Tethered (A BirthRight Novel) Read Online Free Page B

love potions people around the world would pay just about anything to get their hands on. She calls it, ‘The Magic Touch’. And believe me, it is.
    My trip down memory lane halts, feeling someone’s eyes on me.
    Of course. I should have known. My darling brother, the Empath, watches me with an amused smile. It can be a bit unsettling to know someone can channel your emotions. But he’d never abuse it—that’s not his style.
    When Dru was ten, his best friends’ dog was hit on the road right in front of them. He felt terrible because his friend was in so much pain—all he wanted to do was make him feel better. Dru tried to console his friend as best he could, but nothing worked. He started saying, “Make it stop. Make it stop.” And the next thing he knew, his friend was somehow calm.  Instead, it was Dru who was crying like a baby.
    Gram figured that as he got older and had a chance to develop his gift, perhaps he could take away peoples pain without absorbing it all into himself in the process.
    I wonder how much luck he’s had with that?
    Dru shakes his head at me. “Stop it!”
    “ What ?” I lift my hand to my cheek, feigning ignorance.
    “You know what.” He points his finger at me. “Find something better to think about.”
    Better? Not a chance. “There’s nothing better than my little brother.” I blow him a kiss across the table.
    “What’s going on with you two?” Gram asks before taking a drink of orange juice.
    “Oh, Dru doesn’t want me getting sentimental thinking about him.” We stare at each other with a smile. My god, I’ve missed this. Why did it take me until now to realize that?
    “Just for that….” He grabs two slices of my bacon and shoves them in his wide-open mouth.
    “Are you showing off again, dear?” Gram laughs at the chomping Dru.
    “Oh, no way am I being a show-off.” He turns to Dhelia. “There’s only room for one of those in this family.” He chuckles.
    “Excuse me?” Dhelia’s jaw falls open, glaring at her twin. “What did I do now ?”
    “Nothing, yet . But do you remember the stuff you used to do in school? Like the time you pulled the chair out from under Bobby Wilson as he was sitting down. Or the time you made chalk fly out of Mr. Lingenfelter’s hand when he was writing on the board? He thought the class was haunted.” Dru howls. “But the best was the day you made the tennis racket fly between snotty Susie Frank’s feet. I’ll never forget the way she nose-dived in the middle of the court.” My family laughs at the memory.
    “That wasn’t funny,” I reply. “Didn’t she hurt her knee when she fell?” Dhelia can take her telekinesis a little too far sometimes.
    My sister lifts the pitcher of orange juice off the table with her mind, only to fill my glass so full it spills over into my lap. I give her the death-stare, but she just snickers. “Dru was right. Show off!” I snap.
    “No bickering,” Pap mumbles with his mouth full. “Eat.”
    She’s so infuriating.
    I grab a handful of napkins from the center of the table and wipe myself off, while the rest of the family gets back to breakfast.
    I can’t tell you how many times she put our family at risk with her ego. But Gram always found a way to calm an angry parent or teacher. By the end of the conversation, they’d think it was the other child who’d done something wrong. Yes, Gram’s gift works miracles on more than just wrinkles and unrequited love. As long as she kept her family safe, Gram saw no harm in bending the rules a bit. Even when my mother was alive, it was still Gram who came to Dhelia’s rescue. My mom on the other hand, wasn’t nearly as good at the art of persuasion. She didn’t have the same charm as Gram, but that was okay with her.
    My mother’s gift was pretty cool though. If I could have traded mine with hers, I would have done so in a heartbeat. She was what’s known as a Reader. When she touched an object—any object—she could tell you