Synchronicity (Scintillate Series Book 3)

by Karen Tjebben

  Gabriella looked at her horses one last time. She loved those beasts. They’d taken the place of children for her. She’d nurtured them as foals and met their every need. She knew her hired hands would take care of them while she and Li were gone, but she’d still worry. A mother always does.

  Part of her worried about what would happen to them if she never returned. She’d accounted for that in her will, but still. Her kind typically disappeared from this world without any trace, and that could pose a problem for the beneficiaries of her estate. She decided to have faith that everything would go well and she would return to them. “Shall we go?” Gabriella asked.

  “Yes,” Justin said. “You lead the way.”

  Gabriella led the group out of the barn and headed across the field. The sun had cleared the horizon, leaving the blue sky tinged with oranges and yellows. A cool breeze blew over their bodies as they strode towards the woods.

  Nick stepped beside Gabriella. “Do you need a portal to cross over?”

  She smirked. “You insult me,” she said with a laugh. “Do you need a portal?” She raised her eyebrows and gave him a cocky smile.

  “Apologies,” Nick said. “Not everyone learns. I didn’t want to assume and make anyone uncomfortable.”

  She smiled. “Of course. I only tease. We’ll cross over in the woods to ensure no one sees us. I have workers that will arrive shortly. We wouldn’t want to alarm any of them. If we disappeared before their eyes, men in black may come after us.” She laughed and looked over her shoulder. Justin trailed behind with Li. “So what is his story?”

  “Justin?” Nick asked. He let out a low chuckle. “He is a good man.”

  “That much is obvious,” Gabriella said. “Tell me what I need to know.”

  Nick wasn’t even sure what that was. He had no insight into what women deemed necessary to know. It seemed to him that any information concerning a potential lover should be considered necessary. At least, that’s the point of view he took when he was trailing a target. Any and all information was vital. He never turned down information because an insignificant detail could offer insight into the target’s character or thought process.

  “He’s single,” Nick said.

  “Your terrible at this,” Gabriella teased and rolled her eyes.

  Nick snorted. “I guess so. Forgive me. I haven’t spent much time assessing Justin’s potential as a… companion.” He looked sideways at her and noticed her smile. “I trust him with my life,” Nick stated.

  “Now there.” Gabriella turned and faced him. “That is a defining quality. Trust. Without trust there is nothing.”

  “Agreed,” Nick said. “And what of you? Should I trust you?”

  “You already have,” Gabriella replied. “I’m taking you on a journey to see a powerful Nephilim on the other side.” She scanned their surroundings and looked into Nick’s eyes. “If you didn’t trust me, you wouldn’t be here.”

  “No,” Nick replied. “You wouldn’t be here.”

  Gabriella smiled. She liked Nick. He was forward and politely honest. “True,” she nodded.

  The trees grew dense and prevented the sunlight from brightening the area. Pine needles and discarded leaves lay scattered across the forest floor. Birds sang and flew from branch to branch as they clomped through the woods.

  Justin had always loved the smell of the forest. It reminded him of home, yet this was a bittersweet memory. The smell of the earth beneath his feet and the various scents given off by the plants always reminded him of what he’d lost. He’d thought the world was his, but when he began his transformation, everything was dashed to pieces. Now it was his responsibility to prevent others’ lives from being destroyed. Helping Nick, saving Hayden, those were noble acts. He’d do anything to save Hayden and prevent Nick from continuing in the pain that he’d drowned in for so long. And as Justin looked at Gabriella, he hoped that his years of drowning in loneliness were over too.

  “This should be far enough,” Gabriella said, facing the group. “Ready?”

  The men grunted in affirmation.

  “So be it,” Gabriella said.

  Justin watched Gabriella move forward and disappear. Then Nick and Li disappeared. Justin searched the air for the shimmery beads and stepped through. As he crossed into the other side, he was amazed at what he saw. The girth of the trees was massive. The trunks were wide enough to drive a car through. The trees stretched high into the sky and blocked out much of the sunlight, leaving only little beams dancing along the forest floor. The songs of birds chorused through the air and mixed with the chattering of other animals.

