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  Christ. This has to be more than just simple exhaustion.

  “I’m right here, Ella. I’m not going anywhere,” I assured her as I grabbed her hand.

  I’m sorry. Ella projected instead of spoke as she looked into my eyes with sorrow.

  “As soon as you regain your strength, I’m taking you to the hospital. No arguments,” Delphina scolded, drawing Ella’s attention away from me for a moment. Ella just nodded, unwilling to argue.

  “A good friend of my dad’s is also a doctor and a Soul Seer. Maybe it would help if I contacted him?” I offered, worried about her seeing a normal doctor and definitely concerned about involving my dad. As I watched Delphina contemplate the option, I thought about the possibility of explaining our theory to Dr. Jessen. Would he help us? Could he?

  “Mmkay,” Ella mumbled as she lulled her head to the side and closed her eyes, a slight smile playing on her lips.

  “Okay, what?” Delphina asked, wondering what Ella was mumbling about.

  Dr. Jessen can help us if we just tell him, Ella thought. Her thoughts were crisp and clear even though her body continued to look weak.

  “What do you mean? What are you going to tell him?” her mom asked, concern growing on her face as she stared down at her daughter.

  Ella didn’t respond audibly or in her thoughts. My heart dropped as I sunk to my knees next to the bed.

  Delphina turned to me with a demanding look overtaking her features. “Jonah. Call your doctor friend… and your father. I don’t care what your problem is with him. You get him here, now.”

  Chapter Two

  Standing outside on the porch while I waited for Dr. Jessen and my father to arrive, I was itching to get back inside and check on her. It was borderline painful to keep myself from going back to her side.

  Wearing a path along the wooden planks lining the porch floor, I paced and thought about the possible consequences of telling the good doctor our theory. I really needed to talk to our parents first before revealing such an accusation. Although Dr. Jessen was a good friend of my father’s, it didn’t mean he would keep such an important secret to himself.

  The thought of my father putting us all in this position, and contemplating his reasoning for doing so, began to wear at my resolve. Anger and resentment started to build with every forceful step I took along the creaking wood.

  I was beyond maddened by the time my dad pulled up and frantically climbed out of his tiny BMW. His coat billowed behind him as he briskly crossed the street in my direction, never breaking eye contact with me.

  “Keep your block up,” I commanded quietly as he climbed the few short steps.

  “May I ask why?” he asked with slight annoyance in his tone.

  “Only for a moment while I talk to you, that is. I just need to talk freely with you while Delphina tends to Ella inside.” I stood in front of him, my hands in my pockets, nervous about how this conversation might play out.

  “Surely she can read you, Jonah,” he pointed out, attempting to state the obvious.

  I shook my head. “No. No, she can’t read me. Ever since the episode at the museum, I haven’t been able to read anyone, except for Ella. Ella can also read me, but it seems her mother cannot. I think she can sense I’m blocking her, even though I’m not intentionally doing so.”

  “Is this what you needed to talk about? Your abilities? That is awfully selfish of you at this moment, son!” he scolded, worried I was more concerned about myself than the person he was really here to see… Ella.

  “Fuck, no! You asked a question and I answered you! Don’t you dare think for one minute my thoughts aren’t solely focused on that girl in there!” I yelled, pointing to the front door of the house in pure rage.

  “Watch your tone, Jonah! You seem to have forgotten to whom you are speaking with,” he stated firmly, as if he was ready to count to three and put me in time out.

  “I haven’t forgotten who you are, but I will not stand by quietly while she is in there suffering over something you did!” I emphasized under my breath to avoid yelling like a crazed maniac.

  “Something I did? What are you talking about?” he asked in an even more hushed tone. Oh, he knew all right. It isn’t a surprise he immediately lowered the volume of his voice at the sound of my defiant accusation.

  “You know exactly what I’m talking about. What I want to know is—what’s happening to her?” I begged. I grabbed onto his coat collar and brought my face so close to his, I could feel his breath on my skin. I sensed a rush of emotion bubbling up inside me. It wasn’t sorrow. It wasn’t pain. It was full-on hatred at the fact that someone could have done something to harm her.

