Pyxis: The Discovery (Pyxis Series)

by K. C. Neal

  “Oh, okay.” I tried to think of some way to stall. “I guess I lost track of time. Sorry about that.”

  I slowly gathered up my bag, slung it over my shoulder, and pushed in my chair. I walked around to Aunt Dorothy’s side to give her a hug. “I don’t know what else to do, Aunt Dorothy,” I whispered in her ear. “I need you to snap out of it. I need your help!”

  I tried to look in her eyes, but she was still staring at the floor. I couldn’t believe I’d failed again. I asked the receptionist for directions to the restroom, where I locked the door and leaned against the sink. I wanted to text Mason, but I was afraid I might start crying, and I really wanted to pull myself together before I got back in the car with Ang.

  I trudged outside and pulled open the passenger door. Ang looked at me, wide-eyed and expectant.

  “I gave it to her.” I sighed and stared out the window at the stand of aspens near the front door of the facility. “Nothing happened.”

  “Nothing at all?”

  A lump seemed to crowd my vocal chords, and I cleared my throat. “No, no change.”

  We sat there for a moment in silence.

  “Maybe it takes time to work,” she said.

  I nodded halfheartedly.

  “Do you feel like eating?” she asked.

  “Yeah, sure,” I said, forcing my voice to sound level. Ang drove us to the Italian restaurant we’d picked.

  I tried to enjoy the meal, but I just wanted to go home, hide in my room, and curl up in a ball. Who could help us if Aunt Dorothy didn’t come around? I was out of ideas.

  After Ang dropped me off, I went into my room and shut the door. Lying back on my bed, I called Mason and told him what had happened. He tried to reassure me, but there really wasn’t anything he could say to cheer me up. I asked him if we should tell Mr. Sykes that it hadn’t worked, and he thought that was the best thing to do under the circumstances. He volunteered to go to Mr. Sykes’s house first thing in the morning to see if there was anything more the old man could do to help us. I got the impression Mason kind of liked talking to Mr. S.

  My phone buzzed with a text from a number I didn’t know. There was a blurry picture, obviously taken with a camera phone, and as I stared at it, surprise and horror welled in a sickening bubble just below my lungs.

  It was Sophie and Bradley. Their heads were tilted together as if they were lying side-by-side. Sophie smirked into the camera, and Bradley’s eyes were on Sophie. My insides went cold. My phone buzzed again with another message.

  True Luv!

  I wanted to vomit.

  Instead, I dialed Ang’s number.

  “Oh my God, Sophie and my brother!” I shrieked into the phone.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Sophie! She’s with Bradley!” I tried to lower my voice to a reasonable level. “You have to help me, Ang! This cannot happen. What am I going to do?”

  “How do you know?” Ang asked, her voice annoyingly calm and reasonable.

  “Hold on.” I forwarded the two messages to her. “Did you get them?”

  There was some muffled jostling on Ang’s end as she checked the texts, then she got back on the phone.

  “Wow. She was with Andy just, like, a few days ago.”

  “So not the point!” My voice was rising again.

  “Calm down, Corinne. At the rate she moves, she’ll probably be on to some new guy by next week. I mean, this is Sophie we’re talking about here.”

  “Okay, okay, you’re right.” I swiped my hand over my eyes and sank back on my bed. “Still … it’s my brother. What if it’s not just one of her flings? She was with that Carson dude for, like, six months.”

  “Yeah, but everyone knew that was because his family was rich and had that mansion on the lake.”

  I snorted a laugh. “Well, at least we know she isn’t with Bradley for his money. I’m sure she’s just doing it to piss me off.”

  “Probably. Just try not to think about it. And don’t say anything to either of them. That’ll just let her know she’s gotten to you.”

  I knew Ang was right, but it was going to be really hard to pretend I didn’t care about this. The thought of Bradley and Sophie making out … ew. Just, no.

  We checked our geometry homework answers against each other, then hung up.

  After I finished my homework, I turned out the lights and jammed my earbuds in, settled back against the pile of pillows at the head of my bed, and turned the music up loud. I wanted to drown out all possible images of Sophie and my brother.

  * * *

  I stood facing the water, and the dirty fog rolled toward me over the lake. Beside me, Mason seemed bathed in a warm glow of light, but I couldn’t locate the source. I knew without turning to look that Ang stood about twenty feet behind us. She wasn’t alone, but I was focused on what was before me.

