Chapter Nine
Sunlight filling the room brought me out of a deep sleep. I glanced to my side and saw Landen sleeping soundly. I watched his chest rise and fall, assuring myself that he was real. Smiling, I let my memory flow over the night that we’d shared, but then the day that we’d lived before came crashing through my thoughts.
I had so many questions.
Is everyone safe now?
Is Drake only a bad memory?
What now?
He looked too serene to wake. I decided to get up and explore. There was a long dresser on the opposite wall of our bed. I saw the bag that I’d packed in Franklin sitting on top of it.
My photo album was open to the picture of graduation night. Monica was the valedictorian, and Olivia and I were kissing her cheeks as she smiled widely. An uneasy breath escaped me. I wanted them all to be safe and wished only for a moment that they’d never known my darkness or me.
With my purple top, white shorts, and all my toiletries, I found my way to the master bath.
When I was ready for the day, I tiptoed past Landen’s sleeping body and went down the stairs. The house was even more perfect in reality, not a single stich of uniformity could be found, it did seem like it was manufacture made to capture the almighty dollar. Like the home I grew up in, it felt like it was made with love, made to protect a family, to hold all the laughter and memories tightly inside its vibration.
I searched for the willow tree first. Rainbows danced across the walls as the sun touched the crystals. While I was standing star struck, I heard something. It sounded like a car door closing.
Odd…cars.
I peeked out the front window and saw a little white car, just like the ones we had at home. The only difference was that the top of the car had a gray panel. Someone was pulling things out of the back seat. She was young, her hair was long and blonde—almost white—and her skin was the color of honey. I walked to the front door and opened it a bit shyly. She turned as I stepped on the front porch, a smile filling her beautiful face. I assumed she was Felicity, Brady’s soul mate. The massive baby bump gave it away.
“Did I wake you?” she said.
“I was exploring...”
She had reached the porch wither her large basket, and I could smell the baked goods coming from it. My stomach adamantly reminded me that my last meal had been breakfast yesterday.
“I’m Felicity.”
“Willow,” I said under my breath.
I felt like a fool. She knew who I was. “Here, let me take that,” I said.
“Is Landen still asleep?” she asked.
I nodded and watched her walk into the house. A bit confused, I followed her through the entry hall to the kitchen.
“This is my favorite room. It was the only one I got to help with,” she said over her shoulder.
The kitchen was one of the rooms I hadn’t been in yet, but I found it perfect, just like the others. The counters were made of a beautiful gray stone, the cabinets were a dark wood that matched the table and chairs, and there were beautiful bouquets of flowers set in the center of the table and counter. The room was extremely large. It had a long window across one wall and a wide doorway on the back wall that led to the porch. She walked over to the cupboard and pulled out two glasses and plates. I sat down at the large kitchen table and just watched her. She had a beautiful glow about her.
“I don’t remember anything. Is my family okay? Do you know where they are?” I asked.
“Their house is just over that hill,” she said, looking out the back door. “Libby is the best. I played with her for hours after you all came home. I love her vibe. I’m sure they’re still asleep. It was well into the night before they went home. Brady was sleeping like a baby when I left.”
“Do you live close, too?”
“We all live within a mile of each other. It’s still very private, though. The hills give each home solitude.”
She felt so safe, comfortable. It was reassuring. I knew she had come from another dimension, left her family behind and started a new life. The lack of fear and stress inside her promised me I had a shot at finding the same.
“Is it as amazing as I think it is here? I mean, how does it all work—its ah, its not so...happy, at least all the time, where I come from.”
Felicity laughed. “What I love about here is that each person does what they’re meant to do. Everyone has a purpose threaded into their soul. In this world, its a priority to discover what yours is. I think that helps with the ‘happy.’”
“What do you mean? Everyone has insight?”
She swayed her head. “I mean we all have a purpose, something inside us meant to bring not only personal joy, but also those who surround us. We are here to make it better than we found it. You can see it in everyone if you really look, it’s almost as beautiful as love.”
“I can’t imagine that’s easy. Figuring out what you’re meant for.” I was sure if it was my world would have the same philosophy. It didn’t make sense for us or anyone to want to live a life without purpose—without a fire burning inside driving us to see what others can’t.
“Its not hard, not really. Well, okay, Libby is six,” Felicity said. What they’ll do is look at her birth chart and find her characteristics, teach her math, science, everything in the way she learns best. Brady’s sun sign was Aquarius, but he has several other planets there too. Aquarius’s hear differently—they hear the sound, not the words. With Brady, every subject was related back to music. He’s not a musician, but being confident enough to learn and explore helped him find that traveling wasn’t just in his blood it was in his soul. Loving to learn and explore is the first step to looking inside yourself. It can be scary in there, even for kids.” She pursed her lips. “It is the last place most explore.”
