AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And we go by more modern names now,” Laz added. “It’s important to keep up with the times.”
“Your parents might’ve tried that instead of Bertha,” Chloe remarked.
“It’s a family name,” I insisted. I couldn’t believe the Fates had summoned me. Now the fashion house’s circle of life motif made more sense. The sisters were hiding in plain sight, living their best eternal lives as divas in the city that never sleeps.
“This isn’t the first time we’ve met,” Laz said.
“Though it’s been many centuries since your last incarnation,” Annie chimed in.
I didn’t retain those memories in this form. The human brain wouldn’t be able to cope. It would be like trying to load a laptop with… Okay, who was I kidding? I didn’t have the technical knowledge to complete that kind of analogy.
Annie contemplated me. “But why are you hidden, even from our view?”
“I wish I had an answer for you.”
“Melinoe in the flesh,” Laz mused. “I was not expecting this.”
“And it takes a lot to surprise us, as you might imagine,” Chloe added.
“Thank goodness you’re not one of those ridiculous avatars.” Laz shuddered. “They’re abominations.”
“Just so I understand the situation,” I began, “you lured me here under false pretenses because you have no record of me. Am I here so you can…?” I glanced at Annie. “You’re the one who cuts the thread of life. I guess I should ask you.”
“The truth is we don’t know what to do with you,” Annie replied. “That’s the reason we brought you here. It isn’t normal.”
“There’s nothing normal about me.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t go that far,” Laz said. “You wouldn’t have been able to blend in so well if you weren’t somewhat normal.”
“You’ve escaped our notice for…” Chloe surveyed me. “How old are you?”
“Thirty-five.”
“A drop in the ocean for us, but still,” Laz said. “It’s embarrassing to miss someone that should be on our list. We’ll have to file a report with our compliance department.”
“And if we don’t know about you, we can’t…” Annie mimed cutting a pair of scissors.
I shifted uncomfortably. “I guess that’s a win for me.”
Annie’s voice dropped to a low level of intensity. “We want to know why.”
“I wish I could tell you, but I don’t know any more than you do.”
“Untrue,” Chloe said. “Who were your parents?”
“Dana and James Clay.”
“Mother’s maiden name?” Chloe asked, spinning around the laptop to face her.
“Frost.”
Chloe typed on her laptop. “I see them both here, but there’s no record of a child.”
Pops had been adept at hiding me, but he was only human. He wasn’t hide-me-from-the-Fates good. There had to be another explanation.
“My parents died in a car accident when I was very young. Maybe the timing messed up the official records.” It sounded lame even to my own ears, but I didn’t know what else to say.
Annie peered over her younger sister’s shoulder. “It wasn’t an accident.”
