Echoes to Ashes (The Immortal Trials Book 1)

by Ainsley Shay

  “I had a small biking accident. No big deal.”

  “Looks like a big deal.”

  “It’s not,” I countered. “How did you get my number?”

  “Isla gave it to me. Don’t be mad at her.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m not mad at her for giving it to you. I’m mad at you for asking her for it.”

  “Everly, just hear me—”

  “You won,” I hissed. I held up my wrist. “See, I put the bracelet back on. Are you happy now?”

  The preacher adjusted the white collar around his neck. Small beads of sweat accumulated on his brow. “Everly, I have failed you, and I am truly sorry.”

  That was not what I was expecting to hear. But without even knowing what they meant, my stomach sank with the hopelessness of those words. “What do you mean?”

  “It’s too late.” He shook his head in defeat. “Elyza, one of the pale ones visited me this morning. She told me of your meeting last night. My warning did not come in time to save you from them.” His shoulders sagged with the release of his breath. “If she knows about you, then the others know as well.”

  I pressed my fingers to my lips. The last sentence I’d read in the book this morning popped into my memory at full force. Their fate was usually death at an early age. Slowly shaking my head in disbelief, I echoed the word, “No. No. No. No.”

  “I’m sorry, but there’s nothing I can do now.”

  I gripped the sleeve of his shirt. “Please.”

  He gently removed my fingers from his cuff. “My only advice now is to do the opposite of whatever they tell you.”

  “The opposite?”

  “Yes, the opposite. In only a month or so, they will all come. Some are good; others are not so good. But they all have one common goal… except for the White Ones, like Elyza.”

  It was like he was speaking a different language. “What are you talking about?”

  “I only know from what has happened in the past. But those times were different. You didn’t exist yet.” He lightly touched my bracelet. “I’m sorry,” he said again.

  He gave me the saddest smile before he turned to leave.

  I followed him through the aisle of skulls and voodoo dolls. “Wait.”

  He didn’t.

  I stomped my foot in frustration like a child. Pulling the bracelet off my wrist, I tossed it into the garbage behind the counter. I raised my head in time to see the preacher holding the door open for Cameron as he left. They exchanged subtle hellos and goodbyes.

  “Everly, dear, you look rather pale. Are you all right?” Isla asked.

  I glanced at Cameron, then gave Isla a forced smile. “Fine—yeah—fine.”

  I had a feeling Cameron knew better. Isla probably did as well, but neither of them pressed.

  “Hey, Everly,” Cameron said in a voice thick with emotion.

  “Hi,” I returned.

  Our shoulders brushed as he passed, and I winced in pain. He whipped around, catching my wrist.

  “Oh man, I’m so sorry.”

  I took a deep breath. “That’s okay. I’m fine.”

  “Oh goodness, I had been so excited about the dragon, I hadn’t noticed your injuries. What happened, dear?”

  “It was nothing. I just took a fall on my bike. But I’m okay; it’s only a scratch.” I begged Cameron with my eyes not to contradict me.

  “Okay, but I want you to take it easy today.”

  “I will.”

  She took Cameron’s hand, then pulled him to the area with the books. “Here is where my new dragon is going to be displayed. So, if you can, love, please move these bookshelves over there for now.”

  Cameron didn’t seem like his usual hard-ass self. It was as if something had broken inside him. He seemed lost, angry, and distant. Last night had been more than emotional. The floodgates of his memories may have burst open from seeing what I was capable of.

  He began to move the first shelf.

  “I know it’s heavy, dear, but none of the spells I know can move things. Magic does have its limits, you know?” Isla explained.

  Cameron dropped the bookshelf. Books scattered to the floor. I rushed to pick them up.

  He put his hand on my good shoulder. “Don’t.” His tone was demanding.

  I slowly stood upright without picking up any of the books.

  He pivoted to glare at Isla. The heat in his eyes flared into gray pools of pure unadulterated anger. “Stop with the witchy shit!”

