Tortured Souls (The Orion Circle) by Kimber Leigh Wheaton Read Free Book Online Page A

greeting. Her grip is firm as we shake hands. “I have no psychic abilities just an insatiable thirst for knowledge of anything paranormal. I’m especially into cryptozoology and mythological creatures, several not quite as mythological as you might think.”
    As a child I always had a penchant for unicorns, dragons and mermaids. My pulse jumps a bit, and I take a breath to ask the first of dozens of questions.
    She laughs. “You look excited, perhaps we can get together next week, and I’ll fill you in on what you’ve been missing.”
    “Sounds great, Rebecca,” I reply, eager for the knowledge she possesses.
    Cryptozoology is fascinating. Searching for and maybe even discovering a new animal species no one has ever heard of would be amazing.
    She nods before vacating the chair for the next person. Daniel walks over and plops down into the chair before propping his feet up on the coffee table. His black bangs cover one eye while the other gray eye stares at me with undisguised interest. A smile lights his face, and I see what makes so many girls swoon in his presence. This guy owns the room. His jeans are covered in artfully placed holes—something I would have sworn was against our dress code. He’s wearing a black t-shirt that hugs his lithe torso.
    “No introductions necessary, huh, Cici,” he says with an expression somewhere between a smirk and a leer.
    I cringe a bit at the nickname. No matter what I say, he refuses to call me Kacie. Daniel plays Billy Crocker, the male lead, in our production of Anything Goes . He’s been calling me Cici since the first day of drama class my freshman year. The idiot spilled coffee all over my brand new shoes. His utter lack of concern made me furious, embarrassed, you name it. I remember exploding—yelling something like, Look what you did! See? See? I’ve been Cici ever since.
    Daniel has an ego the size of Alaska along with his very own set of groupies. He was an enigma I was determined to solve. Last year, I swore I’d get beneath his veneer. Didn’t happen. My crush on him faded pretty fast after that.
    “Had no idea you were clairvoyant. You always seemed so normal,” he adds with an amused snort. “I’m clairsentient.” When I stare at him with a blank look he decides to elaborate. “My psychic ability stems from touch. Objects or people, I can get readings from both. You’d be amazed at what gets soaked up into the walls of some places. It’d blow your mind. Remind me tomorrow morning and I’ll give you a reading.”
    He takes my hand and kisses the back before rising in a fluid motion. My guess is this gesture is meant to be endearing, but I find it rather annoying. I somehow manage to resist the urge to wipe the back of my hand on my jeans. As he walks away, I hazard a glance at Logan and notice he’s bristling from Daniel’s behavior. I offer him a smile and his entire face lights up in response. Hearing someone move to the chair next to me, I manage to pull my eyes away from Logan’s golden gaze to give the new arrival my undivided attention.
    The rest of the evening passes in a blur as I’m introduced to everyone in the group. When the final introduction is over, I pull out my phone and stare in shock. Twenty-five text messages and six voicemail messages are waiting for my attention. It’s already six-thirty, guess I’m not cooking dinner tonight. It’s about time Dad and Gavin learned to fend for themselves.
    Ever since my mother left when I was nine, I’ve taken care of the house and cooking. It’s funny how Gavin and Dad both came to take my actions for granted. I won’t be around forever. Perhaps it’s time to wean the men from their dependence on me. As I listen to the voicemails, I realize Gavin is already one step ahead of me. The guy ordered pizza for us and all on his own too. I snort when I realize this glowing feeling is pride in my brother.
    Two messages from Dad, the first saying he’ll be late and the second reminding me to