Blood of the Ancient Gods: The Beginning (2 page)

Chapter 1

FRIDAY

Tala Reynolds, recent high school graduate, had been dreaming of this day since she'd been placed in foster care. Freedom. It was only a few more hours away. Soon Veronica Lacey, Lilia Evans, and herself would be freshmen at Minerva University. Those two were the sisters of her heart and had helped her endure the loss of her parents and living in the system. They'd been drawn together like magnets when they were placed in the same home their freshman year of high school. The bond between them was instantaneous. They had saved every spare penny they’d earned between them for the last three years, from babysitting, tutoring, and part-time jobs to help with school expenses.

Managing to get a few scholarships and grants had allowed ten percent of their savings to pay for the plane tickets from the east coast to the Midwest where their school resided. The rest was for them to live on. They would need to find new jobs in order to afford a small place after their first year of college was over. They couldn't stay on campus during the summer months between the next academic school year. For that matter, they'd have to find a place during the holiday break as well. The campus was closed during the break and since they weren't attending summer classes they couldn't stay in the dorms. Veronica and Lilia were the closest thing to family she had; their tragic pasts bound them even tighter.

Tala looked over at the sisters of her heart and felt a protective streak she couldn't explain. They were all she had and she couldn’t imagine a world without them in it. Veronica was headstrong and kind, even if at times she was extremely bossy. She had natural blonde hair that many girls had envied. Her eyes were a mix of hazel and green and her skin was flawless and fair. Tala could have easily seen her on magazine covers in another life. Then there was the baby of their makeshift family, Lilia. Lilia was the nicest person she'd ever known, always with a kind word or gesture. She tried to help everyone all the time. She was slight of build and lithe and reminded Tala of a bird. She had light brown hair and chocolate colored eyes on a pixie-like face. Her cheeks seemed to always have blush on them even when they didn’t. She looked like a perfect porcelain doll.

When Tala stood next to her sisters she felt outclassed; but they assured her she was just as beautiful as they were. They envied her dark looks and the fact that she didn't burn easily in the sun. They joked that Tala looked exotic compared to them with her raven hair, grey eyes, and high cheekbones. It always managed to make her smile, since Tala was looking more and more like her mother each day. Three girls that couldn't look any more different were very much the same. Introducing themselves as sisters often confused others, but they didn't care. Blood didn't always make one family. The sudden stop of the cab propelled Tala back to the present. They had finally made it.

After paying the cab driver and removing their suitcases from the trunk and backseat, they spotted the tent they were supposed to stop at as a part of their orientation. They would get their suite number and room key there.

"Veronica and Lilia stay here with our bags. I'll go check us in, get our packets, and see about finding a cart to help us with our bags," Tala said.

"Why do we have to stay?" Veronica asked.

Tala didn't have time for any bullshit right now. She should have known Veronica wouldn't like staying behind. She always wanted to be in charge and her patience was very thin.

"Fine, then you go and hurry the hell up because I don't want to be out here in the sun all day," Tala snapped.

"Let's not fight, you guys. This is supposed to be a happy day. Veronica cut the crap and let Tala go. She's less likely to be distracted by shiny objects like you would. And by shiny objects I mean boys," Lilia said.

Lilia was ever the peacekeeper.

"Whatever," Veronica huffed. "I'll stay behind this time."

"I'll be right back. No longer than ten minutes hopefully," Tala said.

After waiting in line at the orientation tent, signing them all in, getting their information packets, and finding a cart big enough to carry their luggage, close to an hour had passed. Tala knew Veronica would be pissed but she’d have to get over it. Had Veronica been sent instead, three hours would have passed with no sign of her. Tala was the better choice. She saw Veronica and Lilia sitting on the grass with their bags and gave a little wave.

"Finally! What took you so long?" Veronica demanded, hands placed firmly on her narrow hips.

"There was a line and I had to find the cart," Tala sighed. "Don't give me any shit, Veronica. I want to get our bags to our room and start unpacking. I'm tired and want to try to get a nap in sometime today."

Having already memorized how to get to their dorm room, Tala led the way after they piled their bags on the cart. Luckily, they were on the first floor of the big building. Mina Hall was displayed in big letters, so Tala was certain they were in the right place. Now all they had to do was find room thirteen. Lilia went ahead with her key to open the door. The inside was nice and spacious, like a mini apartment. There was a living room, kitchen, a coat closet, linen closet, one huge bathroom, and four bedrooms. Tala was impressed and going by the looks on her sisters' faces so were they.

"You guys go ahead and pick your rooms, then I'll pick mine," Tala said.

Tala flinched as Veronica squealed and ran into one of the rooms and Lilia went to the room across from her. Veronica's room was on the right side, while Lilia's room was on the left. So that left Tala and their other suitemate across from each other. After looking in both rooms, Tala took the one on the same side as Lilia's. Hopefully the other girl wouldn't mind the leftover room. Tala started taking her bags off the cart and placing them in her room. Veronica and Lilia did the same with theirs. They started to slowly unpack after Tala had returned from taking the cart back to where she found it. Almost thirty minutes later, Tala remembered to call their foster mother. She took out her prepaid phone and found Ms. Jones in her contacts.

The phone rang several times before a familiar voice picked up. "Who is this?" Ms. Jones answered in greeting. Tala smiled in spite of herself. Ms. Jones was a riot. She refused to get a newer phone that showed caller ID.

