Heritage Crossing–Chapter 14 Snippet

Author’s Notation: This is the first of two chapters detailing the introduction of RIchard’s game ‘Who Are You,’ to David and Prudy. Richard decided to have the kids play the game to determine whether they would go on their trip and the places that they would visit. David, who didn’t know how the game was played at the time, had an interesting take on it.

David sat beside the game. Richard followed his eyes down to the name he was looking at on the game board.

“You made this?” David reiterated and shook his head in amazement.

“Yes,” Richard answered again and laughed. It felt good. Able to see the game anew through their eyes, he was taken with the enormity of the project and just how beautiful the branches intertwined, pink and blue reaching into the top and crown of the tree.

“Is it like an Ouija board?” David asked. “Prudy and I don’t use a planchette do we?” He continued and looked up to Richard, who had a puzzled look. “Planchette—it’s a small piece of wood that Prudy and I hold with our finger tips, and it moves around.”

“You know I played the game once a long time ago, but I didn’t know the name of whatever it was you held. To answer your question though—no, that’s not how it works.”

“Sure would be cool though if the spirit of the ancestor moved us.”

Richard looked at David with a slightly opened mouth. All of his work and David has reduced his tree to a variation of Ouija. Oh God, he thought, what next?

David continued, “That would be cool though—huh?” He started to moan like a ghost. “I’m the ghost named…” he leaned over to read a name at the top of the tree. “Roger Clap—ooh.” He stood up and held his hands in front of him and started walking toward Prudy as if he were one of the walking dead.

Prudy screamed. She jumped up and ran behind Grandpa.

David laughed.

“Okay, that’s enough. I didn’t bring the game out for you to make fun of it.” Richard was now hurt, and it showed. He had to admit though the idea of the spirits actually revealing themselves through his game, especially as each player climbed the tree with their game piece—whoa, that was intriguing from a marketing perspective. It wasn’t going to happen though.

“Sorry, Grandpa,” David said and sat back down. “Just kidding.”