Introduction

"Melissa Foster is a wonderful connector of readers and books, a friend of authors, and a tireless advocate for women. She is the real deal." Author Jennie Shortridge

What would you give up for the people you love?

When Megan Taylor, a single mother and artist living on Cape Cod, receives the shocking news that her cancer has returned, she's faced with the most difficult decision she's ever had to make. The love she has for her daughter, Olivia, and her closest friends will be stretched and frayed.

Megan's illness reawakens the torment of her best friend, Holly Townsend, whose long-held secrets and years of betrayal come back to haunt her. How does one choose between a daughter and a life-long best friend? Can the secret she has been keeping be revealed after years of lying without destroying everyone in its wake?

Meanwhile, fourteen-year-old Olivia's world is falling apart right before her eyes, and there's nothing she can do about it. She finds herself acting in ways she cannot even begin to understand. When her internal struggles turn to dangerous behavior, even the paranormal connection she shares with her mother might not be enough to save her - her life will hang in the balance.

Megan's Way is a journey of self discovery and heartfelt emotions, exploring the depth of the mother-daughter bond, and the intricacies of friendship.

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Excerpt

Prologue

Summer 1988

Megan and Holly ran, weaving their way through the crowds of the carnival and hollering to hear over the thick cheer that permeated the festive evening. Two teenage boys looked them up and down as they passed. Megan yanked Holly by her arm and pulled her into a long shadow cast by the colorful lights that illuminated a rickety roller coaster. They huddled together, giggling. A moment later, the roller coaster whooshed by, sending them scampering through the mass of carnival-goers, engulfed in uncontrollable shrieks of laughter.

A small red tent with a psychedelic sign that read “Psychic Readings! See Your Future! $3!” caught Megan’s attention. She dragged Holly to the entrance, and they peered into the smoky gloom as they parted the curtain of stringed glass beads, which clinked and jingled as they were pushed to the side.

Holly pulled at Megan’s sleeve, “Let’s get out of here.”

Megan distractedly shrugged off Holly’s hand. She was mesmerized by the rush of the unknown, spellbound by the eccentric woman sitting within the darkened tent. A chill ran up Megan’s spine. The woman looked into her eyes and beckoned her forward. Megan reached behind her and grasped Holly’s hand, pulling her into the tent against her will. She reached into her pocket and, barely able to take her eyes from the old woman’s, fumbled to count her money and then shoved six crumpled dollar bills into a glass jar that sat on a pedestal by the entrance.

The cacophony of the rides and the crowds seemed to fall away as a hushed stillness closed in around them, save for the crackle of the flickering flames dancing on their wicks. The girls’ hands trembled. They were equally scared and excited by the mystical old woman shrouded in veils. Several bracelets clanked and dangled from her thick wrist as she motioned for them to sit around the small round table. They startled when the old woman grabbed their hands with her rough, plump fingers, then she slowly and dramatically closed her eyes.

Her hands tightened around theirs. The woman gasped a deep breath, and her body raised up and back, as if she were being pushed against the back of her chair. She held her breath, then let it out in a rush of air. Her hands fell open, releasing theirs. Her shoulders slumped forward, and her head followed.

Holly snapped her head in Megan’s direction and mouthed, “What the hell?”

The woman opened her heavily-painted eyes, which grew wide and laden with concern, and stared into Megan’s eyes. Megan felt riveted to her chair. The woman reached across the table and touched her hand, sending a jolt of energy up Megan’s arm. Megan pulled her hand away, frightened. The woman whispered to her, “Ah, High Priestess, my teen querent. She will need you, and you will know.”

Megan’s legs trembled, her heart pounded in her chest. Her breaths came in short, clipped bursts. She and Holly turned wide, scared eyes toward each other. The woman moved her vision to the space between Megan and Holly. “Three of Swords pierce a heart. Against the background of a storm, it bleeds.” She closed her eyes again, and whispered, “I see death.” Her eyes slowly opened and she squinted, as if she were watching a scene unfold of a different time and place, her eyes darting without focus. Then seeming to recite, she intoned, “Blood or poison will come: Transformation—passage—truth.”

The girls reached for each other’s shaking hands. Holly’s eyes welled with tears, her head visibly shook. Megan remained focused on each word the old woman said, unable to turn away.

The psychic turned those same concerned eyes to Holly. They glazed over with a look the girls could not read. Fear? Hatred? Understanding? She pointed a long, painted fingernail at Holly and hissed, “Judgment asks for the resurrection to summon the past, forgive it, and let it go.” She lowered her hand and said, “One will be released,” then quietly, under her breath, “and returned after death.”

After a moment of panicked silence, the girls stood, sending their chairs flying askew. Then they fled, running fast and hard into the chaos of the carnival, caught in a frenzy of fear and hysterical laughter.

The psychic screamed into the night behind them. Her words trailed in their wake and echoed in Megan’s ears for days, “With this spell, I empower thee. I empower thee!”

