Gemini (8 page)

What about Phoebe? Did I really have to let her go? I wasn't sure if it was a sacrifice I was willing to make. Did I really want to be with Cade, or was it just this overwhelming flood of emotions confusing me?

“No logic can go into choosing love.”

Cade's words rang through my mind as I strolled along the shore, staring at the boats in the harbor. My heart was never good at making decisions. That was proved with Eli.

My cell rang, stealing my focus from Cade.

“Zoe. Tell me about Sam Gaits,” Lucci’s voice echoed on the other line.

A smile spread over my face. My Infinity news had been burning in me, but I couldn’t tell anyone. Until now.

“He gave me his card, said he’d be back. He loved the set. Said he wants to see if I’m a good fit for Infinity.” My voice trembled, dripping with excitement.

“See? What did I tell you? Didn’t I say all you needed was the right person to hear you? I told you yesterday would change your life.”

Yeah, Lucci wasn’t kidding. Only in more ways than she even understood. And now knowing for sure Cade was my Gemini, I had no idea what that meant for my career. Could I have both?

“Zoe?”

“Yeah, I’m here. Sorry.”

“You need to focus. Eyes on the prize, my girl. No time for distractions, is that clear?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Good. Now, I want to meet for coffee soon and go over your set list for the next time Sam Gaits comes. He’ll be bringing a producer, so you have to be ready. I don’t know much about this Sam guy, we were supposed to have another scout come out. One I know, but from what I hear, Sam is also amazing.”

“Yes, whatever we need to do. I want this so bad, I can taste it.”

“Have you told the band yet?”

I hadn’t said anything to them. And now with all this Genesis stuff going on, I had no idea how this would even play out. Would I have to do this on my own?

“Ya know, I’m not sure this is what they want, Lucci. There’s a lot going on in all their lives. I don’t know if we want the same things anymore.”

“Well if that’s the case, you’re better off going solo. You can’t be tied to those who bring you down. Unmotivated humans have a way of ruining things for those like us. You need to surround yourself with others who understand you, and what you want. Like I do. Otherwise, they could ruin everything.” The line went silent for a second. “Do you understand what I’m telling you? This is about you. Live your dream.”

I sighed, knowing that especially now, this wouldn’t be so easy to pull off.

“I understand.”

“You don’t sound convinced. I need to know you’re on board here. That you want this more than anything. Did I misjudge you? Because I’m not going to invest my energy in someone who doesn’t have the stamina to see this thing through. There are hundreds, thousands of girls out there, waiting to take your place on that stage. You’ve earned your place there. Don’t mess this up.”

“I’m in.” I said the precarious words before my head had other plans. I needed this more than anything.

Cade would have to wait.

“I’m counting on you, Zoe.”

The line went silent. I shoved the iPhone in my pocket and stopped on the sidewalk, five feet from my building.

“What the hell do I do now?”

My phone buzzed again, and I pulled it out from my pocket.

Home
meant either Phoebe or Rainah, and I didn't want to talk to either. I turned around and headed away from my building. Maybe a walk on the pier would do me some good.

I ignored the buzzing and continued my inner dialogue, but my phone rang twice more, and I caved. "Hey, I'm almost home."

"It's Rainah."

"What's wrong?"

“Phoebe.”

“I’m just outside, I’ll be up in a sec.” I started to turn around.

“She’s not here.”

There was only one place she’d go if she was upset. Same place I would. Somewhere I could think. Or forget. “On my way.”

I tried calling Phoebe on my way to the lounge, but she never answered. This whole thing had to be devastating to her.

I kind of knew the feeling.

I went in through the back door of the lounge. Phoebe sat on stage, playing a tune at the piano. She’d been working on it the past few weeks.

Phoebe was the lyricist to my composer, but this song was all her own.

We all wrote songs as a way to express our feelings, but Phoebe was special. A music therapy major, she had discovered her destiny.

Her music healed people. Healed me.

I came up behind her as she sang, then picked up my violin from its stand and sat down on a stool beside her.

