Read Online Second Nature by Elizabeth Sharp - Free Book Online

of their seats.
One or two of them shuddered as they delicately sipped their tea.
When Xander fed off someone’s energy, it gave them a general
creeped out feeling. I hoped this would kill two birds with one
stone, save my brother and make the high society of Greensboro stay
as far away from us as possible.
    I spent the longest hour of my life sipping
tea and discussing fashion, decorating and other frivolous things
that didn’t matter to me. My head hurt with the effort of not
rolling my eyes. Were they for real? Could anyone truly be so empty
headed? By the time I ran out of questions, the ladies were
fidgeting and looking around as if they expected a serial killer to
pop out of nowhere at them. I smiled and tried to look innocent,
just barely repressing my laughter. I think the end result was a
sinister smile that had the women making hasty apologies. They all
but ran to the door, leaving it standing open as they bustled into
the line of Mercedes, BMW’s and Lincoln Town cars in the driveway.
As I closed the door laughing, my eyes swept the room. The
abandoned teacups were the plain white coffee cups on salad plates,
and the delicate teapot was actually the coffee pot. I looked back
at the door and there was piece of plywood duct taped where the
glass had been. I guess I should have been grateful the blood was
actually gone.
    I was distracted from my line of thought as
Xander stepped out of the closet looking as healthy as ever. I ran
across the room and flung myself into his arm, followed less than a
second later by Sariah.
    “God you scared us!” I cried.
    “Not as tough as you thought, huh?” Sariah
couldn’t keep a smile off her face. It faded as she pulled back to
study his face. “What happened?”
    “I met this smoking hot chick at the mall,
and we spent the day hanging out.” I rolled my eyes. Why wasn’t I
surprised the story of how my brother got himself into so much
trouble started with a pretty girl? “I would have sworn she was
human, but at dinner I suddenly couldn’t move or do anything to
stop her. She grabbed my arm and stuck a needle in it. Just like
that, I was cold. I was pretty out of it as she told the waiter
some lie about me not holding my liquor and took me out to my car.”
He shrugged, spreading his hands helplessly. “The next thing I
remember is waking up here.”
    “Is there something that could affect a
Djinn like that? A drug of some sort?” I asked, looking between my
siblings. They looked as bewildered as I felt. “What could she be
that would seem human, but isn’t?” The words so similarly echoed
Russell’s from earlier. “She's a Librarian?”
    Sariah’s eyes were wide, but Xander frowned
at me. “How do you know about Librarians?”
    “Oh, I know stuff.” I nodded my head with an
innocent look and laughed as his eyes narrowed at me. “Sariah
introduced me to Russell.”
    Xander nodded knowingly, then grinned at
Sariah. “I wondered when you two would make it out of the library.
I saw you playing footsie under the table.”
    Sariah blushed and glanced down, but she was
smiling. I wondered how serious things were between her and the
Librarian.
    “So how many Librarians are there?” I
asked.
    Xander shrugged. “No one knows, but they’re
the hereditary keepers of The Libraries. In the past, they were
neutral, but as things heated up between the classes, some began to
take sides. Now they have evolved into something else entirely.
Something dangerous, it would seem.”
    I blinked at his words, fear leaving an icy
path down my spine. I wouldn’t be able to be a casual observer in
the war that pitted Otherworlders against each other. There had to
be a way to end the hatred and prejudice. But how was I, a lone
Gaia less than two years past her Change, going to do anything
about it?

 

     
    I HOPED A good night’s sleep would bring
answers, but it didn’t. There were too many problems, and I was
still stuck without a single solution. I didn’t even know