Libra Ascending: An Epic Urban Fantasy Romance (Zodiac Guardians Book 1) by Tamar Sloan (adult books to read .TXT) 📗

Tess’s warm hand falls on his shoulder. “You’ve never done it like that before, Tristan. What happened?”

Brielle felt…different. Tristan pushes to his feet, his body feeling like a live wire. “Because that vision was a reminder, Tess. We’re running out of time.”

Chardis is starting to kill.

Tess looks up from the bench, her gaze soft. So full of patience. “She’s an orphan, that’s one step closer.”

“So was Sophie,” Tristan points out. And Anne. And Danika.

They were all lovely. And none of them turned out to be a Zodiac Heir let alone his Gemini Twin.

“And she says she can detect lies.”

Tristan throws Tess an unimpressed look. “One, you just need to be good at reading people to do that. Two, lie detection isn’t the most offensive power when it comes to fighting off Skins.”

Three, when he told Brielle the truth, she looked like she’d be happy never to see Tristan again. Not exactly Gemini Twin material. Tristan flops back onto the bench beside Tess. That’s what’s gotten to him.

It’s the fact that it doesn’t look like Brielle is…her.

“Here.” Tess holds out a sheaf of papers. “Maybe this will give us something. I printed any images I could find of buildings in this area that could match. Big. Empty.”

Tristan shakes his head, a rueful smile tugging at his lips. This woman is like Flubber, she can bounce back no matter what. He takes the pages, scanning the top one. “Nope.” He flips to the second one, barely glancing at it. “Nope.”

Great, now he’s starting to sound like Alden.

The third, the fourth, then the fifth are all rejected. None of them feel familiar. He passes the sheaf back to Tess and the container of brownies. Even they’ve lost their ability to lift his mood right now. “Surprise, surprise. Nothing.”

Tess slips an arm around his shoulder. “I know this is taking longer than any of us expected. Especially after Zarius found you when you were a baby.”

Tristan doesn’t point out he’s seventeen. That’s seventeen years of searching. Seventeen years of zilch.

“But we’ll find them, Tristan. I know we will.”

The quiet conviction in Tess’s voice wraps around him. He straightens. “We have to.”

The alternative isn’t something anyone wants to consider.

Tess smiles. “What would you normally do next? Those times you’ve come up empty handed.”

“You mean all the other times?” Tristan asks wryly. Despite that, he leans back, staring in thought. “Looked for more clues. Didn’t give up.”

“Exactly.” Tess squeezes his knee before standing up. “If you were genetically related, I’d say you inherited your determination from Zarius.”

Tristan stands too, drawing her into a hug, realizing Tess’s unwavering belief in him has been his foundation his whole life. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Tess pulls back, her hand stroking his cheek before she pulls away. “Speaking of Zarius. I haven’t seen him all day. He’ll be hungry when he gets back.”

Tristan chuckles. Tess’s love language is cooking. “Cool. I’m going to drive around for a bit, it helps me think.”

Tess nods. “I’ll see you back at home.”

As Tess takes a right to leave the parking lot, Tristan takes a left. He passes Creamy Dreams, surprised to find the place closed. Small towns aren’t big on nightlife, it seems. When Mirror Point High appears ahead Tristan realizes he was unconsciously retracing his steps. The café where he scared off Brielle.

The school where he first set eyes on her.

Even if she’s not the Gemini Twin, there’s still a possibility she’s a Zodiac Heir. Now the challenge is getting her to talk to him again.

Tristan pulls in, noting there are still a couple of cars parked out the front. It looks like he’s going to be spending more time in cooking class.

The door to the school opens and Tristan sits up straight when he sees who’s leaving. Her hair pulled up in a perky ponytail and her slim figure encased in workout gear, Cassandra skips down the stairs. She looks up, stopping when she spots Tristan.

Her smile grows as she sashays over. “Hey, can’t stay away from the place, huh?”

Tristan grins, liking the teasing glint in her eye. “I thought I’d forgotten something.” He holds up his cell. “Turns out it was in my pocket all along.”

Cassandra’s smile grows, telling Tristan she can’t detect lies, unlike Brielle’s claim that she can. “Good timing, then. I just finished training.”

“Oh? What’s your specialty?”

Her nose wrinkles as she looks down, twisting a leg one way then the other. “You can’t tell from the calves? Sprints.”

Tristan keeps his eyes steadfastly up. “Perfectly proportioned, I’m sure.”

Cassandra bites her lip, flicking her ponytail over her shoulder as she leans against the open window. “How was the date with Brielle?”

Tristan shrugs. “It was cut short.”

“Probably a good thing. You don’t want to hang out with the likes of her.”

“Oh?” Judging by those words, and the hard edge to them, Brielle was telling the truth—friends isn’t how to describe Cassandra and Brielle’s relationship.

“Anyone who spends time with her quickly learns it was a mistake.”

Tristan keeps his posture casual, knowing he can’t look too interested. “Sounds like there’s some bad blood there.”

“We were in the same orphanage as kids.” She flicks her hair as if that’s of no consequence. “There’s a reason everyone else got adopted and Brielle didn’t.”

Holy pitch—Cassandra’s an orphan!

Staying still and casual is hard work considering his brain wants to whoop out loud, but it seems Zarius has trained him well. Tristan hooks an arm out the window. “Well, if hanging with Brielle isn’t a good idea, it looks like I’ll have some spare time on my hands.”

Cassandra angles her head, her lips tipping up. “It seems so,” she purrs. Moving her bag around to her front, she rifles around. Pulling out a pen, she lifts a brow. “I’ll give you my number.”

Tristan’s about to look for a piece of paper when she grasps his arm. Extending it, she leans down, her perfume tickling his nose as she holds his wrist. With eyebrows raised,