false messages from loved ones who did come through, but had very different messages than those you delivered.  They followed your guidance and trusted in what you told them, and now you have been given a chance to fix it.   Karma asks you set to rights  the last reading you did using your true psychic and medium abilities.”

“I don’t have true psychic or medium abilities.”   She looked frightened and confused.

    “Then how are you hearing me, love?”

“I’m not sure, I woke up this morning with you in my head.   This never happened to me before.”

     “Ah, then Karma is a double-edged sword.”   He laughed wickedly.

“What in Heaven’s name are you talking about?”   She was losing patience with him.

    “Heaven’s name, yes, that is Karma’s gift to you.  You have always had these abilities but never connect with the Divine.  As a psychic medium you are the channel for divine guidance and not the source of it.  I was sent to help you realize this.  I am Cernunnos, God of the wild wood and I am also the one many psychic mediums call on to help amplify their natural connection to the divine.  Karma thought you could use some more personalized help.  You are being given a great gift here Lily.  Karma is asking little of you considering the many false readings you have done.  She is only asking you to fix the last one and she sent me to help you.  She and I have discussed you at length, love.   I am also the God who is called on to help people understand and use their natural gifts and talents. You have great potential to truly help many more people with your natural abilities.  I will help you in this regard.  I will help you set your last t reading right, and try to give you a fresh start as a psychic medium.  By the time Karma finds out about the fresh start, it will be too late for her to do anything about it.  So, who did you read for last, love?”

    She cringed inwardly as she answered, “My last client, Lila, lost a child and wanted to connect with her.  She was such a sweet young woman and expressed so much love for her little girl.  She said the child’s father was not in the picture and she was raising her little girl alone.  I’m pretty good at reading people, or at least I thought I was, at the time of the reading there were no red flags jumping out at me about her.”

     “And now?”, Rory asked gently, “what do you sense about her?”

Lily froze, the coffee cup she was holding crashed to the floor shattering into a million pieces.  “No!”  She rushed to grab her phone, “I can call her to come over for a follow up reading, I’ll tell her that her little girl came through again with another message for her.  I have to stop her!”

    “Her little girl came through the first time, and if you had had a true connection with the divine, you would have known the child’s pain and her strong desire to spare another child the same.”

   Lily punched in Lila’s number and the woman answered immediately.  

     “Oh Hey Lily, what’s up?”  

“Hey Lila, I was wondering if you had time today to come in for a follow up reading.  Your daughter came to visit this morning with a new message for you.”

      “Really?  I could come by around noon?”

“Awesome!  See you then.”  She hung up with a sigh of relief.  

    “She’s coming by at noon for a follow up reading.  This time she’ll get an earful and won’t be so happy when she leaves me, especially when the police are there to greet her when she gets home.”

“How do you know for sure they will be waiting for her?”  Cernunnos asked cautiously.

     “She been abusing her new foster daughter and one of her teachers reported her to the police for child abuse.  When they find out how her first daughter died they will arrest Lila and she will not be allowed near children ever again.”   Cernunnos was blessedly silent. “Bonnie told me that I have to go to the police and tell them how she died.  The police will get a court order to dig up her body and have it examined by the medical examiner.  When I tell them how she died, they will have to do it. 

They had their suspicions at first but had no proof and for “religious” reasons, no autopsy was performed.  Lila thought she had all of her bases covered, when they exhume Bonnie’s body, they will find all the evidence they need to put her away for a very long time.  Oh my, look at the time, I have to get ready for my reading.”

     Lily placed her angels and guardians.  Cernunnos sat front and center.   It’s funny how she never thought to use them before now.  Her doorbell rang at noon sharp.  She opened the door to a very shocked Lila.  “You look different today.  Is everything okay?”

  “Couldn’t be better, please come in and have a seat.”  Lily ushered her into the living table where her readings table was set up and indicated a comfy chair opposite her.

     “What did Bonnie want to tell me?”  She asked, still pretending innocence.

“She has a question for you.  She wants to know why you hurt her?  She’s sobbing now, she wants to know why you didn’t love her and take care of her.  You were all she had in the world, and it’s because of you she died.”

   Lila went pale.  “Who told you?  Who have you been talking to?”  She stammered.  “Bonnie told me.  She’s here now, as a matter of fact.”  

“You’re lying, my little girl would never say those things to me.”  Lila spat out.

    “Bonnie, sweetie, why don’t you show Miss Lila what you really think of her.”

Lily spoke into a seemingly empty room.

“OUCH! Lila screeched as she grabbed at her head, that little bitch pulled my hair!”

   “What little bitch would that be?”  Lily asked innocently.

“Bonnie, honey, you stop that right now!" 

    Bonnie pinched Lila’s arm in response.  She pinched it so hard, it left a welt.

Bonnie has one last message for you, Lila.  “I hope you get what you deserve for what you did to me and what you are doing to Michelle.  Does it make you feel powerful to bully little girls?"

"This reading is over, it’s time for you to leave.” Said Lily deliberately. Lily escorted Lila to the front door just as police detectives were about to knock.

“How did you know I’d be here?”  Lila was shocked and confused.

    “Michelle told us you would be here.”  The detective at the door dangled a set of handcuffs in response.

“How did she know, she should still be in school.”

     “One of her teachers saw the cuts and bruises and talked to Michelle, then she called CPS.  Michelle is with them.  Michelle also told them about Bonnie, and that same teacher seemed to remember a girl named Bonnie associated with you so we did a little investigating. 

"How did Michelle know about Bonnie?" Lila asked, clearly confused. "She said Bonnie told her all about what you did to her. This is a court order to exhume Bonnie’s body and have an autopsy performed.  What do you think the results will reveal?  Let’s go, you’re under arrest for child endangerment in the first degree and murder in the first degree.”

Lily closed her front door and slumped against it. “Well, I guess Bonnie and Michelle handled everything. I guess they weren't leaving anything to chance. So am I back in Karma’s good graces?”  Talking to Cernunnos had become second nature by now.

   “Not quite yet.  Now you have to start building up good Karma by using your abilities they way they were meant to be used, by connecting with the divine and becoming the channel for divine guidance and to truly bring through deceased loved ones.”

Lily looked through her appointment book for her next appointment, it was a woman who wanted to connect with her deceased husband.  She closed her eyes and called the husband through.  He was not happy.  He told her he was poisoned and that his wife had been less than honest with her about the events surrounding his death.  About an hour later the woman rang her doorbell and came in and sat down acting like the brokenhearted grieving widow.  Lily closed her eyes and connected with the divine, and the poisoned husband came through again.  

   “Oh boy, let the games begin!”  She thought as she started the reading.  She could hear Cernunnos laughing as he made his way back to Karma.  Karma had been well-served and Lily was back on track.  She almost felt sorry for this woman sitting in front of her.  Almost.  Yes, Karma was about to be a bitch yet again and she was going to us Lily to deliver a long overdue and much needed Bitch Slap!