TO SAY MY father was a thunderhead of anger was an understatement. His eyes burned— not literally like Xander’s, just the normal figurative way. He released my arm as soon as I faced him and swept me into his arms in a crushing hug. Then he bent down to the open door and addresses Nate.
“You better come in, Nathanial. This will affect you too. Were you aware of my children’s detective work?” I heard the rumble of Nate’s voice before Dad added, “Well you go ahead. We’ll be along momentarily. Nancy’s making dinner and afterwards we need to figure out what’s going on.” I watched Nate climb the back steps with trepidation. My father rarely reprimanded me as I was growing up, but the few times he did were always—memorable, to put it mildly. Nate shot me an apologetic shrug and a patented smile as he opened the door, leaving me alone with my very angry father.
Dad took me by the shoulders and literally shook me. “Do you have any idea how foolish that was, Amelia?” He held me at arm’s length, his eyes searching.
“No, not really. Sariah is incapable of crossing her legs, and Xander goes through girls the way I go through socks. How is one little kiss so horrible?”
“Number one, it’s not the same and you know it. Asking Sariah to abstain is like asking you to starve yourself. And number two, things are different for gaia. Your mother should really be the one to tell you this stuff. I’m no good at it.” He shrugged at me, his eyes almost begging me to understand.
“Well she isn’t telling me, Dad. And if you’re not going to either, you can’t be angry at me for stumbling around in the dark! Either turn on a light for me or leave me to it. But I will not be judged for not knowing what you won’t tell me!” I was yelling in the end. I recoiled as the fact I just yelled at my father sunk into my thick skull. I never stood up to anyone, let alone my father. I braced myself for the consequences, but I wouldn’t back down. This time I knew I was right.
My father looked at me with a newfound respect. He pulled me forward and kissed my forehead. “I forget you’re growing up, Amelia. And you’re right—we can’t expect you to protect yourself if we don’t give you the proper tools. Don’t ever kiss a boy unless you really mean it, girly. It’s not the same for gaia as it is for the rest of the world. We are life partners—a single kiss will seal you to a man for the rest of your life.”
I touched my lips with my hand remembering the feather brush of Nate’s mouth against mine before my father yanked me out of the car, and I was filled with horror. What if my father hadn’t come out and stopped us? My father smiled at me, as if to soften the blow, and hugged me close with one arm as we headed into the house.
The smell of Mom’s delicious roasted chicken had me salivating almost instantly. I never really knew how much trouble Mom went to making our meals seem normal while using only organic materials. The two bad experiences I had with food since I’d changed was all it took for me to yield to the fact that I would never be able to eat in a restaurant again. It made me wonder about all the trips out to eat over the years, and how my parents dealt with it. I made a mental note to ask them about that when things weren’t quite so tense.
I tried to question Xander with my eyes, but I don’t know what I hoped to accomplish with it. He merely shrugged and twisted his mouth a little. Forced to face Mom and Dad’s wrath alone, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. What were they doing here anyway? It suddenly dawned on me that if gaia could sense each other’s emotions perhaps they knew something was up all along. Had they ever actually left?
Putting it to the test, I rested my head on my dad’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Daddy,” I said, batting my lashes at him. I felt very little coming from him, but I had a vague sense of fear. It was nothing like what I could sense from Nate, but I was definitely picking up something. Interesting. Was he better at hiding his feelings because he was older? I had to talk to my Mom and get some answers.
Dad patted my shoulder and gave me a quick squeeze before stepping away. “You’re not in trouble, Amelia. You don’t need to apologize. We just need to figure out where we go from here.”
“What happened after I left?” I asked, turning to Xander. He opened his mouth, but Mom held up a hand.
“Hold that thought. Why don’t you boys go set the table for me, give me a minute to chat with Amelia. We’ll eat as soon as Sariah gets back.”
Mom gestured for me to sit at the counter and butterflies fluttered in my stomach. “I don’t know what’s going to happen yet, but I think things are going to get a little crazy tonight and this might be our last chance to talk. I don’t want to leave you unprepared for whatever is waiting for us, so ask all the questions you want.” My eyes met hers. It was like looking into a mirror and seeing myself twenty years from now. My mother's eyes were calm and peaceful, totally at odds with her words. Why wouldn't we be able to talk again? Fear clenched inside of me. What had I done? What had I forced my family into by not minding my own business? We were all in danger and the fact that I put us there made me very sad.
“Is it possible for me to know what’s coming? Or is it just dread?” I asked, my voice thick with emotion.
Mom gave me a weak smile and took my hand. I felt fear and more than a little sadness in her. “Trust your instincts, Amelia. You’re not an oracle, but you should always trust your heart and go with your feelings.”
“Can I sense all gaia’s feelings, or is it only certain people?”
“All gaia, to varying extent. Except…” She trailed off and shook her head. “It’s easier with family, common blood and all that. You can kind of wall the emotions off, but they’ll still leave a little trace.”
“Then why can I sense Nate so clearly?” Mom gave me a wary look as if gauging how much to tell me and the frustration was back. “How can I be prepared for what’s coming if no one is willing to talk to me?” I was proud of how level I kept my voice, despite that fact that I felt anything but calm.
