“Have fun,” they replied but didn’t look up as they gathered their cards.
They were halfway across the yard when Zina asked for a six and Cabo told her to go fish. Brie chuckled over their choice of game.
Their hands swung back and forth between them, and neither spoke as they followed the meandering trail through the woods. They passed massive oaks and pines whose branches swept over the path to shadow the land.
Acorns and pine cones crunched underfoot, as did the leaves and sticks littering the ground. The song of the birds filled the air as squirrels and chipmunks ran through the trees and across the earth.
It was all so peaceful, but she didn’t feel soothed by it as she normally did when she walked the trail or sat outside, simply enjoying nature. Instead, she was jumpy and dreaded arriving at the brook.
When the burbling sound of water running over rocks drifted to her, she closed her eyes and prepared herself for what was to come. She could do this. Shewoulddo this.
CHAPTERFIFTY
The trail openedonto a small section of clearing alongside the tiny stream. The clear water running over the small rocks in the river had smoothed them over the years into flat, brown stones.
The brook was small enough to step over, but she had no idea how far it ran as she’d never tried to follow it. The stream deserved to keep its secrets.
In some areas, tree branches and leaves dangled in the water, and to either side of the small clearing, the briars were so thick they were almost impossible to get through. The sunlight trickling through the leaves bathed the water in a golden glow as it danced across the surface.
“I’ve had visions for as long as I can remember,” Brie said as she watched the sun playing across the water’s surface. “One of my first memories was a premonition about a woman who fell into a nearby lake and drowned. When I told my mother about it, she said it must have been a bad dream, but when the woman died the next day, she became concerned.
“When, a few weeks later, I had a vision of a young child dying after being trampled by a horse, she worried it might come true but still hesitated to do anything because of what we are. We spent most of our lives trying to blend in andnotdraw attention to ourselves. The child died the following day.
“The next time I had a vision, it was about a woman being kicked by a cow and later dying. I assume it was from a hemorrhage, but I don’t know. After this vision, my parents took me into the nearby town. We rarely went there. Neither of them were Savages; they could both tolerate the sun and were mated, so they were stable, but they were concerned the villagers would notice something off about them.
“The only times my father and brother went into town before this trip was to get weapons from the blacksmith there. We moved every few years, so no one would question why my parents weren’t aging. They never gave people enough time to notice they hadn’t changed. We lived in Germany, Russia, and England before I was ten.
“When we went into town, my father tried to warn the woman about the cow, but she wouldn’t listen. She was kicked the next day, and after she was, she told the rest of the townspeople about my father’s words, and they became fearful and enraged. My parents decided to leave that day.
“So, we moved to England, and when we settled there, my visions grew more intense and came more often. At this time, I was ten; my brother had just turned twenty-five and reached maturity. He’d also moved out and found a place of his own, but he visited every day, and we all remained extremely close.
“It was easy enough for us to all remain close considering we were surrounded by love. Not only did my mother and father love each other deeply, but they also lovedusvery much. I didn’t experience one day where I wasn’t certain of their love, notone. I have no doubteverythingI am is because of their love.”
Asher didn’t say anything when she stopped to tilt her face back to the sun’s rays. She closed her eyes as a golden glow bathed her. He’d never seen her look so beautiful or so vulnerable before, and his heart ached for the love and loss she’d endured. For there was loss coming soon, he felt it in his bones.
“In our new home, we were happy. Again, we stayed away from the villagers, but my father would go to town on occasion, and sometimes my mother and I would go with him. We had no real use for the humans, as we hunted and fed on deer, but my parents liked them.
“We’d lived there for almost six months when I received a vision of a young girl being thrown from a horse and breaking her neck. I think their love for me compelled my parents to warn her and her family. They couldn’t stand the idea of anyone losing a child when they didn’t have to.
“So, they told the little girl and her family, and when her parents didn’t believe them and did nothing to save her, she died. Instead of the villagers turning against us, they came to us, seeking answers and advice.
“It was the most interaction we’d had with humans, and though I was nervous, it was nice to have friends. I had enough control over my vampirism not to hurt them.
“At first, my parents kept me protected from them, and the townspeople didn’t know I was the one receiving the visions. Then, one day, when I was playing with some kids in our backyard, I received a premonition of one of the little boys falling and breaking his leg. I told him to watch out for a rock jutting out of the ground without thinking about it.
“But, if I had stopped to think about it, I probably would have told him anyway. I was enjoying the newfound attention we were getting, and I liked having other children to play with for a change. They were my friends; I loved them.”
Uneasiness churned in Asher’s stomach as Brie lowered her head to stare at her hands. Even with her parents’ and her brother’s love, it must have been so lonely for her before she made friends. She must have been so happy to have friends finally; of course, she warned one of them against injury.
“So, the boy stayed away from the rock, and nothing happened to him. After that, he came by often to play. He was our neighbor and soon became my best friend. Everything was going so well; I was happy and having so much fun.
“And then a sickness hit the village. I never received a vision about it, didn’t know it was coming, and there was nothing I could have done to stop it. I could warn them about rocks and horses, cows and lakes, but I couldn’t warn them about germs.
“That was impossible. I couldn’t stop people from breathing. And during those times, we didn’t know rats carried sickness or washing our hands would help protect us. I couldn’t tell them to cover their mouths when they sneezed and coughed because we didn’tknow.
“As the sickness raged on, the villagers began thinking we’d turned on them or cursed them when we didn't catch it. They believedwe’dcaused it. That was when my parents knew it was time for us to leave. I was sad because I didn’t want to leave my friends, but some had already died.
“We were getting ready to leave; my father had gone to help my brother pack his things, and the villagers came for us while he was gone. They set our house on fire and chased my mother and me into the night.
