The Oracle Series: Volumes 1-3

by Cynthia D. Witherspoon

  Besides, Heaven wasn’t meant for the likes of me. I was going to hell.

  And I was going to make damn sure my enemy joined me there.

  No, I wasn’t alright. I never would be again. My work - my very purpose here on Earth - had been stolen from me. No longer would the world learn about the afterlife in a sensible way. No longer would science and reason be used as a weapon against our ignorance towards death. There was nothing else I could do. I had fought to keep my work in the limelight. I begged for them not to take my audience away from me. They said my time had run out. My work had faltered. And the world I tried to teach had rejected me.

  Yes, tonight was my night. I had been preparing for this moment since I had been fired three months earlier. See, I had been one of the lucky ones. I was once a presenter on the highest rated show on television. I traveled the world, studying the paranormal with a passion unmatched by anyone else. I had money. Fame. Fans.

  Until the ratings started to fall. I glared at the photographs scattered among past due notices and the eviction letter received just this afternoon on the floor around my bed. Once again, I muttered curses at the face staring back up at me. I had been replaced by a stupid girl who claimed to have abilities no one could actually possess. Eva McRayne's Grave Messages hit the airwaves and shoved me out of the job which had been my calling. Now my show was nothing more than a DVD box set. All of my hard work forgotten thanks to a blonde idiot who would prance around, call out to Apollo, and then pretend to pass on the last words of the dead.

  I hated her. I hated everything about her.

  It was true that Grave Messages hadn't been her idea. In the interviews I had seen, she would laugh at the idea of being on television. McRayne would give the credit to her co-host, Elliot Lancaster, but he was nothing. He was worthless.

  Nothing more than a stand in. A male presence to protect his girlfriend from the boogiemen they searched for.

  I had studied the tabloids which carried the pictures of them together. There were headlines boasting the two of them were still in love despite breaking up within a month of filming their show. It was unprofessional and sickening. The knowledge I had gained from those articles amounted to nothing. They were fluff pieces. Empty words meant to connect the common man to the celebrities he adored.

  Eva McRayne should never have been a star. She should have stayed in Georgia where she belonged. Hidden away in somebody's attic like the circus freak she was. Instead, she was out in the limelight, dancing to appease her adoring public.

  No, my adoring public. The one she stole from me.

  See, McRayne and Lancaster had met at the University of Georgia some five years before. When Lancaster had graduated, his daddy gave him a television show and of course, the blonde tagged along after him. The facts got hazy from there. McRayne's bio online said she had been forced into her role as the Sibyl during a conference. It was a good story, but I had once been a headliner for those events. Her lies didn't fool me.

  No one in their right mind with any sort of power would give it all up to a stranger. Not when there was money to be made. Why give up your livelihood to a stranger who didn't appreciate it? No, her story didn't make any sense. She was the lie. She was the fraud.

  But I wasn't. And I would make damned sure she knew it.

  I watched as the shadows cast across the floor by the street lamps outside shift and knew it was time. I suppose I should have been more sentimental. Someone with more sense than me would have taken one last look at the world they were leaving behind. I tried to think of my mother. I wanted to shed a tear or two over what might have been if Eva McRayne had never surfaced. It was far too late for such thoughts.

  I was ready. More than ready. I picked up one of the photographs and clutched it to my chest as I laid down.

  The kerosene fumes were overwhelming. I coughed, relishing in the lightheadedness I felt.

  "Erinyes of old, Blessed Judges of Fate," I called out to my empty apartment between gasps of breath. "Athena's own mistresses of justice, come to me. Take my spirit as your own. Take my soul as payment for the deed you will do for me."

  I felt the air growing colder despite the flames I had surrounded myself with. I wiped away the tears from my eyes as I continued.

  "I seek justice. I crave vengeance against the one who stole my life away from me."

  The flames above me flared. I wondered if I would be able to finish the spell before I was consumed by the fires I had set. So I closed my eyes to the fumes and focused on the darkness in my heart. I held up the picture as I hurried to continue.

  "Eva McRayne, Sibyl to Apollo will fall. She, and she alone, is responsible for stealing my audience. Before she came along, I was cherished. Now, I am forgotten just as you have been. Unknown to her and a world that craves knowledge of the afterlife. No longer. After tonight, Eva McRayne will know who I am. She will suffer for the crimes she committed against me. Great Erinyes, aid me. Give me the vengeance I seek."

  The bed began to shake as I touched a single corner of the photograph to the tip of the candle flame. It ignited with a flash. I screamed as the flames traveled downward to the sheets I had prepared. I had only a moment left; a single breath to curse the bitch who caused my downfall.

  "Eva McRayne will suffer."

  ***

  I found myself embraced by a darkness I could revel in. I blinked, confused as I took in my new surroundings. There was no golden gate. No avenging angel to approach me with a book of blessed names to see if I was listed among those worthy enough to enter Heaven. No, there was nothing like that at all. I was standing in a great hall lit by green fires. Shadows flittered around me like butterflies. Each one a blur as they rushed to destinations I would never understand.

  "Allison Thomason."

  I whirled around to see a thin man cloaked in black studying me. After a moment of silence, he clicked his tongue and checked something on the small tablet he carried.

