The Heart-Shaped Emblor (The Ewlishash Series) (4 page)

My parents taught me to stay away from anything psychic. Thankfully, I’d never told them about my prophetic dreaming, which in my view, fell into the same category as card readings. My heart fluttered at the prospect of getting a reading, but my stomach twisted in knots, constricted by the echoes of my parents’ warnings.

“Okay, since you want a generic reading, I’m going to think about what your guides, or destiny, wants to tell you. You do the same.”

I didn’t want to interrupt her by asking what a guide was. Hope seemed to know what she was talking about, so I focused on what the cards had to say to me.

She shuffled and reshuffled the deck, gliding the cards ever so gently through her fingers. It was like watching a painter working their masterpiece. One by one, she arranged the cards in front of us. Occasionally, she laid one card sideways on top of another. When she finished, she took a few minutes to look over the spread.

“Aislinn, I think you’ve been holding out on me,” she said with a half-smile. “Here, you have the Magician—or as some people call it, the master’s card. But there is a lot of uncertainty around it, like you haven’t quite made up your mind how you’re going to use what you have. It could go two ways.

“One way will be very dark and destructive, where I see a lot of pain. The other path will be more positive. I do see some mishaps along the way, but nothing compared to the dark path.

“There is also a male, one that will be your other half, who will bring balance into your life. I also see trickery, lies, and confusion, however I cannot say whom the trickery involves.

“In the end, you’ll have balance. You just have to stick to the honorable road. Don’t turn to greed or vengeance. It will only bring you discord and push the one who brings balance further away from you. Be careful, Aislinn.” Hope’s face wrinkled, making her look older.

Great.

She looked up at me. “May I tell you who I believe this is talking about?”

“Sure, I guess. Then I have questions.”

“No problem.” She set the rest of the deck down. “I don’t believe the guy who will be your other half is Cooper. In fact, he’s nowhere in this reading other than causing more discord. I’m also unsure if he’s the only one deceiving you, because it seems to stem from multiple sources.

“I’m not sure what your talents are, but you must learn more about them and use them wisely. Be careful not to let a desire for power come into your life. I cannot stress this enough. If you do, you will hurt more than you ever thought possible.”

“Who do you think this guy is then? If it’s not Cooper, then who? And how do I know what my talents are? I only know one of them for sure.” My body edged toward her, intent on hearing every detail as I clutched the pillow next to me.

“He hasn’t entered into your life yet. But this card indicates he will have dark, wavy hair. As far as your talents go, you tell me.” Hope raised an eyebrow.

My head dropped, and I bit my lip. “I don’t normally tell people about my gifts.”

“And I don’t normally share that I’m from a family of witches, but I did. So you can share too.” Hope crossed her arms high on her chest. She giggled when my face flushed with heat.

“I dream things sometimes, things that already happened, and sometimes, things that will happen.” My chest tightened, and it took all my courage to open up to her. “Friday night, I touched something at Jaden’s party and saw something terrible that happened to her. And it happened while I was awake.”

“Why haven’t you told anyone about this?”

“Well, Jaden sort of knows. About the dream thing, anyway. But then, when I saw something she didn’t want me to see, it was too much for her. She wants nothing to do with me now. She’s probably scared I’ll touch something else in her house and see more things she’s trying to suppress.” Sarcasm crept into my voice.

“Does she understand that it wasn’t deliberate?”

“I tried to explain, but I don’t know if she just doesn’t care, or if she’s so upset that she can’t truly hear what I’m saying. I wanted to be there for her, to comfort her. Maybe Jaden isn’t thinking clearly. After what I saw, I don’t think I would be either.”

Hope didn’t speak for a moment, although she looked like she wanted to ask what I’d seen. “I have to admit, things make a lot more sense now. I couldn’t understand why Jaden suddenly took a liking to Cooper. She seemed so annoyed by him whenever all of you were together. Do you think she kissed him just to pay you back for what you saw?”

“Truthfully, I’m not sure.”

“What a mess. Have you told Cooper any of this?” By now, Hope was lying on the bed with her head resting on her hands, looking like a child listening to an action-packed bedtime story.

