Soothsayer: Magic Is All Around Us (Soothsayer Series Book 1) (22 page)

“It was wishful thinking at best. Prophecies aren’t made lightly,” Robert sounded apologetic, but I knew he understood how futile my parents’ efforts had been.

“What else did she show you?” he asked when I didn’t say anything.

Looking at him I wished he could see what was in my head so I wouldn’t have to say it out loud. I took a large sip of tea, letting the whiskey give me courage. The warmth coated my throat and moved swiftly down my torso. My head spun as the whiskey burned in my chest.

I took a deep breath and exhaled. “She showed me how my parents really died,” I said and pulled the blanket more fully over my legs.

“I'm so sorry,” he said and reached out to squeeze my foot. I felt his touch burning through the blanket.

“I understand why she altered the memory. It was the right thing to do.”

“It’s never the right thing to do." His voice was stern and the little wrinkle between his eyebrows appeared as he furrowed his brow.

If only he could see in my head, he would understand what my Aunt did for me.

“Do you know the truth about how they died?” I asked.

“No, I only know they died when you were young. No one’s ever elaborated more on the topic.”

“They were murdered.” I paused as tears stung my eyes and threatened to spill over. “Because of me.” A single tear escaped and rolled down my cheek. I quickly wiped it away.

Robert didn’t say anything. He grabbed my hand and held it in his.

“I was the one who found them,” I continued, “when I got home from school.”

“Violet, you don’t have to do this. You don’t have to tell me,” Robert said and moved closer.

“Yes I do.” Another tear fell from my eye. Robert gently wiped the tear away and let his hand rest on my shoulder. “I could still feel the Magic when I found them. The air was thick with it. The killer wanted to send a message. There was blood everywhere."

Pausing I took another sip of my tea as I summoned the last bit of my courage.

“I spent the night at a friend’s house the night before,” I explained. “That’s when it happened. My aunt said she stopped looking ahead for my parents because they didn’t want to know when they would die, but I wonder if they knew. I wonder if that’s why they sent me to my friend’s house for the night, to protect me.” I pulled the blanket tighter around me, suddenly feeling cold despite the tea. “I was in shock. I walked over to their bodies and sat in their blood, not knowing what to do. I never cried, I just sat with them until my aunt showed up and called the police. She tried to get me to talk for days but I wouldn’t say anything. So finally she altered my memory and I grew up thinking I’d lost my parents in a car accident. I even thought I gave a speech at their funeral, but it was all a lie. They were murdered and it was all my fault.”

Unable to fight it anymore, I let myself cry.

“Listen to me. None of this is your fault. Look at me,” Robert insisted, taking my face in his hand and pulling it up so I’d lock with his eyes. “Your parents’ death is not your fault.”

“But they died because I was their daughter,” I sniffled and wiped my nose with the back of my hand.

“Your parents, whether they wanted to admit it or not, knew who you’d become. They died protecting you so that you could fulfill your destiny. The only person who can accept fault for their death is the person who killed them.”

“But if I’d never been born-“

“You were meant to be born to them. Your soul chose them. When they found out who you were they could have given you up to be protected and hidden away but they didn’t. They chose to keep you and care for you themselves. They knew the consequences of their actions but you were worth it. You can’t blame yourself, do you understand me?”

“But-”

“Do you understand me?” he asked with fierce determination.

I looked at him for a long moment, letting myself get lost in the haze of the whiskey. How could I make him understand that maybe if I had died instead of my parents, everyone would be better off?

Tears streamed down my face as the pain of their death gripped me. Robert took the teacup from my hand and set it on the table next to his. He pulled me to his chest and let the grief consume me.

I don’t know how long we stayed like that but as my tears started to fade exhaustion swept over me. Letting everything out did make me feel a little better. I’d been holding so much in lately that my heart was a tangled mess. I still felt guilty for my parents’ death and I was still overwhelmed by the Magical world. But after today, I was finally ready to accept that all of this is real.
I guess that means I’m not in Kansas anymore,
I thought with a wry smile.

I pulled away from Robert and sighed heavily. “I think I’m ready to sleep now,” I said.

