I threw my hands in the air. “You just said Callista lost her power when her mate left her!”
“Some, but not all. She was a Goddess, and could be again if she figured things out with her soul mate. Even with the depletion of her powers, she would still have more abilities than any other Tracker.”
Alex put a finger to his mouth, shaking his head. “Evie might just be a really powerful Tracker.”
Tate barked out a laugh. “Yeah. A Tracker who has more power than any other Tracker I’ve ever met, even though her powers haven’t been activated yet.”
Emil shot Tate a warning look. “There are a lot of holes in the Callista theory, too,” he said, turning to me, his expression soft and reassuring. “We’re still trying to figure this out.”
“What holes?” Tate asked. “I’ve been doing some research of my own. Do you know the last time Callista actually met with the Daevos leaders?”
Emil gave a half-hearted shrug. “I didn’t know anyone had been appointed to keep track of her schedule,” he said. “It’s not like Callista hangs out with humans. None of the Goddesses do. They stay in their realm, we stay in ours.”
“That’s not entirely true,” Tate said. “The Amaranthine communicate with the Goddesses all the time. You’d think the Daevos leaders would do the same with Callista, wouldn’t you?”
Emil narrowed his eyes and Alex seemed rather interested in the conversation. “I don’t know. I’m not part of the Daevos leadership. I don’t know what their relationship with her is.” Emil was trying to downplay Tate’s questions, but I could hear the undercurrent of concern in his tone, and knew it wasn’t good.
“Centuries,” Tate said. “I checked the records and asked around. It’s been over five hundred years since the Daevos have met with her.”
Emil shook his head. “So who’s been giving the Daevos direction?”
Tate shrugged. “Who knows? It’s not like we need a lot of instruction. Find soul mates. Take souls. It’s pretty straight forward. I don’t think it requires regular meetings.”
Emil looked at Alex. “Do you know anything about this?”
Alex shook his head slowly, the movement seeming almost like an afterthought as Alex’s mind worked, trying to puzzle things out. He pinched his bottom lip between his thumb and forefinger. “I haven’t seen anything about this in my research, but I’ll see what I can find out.”
I lifted my brow. “Wait,” I said, trying to hold my gaze on both Alex and Emil at the same time. “You two have been researching this?”
Alex took a deep breath. Emil nodded at him to go ahead. “After the power you utilized in the cave, we needed to know what was going on. The Amaranthine didn’t have answers, and I couldn’t really tell them everything anyway—not with the information from Caleb that there might be Amaranthine members working to help the Daevos. I asked Emil to discreetly check the Daevos’ records as well. He hasn’t found much. With no answers, we felt we needed to research it on our own. What we’ve found is that you’re a complete anomaly, Evie. Your powers would be strong even for someone who had their Tracker powers activated by another Tracker and had been using them for hundreds of years. Your powers displayed without the need for activation, and still haven’t been ‘turned on,’ if you will. If you’re this strong now, what happens when your powers are activated?
“Trackers are one step below Goddesses and can eventually become just that. A group of powerful Goddesses created the universe, so if you have this much power all on your own, what does it mean? And why do you have it? It’s unprecedented, Evie, and it makes things more dangerous for you. We’ve tried to make sure as few people as possible know about your abilities, but it seems the word is spreading, and your display in Denver probably didn’t help,” he said, pointedly shooting Emil a sharp look of disapproval. “You shouldn’t have the powers you do, and they shouldn’t continue to grow…not at this rate, and not without activation. We need to figure out what’s going on.”
I tried to take all that in. Alex had told me that according to his and Emil’s research, I was the most powerful Tracker on the planet—and I wasn’t even an official Tracker yet. And no one knew why I had the abilities I did. I wondered if the answer was in the recesses of my mind somewhere. I also wondered how I could get to it. If I was as powerful as they said, I should be able to do something as simple as pull memories from my past lives and direct my flashbacks. I just needed to figure out how.