  Instead of trying to run as I had before, I stood my ground. My heart pounded in terror, but I faced the lake, building a wall in my mind between the fog and the cove. I imagined an invisible, solid sheet of air that the fog couldn’t permeate or breach. The fog began to pile up on itself about a hundred feet from the shore.

  It was working; I was doing it! I shot Mason a triumphant glance, but he was focused on the water, and his face paled. I followed his gaze just as the fog cracked through my invisible wall and raced toward us like a foul tidal wave.

  I froze. There was no way we could outrun it. I sucked in a breath to scream, and the greasy smell of spoiled meat filled my nose and throat.

  I sat straight up in my bed. I was still flinging my arms in front of me in an ineffective effort to push the fog away. My hands shook so badly it took three tries to turn on my bedside lamp. A barely-detectable haze seemed to fill my room, and I could still smell the oily rot of the fog. I shook my head. I was still dreaming. I must be still dreaming! I squeezed my eyes shut for a count of three, then opened them.

  The haze didn’t disappear, and I started to panic. When my phone buzzed and then rang, it scared me so badly I had to clap a hand over my mouth to muffle a scream. I had to get out of there, away from the nauseating smoky air, before it soaked into my body. I scooped up my phone and stumbled out of my bedroom into the dark basement. I looked down and saw Mason’s name on the caller ID.

  “Mason?” I said, panic thick in my voice.

  “It’s okay. I’m outside, just come and let me in.”

  I flew to the basement door, unlocked it, and fell into Mason’s arms. The cold night air curled around us, and I felt goose bumps spread up my bare arms. He nudged the door shut with his foot and reached back to lock it before half-carrying me back to my room.

  “The fog, it was in here,” I said, my mouth dry and gritty. I shivered violently, and he pulled up my comforter and wrapped it around me.

  “It’s gone now. Look.” I squinted across my room and realized he was right. I took a few shaky breaths and couldn’t detect the foul stench. He scooted back so he was supported by my pillows and pulled me against him. I shivered less and less as Mason’s body heat warmed me. I focused on taking slow, even breaths.

  “What’s happening?” I said when I was finally able to speak calmly.

  Mason sighed. “I think it’s leaking.”

  “What’s leaking?”

  “Our dreams. They’re leaking into our waking world.”

  Ribbons of ice threaded slowly through me. “What are we going to do?” I whispered.

  “I don’t know. I think we better talk to Mr. Sykes again.” I couldn’t believe how calm Mason sounded. I was barely holding it together, still half out of my mind with terror.

  “Thank you for coming, for being here.” I turned so I could look him in the eye. “Seriously, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “I wouldn’t be anywhere else,” he said, tension stretching his voice thin. His jaw muscles worked as he looked down at me, but his eyes were soft. My heart turned a somersault in my chest.

  Neither of us slept much
the rest of the night. When the gray morning light illuminated the square of window behind the curtain, Mason crawled to the edge of the bed and knelt on the floor next to me.

  “I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said softly. He looked tired, but his eyes flashed with a determination that made my heart jump.

  I sat up and beckoned him to follow me to my dad’s office. I pushed open the door, flipped on the light, and rummaged around in one of the desk drawers until I found what I wanted.

  I turned to Mason and held out a key. “You always seem to know when I need you. Now you can come and go … whenever.”

  I felt self-conscious all of a sudden, as if I’d revealed something intimate.

  His fingers brushed mine as he took the key, and his skin felt hot. A warm tingle worked its way up my arm.

  After Mason left, I just stood in the middle of my room for a moment. I was no longer so afraid now that it was daytime, but the space felt oddly empty without him there. I started straightening my disheveled bed. When my phone buzzed, it startled me. It was a text from Ang.

  It’s the big day!!

  Of course. It was Friday. Tonight was Spring Queen. I smiled tiredly at her enthusiasm. I felt as though I’d aged about ten years since yesterday. I pulled some clothes out of my closet and dragged myself to the bathroom to get ready for school.

  || 26 ||

  “ARE YOU OKAY?” ANG asked as I opened our locker at the beginning of morning break. “You look … not like yourself.”

