“I don't fucking care who hears me.” Zoe turned to Tessa. “I have kept my opinion to myself ever since Aunty Stella showed up.” She turned to Stella. “You waltzed into the cabin surprising Eva, who had no idea who the hell you were.”
“Zoe—”
“Let her talk, Angel. She needs to get this off her chest,” Tessa said.
“Get it off my chest?” Zoe whirled around to Tessa. “Where do I start? It's not the fact that Aunty Stella undid all the work to get Eva to the point where she could, somehow, try and not let Larissa completely overwhelm her, but the fact that she brought that drawing. What in God's name were you thinking?”
“I did apologize.”
“Yes, wonderful. We have an apology, and that is going to solve what? I'm having sleepless nights over that damned drawing. Eva hasn't had a decent night of sleep since we arrived in Athens. What did you expect her to do? Just sit there and look at it like it was some damned flower arrangement?”
“You do have a point.”
“Yes, I have a point. I don't know why you felt the need to show us those damn drawings. What the hell did you want to achieve? I don't understand.”
“I wanted to show—”
“I don't care.” Zoe put her hand up in frustration. “You are a middle-aged woman that should know better, for God's sake. You are a doctor. Do you treat your patients with so much disregard for their feelings? What if you showed artwork like that to one of your soldiers? Do you think he would thank you?”
“No, but—”
“There is no excuse,” Zoe said. “There just isn't. You know Eva knew how being at the wedding would affect me. It took her all of seconds to make the connection. She was feeling battered and sore from Tommy's little surprise, but she still made this heroic effort to be there for me. You're a doctor, Aunty Stella, you deal with trauma like the one suffered by Eva, and you should have known better.”
“Yes, you are right, but—” Tessa started.
“Don't.” Zoe pointed at Tessa. “Don't get all this calm and serene with me. I know you have powers, gifts, whatever the hell they are, but what you did in the study was beyond … I don't know what.” She threw her hands in the air in frustration. “What the hell did you think you were going to achieve?”
“You asked me for—”
“So you thought you would show off? You couldn't just move the bottle? That would have been impressive, but no, you had to terrify Eva by moving the damned chair and her in it.” Zoe balled her fists up and punched the wooden table, rattling the plates on it. “Is that your favorite party trick when you get together with the others like you?”
“Zoe, that is unnecessary,” Irene said quietly as she stood up.
“You think so? It seems this is so common for you all that you think Eva and I would be used to it.” Zoe gripped the table and glared at Irene. “Well, we are not. The only time I ever heard of this is in the Bible two-thousand years ago.”
“We know, and we could have handled this better.”
“Really? You're thinking you could have handled this better? Wow.” Zoe shook her head in disbelief. “Didn't your second sight, or whatever you call it, give you a little hint that springing this on someone who is feeling emotionally fragile might be a little, oh I don't know… stupid?”
“I understand why you are angry,” Tessa said.
“I have never seen Eva drink almost an entire bottle of whisky on her own. Never.”
“I'm sorry, we—”
“I don't want to hear it.” Zoe turned away from them and took a deep breath to try and calm herself. She faced them again. “You've had years to get used to this thing. You know how this works and you understand it. Eva and I don't. We've never heard of this before other than what we have heard in church. Personally, I've always thought of this as demon possession.” She took a deep breath. “When I was little, Theo and I saw a woman who was possessed. There was no earthly explanation for her behavior. She terrified me. She was wild and did things that I'm scared just thinking about. You now come to me and tell me that this isn't demon possession but something left over from Pentecost? How is that even possible?”
Tommy and Theo entered the kitchen. They looked at Zoe and then at the other three women.
Theo didn't need to be told what Zoe's glare meant. He did an about face and took Tommy’s arm and pulled him out of the kitchen.
“What?” Thomas asked. “I want some lunch.”
“You don't want to be in that room with my sister in that mood.”
“Why?”
“Let's go to forage for food elsewhere.” Theo pushed Tommy away from the kitchen and out the door.
