Royal Arcanum (Book 1 of The Arcanum Revelation) [PREVIEW]

1. Strange Encounter

Senior year was only yesterday.

It was a small town, a small celebration. At least, the graduation went pretty well for everyone.

But it was not what bothered Cathy Charlotte. She was rather happy to end this high school thingy. She was always felt like an outsider whenever she met lots of people anyway. It was better off to graduate and move on sooner with life.

But then, she heard her dad got a call from an authority, demanding to transfer his work to Brooklyn. It was a very big city compared to the life here in Bisbee, Arizona. Her dad, Mason Charlotte was a professional detective. Before he got married to her mom, he used to work as a nomad, always moving from one place to another.

Cathy didn't feel like moving out from this friendly town yet. She would miss her best friend, Josh. They were always together. She didn't want to be away from him. Especially when she heard his grandmother was just admitted to the hospital again.

A few days after graduation, her mom suddenly introduced her to a complete stranger. But she assured Cathy this person was their long distant relative.

The emerald green eyes, the fair white skin, and the smooth straight white hair.

Somehow, Cathy felt this girl looked tremendously familiar. And she knew that for sure.

"Mom, I told you I know her. I saw her every time in my dreams!" Cathy insisted on telling her mom that day when the girl had just arrived.

Her mom was answering her dad on the phone when Cathy kept on mumbling. Subsequently, her mom hanged up the phone and stared back annoyed at her.

"Cathy! Please stop it," she snapped back while her eyes stealing a glance at the dining room.

However, Cathy made sure that she whispered as low as she could, so that girl could not hear her voice in the family room.

"Give it a rest," her mom warned her.

"But I saw the exact same face in my dreams for the past three months. I think it's odd—" Cathy kept on telling her again. She wanted her mom to listen. "Explain to me; why something strange like this could happen?"

However, her mother never bothered to keep up with it. She was just basically acted skeptical.

"You read too much fantasy. Now, this is how your mind does the trick for you," her mom said firmly. "It's just a coincidence."

Cathy let out a heavy sigh. She was annoyed that her mom still wouldn't listen to her.

Her mom didn't want to fight with her, and thus she immediately caressed her shoulder and said softly, "Come on, let's go meet her now."

As they both walked to the dining room, the girl smiled sweetly and said, "Hello there."

The girl looked a bit older than Cathy. And the color of her skin almost looked like snow.

"Well, alright, let me introduce you to our distant relative, her name is—" there was a long pause before her mom said it all.

Of course, Cathy looked at her mom bewilderingly. Was it because they rarely met after all this time, so her mom suddenly forgot the girl's name?

"But she is one of the Aloise, right?" Cathy tried to guess it. And then she glanced at her mom wonderingly "—like your family name."

"Ugh, it's... her name is... Sylvia Elle," her mom finally told her but didn't really answer her question though.

"I prefer Elle," the girl shouted afterward. She emphasized her name distinctly.

Cathy and her mom automatically looked at her, surprised.