Synchronicity (Scintillate Series Book 3) Read online

  SYNCHRONICITY

  Karen Tjebben

  SYNCHRONICITY is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, or events is coincidental.

  Copyright © 2016 by Karen Tjebben

  This book, of parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the author. For information regarding permission visit: https://www.facebook.com/karentjebbenauthor/.

  First Published Edition: April 2016

  ASIN: B01EXSZQ6W

  Cover art designed by Christine Taylor MacLellan

  Printed in the United States of America

  Synchronicity is dedicated to my wonderful husband and precious daughters. Thank you for filling my life with love and joy.

  I love you.

  I also want to thank Melanie and Michelle for their help and input as my beta-readers. You’ll never know how much your support and encouragement means to me.

  Table of Contents

  1. Aftermath

  2. Departure

  3. Surprise

  4. Revisiting the Past

  5. About Last Night

  6. Michael

  7. Cabin

  8. Oracle

  9. Powers

  10. Journey

  11. Fire

  12. Potions

  13. Poison

  14. Prisoner

  15. Unify

  16. Hade’s Well

  17. Bloodletting

  18. Happily Ever After

  1. Aftermath

  Alex gripped Kate’s hand. He didn’t mind the blood. Over the centuries he’d grown accustomed to it, but this time the blood was his own. Never before had he lost so much of the precious liquid that he actually felt his life slipping away, but he fought. He’d fought the hardest battle he’d ever waged because she’d stayed. She’d drenched him with her tears as she begged him not to die, and so he fought.

  “What did the griffin say to you?” Alex asked, his voice weak and scratchy. Shock consumed him when the griffin hadn’t rushed away after rescuing him from Daevas and the cerberi. Instead, the griffin stalked to Kate, bent its hooked beak to her ear, and told her something, something important.

  Alex stared relentlessly at Kate. Mud and blood tinged the tips of her blonde hair. Her cheeks were flushed from fighting and crying. She chewed her bottom lip, and her fingers twitched within Alex’s grasp. But pleasant warmth from her hand seeped deep within his bones and stirred his love for her. He’d never again let her go.

  Her fingers slipped free of Alex’s grasp as she stood. She dragged her eyes from Alex and looked to Nick. The butterflies in her stomach fluttered about wildly. The news the griffin whispered would change Nick’s life, all of their lives. She took a deep breath and focused on Nick. “Hayden is alive,” she said.

  The air rushed from Nick’s lungs. The world spun around him as Kate’s words reverberated through his body. There had been a void in his life ever since the day Hayden disappeared. Now he felt his heart expand to fill the Hayden-shaped void. He inhaled deeply and centered himself. “The griffin told you that? Are you sure that’s what it said?” Disbelief laced Nick’s words.

  Kate nodded hesitantly and bit her lip as she contemplated her response. She didn’t want to give Nick false hope, but she couldn’t lie either. She could only repeat what the griffin said. “Yes, I’m sure. Daevas knows where she is. We have to find him.”

  Nick shook his head as he attempted to align the past with this new information. “But she has no glow,” he said, shifting his weight. He couldn’t reconcile the griffin’s words with the absence of Hayden’s glow. No glow had always meant death.

  Kate shrugged. All she knew for sure was that the griffin rescued her from the cerberi and then saved Alex after he’d been torn apart. She’d been told that griffins were helpers of the innocent. She had to believe that it wouldn’t lead her astray. Her faith in the griffin was firm. “I don’t know how. I just know that Hayden is alive,” she said with conviction.

  “Who’s this Daevas?” Nick asked. He looked between Alex and Kate. “Was he here?” Nick scanned the dense forest.

  “Yes,” Alex said. “He was the one leading the group of Nephilims and cerberi in the attack? He’s powerful.”

  Kate spoke up, “He nearly killed Alex when I threw a fire powder bead at the cerberi and he redirected it onto Alex. I tried to heal him, but the wounds were too severe. That was when the griffin came and saved him.”

