Cora's Kismet (The Twin Destinies Saga Book 1) Read online

  Cora’s Kismet

  The Twin Destinies Saga

  Book One

  By

  Cheryl Davis

  Copyright © 2013 Cheryln Davis

  Cora’s Kismet

  Written by, Cheryl Davis

  ISBN Number: 978-1-304-49212-8

  Edited by: Christina Escue @ C.E. Editing, email: [email protected]

  Cover Art by: Cora Graphics, email: [email protected] or website: www.coragraphics.it

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Acknowledgements

  First and foremost, I’d like to thank my mom for instilling in me a love of reading so deep that it has become an integral part of who I am and will always be! You really gave me a precious gift by doing that!

  Next comes all of the authors of books I’ve read in the past, the present and will read in the future. Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication to that work. There are entirely too many of you to name but each of you are dear to my heart and have inspired me in my journey to become an author myself. I’d also like to say thank you to all of the bloggers and authors’ groups out there who have helped me get the word out about this book! You all rock!

  A special thank you goes to Chrissy Peebles, Erica Stevens, Teresa Gabelman and Wanita May for all of your encouragement, advice and most of all your friendship through this amazing journey! You all are amazing authors yourselves and I truly appreciate you taking your time to answer my many questions along the way.

  To Cora Graphics, I have to tell you just how amazing you are! You took my basic concept for the cover and made it so much more amazing than I could have ever imagined! Thank you so much for your talent and vision! I can’t wait to work with you again!

  I don’t have the words to say just how much love I have for C.E. Editing and how hard she has worked with me on making this book what it is today. I know this book is as much her baby as it is mine at this point. Thank you so much for everything that you’ve done!

  My wonderful beta-readers, Christina Escue, Donna Bossert, Michelle Williams, Raygan Taylor, Holly Collins, Denise Whelan, and Echo Navarro-Dysart, you all have helped make me a better writer through your critiques, questions and support! Thank you for taking your time to read my book, even when it wasn’t at its best. Your feedback has been amazing and has helped me immensely!

  The most special thank you goes to my wonderful husband and four fantastic kids! You all have been the most supportive from the very beginning of this adventure. I love you all from the bottom of my heart and this one’s for you!

  Don’t ever give up on your dreams, even if you haven’t figured out what they are yet!

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to my best friend Gloria who I know is smiling down on us from heaven. We’ll always miss you! Thank you for always believing in me, no matter what!

  Books by Cheryl Davis

  Destiny Begins: The Twin Destinies Saga Prequel Novella

  Cora’s Kismet: The Twin Destinies Saga Book One

  Viola’s Risk: The Twin Destinies Saga Book Two (Coming Soon)

  Table of Contents

  Cora’s Kismet

  Copyright © 2013 Cheryln Davis

  Acknowledgements

  Dedication

  Books by Cheryl Davis

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Where to Find the Author

  About the Author

  Destiny Begins

  Viola’s Risk

  Chapter One

  “This is going to be such a great vacation!” Viola gushed to Cora as she plopped down on the end of Cora’s bed.

  Cora rolled her eyes and flopped back onto her bed. “What’s going to be so great about it?” she asked, with grumpiness evident in her voice. They had no exciting plans other than to get summer jobs and try to stay away from their prison of a home as much of the time as they could.

  “Come on! You’ll only stay miserable if you think about it like that! There’s no school, so we can go have some fun!” Viola enthused, ignoring her twin’s negative attitude. She didn’t understand why Cora always had to be such a drag all of the time. She knew their living situation just plain sucked but there was no reason to wallow in it all of the time like Cora seemed to want to.

  “Don’t forget we’ve gotta get summer jobs,” Cora said to Viola, her impatience showing. “Or do you wanna stay in this freak show forever?”

  “Oh, I’ve already got my job in the bag!” Viola pronounced puffing her chest out with pride, as she bounced up from her perch on the end of Cora’s bed to her full 5’7” height, stretched her arms to the front and back, then headed over to her side of the room and started digging through her backpack looking for something.

  “Really? What’s that?” Cora asked disbelieving. To Cora, Viola never took anything serious and it drove her crazy.

  “I saw this flyer on the way home yesterday and called the number. It’s for some kind of sleep study program at the local community college. They pay for you to sleep! Isn’t that great?” Viola gushed while still digging through her pack.