"It's Tala, Ms. Jones."

"How is it?" Ms. Jones asked excitedly.

Tala smiled. She hadn't wanted to like Ms. Jones after the bad homes she'd been in before her but the old woman had grown on her.

"It's perfect. Sorry it took so long to call. I should have as soon as we landed. We were just so excited," Tala said.

"Hey Ms. Jones," Veronica and Lilia yelled.

"Hey, my babies!" Ms. Jones yelled just as loud. The phone was on speaker, saving Tala from losing her hearing.

"Now make sure y'all get settled in and remember to have fun. Call me when you can and if you need anything don't hesitate to ask. You hear me?"

"Yes ma'am," the girls said in unison.

"Good, now get on off this phone and start enjoying yourself. Bye, my little flowers," Ms. Jones said.

"That woman's crazy," Veronica said around a grin.

"I'm going to miss her. Maybe we can visit if we have the extra money," Lilia said.

"Yes, maybe," Tala agreed.

They continued to unpack as they waited for their other suitemate. Hopefully she wasn't an asshole. Only time would tell.

Anima Grey could feel the souls of every person within a five miles radius. This was going to be fun. After getting her information packet from the orientation tent, she dragged her bags to Mina Hall in search of room thirteen. The guy at the tent had said her other three suitemates had already checked in. Anima had wanted to arrive first to have the upper hand but her father had delayed her. No matter, she'd win them over with her charming personality. Besides who didn't love her with her dark brown hair, amber eyes, and perfectly tanned skin. She was perfection.

Anima heard voices coming from the suite as she stood outside the door. She slowly turned the key as to not scare her roommates, at least not yet. There would be plenty of time later to frighten them.

"Hello," Anima said.

Three girls stared back at her and Anima almost collapsed under the light of their souls. They shined as bright as the rarest gems. These girls were strong, very strong and if they weren't careful they'd attract all kinds of nasty who'd do anything to claim them as their own. But they were Anima's; she'd seen them first. What was the old saying; finder's keepers?

"Hi, I'm Tala and these are my sisters, Veronica and Lilia."

"I'm Anima, it's very nice to meet you."

"I hope you don't mind, we already picked rooms. This one is yours," Tala said and pointed to the empty room.

"No problem. They all have the same stuff in them anyway. I'm not picky," Anima said.

"Do you need help unpacking?" Lilia asked.

"Oh you don't have to. I'm sure you're all tired," Anima said.

"It's no bother, really," Lilia said.

"If you want, you're more than welcome to," Anima said.

With all of them helping they unpacked Anima's bags in no time. With that settled, they went into the living room to talk and get to know each other.

"So, Anima, what made you pick Minerva University?" Veronica asked.

Anima was careful to keep her face neutral and the bitterness out of her voice when she replied.

"My father made the decision for me. He has my entire life planned out for me," Anima said.

"Maybe he just wants what's best for you," Lilia said.

Well wasn't she just the little peacekeeper. Lilia would change her mind if she ever met Anima's father.

"That's very sweet of you, Lilia, but I know my father. The only thing he wants is to control every aspect of my life. It's been this way since my birth or so I've been told."

"It could always be worse," Veronica said.

"Really? What could possibly be worse than a father who wants to control you?" Anima asked.

"Oh, I don't know but watching your parents die in front of you may be worse. Just saying, but what do I know," Veronica said.

Anima was rendered speechless for the first time in her life.

"Um, I don’t know what to say to that…sorry," Anima offered weakly.

"Ignore her. Veronica that was unnecessary," Tala admonished. "Sorry, Anima, but we're orphans. Our parents died when we were young and we bounced from foster home to foster home until we ended up in the same one with Ms. Jones."

"That's really shitty. As much as my father annoys me, he's mine. I don't want him dead. He just needs to remove the leash and let me live my life. If it's not too hard to talk about, what was it like living in the system and why did you all move around so much?" Anima asked.

Anima noticed how tense they'd all become at the thought of telling her their past but as the Goddess of Souls, she just couldn't help herself. She may be known as Anima Grey when in the presence of mortals, but she was still Psyche, daughter of Thanatos the God of Death. She enjoyed watching the pain and suffering of others. And she longed for the day her father died so she would be free of him. Even mortals who hadn't lost their families wouldn't understand her need for her father's death.

"It's not something we like to dwell on. Most of the families just weren't good fits with us. There was abuse. We were between six and eight when our families died and were tossed in the system. There was no other family to take us in, or if there was, they didn't want us. We finally found a home that was safe and we all stayed there from fourteen to when we graduated high school. Ms. Jones is an amazing foster mother. Any kids placed with her should consider themselves lucky. Other than that, we got jobs and worked hard in school to receive scholarships for college. That’s how we’re able to be here," Tala explained.

"Wow, I couldn't even imagine. You didn't want to go to different colleges?" Anima asked.

"No, we stick together no matter what. We're family," Lilia said.

"I don't understand. You don't look alike," Anima said.

"We're family because we choose to be. We don't need the blood connection," Veronica explained.

"Oh, you adopted each other. That's so sweet! Enough of the morbid and sad. What classes are you guys taking and have you decided on a major yet?" Anima asked. "My classes are pretty basic this year. Math, english, science, and history class. I want to get the general classes out of the way first. My major is a toss up between psychology and mythology."