Weathering Old Souls Character Introduction: Nadia Perry!! @jamescudney4

Weathering Old Souls is a co-written book that James J. Cudney and I have been working on all through 2020. It’s a multi-genre delight featuring metaphysical, historical fiction, past-life regression and more. The manuscript has been finished and polished for a couple of months now, and has been passed to the hands of several agents/agencies. As we weigh our publishing options, the two of us have decided to share monthly character introductions! You can find the first three intro’s here (Abigail, the MC), and here (a killer), as well as here (Sarah Brown).

As for DECEMBER, we’ve decided to share a bit about Nadia, Abigail’s mother. Even though Nadia is only present in a few chapters of the book, her part is a powerful one. You see, she died giving birth to Abigail, leaving her to be raised by her father, Oliver. Talk about the ultimate double edged sword for him! Nadia gave him the gift of life – and with it – the trauma and grief of death, that will all but consume him for the rest of his days.

Nadia is beautiful, and kind hearted. Abigail carries traits of her mother, and they’re absolutely lovely. James and I can’t wait to share this book with the world. In the meantime, enjoy this small excerpt to give you a feel of Nadia! 

Excerpt:

Nadia glanced at her cousin, lost in the smell of sweet cigar and pine that clung to his body. “Take care of your mother. I worry about her too much. You too, don’t be a stranger. I hope one day to have the same kind of love you’ve found, primo. And your son is such a handsome little devil. He’ll grow up to make someone very happy one day.”

The week after they left, Nadia wandered around the perfume aisle of their local department store, searching for any sort of body spritz that resembled her much-missed family members’ scents. Although Nadia’s intentions were pure, the balance between races and ethnicities in Concepción was changing, challenging the safety and security of many Latino families who were often looked down upon by the more wealthy and arrogant townsfolk. A woman behind the counter watched Nadia intently, certain she would try to steal something.

“Is there anything I can help you find, miss?” the store attendant asked with an increasing doubt in her eyes and fear in her voice. “Seems you’ve been sniffing for some time.”

“No,” Nadia averted her gaze to the floor. “Thank you, but no. I’ve smelled them all, and you’re right. I’ve spent way too much time obsessing. I can’t find an exact match to what I’m looking for. I’ll go.” As she exited, Nadia knew what the attendant had been thinking, but she was too ensconced in her memories of family to let it hurt. Having Oliver in her life had changed her outlook, and she was eager to move forward with him.

Once the area’s economic depression ended, Nadia insisted on settling down and buying a place with Oliver. They stumbled upon the western half of a run-down duplex on Street 211 that offered an amazing view of a treasured lake. Nadia rambled on and on for days because the numbers lined up, highlighting the Angel number 211.

“It’s a number that’s meant to bring peace and balance to life!” she proclaimed, excitement radiating from every curve of her gorgeous face.

Oliver looked over her striking features with one hand on his hip and the other softly combing over a slight five o’clock shadow. Her smile seemed as vast as the seas, and the gleam in her eyes practically swallowed him whole. He lowered his shoulders a notch in surrender. Very well knowing that he’d go through with the purchase either way, he wanted nothing more than to listen to her argument and intention for the space.

He swept an arm through the air and teased, “I don’t know, love, I’m not entirely convinced. You’re going to have to walk-through it with me one more time. Maybe explain this Angel number nonsense to me a little bit better.” Oliver had to bite his bottom lip to keep from laughing or showing his hand.

At first, she scowled at him for the comment, then quickly jumped for joy at the chance of another walk-through. Especially now that she had his complete attention and could delve into better detail on Angel numbers and their meanings. Nadia was a major numerology buff; it was kind of her thing. Nadia’s mother had always warned her about the number thirty-three too, something about it being bad luck for the women in their family. Generations of women had either passed away or learned devastating news in that year of their lives. Nadia waffled between casting it off as nonsensical and recognizing the importance of various numbers around her. She would be turning thirty-three the following year, but it wasn’t something Nadia wanted to alarm her husband about.