Or at least try not to.
Adessa’s golden-cat eyes landed on me, and she gave me a welcoming smile. “Hello, Gemma.”
I forced a small smile, just so I wouldn’t seem rude. “Hey.”
She smiled again, tucking a strand of her black wavy hair behind her ear, and then went back over to the stove.
Aislin grabbed the spoon in the pot, and began stirring it until Adessa took a seat at the table. Laylen did as well, carrying a stack of bowls in his hands. As I glanced around at the five of us, I couldn’t help but think how strange this was. And I wasn’t just saying strange because I was sitting at the table with two witches, a vampire, and a Keeper, but because I was sitting at a table, getting ready to eat. Something I’d never done before in my life.
“So who’s hungry?” Adessa asked, taking a bowl and scooping some—hopefully—chicken noodle soup into it. When no one answered, she set the bowl down in front of Alex, who slid it in front of me.
“Ladies first,” he said with a charming smile.
How gentleman-like of him, which made it all the weirder.
“Thanks,” I muttered. I stared down at the bowl of hot soup, watching the steam rise up as I thought of my mother and how, in just a few short hours, I might find out that she’s still alive. After spending most of my life thinking she was dead, the idea seemed strange and unfamiliar.
So how are you feeling?” Aislin asked me.
I tore my gaze away from the soup, and my thoughts. “I’m fine.”
Her forehead furrowed over. “Is something wrong?”
I shook my head. “No. Not really….I’m just a little confused still. That’s all.”
“About what?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Everything really.”
She shot Alex a stern look. “Didn’t you explain anything to her?”
“I explained to her that none of us know anything,” he said, aggravated. “Not really. anyway.”
Aislin’s bright green eyes pierced into him as if she were trying to burn a telegraphic message into his mind. Although I didn’t mind Aislin—I mean, for the most part, she’d been nice to me—I knew she was almost as good of a liar as Alex, which put the count up to two people sitting at this table that I couldn’t trust. And Adessa, well I knew nothing about her, and the whole trusting strangers’ thing had never gone that well for me. (Think City of Crystal, where an overly friendly half-faerie lives). The only person I felt I could rely on was Laylen.
I glanced over at Laylen, who was sitting there, with no food in front of him, because…well, because he’s a vampire and he doesn’t eat food. Everyone else was slurping away, and I hoped they didn’t notice when Laylen locked eyes with me. It was as if he was whispering a secret to me with his eyes. Tonight.
Yes. Tonight. I thought back. Tonight, maybe we’ll get some answers.
Chapter 4
The rest of the conversation at the table consisted of a bunch of slurping. This was okay, though, because here in just a short while, Laylen and I were going to be setting out on our endeavor to try and find out about my mom.
After I’d finished eating, I pretended to be tired and told everyone I was heading up to bed to go to sleep. And yeah, I got that saying I was tired sounded a little odd, since I’d just woken up from a two day nap. But I couldn’t sit still, and I was afraid that all my bounciness was going to give away that something was up.
So for the sake of not getting Laylen and I busted before we even got the chance to try, I went up to my room to get some sleep. I never actually intended to fall asleep, but when I laid down on the bed, my eyelids suddenly felt heavy, and before I knew it, I’d dozed off.
It was dark. And I was cold. Water dripped on my head.
Painful Screams filled the air. I shivered as I crept through the darkness, the air feeling damp against my skin.
“Gemma,” a voice whispered.
I knew that voice. It was my mom’s.
“Mom,” I called out, turning in every direction, searching for her.
“Gemma,” her voice sounded so far away and I started to run, my feet hitting the ground with a thud that echoed all around me. “Come find me.”
“I’m trying,” I said, searching through the dark for her.
Just then, a soft light filtered through the darkness, and I saw it. A figure, white and bony, floating in the air like a ghost. I screeched to a halt, a deathly feeling choking me so strongly it nearly sucked the wind out of me.
The white figure glided toward me. I spun around and ran in the opposite direction, my feet hammering against the ground
“Gemma!” My mother’s voice screamed from somewhere behind me.
I kept running, contemplating what I should do. Turn around and face the ghostly figure—try to get to my mother. Or run like a coward.
