Hi Claudia here,

Here’s a brief look at the opening pages. It’s unproofed and unedited and subject to change, but you can feel the cozy texture and Ana’s dry humor as the first hint of trouble arrives. 

Thanks for reading.

Chapter 1:  Ana

Today was going to be a good day. I could feel it in the sunshine spilling across my room—until the universe gave me a twinge of doubt. I ignored the warning and stretched to touch Bunzilla, the closest in the line of bunnies that guarded my sleep.
 

"Hello Bunzilla, did you want to go to the shop with me today?"

The little bunny stuffie in the godzilla costume stood closest to the bathroom door.  His buddies lined up behind him, except for little bunny 'thuluh who had tackled Sherlock Cumberbunn. Irene Bunny was tipped back laughing. Bunzilla and little bunny 'thuluh usually were on opposite ends as they didn't get along.  They'd had too many epic battles in the world to even be friends as stuffies.

"I think you might need a break from the others."  I picked him up and gave him a quick hug.  He would get to sit with me at my shop, Moonstone & Mischief.  No one saw my tagline, but I said it in my head every time I thought of my shop. — Intuition, tea, and just a pinch of trouble.

But not today.  Today was going to be a good day.  Bunzilla toppled over. Well, snap. That wasn’t a good sign. Not a bad sign, exactly—just… not great. Maybe he just needed his gear.  I grabbed his the backpack with his stuffie inside. The backpack fit behind his back, only squishing his costume spines a little bit. He didn't mind.  There. That would help whatever might go wrong today.

I set him on the counter and moved to rearrange the rest of my bunnies so they could interact with different bunnies.  A good socialized bunny meant less trouble later. The one time I had left Smash bunny and Scarlet bunny too close together, the Smash had been on the floor surrounded by a broken tea cup.

At least it was an ugly tea cup and not one I loved.  Now I was much more careful where I put my bunnies.

I grabbed Bunzilla and headed through the heart of my small town to my shop.  The birds chittered in the background.  Old man Pete was just putting away his lawn mower and waved as I walked by. 

He needs to call his grandkids.

Every time I looked at a person, the universe whispered to me about what they needed.  Most of the time I had to ignore the whisper—those little gut-tugs and quiet pulses at the back of my mind. Most people just weren’t open to hearing that the universe, the goddess, the life force, or whatever words aligned with your belief wanted to help.

Sometimes they really needed to. I'd ignored the whisper about Mrs. Lunden’s heart, and two weeks later the ambulance came. I couldn’t do that again.  I had to find a way to get these messages out.

I shook off the sadness that tightened my chest.  I really just want to help people find out who they are and live the life they were meant to. 

My shop came into view in the heart of downtown Foxglove Crossing.  The air was heavy with cinnamon from the coffee shop. They must have finished the order for the construction company.  The owner always brought the good coffee to his Monday meetings.  The coffee shop on the one side helped with foot traffic as did the sweets shop on the other side. Even though it was an extra couple blocks out of my way, I avoided going past the candy store in the morning. Carol added the prettiest displays that made me want to buy the shelf out and snack all day.  I resisted unless the day went bad. Not like today.

My intuition twinged again.  Big changes were coming and it felt personal.

I unlocked the door, but before flicking on the open sign, I took out my custom made bunny oracle deck. The deck was my own art and a list of words and phrases across the printed out pages.  It was the only thing that had felt right for me.

I closed my eyes and gently shuffled the deck.  The cards were not as thick as regular playing cards and they warmed slightly in my grip. The universe was really trying to tell me something. I pushed my intention to the cards.

Give me clarity.

I shifted the cards some more until the card on the top called to me. I drew it out and laid it face down on my table.

Deep breath in and hold for an extra moment and then release it all.

I flipped over the card to see roiling dark gray clouds streaked with lightning.  A bunny hid under the tree. The word ‘Storm’ sat heavy at the bottom, the phrase beneath it read: ‘Chaos can clear the air.’ My stomach dropped. This wasn’t just weather. This was personal.

Not at all what I wanted for a Monday morning. And the worst part? I’d drawn that card before.

I set the Storm card back on the counter, face down, like that might change the forecast. Bunzilla watched from his perch without comment..

I did what I always do when the universe gets loud: I cleaned something. I dusted the big polished chunk of lapis lazuli on the shelf. Blue with little gold sparks, new in the shop, allegedly for wisdom, truth, and better communication. I picked up the smooth palm-sized piece and closed my eyes. Freeform shape, not quite round, no rough edges.

Or was this one about intuition and transformation? Hmm. I needed to look that up.

Crystals weren’t really my thing—I’m more “healing core energy” than “rock index”—but I run a new-age shop. And what new-age shop doesn’t have crystals? That would be like a flower store with no flowers. Well, maybe the analogy doesn’t exactly work, but the expectation is still true.

The front-door chime rang.

A bunny hopped in.