Natural Selection (17 page)

I couldn’t imagine anything about me
ever being epic, so I changed the subject. “So if you sense
emotions from me, you knew what I was up to all along?”

“
It requires physical
contact with anyone other than your partner. But I don’t need to
sense your emotions to know what you’re up to, Amelia. You’re not
nearly as sneaky as you think you are. If your brother hadn’t been
involved, I probably would have known exactly what was going on. We
got about halfway to Grandma’s before we turned around. About that
time we got a call about you tearing out of here. When we got home,
Xander told us we all need to sit down and discuss this
together.”

I nodded, my mind casting around for
any other questions I had. Put on the spot like this, I couldn’t
think of much. “What exactly can I do? I know how to use plants
like we’ve been working on, and the wind and the rain thing, but
what else can I do?”

“
The ‘wind and the rain
thing’ is nothing to sneeze at, girly. It’s very rare things for a
female gaia to do. Legend has it
The
Gaia, the one the Greek’s
worshiped, could manipulate the weather, but there haven’t been
many others who could. In the end, it all comes down to energy.
Photosynthesis is about creating energy. Sunlight is energy,” she
said with a gesture to the light falling in the kitchen window.
“The movement of the earth is energy. You can harness it and guide
it.” She gestured with her hands as she spoke, excitement making
her speak a little faster than usual. I don’t know if I’d ever
noticed my mom this fired up about something before. “Men can do it
to a lesser extent, but if they really need power they must draw
through us. You must be careful with this, because it can drain
you. Remember, though your powers don’t have the flash of the
guys’, you are not helpless. That energy can protect you. I can’t
tell you where you’re specific talents will lie. Mine are in
nurture, growing plants and raising a family. Your grandmother was
most powerful with animals. I grew up in a virtual zoo!” Nostalgia
sparkled in her eyes. I knew she missed her parents. They died
shortly after she had met Dad. Grandpa was killed in an accident
when a car ran a red light and hit him on the crosswalk. Grandma
got sick about that time and was gone a short time later. I
couldn't imagine losing my parents so young—poor mom! Giving her
hand a squeeze, I blinked away my damp eyes.

“
I’m sorry I’ve made the
last few months miserable for everyone.” Miserable tears trickled
down my cheeks.

“
Don’t apologize, baby. I’m
so proud of what you’ve become. Such a lovely woman.” She brushed
my hair out of my face with a smile. When her eyes met mine, I
could see tears in them as well. “You need to know you won’t age
normally. You’ll have to be careful. Once we have our first
transformation, we age very slowly, gaining about a year for every
five or ten. And remember don’t trust anyone except your brother
and sister—and Nate. They'll keep you safe if I’m not here. Xander
has been pushing himself hard to learn to protect you. Don’t be
afraid to lean on them. They love you as do I.”

A lump formed in my throat, and I
tried to swallow it. I didn’t know what to say. Too many emotions
tumbled over me. I had no idea how to interpret any of them, the
same turmoil echoed in my mother. It was overwhelming. I pulled my
hands away, trying to force a smile so she wouldn’t feel rebuked.
As soon as the contact was broken, the emotions calmed a little,
but I still had no idea what to say. Mom smiled then turned away
and began bustling around the kitchen.

MY SISTER SLIPPED in the door—hair
ratted up in back and shirt misbuttoned. Her disguise was gone,
though her hair seemed a shade or two darker than before. I
wondered briefly what Sariah looked really looked like. Did she
have a true appearance? She raised a brow at me. I remembered that
what I felt of other’s emotions when I touched them was like a
candle next to the sun when compared to what she could
feel.

Mom had dinner on the table. We served
ourselves in silence, and I wrinkled my nose as I sipped my milk. I
wished for soda that tasted sugary and sweet, not bitter with
man-made chemicals. Nate eyed me with a knowing smile, making a
face at his own milk before pointedly casting a longing glance at
Xander’s Coke. I smiled back and started picking at my
chicken.

The atmosphere in the dining room was
light, as if we were a normal family sitting down for a normal
dinner. I sat next to my father at the head of the table with my
mother on my right and Nate directly across from me. Xander sat
next to him and Sariah at the opposite end. It felt natural to be
gathered like this, even with the addition of Nate. I wondered if
things were about to change forever, but I dismissed that thought.
Tonight was about sharing the warmth of my family, not dread and
regret. We were all going to make it through this ok—we had
to.

Once the dishes cleared away it was
time to get down to business. I wished to prolong the happy moment,
basking in the glow that was my family’s love. However, with no
small amount of dread, I dove in.

“
You know about Mariah and
Crystal being killed,” I began, looking at each of them in turn.
Even Nate nodded, and I glanced at my brother wondering how much he
had shared. Xander shrugged at me with a sheepish grin, and I
turned back to the conversation. “And the news made sure the world
knew about the others, but they weren’t the first.” I looked down,
knowing I was probably going to disappoint them with my next
statement. Taking a deep breath and squaring my shoulders, I met my
father’s eyes. “Last night I snuck out and went to Evelyn’s. She
agreed to come over today to answer some questions. I thought she
might have something to do with the murders.” My father didn’t
react at all, and I wondered what exactly Xander told them. He was
protective of me, but sometimes I had to remind myself that didn’t
always mean he kept my secrets. “She told us she’s a witch, and
she’s been helping her parents with the killings.”

