CHAPTER ONE
Aryiah shoved her cell phone back into her purse as she and Devin climbed the stairs of her favorite library in her hometown of Colorado Springs, Colorado.
“Who was that?” Devin asked.
“Who do you think?” Aryiah cast a speculative look at her best friend. “My mother, of course. Telling me how fabulous her latest trip to Spain was going.”
Devin laughed. “Why don’t you ever go with her? She’s filthy rich and travels the world, while all you ever do is travel from your apartment to work. Why not live a little and join her for once?”
Aryiah passed through the rotating doors of the library then paused and looked back at Devin. “You know me better than that.” Her lips barely twitched, unable to produce a real smile.
After her dad’s death, Aryiah’s mother traipsed around the world on the money she’d inherited, while Aryiah’s childhood consisted of major amounts of time spent with tutors and maids throughout the years. As a teenager, Aryiah had spent hours in this very library researching how to communicate with the dead, desperately hoping to reconnect with the ghost of her father.
Shaking her head, she tried to escape the thoughts of her past as she climbed the main stairs. At the top, Aryiah turned left and came to a stop in front of the massive wooden arch that led into the occult section of the library. The archway was finely crafted, displaying detailed carvings of metaphysical symbols. She entered the room and was flooded with a rush of memories from the time she spent here as a teenager. It smelled the same; a light, musty aroma drifted from the old manuscripts, and a fine layer of dust shimmered in the rays of light that filtered in through the high windows.
“So, what exactly are we looking for?” Devin asked, pulling Aryiah from her thoughts.
It’d been second nature to invite Devin on this little research trip. After meeting in college, the two of them were joined at the hip. Devin had always been the smartass, wild child of the pair with her flaming red hair, killer body, and great sense of humor, while Aryiah remained the grounded, down-to-earth one. They’d been through so much together, including two weddings. Aryiah was Devin’s maid-of-honor, and Devin hers when each of them had gotten married. Now, two divorces later, they were a couple of single women in their early thirties currently standing in the occult section of the library about to research the Wiccan religion.
“Well, I don’t know exactly, but recently I had a really strange dream, and when I woke up, the only thing I could remember was the word Wicca.” Aryiah looked over her shoulder. “You know I researched this stuff in my past, and with the weird things that have happened to me over the years … I don’t know, I just feel like it’s time that I dove back into it.”
With a raised eyebrow and a hint of skepticism in her voice Devin said, “Okay, so do you just want me to start reading and tell you stuff I find interesting, or should I look up the word superpowers?” Devin giggled at her own remark.
Aryiah’s lashes brushed her cheeks and she purposely held her blink for a few extra seconds. While she loved her best friend dearly, Devin’s smartass comments were not what she needed right now. Aryiah’s dream truly had felt like a wakeup call—one that left her wanting to pick up where she’d left off in her Wiccan studies all those years ago. So, as much as she wanted to include Devin in this, she knew those who didn’t understand the supernatural would have a hard time relating to how serious this subject was to her. Aryiah smiled, then shook her head and pointed toward the exit. “Never mind. Why don’t you go browse for something you’d enjoy reading instead? I’m sure they have a few Kama Sutra books in the sex section you can use to bone up for your date tonight.”
Devin stuck out her tongue and flipped her hair off her shoulders as she followed Aryiah between the tall bookcases. “Maybe I’ll just write my own damn book. With my experience, you know it’d be a bestseller.” Devin wiggled her brows.
Aryiah laughed and rolled her eyes. “Yes, of course, oh Master of the Ménage.”
They both laughed as they wove their way deeper into the back corner of the section. Suddenly, Aryiah stopped and looked over her shoulder with a quick snap of her head. “Hey, did you see that?”
“See what?” Devin asked, gawking around from left to right.
“I thought I just saw a woman walking down that aisle.”
“Oh shit, are you seeing ghosts again?” Devin’s teasing tone came through loud and clear, but Aryiah wasn’t kidding. The section had been empty when they came in, but now with the appearance of this woman, her senses were on high alert. Turning down the aisle she quickly realized no one was there.
Huh, maybe I am losing it, she thought, but after a few more steps into the aisle, Aryiah came to a stop in front of a shelf and tilted her head. There were six books lying on their sides as if they’d been laid out on purpose, effectively separating them from the upright ones. She inspected their spines and immediately felt drawn to the texts. Not wanting to give Devin a chance to razz her about her selections, she quickly stuffed the books in her bag.
“Okay. These should do it,” she said to Devin, then turned and headed to the checkout counter.
“Hey, are you okay?” Devin asked.
“Yes, I’m fine,” Aryiah replied as she picked up her pace. Once they reached the counter, Aryiah set her books out for the attendant to scan, then noticed that Devin was squinting at her with an ‘I don’t believe you’ expression. Aryiah quickly averted her eyes, then turned to thank the attendant and gasped as she caught the gaze of the beautiful librarian who’d just helped her.
The woman was definitely older than her, but model gorgeous. She was taller than average, maybe 5’9”. Her long, dark hair shimmered like silk and waved and curled in just the right places. Her sapphire eyes sparkled against the silver silk blouse she had tucked into slate grey pants. Her silver chain belt caught Aryiah’s eye; a cluster of small charms—a moon, a star, and a pentacle—each hung from a small clasp. Aryiah felt as though time had stopped as her head began to spin.
“Holy shit,” Devin blurted. “You guys could be twins. Wow! You’re certainly not what I expected a librarian to look like. You’re more like the sexy ones you see in the movies with their hair up and glasses on before they whip them off and … never mind.”
The lady ignored Devin and spoke directly to Aryiah, “Whoa, honey, are you okay? You’re looking a little woozy.”
Aryiah shook her head and focused her attention on the woman. “I’m fine, thank you. You just caught me off guard. I know they say everyone has a twin, but … Um, I’m fine. Thank you again.”
“My pleasure. And, Aryiah, I have another book I think you might enjoy.”
Aryiah froze. She wasn’t fine. First of all, this woman made her feel as if she was staring into her own future, and now she was calling her by name and showing an interest in her reading material. No, she wasn’t fine at all, she was completely weirded out.
“Um, h-how do you kn-know my n-name?” Aryiah stammered.
The librarian smiled and held up something in her hand. “Your library card, of course.”
“Ah, of course.” Aryiah nodded in acceptance of the woman’s response. “As for the extra book, thank you, but I think I have plenty to get me started.”
The woman said nothing but stared deep into her eyes and Aryiah’s dizziness returned as a faint whisper drifted to her ears. “You are mine, we have little time, come to me, when you’re ready to see.”
The last thing Aryiah saw was the floor rising up to meet her as she fainted.