  “It’s beautiful,” Justin said.

  “It is,” Gabriella replied. She took a nice long look at Justin. She could get used to looking at him. “I love the beauty of this dimension. Nothing can compare.”

  “Do you come here often?” Nick asked. He’d wondered how she knew about Daevas’s mountain home.

  “No,” she said. “Li gets antsy whenever I come over here.” She smiled. “The way he follows me around, you’d think he wants to stay with me forever. If he were smart, he’d let a little danger into my life so he could free himself from his responsibility.”

  “True,” Li said. “But what if I failed? What if the danger lurked too close and I couldn’t save you? I couldn’t live with myself. There is too much to be wary of.”

  Nick knew the feeling. He didn’t like trusting blindly in new people, but he was at a loss. He didn’t have much of a choice right now. He could trust Gabriella and Li and take their help, or he could walk away without gleaning any helpful knowledge. Hayden had suffered long enough. He didn’t want her to suffer any longer because he was unable to trust.

  “Have you ever met Daevas?” Nick asked.

  Nick noticed Li’s eyes on Gabriella. She looked at Nick. “Me?” She clutched her chest. “No, but I know the name. Many from these parts do.”

  “What about you, Li?” Nick asked. “Do you know Daevas?”

  Li shook his head. “No. We have not met, but I will rejoice when he can no longer hurt the innocent of our world. You will see him to justice. Will you not?”

  “I need to question him,” Nick said. “Then I’ll kill him.”

  “Ah, ever the Avenger.” Gabriella cooed as her boots crunched over twigs and leaves. “It must be nice to always know exactly what is required of you.” Avengers faced down evil without any remorse. She’d always respected them. They tirelessly sacrificed for the benefit of others while they jeopardized themselves. It was hard to not respect that. “And what of you, Justin? What is your role in this?” She glanced over her shoulder to get another glimpse of Justin. He intrigued her. She saw a strength in him that was different from Nick’s”

  Justin hadn’t really considered what his role was. He always went where he was needed. That was his role − support. It was his job to look for flaws, potential problems, and correct them before they became an issue, but he knew Nick certainly wouldn’t need his support when it came to fighting. “Nick’s emotionally involved. I’m here to keep him focused,” Justin said. He caught Nick’s smirk at his words.

  “Hmm,” Gabriella eyed Justin with delight. “That makes you the brains.”

  Nick laughed out loud and shot Justin a look of congratulations. He thought it was time for Justin to have a woman in his life, and Gabriella seemed to be applying for the part.

  Justin smiled. He liked Gabriella flirting with him. “Someone has to keep Nick in line,” Justin said. “I make sure he keeps his head in the game.”

  Gabriella laughed softly. “Li knows all about keeping someone in line.”

  “Yes,” Li said, his eyes glancing from Gabriella to Justin. “I do my best, but she does keep me on my toes.”

  “Shall we pick up the pace,” Nick asked. He didn’t see any reason why they should walk when they could run. They had places to be.

  “Of course,” Gabriella replied.

  They started to run. The forest flew past them
as their feet pounded on the ground. It was awkward running with so many bags. It slowed them down, but it couldn’t be helped. They couldn’t attack Daevas’s house without weapons, so that meant they were weighed down by their supplies.

  They jogged out of the forest and into a clearing. Tall grasses waved in the wind, and the breeze carried the fragrance of the flowers that grew scattered in bunches throughout the clearing. The pops of color reminded Gabriella of the time she watched the Rood children hunt for Easter eggs. She’d longed to snatch one of those colorful eggs, peel the shell, and see if the color had bled through to the white, but she never did that. She didn’t participate. She only watched and dreamt of freedom.

  “There’s a lake ahead,” Gabriella said. “We can stop and get a drink.” She pointed in the distance to a large lake that shimmered at the base of the mountains. The mountains rose high with splotches of green trailing up the sides. Gabriella had never trekked those trails, but she looked forward to doing so soon.

  “Sounds good,” Justin said. He slowed his pace to match Gabriella.

