I stared at her, the weight of her revelation almost more than I could handle after all the other things I’d endured in the last week. Was everything about my life a lie? Was I nothing but a collection of past lives, with people and events I couldn’t remember, while everyone else could? I wanted to bury my head in the pillow and scream.
Jo must have sensed my inner turmoil because she stood. “Take your time and rest. Eat some breakfast. The shower is through that door, and the closet is beside it. I’ve put a few things in there you can wear.” She moved to the door, lingering there as she twisted her hands together. “Come see me whenever you’re ready.”
She left me alone, which was a relief because I needed time to get my head on straight. I was still in my ball gown, and it was wrinkled to high heavens. Hopefully not ruined.
I was starving too, since all I’d eaten last night were a few fancy appetizers, and I devoured the omelet Jo had brought me. Then I took a quick shower and quickly dressed in a cream blouse and navy blue slacks that were obviously Jo’s. Now that I was fully awake, I wanted answers from my so-called ‘sister.’
I found Jo in the living room, a massive space all done in white and gold, with huge windows offering spectacular views of the bay, from the Golden Gate Bridge to Alcatraz Island. I automatically moved toward them, pressing my fingertips on the glass as I looked out. We were up on a hill, and a view like this, in a house this enormous, had to have cost a fortune.
I turned toward my sister. “Shit, Jo. I knew you had money, but…”
“I do all right for myself.” She sat on a soft-looking sofa and watched me like I was an injured deer about to bolt away. “You’ve never been here, have you?”
I didn’t reply. She knew fully well I’d never been here. If I had, maybe I wouldn’t have been as overwhelmed by Lucifer’s shows of wealth. I’d offered to come visit her numerous times in San Francisco, but she’d always made some kind of excuse, and had come to see me instead. Had she been hiding this from me, maybe even purposefully keeping me away to protect her secrets? Was anything about her true?
“Well, you’re here now.” She gave me an encouraging smile. “And I’m glad to have you as my guest.”
Was I her guest? Or was I a captive again? I moved through the vast living room, taking in all the displays of wealth. Her aesthetic was the exact opposite of Lucifer’s, with white trimmed in gold, and just like his place, it was seriously lacking in plants and flowers. A display case held dozens of tiny little angel figurines, some looking quite old, others made of crystal. I studied them as I asked, “Why did you bring me here?”
Jo clasped her hands in her lap as she looked up at me. “I had to get you away from Lucifer. You’re in danger around him. As long as you stay here, I can keep you safe.”
“Jo, you don’t understand. Lucifer is my mate. I’ve had all these past lives with him. He isn’t a threat to me.” Or was he? After what I’d seen last night, I wasn’t so sure.
“I understand more than you do. I’ve lived an awfully long time, and I’ve seen many of those past lives of yours. What you don’t understand is that Lucifer is the villain. He’s been lying to you this entire time. Manipulating you. Controlling you. As he’s done with all humans for thousands of years.” She tilted her head, her eyes full of pity. “Did he even tell you about Adam and Eve?”
I hated to admit there was something Lucifer hadn’t told me, but I had to know what she was talking about. “No, he didn’t.”
Her mouth took on a sad smile. “I thought not. Why am I not surprised somehow?”
Her superior tone grated at me. This particular tone was so familiar that it must’ve bugged me in one of my lives before, and my subconscious knew it. I tried not to glare at her. “What about Adam and Eve?”
“Your very first life was as Eve.”
My heart skipped a beat, or maybe even stopped for a full minute. “The Eve?”
“Yes, the very one.”
I blinked at her several times as I tried to process this new revelation. “How?”
“You were married to Adam and had three sons with him, but then Lucifer abducted you and claimed you as his mate. Adam wasn’t happy about that, as you can imagine, and he sought revenge. He killed you.”
I blew out a breath as I processed everything she’d said. Hearing about my past lives was always a combination of difficult and intriguing, but this one was especially hard for me to believe, if not for the sense of rightness in my gut when she spoke.
A week ago I’d been book-loving Hannah from the florist shop. Now I was Eve. Persephone. Lenore. All great women from literature and mythology. Talk about a heavy legacy to live up to.
I dropped onto the couch across from Jo. “That is pretty shocking, but I don’t see why that puts me in danger from Lucifer.”
The pitying look in her eyes increased ten-fold. “There’s more. I’m just not sure you’re ready to hear it yet.”
“Just tell me already,” I snapped. Damn, I was so tired of everyone knowing the truth about myself except for me.
“After your death, all three of you were cursed for all eternity. Your fate is to be reborn and die violently, usually in Lucifer’s arms, in an endless cycle of death and agony. Lucifer’s curse is knowing this will happen and being unable to stop it. And Adam’s curse is to be reborn every time you are…and to kill you again and again, before dying at Lucifer’s hand.”
“No, that…that
