Nightwish (An Echoes of Eternity Novel Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

different female voice entered the conversation: “She has a college degree. Big whoop! Let’s all celebrate that she learned a bunch of stuff that’s useless where it matters: the real world.”
    I redirected my gaze to the person speaking, only to find that she looked…exactly like me! Shocked, I ignored her disrespectful remark and checked out every detail of my identical twin. Her pouty lips were more seductive, and her dark eyes were captivating and impossible to read. But why stop there? Unlike my pink blouse under a velvet cashmere sweater and jeans, a combo that did a fantastic job of diverting attention away from breasts that were too small, my sister wore a tight, black leather vest over a red tank-top that accentuated…I stopped comparing us, fearing that it would only result in the burden of poor self-esteem. No matter how well martial arts had toned my body, my sister looked fitter and sexier. I wanted to hate her, but I was too fascinated and freaked out that I had an identical twin to let fury resonate inside me.
    “Hi,” I said to her, embarrassed that my tone came out sounding like the croak of a frog.
    “Hey,” she said with a disinterested nod. “I’m Alexis.”
    Where I aimed for calm and collected, Alexis looked aloof and quadrupled my coolness factor. She reminded me of the popular girls in high school who never turned an eye upon those below their social status.
    She turned to her mother. “Remind me not to look in the mirror again.” Her eyebrows arched and her cheeks puckered as she stared into my eyes. She gave a frustrated shake of the head as she focused on me. It made me feel like an insect trapped under a microscope. Based on Alexis’s reaction, she hadn’t appeared any more intrigued by my existence than if I’d never been born. Still upset but also a little disappointed, I had no time to prepare for the onslaught of these emotions. On one hand, I felt incredibly overwhelmed that someone almost replicated my DNA. On the other, I felt unprepared and insecure to see that my mirror image made me look like a spinster.
    I broke eye contact, but I felt the need to dissolve the tension between us. “You all right there, Alexis?” I asked, trying to dilute some of my apprehension. “You look like Superman trying to shoot lasers from his eyes.”
    She ignored my sarcasm and glanced at the blond thirteen-year-old girl beside her. “Celestina, go meet your Aunt Serena.” My niece examined me with great concentration, as though studying my image because she feared that she’d never see it again. Despite her age, she looked wise enough to deliberate before uttering her thoughts, whereas at that age (and even now), I tended to speak first and then often regret that I hadn’t filtered my thought process. I admired that about my niece.
    Celestina bit her lower lip with indecision. She wore a black T-shirt featuring numerous white dots, which formed a stellar constellation and blue jean cutoffs. Her hesitance and discomfort reminded me of… well me, to be honest. And for that, I immediately gravitated toward her. I stepped forward and smiled. “Hi, Celestina. I guess…I’m your aunt.”
    That idea made me smile. When I looked into her eyes, a comforting sensation took hold of me: acceptance. While I had a difficult time recognizing Delphine as my mother, and to a lesser extent acknowledging that I had a twin sister, I felt a special kinship with Celestina that words could not explain. Her presence set me at ease in a way. Instinct told me that we’d come to care a great deal for each other, and seeing her smile the moment that thought crossed my mind, made me feel that I should trust that foresight.
    I offered my hand awkwardly, because how do you greet a teenage family member you never knew existed.
    But instead of taking my hand, Celestina went to my left hip and enveloped me in a hug. Caught off guard, but touched by her gesture and the emotion behind it, I wrapped my arms around