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Blind Sight: Through The Eyes Of Leocardo Reyes

Ermisenda Alvarez

Chapter ELEVEN

Weight of the Curse

BlindSightLeoBookCoverLeocardo walked up to the Dawson manor door and fiddled with the inner material of his jean pockets. The curiosity about his gift was eating him alive. He knocked and was relieved to see Ana as the door swung open, his eyes brightened as he saw her.

“Hello, come on in.” She stepped aside. It was spacious and beautiful inside the Dawson manor. There was a vintage flavor to the furniture and decorating. Without avail she led him to their large collection of books in a modest room.

“Over here is where we keep the more sensitive material,” she explained as she moved toward a shelf in the back. “These shelves are historical records documenting what powers have shown up before, how common they are…things like that.”

He looked around at the multitude of volumes, totally lost.

“It’s a bit embarrassing, but…apart from helping Odette of course, I really just want to…I guess…I want to know what I have,” he said trying not to sound stupid again but was unsure what to say. She called it ‘magic,’ Theo used the term ‘gifts,’ and he thought of them as ‘powers’, but they all sounded surreal in his mind.

Ana opened a number of volumes before deciding on one which was concerned with the dormancy of gifts.

“It may be that your gift is still dormant,” she consoled, “but you have a gift otherwise the dogs would not have let you in.”

“The dogs?” he questioned suddenly very curious, taking the book from her hands, half wishing he had touched her hand in the same motion. “They weren’t checking me for drugs?”

She laughed, “No, they were not checking for drugs. They help separate immigrants from tourists. They seem to be more sensitive to knowing who has been gifted and who has not than any other animal and so far they have never been wrong.”

His memory was hazy as he thought back; it seemed so long ago, but he did faintly remember the dogs circling them contently. He felt relieved. This information confirmed he was gifted.

Questions that had lingered from his arrival resurfaced. “Are there any…” he started to ask about side effects, particularly concerned with what was happening to Odette.

“No, there are no severe side effects. People often feel dizzy and tired after using their gifts. It can be very exhausting.” He moved closer toward the books wondering which one would have the answer to everything. Did such a book exist?

Ana came to his side with a look of determination forming on her face. She pulled out a book, which she told him studied the frequency of gifts.

“Have you felt any strange sensations or anything? You’re not blacking out or anything like your sister, are you?”

Leocardo shook his head and grabbed the book. The binding was stiff, clearly not one that had been opened often. His gaze lifted to hers, “No strange sensations. I was starting to doubt I even had anything, but I might’ve had sensations. I haven’t really had time to think about them,” he said, feeling her gaze burn his and he averted his eyes back to the pages.

As Ana described how sporadic gifts were in their appearance, he became aware of how she chewed her lip. Ana moved toward the nearby lounge chairs. Leocardo followed suit with the two books she recommended in his arms.

“Since you’d know much more than me, what do you think my sister has? Does she blackout often?” He did not get to see her often because his work hours and her school hours were far from synchronized. Now that school was out, Odette was usually seeing friends. It would not have surprised him if she was with Ana just as much if not more than she was with him.

“She seems to black out every time she produces one of her drawings,” Ana spoke turning to face him, a sudden mix of interest and concern flourished in her eyes. “As far as what the drawings mean or why she draws them, I am afraid I am still working on that part.” It was strange hearing her talk about his sister, his sister whom he had grown up with and yet suddenly seemed so distant.

Ana continued, “So far they do not seem to have any connection to one another; some are abstract while others are lifelike. I have been keeping a folder of the ones I find. I…I think somehow blackout is not quite an accurate description of what happens. The few times I have been with her when it happens, it is more as though she enters a trance that she cannot remember later. She never really passes out, but rather snaps out of it when the drawing is complete, but until she finishes whatever she is working on, you cannot wake her up. It is fascinating in a rather ominous way.”

This girl knew her so much better than he did, or so it seemed. He asked to see the files. His thoughts raced and he lost total interest in the quest for his own powers.

Ana rose to fetch the files. Before leaving the room her fingertips caressed his hand briefly. He was not sure how he felt about Ana storing Odette’s belongings away, but her intentions appeared innocent. She returned shortly after and spread a handful of papers onto the coffee table. He got down on his knees, moving closer to both the pictures and her, hopefully inconspicuously.