  “I need to see her first in order to know what the hell you are babbling about, Jonah,” he deadpanned as he began to turn towards the door.

  Grabbing his jacket with a firm grip, I jerked him back in my direction and forced him to look me straight in the eye. If he was going to lie, he was sure as hell going to look at me while he did.

  “Do you really want me to say it out loud? Is that really what you want? Because I’ll shout it for the whole fucking world to hear. I’ll let everyone know that you trans…” His hand covering my mouth shut me up just before I began to force the words from my tongue.

  “God damn you, Jonah!” he all but whispered. “Fine! I will tell you everything. Inside!”

  Glaring at him to let him know how serious I was about all of this, I jerked myself away and stormed into the house, never fully allowing him out of my sight.

  Once the door was shut and we were securely inside the living room, he began to speak in a very controlled tone that made a shiver tingle my spine.

  “How did you find out?” he asked.

  “Besides the fact that I can feel her heart beat in sync with mine—she had a dream. Not a premonition, but a memory of some kind. My blood burning through her veins as you held her captive,” I explained with a very brief summary of her complicated dream.

  “Your hearts beat together? How do you know this?” he asked with bewilderment and awe.

  “We can feel it. As soon as we touch each other, whether it’s a simple touch or passionate, we can feel that our hearts are beating with the same rhythm. If her pulse increases, so does mine. When I’m next to her, it’s almost as if her blood runs through me. I don’t know how to explain it, but now that I know, I can even feel her heart thrumming from a distance. It’s one of the reasons I knew she was in trouble—and the reason I told Delphina we should call you.”

  “That is not possible, Jonah. It has to just be coincidence,” he mumbled, flicking his hand in the air and beginning his way down the hall, completely dismissing my revelation.

  Another surge of fury overwhelmed my senses and I pushed on his chest with my arm, slamming his back against the wall and holding him there while I got up in his face.

  “Tell me why you did it!” I growled, only a mere inch from his face.

  “To save her,” he admitted, looking at me with sincerity in his eyes. “She was seizing severely from the brain injuries she sustained in the car crash. Delphina was on her way into the operating room when she saw me rushing to her daughter’s side. She grabbed my hand and begged me to save her daughter. And in her barely audible words, I could tell, she knew Ella was special. Del already knew she was one of us.”

  “Then why me? Why not use human blood?” I asked, curious as to why he thought her powers were so important to save.

  “I had my reasons,” he stated matter-of-factly.

  “Then tell me, damn it! I have a right to know!” I seethed. His elusiveness was getting to me big time.

  “Jonah. For one, I was hoping to spare both of you the burden of knowing such a secret. And two, you being this demanding is keeping me from checking on her. Now that you have found out, I will tell you my reasons for doing what I did. But at the moment, I need to get in that room and see what is going on with Orella. So, move out of my way before I have to move you myself,” he ordered,
small drops of spittle hitting my face as he spoke with annoyance.

  “You’re right. You should go to her. But, I beg of you, please no more lies and deceit. The fact that you’ve known her all this time and never told me, allowing me to go through the constant heartache of never knowing she was real, just makes me wonder who my father really is,” I admitted as he began walking down the hall.

  Turning his head in my direction, he just nodded solemnly before continuing to Ella’s room.

  Chapter Three

  Needing a moment to compose myself, I leaned my body against the wall in the foyer and buried my fingers in my hair, nearly pulling out every strand as I attempted to calm my thrumming heart.

  Christ. All this time he knew. He knew the girl with amethyst eyes and pretended as if it was some silly obsession. He actually made me feel like I was a nutcase! How could he stand idly by, knowing exactly why I had constant dreams about some seemingly random girl, and pretended she was just a figment of my lust-filled imagination?

  Okay. I needed to calm myself—not get even more pissed off. Taking a few more deep breaths, I braced my hands on my knees and continued to lean my ass on the wall as if it were the only thing keeping me upright.