Eva and Johan were just about to enter.
“Where are you going? Aren't you boys going to have lunch?” Johan asked.
“No, I think it would be safer…” Theo stopped when he heard Zoe's raised voice coming from the kitchen. “Safer if we were not near the kitchen.”
ZOE OPENED HER mouth to let loose again, but she felt Eva’s presence and stopped.
“Hey,” Eva whispered. “Let's go and talk.”
“How was your walk?” Zoe asked through gritted teeth.
“Much better than what is going on here. Come with me.”
She took Zoe's hand, and led her into the study. She closed the door.
Eva put her arms around Zoe’s waist. “You were waking the dead.”
“I bet they walk at night around here as well,” Zoe muttered as she snuggled up against Eva's chest. She took a shuddering breath and let it out slowly.
“Hey.” Eva tipped Zoe's face up and smiled. “Did that make you feel better?”
Zoe nodded vigorously.
Eva laughed lightly. “I thought it might.” She kissed the top of Zoe's head.
“It's just not fair.”
“I know, love, but it's normal for them.”
“They should keep it to themselves.”
“They can't.” Eva sighed. “I met my great uncle Johan.”
“The priest? Is he like them?”
“No, he appears to be normal like you.”
Zoe rolled her eyes.
Eva grinned. “That's not quite right. No one is as normal as you.”
“Ha Ha. What is he like?”
“Hmm, he's alright. There's something about him that's a little odd,” Eva said quietly. “I don't know. He talks about these gifts and he's very calm.”
“I think these gifts cast a spell over everyone and that makes you calm and serene.”
“Well, we can safely say you don't have any inherited Pentecost gifts.”
Zoe buried her head against Eva's chest and laughed.
“You do have an enormous amount of artistic ability, which is probably inherited from your mama.”
“More than likely.”
“I love you. I know you’ve been trying not to get upset, but you were loud. I could hear you all the way across the courtyard.”
“Good. They were toying with you and it drove me insane.”
“They're not toying with me. I'm not sure what they want to do, but it's not that.”
“Whatever they were doing, they started it in Larissa.”
“You kept your temper for quite some time.” Eva looked at Zoe with a slight smile. “I think I was the one who snapped first.”
“No, I did that in the bathroom this morning,” Zoe admitted. “I yelled at my reflection in the mirror.”
“Hmm, did that help?”
“No.” Zoe looked up at Eva's glazed eyes and furrowed brow. “How are you feeling?”
“Um, I’ve got the beginnings of a migraine,” Eva admitted. “I can't believe I drank so much.”
“It’s not that you drank, although alcohol for breakfast is not that great, but you drank whisky.” Zoe scrunched up her face in distaste. “You always get a migraine after drinking whisky, and that stuff makes you sick. For what it’s worth, you would have drunk a bottle of ouzo if they had had it handy.”
“Ouzo would have sent me to the floor.” Eva stuck her tongue out. Zoe giggled. “I'm going to need to sleep this off.”
Zoe noticed Eva's distant, faraway look. She blinked in surprise at Eva’s eye color. Zoe shook her head and looked up again to find Eva's eyes the normal sky blue. “Evy, what just happened?”
“Huh?” Eva looked down. “What do you mean?”
“Where did you go just now?”
“Um.” Eva hesitated for a moment. “I was just thinking there is something weird about what Irene said—that they had a burglary and the thieves didn’t take anything. I find it odd.
“I don't know; maybe inept thieves? What worries me now is that I thought I saw your eyes go completely black before returning to normal. You better sit down.” Zoe gently pushed Eva to the nearest seat. She tipped Eva's face up to the light and looked into her eyes. They were their normal color except for a tiny spot of black in the blue irises. “Hm. I've never seen this before.”
“Are my blue eyes still there?”
Zoe smiled. “Yes, still sky blue, and they are still gorgeous but…” She tried to find the black spot but couldn't. Both eyes were clear. “I think I'm seeing things and I haven't drunk anything.”