“So, have you found anything in your research?” I asked Alex and Emil. “Or have you jumped on the Callista bandwagon with Tex here,” I asked, nodding toward Tate.
“We’re not on any bandwagon, Evie,” Emil said. “We’re just covering our bases.”
“Well, what are the other options then?” I asked. “Who am I?”
Alex took a deep breath, his eyes drifting to Emil. A silent communication took place between them. Emil shrugged slightly and tilted his head. Alex looked back at me. “Well, we know you’re a powerful Tracker. There are a number of them throughout history. Some of them have worked for the Amaranthine, some for the Daevos. There’s a chance you could be one of them.”
I nodded, letting my eyes go around the room. “So a powerful reincarnated Tracker with good or evil tendencies. Okay. I can deal with that. Who else could I be?”
“There’s a chance you’re someone more powerful than a Tracker,” Alex said.
I pulled my brows together. As I looked at Alex, Emil, and Tate, I wondered why I was the only one who seemed confused. “But the only people more powerful than Trackers are Goddesses.”
Alex chewed on the inside of his cheek as he nodded.
I stared open-mouthed. No one spoke. I swallowed and said incredulously, “So you think I’m a Goddess?”
“Or a fallen one,” Tate answered, referencing Callista again as he lifted his feet onto the coffee table. His heavy, black leather boots with one-inch soles landed with a loud thud on the wood.
I shook my head, disbelieving. “That’s not possible.” I shook it harder and faster. “I can’t be a Goddess.” I shot a look at Tate. “I’m not a fallen Goddess, either.”
“Improbable,” Emil said, “but not impossible.”
I threw my hands in the air. “You’re all insane.”
Tate cut in, “I believe that was your response to Alex when he told you about the Amaranthine and Daevos, too. That turned out to be true, so maybe you shouldn’t discount this yet.”
I ignored Tate and addressed Alex and Emil as I continued, “How is this information just coming out now? If I were a Goddess, or even Callista, I’m pretty sure you would have had an inkling about it two hundred and fifty years ago.”
Alex shook his head. “Your Tracker powers weren’t activated in any other lives, and this is the first time you’ve displayed any powers in the past two hundred and fifty years.”
“You wouldn’t have known the power was even there,” Emil said. “We don’t know why the cave situation triggered your abilities, but we think Caleb syncing your mind to Alex’s had something to do with it. Really, if you hadn’t been abducted and had your mind screwed with, your powers probably would have stayed dormant in this life, as well, unless you’d met a Tracker to activate them.”
I shook my head again. It was like I was battery powered and couldn’t stop saying no. I couldn’t be Callista. The flashbacks I’d had were only flashbacks to my life as Cassandra. If I was Callista, I’d have a lot more history to flash back to. Tate was wrong. I was not a fallen Goddess. “It doesn’t make sense. None of this does. I’m just Evie, college student and classic Mustang fan. I’m not a super-special-maybe-good-maybe-evil-Tracker, a Goddess, or Callista.”
“You’ll get over the denial eventually,” Tate said.
Alex gave Tate the warning look this time. “We don’t know what you are yet, Evie. We’re still looking into it, but you needed to know what we’d found. We were waiting for the right time to tell you.”
I was frustrated I hadn�
��t been told sooner, though I didn’t think I would have taken it any better. “So, what now?”
Alex looked concerned—more than usual. “I’m interested in Tate’s theory. I need to do some checking and I’ll need the Amaranthine’s libraries to research.” He looked at Emil and Tate. “If you two will stick with Evie while I’m gone, I’d appreciate it.”
We all stared at Alex in shock. Alex was more of the “order around” instead of “ask for help” type of guy. The fact he’d asked them to help him out was a big step. I felt like I should pat him on the back and tell him what a good job he’d done on his manners.
“Sure,” Tate said. “I can keep her company.”
“If anything happens, we’ll let you know,” Emil said.
“Yeah,” I said dryly. “As past experience shows, I can babysit myself just fine. If anyone tries to kill me, I’ll let you all know after I’ve taken care of the problem.”