  “You’re not serious?” Cora asked sitting up to study her sister with wide eyes.

  “I’m one hundred percent serious! It’ll be great! There’s still a few slots open if you wanna join me! In fact, when I told them I had a twin, they were even more interested in getting me signed up! Plus, the pay is pretty good!” Viola said as she kept digging. Her brow started to knit into a frown, above her almond shaped hazel eyes, the longer it took to find what she was looking for.

  “You told them about me?” Cora asked caution threading her voice as she pursed her full lips in consternation. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. She was used to Viola’s carefree attitude about life, but after everything they’d
been through, Cora just couldn’t trust as openly anymore.

  “Yeah, I didn’t see a problem with it,” Viola replied, giving up her search and flopping back onto her own bed. She knew the tone in Cora’s voice and knew she was in for a lecture any second now.

  “Of course you wouldn’t!” Cora started. “Maybe you should have thought about my feelings before you start telling strangers about…”

  “Look, I’ve had enough!” Viola snapped, interrupting Cora, “I don’t need one of your lectures right now. You know as well as I do they could find out about you without me telling them anything! I don’t know why you act like it’s some big secret! We look exactly alike!” Both girls were identical, in every sense of the word, when it came to their physical appearance. They each had long, deep chocolate brown hair that flowed around their shoulders and down their backs in soft waves, all the way to their waists. They had bright, almond shaped eyes framed by long, thick, dark lashes that never needed mascara and high cheek bones on identical narrow, oval shaped faces. Both girls thought their best feature of all was their full, soft lips. They were a make-up artist’s dream. While Viola liked to accent her features with makeup, style her hair in elaborate do’s and stand out from the crowd, Cora, on the other hand, was all for keeping it simple with her hair in a ponytail, and lip gloss as the only accent to her face.

  “I know, I know!” Cora said throwing her hands up in the air as she flopped back down. “It’s just I feel like people are only interested in us because we’re twins and I don’t like it. Something feels off, and I don’t know what it is. Do you know what I mean?”

  “Sometimes, yeah, I do. It’s weird. There’s nothing we can do about it so there’s no use letting it drag us down. We have six months before we can get the heck out of this dump and away from Patrick and Anna Kilpatrick, with all of their hatefulness and abuse. I think you should do this sleep study with me! You can get another job if you want to, or if this doesn’t work for you. Just give it a try! I wish you’d let your hair down once in a while and have some fun! Live a little!” Viola replied being her normal dramatic self. She knew how hard it was for Cora to trust anyone enough to relax and enjoy herself. She probably wouldn’t do it until they were far away from here either.

  “I know. I’m looking forward to leaving and never looking back! Do you think this sleep study will help us reach that goal? I can’t stay here much longer. I’m tired of always looking over my shoulder and watching your back every second of every day and I know you feel the same way,” Cora said, her voice hushed, not wanting anyone else to overhear, even though they were home alone. It always felt as if they were being watched anymore. It was creepy and gave her chills. For all she knew their room had been bugged, but she didn’t want to open that can of worms.

  “Yeah, I think the study is worth a try at least! I was trying to find the copy of the flyer I brought home in my back pack, but I can’t find it for some reason. I know I put it in here, and it’s like it vanished into thin air,” Viola said with a little worry in her voice. “It almost feels like someone’s been going through my stuff.”

  “Is this the first time?” Cora sat up at full attention. She’d been feeling the same way over the last few weeks. It gave her the creeps and she shuddered just thinking about it.

  “Not really. I’ve had this feeling that something isn’t right, or noticed something missing, a few times now. Nothing important, so far, which is why I haven’t said anything about it, until now,” Viola replied.

  All of a sudden, Cora felt goose bumps rise on the back of her neck. She got up, grabbed her keys and Viola’s hand, and headed for the bedroom door.

  “What?” Viola asked surprised.

  “I think we need to get started on that job hunting,” Cora said giving her sister a pointed look, she knew Viola would get, while still pulling her out of the room. One of the great things about being a twin was being able to communicate in a manner no one else understood. They could read each other’s looks, or body language, without thought, and sometimes it was just something they felt from each other, on a level most people could never reach. She was using that to her advantage right now. Another great thing was they trusted each other’s instincts without question. Viola knew Cora’s instincts were telling her to get out now, and she wasn’t going to argue.

