Welcome back, my friends.
If you haven’t read Part I of our exciting visit to Zakynthos, click on this link.
For Part II, click here.
Our visit to the Greek
Island of Zakynthos (Part III)
I’ve been meaning to
continue my post on our visit to Zakynthos for quite some time. What happened?
Life!
I’m sure you all—especially those who have kids—can understand how hectic life can get, and whatever you “plan” to do is a lot different from what you “actually do”. LOL
Having said that, let me admit that I wouldn’t change a moment of my life with my family for anything in the world.
Anyway, here are some more photos of us on Navagio Beach—compliments of this wonderful man who, along with his family, was on the same boat with us. You see, the day that we visited Navagio, the weather was great at first, but soon turned rough. So, by the time we made it to the beach, the wind and the waves won’t allow us to dock. The few of us who were determined to get to the beach had to leave all our belonging on the ship and swim to shore—so, no cameras or phones. This man managed to bring his cell phone along and took pictures of us. I would hate for my son to have visited Navagio for the first time in his life and don’t even have one photo to remember that breathtaking experience.
Navagio
Beach—Enchanting and Intriguing
This piece of heaven is only accessible by boat, and only if Poseidon—the god of the sea—decides that the visitors are worthy of such beauty. It is no secret that dangerous currents and gusty winds that start without warning make visiting the beach a challenging experience.
I happen to be among the few that can say that they have visited Navagio Beach while the winds were deadly calm, and the sparkling waters of the small cove resembled a stunning swimming pool. Gigantic precipitous gray rocks surround the beach that seems as if it belongs on a painter’s canvas.
Navagio Beach was originally known as Agios Georgios. In October 1980, during stormy weather and bad visibility, the coaster MV Panagiotis—allegedly making its way from Turkey with a freight of contraband cigarettes headed for Italy—ran aground on the beach. The wrecked ship was abandoned and still rests buried in the limestone gravel of the beach that now bears the nickname Navagio (Shipwreck).
The first time I visited Navagio Beach, the beauty of this cove and the ship’s remains—harboring dark secrets of smugglers—ignited my imagination. The story of Joanna and Alexandros was already forming in my mind, and this stunning cove provided the backdrop for the first chapter of my novel Eternal Soul Mates.
A year after my book was released, I wanted to come back and pay tribute to the beautiful cove that triggered my imagination and inspired the opening scene for my novel.
Here is the first chapter of Eternal Soul Mates:
Book excerpt:
Zakynthos,
Greece, seventy-five years earlier
A voice in her
mind screamed out, Jump! JUMP NOW!
Anna stood transfixed at the edge of the sheer cliff, staring into
the abyss. Hot, bitter tears were streaming down her face as a violent storm
was raging around her, turning day into night. Frothy white waves were crashing
on the steep rocks surrounding the secluded beach down below. Succumbing to
nature’s unleashed rage, the narrow strip of sandy shore had vanished from
sight.
A surge of fear gripped her. The pounding of her heart echoed in her
head louder than the blasts of thunder. A moan of despair escaped her lips as
the solitary figure stood against the menacing wind as if fused to the rock.
All of a sudden, another burst of lightning lit up the sky. Anna
recoiled back from the dizzying, jagged edge of the rock and lifted her eyes to
the vast horizon. The emerald waters of the Ionian Sea surrounding the Greek
Island of Zakynthos were now a threatening, charcoal gray color, blending in
the distance with the ominous sky.
Andreas’ adorable face flashed before her eyes.
I have no choice… I can’t
live without him.
Shaken to the core, she drew a deep breath and inched closer to the
edge. She was scared to death, and even though it was in the middle of summer,
Anna was freezing. Her soaking wet, white dress clung to her delicate body like
a second skin, and her tangled chocolate brown hair wrapped around her
shoulders like snakes.
But what choice did she have? Her father would never allow her to
marry the younger brother of his sworn enemy, not even for the sake of their
unborn child. And an unmarried mother at a closed community like Zakynthos
wasn’t something her family or the society will accept. At the sweet age of
seventeen, she would be an outcast. And so would be her eighteen-years-old
lover and father of her child.
But even more than her father, Anna was terrified of Nicholas—Andreas’
older brother. Every time he laid eyes on her, her blood turned to ice; that unnerving
expression on his face and the fire burning in his intense gaze foreshadowed
something evil.
Why does he hate me so
much? She’d never done anything to him; she hardly
even spoke to him every time they met. And when he found out that Andreas and
Anna were in love, he went out of his mind. He kidnapped Anna and took her to a
remote mountain cabin on the other side of the island.
Nicholas was ruthless. Yannis—Anna’s father—had warned her to stay
away from the Kortesis family and especially Nicholas. Her father called him a
cold-hearted snake who would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. And he was set
on getting his claws on Yannis’ land; he had made one offer after the other to
buy him out. And when her father kept refusing, he declared war on Yannis,
sabotaging his crop and threatening the workers not to work on his land.