  “Cameron, you’re being irrational. I was merely—”

  “Don’t,” he growled. “I hate this shop and everything it stands for. And, even though you know this, you still have me come here and—”

  “Cameron, you watch your tone,” Isla warned.

  He pushed over the bookshelf. “No! I’m sick of all this magic shit. You know what it did to my parents, and now it’s happening to—” He stopped himself, dragging in a heaving breath.

  His gaze flitted to mine, and I knew exactly what his next word was going to be—Everly.

  “The magic your parents played with was evil and dark. They were in search of something no one has ever found. Not all magic is bad, Cameron.”

  Cameron stomped toward her. He slammed his hand on the glass counter. It was a miracle it hadn’t crashed through it. “Fuck this!” He waved his hand around the store. “Fuck all of it!” he roared.

  I jumped at his sudden outburst.

  “You just don’t get it, do you?” he shouted.

  Isla spun on her heels. “I’m leaving. Don’t you come home until you’ve gotten yourself under control.” She pushed open the door, hurriedly striding out.

  Between my conversation with Macias and witnessing Cameron’s outrage, my level of stress had been breached to the point of combustion. Whirling on him, I pressed my finger to his chest. “You have no right to say those things to her!”

  He jammed his hands in his front pockets.

  Jabbing my finger against his chest, I sounded out each word. “Calm down! Stop acting like an ass!”

  I lowered my hand. Letting out a long sigh, he closed his eyes. His body was still a mass of angry muscle.

  Softening my voice, I said, “Cameron, I know you’re hurting. But your blame is in the wrong place. Isla had nothing to do with the choices your parents made. I haven’t been here for long—”

  “You’re right, you haven’t. So why don’t you mind your own fucking business?” he spat, then stormed out of the shop.

  Boone screeched and flapped his wings.

  Whatever had just transpired, I felt partially guilty for. I let out a shaky breath. There was no reason to keep the shop open. I closed and locked the door behind me. Neither Isla nor Cameron were anywhere to be seen. Brit was standing outside the salon talking with a woman whose hair was filled with silver foils. They smoked their long cigarettes and chatted, oblivious of anything around them. I was envious of their oblivion.

  The day was as hot and dry as the desert. Cameron’s cruel words resonated throughout me. How could he be so hateful to the woman who raised him with so much love? Fury grew like a hurricane inside of me. I didn’t want to go home, so I ran toward the carousel in the center of the shops.

  I tossed my bag on the ground before sitting on the swing. The only thing Cameron related magic to was how it had killed his parents. But what about those kind words he’d said to me, that my magic was pure and good?

  And what the hell was I thinking? He wasn’t the only one to blame here. If he hadn’t seen me swirling dust around, maybe none of this would have happened. I yanked a piece of grass from the ground, furious at myself for feeling anything toward the jerk. Cameron was an ass when I first met him, and he’d still be an ass when I left this little shit town.

  The leaves of the oak tree rustled above me. Without kicking my legs, I slowly began to sway back and forth on the swing. Nervous energy began to replace the fury soaring through my body. A strong gust of wind came out of nowhere. I quickl
y swung my head from side to side when a high-pitched squeal pierced my ears.

  My eyes drifted toward the sound. The carousel slowly began to turn. Some unknown presence was growing inside of me, and the wind picked up even more. The freeing feeling I had experienced before was replaced with something stronger and more consuming. Control was as far away as Jupiter. The carousel picked up speed. The wind wasn’t around me this time, but it was around the children’s ride. The experience of watching what I was capable of was entirely different than being in the center of it. Now, I knew why Cameron had been so taken the first time he saw me in the alley, then when he was inside the cyclone with me on the porch.

  The carousel sped up faster and faster. The horses rose up and down as they spun around.

  “Mommy, look!”

  From the corner of my eye, I saw a young boy run toward the carnival ride. His outstretched arm pointed in amazement.

  “I want to ride it!” he cried out.

  His mother grabbed hold of his hand just before the child tried to grasp the edge of the moving ride.

  I watched it all as if it were a movie.