I skidded to a stop and whirled back around, deciding I needed to try and save her. But I let out a scream at the sight of the hollowed out eyes that were only inches away from my face. The ghostly figure’s bony hand reached for me, and I let out another scream, feeling more afraid then I’d ever felt in my life.
“Gemma, run,” I heard my mother say. But I couldn’t—I was too terrified to move.
This strange feeling passed over me as the ghostly figures fingers moved to my mouth. I felt something being sucked away from inside me…and then I just felt empty.
***
I gasped for air as my eyes shot open, my heart hitting the inside of my chest about a million miles a minute, the fear I’d felt in my dream still rattling at my nerves.
It took my eyes a second to adjust to the blackness that had filled the bedroom, and for my heart to settle back down. God, I hated when I had nightmares like that. I could never be certain if they were actually nightmares. What if what I’d just saw was a vision? That couldn’t be good. The strange ghostly figure had sent so much fear through me that…I shivered, hoping that it was just a nightmare.
I climbed off the bed and flipped on the light. The brightness stung my eyes and I had to blink them into focus. I wondered what time it was and what time Laylen would show up. I didn’t have a watch and couldn’t see a clock anywhere in the room, but it had to be late since the sky was black, except for the silver specks of stars, and the faint rainbow glow that Vegas’ lights cast across it.
Perhaps I should go get Laylen. Of course, I had no idea where he was, and I worried that, if I went looking for him, I might run into the wrong person and end up having to explain why I was wandering around the house late at night.
So I decided to wait it out. Laylen said he’d be here so he would.
I went over to the oval mirror hanging on the wall above the dresser. For it being so late, I sure looked awake; my violet eyes staring back at me all big and wide. Sliding my ponytail to the side, I turned to look at the back of my neck where my Foreseer’s mark was tattooed. It was the first time I’d seen it, and honestly, it was kind of strange to look at. I’d never even considered getting a real tattoo before, and now I suddenly had one, under no choice of my own. But I guess that just came with the territory of being part of a world where people’s supernatural gifts mark them. It was almost like being branded.
I traced the black circle that curved around the S with my finger, my skin tingling beneath my touch. “So weird,” I muttered.
A soft click came from behind me and I spun around as the bedroom door creaked open. I almost bolted for the window, but then I saw it was Laylen and I relaxed.
“Good. You’re awake,” Laylen said in a hushed voice and shut the door. He was dressed in a black long-sleeved thermal shirt, black jeans, and black boots, which made me wonder if we were going to the Black Dungeon, since almost everyone there dressed entirely in black. “You’ve been up here for so long I thought for sure you’d be asleep.”
I had been, but I didn’t tell him that. “If I’d stayed down there,” around Alex, “then they would’ve figured out something was up. I thought it’d be best if I came up here where no one could see how bouncy I was.”
“Well, I guess I don’t have to ask you if you’re ready to go then,” he said with a smile.
“Yeah, I’m more than ready,” I said, feeling both excited and nervous. Excited because what if I was told my mother was alive. And nervous because…Well, I had a feeling that even if we were not going to the Black Dungeon, we were probably going to a place that was a lot like it.
“Okay…” He hesitated, making me wonder if he’d changed his mind about going. “Here’s the tricky part,” he told me. “We’re not going to be able to just walk out the front door of the house. Adessa sets up these magical charms at night so if someone tries to come in or go out, she’ll know. It’s her version of a security system.”
“Okay…so how are we supposed to get out of the house?” I asked, and his gaze flickered in the direction of the window. My eyes widened. “You want us to climb out the window.”
“It’s the only way. All the downstairs windows have charms on them, and although I’m not sure exactly what Adessa’s charms do if they get set off, I’d really rather not find out.”
I glanced with uncertainty at the window. “But how are we even supposed to climb out. Do you have some kind of special climbing-down-the-wall super power or something?” Really, I wouldn’t have been that surprised if he did.
He shook his head, seeming amused. “I’m a vampire, Gemma, not Spiderman.” He paused. “No, you’re going to get on my back, and I’m going to jump out.”
I stared at him, waiting for him to deliver the punch line of the joke because he had to be joking. But the look on his face was dead serious.
“How’s that even going to work without us getting hurt,” I asked, dumbfounded.
“We won’t get hurt,” he assured me. “That far of a fall won’t hurt me at all. It’s a vampire thing.”