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In Cloud Hands: The Disclosure Files –
Book One, a summer assignment takes an unexpected turn as hidden operations
and emerging truths come to light. Nancy J. Nelson sets the stage with a
diplomat entering a new routine that soon reveals fractures in long-standing
structures of power.
Vicki Heywood accepts a temporary
position looking after two teenagers, thinking it will offer space to regroup
after loss. Instead, the environment around her begins to show signs of deeper
complexities—unusual technologies, suppressed treatments, and quiet references
to off-record contact with nonhuman intelligence. At the center of these
discoveries is the Partnership, an influential conglomerate that operates
beyond political constraints. As Vicki and the teens encounter more evidence of
its influence, their situation grows more precarious. Their attempts to
understand what is happening draw them into a larger movement connected to
global shifts and an unfolding awakening. The story examines how unexpected
alliances form during turbulent times and how individual decisions can interact
with broader forces shaping the future.
Nancy J. Nelson is an author known for
compelling narratives that explore mind-expanding questions about humanity’s
next steps. Her most recent book, Cloud Hands: The Disclosure Files – Book
One, has earned acclaim among readers drawn to thoughtful, visionary
science fiction. Nelson comes into writing after 25 years as a diplomat with
the U.S. Department of State and now lives in Los Angeles. Learn more through
her website.
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/243373375-cloud-hands
Prologue
I used to think this story was about me. After
all, isn’t everyone the
star of their own life? It was only later that I
realized we are all just
bit players in some ever-repeating, cosmic
pattern—a fractal pattern
made up of love, hardship, desperation, joy,
sorrow, and hope.
Let’s never forget about hope.
—Victoria Heywood
Excerpt from address to
the UN
There was a little cluster of forget-me-nots
arranged in a vase on the table in front of Vicki. They had been Beth's
favorite flowers. Small and vibrant, so cute they made you smile. Just like
Beth herself.
The waitress put a cup of coffee and a pastry
before her, and the same in front of the man seated across the table. Kurt
Martinsson—she had called him Professor Martinsson when he taught her senior
business seminar a decade earlier—added some sugar to his cup before he took a
sip. Well-built, dark hair with a touch of gray at his temples. He had aged
well. His bespoke sports jacket, manicured
nails, and expensive haircut suggested he was also
doing well.
“It was kind of you to look me up, Professor
Martinsson, especially after all this time. To be honest, I haven’t been
getting out much.” She hadn’t been getting out at all. What was the point?
Their parents had died in a car accident several years back, and now Beth was
gone too. Per her request, there had been a closed casket;
the chemo had ravaged her body and taken all her
hair. There was no amount of makeup, no wig good enough, that could have fixed
that.
“I heard about your sister, Vicki; I’m so sorry.
I understand you left your position at the Department of State to look after
her.”
Beth had argued against that. “I’m young and
strong; I’ll be able to beat this—there’s no reason for you to leave the job
you worked so hard to get. Mom and Dad were so proud that you became a
diplomat—they wouldn’t have wanted you to give that up.” She had been wrong
about being able to beat the cancer, but right that their parents had
been proud. They would have been just as proud to see
their youngest open up her own flower shop in a
prime location in downtown Los Angeles.
“I took a year’s leave of absence when it became
clear my sister’s illness was terminal. I have another four months before I
either return to work or submit my official resignation.”
“So, you haven’t decided what you'll do?”
Professor Martinsson cocked his head to one side and looked at her. He had
finished his croissant. She hadn’t even started on hers.
“No, I haven’t. Every time I start thinking
about it...” She looked down at her coffee cup. It was too hard to think. Too
hard to think about the future or anything else. She had officially shut down
Beth’s flower shop the week after her sister died, although it hadn’t been in
operation for a couple of months before that. At Beth’s urging, her two
part-time employees had both found other jobs, and the shop sat dark and
shuttered. She supposed she should do something—make arrangements to sell the
building or rent it out —but she just didn’t have the bandwidth.
“I have an idea that might interest you. I need
to do a lot of traveling over the next few months. My two children are more
than old enough to stay home by themselves—Brad is sixteen and Jessica is
twenty-two—especially since there’s household staff. But I’d feel better if
someone was around to keep tabs on them specifically.”
He paused, then casually asked, “You do still
have a Top-Secret Clearance, don’t you?”
Vicki looked up from her coffee and stared.
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