“Odette drew all of these?” He leaned forward in awe.

She nodded, “Some of them are obvious, others I cannot fathom a guess.” She pointed to the drawing of a three legged table with an eye sketched in the center. “It reminds me of one of those carnival booths with the faux voodoo psychic people.”

Leocardo caressed the pages as if touching would help them. He tried to understand why his sister had drawn them. Ana described the lack of commonalities between the drawings and the manner in which they were drawn, that even the abstract ones looked intentionally done. A prominent drawing of a jellyfish caught his eye. Ana pointed to a photosynthesis diagram drawn by Odette which he took in his hands.

“The materials change too; pen, pencil, markers…” Leocardo noted, peering at the others. This was all so disorientating. “I’m not sure if I should be impressed or scared,” he said chuckling and looked over at Ana.

His mood did not carry over to her; the expression she wore was one of deep concern. “I know,” she said softly. “One time I had to pull one out of her hand. She was trying to burn it, and I never did figure out where she got the lighter. Sometimes I found them in your apartment, sometimes in her bag,” she tucked a stray bit of hair behind her ear as she looked at the pictures. “Not often did I get to see her drawing them, but since no one else has any reason to be stashing drawings among her things, I have no reason to believe anyone else drew them. This one actually looks like she printed it off a computer somehow.”

She pulled a drawing up to her face, but he could see through the back that it was a drawing of an abstract playground swing. The focus was a limp motionless swing surrounded by close ups and distance portrayals of the same swing. He took it from her and stared with relentless curiosity. Leocardo’s senses suddenly detected her sweet floral perfume and his head drifted closer to her neck before stopping himself and leaning against the table on his elbows, hoping it seemed casual.

“Have you asked your brother by any chance? I am just worried that she is a danger to herself. That seizure she had…” He shook his head trying to shake off the image. “I’m scared they’ll get worse.”

“I did, if anything he is trying to make me stop reading so much into it. If it makes you feel any better, he does not seem concerned. He has been researching and looking for answers too and he has more resources than I do.” Leocardo felt her hand rest on his.

Before Leocardo replied, he let his thumb curl around her finger, glad she didn’t pull away. Nerves knotted in his stomach, but he did not dare bring attention to it in fear that he would break the moment.

“I don’t know how to thank you and your brother.” He turned his head to face her and questioned their selfless efforts. Was there a deeper worry for Odette’s health that they were hiding?

Aniela reassured Leocardo that not only did she care for her friend but that Theodore had a responsibility too. “Tourism is a huge industry for us, but it is also a huge risk. People cannot go about using their gifts outside year round for a reason. I hope nothing is wrong with her, but I am going to be honest. It frightens me a bit that she does not seem in control of her body when she is in these trances. She becomes…unresponsive. Once I tried to grab her arm and her drawing was not affected at all. I had no idea she was that strong.” Aniela paused before reiterating that Odette was just becoming familiar with her new gift and the seizures would ease, once she was in control.

He continued to caress her finger with his thumb. A weak smile emerged on Leocardo’s lips. “You’re so…” he murmured. Beautiful. “Nice.” As soon as he said it he felt stupid, just one gigantic lummox. He pulled his hand away and opened his mouth, only to make the situation worse. “I mean kind, you’re very kind. Odette thinks so highly of you, you know,” he added, hoping that he had averted his awkward wording by introducing Odette again.

“Thanks, I mean to her, tell her thanks, or no never mind,” When she spoke, he mentally kicked himself. She picked up a book with both hands, her face obscured.

Leocardo’s gaze focused on the drawings as a whole before trying to focus on each one individually. He decided at this point, the best scenario was to keep the conversation moving in order to scoot his clumsy usage of words out of their memory.

“Do you think they might be messages from others? Maybe like a medium…images from others?” he asked, narrowing his eyes in concentration. The idea interested Ana, but they did not dwell on it long. Ana had her lips pursed as if she was in deep thought. Leocardo wanted to brush her bottom lip with his own. He wanted to spend time alone with her without worrying about gifts or curses. Leocardo wondered if she would be interested in hanging out alone, possibly sharing a meal one evening.

“Do…erm…do you—” Leocardo stammered, about to ask her if she was free sometime soon.

