Shadow of the Sun (48 page)

Oh no,
I thought, but was smiling all the same, the new silver tears finding their way down my cheeks.

She continued. “When Gabriella first moved to Oretown, I had only been living in Portland for a few months. Nicole was with her to help her unpack. They both had decided to come up to the city so we could go out. I got a sitter for Jules, and we went to a bar. She was so nervous because she had a fake ID.” I knew where this was going.

“
At the time, Gabriella drove a Jeep Wrangler. Not exactly the best vehicle to own in a rainy costal town. It had been a beautiful day, so the top was off when she parked in my driveway. . . .”

Jenna continued with the story as I searched the crowd under the tent. There were familiar faces—particularly my family members, but others I only knew professionally. As I scanned the crowd, I spotted my cousin Nicole next to my mother. Her stunning blue-green eyes were accentuated by her dark green wrap style dress, which hugged her pint-sized figure perfectly. She was listening intently to Jenna’s story when she suddenly broke down in sobs. My mom reached out to comfort her, stroking her silky blonde hair. It was too much. I had to look away.

When I couldn’t find the angel I was looking for, I searched along the tree line. In the distance, I found my four angels: Andrew, Ehno, Lucia, and my father. My world, the one I thought was about to spin off its axis, seemed to realign itself at the sight of them standing there. It was such a huge relief to see them. They survived—all of them. They were alive. Deep down, I knew that was another reason I had come here today—I had to know they were okay.

Standing close to the angels was Joseph. He looked distraught, but it was nothing compared to the tortured expression Andrew wore. It was like the life had been sucked out of him. His golden tears were numerous, and his eyes were the brightest blue I had ever seen—even more brilliant than when Abelie was brutally murdered. I hated the fact I couldn’t comfort them, but I was a magnet for death, and I wouldn’t let it follow them any longer.

Jenna had finished her story, which ended in the three of us being drenched in mud and two revoked fake IDs. There was light laughter in the crowd, but it died out quickly. As the service ended, I knew that I couldn’t stay invisible for much longer because my power had drained. Vehicles started up, and soon everyone was gone except my angels, Joseph, Jenna, and Jules.

Jenna had her hand over the casket, her tears trickling down onto the silver. I hated seeing Jenna there, with Jules all in black. They were mourning me. And as I saw the angels move closer, I mourned for myself. This truly was the death of Gabriella, and the life of the Illuminator—
I was alone
.

Joseph was the first to come up behind Jenna. They spoke to each other, and Jenna smiled a small, sad smile. Through my tears, I smiled too. She always loved a man in a suit. After several minutes, he walked her to her car, but what I was intent on watching was not them, but the angels who surrounded my empty casket. Andrew put his hand upon the silver-coated casket and several golden tears splashed onto it, which slithered down the side. I hadn’t noticed how close I had gotten and backed away. Aiden had a hand on Andrew’s shoulder, gripping it as if he were holding him up. Ehno and Lucia held hands, but what shocked me more than anything about the whole scene was that Ehno stared directly at me.

I vanished, going back to my neighbor’s beach house. For a moment I was stunned. That was the first time I had “popped” from one place to the next. I had been staying here for the last three days. I was lucky that my neighbors didn’t live up here—they only visited in the summer months. Taking in a deep breath, I leaned back against the wall. I wasn’t sure if Ehno had actually seen me or not, but I wasn’t staying to find out. It was amazing how easily I had taken to this new life, these new changes, and this new power, but I knew deep within my soul that this was who I was meant to be. And if I had to hide in shadows for a while, I would.

It was only a matter of time before I would need my angels again. More than anything, I missed Andrew holding me at night during my dreams. But right now, the angelic world needed to think I was dead—that the Illuminator had failed. Though I was far from failing—I was only beginning my journey, a journey I knew nothing about.

<>

It had been two long days since my funeral. A plum brick-colored house stood with sandy brown shutters in the darkness of the cloudy night. No light flooded through the windows.

He was asleep, but I knew he would be there.

I knocked on the front door. It was three in the morning, but that was why I had picked this time of night. It was the dead hour—perfect timing for me to show up on his doorstep considering I was dead. The door flung open, and Joseph was silhouetted in the dim light coming from inside. He wore flannel pajama pants, his bare abs exposed, his hair tousled, and his eyes heavy with sleep. He didn’t say anything as he stared at me in sheer disbelief. I could understand—I was dead, or so he thought.

“
Gabriella?”

“
Joseph, I need your help.”

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There are so many people I want to thank for their help with making this book possible.

First, and foremost, Lisa Langdale: she stuck with me through every sentence, each comma, and every crazy quote that she could convince me to trash . . .
or to add
. There has never been a better Beta reader! She might have even taken a Lamaze class so she could coax me down when I was having a “freakout.” She was the first Team Joseph supporter and hopefully not the last. Love you like crazy, woman!

“
The beta-ing never ends, even on the acknowledgments.” –Lisa, self proclaimed Captain of Team Joseph

Second, I want to thank my family: they cheered me on, helped me when I desperately needed advice, and have been nothing but supportive in whatever I wanted to do in life, even when it was to become a writer. (That was out of left-field, eh Mom?) Most important to acknowledge of this bunch is JD for understanding me when I was being an anti-social, crazy lunatic for months. (And for letting me have TWO men in my life besides him: Andrew and Joseph.) Michael, my brother, for calling me almost every night for three months begging for new material, and when I was finally done, he read the whole thing again in one day. Of course, my parents, who dedicated their lives to me. Don’t worry, I didn’t forget about how amazing you are, Grandma, and all the wonderful notes you gave me to help improve my writing. You’ll always be an English teacher at heart.

Third, I’d like to thank DJ Urquart, who is an excellent English teacher and friend who gave it to me straight! Sorry, his name is still Jeff, not Geoffre or Frautz. Are those even names? Haha.

Fourth, there were a few who edited only parts of my book that gave me great, new insight on my characters. Big thanks to Brianne Villano, from Mindful Media Management, who was able to make me laugh at my own stupidity without actually making
me
feel stupid. Thank you to Marissa at First Editing. She transformed some of my badly formed sentences into something readable!

Gabriella is Back

SOUL STALKER

Being the Illuminator is not all happiness and light, especially when everyone thinks you are dead. When Gabriella decides to finally tell her angels she is alive, Joseph and an unexpected friend help her. The Darkness Illuminator is not as in control of her power as she believes, which makes for a very comedic and endearing relationship that blooms between the three. A fender-bender debacle, a run in with the cops, and a hiccup at the airport seem to all be worth it until Gabriella finds out her plan has backfired.

The three angels are missing, more mysteries pile up, and a new evil is brewing—so terrifying, in fact, that even the Soul Stalker herself is cowering in fear. Our heroine begins a jarring, romance-filled, heart-breaking journey that will lead her back to Italy, and ultimately to the answers she is desperately searching for. What will she do when they aren’t the answers she expected? What happens when she unveils a truth, so deeply hidden, that it causes an angelic war?

Available now at a bookstore near you.

http://laurakreitzer.com