by Simone Pond
Beyond Sight
Coastview Prophecies Book 2
An Urban Fantasy Novel
by Simone Pond
Ktown Waters Publishing
Copyright © 2016 Simone Pond
All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Ktown Waters Publishing, Los Angeles, CA.
ISBN-13:
ISBN-10:
Cover Design: Clarissa Yeo, Yocla Designs
Editing: Peter Stier Jr., Emily Nemchick, Kat Deloian
Formatting: Polgarus Studio
For more information about Simone Pond, visit: simonepond.com
Table of Contents
Chapter One - Sibyl
Chapter Two - Vago
Chapter Three - Sibyl
Chapter Four - Sibyl
Chapter Five - Vago
Chapter Six - Sibyl
Chapter Seven - Sibyl
Chapter Eight - Vago
Chapter Nine - Sibyl
Chapter Ten - Vago
Chapter Eleven - Sibyl
Chapter Twelve - Sibyl
Chapter Thirteen - Vago
Chapter Fourteen - Vago
Chapter Fifteen - Sibyl
Chapter Sixteen - Sibyl
Chapter Seventeen - Vago
Chapter Eighteen - Sibyl
Chapter Nineteen - Sibyl
Chapter Twenty - Vago
Chapter Twenty-one - Vago
Chapter Twenty-two - Sibyl
Chapter Twenty-three - Sibyl
Chapter Twenty-four - Vago
Chapter Twenty-five - Vago
Chapter Twenty-six - Sibyl
Chapter Twenty-seven - Sibyl
Chapter Twenty-eight - Vago
Chapter Twenty-nine - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty-one - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty-two - Vago
Chapter Thirty-three - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty-four - Vago
Chapter Thirty-five - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty-six - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty-seven - Vago
Chapter Thirty-eight - Sibyl
Chapter Thirty-nine - Sibyl
Author’s Note
Chapter One
Sibyl
I stretched out on the blanket next to Eli; the seaside air carried a crisp and fresh breeze. Nothing would break the serenity of the moment. Except for the recurring memory of that horrific day. I immediately shoved the thought out of my head and brushed my fingers over Eli’s, making the decision to enjoy our last day together before his classes at the university started. My toes and fingers twitched. I couldn’t relax. The beast was still out there. But what could I do? The blind girl who couldn’t even sign up for a single college class.
Eli’s soft snoring droned on just a few feet away. I should’ve been soaking in the sun and enjoying our time together, but my heart was heavy. How was I supposed to stop this beast when I could barely understand how to use my powers? The visions were so precise, yet so obscure. They’d show me what was going to happen, but be vague enough that something got lost in translation. Kind of like knowing the apocalypse was for sure coming, but not knowing which day.
My limbs tensed up, locking my entire body into a cast. The prickling in my cells started up my spine. Behind my sunglasses, my eyes began to flutter. And here it was—breaking the serenity of the moment—one of my visions. There was no fighting it off, stopping it, or ignoring it. I was a prisoner locked in the cell of my mind, forced to take in the lucid chunks of data, and then somehow make sense of it. Though Eli and Vago called it a gift, deep down it felt more like a burden. Especially when the piercing fire would begin shooting through my frontal lobe …
In the distance, the water shimmered like liquid diamonds against the clear blue sky. I stared at the glistening, elevating horizon, speechless. A tidal wave in the making. It grew and grew, eclipsing the sky as it roared toward the shore. I stood frozen as the water crashed hard around me. Ripples of black oil pooled at my feet. The water curdled and bubbled, and from its depths ascended a scaly-skinned, crimson-eyed beast with wings of fire. The same ungodly demon I had seen that horrific day at city hall.