Tate rolled his eyes. “You’re so full of spit and fire that sometimes you forget your common sense.”
I glared at Tate. He laughed. Tate and I are going to have it out one of these days, I know it.
Alex stood, gathering his things. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Tate suddenly started laughing. We all turned, wondering what he’d found funny. He stopped long enough to say to me, “I just realized: if you’re Callista, and your soulmark recognizes both Alex and Emil, one of them left you when you were a Goddess.” Tate raised his eyebrows, his eyes tracking from Alex to Emil. “I’d hate to be you two when she figures out who it was.”
Emil and Alex looked at each other, a sliver of worry crossing both their faces. I folded my arms across my chest. They were in trouble just for thinking I could be Callista. I didn’t believe it—they shouldn’t either. But if it turned out I actually was the most evil Goddess in history, one of them would have some serious explaining to do about why he left.
I came in from class, dropped my bag on the table and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. It had been a long day. I was so focused on everything else going on in my life that I hadn’t been concentrating as much on school as I should. I got a history test back and found out I had received the first ‘C’ of my life on a test about the French Revolution. That seemed ironic since I was pretty sure my soul lived through the war, and might have even been revolting along with the revolutionaries in France. Luckily, my grade was higher than the people who didn’t show up for class at all—which seemed to be happening in all of my classes lately. Western State had even started offering free flu shots.
There was also all the information I’d learned from Alex, Emil, and Tate. I was a little preoccupied about the possibility of being evil reincarnated. On top of that, there was the new information about the soulvows, and the lingering issue of the two men in my life: who I wanted to be with, who I could let go, and when I’d have to decide. I’d thought the tension between them was getting better, but lately, the more time I spent with each of them and the more intimate I became, the more irritated they both got. I was going to have to make a choice. I wished someone could make it for me.
The only good thing about today was that Tate had been sidetracked by a World of Warcraft tournament going on in the College Center, so I’d been able to escape being babysat—at least for a while. This morning, when he’d shown up to escort me to classes, he’d said Emil would be around later.
Today was definitely a peanut butter cup day. I grabbed a bag and slumped into the couch, unfolding a metallic wrapper and popping a cup in my mouth. I took a minute to think about how good the smooth peanut butter, sugar, and chocolate tasted. I’d planned to turn on the TV and get lost in some mind-numbing show, but I got sidetracked by my thoughts again. I was staring blankly at the fireplace mantle like I’d lost my mind when Jasmine walked in. She stopped as soon as she saw me, and the gold foil blanket I’d created with peanut butter cup wrappers.
“Hey, Evie,” she said, dropping her bag and moving slowly toward me. “What’s wrong? You look like you need some Prozac—or vodka.”
I could have answered her question with a variety of things. Like: well, Jas, you don’t know this, but reincarnation is real and my soul’s been alive a really long time. I also have special superpowers and no one knows why. Oh, and there’s a chance I might be an extremely lost Goddess, or the reincarnation of the most evil Goddess in history. Also, I got a C on my history test.
Instead, I went with the easiest answer, and the one Jas would understand the most. “Men,” I responded. It wasn’t a lie. They were vexing me too.
“Ah,” she said, grabbing an energy drink from the fridge. “So you haven’t slept with them yet.”
I shook my head. “It’s getting awkward.”
“Are you going to make a choice between them?”
“I can’t. It’s a huge choice, Jas.” Bigger than she realized. I wasn’t choosing who I wanted to date, I was choosing which of them would be out of my life—forever. “I’m not ready to choose.”
“Are you still dating them both?” she asked, sinking into the couch.
I nodded. “They take turns.”
“Who had the most recent date?”
“Alex, for Valentine’s Day.”
“Ooooo,” Jas said in a high, sing-song voice. “What did you do?”
I popped another peanut butter cup and answered around it, “We almost had sex in a barn.”
