Empowered (Unbound, Book 6)

Chapter Forty-Seven

I pressed my ear against the door and furrowed my brow, trying to identify the sound I was hearing. I held my breath, hoping it would promote the silence I needed.

Had Zach brought a television into his sacred space?

If so, he was talking back to it, possibly pressing pause on whatever show he was watching so he had time to respond to whatever woman was speaking.

But why would he disrupt his space when the Kingdom had so many rooms?

My curiosity overrode my manners. I opened the door as the women's voice started again and walked in without knocking. A brief glance showed Zach sitting in the center of the room, eyes closed, and no extra belongings on display. Not even a remote, which made no sense since the woman's voice came to an abrupt end when I entered.

My eyes shifted to the now-familiar sparks in the air at Zach's side. This time, the glitter was a shape. One I would know anywhere. I sucked in a breath and reached out, holding the edge of the door so I would stay upright, then nearly caused me to lose my balance as the door swung wider away from me. My hand dropped to the handle. Still, I felt lightheaded, my heart rate doubled to pound in my ears.

The sparkle grew bright, constantly shifting, creating hot spots.

The form shifted, turning from a side view to face me directly.

I swayed, trying to blink it into focus.

"M-mu—Mum?"

In my peripheral vision, Zach looked up, opening his eyes. I took enough notice to see his shock, but the rest of my attention was on the transparent silhouette of my mother. He eyes grew, her mouth opening to form an O. She looked at Zach at the same time he glanced at her, and gave a brief shake of her head. They both focused on me.

My mom blinked at me, then faded completely.

I stepped forward, letting go of the door to reach out as though that could stop her. "Mom!"

Zach jumped to his feet and came to me, studying me. "Nora. Nora?"

I forced my eyes from the empty air to him.

"Nora. I'm sorry," he said and reached for me, but I stepped away. Zach sighed, dropping his arms to his sides.

"Was that..." I swallowed and shook my head. I closed my eyes tight and tilted my head down, and counted to ten—twice. Finally, I exhaled slowly and blinked rapidly to get the dots of light out of my vision. When I could see clearly. I looked up and glared at Zach. "That was my mom? She's here?"

"She was." He nodded.

"Is she often?" Like all the times I thought the room played tricks with the light even though no other space had, with or without Zach present.

"I told you I can see spirits and she wasn't at rest."

"Not that you chat."

"Didn't I?" He raised his eyebrow.

I shook my head, trying to shake off the lingering shock. "I don't... I can't remember."

"I told you. Speaking with spirits without needing a spell or taxing them is one of my gifts, Nora. If you recall, I told you your mother wasn't at rest yet, which is why she isn't with your ancestors in the burial grounds."

"But..." I shook my head. "Why do I have to do all this? Jumping through hoops. If you talk to her, ask her who is responsible. She's the one who walked away from figuring it out. She could help."

"No. She can only share what she knew before she died. She won't lie if you guess, but to do anything else would affect the whole balance of things."

My shoulders slumped. "She didn't even say hi."