“I think we both need to get home to Sydney,” Eva said quietly. “I've had enough of this adventure.”
“You're right, but now I'm going to put you to bed.” Zoe stood and held out her hand. “Come on, my lady. Let's take you upstairs so you don't throw up here.”
“I'm not going to throw up.” Eva stood up and put her arm around Zoe’s shoulders. . “I don’t think I should have drunk the whiskey, Zo.”
Zoe shook her head. “You should have grabbed a bottle of wine.”
“Beer. That’s even better.”
“Pentecost gifted ones don’t drink beer like common folk.” Zoe chuckled as she put her arm around Eva and walked to the stairs. She looked back at the study for a moment. She was pretty sure of what she had seen, but it might have been the light playing tricks.
Zoe closed the door to the bedroom and contemplated the morning’s mayhem. She had yelled at her aunt and her adopted aunts. “Oh, good job, Zo” she muttered as she sat down on the top step of the staircase and leaned against the wall.
Tessa stopped at the bottom of the steps and looked up at Zoe. She went up the stairs and stopped a few steps down from Zoe.
“I owe you both an apology,” Tessa said as she sat on the step and braced her back against the wall.
“Yes, you do,” Zoe replied. “You all do.”
“I’m sorry. We didn’t handle it correctly. Stella would never do what she did to a patient and she knows that. She didn’t think.”
“I’m not sorry I got angry.”
“I know. I was surprised you kept your temper for so long.”
Zoe glanced at Tessa. “You don’t know me. You may think you do, but you don’t.”
“No one knows anyone all that well.”
“I know Eva and she knows me. I’m sure it’s the same for you and Aunty Stella.”
“It is. Do you accept my apology?”
Zoe closed her eyes and leaned back against the wall. “Of course.”
“Thank you.” Tessa smiled. “Why are you sitting up here?”
“Thinking.”
“Can I ask what about?”
“Eva. Something happened in the study. I don’t know what, but something happened.”
“When?”
“When she came back from her walk. I thought I saw something, but it may have been the light.”
“What was it?” Tessa leaned forward and looked at Zoe.
“I don’t know,” Zoe said, a little bewildered as to why this was bothering her. “We were in the study and there was a lot of sunlight in the room. It may have been a shadow or something.”
“What did you see?”
“That’s just it, I don’t know. I thought I saw her blue eyes darken. Either that or you have me completely spooked and I’m seeing things that are not there.”
“How long did it last for?”
“Seconds,” Zoe responded. “When you have a vision, the change in your eye color lasts for a long time, doesn’t it?”
“Yes. It usually lasts for two or three hours. This doesn’t sound like it was a vision.”
“Hm.” Zoe nodded. “I don’t know what I saw. This is exhausting.”
“Do you want some ice cream?”
“Yes.”
“What flavor?”
“Any flavor as long as it’s ice cream,” Zoe replied as she got up from the top step and followed Tessa into the kitchen.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Sitting in the shadows of an overhanging tree on the balcony of their bedroom, Zoe had a good view of Irene and Johan's property. Situated on a large block of land, the house was L shaped in design and each bedroom had a balcony. The room she shared with Eva overlooked the entrance to the property and the large courtyard.
She was impressed by the grandeur of the estate, but then the Fabers were wealthy and this was probably a modest home. Zoe rested her forearms on the railing and gazed at the birds in the trees.
She sighed. This portion of their trip was scheduled for only three days, but it seemed that it was going to take longer. “Nothing is ever easy. Nothing. One day I'm going to find that something goes according to plan and probably fall down in shock.” She turned away from the railing and leaned to the side to look through the open doorway to see if Eva was still asleep.
Eva was indeed asleep, a slight smile on her lips. Her dark hair had flopped down over her eyes.
“I have got to paint that when I have some time.” Zoe turned away and stood in the middle of the balcony.