  “Where did you last see Daevas?” Nick interrupted. “We must go. We must find him.” He offered a hand to Alex. If Hayden was alive, it was his duty to rescue her. He’d loved her, and when she’d disappeared, his heart had been shredded. Without her, he’d embraced his avenging nature and lost sight of the hope and love that was also part of his genetic code.

  Alex gripped Nick’s hand and stood. Dizziness flooded Alex as he waited for his equilibrium to steady.

  Kate noticed Alex’s slight sway. She gripped his arm to steady him.

  “I’m okay,” Alex said with a weak smile.

  “You lost a lot of blood,” she replied, her voice laced with concern. “You need to take it easy, let your body build up your blood supply again.” She looked to Nick for support, but it was obvious that he was ready to go after Daevas. Considering that he’d just been informed that the love of his life was still alive, she couldn’t blame him. Although if he died before her rescue, that would not help her either. “We can’t take on Daevas now,” Kate said defiantly to Nick. “We aren’t prepared.” She’d seen what Daevas was capable of. She didn’t want to storm to their death in an ill-prepared rescue attempt.

  “Alex will heal quickly.” Nick’s eyes cut through Kate. She felt his resolve in his stare. “If we leave now, we can track him. You don’t expect me to let Daevas get away, do you?”

  “He has Vires,” Alex said. “You won’t win.”

  Once again, as the air left Nick’s lungs, his heart was constricted by the vacuum created from the escaping air. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t fill the void. To know that Hayden was alive and yet still unattainable nearly crushed him.

  “Vires?” Nick spit out. The magical ring granted the wearer protection and immortality. He didn’t know who this Daevas was, but he’d find out. He’d learn all he could about the protected Nephilim and the ring. There were always loopholes. You just had to find them.

  “What are we to do?” Nick asked. “There’s no way to get that ring off his finger.” He swept his hand through his hair and paced. “Vires makes Daevas unstoppable,” he seethed and kicked a stone. It flew through the air and smashed into a tree. It was lodged so deeply within the trunk that it was barely perceptible.

  “We’ll figure it out,” Alex said. “We’ll find a way.” The need he saw in Nick propelled the energy that coursed through his body to gain momentum and speed his healing process.

  “How did he get Vires?” Nick said under his breath. Doubt overwhelmed him. How would he overcome a magically protected adversary? How could he kill an invincible monster? He had to stop thinking about Daevas. Hayden was the priority. Nick shook his head, as if ridding his mind of unwanted thoughts. “Why can’t I see her glow?” He looked between Alex and Kate. “I have her amulet. She should be scintillating. We should see her glow.”

  “I don’t know,” Alex said. Emotions washed through him. He felt Nick’s pain. He understood it. For centuries he’d waited for Sarah’s return. He’d waited, confident she’d come back to him. And now, as he stood beside Kate, Alex knew Sarah had returned to
him in the only way possible. His wait was over. Kate may not be Sarah reincarnate, but Kate had a part of Sarah within her. And now, to know that Hayden could be returned to Nick was invigorating and daunting. To free Hayden from whatever prison held her was Alex’s joyful obligation, and to reunite Hayden with Nick would be his sincere honor. “But we’ll find her and free her,” Alex said.

  Nick squatted, resting his elbows on his knees and pressed his fingers into his temples. “When I found her cross, I didn’t want to believe that she was dead. I looked for her. I had to make sure that she was gone, so I hunted and hunted for her glow. But I never found any trace of her.” He looked up, his eyes despondent. “This doesn’t make any sense.”

  Alex placed his hand on Nick’s shoulder and felt the tiny vibrations of anger and desire flow through Nick. “We’ll get the answers,” Alex said. “We’ll free her and destroy whatever dark power has claimed her.” He poured hope into Nick, trying to allay Nick’s confused emotions.

  Nick stood with a slight smile on his face, a glimmer of hope warming him. “She’s been absent from my life for so long, but do not be mistaken, she was always present in my heart.”

  Alex nodded and said, “I understand completely.”

