WARNING: This contains spoilers to my story, “Forever in Time.” Events from that story are discussed in Lenora’s letter. To read “Forever in Time,” you can find the link to that blog in the Other Works by Me section on this blog.

Dear Meadow!

How lovely it was to get your beautiful letter! Don’t worry about taking a while to get back. As you said, we all are busy and have things in life we must attend to. With that said, I, too, must apologize for taking my own good deal of time in getting back to you. We’ve been dealing with a very worrisome situation with my sister, Alina. Alina isn’t my biological sister, but she’s like a sister to me. She’s Mathilda’s daughter. I think I told you about Mathilda, right? Anyway, Alina and her husband have been dealing with fertility issues that sprung from a curse that was put on her. To remove it, they must undergo a scary and potentially dangerous thing. It has me worried sick for them, but Mathilda says it will be all right. I must believe her or I’ll work myself into a frenzy. When it’s one of my own, I can’t help but worry.

Ah, but here I go talking about magic again. In all honestly, I debated on how much i should reveal. I’m not one to hide the truth from a friend, as I operate on honesty and sincerity. Still, these things can throw people in unpleasant ways, so sometimes it’s hard to determine how much to keep under wraps without compromising my integrity. I can understand how my reality doesn’t mesh with yours and that is okay. When I tell you of magic and about how reality is for me, just think of it as a good story you might want to read in its entirety. I’m awfully good at spinning a yarn. I’m a writer, after all, so spinning a good yarn is part of my bread and butter.

Och, Meadow, my friend! I heartily wish I could tell you that terrible things don’t happen to good people, but that would be a lie. Even with the loss of my parents, my life with Grandda was sheltered. He protected me as best he could and I took care of him the best I knew how. My illness was the most horrible thing we experienced during my growing up.

I lost him for a time while carrying my son, Landon. I had lost my parents but was too young to remember and grieve for them. Losing Grandda was like being ripped apart from the inside out. I had Mathilda, my husband, and my son, but Grandda left such a huge empty place that was never full again until he returned to us.

I believe I told you about losing my first husband and son to a plane crash when Landon was a boy. Och, they were my life and without them, what was left of my life held no meaning for such a very long time. It literally killed me but I had to come back because there was still work left for me to do. At the time, I couldn’t bear to be where they weren’t. It took me a very long, long time to heal and it was thanks to Mathilda that it happened.

I was blessed to find love again, and I have a wonderful husband and children to show for it. We are very happy and blessed, but ah, we’ve endured our share of grief and tragedy. Something horrible happened when the children were young; it was something that broke one of the strongest, bravest men I know, the man I love with every fiber of my being.

Tyrone came from a loving and wealthy family, but sadly, his sister had a lot of issues. Disgruntled feelings turned into outright animosity and were allowed to fester until they became downright toxic. She had it in her head that Tyrone was the golden child while she got only the leftovers. She felt the need for revenge and knew the best way to hurt Tyrone was to come after me.

Now to backtrack. After putting my life back together from losing Lincoln and Landon, I dated sporadically. I was seeing a man named Shane for a while but never felt any kind of great attraction toward him. I even broke it off when I found out he was married. Shane was the type who had to do it his way or his ego would suffer. He ended up getting with Tyrone’s sister and came up with this scheme to capture me. Shane also had a brother, Allen, who was very mentally ill and who’d developed a fixation toward me. Tyrone’s sister and Shane blackmailed a doctor who also possessed magic to cast a spell to put me out of commission so they could spirit me away, reprogram me to make me forget my life, and hand me over to Allen.

Well, it worked and I was made to appear as though I’d died. I really thought I was dying. Man, it sure felt like it. Tyrone was with me at the end and as I said, it broke him. You see, when a werewolf loses his or her true soulmate, it causes them unspeakably unbearable pain. Some don’t even survive it. I think the fact that I truly wasn’t gone was what kept him here.

They even gave me a sendoff and a clone of me was who was being buried. To this day, it breaks my heart knowing the kind of pain my family was put through because of a misguided vendetta.

When I woke up, I found myself locked in a cell where I remained for a few weeks. The doctor who was being blackmailed was in charge of reprogramming me but was a very unwilling participant. Mathilda put two and two together and thankfully, Neil played ball with her and did all he could to protect me.