  The break in my concentration, or maybe my fascination in the element, had been a blessing. The wind ceased, and the carousel began to slow until it stopped.

  “Now it’s my turn, Mommy!” the child wailed.

  The woman glanced at me for the first time. Her eyes narrowed.

  “That carousel hasn’t worked in years.” She nodded to a thick black cord on the ground. At the end of it was a cumbersome plug on the grass near the trunk of the tree.

  “You’re doing the devil’s work,” she hissed before tugging the boy away.

  Maybe she was right. Why was everything turning to crap? Defeated, I rested my head in my hands.

  “Why do you look so sad, child?”

  Startled, I jerked my head up. The pale woman stood in front of me.

  She took a step closer. “I was so taken by you last night I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Elyza.”

  15

  After cautiously dismounting from the swing, I backed away from her.

  “Don’t be frightened, girl. At least not yet.” She snickered.

  Elyza’s eyes were like ice, colorless and cold. Wisps of her snow-white hair peeked out from the baseball hat she wore. She had replaced the gauzy dress for a long-sleeved shirt and leggings. Her skin was so pale she’d probably burst into flames if even a clouded ray of sunlight touched her flesh. If she was trying to disguise herself, she hadn’t done a particularly good job.

  “What do you want?”

  She ignored my question, glancing at one of her dagger-like nails. “I’ve told my sisters how lovely you are, and they are very excited to meet you.”

  Lovely?

  “Yeah, well, I’m not sure I can say the same about them.”

  Her blood-red lips widened into a smile. “I’m not sure what the Protector told you about us, but I can assure you it’s not accurate.”

  “He didn’t tell me anything about you or any others.”

  “Others?”

  “Others not like you,” I clarified.

  She nodded in understanding. “Ah, the children.”

  I glanced around to see if anyone was watching us, but the few people who were out went about their business. “I don’t know who the children are.”

  “You will, and they are not to be trusted. Their mere existence is an abomination. The children have been known to do horrific things to stay alive—stealing, murder, and sacrifice are only a few of their crimes. You’d do best to stay clear of them.”

  The brief flare of excitement I had that I may learn something new about what or who was to come extinguished. Like the preacher, Elyza explained things in riddles, too.

  “I wish someone would just get to the point with all this supernatural crap—tell me what’s going on and how I’m involved.”

  She drew nearer to me. Glancing at my wrist, she picked it up and stared at it. Cutting her eyes to my other wrist, she frowned. “This could make things difficult,” she muttered.

  I yanked free from her grasp. “I need to go.”

  Too fast for me to notice, she gripped my arm and held it firm. “Just one more thing,” she said. With fluid motion and grace, she swiped her hand over my shoulder. Her long, elegant fingers glided along my bandages. Too enthralled and mystified by her silvery voice and unique otherworldly language, I didn’t move.

  “There we go,” she said.

  Snapping out of the brief trance, I asked, “What did you do to me?”

  She tilted her head toward my shoulder. “Have a look.”

  I pulled off the corner of the bandage, then, hurriedly yanked the rest of it off. My skin was smooth and blemish free, like it had never been injured. “How did you—”

  A pleased smile graced her red lips. “It’s a gift from me to you.”

  Stricken with silence, I gently touched the healed skin. I had always been taught to express gratitude for anything and everything I received, but my mouth couldn’t form the words.

  “In exchange, I must ask you to do me a favor before you go.”

  I should have known she’d want something from me. Reluctantly, I said, “What?”

  “Put the bracelet back on.”

  Relieved she didn’t want any of my body parts, I said, “I don’t have it anymore.”

  Elyza stiffened. Her jaw muscles worked as she tried to find her composure. “That may be a problem.”

  I picked up my bag from near the swing. “For who? Because it doesn’t protect me anymore.”

  “Protection is a relative word. Just be careful. Not everyone is as kind as I am.” She offered a fake-pleasant smile. “I’ll be back soon to check on you.”

  “No need, I’ll be fine,” I said as I edged around her.

  I almost expected her to follow me, but like last night, when I looked back, she was gone.