During the terrifying hours he’d kept Anna captive in that deserted
cabin hidden in a veil of murky fog, she’d realized that he would never leave
Andreas and her alone. And why on earth had he insisted on Anna marrying him
instead of Andreas? If he hated her so much, why would he want to marry her?
Anna had spent a chilling night in the dimly lit, falling apart
cabin, crying and begging Nicholas to let her go. But he’d remained stone-cold,
warning her that the only way out for her was to forget his brother and marry
him instead. Otherwise, he would kill her and then kill his brother as well.
And she could feel it deep inside that his threat was real; Nicholas was
capable of murder.
When he’d left the cabin that morning, Anna had frantically gathered
all the strength she could muster and had loosened the ropes holding her
captive. After the long hours she’d spent confined on the uncomfortable,
worn-out chair, rising to her feet was almost impossible. But there was no time
to waste; she needed to get out of there before Nicholas got back.
With staggering steps, she’d made it to the door and stumbled
outside, only to find out that the cabin was fused to a sheer cliff far away
from any living soul. The night before, she hadn’t been able to see her
surroundings in the dark. But now, she was devastated. How far could she make
it on foot? Besides, even if she did get back to the village, Nicholas would
find her and Andreas. And he would kill them both. After what she had witnessed
in that cabin, she was now sure that there was no escaping Nicholas’ menace.
Grasping the cruel reality, Anna had decided that the only way to
save her beloved Andreas was to kill herself. Reluctantly, she had raised her
eyes to the cliff top and had collapsed in sobs of anguish.
A few minutes later—or maybe it was hours, she had lost track of
time—Anna had gathered all her strength, had crawled up the cliff, and had made
it to the edge. Unnerved by the height, she had averted her eyes from the
chasm, and fear had paralyzed her.
And now, down on her knees, she was still sobbing uncontrollably. I can’t do that; I can’t kill my baby girl, she
thought, caressing her belly with a shaky hand. Even though she was only three
months pregnant, Anna was sure that the baby was a girl. She had dreamed about
her baby girl; she had seen her face and had already given her a name…Tatiana. But that was only in her dreams
because her baby was destined to die, and so was she.
Anna’s thoughts drifted to Andreas again. What would happen to him?
How would he be able to go on after losing her and the baby? I know he’ll be devastated. But I hope he’ll
find the strength to move to that far away land he always dreamed about and go
on with his life.
During the last two years they’d been together, Andreas frequently
talked about both of them relocating to America. He wanted to get away from the
hate and thirst for revenge that poisoned their lives here on the island. Her
lover talked about having two kids, a dog, and a small white house with a
garden.
I wish, Anna thought and took a deep breath, closing her eyes. But she knew
better. Her family would never allow her to board the ship to freedom. And even
if they managed to escape, she had to think about those left behind. A betrayal
like this would bring more pain and blood-shedding to both their families.
Jump! She rose to her feet and took a small step, her knees shaking badly.
Her foot at the edge of the cliff caused some pebbles to fall. Mesmerized, Anna
watched them crash on the rocks and disappear in the foamed waves. The awful
taste of bile poisoned her mouth, and her ears were ringing.
A surge of fear gripped her, and a voice in her head screamed out, Don’t! You’re too young! You have your whole
life ahead of you! And what about your baby? Doesn’t she have the right to
live?
Immobilized by fear, Anna stood motionless for what seemed like an
eternity…
“Anna!” Andreas’ desperate scream shook her to the core.
Oh! No! He found me! The realization hit her like a bolt of lightning.
“Andreas!” she yelled and turned abruptly, losing her balance…
End of the excerpt
About Eternal
Soul Mates:
Fascinated by the concepts of soul mates and reincarnation—the eternal cycles of the soul between this world and the Other Side—I have started a new paranormal romance collection cloaked in mystery and suspense. Eternal Soul Mates is the first novel released in the Flames of Destiny Collection.
Blurb of Eternal Soul Mates
In Eternal Soul Mates, the past
merges with the present in a haunting and captivating story of love, loss, and
betrayal.
Joanna Williams is bewildered by her
mother’s mysterious past and scorching dreams of an irresistible stranger.
Trying to find some answers, she visits her mother’s birthplace—the Greek
Island of Zakynthos.
Alexandros Kortesis—the owner of a
luxury resort on Zakynthos—is drawn to Joanna like no other. But a dark secret
threatens his family’s legacy, and unfortunately, Joanna is the one trying to
uncover it.
Danger and passion collide as the two
soul mates—unaware that they were lovers in a past life—confront each other
while at the same time try to resist the compelling force that draws them
together. Will their eternal love prevail? Or will the battle against the evil
guarding the secret lead them to their graves?
Eternal Soul Mates is a reincarnation romance story cloaked in mystery and suspense. The action unfolds on the Greek Island of Zakynthos—a paradise on earth, in the aquamarine waters of the Ionian Sea.
The novel is available as an eBook and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple, Kobo, and other fine booksellers everywhere.
or click on this link to start reading the book on Amazon for free
Best wishes
to all of you, my friends. Stay safe and cherish your loved ones and the
moments you spend with them.
Angel Sefer
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