The Locket

Family?

Reese wasn’t family. Not even close. Thanks to him the only family I had left was dead. I would never speak to Reese again and damn sure would not forgive him.

“You will get past it, Claire,” Omni coaxed. “The bond between you and Reese is strong. It will always be. Reese is tied to you eternally because he is your brother.”

Gasping in shock over what I just heard, I swallowed hard against the lump in my throat.

“What are you talking about? He’s not my brother, you have to be mistaken.” I wanted badly to lose control, shake the walls and bring the house down. As long as Omni kept talking, his voice controlled my emotions, and hindered me from exploding.

Omni began to unfold the story of how Reese was my brother. His words would change everything in my life, its course altered by a single night years ago.

“It’s not a mistake, Claire,” he began softly. I clung to every word. “We were just as surprised as you are. A year or so before you were born, your parents were having a difficult time. They separated for a while and your father rented a room above Reese’s family store where he stayed for several months.”

I recalled my mother telling me she had left my father for a short time while they were dating. She felt she was too young to be so serious with my father. She regretted the split. Was this why?

Omni continued, “Reese was conceived one night when his mother went to check in on your father. They both regretted what happened and never spoke of it again. Your father reconciled with your mother, vowing to be a better man and husband. Reese’s mother married her boyfriend and he raised Reese, believing him to be his own.” Omni’s words whirled around in my mind, struggling to settle down.

“I can’t believe this,” I sighed. My father shared a child with another woman. He hid a secret from us all these years. I had a brother. “How come you didn’t know this before?”

“When we discovered you to be The Locket child, we searched for your Aegis and your Paramour. Your seal was drawn quite powerfully to Reese and his to yours. We should have examined the connection more thoroughly. But we didn’t. Instead, we concluded he was the match to your seal. He was gifted the abilities needed to be your Paramour, and to love and serve you in a way only he could. The kinship the two of you shared masked your true Paramour,” Omni explained, nodding towards Brent.

He had to be wrong, I thought. The man I knew as my father would have never strayed from my mother. He was always the doting husband and treated her like a princess. Was it guilt?

“That’s a pretty big mistake, don’t you think? How could you not have known?” I scolded Omni, unable to hide the anger in my voice as I addressed him.

“We only serve to guide humans. We try not to interfere or look at their past mistakes. Wrong choices are sealed for God’s eyes only,” Omni preached. “The spirit world allows humans to find their match freely even if they chose incorrectly. Sometimes a miss-match is necessary for seals to grow.” Omni expressed how important it was they had found my seal’s match. When I came of age, there would be no time to experiment with the right-of-passage that most girls went through. I had to be matched from the beginning in order to be strong enough to fight Kace. “A match for you is your lifeline. Now that you have bonded, you’re sealed, with purpose. As long as you’re together you’ll feel the strength your seal provides.”

Slumping into the bed, I processed every word, my heart heavy in response. I had a brother. For the first time, I saw the resemblance. The sandy-blonde hair, the jawline, and even the way he creased his brow, looked like my father, our father.

Looking back, I recalled seeing Reese as a child, playing catch in his yard with the man he knew as his father. Reese was happy, and his father was obviously a good man. I shook my head and the memory dissipated.

It was going to be hard for Reese to learn the truth, and I shuddered at the thought of what this secret would do to his parents. Could their marriage survive this? They would surely find out. Reese’s mother should have known better. Secrets do not hide forever.

“What happens now?” I asked Omni.

Omni continued talking, picking up his earlier explanation.

“You may have noticed some of Brent’s abilities are not as strong as they once were,” he spoke, directing his gaze at Brent questioningly. Brent nodded. This explained why Brent could not see that Logan was the Anchor, why he could not stay awake as long as he should have, and why he had developed feelings for me beyond the parameters of being my Aegis.

“Omni, is that dangerous?” I was concerned that without his abilities, Brent would be left vulnerable to Kace.

“There’s no danger, Claire. Brent’s abilities will return now that you’re to

gether. He has been given some new gifts as your Paramour. Your brother will acquire some new abilities as well. Reese is to be your Aegis now,” Omni told me. Hearing references to Reese as my brother caused a strange pull at my heart as I struggled to accept it.

“It will take all three of you to defeat Kace,” Omni continued. “But it will be done. The fated ones have seen it. You must find a safe place to go. Give yourself some time. Your abilities have surfaced and will develop over the next couple of days. If Kace finds you before you’re ready, it can change the outcome.

“Omni, I’m not sure about this. I don’t think I can stop Kace,” I admitted, feeling insecure.

“Claire, you are the chosen one,” Omni replied.

“Why me?” I asked

“Your strongest ability as The Locket is a gift that very few attain,” Omni said, smiling proudly.

“And what would that be, exactly? So far, all I have been able to do is shake a few walls and encase myself in a glass bubble. I’m sure those are things Kace can counter easily.”

“Those are abilities that control energy. They will develop, grow stronger, and be useful. Your greatest gift however, is controlling the mind. That is what you will need to trap Kace.” Omni assured me my abilities would be enough.