  "I'm sorry, I don't understand." I turned my attention back to my surroundings. "Where am I? How did I get here?"

  "Come with me."

  The man gave me no answers as I followed him. I couldn't concentrate, but I tried to remember. There was a fire. I remembered it well enough. Had I died? Surely not. I was petrified of fire. I would have run the moment I smelled smoke.

  Wouldn't I? It seemed like the most logical thing to do. But logic had never been my strong suit. Even so, there were no answers to be had unless I followed the stranger. We walked for what seemed like an eternity through barren halls until he stopped before a pair of impressive doors.

  "This is where I take my leave. Your presence is required inside."

  "Wait," I swallowed and found the habit useless in my present state. "Can you tell me what is on the other side of those doors?"

  The man smiled for the first time, tapping his clipboard against his side. "Why, your vengeance, girl. Isn't that why you are here?"

  My vengeance. When he spoke the word, my hatred flooded back and with it, my memories. I stepped forward to shove the double doors open with a renewed determination. This is the moment I had died for.

  May the gods be praised.

  The large room inside was brighter than the halls leading up to it. The green fires lined the walls on torches of marble. The floors gleamed with a shine any housewife would have killed for. I would have been astounded by the dark beauty of this place, but I caught sight of the large table in the very center. Three little girls were playing with dolls and chatting amongst themselves. So I did the only thing I could think to do.

  I approached them. I started to speak when the child in the center lifted up a single hand from the blonde doll in her grasp and my words faded in my throat.

  "You are the human who called to us."

  The one who silenced me turned her face so I could see it. I cried out despite myself. Her eyes were red, lined with streaks of blood. I managed a nod as she continued.

  "Allison Thomason, then." She tapped her t
hin fingers against the table before her. "Sisters, help me recall. This is the one who offered us her soul as payment, correct?"

  "Yes." The girl to the right nodded with a grin I found almost as unsettling as the empty sockets where her eyes should have been. "This one seeks vengeance against the Sibyl. For what purpose, human?"

  "She stole my life away." I found my voice, surprised at how steady it sounded. "I was once in the spotlight. My work was regarded as the pentacle in paranormal research. But I lost my audience. I lost my show because of her."

  "What would you have us do?" The one to the left piped up with a frown. "Your human trials are petty ones. We have no time for the likes of you."

  "Ah, but perhaps, we do." Their leader giggled as she placed her hand over the other child's wrist. "It is a terrible thing to be forgotten. We know this all too well, Tisiphone."

  The other two murmured as child in the center continued. "We will take a page from Apollo's own strategy. He uses his Sibyl to gain followers, even in this advanced age. Indeed, the wraiths have been whispering about how his temples are overflowing with visitors now that this Sibyl has begun to spread his message across the world. Perhaps she can do the same for us."

  I froze as she passed through the table as if it were nothing but air. The strange child stopped before me.

  "But," I shook my head. "I thought...I wasn't expecting..."

  "Tell us, what were you expecting?" She tilted her head as she watched me. "The Sibyl's death would occur the moment you took your last breath? We are not stupid, human. There are consequences to be had for such actions. We do not wish for Athena's wrath just because you gave your soul to us."

  "Surely there is something you can do." I clutched at my hands. "The old books said you were the goddesses of vengeance. They said if I sacrificed myself in your name then you would be required to help me. Even if you are just..."

  "Children? I suppose we are that." The girl giggled again as she clutched at her doll. "After all, is there anyone better suited to judge the damned than the innocent? Athena was right to choose us. We serve her well."

  The other two nodded their agreement as they came forward to join their sister. I had to believe them. I had to believe they were the beings I had called forth with my suicide.

  I had no choice.

  So I knelt down before I bowed my head to their leader. "What do I have the power to do, Erinyes? How can my vengeance come to pass?"

  "You may return to the world of the living. Watch the Sibyl and report back to us her actions." The girl grinned as she leaned forward, pressing a single finger into the center of my forehead. "When the time is right, we will put her on trial and find her guilty of the crimes you accuse her of. But the price is far greater than your soul. You will take the current Sibyl's place to serve us, not Apollo. You will tell the world the Erinyes still live and our judgment is eternal. You will bring us followers or you will suffer for your incompetence. Be assured, human, we will not be forgotten again."

  I would be the Sibyl. My work could be restored along with my audience. I felt a sense of joy I thought lost forever.

  I repeated the words back to her as the room around me shifted. The girls disappeared when the shadows surrounded me once more, but her words remained.

  We will not be forgotten.

  Chapter One

  Eva McRayne

  "Come on, Eva. Focus."

  I grunted as Cyrus shoved his arm against my chest to push me back. I landed in a crouch, trying to catch my breath as he charged me. I was quicker to respond this time. I rolled to the side and laughed as he flew past me.

  "Better." My keeper caught himself against the ropes lining the edge of the ring we were in. "When you are in combat, you must watch your opponent. There will be plenty of time for daydreaming after you have earned your victory."

  I sat down, fiddling with my shoelaces as he spoke. When he finished droning on about the importance of paying attention in battle, I sighed.