A voice interrupted his speech; the speaker hidden by the shelves of books.

“Aniela! Are you in here?”

As Ana responded, Leocardo realized it was her mother, Alaya the Queen of Edaion, calling to her. He was not sure which title intimidated him more. Alaya’s sentences were concise, and her voice lacked warmth as she snapped at her daughter. There was a striking resemblance, but when he took a closer look he noticed that Alaya’s blonde curls were more aggressive, her curves significantly defined, and she had a fierce gaze. “What are you doing on the floor?” Alaya bellowed.

It was as if she had just caught them with their tongues down each other’s throats. Even Leocardo felt embarrassed for sitting there. After Alaya had interrupted them, and told Ana not to date a certain Zachary character, she left without acknowledging Leocardo once.

Feebly, Leocardo said, “Hello.” He was not easily offended, but he slumped into a chair, defeated. “She looked like she was in a rush…”

“Leo, meet my mother. I apologize, she has been a little…tense recently, family…stuff,” she muttered. “And for the record, I am not currently, nor do I have any intention of dating that guy who sent me flowers.” He watched her turn and sit back down, flipping through the pages of her most recent book off the shelves.

“I understand.” He put a smile on to ease the moment, but he only half understood. “Family is family,” he said, ignoring the comment about the boy, not quite sure what to make of it.

Was Zachary the wealthy kind, a noble, someone else of royal blood, a doctor? He stopped thinking about it, even scolded himself for it. He came here to learn about powers, not to pursue his romantic life. Even if it was hard to keep his eyes from lingering on her soft features, he kept his eyes on the pages before him.

He opened the book again. His gaze continued to drift up from the page he was trying to read and focused on the drawings on the table. His eyes narrowed as he concentrated. Then it clicked.

“That one reminds me of the lake she drew,” he said softly as he tried to recall the exact details. He felt like someone had been diligently washing away at certain memories the longer he stayed here. Immediately she questioned his words, clearly astonished by his claim. “It’s not that important…she just drew the Edaion Lake back in Spain…”

“In Spain! What do you mean in Spain?”

Leocardo’s eyes widened as Ana suddenly demanded answers. Had he said something wrong? He retold the night in Barcelona when Odette had fainted. Ana in turn got up and paced the room before coming back down to talk to him with a flaring intensity in her eyes.

She launched into a long explanation. “Leo, magic here…” He saw that she shook her head as if dismissing her choice of words. “There are two parts, and to function, normally you have to have both. When the island calls you, it functions like one lever. The lake water is the other lever, if you have both switched on you can use your gifts. Never in recorded history has someone been able to use their gift before drinking the water here, but before you go dip your face in the lake, the water in your apartment counts.”

Leocardo stared, shocked. He recalled craving and drinking directly from the lake many weeks ago. Two parts of a whole, his sister had both, and now he did too.

“Maybe, maybe it’s just rare.” He tried to excuse his sister from being abnormal. “She wasn’t in control of herself; it was out of her power, surely that counts for something.”

In response, Ana shot him a deadpan gaze. Panic set in as Ana tried to make him understand what he had told her was impossible.

With a frown knitting his eyebrows together, he stared at the drawings on the table as if they had spelled out Odette’s name in blood. Horror swept his face. What did this mean? Ana’s reaction seemed to be more than worried. Did Theodore know? Was this what he was working on? Was that why she had a seizure? The sick feeling of regret bubbled; he should have taken Odette kicking and screaming out of this place.

“I…I want us to leave. I want to take Odette away from this place. You must have something, an emergency exit of sorts. You have connections, you can get us out,” he decided hastily, his eyes still firmly on the drawings. Fear and worry had made his nerves taut and his body’s instinctual reaction flick to flight, and fast.

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FROM THE START (ProloguE)

Blind Sight is an urban fantasy series about a blind girl who develops the ability to draw. You are reading Blind Sight Through the Eyes of Leocardo Reyes. This volume is told from the point of view of Odette’s brother who thinks she’s having premonitions. The companion novel, Blind Sight Through the Eyes of Aniela Dawson tells the same story, but through a different point of view. Odette’s new friend Ana is convinced Odette is a medium channeling spirits and cannot be convinced otherwise. Who is right? Whose eyes will you read through?

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