The most I’d ever done as far as the Zodiac was concerned was looked at my horoscope, which was always wrong. To think that an education system was balanced on the stars in the sky seemed insane to me. Then again, I still didn’t understand what a birth chart was or how it could hold any answers.
“What?” She asked when she read the debated in my stare. “How do they do it in your dimension?”
“We all just go to school and learn the same subjects.” I lifted a shoulder. “Some of us are pushed by our parents down a path they know.”
“What dimension did you come from again?” Felicity asked, raising one brow.
“Um…Infante,” I said, hoping I’d remembered the name correctly.
She nodded as if my thought process matched my home dimension. “I still find it intriguing to meet the people they bring home. You would not believe how differently we come to conclusions on the way life should be lived.”
When I glanced to her stomach, to the innocent vibe there, Felicity landed her hand right where I felt it the strongest. “Traveling is a dominant purpose in our family. They are vital to Chara, they guide us. If they see something in another dimension that has brought harm to the people, they guide us away from that tragedy. If they see something that has brought peace and bliss to a dimension, they teach us so we can grow more peaceful. Traveling is one of the most respected gifts. Without travel, our children would never find the love that we have.”
“Everyone in this family travels?”
Felicity nodded. “So far. We’re well known throughout Chara,” she said. “Landen is the youngest and most admired traveler of all.”
I raised my brows to question her.
“Landen’s insight of truth is not what he is known for. Instead, he is known across Chara as ‘the one who can see all’,” she explained.
Mystified I slanted my head in thought. Perodine told me in my dream that ‘the one who sees...,’. Did she mean the string?
One problem at a time, Willow...
“Do you know what happened before we got here? Did Landen find them?”
Her smile lessened. “I think Landen wants to talk to you about it.” She si
ghed, “I felt so bad for him. He was worried about you. Jason must have told him a hundred times that you just needed to rest.”
She reached for my hand. “I’m so happy for you two. I knew he would find you. When Brady told me the names of your family, all I could think about was that music box on the mantel.” Letting go of me she said. “Everyone is coming to your celebration.”
“Mine? What about Dane? Isn’t this fast? We got some things to take care of, and stuff.”
Was I fumbling my words? Yep. I didn’t like parties. I loathed them. The ones I feared had a spotlight aimed to find me.
“The news has spread across Chara. Jason Haywood home at last, Clarissa’s soul mate being able to see the string, and, of course, the youngest couple—the ones who need no words!”
Nope I needed to run from this topic before I had an all out panic attack.
“Which dimension did you come from?” I asked.
“Neime. Just next door, so to speak.”
“Is Neime a good one?”
“Yeah. We live a lot like they do here. I think Neime is the smallest. The biggest difference is time. I didn’t know what it was until I came here.”
She shrugged when she saw how baffled I was. “We do not mark hours or days or even years. It’s a good place for Gemini signs.” She glanced to her basket then to me. “I need to go. I want to help Aubrey get ready for tonight.”
“Tonight?”
“It’s just going to be family and close friends,” she promised. “This whole week will be filled with celebrations. People are coming from everywhere,” she said, walking softly toward the front room, beckoning me to follow her.
When we reached the porch, she said, “I have some clothes for you. I wanted you to have something nice to wear. I remember how I felt when I got here, not having more than a satchel of things from my world.”
I followed her to the car, and she handed me a handful of clothes. They were all dresses; some long, others short, and the colors were vibrant and balanced all at the same time. They felt so smooth, like the gown I found myself in last night…I wondered who had put that on me.
“I made these, so if they are too big, I can take them in for you.”
“You made these?”
Her grin was proud. “Its my thing. I’ll stop back by before the party and make sure they fit you well. See ya when the sun goes down.”
I found the way she kept time very comforting I gave her a shallow nod then watched her leave.
When I walked back in the house, I found Landen standing at the bottom of the stairs. I could tell he had been up for awhile; his hair was wet from where he had showered, and he was dressed for the day, all in black again.
I shyly smiled at him. I couldn’t believe this was real. I was home.
Then the distance between us seemed too far, so I let the dresses fall and ran into his arms. He laughed out loud at my unconventional enthusiasm.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” he asked against my neck before he kissed the tender skin there.
“No way, you looked to happy.”
I glanced at his arm to make sure he’d dressed his wound again. My eyes widened as I stared at his unbroken skin.
“How?” I thought.
“I don’t know. It was healed when I woke up. My shoulder is healed too,” Landen said, pulling his shirt up to show me.
It was like it had never happened, but both of his burns had been severe enough to cause scarring. I kissed his shoulder softly before I lowered his shirt. He turned and stared at me with utter devotion.
I felt like a mystical lore character all over again.
“You healed me,” he whispered as he put his hands around my waist.
“I’m weird, but not that weird.”
“Do you hurt,” he asked leaning his forehead to mine.