She looked over from the piano. Her eyes were puffy. She’d been working through this. Rather than talk, we needed to play, so I followed along with my violin.

She sang under her breath.

Phoebe had such a way with words—a way of expressing emotions that I never did. That, I envied. I could compose, sing, and play any instrument handed to me, but she always said the right thing to make it complete.

I played along, listening to Phoebe sing, “I have died a thousand times…”

I stopped playing and stared over at the piano...

A rush of light streams through my consciousness, and I’m ripped from tranquility. The noises surrounding me transform into the soft beating of a drum.

Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

A heartbeat. Mine?

Where am I?

My gaze drifts about the room, then focuses on Cade’s solemn eyes.

It’s happened. I’m reborn.

I’m temporarily comforted, protected in Cade’s strong embrace. I have no idea how long I have left with him, but I want to make the most of these final moments.

I study his features, memorizing them—the angle of his jaw, the curve of his nose. His eyes and their crystal blue coloring are as beautiful as the Chayah Fountain. I snuggle into the crook of his elbow, bury my head, and listen to the thrum of his heart. It’s no longer pulsing in my wrist, and I miss it.

His heartbeat soothes me, reminds me that I am still alive, and this is not the end, but perhaps, a new beginning. For us.

If only for a fleeting moment, I’m at peace.

Cade whispers so softly, I can hardly hear. “Don’t forget me, love.”

I close my eyes as something gently presses against my lips.

"Shh—" The voice whispers as I slip away into darkness.

“I love you, Chayah. See you soon…”

I stir from the memory and lightly touched my cheek, as if his heartbeat was still pulsing beside it.

What was that?
My second vision in the past two hours. Was this going to become a habit? Would memories of life with Cade continue to invade my consciousness, distracting me from my life? From my dreams?

I told Lucci I was in, so Cade would have to wait. And if he loved me like he said he did… How was that even possible? We’d just met. Although my visions said otherwise, it still felt distant. Like a movie, watching someone else’s life on a screen. I didn’t recognize my life. But he expected me to feel something?

I was so confused.

Okay, I had to stop. I came here for Phoebe.

I got up and sat beside her on the piano bench.

"I messed up." I sighed. "I got you and Remie together, and now we don't know if you can stay together."

"You know I want you to be happy, right? I want us all to be happy. You found your Gemini.” She stopped playing and turned to me, her eyes damp with tears. “Do you know what this means?"

I wasn’t sure I wanted to. My instincts, though rusty as ever, told me life as some supernatural leader couldn’t be all rainbows and unicorns.

"I won't let this change us," I said. "I promise we'll figure something out. If nothing else, I'll just… stay here. With you."

She pressed her lips closed and tilted her neck. Wrinkles creased her forehead.

"Listen, Zoe. I've stood back while you pushed love away, and any prospect of it, for the past three years. Now that you've met Cade, I know why, but I'm not sure you do." Her expression was serious as stone. "This is your chance for love. Take it." She paused, relaxing her shoulders. "You know when I met Cade, I could sense him."

"What do you mean? How?" Phoebe was an Empath and could always tell what I was feeling, but I didn’t know how far that went with others.

"His love for you. It’s the strongest emotion I've ever felt, even from Remie." She set her hands in her lap. "When we were kids and you were with Eli, I never sensed that. Only his protectiveness for you, like it was his job. But with Cade, it's different." Her expression lit up. "He adores you."

Goose bumps chased over my arms.

"This whole thing is so confusing. I've been having flashes, like daydreams. I think it's memories coming back. Nothing makes any sense."

"Love never does." She laughed, returning her fingers to the piano. "You remember when you told me Remie was my Gemini?"

"Yeah, now I'm thinking I should've just kept my big mouth shut."

"Remie was the best gift I've ever been given. If it weren't for you, I never would've met him. Whether this is for now or forever, I'm grateful for our time together."

"You aren't angry? At all?”

She shook her head and continued to play.

"How is that even possible? You’re way too mature for your own good. So this Genesis thing—what if we have no choice but to leave? What then? How could you be cool about the whole thing?"

