I snicker to myself as I creep toward the exit in the back. I don’t necessarily have to tiptoe, but I make sure my footsteps are barely audible, just the same.
Reaching out, I check the handle to the back entrance. Thankfully, the structure doesn’t seem to be on lockdown or patrolled by more crazies we haven’t met yet. Gently unlatching the door, I slide outside before the old wooden structure even has the wherewithal to squeak.
Inhaling deeply, relief floods through me and I rest my back briefly on the door.
“Almost out, Braham—almost,” I whisper to myself.
I’m coming, Cass.
Looking over my shoulder every few feet, I make my way to Morgan’s small, green Toyota and slide into the driver’s side. When we went to get Bea, I noticed Morgan left the keys in the ignition—good for me, bad for them.
Cranking on the motor, I flare the green beast to life, and it’s all I can do not to screech outta the parking lot like a lunatic. Instead, I put it into reverse, leaving the headlights off until I hit the street out front.
This part of town is shady at best, but I think I know my basic direction back to the interstate. I’ll start there and hope I can find some clues as to what could have happened to Cassidy—and the rest of humanity, for that matter.
My best guess is I bumped my head—or the explosion set off some weird sorta trance I wasn’t able to break out of. But I’m out now, and I’ll be damned if I’m gonna stay stuck in that place when my wife is having a…
My train of thought veers sideways as I realize it wasn’t Cass who told me she was pregnant. The news came from one of the people inside the nuthouse.
What if what they were saying was all complete bullshit?
I take my foot off the accelerator, trying to find my calm in the midst of all the weird. Nothing about this day has been anything close to normal.
My eyes veer out to the road in front of me. Street lamps have lit and all of the city I can see is still illuminated in the same brilliant way it always is. With one exception—the roads are still clear of traffic and any sight of another human within miles. No kids playing on front steps or riding bikes up and down the sidewalks. No one walking past their big picture windows.
Not a single living thing moving about in a place that should still be bustling.
What in Hades could cause this? How can people and vehicles all disappear when this one is still in perfect working order?
Why are some aspects of humanity here—when others… just aren’t? It doesn’t make any sense.
It’s like the universe has picked at random the aspects that can stay and those that can’t. Like, the aftermath of humanity is okay, but humanity itself isn’t.
Perhaps the gods finally decided the only way to be with us was wrathful. Seems about right. We’re the cancer of the planet, as far as I can tell.
Driving at nearly the speed limit, I pull out onto the freeway just east of where our Prius was pushed against the guardrail. My pulse quickens as I near the location we were stuck at for hours as we tried to flee this godforsaken country together. All of Hades was breaking loose then, and it’s even worse now.
If that’s even possible.
My fingertips fly to my forehead as I etch lines across it in the hope it will help make me feel more centered. Instead, my insides flop about like a fish trying to breathe air instead of water.
When I reach a familiar patch of road, I put the car in park, abandoning it for the up-close-and-personal of going it on foot.
Everything looks different in the dark—more eerie now, if that’s even possible. It’s a quarter past two in the morning instead of a quarter past nine. With the headlights flooding the road from behind me, I wander the street, looking for clues—anything to let me in on what in the crap is going on here.
After a ten-minute walk, I’m far enough from the blare of the headlights to wish my cell phone hadn’t been left behind in the Prius with Cass. Who the fuck knows if it would get through to anyone—but at least I’d have my damn flashlight app.
Swallowing hard, I’m about to turn back when I catch it—the thing I’m looking for. Racing over to the guardrail, I crouch down and once again place my hand along its rough edges. While there’s still no sign of Cass or the car, this time, bits of flaking paint cling to the metal like chilling remnants of the past.
Goosebumps race across my arms and neck, and I stand up.
I swear the paint wasn’t there before.
Blinking back tears and surprise, I let out a sigh of relief.
She was here—we were here.
Sitting down, I lean my back against the cold, bowing steel and pull my knees in tight. Maybe if I wait long enough, everything will flip back to the way it should be.
Dropping my head to my knees, I close my eyes and think about Cass. About the last conversation we had. It wasn’t a fight per se, but I was still being me. Getting on her nerves because I love to see her cheeks flush. It was all in good fun, but I wonder if she knew that.
I miss those dark-green, curious eyes of hers and the way they’d get covered by the stray strands of bangs when she was frazzled. I would do anything to be in her arms again—or have her in mine.
“Braham.”
My head jolts upright and I open my eyes.
“Cass?” I cry out, clambering to my feet.
Swiveling around, I search for her—for anyone, really, but particularly her.
Silence greets me, and I narrow my eyes at the deserted street. I know what I heard—
Walking away from the scene where our car had once been, I try to survey it from farther back.
The wind whips around, blowing leaves and shooting tendrils of the cool air we desperately needed when we were locked in traffic.
A shiver races down my spine, and I close my eyes, trying to listen again for any sign of life. Any sign Cass is still here somewhere.
When nothing happens, my shoulders slump in defeat, and I exhale softly.
“Maybe it’s just wishful thinking,” I mutter.
I take another slow inhalation and turn to face the other end of the road, where the enormous crater had been opened up.