I didn’t. Not one single sore muscle.
“We’re both weird,” I said only halfway teasing. I was scared. Scared that I was changing too fast. I was becoming someone new. I didn’t’ even know who the old me was.
“Don’t let it scare you. Don’t let anyone scare you,” he said holding me a little tighter. “We’re in this together.”
I pulled him closer and laid my head on his chest, hearing his heart racing, too.
When his heart had settled into a rhythmic beat and we a second to take in the latest revelation he said. “I see you met Felicity. She wanted you to wake up just as badly as I did last night. I was surprised that Brady got her to go home,” he said in an amused tone as his hands slowly glided down my back.
I let my arms fall from around him, then picked up the dresses I’d let fall to the floor and draped them across the banister.
“She brought some food. Are you hungry?”
Landen eyes brightened up. I smiled and pulled him to the kitchen. After a bit of hunting with only a nudge here and there from Landen I found all I needed to plate breakfast.
“What?” I asked, glancing up at him as he helped.
“Nothing.”
“Tell me.”
“You just look…you look like you belong here. I just can’t believe it—that you’re here,” he answered shyly.
We fell into an odd silence. I had questions; he had things he needed to tell me, but neither one of us were ready. It was like we knew any breath we could take we needed to savor it.
After breakfast we moved out to the back porch.
Large white windmills were scattered across the fields. I could see the wind turning them. Long benches, padded chairs, planters, all made up a cozy clean setting. We settled on the biggest bench against the house.
“Landen, are you going to tell me?”
He lowered his eyes.
I reached for his hand. “Landen, tell me…is it really that bad? What did he do?”
Landen adjusted himself in his seat then looked out past the fields and back at me, replaying the day in his mind.
“When we got into the string, we split up. Your father and Marc went back to Franklin so they’d know who he’d taken. Livingston and my father went with me to find Drake.”
Landen stood and started to walk back and forth in front of me, rage was threatening to flood his emotion.
“When we finally found him, he’d almost made it back to Esterious. I was so livid. I wanted to throw him off the nearest cliff. He kept taunting me, wanting me to follow him into his world.”
He was so furious you’d have thought Drake was standing there at that very moment. I stood and moved in front of him to silently remind him we were here, not trapped in yesterday.
“Livingston told me that if I followed Drake.” He glanced down at me, then reached to trace of eye. A few seconds later he said. “I just wanted to talk to him. Get some things straight. I was determined to do so, but then Drake hit Livingston. He wailed on him. I pulled them apart and threw Drake through his passage.”
He lifted his chin. “I would’ve gone after Drake but...I wasn’t thinking right.” He glanced down at me. “It was getting harder for me to fight the pain. A place like Esterious, it sucks the life out of you on a good day.”
I was glad didn’t go but I wasn’t going to strike his ego and tell him if he felt anything like I did yesterday, he would’ve lost a fight with Drake.
“Did you find the others?” I asked.
As Landen’s remorse grew, my stomach turned. It was bad. I could feel it through him.
“Marc and your dad had gone to a passage that Livingston told them to search…they …they…found what was left of a boat.”
“What do you mean, ‘left?”’ I asked. I could barely hear him over my heartbeat.
“It was wrecked. There were survivors…two.”
“Two? Where are the rest? Does Drake have them?” I said, covering my mouth in disbelief. The pain in Landen’s eyes was ripping me apart.
“The two guys, Josh and Chase, saw Drake take three girls, Hannah, Jessica and…Olivia,” Landen said as hi
s eyes judged every inch of my body, looking for an emotional break.
My eyes raced back and forth, trying to process and count the names that he’d said, and I suddenly realized he didn’t say Monica’s name. She was there—it was her idea—why didn’t he say her name?
“Monica?”
Tears were pooling in my eyes. Landen looked down at the ground, then back up at me through his dark lashes. His remorse told me she was gone.
“Josh and Chase said they couldn’t reach her before she…drowned,” he said slowly.
Feeling like I was going to be physically sick, I walked to the side of the porch, trying to hide my failing composure from Landen. I couldn’t breathe. Monica’s face was rolling through my memory. Landen came to my side and caressed my back. “Where are the others?” I said in an angry whisper.
“With Drake.”
“How…how are we going to get them back?” I needed action. I needed revenge.
Landen didn’t answer me; his stare begged me to give him time to work it out. “I gotta to protect you, first. The priest in Esterious are known for their dark magic.”
“How can you stop something like that?”
“Erasing you from your world was step one.”
I grimaced. Someone had done half the work for him. “Was Dad in Franklin when our house was burning? Did he see it happen?”
“We burned the house...your room, at least. I don’t know how far it spread.”
“What? Why?” I raged.
“I told you. For all I know it didn’t help. Drake had days to take what he wanted. He could’ve taken something from when you met him. Our dads said it was better to be safe than sorry.