  “Jonah!” my father yelled from down the hall.

  Without a second thought, I responded to his stressful bellow and bolted towards Ella’s room. My heavy strides thumped along the hardwood floors and echoed in my ears. It seemed to take forever to reach her and once I did, I was stunned at the sight before me.

  “Jonah, you need to calm yourself! If what you’re saying is true, your blood pressure rising is causing her seizures to accelerate,” he said sternly as Ella’s body jerked violently, her muscles flexing while her limbs thrashed about, tangling herself in the fluffy covers. Her body was pale—a tiny tank top covering her upper body, nearly exposing her in this vulnerable state. The white of her eyes was all I could see as they rolled forcefully to the back of her skull. My dad held a flat piece of plastic in Ella’s mouth with one hand and cradled the back of her neck with his other, tilting her head to the side while Delphina attempted to make sure she didn’t shift towards the edge of the bed.

  “How do I… What do I do? Tell me what to do!” I screeched, desperate to make it better. I needed to make her better if it meant I had to cut out my own heart to do it.

  Delphina was the one who responded with such a calm demeanor, telling me she had gone through this before. Luckily, her docile tone immediately made me relax a little as I attempted to listen to her commands.

  “Jonah, just come over here and lay down next to her,” she instructed as she held out her hand to lead me around the bed. Unsure of how this would help and a bit uncomfortable with being so close to Ella when she seemed so fragile, I slowly eased my way down next to her on the bed as she continued to convulse wildly. “Now, close your eyes and try to read her. Don’t worry about it if you can’t. Just take a few deep breaths and try to see into her soul.”

  Certain I would love nothing more than to see my Ella again, I immediately turned on my side to face her, closed my eyes, and began to suck air in through my nose until my lungs couldn’t inflate anymore. With a shaky whoosh, I exhaled through my mouth and repeated my attempts at breathing.

  Needing to touch her, needing to feel her flesh against mine, I reached over and tried to grasp her flailing hand with my own. As contact was made, I felt marginally better. I could still feel the tense spasms of her muscles, but held onto her and allowed her to tug my hand with every contraction.

  Each twinge her body made pulsed through me like lightning strikes. Convulsions so powerful, I could feel the throb of each shockwave course through my limbs in slow motion.

  The feeling of blood rushing through her veins was stronger than ever. Each gush of warm liquid that pumped through our bodies felt like a fast-paced dance number. I felt the bass of her heart beating along with my own, which now sat like a lump in my throat.

  Breathe, Jonah.

  After several more breathing attempts, I suddenly felt exhausted and sore. My muscles felt like I had just finished the most intense workout of my life, yet I had done nothing more than get in a slight tizzy with my dad.

  Why are you fighting with your dad? Ella projected. The sound of her beautiful thoughts made me smile.

  Keeping my eyes closed, I tried to stay composed—worried stressing her out would make things worse. I pushed my thoughts to her as calmly as I could. I confronted him about us and called him a liar to his face. I was being selfish, only thinking about myself, and I’m sorry.

  Jonah. I’m so tired, she thought. Her mind didn’t sound tired, but I knew exactly what she meant—I felt the same way. My muscles were beyond exhausted. I was so drained at that moment, I doubted if I could even move voluntarily.

  I know you’re tired. I am too. Straining to touch her, I reached my hand up and stroked her hair, which was lying against her cheek. I didn’t have to open my eyes to know exactly where every inch of her was. My mind was hers, as her mind was also a part of me. We didn’t need vision to see one another.

  I’m not tired, like, sleepy tired. My body just hurts so badly. I can’t find the energy to move.

  Then don’t. Just lay here with me for a while. I won’t go anywhere, I promise, I assured her, continuing to rest my hand on the side of her head and lightly, lazily stroking her hair.

  Do you have the strength to cover me up? Please? she pleaded.

  Opening my eyes, I looked over to see she was still partially exposed—a tank and a pair of underwear were the only things covering her body. Hating the fact that she seemed to have little privacy and our first semi-intimate encounter was under these circumstances, I reached over and gently pulled the blanket to cover her chest and arms. Without saying a word, Delphina helped me while proceeding to cover me as well.

