by L. E. Waters
“I never saw all that.”
“Art brought Rory in to help him bring messages, and he paid him to befriend William to set him up for the fall.”
It’s all settling in. “He cut Rory’s tongue out so he couldn’t point fingers.”
He nods. “Art kept setting you up, but you always outsmarted Lucas. Art decided he was going to have to do it himself.”
“I never thought it could’ve been him.”
“Well, water under the bridge now. It all was important for you.”
“So, I guess Lucas did get me in the end, then.”
“Yes, he did, but you sure gave him a good fight.” Sea-glass eyes sparkle as he remembers something. “You brought up facilitators before, and I realized I forgot to tell you about another important person.”
“Who?”
“We call them catalysts, or the person who assists you to reach a common objective.”
“Who would that be in my lives?”
“In this last one, it was your da. He made sure you were educated, which was key to you being able to lead, fight, and disguise yourself. It came at great sacrifice to him, but if you had not done that, you would never have been a legend.”
“Was he the old man in the armada life?”
“Right. It was important for you to be safe when you ran away, and he helped you feel like there was someone there for you when you had no one.”
“I don’t see what Adriana catalyzed, though?”
“If you had stayed with your mother, you wouldn’t have had the interaction you had with Cesare or your father. Because you went to live with Adriana and she was your father’s cousin, you were able to get close to them.”
“Malkyn is obvious. Had she not opened her door to the sick, I wouldn’t have had any place to go with Rowan and Oliver.”
“Right, and Nebu was the one who brought you and Bastet together.”
My rocking lulls me into a trance. “I never would’ve realized that soul was responsible for so much.”
“It’s usually hard to see, but it’s extremely important.”
The bay is so still it looks like a painting. “Is it time to go back again?”
“That is all I can think of.” He sits, up getting ready to touch my arm. “The next one is one of your favorites.” He shuts his mouth with a suspicious grin.
“Are you being sarcastic? Usually the first life of the next big lesson is miserable.”
“What do you mean?” He laughs.
“I usually make the biggest mistakes in the beginning lives.”
Zachariah appears to choose his words carefully. “That may be true, but I promise I’m not being sarcastic. This next life is one you hold very dear.”
“That’s a relief. Well, then.” I take a few breaths. “Time to go back down the rabbit hole.”
He gives a reassuring smile, places his hand on mine, and everything goes dark.
Acknowledgements
This book would never have existed without the help of the following people:
Patricia, my mother, for always being there and forever fueling my creativity.
Erin, my sister and writing buddy, the one I listen to for all my writing ideas and problems. (erinwaters.com)
EJ, my husband, for allowing me to go after my dream.
Scott, my son, for all your smiles and hugs.
Annabelle, my baby girl, the newest light of my life,
Edward, my father, for reading my first drafts—and never saying I’m wasting my time.
Jessica, my niece, for being my young-adult guinea pig and one of my fastest readers.
Richard Webb, my amazing history teacher, who wrote on one of my assignments that I would be a writer one day. Your contagious love of history and exuberant encouragement inspired me.
Bethany Yeager, writer & critique partner extraordinaire, my other go-to-girl for everything writing. (beyeager.blogspot.com)
Sylvia, for creating my beautiful updated covers (sfrostcovers.com)
Linda Ingmanson, my thorough and superb editor.
Bethany Beard, my super-quick and excellent copy editor. (lastdraftediting.com)
Guido Henkel, for formatting both my ebook and print book. (guidohenkel.com)
Absolute Write Forum Members & Kindle Boards Forum Members, for tons of writing, publishing, and promoting advice.
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