  Kate watched them and shared in their moment. She fully understood their meanings. Regardless of what she used to believe, she now knew that ghosts do exist. They haunt us in our minds and souls. Harsh words or the words left unsaid are the chains that ghosts rattle as we walk through the hallways of life. Rarely do we actually confront these ghosts and free ourselves from their power, but now Nick may actually revive the ghost that haunted him and love her again as an equal.

  “The only way to find the answers to your questions is to start the hunt,” Alex said, placing his hand on Nick’s shoulder. “Let’s go home. We’ll need the others.”

  Nick nodded. He smirked as he glanced between Alex and Kate. “You two might want to freshen up a bit. You’re a mess.”

  Kate had been so distracted that she forgot about their appearance. “That’s an understatement,” she mumbled. Dried blood stained her skin and crusted along her nails. Even if she washed away the evidence of their battle and her attempt to heal Alex, she could never forget the fear she felt when she realized she could lose him forever. Life is in the blood. Blood is shed for love. Blood changes everything.

  ~ ~ ~

  The warm water soothed Kate’s muscles and washed away the blood, but it did nothing to calm her reeling mind. Her confrontation with Sarah in the other side left her mystified. How did they coexist? How had Sarah been ingrained in her? Would she ever have the answers, or was this just something she’d have to take on faith?

  Kate shut off the water and grabbed the bath towel. She quickly brushed the towel over herself, catching the beads of water that rolled down her body. Then she pulled on Zoe’s bathrobe and secured her dripping hair into the towel, bundling it atop her head.

  She slid her hand across the mirror to wipe away the moisture left by the heat of the shower. A cut that ran along her neck caught her attention in her reflection. “Hmm, so you’re the reason for the sting I felt in the shower,” she mumbled to herself.

  Everything happened so fast that she hadn’t noticed when she got cut. She traced her fingertip along the mark, and the cut disappeared. She smiled and felt relief at the ease with which she healed herself. But a thread of guilt wound its way around her heart as she thought of how she’d failed Alex. She’d been unable to heal him. If the griffin hadn’t appeared, Alex would be dead. She couldn’t let that happen again. She focused on the rejuvenated skin on her neck and renewed her commitment to master her Asteri skills. With Sarah’s power feeding into her, along with her own natural Asteri skills, she could be unstoppable. Never again would she fail her friends so miserably.

  She walked into the bedroom and noticed the fresh clothes Zoe had placed on the bed for her. She pulled on the yoga pants and oversized sweatshirt, relishing their comfort. They were the “comfort clothes” equivalent to macaroni and cheese. She slipped her feet into the fluffy socks and headed back into the bathroom to dry her hair.

  Kate found Alex, Zoe, and Evan in the Bishop’s family room. Alex sat casually on the sofa with his arm resting along the back. Zoe was curled up in one recliner while Evan was in the other recliner, his fingers lightly stroking his chin as if he were deep in thought.

  Kate walked towards the sofa and said, “Is Nick coming back?” She sat on the opposite end of the sofa; a seat cushion between her and Alex. She wanted to sit next to him. She craved his attention, but guilt overwhelmed her. She’d failed him when she couldn’t stop the blood that poured from his wounds. He almost died.

  Disappointment weighed on Alex’s heart as Kate sat as far away from him as possible. He’d hoped she’d sit next to him, or at least close enough that his fingertips could brush the ends of her hair, but she’d distanced herself. There were so many things he wanted to say to her. They’d have to talk, but now was not the time.

  “Nick’s going over things with Justin,” Evan said. “They’ll pack up their necessities and then head off in search of Daevas.”

  “Where will they go?” Kate asked. She hated to think of Nick and Justin searching out a powerful Nephilim, especially a magically protected one. She knew it had to be done; she just feared the result. Sometimes it was hard to fathom that the angels that had served God could become so warped by evil. When the fallen angels turned on God, they attacked the humans, destroying villages and raping the women. Their offspring, the Nephilim, were far superior to a human child. This superiority allowed them to dominate the world and strike fear into anyone weaker than them. God saw the unholy tilt towards evil that the Nephilim’s actions imposed on mankind, and He couldn’t allow it. That was when He created his own brand of angel and human hybrid, the Asteri.