“He knows some things, but he isn’t the most open person.” I spoke defensively, remembering Cooper’s disdain for the supernatural. “Do you really think he’d believe me anyway? He’s a liar, and liars don’t believe others. Did you know that the two of them dated a couple of years ago? Neither of them told me. Secrets, secrets, secrets. I think I’m better off letting the pieces fall where they may.”

“They dated? It seemed like they hated each other. That’s a bit of a shock.”

“Believe me.” Cynicism sharpened my tone. “I know what you mean, but I’m also numb. Constantly numb. I want to be angry with Jaden, I do, but something isn’t sitting right in my stomach. And Cooper, he seems like a lost puppy when he discusses her. I don’t even know how I feel. Sometimes I want to beat them both bloody, but other times I remember how Cooper used to be, and how Jaden listened when I’d shared my dreams. I suppose you could say that I’m conflicted. That’s why I’m so thankful for your distraction today.”

“Oh.” Hope looked down. “And now I’m making you talk about it. I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay.” I tried to appear pleasant. “It’s different talking to you. I can tell you things, things I would normally rather die than admit to anyone. Being able to share is nice.”

My statement seemed to please Hope immensely. She didn’t say so, but her glowing expression told me all I needed to know.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure. What is it?”

“Are you and Austin…?” I let my voice fade as my implications became clear. Hope flushed.

“Huh,” she mumbled. “I guess you could say we hit it off. He asked me on a date this weekend.”

“That’s awesome. Can I ask one more thing, off the topic of friends?”

“Yes?”

“When you referred to ‘guides’ earlier, before the reading, what did you mean?”

Hope sat up straighter, clearing her throat. “I guess it means different things to different people. To me, a guide is someone in the spirit realm who has agreed to help us on our journey in this realm. Sometimes I think guides can also be guardians, but not always. They kind of… lend support.”

“Spirit realm?”

“Yes, where the spirits dwell.” A curious look cracked Hope’s face; as if she was shocked I needed to ask. “I have no idea where that is, although many people claim to know. It might just be another dimension, moving at a different speed than ours, which is why we sometimes see a glimpse of a being or ghost.”

“So do you believe in ghosts and spirits?” I asked, averting my eyes in case she laughed at my expense.

“Yeah, don’t you?” Hope furrowed her eyebrows.

“I spoke to a ghost woman in my stairwell. No one knows. These things used to scare my parents. They feared I would end up in an asylum somewhere, so I learned to keep things to myself.” The corners of my mouth fell as I pondered all the times I could have benefited from sharing with my parents.

“Boy, you really have been holding out on me. Clairvoyant, clairaudient, you’re very psychic. What else are you keeping locked up in that brain of yours?”

“Clairwhatatodi…?”

Hope’s deep laugh echoed in her room. She tossed a book at me. “Check it out. The page is marked.”

I opened the book to the page with the bookmark. Clairaudient meant hearing things people wouldn’t normally hear with the ear, clairsentient meant to get a sense about something or someone by touch, and clairvoyant meant seeing things you couldn’t normally see with the eye.

I flipped through the book and found my way to the ‘V’ section and scrolled down until I found the word I was looking for. Visions were given by a supernatural force or being, and played out like a movie clip in the mind for some reason or another.

“Where did you find this book?” I was in awe.

“My family gave it to me.”

“Hope.” I let out an uneven breath. “I need to take a break from this topic.”

“I understand.” Hope got off her bed and headed toward the door. “It’s sunny out today. Let’s see if Kiera wants to go for a walk with us. Will that work for you?”

I stood, and a feeling of dizziness overwhelmed me. Being in nature would help. “I think that’s a great idea. It isn’t too often we get sun, and a bit of warmth during fall. Let’s take advantage of it.”

Hope turned her head toward the hallway. “Kierrrrra!” I wondered why she wasn’t watching her sister more closely. Kiera was only five, after all.

“What?” A yell came back down the hallway.

“You want to go for a walk with us?”

“Oh, yes! Be right there!” I could hear some things shuffling around in the room at the end of the hall.