She looked at me like she thought I was kidding. I stared back, letting her know I wasn’t. I threw a piece of candy to her; she’d need it to come out of the shock. She unwrapped it, ate the candy slowly, and said, “He tried to take your virginity in some hay?” She wrinkled her nose in distaste. “Well, I guess if it was done right, it could be okay. Has he been reading historic romance novels?”
I thinned my eyes and lips. “Does Alex seem like the type of guy who reads historic romance novels?”
“Are you kidding?” She crossed her legs, putting her hands in her lap. “They might not admit to it, but I bet guys read them all the time. And if they don’t, they should. Romance novels are like a step-by-step guide for getting laid. Besides, where else would he get the sex-in-a-barn-would-be-fun idea?”
“I don’t know. We didn’t get that far, anyway. We went horseback riding and started kissing after we put the horses away. He said he wanted to take his time. We lost a few articles of clothing before we were interrupted by the farmer’s wife, who told us dinner was ready.”
Jasmine thinned her eyes in thought. “Horseback ride, kissing in a barn, romantic dinner. I bet he’s been reading Eloisa James. Check his library next time you’re at his mansion.”
The thought of Alex reading romance novels was as out of character as me driving a Smart Car, but now I was curious about what he really did read. Regardless, he seemed pretty adept at the lead up to sex. He probably got training somewhere, and I doubted the Amaranthine offered a class. That was not something I needed to think about, though. Not at all.
“What about Emil?”
I shrugged. “I haven’t had almost-sex with him for a few weeks.”
Jas laughed out loud. “Know what I think?”
“What?”
“I think we need to do something fun. Get our mind off things.”
I studied her face, the dark circles under her eyes, and clothes that hung looser than usual. “Are you feeling up to it?”
“Yeah. Zach and I can’t seem to get rid of this flu, but I’m feeling better today.”
A smile tugged at my lips. “No wonder you’re sick. I bet you both keep giving the virus to each other. Maybe you should stop having sex for a while.”
She rolled her eyes. “That’s not gonna happen.” She lifted her hand for another peanut butter cup. I tossed one to her. “I think it’s from working in the nurse’s office so much. It’s great experience, but I’m surrounded by sickness. The day after Valentine’s Day was the worst. People were coming in complaining of fatigue, fevers, headaches—I
think they all overdosed on chocolate.”
“Chocolate overdosing might be worth getting sick.” I was glad Jas was feeling better for now. “All right,” I answered. “What do you want to do for fun?”
“Let’s go tubing!”
“Like on an inner-tube? In the snow?”
“Yeah! There's a place about fifteen minutes from here. The tubes are tied to a rope that pulls you up the mountain, and then you slide down. They also have hot chocolate and food. Western State students are always up there.”
I hadn’t heard of it, but I’d been a little preoccupied lately. “Are you sure you’re okay to be out in the cold?
“Eh,” she shrugged, “I’ll be fine.”
I watched her closely. “Okay. That sounds fun! When do you want to go?”
She thought for a minute, mentally going through her schedule. “Tomorrow afternoon?”
“Sounds good to me.”
She got up from the couch. “I have a study group in the library, so I have to go. Let’s meet here tomorrow at three, though.”
“It’s a deal.”
I was working on my computer when Alex came in, his shoulders hunched, mouth drooping slightly. His jacket wrinkled at the set of his shoulders.
He dropped a stack of books on the table. “What are these?” I asked.
He looked at me with a bleak expression as he shrugged off his coat. “Research.”
Oh. Right. Research about me. I still wasn’t sure how I felt about that. Part of me wanted to know what and who I was; the other part felt like everyone viewed me as a disease that needed to be diagnosed and cured before I took out all of humanity.
“What did you find?”
He breathed out a deep sigh. “That’s the problem.”
I raised my brows, inviting him to go on.
“It’s not what I found, it’s what I didn’t.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
He slumped down in a chair. “I found the records about your past lives dating back to Cassandra—which I already knew, because I lived them with you. Before that, there’s nothing.”
Eternal Echoes, Emblem of Eternity Trilogy Book 2 Page 24