  Alex shifted so he could look more directly at Kate. Now that they had turned a corner in their relationship, he knew he’d never tire of seeing her face. He now knew that she had chosen him, too. He just needed to give her time to adjust to the change. “They’ll go into the big cities, into the underground,” Alex said. “They’ll ask around for information on Daevas. Someone has to know something.”

  Zoe spoke up, “There are others, like us, who have crossed paths with Daevas or other Nephilim. Someone will be able to help.”

  Kate nodded. Hayden was out there, trapped somewhere, held hostage by a monster. She knew Nick wouldn’t rest until Hayden was safe in his arms. He’d been relentless in his job to keep her safe even though he barely knew her. There was no doubt in Kate’s mind that Nick’s focus was trained on retrieving Hayden. He’d loved Hayden. He still loved Hayden.

  “Good,” Kate said. “And what are we going to do?” she asked Alex.

  “We,” Alex replied, “are going to continue your training. You’re doing great, but there are a few more things you need to master before you’re ready to fight whoever has Hayden.”

  “What do you mean?” Kate asked. “You make it sound like we’re going to war.”

  Evan dropped his hand from his chin and placed it along the armrest of the recliner. “It will most likely come to that. Whoever has Hayden has successfully hidden her glow from us. This creature has mastered a power that we’ve never seen before. We’ve never been up against someone like him.”

  Zoe broke in, “We don’t really know what to expect. While Nick and Justin search for Daevas, Evan and I will research possible explanations for this power source and how to deal with Vires. Hopefully we’ll find out how he’s hiding her glow and how to defeat it.” Zoe shrugged. “This may even be the power of a rare creature that we’ve never faced before. We are truly in the dark right now.”

  This situation was more serious than Kate had realized. They had no idea how this creature was hiding Hayden’s glow. Kate pressed her thumbnail into the soft pads of her fingertips as she realized that they were completely lost right now. She wanted to be ready for whatever fi
ght they faced. She’d seen the fear in Hayden’s eyes the night the Reapers came for her, the night her lover’s blood washed over her skin. She could easily imagine the fear in Hayden’s eyes now, and she didn’t like it. No one should live in fear. “When we go to rescue her, I’ll be ready,” Kate said with a determined nod.

  “I’ll make sure of it,” Alex said. There was no way he was sending Kate into a battle unprepared. She was everything to him. His heart beat only for her. He’d refused to die because of her, and he wouldn’t let her die because he failed her.

  “Do you want to call your mom and tell her you’re spending the night?” Zoe asked.

  Alex’s lips quirked up as Kate’s eyes drifted towards him. “Yeah. Can we start training tonight?” she asked Alex.

  “Yes,” he said. His fingers twitched along the top of the sofa. He wanted to touch her. He wanted to talk to her. She wouldn’t escape his questions tonight.

  ~ ~ ~

  Kate’s muffled footsteps alerted Alex to her presence. He’d been listening for her, anxiously awaiting her descent into the basement. The last time they’d been together in this room they’d worked on levitation, but then she’d left suddenly when he’d been too honest. His actions had revealed too much of his heart before she was ready, so she fled. He wasn’t going to let her do that tonight. Fleeing wasn’t an option.

  “Everything set?” Alex asked as she walked towards him. Although she walked with confidence, he felt her nervous energy in the air. He knew they needed to talk about what happened in the forest. He needed her to understand that he wouldn’t rush her. She could move at a pace that she was comfortable with.

  “Yes.” Kate’s lips bowed upwards into a faint smile. “Talked with Mom and told her I’m here.” The butterflies in her stomach awakened as she neared him. She tried to control the quivering inside her. She tightened her abs, attempting to squash the troublesome butterflies. She wanted her feelings for Alex to be her own, not feelings influenced by Sarah. Surely that would be best. Wouldn’t Alex want that too? But how would she ever know the difference?