“I’ll say. You smell like a distillery,” he teased.

“Not nice.” I stood up and nearly lost my balance.

Robert grabbed hold of my waist to steady me. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.”

I thought about protesting his help but my head was starting to spin a little. “Let’s,” I said as we walked toward my bedroom.

Robert helped me into bed and threw the covers over me. The sheets were cold and I shivered a little. I closed my eyes as Robert started to shut the door and my parents’ faces flashed across my vision.

“Robert?” I chirped against my better judgment. This was a horrible idea but I couldn’t stand being alone all night.

“Yeah?” he said, poking his head back in.

“Will you…will you stay with me tonight?”

He hesitated in the doorway. “Violet, I…”

“I just don’t want to be alone. I can’t stop the memories,” I said under my breath.

He sighed and closed the door.

“Do you have an extra blanket?” He asked.

“Yeah, in the chest.” I pointed toward the foot of the bed.

He pulled a quilt out of the chest and laid down on top of the duvet next to me then threw the quilt over himself.

“I’m right here if you need me,” he said and settled into bed.

“Thank you.”

Darkness concealed all but the faintest outline of his face. I smiled knowing I was safe with him here next to me and with that little surety in my mind my anxiety faded a little.

I laid down on my side with my back to him. His steady breathing was like the tide moving in and out. With each breath he took my eyes grew heavy. I tried to keep them open so I could enjoy the calmness of the moment but I couldn’t fight it any longer. My eyelids felt like barbells and I gave way to exhaustion. This time I saw my parents just as I’d remembered them: loving and alive.

Somewhere between reality and dreams I heard what sounded like a blunt object banging against wood. I stirred and lifted the covers to my chin as I tried to chase the wispy edges of my fading dream.

“Violet,” a warm voice whispered, “someone’s at the door.”

My eyes shot open and I lifted my head up to find Robert looking down at me, a smile on his face. I must have rolled over at some point in the night because I was now lying on top of him. My arm lay across his chest and his arm was wrapped around my lower back. Blood rushed to my cheeks as I sat up and pushed away from him.

“Sorry,” I said, clearing my throat as I shuffled to the other side of the bed. The sheets felt cold from the lack of body heat and I fought the urge to roll back into his warm arms.

The same voice from my dreams yelled again and the doorbell buzzed, dashing away any hope of five more minutes of sleep.

“Alright, alright, I’m up,” I grumbled. I pulled myself out of bed and went to open the door.

“Where the hell have you been?” Becky asked and stormed right in.

“What're you talking about?” I asked while rubbing my eyes, still half asleep.

“I’ve left you a million messages. I thought something happened to you.”

“Messages… shit, my phone!” I walked over to my purse on the table and started digging. “I'm sorry, Beck, I’ve just been really busy with this project.” I pulled my phone out. It was dead.

“I’ll say,” Becky replied. The tone of her voice caught me off-guard and I turned to find her staring at Robert, who had clearly just rolled out of bed, my bed.

“I can explain.” I hated how cliché I sounded.

“Uh huh,” Becky mumbled, raising an eyebrow in my direction.

“I’m going to make some coffee,” Robert said, excusing himself.

“You better dish,” Becky said as soon as Robert was out of earshot.

I sighed and motioned her to the living room. How was I going to explain to her what was going on when I couldn’t tell her the truth? I wanted to tell her about my parents, about what really happened to them. I didn’t want to lie to her again - I just couldn't do that to her. Maybe if I stayed away from anything Magical I could tell her just enough without having to lie.

“It’s kind of a long story,” I began as we sat on the couch.

“I’ve got time,” Becky replied.

“It’s not what it looks like.”

“You said that.” She rolled her eyes, wanting me to get to the point.

“I’m serious. He was just comforting me.”

“Oh, is that what you call it now?”

“Knock it off, I’m being serious.”

“Okay, what was he
comforting
you about?” Her eyes went up and down as she searched me suspiciously.

“My parents.”

“Your parents?” She balked.

“Yeah, turns out they didn’t die in a car accident.” The initial shock had worn off and even though I was still upset about what had happened, I was better equipped to deal with it after my breakdown last night.