The wind howled and clouds moved overhead, shrouding everything in darkness. The demon hovered above the ocean, flapping his enormous wings of fire. “This is my territory. And my reign will reach to the sea and beyond …” His voice screeched across the sky and from his belly, a smaller creature manifested. It had yellow eyes and jagged points along its skin. The larger demon blew forth a blast of fire into the creature, giving it life, then flapped his wings of fire and disappeared into the pewter clouds. The smaller lizard demon hovered above my head, piercing my ears with its shrill squawking.
I came out of the vision with Eli shaking my arm. Everything had returned to its typical landscape of blackness. Except for Eli. His pale blue eyes were bugging out.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Just a vision,” I muttered.
“What’d you see?”
I wrapped a sweater around my shoulders, unable to get the chill off my body.
“That demon I saw after city hall. The one with the wings of fire. He’s sending some fresh new evil to Coastview, I think. I really need to talk to Vago and see if he got the same vision.”
Eli handed me some water, and I took a few sips to settle myself. But I knew my attempts were futile. I wouldn’t be calm until I knew what was coming. I retold the vision to Eli, explicitly outlining the details because they’re important. But more than anything, I needed to talk to Vago to see what he saw. I expected my chocolate brown lab to come romping up through the sand on all fours in frantic determination to find me. But he had been pre-occupied with his search for the Holy Rock. He’d spent the last couple weeks combing through the woods on Eli’s property, in both human and dog form. It’s a lot of land to cover, and Vago is quite the determined dog shifter.
My watch dinged, alerting me to a text. I played it back, not caring if Eli heard it. I had nothing to hide from him. In our short time together, we had bonded. Saving your town from a potential blood sacrifice can do that for a relationship.
The text was from Marlo, who was supposed to be back east starting her sophomore year at MIT. After that night at the shack with “the fellas,” she decided to stay closer to home. We still hadn’t discussed the details of that hellish night, but we would.
Hey, Sibyl. Wondering if you could stop by after the beach?
Sure. Be by in about twenty.
“You think she’ll ask you about it?” Eli asked.
“No doubt.”
“What are you going to tell her?”
“The truth. It’s a lot easier than remembering a bunch of details.” I leaned over and kissed Eli’s cheek.
He grabbed my waist and yanked me on top of him, pulling us back onto the blanket. Our bodies melded together as we kissed. His mouth devoured mine as his tongue flicked over my lips. The air became electric and vibrant, trembling with energy. Too much energy. Like enough to call down lightning—a bolt smashed into the sand just twenty feet away.
I pulled back, laughing. “You really need to figure out how to separate your emotions from the lightning. You’re liable to fry us!”
Eli kissed my forehead. “I’m working on it. So many books in my grandma’s library. I’ve hardly made a dent.”
A cold blast of air swept in from the ocean, reminding me of the vision. Chills raked down my neck. Peaceful moments like this would soon become a scarcity.
“We better go. Marlo needs me,” I said, standing up.
We shook the sand off the blanket and gathered up our shoes and bags. As
we headed back toward the steps to Eli’s property, the grains of sand wrapped around my ankles as if wanting to hold me a prisoner of the seaside.
Eli glanced back at me. “You think I can juggle all of this supernatural stuff with my pre-med classes, and my job?”
I trudged toward him, smiling. “You’re gonna do great.”
“What makes you so sure?” he asked.
“You’re Eli Townsend, lightning conjurer and healer. It’s me I’m worried about.”
“I could say the same for you, Sibyl Forsyth.”
“Um, I can’t call down lightning from the sky. I can only see spirits and demons. And be forced to watch random, cryptic visions automatically downloaded into my mind,” I said.
“And … you’ve got one helluva arm.”
He was right about that, but my ability to wing heavy objects with perfect aim was nothing compared to the powers Eli and Vago were blessed with. I nodded, pretending my lack of supernatural awesomeness didn’t bug me. No need to ruin the tail end of our lovely day.
“Watch out, demons, or I’ll hit you with my fast ball,” I joked.
Though we laughed, the underlying and nagging truth clawed at my insides. Something radically evil was coming to Coastview.
