Sacrifice by Denise Grover Swank Page A

information.”
    With an exaggerated sigh, he shifted in his seat. “In the very beginning, it was a more level playing field. Our life experiences were fresh each time and it was easier to find one another. Travel was an ordeal and people often didn’t stray more than twenty miles from their homes their entire lives. Consequently, at least in the very beginning, we all often lived in the same village or town. By the time we knew who we really were, we already had a history.”
    “How far back does this go? Middle Ages?”
    “Further.”
    “Prehistoric man?”
    He snorted. “It was B.C., but not that distant.”
    “But when exactly?”
    “What does it matter? Ancient Greece. That specific enough for you?”
    She took a sip of her coffee, watching him over the rim. “That’s a helluva long time.”
    “You have no idea.”
    Centuries sounded so vague until she put it into perspective. For two thousand years this had gone on and on. How could Raphael do this time and time again? To be so close and lose it all again. To lose the person he loved time and time again. But at least he knew he’d see her again at some point in the future. She’d never see Will again. She tried to ignore that Raphael had lost his Emmanuella forever too.
    “So go ahead. Ask more questions.”
    Taking a bite of her eggs, she looked out the window. “Where are we? It wasn’t this green in Montana and Wyoming.”
    He watched her for a moment. “Tennessee.”
    “Is this your house?”
    He twisted the coffee cup in his hand. “Yes.”
    “If I wanted to walk out the front door and turn my back on you, could I?”
    He paused. “Everyone has free will.”
    She snorted. “Apparently not.”
    He leaned forward on the table. “Okay, my turn. Do you want your son back?”
    Her fork dropped with a clang. “You really have to ask that question?”
    “Apparently you need to be reminded of it.” He looked at her plate and raised his eyebrows. “You haven’t eaten even half of that. We can’t start until you eat more. You need the energy.”
    “Again with the energy.” But she knew he was right. Will had figured out that when she used too much, one way to re-energize her was give her food. And his touch. She pushed away the memory of Will’s touch. She couldn’t afford to let her mind go there. Not right now.
    Raphael sat back. “I suspect you’ve only used energy from your own body to make fire. But there are other sources. In fact, you should only use your own energy for small things and if there’s no other source. Any other time, you need to pull it from elsewhere. Still, it will be hard on you at first. This is all new to you. Emmanuella…” He paused and took a breath before continuing. “Emmanuella had lifetimes of memories stored. Once she began to remember, she could use those to help her. You have nothing.”
    “That’s encouraging.”
    He shrugged. “It is what it is. That’s why I got so frustrated with you and Will. Will was supposed to protect you while you regained your memories and learned to channel your power, until you no longer needed the pendant to help you. In the past, once your protector was marked, your human enemies were always hot on your trail. And once you no longer needed the pendant, your protector’s job was done and you released him.”
    “So that’s why you got so angry when I said I wasn’t practicing.”
    “Practicing always helped the memories return faster. When you told me that Will thought it was too dangerous to use your power, I wanted to kill him. Literally. But you couldn’t come into your full power without him. Aiden set that little trick up just to add complications.”
    “You had said you couldn’t be around me or it would inhibit my powers.”
    “Yes, but that part’s not important.” He looked away. “Just more of Aiden’s rules.”
    She lowered her gaze. “What would have happened if Aiden didn’t steal Will’s memories and I didn’t release him?”
    “It was