  They soon came to the lake. The still water perfectly reflected the trees and mountains that hugged its borders. The mirror effect made the beautiful spot seem magical.

  “This is usually as far as we go,” Li said. “The water’s refreshing, and if we bring the horses over, they can feed on the grasses.”

  Nick knelt by the water and skimmed his fingers along the surface, enjoying the coolness against his skin. He took some water in his palm and brought it to his nose and sniffed. It didn’t smell foul. He looked up and saw Gabriella staring at him.

  “I forgot how paranoid Avengers are,” Gabriella said with a chuckle. In some ways she enjoyed Nick’s presence even more than Justin’s. Avengers were fascinating, and Asteri like her seldom had a chance to observe them. “I guess it comes with the territory.” She smiled and took a small sack from her backpack. “I have some snacks. You’re welcome to share, unless you think it’s a trap,” she teased. Gabriella grabbed another sack from her pack and held it close to her chest.

  Justin chuckled at Nick’s caution as he knelt beside the water. “I’m happy to share,” Justin said, looking over his shoulder at Gabriella. Then he took a thin blanket from his bag. “We can sit on this.”

  The blanket snapped in the air as Justin tossed it open. Then he knelt on the grass as he spread it across the ground under the shade of some trees. The fresh scents that floated in the air filled his head. Nothing smelled quite as pure and relaxing as nature. Man could try and reproduce it in perfumes and such, but the fabricated scent always fell short.

  Nick grabbed his blanket and spread it out near Justin’s. He settled himself on the blanket. He used one arm for a pillow and looked into the sky. Puffy clouds streaked with orange danced slowly across the blue stage. An occasional bird swooped in for a solo, but the billowing clouds stole the show. He thought of his time with Hayden. They’d revel in the beauty of nature and make love under the glorious sky, a sky that looked so much like the sky above him. He’d missed her touch, her kiss, her support. She was his everything. She kept him grounded. Kept him from losing himself to the desire to kill that pulsed through his Asteri veins. When he’d met Kate, he grasped at the chance to love again, to feel complete, but Kate wasn’t his and he wasn’t hers. Soon he would be complete. Soon he would hold Hayden in his arms again and heal her with his love.

  Gabriella sat by Justin. She crossed her legs and nestled a cloth sack on the blanket in front of her. She pulled apart the drawstrings and carefully lifted out some napkins, plastic forks, and knives. Then she opened the other bundle and pulled out grapes, crackers, and a small container of cheese slices. “I love this cheese,” she said casually, topping a cracker with a thin, square piece. “It has a nice sharp bite to it. Please, help yourself.” She motioned to the food laid out before her.

  Justin grabbed a cracker and a piece of cheese. “Thanks,” he said. He’d noticed her sack earlier. Unlike everything else around Gabriella, it was old and worn. She seemed to ooze money and fine things, but this sack was anything but fine. The fabric was thin, worn, and yellowed with age.

  “This is a beautiful spot,” Justin said, looking at the lake. “Does the lake have a name?” He took a polite-sized bite from his cheese topped cracker.

  Gabriella noticed him staring at her sack. She knew it didn’t belong with the fine things that she now owned, but it was priceless to her. That was why she kept it close. She never went anywhere without it. She knew they’d understand. That was something all of them had in common, a love for the past. The past may be gone, but each one of them tried their best not to forget the ones they loved in the past.

  Li noticed Gabriella fiddling with the drawstrings on her bag. She was caught up in the past and probably didn’t even process Justin’s question, so Li spoke up, “It’s called Jewel Lake. From the right angle, when light hits it correctly, the surface appears to be covered with brightly colored jewels.”

  “A perfect name then,” Nick said. He broke off a bundle of grapes and reclined on his blanket. “How much farther until we reach Daevas’s house?”

  Li looked up the mountainside. “Do you see that flat ridge where the trees grow before the mountain shoots sharply upward?”

  “Yes,” Nick and Justin replied in unison.

  “Daevas’s mountain home is within that clutch of trees,” Li said. “It overlooks the valley on the other side of the mountain.”

  “Is there a path? Justin asked.