“
That’s not entirely
accurate,” Xander interrupted, one corner of his mouth pulling up
in a wry smile. “You ran out before she finished. She helped up
until Mariah. After that, Evelyn rebelled against her parents and
refused to help them—though they tried to make her. When she kept
refusing, her mother did some sort of ritual that lets her drain
Evelyn’s magic. See, Nancy isn’t a witch. She studied Wicca and
witchcraft but discovered none of that was real.”

Mom nodded. “True witchcraft is an
inborn ability. There aren’t a lot of spells and rituals like on
television—though some use them. An object is bestowed with power
because a witch puts power into it. A symbol is just a drawing if
the witch doesn’t mean anything by it. She could doodle pentagrams
all day, but if she did it while concentrating on it protecting
her, that’s what it will be.”

“
What would it mean if I
say she cut herself during the ritual?” I asked.

“
It would probably mean she
was trying to add power to her spell. A witch’s power runs through
her veins, so adding blood always makes things more
effective.”

I frowned, wondering what Evelyn could
have been doing when I interrupted. I didn’t speculate long before
Xander jumped in. “Is this about what she was doing when you saw
her yesterday, Lia? She told me after you left. Apparently,
Evelyn's been doing magic on Amelia all year.” Mom’s eyes widened,
and Xander faltered.

“
All year? That must be
what set off the transformation so early! A witch’s power could
easily mess with the natural forces, and we are no exception.”
Mom’s eyes were sad, and I wondered if she’d know Evelyn was a
witch—or perhaps that her dad was. Mom looked at Xander. “Did she
say what she was doing?”

“
Apparently, she was trying
to keep her parents from figuring out what Amelia was. So she hid
Amelia from them. But that also meant she had to keep Amelia away
from them. Apparently, when you guys were at the mall Mrs. Matthews
got hold of some pictures of Lia and Sariah. Evelyn has been using
protection magic on her ever since—basically making her own magic
useless against Amelia.”

“
Sariah, what did you find
out?” I asked.

“
The police are stumped.
They know the crimes are linked, but they think the later ones look
like a copycat of the first four. The symbols were a little altered
each time, though each incorporated a pentagram. And all the
victims’ wrists were zip tied together. The stake was plunged with
such force it was driven into their hearts in a single motion—not
an easy feat. There has to be something Otherworldly going on. They
think the killer is escalating. The latest victim was torn to
pieces.” We were silent for a moment, our eyes wide in horror. I
couldn’t imagine the kind of hate it would take for someone to
actually tear another person apart.

Xander took over again. “Evelyn is
killing herself trying to stop them, but it’s barely slowing ‘em
down. They’re being driven by pure hatred. Her mom’s drawing deeper
and deeper from her. She was getting pretty weak while we were
talking, then she suddenly bolted out of here.”

I was so upset when I left all I could
think of was her part in the murders. It never occurred to me that
maybe, in her own way, she wanted to stop this as much as I did. It
was hard for me to move past the fact that she was killing people,
but I briefly tried to put myself in her place. Would I blindly
trust my parents? My jaw was tight, and I closed my eyes for a
moment. Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly and reopened my
eyes to see everyone looking at me with pity. For some reason that
made me angry, but I reined it in and tried to focus.

“
We can’t leave Evelyn with
them. Maybe if we get her somewhere safe, her parents won’t be as
strong?” Mom glanced at Dad, and I realized she really didn’t know
what to do—and that terrified me. My mom
always
knew what to do.

Dad shrugged and looked thoughtful.
Finally he gave a slow nod, and I could see the wheels turning in
his head. “I know of a coven in Springfield that could probably
help her. Obviously we’ll have to be careful because the human
world won’t understand and will only see us as
kidnappers.”

“
If they catch us, could we
go to jail?” I asked in horror.

“
Don’t worry, Lia, there
are… beings who look out for Otherworld events. Keep the humans
from getting too close.” Mom patted my hand, but I didn’t feel
reassured.

“
Then shouldn’t they be
handling this?” I wanted to help my friend, but I couldn’t let my
family risk themselves, could I?

“
It doesn’t work like that.
They don’t get involved with Otherworlder events. They just keep
humans from looking too closely at us.” My dad scratched his beard,
something he did unconsciously while thinking hard. “If the police
had an Otherworlder as a suspect, the Enforcers would be
involved.”

“
Many of the cases taken
over by federal agents involve Otherworldly events,” Xander took
over. “For example, those New York detectives put together the
Smiley Face Killer and all of a sudden the feds sweep in and it
disappears. That’s how the Enforcers work. No one even knows except
Otherworlders.”

“
So if we get caught taking
Evelyn, they’ll help us get away with it?”

“
Not exactly.” Mom said.
“There'd be an official tribunal that would determine our
punishment, and Evelyn would be returned to her
parents.”

“
But if they don’t get
involved, why would they punish us?” I asked.

My dad put his hand on my cheek and
smiled. “They wouldn’t punish us for kidnapping; they would punish
us for getting caught. The number one rule of living amongst humans
is don’t let them catch us.”

I sat a moment, thinking that one
through before Nate interrupted my thought process. “Should we
chance it? Maybe the best answer is to just leave town.”

“
No, we can’t do that!” I
protested. I was disgusted by what Evelyn had done, but that didn’t
mean I wanted to leave her with her parents. God only know what
they would do to her. They’d already shown themselves capable of
horrific violence. I had to do what I could to help her, with or
without my family.

“
Don’t worry, baby. It’s
ok.” Mom put her arm around my shoulder and pulled me close. “We’re
not going to leave her there. Nate, you don’t have to be part of
this if you don’t want to. We won’t think any less of you if you’d
rather leave.”