By the time Hope and I got downstairs, Kiera stood at the bottom, waiting for us. I could have sworn her voice had come from down the hall. Then again, my mind was a bit discombobulated from our discussion.

“Do you have more stairs?” I turned to Hope.

“No,” she answered, perplexed.

“Never mind.” I decided to drop it before making myself sound silly.

A blanket of warmth engulfed us as we walked out the door. The sun kissed my nose, and heat filled my body with a comfort that I hadn’t felt in weeks. I loved the fall, but the sun always made me happy, at peace with the universe.

Greenery surrounded us. All the plant life was overgrown, but in a pleasant sort of way. Hope’s yard looked like controlled chaos.

I grabbed my jacket in case we went into the woods. The sun might have been out, but there was still a chill in the air.

The sky glimmered with a rich combination of blues, reminding me of blue lace agate. I loved the smell of a sunny day. The sweet scent of maple running down the trees wafted in the breeze.

Despite the overwhelming greenness of Hope’s yard, the maple trees on the outskirts had begun to turn for fall. They were orange, yellow, brown, even some red. From a distance, they almost looked like ice cream cones. I took in a deep breath, filling my lungs with as much fresh air as possible, and exhaled.

“You girls ready?” I asked.

“Let’s go,” they said in unison.

Hope led us down a path that followed the edge of the yard. I could see it would take us straight into the woods. As we walked, branches, twigs, and leaves crunched under our feet. The naturalness held a sense of peace and I enjoyed the fact that there was no landscaping or manicured lawn.

We continued to walk in silence, enjoying the music nature had to offer. The birds, chipmunks, even the trees blowing in the breeze all created a symphony of earth. In this atmosphere, it was hard not to let go of all the things Hope and I had discussed. I let my mind wander.

“It’s just around the corner up here.” Hope’s voice echoed back to me.

“What is? I thought we were just walking.”

“The field. You’ll like it, I promise,” she said with a grin, followed by a wink from Kiera.

After a moment, we walked into a large field with very short grass. The cropped lawn caught me by surprise. Why mow way out in the middle of the woods, but not the lawn by the house?

As we came into the clearing, I noticed there was something strange about the trees. They seemed to grow in a circle. About halfway up the trunks, they all bent to the left. The look of puzzlement on my face must have been funny because both Hope and Kiera burst into laughter.

“I told you you’d like it,” Hope said. Her response was more like a song than a statement.

“This is really cool, but how do the trees grow like that?”

Kiera shook her head, and trotted off to play in the field.

“They don’t grow like that, Aislinn, they bend like that,” Hope replied.

“They bend like that? How?”

“This is a vortex. Magnetism bends them. That’s why they grow in a circle. Pretty cool, huh?” Hope skipped off into the grass as well.

A vortex? Magnets making things bend into a circle? My life seemed to be turning completely upside down. How could I have lived so long not knowing these things existed?

I took a moment to survey the strange field. The grass stood up straight, like new growth reaching for the sun. Wildflowers created a perimeter around the ground, and they too stood up very straight. The only life affected by the vortex was the trees, all bending about the same distance from the ground. It felt like standing in a gigantic fairy ring.

Hope and Kiera continued skipping to the other side of the field, and I noticed something strange. Kiera, who was about ten feet in front of Hope, began to appear taller than her older sister did. How could that be possible? I decided to take a closer look.

I’d reached the halfway mark in the field when my earlier dizziness returned. The trees circled around me, and blackness filled my eyes. A tremendous force pressed down on me, and I fell. The temperature plummeted, rendering me completely incapable of movement. Finally, someone pulled on my arm, trying to move me.

“What’s wrong with her?” I could hear a voice, but couldn’t make out to whom it belonged.

“I think it’s the vortex. Can you help me pull her away, Kiera?”

A red haze filled my vision, similar to looking at the sun with my eyes closed. My blood began to circulate again, and I forced my eyes open. Hope stared at me from above. The crisp grass tickled the back of my neck.

“What happened?” My words came out sluggish.

“I think you got disoriented in the vortex. You were walking, and all of a sudden you were unconscious on the ground. We couldn’t wake you, so we had to drag you out to the edge. Are you okay?” Hope’s face appeared flushed.