  “Yeah, sounds like a good idea. Hold up, let me get my purse! It’s in the closet so it’ll only take me a minute!” Viola pulled her hand free from Cora’s and dashed back into the room they shared. There were more than enough rooms in the house for each of them to have their own room, but neither Cora, nor Viola, would agree to separate, at least not while they were living with the Kilpatricks. The shared space ensured they always had the others’ back when it was necessary, because they never knew when the horror would start up again. They needed to watch out for each other because there was no one else in the world that was going to look out for them. The thought saddened Cora, but there was nothing to be done about it except to survive, and she was determined they would both do that, no matter what the circumstances were.

  After waiting in the hallway for much longer than was necessary for Viola to retrieve her purse, tapping her foot with anxiety, she knew something was wrong. She debated on going back to their room or trying to call for help. Since she didn’t know what could be wrong, it was just a feeling in the pit of her stomach after all, she opted to go check on Viola first, before sounding any alarms.

  Being more cautious than usual, Cora headed back toward their room and froze in the doorway with a scream lodged in her throat at what she saw.

  Chapter Two

  Cora’s eyes widened in terror as she took in the scene unfolding before her. In the bedroom Viola was lying on the floor, unconscious, with four men hovering over her. There were another two men climbing through their bedroom window, as she stood there watching. Glad she hadn’t released the scream that was still trying to claw its way up and out of her throat, and lucky the two coming through the window hadn’t spotted her, she backed her way out of the room as slow and silent as she could manage and flattened her back against the hallway wall, out of sight.

  “Is this her?” Cora heard a man with a husky voice ask.

  “Yeah. It’s her,” came a reply, in an almost bored tone.

  “Where’s the other one? I know she has a twin. We cannot return without them both,” the first voice asked.

  “Want me to scour the house? She can’t be too far away. They were both here not five minutes ago,” the second, almost bored, voice asked. Cora felt a chill run down her spine listening to their words. “Our lookout spotted them through the window, talking.”

  “Was anyone else in the residence before they left this room?” voice number one asked.

  “No. They were the only ones home. Patrick and Anna aren’t scheduled to be back until sometime this evening. We arranged it that way so we could get the girls out without trouble.” Mr. Boredom assured the one Cora was assuming was in charge, Voice Number One. None of the others were speaking.

  “Good, the diversion worked from what you are telling me. We need to get these girls away from the Kilpatricks before something terrible happens to them. Search the house and find her fast. We need to be long gone before the Kilpatricks get back, otherwise, we’ll have a fight on our hands we don’t need,” Mr. In-Charge ordered. “You two get this one out to my van and situated.” She heard shuffling in the room as the men moved into action.

  Cora panicked and looked around, with wild eyes, for an escape route. There was only one staircase leading down from the upper floor of the house and it was on the opposite side of the door to her bedroom. Swearing to herself, she looked down the other side of the hallway to see what she could access. There was one linen closet to hide in on the side of the door she’d hid against without thinking. She looked around trying to find any other way out, panic building more and more in her chest. She knew if she was caught, there’d be no helping Viola, and she had to help
her sister.

  “Hold on, Vi. I will find a way to save you as soon as I can,” Cora whispered as she took a chance and slid into the linen closet, praying they wouldn’t find her there, but knowing it would probably be the first place they looked.

  She crouched down and did her best to cover herself up with piles of towels and sheets. The rest of the house was a filthy mess. She hoped they would take the one here in the closet as being no different, but held no hope of going unnoticed if they did a thorough search through the closet. She wracked her brain trying to come up with a plan to save both herself and her sister.

  Cora clenched her fists tight to her mouth to keep from screaming when she heard footsteps approach the door of the closet in which she was hiding. She figured, if they did find her, she’d launch herself at them and try to push past them while they were caught off-guard, then do her very best to make a run for it. All she had to do was make it downstairs to Patrick’s office to get a gun. Even though Patrick didn’t know it, both girls had made sure to learn firearm safety and how to shoot. They’d also managed to get their hands on the key to the gun cabinet and had made copies behind his back so they could both access the weapons if needed. They both knew it was just a matter of time before that skill would become a necessity to survive.