  Gabriella nodded. “Yes, I’ve heard that there is a path that snakes up the mountainside. Daevas has ensured that his guests can visit him.”

  Li added, “Blood will be spilt before we even have eyes on Daevas.” Li looked at Nick. “I assume you don’t have a problem with that.”

  “You assume right,” Nick said. “If they are an ally to Daevas, then they are my enemy.” Anyone siding with a Nephilim that destroyed innocence and life deserved to die too. Daevas had nearly killed Alex when he covered him in fire powder poison. Nick knew that Daevas hunted Asteri, and his kind tormented humans by promoting war in their world. No, Nick wouldn’t feel bad about killing him or any of his underlings. It was the right thing to do.

  Gabriella picked up another cheese slice and laid it on a cracker. “Have you given any thought to how you will overpower Daevas?” she asked. “He wears the ring.”

  Nick inhaled slowly. “Vires poses a difficult problem. We will have to get Daevas to take it off.”

  Gabriella tilted her head back and laughed. “Good luck with that,” she exclaimed. “I hope your plan is better than that, or Li will surely die attempting to save me.” She looked at Li. “Do you have a problem with that?” she asked, an eyebrow quirked up.

  Li shook his head and sunk his teeth into an apple.

  Gabriella nodded and gazed at the mountain. “We have a long hike up the mountainside.” Excitement mixed with concern ran through her veins. She wanted to see what Daevas’s house looked like. How did a ruler of the underworld live?

  Justin popped the last cracker into his mouth and started cleaning up. He smoothed out the Gabriella’s old, cloth sack. Stitching formed words and crude hearts and flowers on the sack. As he read the words, he understood their importance. The bag’s importance.

  Ella

  Keep this sack with you

  You will never be far from me

  My love is in every stitch

  Be a good girl

  You will do fine

  Love you forever

  Momma

  Gabriella looked into Justin’s eyes and saw the recognition. She could tell that he was familiar with this custom. “When I turned twelve, Mr. Rood had no need of me,” Gabriella began. “They already had too many house slaves, so I was to be sold. My momma knew that day would eventually come, and she’d sown this bag for me.” She paused and cradled the bag in her lap. She refused to cry in front of them. She took a deep breath to reign in her emotions. “
Imagine, back then I could put all my possessions in this small sack, yet none of them were worth more than the sack that carried them.” She traced the lettering on the sack.

  Justin nodded and looked into Gabriella’s moistened eyes. “To be loved is the greatest gift any parent can give their child,” he said. He’d been loved. He’d lived a wonderful life of privilege, even after his parents’ untimely deaths. “She made certain you knew that you were loved, even in the face of horrific circumstances.”

  Gabriella sighed and ran her fingers over the worn fabric. “There are bags like this on display in some of the plantations in the South. They keep them in special displays in temperature controlled rooms in order to preserve the fabric. I usually keep this in my bedroom in a protective display, but I had to bring it. If I’m to die, I will die near my momma.”

  “What of your father?” Justin asked.

  “My father…” Gabriella’s laugh had a bitter edge to it. “He’s the one that sold me. Since I was his daughter, I served no benefit to Mr. Rood. Mrs. Rood could tolerate many of his vices, but incest was not one of them. Besides, Mrs. Rood could not stand my presence. She certainly didn’t want me around reminding her daily of her husband’s indiscretions.” Gabriella gently ran her finger over the faded words. “That is the problem with being powerless, you live at the mercy of others, and they seldom offer mercy.”

  “Yes,” Justin said, “mercy is a rare commodity for those in need of it the most.” He wasn’t sure what else to say. No words were appropriate. He reached out and placed his hand on Gabriella’s. “I’m sorry for the pain you suffered. It was wrong.”

  “Yes, it was wrong,” she said. “Thankfully my mother’s relationship,” she snorted, “with Mr. Rood did work to my benefit. I was sold to a good family. They treated me kindly. Although, at times, I feel as if I’m held hostage by Li.” Justin noticed her cheeks rise with her smile. “He follows me relentlessly,” she teased and put the snack containers into the sack.