Since her angry outburst this morning, Stella and Irene had kept their distance. Zoe smiled. People often underestimated her, and it seemed even those with these Pentecost-inspired gifts were not immune. Tessa had been the only one that had apologized to her for their behavior towards Eva. Zoe was fully aware that they didn’t want to hurt Eva, but the ham-fisted way they went about revealing everything was appalling.
Tessa’s apology both surprised her and endeared her to Zoe. Her father used to say that you could tell the character of a man (or in this case woman) by how well they apologized. Tessa did not try to excuse herself or be mealy mouthed about the apology. She said she was sorry and that was worth more to Zoe than Tessa realized. It wasn't until Zoe had time to think that it occurred to her that Eva also never made excuses and simply said she was sorry.
A bird flew overhead, casting a shadow on the wooden balcony floor. “Shadows. I did not see shadows,” Zoe mused aloud as she realized the sun was coming through the window of the study when she saw the change in Eva’s eyes. She was certain Eva's eyes did change color, albeit very briefly. “Does she know this happened? This must have happened before. For as long as I've known her she would say, ‘I know this is going to happen,’ and it did.” Zoe slowly paced along the balcony.
“So when did this all start?” Zoe stopped and looked up into the sky, which was littered with little tuffs of clouds that ambled slowly across the blue expanse. “When does this happen?” She closed her eyes and tried to meditate.
She opened her eyes and she smiled. “It can’t be that easy, can it?”
“What isn't easy?”
Zoe whirled around to find Eva leaning against the French doors watching her. She couldn't help but look lovingly at Eva, whose tousled hair, combined with the sunlight hitting her blue eyes, took Zoe's breath away. Eva's dark hair glistened in the sunlight and Zoe could only gaze at her.
“Zoe.” Eva came forward and put her arms around her. “Where did you go?”
“You take my breath away.”
Eva kissed Zoe tenderly. “You do that to me every time I open my eyes and see you.”
Zoe buried her head against Eva's chest. “We are just addicted to each other.”
“At least my addiction to you doesn't
give me migraines.” Eva chuckled. “What are you doing up here?”
“Did I wake you?”
“I felt the vibration of the floor boards and heard you muttering.”
“Oh, I'm sorry. I should have taken my pacing to the garden.”
“Nah, it's alright. So what were you muttering about?”
“Alright, well, I've been thinking about something that happened in the study. I want to try something.”
“What and why?”
“In the study your eyes changed color.”
“Alright.” A tiny smile played on Eva’s lips. She sat down on the wicker chair and brought Zoe down to sit on her lap. “Is the experiment to see if you get lost in my eyes?” she asked with a slight chuckle.
Zoe jokingly slapped herself. “No. Keep your eyes open.”
“Okay.”
“Are we going to get visitors tonight?”
“Yes, we are.”
“Hmm. Do you know anything else about them?”
“No.”
“Alright, that's a good place to start. I want you to concentrate on them, but don't shut your eyes. You always shut your eyes when you're thinking.”
“Do I?” Eva asked as she stroked Zoe's hair and played with the red curls.
“Evy, please,” Zoe begged.
Eva playfully pouted and wrapped her fingers around strands of Zoe’s red hair.
“Did I just ask you to stop touching me?”
“Yes. Mark it down. It's a historic event.” Eva giggled. “All right, I'm to concentrate and not close my eyes. What am I concentrating on?”
“Our visitors.”
“Fine, and then what?”
“Just concentrate. I want to watch your eyes.”
Eva shrugged. She didn't look at Zoe, but a little to the left. Zoe stared into Eva’s unfocused eyes. For a few minutes nothing happened. Zoe continued to stare. Eva's irises went dark blue, bluer than Zoe had ever seen them, and then she started to count. At five seconds, the dark blue broke up just as quickly as it had formed. She continued to count and the sky blue irises were back.
Eva refocused on Zoe and smiled. “Something happened, didn't it?”
“Oh, yeah,” Zoe replied quietly. “All seven seconds of it.”
Awakenings (Intertwined Souls Series Book 4) Page 22