Placing one foot in front of the other, I let them carry me to the location of the crater. I’ve walked for a good twenty minutes before I pull up short.
“Wait a minute…” I say, twisting around. “Where is it?”
I’ve gone well past the location where the gigantic hole had opened up on the interstate—and it’s no longer here. Instead, the asphalt is intact and sans a giant crater.
“I am so fucking confused,” I say, raking my hands through my hair. “I’ve gotta be losing my damn mind.”
Dropping my hands, I turn back the way I came and start walking. Things really are looking stranger by the minute, and my brain can’t seem to wrap itself around the heaping mound of what-the-fuck.
The walk back is slow and tedious, but the silence helps me clear my head a bit. Maybe going out on my own wasn’t the best idea. I mean, what’s the point of being out here alone if I can’t even find a way back to Cass?
When the headlights from the Corolla finally come into view, at least I know I’m getting closer to the point of impact. I start hunting around, looking for signs of the massive crater, but the only thing between me and that damn car is more asphalt.
Walking back to where I last saw Cassidy, I breathe in the night air. The crisp, coolness of evening has settled in completely, lending an air of mystery you just don’t get during the day.
Leaning up against the guardrail, I stifle a yawn.
Would it be so bad to head back and get in that nice, warm bed back at the sanctuary?
I mean, there will be more time to figure things out tomorrow morning. Besides, maybe things will be clearer.
Nodding to myself, I push off the rail and start walking.
“Braham—?”
This time, I know what I heard. Cassidy’s voice is crystal clear, and I spin around.
“Sometimes, the things we seek are right in front of us, even if we can’t see them,” someone says nearby.
I swing around, blinking back surprise as I come face-to-face with a short, Native American woman. Her dark hair is braided meticulously on either side of her head, and her garb is something straight out of a western—certainly not attire to be worn in the twenty-first century.
“I’m sorry, but who... who are you?” I blurt out.
Her face barely shifts in acknowledgment of my question, but her deep, dark eyes twinkle.
Taking a nonchalant inhalation, she places her hands behind her back and steps toward me.
“My name is Turtledove,” she states matter-of-factly.
“I, uh—”
“Braham, there’s something you and I need to get clear quickly,” Turtledove says, cutting me off. She reaches out with one hand.
“How’d you know my—?” I sputter.
She raises a hand dismissively, as if my question actually offends her.
“As much as you may want to return to the realm you came from, you have a sacred duty to nurture. There is a time and place where your wife and son will manifest into being, but unless you are able to let go of what was so you can clearly see what is, you will constantly be shifting sand.”
I blink back my surprise.
Everywhere I go, it’s like the entire universe keeps calling me back to the crazy.
“Look, I don’t know what you’re—”
“Do not be coy with me, Braham. I have watched you since you were a small baby, still cradled in your mother’s arms. I am one from your celestial entourage who was with you for your first cry, first skinned knee, and first best friend. I whispered in your ear and nudged you toward Cassidy when you were trying to build enough courage. I’ve seen all your lies, listened to the reasoning you’ve told yourself, and know the ones you’re telling yourself now. Somewhere, nestled deep inside your soul, you know this is the moment you’ve been waiting for all your life. So why do you turn away from it now?” Turtledove asks, walking circles around me.
The motion is somewhat disorienting and I take a step back, effectively stopping her orbit.
“I just want to know my wife is okay,” I blurt out, trying to justify to myself, and to this bizarre woman, I suppose, why I’m actually here.
“She’s fine,” the woman says, tipping her chin upward as she stares me dead in the eye.
“How do you know that?” I demand.
“I know for the same reason I knew I’d find you here. I am a spirit guide, free to roam reality as I see fit,” she answers, blinking in an almost bored sorta way.
I narrow my eyes.
“Teach me,” I spit out, not even thinking about the words before they tumble from my lips.
She raises a pointed eyebrow at me.
“And why would you presume I would do that, young man?”
Despite myself, I snicker. She’s no older than thirty—a good decade my junior.
“Because if you want me to go back to the loony bin, I need to know for myself Cassidy is okay. That she’s safe and I’m not losing my mind,” I say, jutting out my chin.
“You already know both of those things,” she retorts.
I shrug to myself, and return to my seat, “Well, then, looks like we’re at an impasse. It’s been a real pleasure getting to know you, Turtledove. I’d like to be alone now.”
“Suit yourself,” she says with a terse nod. “I can see what your Guardian Liam was talking about.”
Then, before my eyes, as if the molecules making up her being are sucked from her, she disappears.
Placing my thumb and index finger across my eyes, I slide them across and pinch the bridge of my nose.
“Well, that’s…great,” I mutter to myself. “And who the hell is Liam?”
I don’t know what I’d been hoping would happen, but I shoulda known good old Turtledove wasn’t going to whisk me away from this insanity anytime soon.
Seriously, can things get any weirder?
Right before my eyes, Gabe—Morgan’s husband materializes like he’s made of sun particles of the embers left over after a fire’s burned itself out.
I don’t even try to contain the squeal of surprise that escapes my lips, as I clutch at the front of my shirt.