“What do you mean? What happened to them?” Becky asked.

I was dabbling in dangerous waters. How much could I tell her without giving anything else away? I had to keep the Magical parts secret, but I wanted to stick as close to the truth as possible.

“They were murdered,” I said, my eyes closed as I took a solemn breath.

“What!” Becky exclaimed as she gaped at me.

“It was a robbery, at our house.” It wasn’t exactly the truth. Their murderer did break in and kill them but not with the intention of robbing the house.

“On my God, Violet. I’m so sorry,” she said, wrapping her arms around me. “Are you okay? I mean, of course you're not okay, but how are you dealing?” She pulled away from me and her loving expression nearly made me lose it all over again.

Robert walked into the room with two cups of coffee. He handed one to me and offered the other to Becky.

“Thank you,” I said, feeling the warmth of the dark liquid radiate through the ceramic mug.

“No thanks, I’ve already had enough caffeine this morning,” Becky said and waved him off.

Robert kept the second cup for himself and sat down on the loveseat to the right of us.

“I’m dealing the best I can. I mean, it doesn’t change the fact that they’re gone,” I noted.

“Do you know who killed them?” Becky asked.

My eye flickered to Robert for half a second. I did know but how was I supposed to explain that to her. “There are a few leads,” I sighed and admitted.

“And how do you fit into all this?” Becky asked, looking over at Robert.

“My family stumbled upon Violet and the truth about her parents,” he explained.
That was mostly true
, I thought, taking a sip of my coffee. They did stumble upon me. He was much better at telling careful truths than I was. “When I told her, well, you can imagine her reaction, so I offered to stay with her if she didn’t want to be alone.”

“You should have called me,” Becky lamented as she turned back to me. She didn’t like being out of the loop. “Although, I can see why you didn’t,” she added under her breath as she tilted her head toward Robert.

Leave it to Becky to lighten the mood with sex. Looking at Robert over the top of my coffee cup a small smile spread across his face as he took a sip.

“I know I should have called you. I’ve just been so preoccupied with my parents and with this rush project I’ve been working on the past few days. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’d forget about me too in your… err… situation.”

“Still, I didn’t mean to make you worry.”

Becky waved off my apology and added, “I’ve been trying to get a hold of you because I wanted to make sure you didn’t forget about the Yosemite trip this weekend.”

Every year Becky, myself and a couple of our girlfriends took a trip to Yosemite before the summer was over. It was nice to get away from the city, even if only for a couple of days.

“Damn, that’s right.”
When it rains it pours
, I thought. I had so much going on right now with the winery shoot and the sudden emergence of the Magical world the Yosemite trip never even entered my mind.

“
Thanks, I did forget about it," I said, glancing at Robert.

“Well you can’t bail. Christy will kill you if she has to hear from me about your
preoccupations.
”

“I'm not bailing, I just need to get some things done faster than I had planned.” I knew that now was probably not the time for a trip but a part of me relished the thought of getting away from everything.

I sighed, if not for editing pictures yesterday morning before my life had blown up I’d be way behind schedule.

“Alright, well now that I know you’re still alive, I’ll let you get back to whatever it was you were doing,” Becky said and stood up. Robert and I both stood as well.

“Sleeping,” I noted with a roll of my eyes and a shake of my head, “and I think that ship has sailed.” I yawned.

“Why don’t you come by later? We can talk more and maybe catch a movie. I know Aaron would love to see you again,” Becky suggested. She glanced at Robert. “You’re welcome to come along too.”

“Thank you,” he said. It wasn’t a yes or a no.

“Yeah, sure. I’ll call you later.” Becky and I exchanged a quick kiss on the cheek and she headed out the door.

With the door once more locked, I plopped back down on the couch and let my head fall back.

“She’s something else,” Robert remarked.

“Yeah, she’s a little high-strung,” I added. I sat up and reached for my cup on the coffee table.

Everything was still a little awkward between Robert and I and neither one of us knew what to say to each other. I wondered how long I had laid on top of him and how long he’d been aware of it. My heart started to pick up in tempo and I fought a smile as I remembered how warm and relaxing it had been sleeping next to him.