Mathilda and Tyrone eventually figured out what had happened and I was rescued but not without casualties. Allen was killed during the scuffle and Shane…well, let us just say he is singing soprano in the Jailhouse Chorale. By the time Tyrone got done with him, he was in sorry shape, as was his sister. The moral of the story is, never piss off an already enraged werewolf, especially one who is avenging his mate.

It all turned out okay in the end, but it took a long time for all of us to recover. The children didn’t want me out of their sight and I had nightmares for a good while afterward. Tyrone did as well, and poor Landon was a mess. My nephew Carson took it hard and didn’t want to leave my side. It was shortly after that when Tyrone and I gained our immortality, so nothing like that will ever happen to us again, thank heavens!

Awful things do happen, and all we can do is cope as best we can. I believe everything I’ve gone through has made me stronger and more able to help people when I’m needed. I figured if I turned into a bitter old shrew, those events would have gotten the best of me and I couldn’t allow that. I have too much going for me to let it keep me down.

I am so glad I could bring you comfort. I can’t say I relished all the tragedy and heartbreak I went through, but I am thankful that it helps others to know that they can get through the hard times and that things do eventually get better.

Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry that what you found out about Jena causes you such great pain. I don’t blame you, for it is disgusting, no matter what culture is involved, to take such things out on a defenseless baby! It certainly isn’t little Jena’s fault regarding the circumstances of how she came to be. I realize that different cultures have their customs and codes they live by, but I am sickened by the lack of compassion toward someone who is too young to even defend herself. I give people a fair shake, but I think under these circumstances, you and Jena are better off without Karim’s so-called help. Oh dear! There goes my Irish temper again. My Grandda always tells me I never know when to quit.

My heart goes out to Jena’s biological mother. To think of what that poor woman suffered is utterly vile! Being raped is one thing, but gang rape is definitely an all-time low. It unnerves me sometimes to think about what the world is coming to nowadays.

Oh my! I was laughing so hard as you described Jena’s reaction to Beethoven’s Sixth. I could picture it so clearly, and it brought such joy for me to read. Isn’t it amazing how music can evoke such moods, even in someone so young? That is such a beautiful memory that you’ll always have.

It sounds like Jena is doing great. It’s fantastic that your Uncle Jasper was able to help with that language hurtle. Sometimes it takes a small thing to turn on that switch. That is wise to just take things as they come as far as her being bilingual. There is no right or wrong, and it’ll work out the way it’s meant to. It sounds like she’s very intelligent and enjoys learning. As long as she asks to play flashcards and shows such enthusiasm, there’s certainly no harm in playing them with her. It’s a great learning exercise and kids that age pick things up like little sponges. It may seem like work but it sounds like she is having the time of her life.

I’m so proud of you! You took a giant step in leaving Jena to enjoy a cup of coffee. It’s so hard leaving them, even with someone you trust implicitly. You don’t want to miss a thing with them and you know nobody else can take care of them like Mom can. Even though you need that breath of fresh air, taking that leap of faith is a huge deal!

It sounds like she and Jasper had a wonderful time. Ah, how I can relate to not wanting to be interrupted! I remember this time when I was so engrossed in writing this scene for a story I’d been working on. Goodness, but I was such a child! Well, my princess was abut to be fed to the evil moat monster and only Prince Zach could rescue her. I was writing about his plan of attach when all of a sudden, I heard an awful noise.

“Dinner, Lenora darling!”

Ugh! How could I even think about eating at a time like that? I tried to ignore Grandda, but he wasn’t having any of it. The next thing I knew, he was standing right beside me and giving me that look. I jumped up and glared up at him. “Grandda, ye interrupted me at the most CRUCIAL of moments!” And then, I proceeded to tell him just exactly how it was!

Poor Grandda. He’s such a loving, patient man, far better than I deserve. He put dinner back in the warmer for a half hour so I could finish my scene. And you know what? That story ended up getting published in the school’s magazine! It’s normally reserved for high school kids but my story was so good that they said they had to have it. I guess the later dinner was worth it.

Och, such lovely compliments! You are most welcome, my friend. Truly, it brings me such happiness to have given you the hope and happiness you spoke of. Your joy radiates from you so obviously and that brings me such warmth and love. I’m elated that things are going so well and the chasm between you and Jena is closing. Cherish those bedtime story moments along with the other memories and just enjoy her. They grow up so fast and this truly is a specal age to enjoy.

With ever so much love!

Lenora