  Off in the distance, just inside the doorway of Ella’s room, was Dr. Jessen. He stood, mouth agape, as he tried to understand what had just happened. Hell, even I didn’t know what had happened.

  I tried to speak, but my mouth was full of cotton and my tongue was swollen and sore. I wondered what the hell transpired to cause such a painful reaction in my mouth when my father looked at me with sorrow in his eyes.

  As if he knew what I was asking, he whispered, “As soon as you touched her, you absorbed her seizure. I have never seen anything like it before, Jonah. I was not prepared. You might feel quite a bit of soreness in your body and it is possible you bit your tongue as well. So, do not try to talk for now. Just rest and stay with her. Del and I are going to get you both some water and then talk with Dr. Jessen in the other room so Ella can get some rest.”

  Now I understood why I felt so sore. It was a small price to pay if it meant Ella no longer had to suffer. Truth was, I would go through anything for her.

  I tried to nod, but my head felt like it weighed fifty pounds. Just as my father walked out the door and my heavy eyes began to flutter shut, I looked over at Ella’s now peaceful face and smiled.

  Chapter Four

  My body warmed with the feel of the sun’s rays touching my skin. A fresh, springtime smell overtook my senses and I inhaled through my nose, enjoying the crisp, floral scent. Looking around, I noticed a never-ending field of lavender flowers surrounding me.

  A small hand gently shoved me from behind, catching me by surprise and causing me to stumble a few steps before regaining my balance amongst the thigh-high stalks of lavender. A beautiful giggle left her mouth as I looked back to see who had nearly pushed me over.

  Her purple eyes were even more impressive when surrounded by a huge field of deep lavender blooms. She wore a smile that stretched from ear to ear as she laughed and began to walk away, looking over her shoulder to see if I would follow.

  Well, of course I would follow.

  Trailing behind her, I watched her dainty fingers tenderly float along the top of the blossoms, caressing each one as if they were soft down feathers on a field of baby
ducklings. Her sundress swayed back and forth as she glided through the flowers, causing them to brush past her hips in rhythm with each step she took. Small waves rippled through the blossoms from her gentle touch as she continued to walk further away.

  When she turned to look at me once more, I noticed she carried a small bushel of lavender blooms draped over the crook of her arm. Her smile was infectious and I had no choice but to return a grin, happy to enjoy this lovely view… and I’m not talking about the flowers.

  Continuing to follow the wake of blooms she left behind, I noticed the right strap of her dress slipped from her creamy shoulder and draped lightly along the side of her arm. Quickening my pace slightly, I closed the distance between us and came up behind her. She stopped once she heard me approach, but never turned around.

  Needing to feel her soft skin against my lips, I bent over marginally and pressed a tender kiss on top of her exposed shoulder. As I continued to cover her silky skin with my lips, I trailed my fingertips up her arm and caught the stray strap that still hung lazily against her bicep. Slowly, I put the strap back where it belonged as I made my way towards her neck. I wrapped my arms around her waist and watched as she tilted her head, exposing the long column of tender skin to my impatient caress. I could feel her pulse radiating through my lips like balls of fire. The feeling was so real, so intimate—I knew we could never deny our strong connection to each other.

  Leisurely, she turned in my arms. Dropping her bushel of lavender, she wrapped her hands behind my neck, and gazed into my eyes. Ella looked at me with such amazement, as if she had been waiting for centuries to see my face.

  “Jonah, kiss me,” she pleaded in a soft, compassionate tone, tightening her grip on my neck and pulling my head down to her waiting lips.

  I didn’t need words to respond to her command. Securing my arms around her waist and lifting her slightly, I dove into her like a vulture capturing its prey. Our lips, hot as fire, melded together in a passionate, no-holds-barred kiss. Hungrily searching, I didn’t hesitate to explore her mouth with my tongue. Her taste was like a drug to me, exploding into my mouth and causing me to sigh with pure relief as I got my fix.