“Please continue,” Elliot said.

“The last lead I had was a letter from my birth mother with an address here in Blessings, but I have found no evidence of her being still here, despite searches in court records, land deeds, and back issues of the Blessings newspaper. Oh…I almost forgot. Her name was—”

“Yes, Janie Chapman, but you’re looking for a Janie Carter, is that right?”

Sully nodded, assuming Elliot had heard this from locals who knew why he was in town.

“Do you have any leads on your birth father, Marc Adamos, yet?”

Sully nearly fell off the sofa.

“I didn’t know his name! Is that his name? It wasn’t on my original birth certificate.”

“Oh. Sorry. I assumed you knew, or I would not have blurted it out so carelessly.”

“Don’t apologize,” Sully said. “This is good news. It just startled me.”

Elliot nodded. “Your adoptive parents were afraid your love and allegiance to them would be transferred to your birth mother, if you knew.”

“Why would they think that? They were amazing parents. I loved them.”

Elliot shrugged.

“Can you tell me if she’s still alive?” Sully asked.

“I know she’s not in the spirit world.”

Even though Sully was puzzled by the roundabout way Elliot had of imparting information, hearing this was a relief.

“Okay, good,” Sully said. “Can you tell me where she is? Do I need to search in a different area of the country?”

“Don’t leave Blessings,” Elliot said.

Sully’s stomach was in knots. The suspense was killing him.

“So she’s here?”

“Don’t leave Blessings. That’s what I’m supposed to tell you. This and nothing more. I cannot tell more than what Spirit wants me to say.”

When Elliot stood up, Sully was startled but followed suit. Obviously, the meeting was over. Elliot handed the letter back to Sully and smiled.

“It was a pleasure to meet you, and I am most impressed by how you saved our dear Melissa Dean. She is your soul mate, but of course you already knew that. I wish you both a long and happy life.”

Sully was nodding and trying to absorb all this, so he completely missed the fact that Elliot had escorted him right to the front door and was holding it open.

“Thank you, Mr. Graham—for your time, for your help, and for your kindness,” Sully said.

Elliot smiled. “We’re going to be great friends.”

Sully was so surprised that he laughed out loud. “That’s an awesome thing to know, sir. Have a nice day.”

Just as he walked across the threshold, the door behind him shut with a firm thump, followed by a click.

“He locked me out, too,” Sully said, and smiled all the way back to his car. These were things to celebrate, and he knew how he wanted to do it.

* * *

Melissa was at the cleaners handing out paychecks and talking to the employees about the newly installed machine.

“How’s it working for you guys?” she asked, and was inundated by the vocal appreciation for her getting it.