Soothsayer: Magic Is All Around Us (Soothsayer Series Book 1) (30 page)

I tried to yell for help but couldn’t muster enough energy to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to fight my way out of this but I was helpless and scared. Most of all, I didn’t want to die. I couldn’t die. I was The Waker!

Another wave assaulted me and filled my mouth with saltwater. I struggled to hold on to the little air I had left in my lungs until I resurfaced. It felt like my chest was going to explode and I gasped for air. I fought against the weight of the water to hold on just a little longer. Little stars appeared behind my eyelids and I felt my limbs start to go numb. The water still hadn’t receded and the stale air burned my lungs. I exhaled my last breath and my reflexes took over. I inhaled a large gulp of seawater just as my head resurfaced. My face hit the cold air and I tried to take a breath but there was too much water in the way. My body convulsed and salty vomit came back up my throat and out of my body. I coughed so hard my body shook and I gasped for air. My throat felt raw from both swallowing and throwing up saltwater. I coughed again, gagging myself and spewing another mouthful of water. My entire body was being stretched to its limit as I drew in another ragged breath.

My vision cleared a little and I looked back toward the fight. Annabel was struggling to get to her feet while Brett stood in front of her and absorbed the green light coming from Lila.

“Help Violet!” Brett yelled back to Annabel.

Brett almost glowed as Annabel scrambled toward me. I glanced at Lila, who looked to be focusing all her energy toward Brett. Brett stood motionless, staring at Lila as the light entered her body and coursed through her.

I looked back at the water just in time to take a breath before another wave pummeled me down. The water was growing too high, the sets of waves getting closer together. I didn’t have much more time. If the water completely consumed me I’d die and what if Robert couldn’t get to me in time?

Annabel appeared by my side again along with someone else I didn’t recognize. They stood on either side of me and tried to undo the magic binding me to the pillar. I heard Jake yell Annabel’s name just as another set of waves came toward me and I felt the pillar vibrate against my body. I held my breath and kept my eyes closed tight. The water didn’t recede in between waves and I fought with everything I had to hold on. I could feel someone’s hands on my shoulders and then their lips on my mouth. They held my nose and blew air into my mouth as another wave crested above me.

The wooden pillar vibrated again as my head resurfaced and yellow sparks danced all around me. I kept my head tilted back in order to keep it out of the water and coughed again. Remnants of saltwater and bile spewed from my mouth. I blinked a few times to get the water off my lashes. I could just make out the fight to the left of me through my blurry, squinting vision. The next set of waves came toward me and I knew I wouldn’t resurface this time.

This was it. I took a deep breath as the first wave approached. I knew that there wasn’t anything I could do. An eerie calm settled over me as the water swirled around me. The sounds of the battle disappeared and darkness overwhelmed every other sensation. The rumble of the next wave passed over me as I held onto life as long as I could. A third wave passed over me and I exhaled the last bit of air I would ever taste. The
whoosh
of the water and the sound of my heart faltering were the last things I heard as death gripped me.

>>>><<<<

Every muscle in my body ached. I felt frozen to my core. Darkness surrounded me and I felt like I was floating, permanently suspended in this cold, light-less place. Every so often a blurry face would break the darkness but I could never quite make out who the face belonged to. I had no concept of time, but somewhere in the back of my mind I knew time was passing me by.

Slowly, my body stopped aching and the bone-cold chill subsided. The darkness began to lighten and I began to feel restless, trapped in my own body. I heard the muffled sounds of voices and wondered if I’d finally found my place in the afterlife. I hoped; I didn’t think I could stand an eternity of darkness.

“Violet, are you awake?” an angelic voice called to me. It was like her voice alone cleared away the cold emptiness engulfing me.

I felt my eyelids flutter open. Deep blue eyes looked down at me with intense focus.

“There you are,” Brett said and smiled.

“Where am I?” I squeaked. My voice cracked through a hoarse and dry throat.

“You’re home,” Brett cooed.

“Home? What… I mean, I’m dead. Why am I here and what are you doing here?”

“You’re not dead,” she said emphatically.

“But how? The ritual?” I asked, trying to clear my throat and swallowing hard.

“We stopped them before they were able to recite the spell three times. We saved you.”

“So I’ll be okay?”

“Yes.” She didn’t offer any more comfort and a small part of me didn’t believe her. She knew something, I could see it in her eyes, there was something important she wasn’t telling me.

“How long have I been out?” I asked.

She moved her eyes up and down and watched me carefully. After a lengthy hesitation she said, “A little over a week.”

“
What! What about my friends… Yosemite! They must be worried sick. Becky’s going to kill me,” I groaned.

“We handled them,” Brett said rather shortly.

“What do you mean… handled?” I eyed her.

“You’re not going to like this.”

“Like what? What did you do to them?” I tried to sit up so I wasn’t looking up at her helplessly but my strength hadn’t returned. Instead I adjusted myself onto my side.

‘They’re fine, I promise. We just had to… alter their minds a bit.” Brett frowned.

“Brett, how could you?”

“Well, if you must know, it was your Aunt who did it. She did it to protect you, I might add.”

“You mean protect the Magical world, not me,” I said and sighed.

“You and the Magical world are one in the same.” Brett gave my shoulder a light touch and I looked up at her. I saw a sadness in the set of her shoulders that made me uncomfortable.

I looked away from her and asked the first thing that came to mind: “What did you alter?”

“You and Annabel still went to Yosemite with them. We couldn’t change everything. But you had to leave early for a project you booked. They think you guys drove separately and then left while they were out hiking.”

Anger filled me and gave me enough energy to sit up. How could they lie so easily?

