Silver Smoke (#1 of Seven Halos Series) Read Online Free PDF

"And it matches my outfit."
    "It's not a fashion statement," Clara said impatiently. "This necklace stifles your Hallow powers.
    If you really are an innate, you can use them accidentally without even knowing it."
    "What is an innate?" Brie asked.
    "A Hallow with heightened powers," Sirena explained. "One who can innately understand and use his or her powers without much training. Innates are special in the Hallow world, because they are one with our origins. Sometimes they invent new magic."
    "So this morning when I yelled 'stop'..." Brie remembered the way Sirena was pitched face-first over her Vespa.
    "You spoke 'stop' in ancient Greek," Sirena explained, "which is what caused me to stop. Greek is the natural Hallow language. Speaking is not necessary to use Hallow powers, but speaking out loud, especially in our original tongue, amplifies whatever it is you're trying to do."
    Brie nodded; she didn't want to think about what could have happened if a paparazzo had captured that moment on camera. She slipped the necklace over her head, letting the ring of stones settle in the middle of her chest.
    "Speaking of powers, we'll have to find time to train you also," Sirena said. "You spend way too much time in the earthlie media and we can't afford to have you lose control in front of them."
    "Yes, training. We need an excuse for you to spend more time with us," Thessa decided. She turned to Clara expectantly, who placed her hands over her cheerleading bag again. A minute later, she pulled out two articles of clothing and handed them to Brie.
    Sirena gasped; Cora just laughed.
    "You have got to be kidding me." Brie held up a Punahou cheerleader uniform. "What's next, Mary Poppins? A mirror and a coat rack?"
    Clara smirked. "You would love another mirror, wouldn't you Brie?"
    "Can you two shut up?" Cora asked. Brie and Clara looked at her in surprise. From what Brie knew about her, she guessed that Cora rarely used phrases like "shut up." Cora put her hand on her forehead, rubbing her eyebrows. "I'm sorry. It's just that I can feel every emotion that passes through the two of you."
    Sirena's eyes were on Thessa. "I want to be part of the training too."
    The twins cringed in unison. But Thessa tilted her head and said, "Yes, that seems appropriate. You are Brie's guardian, after all." Clara looked at Thessa in surprise, but didn't question her.
    Cora stood up. "We should go to class." Cora looked like she was ready for the meeting to be over.
    "Wait. I have one more question." Brie turned to Sirena. "That thing I did earlier, throwing you off your bike—that was something you can teach me to control?"
    "Yes," Sirena said, looking animated for the first time during the whole conversation. Brie wondered if it had anything to do with Thessa letting her in on the training. "But for now, we really need you to go to class. People notice when you're absent. You're famous, remember?"
    Clara's eyes flickered with annoyance. Sirena winked at Brie, a teasing grin dancing on her lips.
    "Let's go," Thessa said, getting up and collecting her things. The other girls packed their things too. "And Brie, you start... cheerleading... tomorrow after school."
    Brie bobbed her head, putting on the perkiest face she could muster. "Go Team Hallow."

    *****
The walls of the small classroom reminded him of stale bread, and the room reeked of bleach. But that wasn't why Rykken hated his English class. He hated it mostly because of her.
    There were only sixteen students in the class, and Brie had shown up late on the first day. He remembered the teacher scanning the classroom and identifying the seat next to him as the only available seat left. Rykken's heart pounded. Four years of watching Brie from afar had culminated into one serendipitous moment where he finally had the excuse to talk to her outside of Pilot's peripheral.
    He had smiled and opened his mouth to say hi, but Brie slunk into her seat dejectedly, completely ignoring him as she pulled out a