"Sophie and my parents taught me that sometimes we just have to believe in things we can't see." She stopped playing. "You've been given a gift, one you don’t quite understand the significance of, but it’s still a gift. And you only see it as a burden. I have to admit, that frustrates me a little." She returned to her song.

My stare remained fixed on the piano.
Was she right?
How was this a gift? I still wasn't sure, but I knew one thing. Phoebe was. She was sent to me for a reason. That, I was sure of.

“I believe in destiny. That there's some plan for us. For you and Cade. Remie and me. I may not know what it is, but that doesn’t take away my faith. I don’t care if I don’t have the Genesis mark like you guys, it doesn’t mean I have any less love for Remie. I may not always understand this plan, and I assume it’s because I’m not supposed to. But I still believe. And I won’t let anything take my faith." She sighed, as if trying to convince me. Or maybe herself. "Sometimes it's all I have."

I couldn't give Phoebe up. And I wouldn't allow her to sacrifice Remie for me either. There had to be a way around this, and one way or another, I would figure it out.

Zoe

After spending several hours at the lounge, Phoebe and I finally left for home.

My body ached from playing, shoulders stiff. On top of that, the stress of today had incited a dull headache that throbbed in my temples. I wanted nothing more than to go home and sink myself into a long, hot bath.

We got to our apartment, and Remie’s door opened down the hall. He made his way toward us, smiling. Remie was adorably blond. Blue eyes. And tall. He towered over Phoebe, practically swallowed her petite frame.

They were so adorable together. Anyone with half a brain could see they were in love.

We went inside, and Phoebe and Remie disappeared into her room. I guess after today's fireworks, they needed some time alone to sort things out.

So did I.

After a long bath, I dressed in a pair of PJ pants and a tank top, then spent ten minutes picking the knots from my thick hair.

"Hey, you decent?" Phoebe tapped at my door.

"Yeah," I called out from my bed, still fighting with my unruly knots.

She came in and sat beside me.

"What’s up, Phoebs?"

She blinked, her gaze glued to mine. "Remie and I talked, and he told me what he knows about Genesis."

I opened my mouth to ask about it, but she cut me off.

"You have to do this."

"Do what?” I wrinkled my nose.

"You have to give Cade a chance."

"Okaaay?"

"When you're ready, come out to dinner. Remie will tell you everything. I just know you have to go to him." She squeezed my shoulder, then got up and left my room.

“I have a choice, damn it.”

An hour later, we all mustered through dinner and kitchen clean up, and then assembled in the front room.

Chirping crickets was the extent of the background noise in the room. Their silence was deafening, the tension palpable.

I started freaking out.

I sat at my usual perch, waiting for everyone to settle in.

Rainah was already lying back on the couch with her feet propped up, eyes closed, and arms folded over her chest.

Remie and Phoebe settled on the loveseat. He put his arm around her, and she hid her face in his chest. Remie stretched his legs up on the coffee table. Kissing the top of her head, he smoothed her hair to the side.

I hated to think what might happen to them once this Genesis thing took off. I felt partially responsible, and all I wanted was to fix it. Make sure that whatever happened, Phoebe wasn’t left alone. She was family, too, even without the Genesis mark.

I needed her.

Everyone startled when Micah stormed in the front door and slammed it behind him. He held up the wall beside the door, propped his foot back behind him, and folded his arms over his chest. “I’m here. Let the games begin.”

"What's going on?" I asked. “Phoebe said you had something to tell me.”

Remie sat up and put his feet on the floor.

"Is there anything else about Genesis that Sophie may have told you?"

"Not really." I pulled my knees into my chest. "Well, except that Adam and Eve were Genesis, but that's it."

"Yes." He pointed at me. "Good. So, Mom told me their entire story, more than you know, I think. Probably more than anyone knows.”

“Okay.”

“They lived for like, a thousand years after leaving the Garden." He straightened his shoulders. "But they didn't die."

I tensed up, my heart thumped against my chest.