Revelations (Blood Bound Book 1)

by L. L. Wright

  “Leo!” Emmie called as she threw open the door, and rushed down the hall.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, almost running into her at the end of the hallway. He gently grabbed her arms and looked into her eyes with deep concern.

  “I’m remembering things, but they're all over the place. I think, I think my mother injected me with something, and I think there were others,” Emmie said, pushing her damp hair out of her face.

  “She was injecting you with something that would make you more demonic, and whatever it was also erased your memories of this place and the angels you had met,” Leo explained.

  “That’s why my memory of Collin outside of school was missing,” Emmie whispered as the full memory of her conversation with Collin fell into place. She felt her stomach turn when her thoughts returned to the person responsible. Why would she do this to me? What is she hiding, and what does she want from me? “Leo, I don’t think it was just a one-time thing. When that memory came back, it was different than the rest. It felt like there were layers to it.”

  “You think she’s injected you before?” Leo asked, his brow creased and he looked deep in thought as his eyes wandered to the blank wall beside them.

  “I think maybe she’s been doing it for years. It would make sense, wouldn't it? That’s why I’m different than other demons. That’s why I didn’t have any powers until a few years ago. Someone made me the way I am.” Emmie sighed as the realization set in. Her mother had spent the last 5 years of her life experimenting on her and editing her memory to cover it up. She felt a sharp pang in her chest and a tear stung her eye before she wiped it away. What other memories has she taken away?

  “We’ll figure this out, Emmie. The Faction has a lot of resources and Collin and I will help you. You’re not in this alone.”

  “Where is Collin?” Emmie asked, suddenly realizing he was gone.

  “He’s waiting for us in the lab. We’ll grab you some food and meet him down there.”

  Emmie nodded and looked around the room she knew she shouldn’t be familiar with. How did my subconscious mind know the layout of his suite? she wondered for the millionth time before she pushed the nagging question out of her mind.

  “I didn’t forget you,” Emmie said. “I lost a few moments, but most of my memories of us are still intact.”

  Leo smiled and sighed, “I could never forget about you either,” he said, taking a step and closing the distance between them. Emmie felt her heart begin to race and she noticed her breaths growing heavier by the second. She looked up into his eyes and everything felt right.

  "I think I was wrong when I said I needed time to sort everything out on my own." Emmie breathed the words as she moved her hand to rest on Leo's chest.

  "Really?" Leo asked. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth and he used one hand to tuck a damp strand behind her ear while the other brushed down her side on its way to her hip.

  "I want to figure out this whole mess with you by my side."

  It happened fast. Faster than humanly possible. Emmie felt Leo's lips crash down into hers like he couldn't survive another second without feeling her mouth and tasting her kiss. His tongue slowly traced her bottom lip before darting between her slightly parted ones. He wrapped one arm around her waist, pulling her soft curves against his solid muscles and Emmie felt her body melt into his touch. Right here, and now, nothing outside this room matters, she thought as Leo moved one of his hands into her hair, wrapping his fingers around her damp curls. She sighed, shivering against his lips.

  Leo pulled back slightly, his gaze was intense and Emmie stared longingly into his sapphire eyes. "You are so beautiful," he whispered, dragging his thumb gently along her cheek and jaw, before leaning in to reclaim her mouth. His hand inched off of her hip, fingers sliding under the hem of her cotton top. Emmie felt her heart flutter at the sensation his cool fingertips left as they trailed up her ribs, and she closed her eyes, leaning into his soft touch.

  Buzz, buzz.

  Buzz, buzz.

  Leo groaned, and turned to look at his phone as it vibrated on the island. He picked it up and swiped the screen, then he huffed and said, "We should get going. Collin is looking for us and he wants us to bring him a turkey sandwich."

  "It’s nine o'clock in the morning. Who eats sandwiches for breakfast?" Emmie asked, scrunching up her nose at the idea of eating lunch this early.

  Leo chuckled as he held the door open for her and they stepped into the hallway.

  "Humans, and you, apparently, are funny about your routines. Specifically, your mealtimes. For us it’s all just food." He smiled.

  "I guess it's all just habit," Emmie shrugged as they stepped into the elevator and a sense of dejavu overcame her.

  "Most things are."

  34

  Leo

  The elevator dinged and the doors slid open when they reached the basement. Leo carried two paper bags of sandwiches and snacks and Emmie held a coffee carrier with four tall coffees in her hand. They walked the short distance down the hall to Collin’s lab and Leo pushed the door open wide so Emmie could step in first. He set the bags on the metal counter and turned to grab the coffee when he saw Emmie scrunch up her face and press her eyes shut.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” she whispered, shaking her head as she opened her eyes and looked up at him. “Just another memory.”

  He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. Then he grabbed a sandwich from the bag and walked toward Collin, who was sitting quietly at his computer. He tossed the sandwich onto the keyboard and leaned against the side of the desk. Collin looked up with wide eyes and took out his earbuds.

  “How long have you been here?” Collin asked, swiveling his chair.

