The Violet Awakening (The Elementum Trinity Book 2) by Styna Lane Read Free Book Online

needs to happen.”
    “Well, it’s your house. You can do whatever you want,” Lily said nonchalantly.
    “That’s the thing,” Gabe said, sounding as if he didn’t want the words to come out of his mouth. “She can’t move in with us.”
    “What?” Lily asked in a low tone.
    “Reagan is allergic to cats, and mom’s not going to leave Jackie behind.”
    “So, you think she should move in here?!” I’d never known a whisper to be so loud.
    “She’s your mom, too.”
    “She doesn’t even know me, Gabriel! The last time I talked to her, she called me Donna,” Lily said, a tinge of hurt flooding her voice.
    “Then she’ll have to go into one of the joint houses.” Gabe’s words seemed to sink in to Lily’s heart and cast an anchor.
    “Fine. We’ll move her in tonight.”
    “Good, thank you.”
    I didn’t sit up until I heard the door shut, and was sure Gabe had left, for fear of intruding on personal matters that weren’t any of my business. Al and Lily were sitting at the kitchen table in silence, staring at each other with looks of uncertainty over a very large plate of snickerdoodles.
    “Oh, good morning, Angie. I hope we didn’t wake you,” Lily said, abruptly returning to her sweet, cheery self. I thought I saw her brush a tear from her cheek as she wandered to the stove.
    “No, not at all,” I said, faking a yawn and a stretch. I looked down at Lakin, who was still fast asleep, arm flung up over his face, and a trickle of drool dampening his pillow.
    “Would you like some bacon?” She asked, firing up the stove before I could answer.
    “Bacon?” Lakin shot upright, eyes still half-shut, and hair sticking out at every angle imaginable. We all stared at him in shock, even Lily popped her head around the wall to eye him curiously.
    “Bacon,” I laughed, pushing myself to my feet before reaching down an arm to the boy next to me. “C’mon, sleeping beauty.”
    Al kicked one of the chairs out to me, and I helped the incredibly-tired Lakin to sit. My nose instinctively wrinkled itself up as Lily reached for her tea-jar.
    “Not to be picky, but… do you have anything other than tea? Coffee, maybe?” I’d had more tea in the last couple days than I’d probably had in my entire life. Oh, what I would have done for a cup of coffee.
    Lily blinked at me for a moment, as my request took its own sweet time to sink in.
    “Of course! I’m sorry,” she said, frantically searching the cupboards. “I sort of go on auto-pilot in the mornings.”
    “It’s okay, really. If you don’t have—” I began, feeling a bit guilty for upsetting her routine.
    “No, no, no… I know I have coffee around here, somewhere… Aha!” She said, retrieving a dusty jar of dark grounds from the highest cupboard.
    I leaned over to Al with apprehension. “How old is that?”
    “I didn’t even know we had it,” he whispered.
    “You know, now that I think of it, tea is fine. Really,” I said.
    “You sure?” she asked, brushing a thick layer of dust from the lid of the jar.
    “Definitely,” I said as convincingly as possible.
    “Okay,” Lily shrugged, returning the jar to the cupboard and going back to the stove.
    Just as she was pouring Lakin’s tea, the floor shook violently beneath our feet. The rumbling lasted only seconds, but was severe enough to force photos crashing from the walls. Lakin's mug had tipped over, and scalding liquid ran across the table in a haphazard stream, sketching a dark labyrinth into the wood. I looked from face to face, finding the same confusion and fear that riddled my insides.
    “Al?” Lily's voice wavered, as her bond slowly opened the front door.
    Doors from each house around the underwater-town opened, the heads of curious residents poking out like prairie dogs for answers. Lakin and I followed Al onto the porch, looking to the water above our heads, but not finding anything unordinary... other than the water above our heads, of course.
    “What was that?” an