  "I know, I know. Tell me, why are we doing this again? I mean, sure, learning how to punch and kick is going to be a great addition to my workout routine, but its not like I will actually be fighting anything."

  "You don't know that, Little One."

  Cyrus was standing over me, so I looked around to keep from meeting his eyes. We were in the middle of a boxing ring which served as the pride and joy of the hole in the wall gym he had found. He decided to go quiet, so it was up to me to fill in the silence which fell around us.

  "Yes, I do. I have you, Cyrus. Your job is to protect me." I frowned up at him. "Bound to me, remember? Apollo's servant and all that?"

  "I do." Cyrus offered me a small smile as he took my hand to lift me to my feet. "I am simply saying it wouldn't hurt for you to learn how to protect yourself. The Sibyl is a role that gains more enemies than friends, Eva."

  "Fine." I groaned. "I'll listen to you. I'll learn how to beat people to a bloody pulp if you want me to. But can we call it a day? I have a full evening planned and I'm ready to get to it."

  "Ah, yes." Cyrus lifted the rope for me before he followed behind. "Forgive me, I had forgotten. Will it be country music on repeat and a bottle of cheap wine again? Or will you be indulging tonight with a second bottle?"

  "Better than forgotten battle hymns on Youtube and whiskey."

  I shot back as I grabbed my gym bag. Cyrus smirked and I couldn't help myself. I laughed. "We make quite the pair, don't we?"

  "Indeed." Cyrus took my bag from me. "Perhaps you should go out tonight, Eva. You have been on your vacation for a month and have done nothing. You've become a glorified shut-in these past few weeks. At the rate you are going, you will be back to shooting that damned show before you have a chance to enjoy yourself. A movie, perhaps? I am sure there is a sappy romance playing somewhere in this city that would be to your liking."

  "I am enjoying myself." I mumbled as I waved to the bulk of a man standing behind the counter. We were out on the street, pushing past the pedestrians around us before I spoke again. "And no sappy romances, alright? I'm not in the mood for soul mates or missed connections. Besides, it's not like I'm just sitting around moping. I have been reading the mountain of books you gave me."

  "What happened to the trip to Charleston?" Cyrus raised a single eyebrow in my direction. "I was looking forward to seeing your hometown."

  "Yeah, I don't think so." I shook my head. "Despite the fact that I'm across the continent from my parents, they are still managing to find ways to drive me crazy. Can you imagine how bad it would be if I was actually there?"

  I was deflecting and he knew it. But I had spoken nothing but the truth. Every phone call with my mom was the same. She wanted to know when I was coming home so she could show me off. Her beloved Eva, television star, had become her ticket for entry into Charleston's elite society. I didn't have the heart to tell her that the society she had wanted to be a part of was just a collective mass of old money and older grudges. I wanted nothing to do with them. As for my dad, he was still mad at me for not returning to Charleston in the first place. He had been against the show from the beginning. Maybe if I'd listened, I wouldn't be in the position I am today.

  Alone. Scared to look at myself in the mirror just in case there was another soul lurking behind the glass.

  "Well, perhaps we can find another way to enjoy your time off. There are more places to go than South Carolina."

  "No, I don't want to travel, Cyrus." I brushed my hair out of my eyes to avoid looking up at him. "I have done nothing but travel for the past eight months. I want to avoid airports at all costs. I'd much rather stay here. I have work to do."

  I didn't have to tell him I was willing to do anything - except return to Charleston that is - to keep my mind off of one Elliot Lancaster. My best friend-turned-boyfriend for a total of one month had been gallivanting all over town since Grave Messages went on hiatus after we finished filming the first half of the season. I felt the familiar pang in my chest as I thought of him. I l
oved Elliot like no other. My heart had been completely shattered when we closed the door on our relationship.

  Our friendship had suffered too. Now, it was as if Elliot was no more than a stranger to me. It hurt most because I missed his million dollar smile. Our easy conversations. I missed making fun of him for believing in all the nonsense which led us to Los Angeles in the first place.

  Most of all, I missed Elliot.

  Cyrus must have picked up on my train of thought because he linked his arm with mine. "Come now, Little One. Elliot will come to his senses before too much longer. You can be rest assured he is missing you just as much as you are him."

  "I don't think so." I shrugged as we approached the car. "He seems happy going out every night. Last I heard, he had some girl he was seeing."

  "You haven't been reading my books." Cyrus chided as he opened my car door for me. "You've been reading the tabloids."

  "Guilty." I shrugged. "There is only so much I can take of your Greek stories, Cyrus. They are too morbid for my taste."

  "And this coming from the messenger of the dead." Cyrus teased before he turned all serious again. "You can't trust the tabloids, Eva. They are filled with lies to sell papers. You are smart enough to know better."

  "True, but the pictures look real enough." I settled in my seat. Within seconds, Cyrus slipped in on the driver's side. He could handle L.A. traffic much better than I could. "I saw one the other night on TMZ. He had some brunette hanging onto him like a necklace."

  "Or an albatross. A pale replacement for what he once had." Cyrus glanced over at me. He must have noticed my shocked expression. "What? I can be poetic when it suits me."