  “Just walked in the door,” Leo answered. He watched Emmie walk around the room. She looked into coolers and ran her hand along the leather chair she had sat in unconscious several times. “Some of her memories are coming back,” he added, turning to face Collin.

  “Hmm,” Collin said, unwrapping his sandwich. “If they’re coming back on their own it’s probably just taking her memory longer to heal than her body. I can run some tests to be sure, but I think she’ll have to wait it out.”

  Leo looked up as Emmie made her way back across the room. She stopped a few feet away with a deep look in her eyes.

  “Em,” he said. She took a deep breath and bit her bottom lip nervously.

  “What if I told you I think I’m remembering someone else's memories too?”

  “What?” Collin said. His eyes were wide when they darted towards Leo.

  “I didn’t know anything about this,” Leo said, answering Collins’s silent question. “Why didn’t you mention this before?” he asked Emmie.

  “I don’t know,” she said, shaking her head.

  “How do you know they aren’t your own memories?” Collin asked, eating another bite of his sandwich.

  “Most of them are mine, but some of them feel different. It’s like I’m looking through my own eyes, but my hair is different and my body is different, and I’ve never been to these places,” Emmie explained. “And there’s something else,” she hesitated. “In one of them, I’m able to see my, or her reflection. I could see everything clearly, except the face was so blurry. It’s like the memories don’t want me to know who they belong to.”

  “Ok,” Collin said slowly. His brow creased, and he stuffed the last bite into his mouth. Then he got up and grabbed the coffee carrier, bringing it back to his desk. “I think we’ll all need these. This is going to take a while to figure out.”

  He turned to Collin. “How could someone transfer their memories into another person? Could it have something to do with the demon blood or the malachite injections?”

  Collin shook his head and swiveled his chair back around. “I can search The Faction archives, but I've never heard of anything like this before.”

  “Emmie,” Leo said. “What else can you tell us?”


  “I don’t know. It’s all really confusing. When she speaks, I hear my own voice. I honestly thought they were just dreams at first,” Emmie said. “But, then I noticed her blonde hair, and when I woke up in Leo's suite I thought I was still trapped in my dreams because that's where I was the whole time. It didn’t make sense, but now that I have these memories coming back to me I can see the similarities. They aren't dreams. They’re memories, and they’re not mine.”

  Leo ran both hands through his hair, and he noticed his usually steady pulse rise, along with his heart rate. This isn’t possible, he told himself. He took a deep breath and turned away from the others. We knew Hailey’s blood was what gave Emmie her angelic side. It’s what balanced out the demon blood and kept her alive and basically human, but sharing memories through blood? How is that even possible?

  “Leo? Did you hear what I said?” Collin asked. His voice sounded miles away.

  Leo pressed his eyes closed and took a deep breath, clearing his face of the heavy emotions he was feeling before he turned around.

  “No, sorry. I zoned out for a minute,” he said. He definitely knows. He’d have to be a complete moron not to. Collin is not a moron, Leo thought as he stared at his best friend, hoping he wasn’t as emotionally inept as he pretended to be.

  “I think I should draw some blood, and take a look at Emmie’s brain waves, just to make sure it doesn't look like there's any damage,” Collin said.

  “What kind of damage? Is that even possible?” Leo asked.

  Collin dropped his face into his palms dramatically. “I don’t know how many more times I can say this, but I’ll give it another try. Emmie is the only one of her kind. I have never studied anyone who has had three types of blood in their body for years, and further, I have never burnt away a third of someone's blood and then replaced it,” he said slowly with wide eyes. “I have no idea which angelic traits she has and doesn’t have and after everything she's been through in the last four weeks she would be lucky to walk away without any lingering effects.”

  “It’s fine,” Emmie said. “Let’s just do the tests. If Collin doesn't find anything wrong at least we’ll have crossed something off the list, and if he does, well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” Emmie smiled and grabbed Leo's hand, squeezing it once before letting it drop as Collin led her to the exam chair where nothing good ever seemed to happen.

  An hour later Collin removed the wires, stickers, and tape from Emmie’s head. He drew three vials of her blood and then she pulled her grey cardigan back up her arm. “Now what?” she asked.

  “Now I run every test I can think of on these,” Collin said, holding up the tubes of blood. “And I wait for my machine to print out your EEG results. You might as well go get some rest. It might seem like you’ve been asleep for weeks, but your conscious mind was active a lot of the time.”

  Leo took Emmie's hand and pulled her to her feet. “I’ll walk you back upstairs,” he said.

  “Uh, actually, I could use your help with a few things,” Collin said. He was already adding samples of Emmie's blood to a tray of small wells.

  “I’ll be fine,” Emmie said with a smile. “I feel like I’ll fall asleep as soon as I lay down anyway.”

  “Ok, I’ll be up soon,” Leo said, kissing her lips softly. He tucked a keycard into her hand and watched as she left the lab. Through the windows, he watched as she stepped into the elevator, and pulled the elastic band out of her hair. She slid it back onto her wrist and ran a hand through her wavy hair as the doors slid shut.

