Exaltation (Insight #11)(65)



“And that’s a prediction. The coven leader before your dad, your Aunt Saige’s dad, wrote that. It’s the vision he saw as he saved your dad.”

“It would take me all night to read this, and I’m really out of it, guys.”

“I already have read most of it,” River said. “First and foremost, we are so right about our mom and your dad needing to hook up. It was said Mr. Jamison would love a womb-less woman who would change the way he saw everything.” She looked up at Raven. “Miss Sherri said your dad was almost feared before your birth, that he was respected, but you did not cross him. Most think your birth changed him, yet even more think it was Mom.”

“How sweet,” Raven said with a yawn.

“The rest of this is a revealing text.”

Which meant it was spelled, that it would appear over time. The author only wanted his secrets to come out slowly. Usually a candle with the right words spoken over it would reveal the next words. At least it would if you checked after a life changing moment, like a birth, or union, something big like that.

“It has your full name: Hartley Raven BellaRose. Then our mom’s.”

“Awesome. So you figured out what we already knew. I think our parents are talking downstairs. I was blunt with the both of them.”

“This doesn’t have to do with them. We lit a candle,” River said, as she shook the red one with a singed wick at her side. “This is about us. I think you’re going to be a queen and you have to kill five people.”

Raven’s stomach flipped. She lost the fogginess she was feeling.

“A queen of what?”

“I think it says emotion. Like bliss.”

“How do you know the last coven member was not reading my personality?”

“I don’t but check it—this talks about The Realm, two souls made of one, a new revolution.”

This was getting dangerously close to not only the conversation Raven had outside but also linked up to what her dad had been telling her in a roundabout way—that she was a solution to something. Raven already knew she had killed bad souls, her dreams told her as much.

“Does it say anything about my mom? Like where this place is they came from before the coven.”

“An Escort.”

“Do what!”

“Not that kind. Escort energy, bad energy away from souls. An angel slash demon kinda thing—a Godly power.”

Raven shook her head, falling back into the fog of exhaustion. This was not the first time either of the twins had become enthralled in coven text. It was cool to imagine old stories and prophecies at times, but not tonight—she wanted to lay in her bed and figure Rydell out. “Why would I have to kill five people though? What’s up with that? And you know what? In those hurricanes we killed far more than five.” Calling bullshit, girls.

“Yeah but that angel boy only put two before you to kill. Remember?”

All too well.

“So what happens when the other three fall? Oh my God! You better not be telling me I have to kill Berries. You may go to jail for breaking and entering, but I’m not going to jail for murder!”

“No. I think these are nonhuman people.”

“How sure are you that you are reading that right?” Nonhuman what? You can say the witch word River, really.

“Eighty percent,” Ash said, turning the page. “It even has us in here. We are the triangle—see? That’s how we stand when we fight,” she said with a glance to River, who nodded. There was no doubt River was gauging more of this than Ash was with her gift of reading text.

“Yeah but what does this have to do with Berries?”

“This? Nothing. But I think he’s trying to discredit your dad or something. He had a list of every address your dad goes to and lines through them.”

“I cannot believe you guys were in his house—the dude video tapes his lectures, what makes you think he was not filming you? That he’s not filing a police report now?”

“He would not want anyone in his house. This guys is after us and we fought back. Plus he had stolen items in his house. The deal is that after going after him we figured out this thing with us.”

“What did you figure out besides that you think I have to kill five people and have already killed two?”

“Raven, do you honestly think whoever is in your reign you are taking is going to give it up freely?”

“Wait, you’re taking this in the literal sense? Like, you think there is a kingdom somewhere?”

“Pretty much.”

“I’m all for the weird. I find it fascinating, you know I do, but I aced geography as well as world history. There are no kingdoms out there for a girl from the Quarter to rule.”

“In this world,” River said, raising her brow.

“Yeah, you’re right, I bet my kingdom is on Mars, no doubt.”

She slugged Raven. “What if it’s in The Realm?”

“The dream plane?”

Ash shrugged. “Anything is possible. The deal is that our parents have been protecting us for a while. What if this is what it’s about? What if people are after you?”

“Duh, people are after us. I thought this was about Berries?”

“He’s just a foul taste that we have to deal with. Rather quickly. If he knows this about you it cannot be a good thing.”

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