“That house meant the world to my mother.”
Landen moved closer to me, trying to make me understand. “And she’d give anything to make sure you were safe.”
I wrestled with blame and grief before I spoke again. “Can we bring my friends home before Drake decides to hurt them?” He nodded as he pulled. “How?” I asked.
“They’ll call you. You’re connected to them.”
“What if they’re under some spell or something? Can we not just go get them? They may not even know they’re in danger? You sister said that.”
“She’s not wrong,” Landen agreed. “What I’m saying is taking them will do Drake no good unless they lure you in. At some point he will do so, and we’ll be ready.”
I wasn’t good with this wait and see plan.
“I sent travelers out last night to find my grandfather, August. If there is another way, he’ll know what to do.”
“What if they call me, like now? What then?”
“Then we go together. I don’t think we can survive long without one another.”
“I told your mom, your family it hurt when we were apart. They thought I was crazy. I should not have said anything. I wasn’t digging the look in their eye. Like they separated themselves from us.”
Landen clenched his jaw, “You’re dad would’ve told them anyway. He said we were hurt on the inside. Inflamed from so much pain.” Landen glanced to the fields then back. “Don’t let them scare you with the way they look at us. It superstation. They want to see something, so they do.”
“You’re worried,” I said quietly.
“No, not yet. Not til’ I have a reason to believe. Even then...we can’t help what we were born to do. Being terrified of it makes it real—it means glory is hiding and we only have to earn it.”
I wasn’t signing up to run through any hell. Not until I survived this Blue Moon. Before then, I had a mess to clean up. Friends to save. I kept them in a loop in my mind. Dad told me when I was a kid that what I thought about was a magnet. To think about what I wanted to come to me. I was still working on it. It was easier to think about what I wanted to stay away.
I’d give anything a shot right about now.
My head was spinning. I walked back to the bench on the porch. He came to my side and wrapped his arm around me. I laid my head on his shoulder and let yesterday play through my mind.
Landen’s emotions were shifting from moment to moment. I felt them finally settle on jealousy. I knew what he was about to ask me, and I braced myself for the emotion that he would feel.
“Are you going to tell me what he meant about the nights together?” His voice was low and calm.
I stayed very still and quietly answered him. “He meant the nightmares.”
Landen shifted his shoulder to face me with anxious eyes. “He was in more than that one?” he asked. I let my eyes tell him yes. “Is he the reason you’d be so upset all those nights?”
He knew the answer to that question, too. He stood quickly and paced the porch. The anger inside him reached the point of wrath. All at once, he stopped and knelt before me. “Tell me what happens, when they happen,” Landen said in a desperate tone.
“There’s a heavy, painful weight on my chest. I can only feel one person, a person who’s afraid. In my nightmares, I can change emotion, and help that person feel at peace. Then they disappear, and Drake shows up and reaches for me, a bright light takes me away.”
Landen placed his hand in the center of my chest, as if he wanted to take away all the times that I’d suffered under the overpowering weight.
“I’ve had a nightmare every new moon of my life until last November, and the last two nightmares don’t fit any pattern. I don’t understand why they’re different.”
Landen lowered his hand and looked down. “Do they see you, or are they like the images?” he asked quietly. I could feel his fear laced with rage. He was aiming to destroy Drake.
“Like the images,” I said.
He turned from me and leaned up against my legs.
“Does that mean something?” I asked.
“If we met in the same place every night...I’d think that you met Drake in Esterious in your nightmares. The thought of you there alone there...”
“Did we always meet in Chara?” I asked.
Landen turned and looked into my eyes, then swayed his head. “I have no idea where we’re meeting. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Was Drake ever in your nightmares?” I asked.
“I’ve only dreamed of you.”
“Who’s Perodine?” I blurted out faster than I intended.
Landen’s confusion was twice as thick as Brady’ when I asked him.
“Who told you about her?”
“No one. I dreamed of her.”
“You dreamed of Perodine?” He was angry and alarmed all at once.
“Is that bad?”
“It can’t be good,” he said moving the bench beside me. “She’s older than time itself. She’s portrayed as Donalt’s wife—the queen. If you look at paintings from hundreds of years ago—millions of years, you’d see her portrait. They say she lives on and on, never dying, and that she’s the source of all the good and bad magic that the dimension uses.”
I closed my eyes, exhausted from the constant twists that life kept throwing at me.
“What did she say to you?”
“Nothing that made any sense,” I said, frustrated with the added conflict of Perodine.
“Listen,” he said. “Keep this to us. When August gets here, we’ll tell him. He’ll be honest with us.”
“Are the others not being honest?”
“Your Dad is walking this way,” he said leaving my question hanging there.
I glanced the field, but I didn’t see him. Landen ticked his head toward the front door. “He’s coming to see how we’re feeling after yesterday.”
Chapter Ten