Mom sighed, and I could tell she was finally ready to lay it all on the table. “That’s something very special and unique about gaia, Lia. We tend to be drawn toward each other. Random circumstances shape our lives to bring us to our life partners. As soon as I met Nate, I knew it wasn’t a coincidence he was in the same place as you. You can sense his emotions because he is meant for you, baby.”
“Wait, meant for me? Like my soul mate or whatever?” Mom just shrugged and shook her head. I’d never bought into that one boy for every girl hogwash romance novels spoon-fed me. But could there be a grain of truth in it? “How do you know for sure? If I found another male gaia, would I be able to sense him the same way?
Mom cocked her head and looked thoughtful a moment, then pressed her lips together and shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. I grew up in a colony of gaia, but none of the boys there held any allure for me. As luck would have it, nursing school drew me to the same college your father attended. As soon as I laid eyes on him in the cafeteria, he became a fascination for me.” She got a far-away look in her eyes, and I knew she was back in the campus cafeteria staring across the sea of people gazing at the man who would be my father. “I’ve never felt a connection like the one we share.”
“So what decides who each of our life partner will be?”
Mom spread her hands and shrugged. “Fate, best genetic match, random lottery… No one really knows. I like to think it’s God’s hand. Do you remember what you used to tell us all the time about Nate when you first met him?
I couldn’t speak, remembering my firm declarations that I was going to marry him. I thought about how lackluster all other boys were next to the glowing star that was Nate. Then I thought about him almost kissing me in the car, the sense of melting resistance in him. “Does he know? That we’ll bond if we kiss? And if he’s already my life partner, what will bonding change?”
Mom smiled. “I knew you got my smarts. Since Nate’s parents died when he was so young, he grew up not knowing a lot of this. Your father has had the heart-to-hearts men need over the years with him.
As for the difference the bond makes, it’s big. So big we’ll have to save it for another day. Just know for now, it is not something to be taken lightly or so young. I’ve rarely heard of gaia meeting their partners so young, and everyone I’ve heard of has been a sort of epic tale.”
I couldn’t imagine anything about me ever being epic, so I changed the subject. “So if you sense emotions from me, you knew what I was up to all along?”
“It requires physical contact with anyone other than your partner. But I don’t need to sense your emotions to know what you’re up to, Amelia. You’re not nearly as sneaky as you think you are. If your brother hadn’t been involved, I probably would have known exactly what was going on. We got about halfway to Grandma’s before we turned around. About that time we got a call about you tearing out of here. When we got home, Xander told us we all need to sit down and discuss this together.”
I nodded, my mind casting around for any other questions I had. Put on the spot like this, I couldn’t think of much. “What exactly can I do? I know how to use plants like we’ve been working on, and the wind and the rain thing, but what else can I do?”
“The ‘wind and the rain thing’ is nothing to sneeze at, girly. It’s very rare things for a female gaia to do. Legend has it The Gaia, the one the Greek’s worshiped, could manipulate the weather, but there haven’t been many others who could. In the end, it all comes down to energy. Photosynthesis is about creating energy. Sunlight is energy,” she said with a gesture to the light falling in the kitchen window. “The movement of the earth is energy. You can harness it and guide it.” She gestured with her hands as she spoke, excitement making her speak a little faster than usual. I don’t know if I’d ever noticed my mom this fired up about something before. “Men can do it to a lesser extent, but if they really need power they must draw through us. You must be careful with this, because it can drain you. Remember, though your powers don’t have the flash of the guys’, you are not helpless. That energy can protect you. I can’t tell you where you’re specific talents will lie. Mine are in nurture, growing plants and raising a family. Your grandmother was most powerful with animals. I grew up in a virtual zoo!” Nostalgia sparkled in her eyes. I knew she missed her parents. They died shortly after she had met Dad. Grandpa was killed in an accident when a car ran a red light and hit him on the crosswalk. Grandma got sick about that time and was gone a short time later. I couldn't imagine losing my parents so young—poor mom! Giving her hand a squeeze, I blinked away my damp eyes.
“I’m sorry I’ve made the last few months miserable for everyone.” Miserable tears trickled down my cheeks.
“Don’t apologize, baby. I’m so proud of what you’ve become. Such a lovely woman.” She brushed my hair out of my face with a smile. When her eyes met mine, I could see tears in them as well. “You need to know you won’t age normally. You’ll have to be careful. Once we have our first transformation, we age very slowly, gaining about a year for every five or ten. And remember don’t trust anyone except your brother and sister—and Nate. They'll keep you safe if I’m not here. Xander has been pushing himself hard to learn to protect you. Don’t be afraid to lean on them. They love you as do I.”
A lump formed in my throat, and I tried to swallow it. I didn’t know what to say. Too many emotions tumbled over me. I had no idea how to interpret any of them, the same turmoil echoed in my mother. It was overwhelming. I pulled my hands away, trying to force a smile so she wouldn’t feel rebuked. As soon as the contact was broken, the emotions calmed a little, but I still had no idea what to say. Mom smiled then turned away and began bustling around the kitchen.