The Lost Soul (Fallen Soul Series, Book 1) by Jessica Sorensen Page B
Authors: Jessica Sorensen
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Faerie strangles my throat, burrowing its skeletal fingers into my neck. My bones splinter under its strength. My head wobbles like a bobble head. I slump from the chair to the floor. My heart hushes as I gasp my last breath.
***
“Gemma Lucas, what are you doing?” A familiar laugh perks my ears. “Open your eyes. You need to see me for this.”
I obey. Grass indents my cheeks and fresh dirt scents the air. A single rose petal drifts, the powdery edge grazing my nose. The twisted roots of a willow tree are half hidden by the ground. I roll to my back. Long branches of the willow tree dance above.
“Hello Gemma.” My mother’s blue eyes fill me with love. Pieces of her long, brown hair falls into her face as she helps me to my feet. Her floral dress bunches on the ground and her feet are bare. She dusts the dirt out of my hair and embraces me in a tight hug. “I’ve missed you so much.”
I shut my eyes, breathing back the tears, and wrap my trembling arms around her. “I’ve missed you to.” I pull back and look her in the eyes. “But why am I here?”
“You’re not technically here,” she tells me. “You’re here in a dream.”
“But it feels so real.”
“So do all of your dreams.”
White and red rose petals flow from the garden, winding and curving freely in the air.
“Why am I not dead?” I ask. “The Water Faerie broke my neck.”
“For the same reason you’re alive.” She gives my hand a squeeze. “Because it’s your destiny. You have a free pass now to and from death. Helena can’t touch your soul unless you offer it to her.”
“But I thought my destiny ended with the star?” I say. “I thought it was all over.”
“Everyone has a destiny. Yours is just more important. I always knew it would be, since the day you were born.” She smiles brightly. “My violet-eyed little girl. You’re going to do great things, but it will be hard. You will be tested, more than you already have. But no matter what, you can never lose yourself. You have to fight not matter what.”
“I don’t understand,” I whisper as the wind carries me back to life. “Mom! Wait!”
***
My bones crack as I reunite with my body. My limbs shift in appalling directions, like a creature from a horror movie. I realign them. My neck is the last part to reposition as I aid it with my hand until it locks into place.
“Why did you do that?!” I cry, charging for her. “You killed me!”
The Queen whisks from her throne and meets me in the middle. “You needed proof, otherwise you wouldn’t believe me. Your breath, your beating heart, are proof.”
I press a hand to my heart. “It stopped beating. I felt it. But how did I come back?”
“You are now part of the ones who can return,” she says. “If you die long enough, you can go to the Afterlife, but can come back and revive to your body. Of course, you have to wait for your body to except you back. Depending on the severity of the death, you could be dead for a matter of minutes. Or with a more brutal death,” her lips curl with excitement, “then you could be gone for days.”
“One’s? As in plural?” I stammer, stretching my fingers as the blood flow returns. “There’s a whole group of people who’ve died and came back?”
“You think you’re the only one who’s been resurrected?” she laughs at the absurdness.
“But you said that I was protected from possession.” I think of Alex. He came back from death.
“He didn’t make it to death,” she states like a mind reader. “He made it between life and death, unlike you who made it to The Afterlife.”
“How do you know this?” I keep my voice guarded. “And why does it matter to you what I am? Why did you bring me down here?”
“I’ve been waiting for one of you for a very long time.” A wicked grin curves on her face and she dashes forward, stopping inches from my face. “Have you ever wondered why death and faeries seem to go together? You have Helena, Queen
***
“Gemma Lucas, what are you doing?” A familiar laugh perks my ears. “Open your eyes. You need to see me for this.”
I obey. Grass indents my cheeks and fresh dirt scents the air. A single rose petal drifts, the powdery edge grazing my nose. The twisted roots of a willow tree are half hidden by the ground. I roll to my back. Long branches of the willow tree dance above.
“Hello Gemma.” My mother’s blue eyes fill me with love. Pieces of her long, brown hair falls into her face as she helps me to my feet. Her floral dress bunches on the ground and her feet are bare. She dusts the dirt out of my hair and embraces me in a tight hug. “I’ve missed you so much.”
I shut my eyes, breathing back the tears, and wrap my trembling arms around her. “I’ve missed you to.” I pull back and look her in the eyes. “But why am I here?”
“You’re not technically here,” she tells me. “You’re here in a dream.”
“But it feels so real.”
“So do all of your dreams.”
White and red rose petals flow from the garden, winding and curving freely in the air.
“Why am I not dead?” I ask. “The Water Faerie broke my neck.”
“For the same reason you’re alive.” She gives my hand a squeeze. “Because it’s your destiny. You have a free pass now to and from death. Helena can’t touch your soul unless you offer it to her.”
“But I thought my destiny ended with the star?” I say. “I thought it was all over.”
“Everyone has a destiny. Yours is just more important. I always knew it would be, since the day you were born.” She smiles brightly. “My violet-eyed little girl. You’re going to do great things, but it will be hard. You will be tested, more than you already have. But no matter what, you can never lose yourself. You have to fight not matter what.”
“I don’t understand,” I whisper as the wind carries me back to life. “Mom! Wait!”
***
My bones crack as I reunite with my body. My limbs shift in appalling directions, like a creature from a horror movie. I realign them. My neck is the last part to reposition as I aid it with my hand until it locks into place.
“Why did you do that?!” I cry, charging for her. “You killed me!”
The Queen whisks from her throne and meets me in the middle. “You needed proof, otherwise you wouldn’t believe me. Your breath, your beating heart, are proof.”
I press a hand to my heart. “It stopped beating. I felt it. But how did I come back?”
“You are now part of the ones who can return,” she says. “If you die long enough, you can go to the Afterlife, but can come back and revive to your body. Of course, you have to wait for your body to except you back. Depending on the severity of the death, you could be dead for a matter of minutes. Or with a more brutal death,” her lips curl with excitement, “then you could be gone for days.”
“One’s? As in plural?” I stammer, stretching my fingers as the blood flow returns. “There’s a whole group of people who’ve died and came back?”
“You think you’re the only one who’s been resurrected?” she laughs at the absurdness.
“But you said that I was protected from possession.” I think of Alex. He came back from death.
“He didn’t make it to death,” she states like a mind reader. “He made it between life and death, unlike you who made it to The Afterlife.”
“How do you know this?” I keep my voice guarded. “And why does it matter to you what I am? Why did you bring me down here?”
“I’ve been waiting for one of you for a very long time.” A wicked grin curves on her face and she dashes forward, stopping inches from my face. “Have you ever wondered why death and faeries seem to go together? You have Helena, Queen