Chapter Two
Vago
While Sibyl and Eli were enjoying the last days of summer, my first priority as a Guardian of the Rock was to actually find the thing. But weeks had passed and nada. It made zero sense that Esther—being a meticulous scribe and keeper of historical documents—wouldn’t have noted its location. Probably had something to do with “keeping the balance.” Or some other supernatural law I didn’t fully understand yet. Her wisdom was sage, but way too vague. She hadn’t visited since city hall, and I was on my own as I searched—in human and dog form—through acres of the Townsend property, looking for the Holy Rock. Every day I started with high hopes, but I never came across any massive rocks, holy or otherwise.
I passed by a giant pine I had marked with a yellow, duct taped “X” on one of my previous searches, when a loud snap of a branch cracked behind me. A rush of footsteps crunching over dry leaves echoed off the trees. I whipped around to see a pair of chocolate brown labs racing in my direction. Finally, some of my pack members here to assist in this never-ending hunt for the rock. But something wasn’t right. Their eyes. These dogs leered at me through burning red crimson orbs. My pack members had pale blue eyes.
“This can’t be good,” I said to no one.
Before they got too close, I tore off my t-shirt and shorts and quickly shifted into my dog form. My shift speed was improving with each turn. I lifted my snout to the trees and released a howl that carried through the woods, calling for my pack. I didn’t know what they did in their leisure time, so who knew if they’d show up. One of the mangy dogs lunged at me, baring his incisors, ready to bite down on my neck. I darted to the right and whipped around the trees, barking. I needed to stop running. Fear would only fuel their confidence. To win this battle, I needed to resume the alpha role, and fast.
I stopped, flipped around, and faced the two brown dogs as they made their approach. I locked my stance. My growl roared, causing them to halt in their tracks. They had me outnumbered, but they weren’t stupid enough to attack an alpha. Not one in an aggressive posture. Adrenaline raced up and down my spine. My muscles flared with heat. I was ready to devour these creatures. But as we stared each other down, I felt a faint connection to these two dogs. What was it?
The moment passed, leaving behind a foul, metallic taste in my mouth. Their fetid stench permeated the air. These dogs reeked of death. And something else. Something evil. Yet, why the faint connection I had briefly felt? Were these some of the dog shifters that had been captured and turned evil?
They skulked forward one inch at a time, sniffing the air and snarling. Low gurgling growls hummed in the air. They were waiting for a moment of weakness to pounce. My heart started beating faster; my human fear creeping into my consciousness. I made the mistake of blinking. They lunged at me. But I lowered my head in time. One missed my neck and flipped over my backside. The other one came at me from the side, knocking me down into the dirt. We rolled around, growling and trying to grab hold of one another with our teeth, but we were moving too fast. Pain shot up through my back leg as the other dog came down hard. He yanked at my leg, while the other one fought to clasp my neck. I couldn’t die out here by the mouths of these evil dog shifters. I released a howl so loud the dog on top of me winced, giving me a split second to sink my teeth into his shoulder. He whelped and rolled back just enough for me to spring up. I ran off with the other one still attached to my left leg. I gained enough momentum to fling his body against a tree, where he dropped. I panted, wondering if I should run, or continue fighting. Both dogs stood up and paced toward me, and then stopped.
Howls rippled from the trees. My pack was coming. The two dogs sniffed the air, growled at me, then took off into the forest.
Woof! Woof!
The pack rushed in from the dense forest and surrounded me, sniffing my coat and checking for wounds. Fortunately no broken skin. Only soreness and some serious adrenaline dizziness. The pack leader howled to the others as a warning. This was only the beginning. More of these evil dog shifters would be coming.
Chapter Three
Sibyl
Woof! Woof!
Vago’s bark came from down on the beach.
I stopped on the stairs and glanced out into the blackness. His blue spirit twinkled like sapphires as he galloped toward the steps. At the bottom, he decided to shift into his human form. I turned away. He really needed to stop shifting back without some spare clothes in proximity. I could see Vago—all of him—the same way I could see Eli.