Gabe simply bows his head, allowing me to settle into the moment.
Finally, he says, “Are you alone?”
I narrow my eyes, “Well, not anymore.”
“I mean besides me,” he says, glancing around the deserted street.
“Yup—just me,” I say.
“All right,” he says. “Look, Braham—I know things are strange, but I really do think you’ll start to see the bigger picture if you come back to the sanctuary. Your power is already growing. But you need some context, and you won’t get it out here. If anything, you could be making yourself more vulnerable.”
I snicker, “Vulnerable? To what? In case you haven’t noticed, there’s nothing left.”
Gabe shakes his head, “There’s more here than meets the eye. And it preys on entities caught in between.”
Narrowing my eyes, I drop my hand and take a step toward him. “What does that even mean?”
“It means you’re lucky you weren’t confronted by the darkness already. You must have some pretty powerful protection,” he says, raising his eyebrows.
“Well, gee—since you put it that way…”
“Braham, I understand your apprehension. I don’t know what I’d do if I were pulled from Morgan in the midst of all this. She’s my rock—and I sense Cassidy is yours,” he says, suggesting with his outstretched hand that we start walking toward the car. “The thing you have to realize is—if you want any chance to save her—to save your son, then it means pulling the universe from its current trajectory.”
“I don’t even know what that means. All of this—it sounds like something straight outta a science fiction novel or something. I mean, what are we supposed to do? What am I supposed to do? I’m just one guy.”
Gabe chuckles, “After everything you’ve recently seen, you still don’t get it, do you?”
I shoot him a look of contempt.
“You’re more than just a guy. Something in you—it’s bigger. And when you fully awaken, it will make more sense. You were sent here by something much larger than yourself. You’ve been here over and over again, but you just don’t remember. Each time, learning things—picking up what it means to be human.”
“Oh man, see… I follow you until you start off on those kinds of tangents. It makes me think Thea’s right. You’re all nuts.”
Gabe pulls up short, and I stop in mid-stride. Without another word, he reaches out and grabs hold of my arm.
“We’re not crazy. And neither are you.”
I glance down at his hand and quirk an eyebrow.
His blue eyes twinkle with a strange, almost etherial luminescence and a lopsided grin spreads across his face.
Suddenly, a sea of vehicles—all stuck in traffic and exactly the way I left them—come into being around me.
10
Gabe
Holding onto Braham’s arm, I take a deep breath and try to stabilize his essence to the plane of existence he’s out of sync with. The one he desperately wants to get back to—and the one he thinks he belongs in.
My only hope is this is more helpful than harmful.
Gods know Morgan would find it questionable. But when needs must…
“Holy shit,” Braham mutters, trying to step away from me.
I clutch onto his arm and tighten my gaze.
“Sorry, sorry,” he mumbles, taking a tentative step forward. “Cassidy?”
“Braham?” A woman calls in the distance.
Again, without thought, Braham rushes forward. This time, he slips from my grasp, despite my best efforts to keep him by my side. The second he breaks free, he blinks out of existence.
Sighing to myself, I follow after him, back to the reality we just came from.
Spinning in circles, his mouth gapes open. “Where—where did they go? Cassidy, I heard her. I swear she was—”
“She was,” I confirm, bowing my head in acknowledgement.
“Take me back,” Braham demands. “I need to see her. She needs to know I’m alive. I need to talk to her. There’s so much I need to tell her.”
Taking a deep, centering breath, I step forward. “I’ll take you back, but you have to understand, it won’t last. You’re not strong enough. If I let go of you, you won’t be able to stay anchored in Cassidy’s reality.”
His head bobs up and down frantically.
“Whatever—whatever you say. Just take me back,” he pleads.
“All right,” I say, taking hold of his arm once again.
I shift our vibration slightly, allowing us to manifest in the same temporal fold as the majority of human existence. We aren’t far off, technically speaking, but still enough that I feel the draw on my own energy immediately.
Braham exhales loudly, “That’s just—whoa.”
“Remember,” I warn, “we have to stick together. This only works if I can maintain contact.”
“Yeah, no worries. I get it,” he says, craning around to orient himself. “She’s this way. Come on.”
Together, we meander through the tightly packed vehicles still occupying the street. The sun has long since departed, but the heat remaining from the vehicles still permeates the air around us. It’s a stark contrast to the reality we just departed. There, the air was cool and crisp, and there were no remnants of the massive extinction events happening all across the globe.
“Cassidy?” Braham calls out again.
A car door springs open, and a woman with dusty-brown hair looks around frantically.
“Braham?” she cries. When her eyes finally land on him, she breaks into a full-on run, coming at us like a raging wind.
Braham also tries to rush forward, but I have to hold him back, keeping my grip firmly planted on his arm. He looks down, clearly annoyed at my intrusion but accepting it nonetheless.
A few curious onlookers step out of their cars or look out their windows, trying to see what’s going on. It’s likely the most exciting thing that’s happened since the missile made contact.
The Chronicles of the 8th Dimension - Limited Edition Box Set (4 Books): A Supernatural Thriller Box Set Page 36