“So what are your plans for today?” he asked, interrupting my thoughts.

“Well, we’re leaving for Yosemite on Friday night so I have today and all day tomorrow to get everything printed for Caltome.” The opening wasn’t for another week and a half, but with how unpredictable my life has been lately I wanted to finish that project sooner rather than later.

“About Yosemite,” he said, hesitant.

“You think I shouldn’t go,” I said, not really surprised. Robert liked having me on house arrest. I was surprised when he didn't insist on coming with me for the Caltome shoot, but apparently I’d been with people he knew and trusted.

“No, you should go. I just want to coordinate with you.”

“Oh, okay. So you’re going too?” I already knew the answer and honestly I wasn’t opposed to him always being around anymore.

“Of course I’m going, but I think Brett or Annabel should accompany you since you have no way of protecting yourself against Magic and I won’t be able to stay close to you.”

“Oh, okay,” I said unsure of how I felt about Brett or Annabel babysitting me. Having Robert around was one thing, but I didn’t know his sister or Annabel.

“That won’t be a problem will it?” His cocked to the side as he studied the confused expression on my face.

“No, Not at all. I’ll let Becky know we have one more person coming.” My voice sounded stiff even to my own ears.

“Great.” His smile was all business and lacked the warmth I’d grown accustomed to.

“Now if we could just figure out what your vision are all about…” he trailed off.

“About that,” I said, realizing I hadn’t told him about the rest of my conversation with my Aunt.

“About what?” he asked.

“I guess I didn’t tell you because I was so distracted about my parents. My aunt talked to me about the visions and about…” I hesitated, pausing to take a breath. “About my Magic.”

Robert cocked his head to the side and a small smile caught the corners of his mouth. Admitting I had magic was a big win for him. I could tell he was jumping for joy inside, but he was doing a really good job of keeping his composure.

“And?” he asked, wanting more details.

“It’s kinda convoluted. Let me shower and get ready and then we can talk about everything,” I offered.

“Alright.” He smiled and I saw the relief wash off of him.

I bounced back to my room with hurried steps and jumped into the shower. In a rush to get to work and get everything done, I didn’t spend as much time under the hot water as I would have liked. While getting dressed, I realized I also hadn’t said anything to Robert about our souls. I wondered if he already knew, and if he knew the story about King Arthur? I was sure he did, but why hadn’t he ever mentioned it before? I brushed my teeth as quick as I could and threw on some foundation before heading back toward the living room forty-five minutes later.

Robert had also showered and changed into a dark blue button-up shirt and jeans. He sat at the kitchen table writing in his journal again. His hair was still a little damp and he’d shaved. He looked up as I walked over and we both appraised each other for a moment.
Damn he was good looking
. A small smile played at the corner of my mouth as our eyes met.

“You don’t mind if I come along with you to the studio, do you?” he asked, standing up. “I know you want to get to work, but I’d like to hear what Bethany told you.”

“I don’t mind if you want to tag along, but I do need to get things done so you can’t be too much of a distraction.”

His lips spread into a mischievous smile. “I’ll try my best to behave,” he promised, though didn’t hide his playful grin.

“Right.” I exhaled. “Let’s go then.” I felt a little taken back by Robert’s good mood. He was always so serious. I wasn’t used to him being playful.

We walked outside and saw clouds dotting the sky. The temperature had dropped at least ten degrees in the past few days. Sliding into the driver’s seat, I turned the key over and the engine roared to life.

“About the visions, what did Bethany tell you?” Robert asked as I turned the first corner. He wasn’t wasting any time.

“Well, you were right. The visions are happening because I’m the same as her.”

“A Soothsayer?”

“Yeah.” I mumbled this admission. Just because I was coming around and starting to accept everything didn’t mean I was able to call myself a Soothsayer just yet.

“What did she say exactly?”

“She said I could learn to control my visions.”

“What else did she say? Did she tell you how you were able to come into your magic?”

“She did, actually.” I paused, taking a slow, nervous breath. I didn’t know how to tell him that when he saved me a piece of his soul infused with mine. What if that was the only reason for the attraction between us?

“Care to share?” he asked, sounding impatient.