Excerpt: Circle of Whispers

“He’s in Heaven now, Aunt Chrissy,” Vincent said as he put his hand comfortingly on her shoulder. “He is going to see the Lord.”

“Oh, Vinnie, that is so sweet of you,” his aunt chirped at him. “You are such a good little boy.”

“I saw him. I saw him go to the light to Heaven,” Vincent said, and his father turned to him with an inquisitive frown.

“What do you mean? What light?” he asked gruffly. Vincent was almost fearful of his tone, but the Reaper did tell him to inform the head of the family of his experience. He didn’t know if he could trust some strange Reaper, but he wanted to tell Christina his uncle’s fate to at least put her heart at ease.

Suddenly, his father grabbed his arm and drug him into the kitchen. He plopped Vincent down into a chair and sat on the opposite side of the table from him. “What’s going on? Why’d you say that to your aunt?”

“Dad, I saw him. I saw Gino meet a man, and then a blue doorway appeared and Uncle Gino went into it. He crossed over. The man in the dream said to tell you what I saw. He called me a young novice, and said only Reapers and the dead can be in limbo. But I’m not dead, Dad, so why did I dream that?”

His father was very still. His face had paled, and he’d bit his lip harshly. He inhaled a deep breath, and Vincent didn’t know if he was going to breathe again. When he exhaled heavily, he rubbed his hands on his face and looked both flabbergasted and annoyed.

“He knew I was a Romano and seemed to think it was important.”

“He was right,” his father said quickly. Vincent’s eyes widened with shock. Even his own father knew what this strange man was talking about. “What else did this man say?”

Vincent paused, feeling more and more worried by his father’s reaction. “Um, he said he would tell his superiors about me.”

“Which means we don’t have much time.” His father looked to the doorway, and then his voice got low. “This is something that your mother is not privy to, do you understand?” With a nod, his father continued. “They will be coming for you soon, so I’m going to tell you all that I can before they do.”

Vincent felt panic arise in his chest. “What do you mean, dad? What’s going on?”

“Now, just settle down, Vincent. This is only some family history. Now listen closely, and I’ll explain to you the Romano legacy as best and quickly as I can,” he said.

Vincent swallowed hard. “Romano Legacy?”

“That’s right. You were born into a family that has a supernatural duty to the spiritual world. We have ancestors that accepted their pre-destined calling to become a mediator between this life and the next.”

“You mean, a Reaper?” Vincent asked hesitantly. “Are you telling me that I’m a Reaper?”

His father nodded. “Yes, and with you the legacy continues. It is a great honor, and it it is also a great burden, as you will see in time.”