  “Is she gone?” Collin asked. He turned away from the samples, leaning his back against the counter and crossed his arms at his chest. His eyes were wide as he stared across the room.

  Leo threw his head back and pushed his hands into his hair. “What does this mean?” he asked. His mind felt too overwhelmed to think through the possibilities on his own.

  “I have no idea, but if you don’t tell her the truth this isn’t going to end well.”

  “This isn’t going to end well no matter what I do,” Leo said. He pulled out a metal stool and sat down with his back against the wall. “How can she have Hailey’s memories? Could those really transfer through blood?”

  Collin pressed his mouth into a hardline and shook his head. “I have no idea.”

  “When the elders told me she was dead, I didn’t think anything could ever be worse than that. But knowing there’s a horde of demons out there with her blood. Doing who knows what. That’s definitely worse,” Leo said. He took a deep breath and dropped his head to his chest.

  “I’m sorry man. I can’t imagine how hard this is for you,” Collin said. “But you have a second chance with Emmie, and if you don’t tell her what's going on, you’re going to lose her. You can’t keep a secret this big forever, and the longer you try the harder it will be to come clean.”

  Leo sighed. “You’re right. She deserves to know the truth, and she should hear it from me,” he said as he hopped down off the stool and headed for the door. “You didn’t actually need my help did you?”

  “Nah, but you obviously needed mine. Good luck, man.”

  35

  Emmeline

  The card reader on the door flashed green. Emmie pulled out the keycard and opened the door. The main room was bright with late morning sun, and she realized that Collin’s lab and the corridors she had traveled through didn’t have any windows. I forgot it was still morning, she thought, stretching her arms over her head. I really don’t want to sleep away any more of my days. I’ve already missed so much. She walked over to the window and looked down at the street below. Emmie watched as people passed by the high rise building without so much as a second glance, going about their everyday lives. They’re all blissfully unaware that supernatural things like angels and demons exist, right under their noses, she sighed. Lucky them.

  She heard the lock on the door click and then the door swung open and Leo stepped inside.

  “Does Collin have any answers yet?” Emmie asked. She looked over her shoulder without stepping away from the window.

  Leo shook his head and closed the door behind him. “Not yet. He’ll call when he has something,” he said as he moved toward the sofa and sat against the arm.

  Emmie looked back out the window. Back down at the humans passing on the street below. At least I think they’re humans. But how can you really tell? For fifteen years I didn’t know my own mother. Melody was a demon, she must have been. She was injecting me with supernatural blood and erasing my memories and I had no idea. She took a deep breath and pressed her eyes shut against the tears that moistened her eyes and threatened to roll down her cheeks. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do now. I can’t go home, I can’t go back to school. Am I just supposed to disappear? Emmie felt the weight of the questions building in her mind until she couldn’t process anymore. She pushed them away, problems for another day, she told herself as she turned her back on the window.

  “I need to talk to you about something,” Leo said. He rubbed the back of his neck with one hand nervously, and Emmie felt her brow crease as her brain made a connection it had previously overlooked.

  “You know who she is,” Emmie said. The words rushed out on their own.

  Leo stared at her with wide eyes, and for the first time since they met she noticed that he was at a loss for words.

  “I don’t know why I didn’t see it before,” she said, shaking her head. “You were there. In all of the memories. So if they really are memories, you would know who she is.”

  Leo nodded his head silently, and Emmie thought she saw a glint of pain behind his deep blue eyes. The girl Collin mentioned, she thought, Leo’s soulmate. Her mind traveled back to their conversation in the dining hall. To the first memory, she had gotten back earlier that morning. She heard Collin’s voice in her ear. “Angels are created in pairs. Two beings made to complement and complete each other. Soulmates formed at exactly the same moment so as to never live with
out one another.” Emmie felt her skin run cold, and her heart tighten within her chest as she thought about the loss Leo had endured.

  “Collin told me about your loss,” she sighed as she walked toward the sofa. Stopping just in front of where he sat. “Tell me about her.”

  “There’s not much to say,” Leo shrugged, letting out a heavy breath. “She and I were made for each other. It was perfect, and then she was gone. I felt myself shatter into a thousand pieces, and I thought I would stay that way. I thought losing her would kill me, but it didn’t, and I moved on. I learned how to get through the day without her, and then years passed and I thought about her less and less, until she was just a perfect memory, frozen in time in my mind.” Emmie watched his face and noticed how his jaw tightened as he spoke. Then he paused, closing his eyes tightly before pulling them open again and exhaling loudly. “When we met I felt a spark I never expected to feel again. I felt a part of myself come alive again, and I didn’t understand how that was even possible. Truth be told, I didn’t really care, because every moment I spent with you put a piece of me back together until I felt whole again. And then I found out that you had been injected with her blood, and it felt like all of those wounds that had taken so long to heal were ripped back open all at once. Knowing that demons drained her blood so that they could experiment on humans, on you when you were just a child.” He shook his head and stood up, walking over to the kitchen. Emmie watched him pull out a glass and fill it with water. He leaned his back against the island, facing the sink while he drank, then he roughly placed the glass on the counter and turned around.