“You guys think of everything, don’t you?” I seethed.

“That’s right,” Brett said and smiled, completely ignoring the anger radiating off of me.

A glass of water had been left on the nightstand and I reached for it. I needed a moment to try and cool down. The glass felt much heavier than it should have and I held onto it with both hands. I looked around the room. It was the same room Robert had stayed in at the Maxwell’s’ during the wedding. Everything looked the same as it did that day and I took a small comfort in that.

“Where is everyone?” I asked, taking a sip of water.

“They’re downstairs. I came up to check on you. Bethany said you’d wake up today,” Brett replied.

“Is she here?”

“No, I’m sorry. But she sends her best.”

“Oh, right… yeah,” I mumbled, disappointed. ”Can I see Robert?” I put down the glass of water. I was surprised that he wasn’t the one to come check up on me.

Brett looked away from me and dread crept over my skin.

“He’s gone,” Brett said. She wouldn’t look at me but I could see that her eyes were glassy. I felt the sting of my own tears and fought to keep them at bay.

Closing my eyes I willed myself to remember what had happened on the beach but no memories appeared. My heart ached for Robert, for some image of him alive and well that day.

“What do you mean gone?” I asked as a single tear spilled down my cheek.

“I mean gone,” Brett said and grabbed my hand. She looked me in the eyes. “That day on the beach… there was so much chaos. Annabel was trying to save you and… before we knew it…” She took a deep breath to steady herself. “Before we knew it, they all disappeared, including Robert.”

“What do you mean disappeared?”

“One second he was fighting on the beach in front of me and the next they were all gone.”

I felt like I’d been hit with a stun gun. Nothing made sense. How could he just disappear?

“We all ran straight to you,” Brett continued, “but Robert wasn’t with us. He never came.”

“But what does that mean?” I asked.

“Nothing good.” Brett sighed and let go of my hand. “Either he’s been taken prisoner or he’s a traitor.”

“Can’t Aunt Beth see anything?”

“No, she tried. They’re blocking her out.”

“May I?” I asked, reaching out to her.

“If Bethany can’t see where he is, what makes you think you can?” Brett gave me a sideways look.

“I’m not going to try and look forward. I want to see what happened on the beach.”

Brett thought about this a moment, then nodded in consent.

“I’m still really weak, so I’ll need your help,” I said. “Try to focus on that day at the beach, just before he disappeared.”

“Okay,” Brett replied. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh.

I put my hand on top of hers and let the Magic build inside me. Then I released it.

The room swirled around me and we dropped onto the beach. Brett was with me this time; that was new.

The beach was in complete chaos. A wall of fire surged toward Robert and Brett but he blocked it. I looked beneath the pier and saw myself struggling to survive. Lightning erupted from Brett’s outstretched arms and Annabel ran across the sand toward me. Lila and Ian focused their energy on Robert. Green and yellow light assaulted his shield with such force it knocked him unconscious to the ground.

“We have to get him out of here,” Lila yelled.

A few of Ian’s henchmen shimmered and disappeared.

Brett swung her arms open then brought them together as forcefully as she could, sending Ian and Lila flying with hurricane-force winds.

“Are you okay?” she asked and knelt next to Robert.

“I’m fine, get Violet,” Robert ordered.

Brett nodded and ran toward everyone else who had gathered under the pier.

I looked back at Robert. He stood up and dusted sand off of himself.

Lila and Ian approached him and they stared each other down.

“Lila,” Robert said through gritted teeth.

“It’s nice to see you again, Robert,” Lila replied, a wicked smile spread across her face. She reached out to him and before he could make a move they vanished into thin air, just like the rest of Ian’s men.

The beach blurred and Brett and I were back at the Maxwell’s estate.

“
Like I said, Violet, he’s either a traitor or a prisoner. Either way, we have to let him go,” Brett replied.

“We can’t!” I refused to believe what I’d just seen. “He can’t be, he wouldn’t leave me like that. Brett, you can’t believe he’s with them.”

“Then why did it take him so long to reach you when you were taken?” She raised her eyebrows at me.

My mouth opened to defend him, but I had wondered the same thing that day. Robert could feel everything I did. He must have known something was terribly wrong when Ian got to the house, so why didn’t he come for me?

“Did he or did he not put a binding spell on you?” Brett asked.

I nodded and whispered back, “He did.”

“He played us. He led them right to you.” Brett shook her head.

“Brett, there has to be some sort of explanation. You can’t believe Robert would do that.”

“You saw him with your own eyes. He left with them without a fight,” she snapped.

“I’m not giving up on him.” I flipped the comforter back and got out of bed with a new-found strength. I wouldn’t believe he was a traitor. I knew Robert; he was a part of me and my heart felt certain there was no way he would sell me out to the enemy. There had to be another explanation for what happened.

I had to find him and get the truth, no matter what the cost.

Dear Reader,

I hope you enjoyed
Soothsayer
.  I have been with these characters for many years now and it’s such a privilege to share them with you.  I’m sure you’re wondering what happened to Robert and when the next book will be out, right?  You’re in luck,
Avalon
will be out this summer 2015.  For up to date details and launch dates follow the link below and sign up for exclusives and deals on my upcoming books!

http://www.allisonsipe.com/#!subscribe/c1fig

I love to hear from my fans, so please feel free to email me any questions or just drop me a line and say hello on my website,
http://www.allisonsipe.com/
  And again, thank you for taking this journey with Violet and Robert!

Finally, I need to ask you a favor.  If you enjoyed
Soothsayer
, please leave a review on Amazon or share the book with a friend.  With your support, we can share
Soothsayer
with the world!

Until Next Time,

Allison Sipe