Natural Selection (27 page)
I tossed my bag on a stone bench
against the wall and headed straight for the kitchen—some things
never changed. Sariah stood at the sink, rinsing and slicing
veggies. Since our parents’ death the year before, she had settled
down from her wild cat-in-heat ways and revealed a nurturing side I
hadn’t expected. She was a goddess in the kitchen, whipping up
amazing meals we all loved. Her blond hair bumped up in the front,
then swept back into a sleek ponytail like all the stars are
wearing. That was the thing with my sister, she had always seemed
like a celebrity—minus the paparazzi. I was more than half
convinced she would look perfect in the middle of a hurricane. I
suppose it was part of being a Succubus, but really, it was just
unfair.
“
The conquering hero
returns,” she said with a smile. “How goes life in the
trenches?”
I made an unpleasant noise in my
throat and shot her a hard look. With my mouth twisted, I grabbed
an apple out of the bowl on the island and hopped up onto the
counter. One of the features all three of us had agreed on in the
house was the kitchen. It was a contrast of natural stone, honey
colored wood and gleaming stainless steel. The cabinet base was
uneven masonry block, and the counter tops were slate tile. Aside
from the high tech appliances, it looked like the kitchen we had
all grown up in. We had even hung the corkboard our mother used on
the wall; the notes in her familiar flowery script were preserved
in resin so it wouldn’t fade or wear away with time. This piece of
the old and familiar we brought with us to our exotic, new life
served as a comfort that some things would never change and a
reminder of where we came from.
In all honesty, I didn’t
need my job at the garden center. We’d always lived a comfortable
life, but none of us were prepared for what we would find in the
basement of the house we grew up in. Secured in a hidden room was a
safe the size of many suburban closets that was filled with cash
from floor to ceiling. It was enough to keep us living
extravagantly for ten years. I guess when you’ve been around for
hundreds of years you kind of accumulate things. Since we
had
lived simple lives,
there was quite a lot left over. It was only after my parent’s
death that I learned my mother was in fact over 200 years old. And
she had looked younger than most of my classmates
parents.
My parents were never open with me,
which led to a lot of trouble. What I had never realized was they
were nearly as closed lipped with my siblings as they were with me.
Most of what Xander and Sariah knew, they had learned from the
secret libraries of Otherworld knowledge. After Mom’s death, my
grandmother had explained a lot about my family and Gaia in
general. While women were pregnant just a hair longer than humans,
carrying for a full year, the turnaround for their bodies was
significantly longer. I had a brother, Jonathon, but he was
murdered about sixty years before I was born. His death traumatized
my mother so badly, she turned her back on the Otherworld. When she
learned she was pregnant with me, she found a special agency and
adopted a young Djinn and a Succubus to keep me safe. We were
raised as a tight knit family and losing our parents had made us
even closer.
Xander followed behind me, flipping
through a stack of mail disinterestedly. His eyebrows rose in
surprise, and he looked at me, his eyes wide. He handed me an
envelope with my grandmother’s handwriting on it. Inside I found
another envelope addressed to our house back in Lincoln in my best
friend’s handwriting. I frowned. I hadn’t heard from Evelyn since
we left her in Springfield with a coven of witches. I glanced at my
brother who shrugged, so I tore it open. My hand shook as I
extracted a single sheet of notebook paper covered with Evelyn’s
flowing handwriting. The letter was dated at the beginning of April
and the greeting was just my name. She wasted little time on
pleasantries and got straight to the point:
I know we haven’t talked
much since everything happened, and I don’t know if this letter
will even find you. After all that happened last winter, I owe it
to you to keep you up to date. My father has been trying to contact
me mentally. I haven’t been letting him in, and I never will. Amber
went to see him to figure out what was going on and found out my
mom had somehow spelled him so he was conscious and aware, just
unable to move. She released him from the spell. It’s too soon to
know what he’ll do, Lia, but I’m scared. I’m scared for me, but
even more so, I’m scared for you. I could feel so much anger and
hate when his mind brushed mine. Be careful, Amelia. You and your
family. If you ever want to talk, you have my number and
stuff.
Love and miss you
much,
Evelyn
I read the letter three times unsure
what to say. Mouth agape, I handed the letter to Xander who read it
and passed it to Sariah with his angular jaw set. She glanced at me
with a frown, and I spread my hands, shaking my head. My mouth
worked, but it took me a long time to get my voice to
work.
“
Do you think he’ll be
coming after us?” I asked
Sariah crumpled the letter and threw
it into the trash. “Let him try. We’ll be ready.”
I nodded, but I wasn’t sure how much I
agreed.
As always, I need to say thank you to my
amazing family. My husband who is far more tolerant than he has to
be, no matter what insanity I throw at him. My wonderful son, who
fills my day with fun and laughter. To my mom, for helping me keep
my dream going. I want to thank my siblings, for all you’ve done in
the past and what you continue to do for me today. And to my niece,
Amanda, who helped me create the Hoffman family almost twenty years
ago. You might not remember, but I do.
Some other amazingly talented people deserve
a tip of my hat, because without them, this book wouldn’t be what
it is today. K Keeton designs (
www.kkeetondesgins.com
)
and Bailey Jennings helped me make my cover vision into a beautiful
reality. A special thanks to Julie of JT Formatting (
https://www.facebook.com/JTFormatting
). Without all you
taught me, I wouldn’t have been able to create this beautiful book.
Thank you to Liz, for advice that has made me a better writer. To
Dulice, who kept me chasing this dream, even when it seemed too
hard.
I have to give a big shout out to my
scribbling friends over at Story 4 Story. Thank you for perking me
up when I couldn’t go on. And to the Indie-licious folks, thank you
for all your support and advice.
Photo courtesy
of
Elizabeth has a near crippling
Facebook addiction, dwarfed only by her need for Dr. Pepper. A
self-proclaimed techno geek, she loves cell phones, computers,
tablets and all things technological. The internet has to be the
greatest invention since the wheel, in her opinion. She lives in a
quiet subdivision with her husband, one-year-old son, three cats,
and far too many electronics. It’s quite possible she has some
raccoon in her DNA, because she loves glitter and anything that
sparkles. She enjoys making jewelry and costumes. Halloween is her
favorite holiday since it’s the one day of the year that you can be
whatever you want. But her first love will always be writing.
Otherwise, hearing voices in her head would make her feel
schizophrenic.
You can find Elizabeth
online at:
Website:
http://www.elizabethsharpbooks.com
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/elizabethsharpbooks
Twitter:
http://twitter.com/#!/SomeSharpWords
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/sharpwords