  Macias had said to do the opposite of what they told me. Even though he had wanted me to wear the bracelet, he also said it didn’t matter anymore. What else about that thing was I not being told? Whatever it was, it seemed only Elyza knew. The bracelet was still where I left it, in the trash at the shop. It wasn’t like I couldn’t get it and put it on. But the tug in my gut told me to go with Macias on this one. Do the opposite. I may be a greenie in all this supernatural stuff, but I wasn’t stupid.

  Cameron didn’t show up for class. I hadn’t seen or heard from him since his blowup at the shop yesterday. I hated to admit it, but I was kind of hoping he would have called or texted me last night. I was beginning to get worried about him. Hartley was her usual self… bitch. She went on to tell the class how Cameron had the flu, and he’d be out for a few days. The lies seem to go all the way around.

  I pulled out my phone in class to text him. Flu?

  A minute later, he responded, Something like that.

  He just needed time. I decided not to reach out to him again. Cameron wasn’t someone I needed to get hung up on right now… or ever. As far as guys went, he was complicated. He was also involved with someone else. I wasn’t stupid enough to get my heart broken by him, and that was sure to be the outcome.

  The bell rang, and I bolted to Mr. Greer’s desk and turned in all of my makeup work. He seemed impressed by my effort and my work. At least there was one person on my side. Although, I wasn’t sure how much he counted in the grand scheme of things.

  I planned to go to work after school, but I was nervous not knowing what to expect or what I’d walk in on. I only hoped Cameron wasn’t there destroying the place or burning it down.

  I stopped by the fast food place on the way to the shop to get lunch. There was only a guy around my age sitting in the corner with earbuds in while he ate. He briefly glanced up as I walked by to go to the counter to place my order. His hair was short and black, and his eyes were just as dark. He wore shiny black gauges in his ears. I never understood those, but they worked on him. But it was the unlit ci
garette he held between his full lips that made him interesting. The guy was the textbook version of a bad boy: leather jacket despite the heat outside, dangerous expression, and eyes that could pin someone to the wall with one look.

  The cheeseburger, fries, and chocolate shake took all of three minutes to get. I had already plotted my seat on the opposite side of the restaurant, away from Bad Boy. I felt as though I was being watched as I squeezed the packet of ketchup on a napkin. Starving, I ignored the feeling. I dipped a fry in the creamy red sauce, then took a bite. My eyes widened in delight. These fries had to be the best freaking ones I’d ever eaten.

  “Good, right?”

  I glanced up. The fry half hanging out of my mouth matched the limp cigarette between his lips. I bit off the uneaten part, then set it down. “Yeah, they’re good.”

  “They’re the only thing I eat…” he gave a slight shrug, “… almost the only thing I eat when I’m in town.”

  “It’s my first time here, but it won’t be my last.” OMG! What was that? I sounded like a freaking eighty-year-old woman in a bad commercial. “Have you tried the cheeseburger?” I asked, trying to cover up my nervousness.

  “I’m sort of a vegetarian.”

  Could this get any worse?

  His curious eyes kept sneaking peeks at my cheek where the mark was. I had stopped wearing concealer considering it was a waste of time if no one could see it. At least no one aside from Macias and Elyza.

  “Mind if I sit?” he asked. His hand was on the chair in preparation to pull it out.

  On any other day I’d be like, “Go ahead,” but today, I was starving, and I just wanted to wolf down my food. And when I wolfed down my food, it wasn’t pretty. I would not be making a good impression—wait!—was I trying to make a good impression?

  Finally, I answered him. “I’m running late to work, so I won’t be good company.”

  He half shrugged again. “Where do you work?”

  “The Warlock’s Workshop in Carousel.”

  After taking in that information, he left. Like, not another word left—just walked away, went back to his table in the corner, and plugged in his earbuds.

  Okay, then. I unwrapped the burger and took a bite. It was just as good as the fries. Aside from being famished, I wanted to get out of there. Since I ate faster than I ever had before, I was surprised I didn’t throw up on my bike ride to the shop.