Fated by Courtney Cole Page B

away.
    I sat straight up in bed with a gasp. Relieved, I looked around me. I was home. Safe and sound. I had no idea where I had just been, but I was so happy to be here now. I tried to calm my frantic breathing as my heart pounded against my sternum like a runaway freight train.
    And then I saw him.
    Someone was standing in the corner of my room, outlined by the silvery light of the moon.
    Tall and thin, his pale face was luminescent in the shadows. My pulse picked up again. I didn’t take my eyes off of him as I leaned to turn on my lamp. Before I could even reach the switch, he was standing directly in front of me, his ice-cold hand wrapped around my arm. He was lightening fast.
    "Don’t, " he instructed, his breath so cold that it I could see it in the warm air.
    "Why? " I whispered, staring into his silvery eyes.
    "Walk with me, " he answered. He motioned to me and I was instantly on my feet, although I had not actually moved a muscle.
    He grasped my elbow lightly, like a perfect gentleman, guiding me toward the door. Gavin did this very same thing sometimes, in a crowded room. But this icy grip was certainly not Gavin’s and it wasn’t comforting in the slightest.
    We walked through the dark house to the back door and out to the quiet pool. Moonlight reflected off of the still water and I could smell the chlorine on the breeze along with the honeysuckle on the side of the house. Comforting, familiar scents in a terrifying situation.
    He led me to a nearby chair and gestured for me to sit. I did so, then looked up at him.
    "Who are you? "
    "Alexi, " he replied. He didn’t smile, nor did he scowl. He simply had an expressionless face.
    "And why are you here? Why were you in my room in the middle of the night? " I asked, getting back a little of my feistiness. Who did he think he was?
    "I think you know why, Harmonia. "
    My breath froze in my throat.
    "You know who I am? " I asked nervously, glancing around.
    "Of course. As do you ... and therein lies the problem. "
     

 

     
     

Chapter Seven
     
    Alexi stared at me, his gaze sharp and unwavering. I tried not to flinch. Do not let him see your fear. Do not let him see it. I chanted it in my head like a mantra while I clenched my fists tightly.
    He smiled, an eerily haunting gesture that flooded my entire body with white-hot fear.
    "I can read your mind, my dear, " he stated, studying me calmly. "I know that you are afraid. "
    "Who are you? " I whispered. "Did the Moirae send you? "
    "Of course, " he confirmed, so emotionless and matter-of-fact. "As you just saw, Ahmose is, shall we say, permanently indisposed. You are in need of a new Aegis. "
    "Yet, you’re not an Aegis, " I pointed out, trying not to think about poor Ahmose.
    "They told me you were smart, " he observed sarcastically, right before he blurred into motion.
    In a movement as quick as hummingbird wings, he bent and grasped my elbow and pulled me to his side. His icy fingers had barely touched me before I was standing limply once again.
    "Come with me, " he murmured.
    With his free hand, he gestured toward the pool and as I watched in amazement, the water began to churn around in a whirlpool-like frenzy. It quickly developed such power that it sloshed over the sides of the pool deck in frothy, white splatters. He lifted his hand and the water followed it, swirling up into a funnel, emptying the pool as the water hovered in the air above us, still spiraling like a tornado. I gasped and stared at him as he turned slowly to face me.
    "After you, " he said, gesturing toward the pool steps. The empty pool seemed scary to me now, particularly with the water that was supposed to be in it hanging above my head.
    Nervously, I descended the stairs with him, allowing him to lead me down the slanted tiles until we were standing in the empty deep end. The tiled walls surrounding me seemed cavernous and the water hung over our heads like a furious cloud, churning silently. I glanced up at it and felt my pulse race