Chapter One

2009

Megan steadied herself against the cold porcelain sink, hoping the morning’s nausea would subside and trying to strengthen herself for the tough decision that had been wreaking havoc with her mind lately, and the choice that lay ahead. The familiar Tink, pause, Tink, pause on her bedroom window drew her attention. A confused cardinal had repeatedly gone beak to glass in recent weeks, as though trying to rouse her. As she tried to calculate the number of times she’d also awakened to nausea, the familiar surge of bile rose in her throat.

She clung to the toilet as if it were a security blanket. The smell of last night’s dinner still wafted in the air, sending her body into convulsions of dry heaves. Great, Megan thought as she grasped her stomach. She looked up at the ceiling, What the hell am I going to do now?

“Mom?” Olivia’s voice carried down the hall. “Mo-om!” The single word stretched into two perfect teenage syllables.

Megan heard the drama in her voice and closed her eyes against her growing frustration. She knew that particular scream, the self-centered, in-a-hurry, where’s-my-stuff scream. She did not have the patience to deal with Olivia’s drama on this particular morning. She grabbed hold of the sink and pulled herself up. Her stomach lurched again, causing her whole body to clench. She prayed for some relief as Olivia’s voice came screaming at her again.

“What!” she snapped back. She wished she could have been more patient with Olivia, but at that moment, she was overtaken by exhaustion, confusion, and anger. She wanted to kick something, to cry, to scream until she no longer had a voice—but her body was too tired to do any of those things. She had to pull herself together and get through the day.

Megan rinsed out her mouth and averted her eyes from the sheet-white face that reflected back at her.

“Never mind!” Olivia yelled from the hall. Her voice carried lightly, the tension from a moment ago gone.

Thank God, Megan said to herself. She made her way back to her bed and lay down, pulling the blanket over her head to shut out the light—and maybe life—for a moment. view abbreviated excerpt only...

Discussion Questions

From the author:

SPOILER ALERT!!!
1. In Megan’s Way, Megan imposes a treacherous decision upon herself: should she get further treatments for her terminal illness, or should she refrain? If you were in Megan’s situation, what would you have done? What, in your life, would impact that decision the most? Why do you think Megan felt compelled to hide her illness?

2. What is your opinion of Holly? When she married Jack, was she overwhelmed by the prospect of marriage, by the thought of motherhood, or both? Do you think her relationship with Megan had anything to do with her anxiety? The thought of a baby, she felt, would have thrown her into an untenable situation. Do you believe she saved Olivia from a more difficult life? Did she save herself from falling into a depression or other unhealthy life? Do you feel she acted out of self-preservation or selfishness? Did she cheat Jack out of the first fourteen years of raising Olivia as his own?

3. At the tender age of 14, Olivia was already in a stage of her life when most girls are self-absorbed and act out toward their parents. Do you think Olivia’s age added to her angst about not knowing who her father was? Do you think she could have handled it in a mature and respectful way had Megan revealed her true father, or do you think that as a teen, it would be more likely that at any fit of anger or rebellion, she’d have used it against Megan?

4. Peter’s mother left him at a very early age, and he clearly never dealt with his abandonment issues. After Megan dies, he reevaluates his life and opens his heart. Do you think his angst would have been equal, more, or less, had his father left instead of his mother? Do you think it is possible to get past those issues?

5. At the beginning of the book, a fortune teller foresees death, passage, and truth. She also states, “One will be released, and returned after death.” She states, “She will need you, and you will know.” She also casts a spell on one of them as they leave the tent. Do you believe there are people that can see the future? Do you think there are people who are capable of casting such spells? Do you believe in other paranormal connections, like the one between Megan and Olivia?

6. Holly and Jack have a seemingly strong marriage, and yet it is undermined by Holly’s lie, the enormity of which could land her in jail. Do you think she should have told Jack? Do you think their marriage would survive such deception?

7. Everyone keeps secrets of some sort. What types of secrets do you think are the most harmful to relationships? Infidelity? Financial problems? Former relationships?

8. The friendship between Megan, Holly, Jack, and Peter is very strong. It appears, throughout the book, that they are all there for each other, no matter what is going on in their own lives. And they all rallied around Olivia after Megan’s passing. Do you think such strong bonds can really exist within a group of this size? Do you have this strong of a friendship with anyone, male or female? What do you think drew these friends together and bonded them throughout the years?

9. After Megan’s death, Olivia meets Jason, who has also lost his parents. Do you think Jason helps Olivia grieve and deal with her mother’s death? What other role do you think Jason plays in Olivia’s life?

10. If you were Holly or Jack, what might you have done to help Olivia through her mother’s death? Would you have done anything differently?

11. Megan’s Way brings to the reader more than one moral dilemma. Discuss the ethical and moral values that might weigh into the decisions the characters have made. Did you feel angry at any of the characters? Did your emotions change as you progressed through the story? At the end of Megan’s Way, did you agree or disagree with the characters’ decisions?

Weblinks

»	Author Melissa Foster's web site

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