“Vago!” I yelled.
“Toss me a towel or something,” he shouted up to us.
Eli threw down a towel.
Darting up the steps, he panted, “Did you get the vision?”
“Yeah. Not pretty,” I said.
“What the hell was that? It looked like that thing gave birth or something.” Vago scrunched his brows, brushing back his shaggy brown hair with his fingers.
“Whatever is was, it’s clear that more evil is coming to Coastview,” I said. His shoulder was red and starting to bruise. “What happened there?”
“That’s the other thing,” Vago said. “While I was out looking for the Holy Rock, I ran into a couple of dog shifters. Real assholes.”
“What do you mean?” Eli asked.
“They were evil, dude,” Vago said.
“Like the ones Esther wrote about in her journals? The ones that were captured and turned evil,” I asked.
“That’s my guess,” Vago said.
A new vision. Evil dog shifters. What else? I was still catching my footing from Chief Pike’s thwarted blood sacrifice at city hall. I took in a deep breath. “Looks like we’ll just keep reading Esther’s books until we figure it out.”
Vago ran his fingers through his hair again, more intensely. “Aw, man. My classes start tomorrow. Shitty timing.”
Even my guide dog was taking college courses.
“I don’t think the supernatural realm wears a watch,” I teased.
He didn’t laugh.
“Don’t worry,” I said. “While you guys are in class, I’ll keep digging through the books.”
Eli patted my shoulder. “That’ll be a huge help.”
I forced a smile, but it came out more like a pained wince. Or maybe a look of constipation. I worked hard to shove my insecurities deep down into my lockbox. Vulnerability was an open door for the evil Spirit Handlers, and I couldn’t afford to show any signs of weakness.
Vago’s eyes lit up again. “Yeah, you’re right. It’ll be fine. We handled the city hall thing. And we didn’t have a clue.”
I laughed, trying to sound casual, but it came off a little sales-pitchy. “We had some clue. The vision. My being able to see the evil spirits …”
; Vago nodded, then bumped Eli’s shoulder all bro like. “So you picking me up at eight tomorrow?”
“Sure thing.”
“What about me?” Ugh. That came out way too whiny. I wanted to melt into the stairs. Or have a giant wave rush over me and carry me out to sea.
“Oh, yeah. Why don’t you come to hang out on campus while we’re in class? It’ll be cool,” Vago said.
Eli glanced at me carefully, perhaps catching onto a shift in my mood. “Yeah, it’ll be nice. I can come see you during breaks. You can read my grandma’s books at the campus library or coffee shop. It’ll be fun.” His smile was hard to resist.
“Fun,” I mumbled.
Eli kissed my cheek. “Think of it as college without the drama and pressure.”
Vago cocked his head and gave me a crooked grin. “Beats hanging out alone all day now that Aunt Ruthie’s working for the historical society.”
I lifted my hands in surrender. “Okay. Sold. But just promise you’ll shift inside the house and put on clothes before you get into Eli’s car. I’m really glad you can shift whenever you want, but I don’t need to see all of this.” I motioned to his midsection and below.
Vago shrugged. “Shouldn’t be a problem.”
My watch dinged again. Another text from Marlo.
Where are you?
“I’ve gotta go to Marlo’s. Can you shift and walk me over there?”
“Sure,” he said, dropping his towel.
I looked away, shaking my head. “Then we need to get home. Aunt Ruthie already texted twice about dinner. Can’t be late for tonight’s installment of What are you doing with your life, Sibyl Forsyth? starting at six o’clock.”
Eli and I walked ahead while Vago shifted. At the top of the stairs, I gave Eli a quick peck on the cheek. He grabbed me and gave me a much longer and more sensual kiss. One that heated up my legs and made me want to stay with him the rest of the night.
Woof!
“Have to go,” I mumbled into his lips.