  I knew she was trying to be nice. I looked like hell after my scary and sleepless night. She, on the other hand, was all light and bubbles. Her blonde hair bounced around her shoulders, and her eyes sparkled; even her teeth seemed whiter. Maybe she’d actually whitened them in preparation for the dance. She was awfully keyed up. I half expected her to start running in circles around me like an excited puppy. Wishing I didn’t have anything more than a high school dance to occupy my thoughts, I smiled wistfully while I dug around in our locker.

  “Yeah, I know. I didn’t sleep well last night.” I stifled a yawn.

  A sympathetic look crossed her face, but then the light and bubbles returned. She grabbed my shoulders and looked into my eyes with urgency. “We’ll you’re going to have to take a nap after school or something. You have to rally, Corinne!”

  “Okay, okay.” I laughed. “Take a nap. Rally. Will do.”

  Fortunately for me, my date would be just as exhausted as I was. Maybe Mason and I could sleep in the car while Ang and Toby had their slow dance moment under the balloons and streamers in the gym.

  I slogged through the rest of the day, and then went straight home and collapsed on my bed. I had every intention of taking a nap, but I couldn’t fall asleep.

  My phone buzzed. It was a text from Mason.

  I’ll be at your place at 6. C u soon!

  I looked at my clock. Four forty-eight, damn. No point in trying to sleep now. After a quick shower, I stood in front of the mirror in my bathroom with my hair turbaned in a towel and started doing my makeup. I heard the doorbell ring, and a minute later, Ang appeared with a huge duffel bag over her shoulder and her plastic-sheathed dress on a hanger. Her hair and makeup were already done.

  “I told Toby we could all come back here after the dance. Hope that’s okay!” She ducked into my room with her things.

  “Sure, that’s fine,” I hollered to her down the hall. “Want me to make some special blue cookies for you to give him?”

  “Corinne, I would never do that!”

  “Everyone decent?” Bradley called from the top of the stairs. I heard Ang slam my bedroom door shut.

  “Yeah, come on down,” I said, and pulled the towel off my head. I looked up and caught my brother’s reflection in the mirror. I whirled around. He was dressed in a tux, his hair was gelled, and he held a plastic box with a pink rose corsage.

  “You are not.” I narrowed my eyes. He looked at me with a slightly sheepish grin on his face. “Please tell me you are not going to Spring Queen with Sophie.”

  “I could … but then I’d be lying.” He didn’t even have the decency to seem apologetic about it.

  I leaned back against the bathroom counter and crossed my arms. Was it possible Sophie stole one of my cookies and gave it to Bradley? I’d rather believe that than believe it was “True Luv!”

  “I gotta ask you something random, Brad,” I said. “Did Sophie give you any baked goods in the recent past?”

  He burst out laughing. “That was definitely random. Nope.”

  “Huh.” Damn. Could it be possible he actually liked Sophie and chose to be with her voluntarily? I shuddered a little.

  “Now I get to ask you one,” he said with an evil glint in his eyes. “What’s up with you and Mason?”

  “What? Nothing! Less than nothing. We’re friends, end of story.”

  “And that’s why I’ve seen him sneaking in and out of the basement at all hours of the night?” he asked, one eyebrow arched.

  I stepped to the doorway and glanced past my brother and down the hall at my closed bedroom door. I hoped to God Ang hadn’t heard that. I looked at Bradley and lowered my voice to a near-whisper. “It’s not like that. I know how it looks, but it’s not what you think.”

  He leaned in conspiratorially. “Do you need some of my condoms?” he asked in a stage whisper.

  “Oh my God, do not talk to me about condoms, Bradley!” I slapped my hands over my ears and prayed he would just disappear. The thought of him and Sophie … no, no, no.

  “Have fun tonight!” he called over his shoulder as he walked back upstairs.

  I blow-dried my hair and tried to erase the past few minutes from my mind. Why Sophie? Why?

  I wasn’t worried that Bradley would tattle on me about Mason, but I realized there was no way I could explain to him what was really going on. I’d just have to let him believe that Mason and I were doing … whatever it was Bradley thought we were doing.

  Ang emerged from my room and sashayed into the bathroom. She twirled once so I could admire her dress. It fit her perfectly, hugging her body and showing off her legs.

  “You look gorgeous,” I said. “Toby won’t be able to keep his hands off you.”

  She blushed and smiled. “How’s my hair?” The front was swept back and secured with the clip she’d bought, and she’d curled a few stray strands of soft ringlets around her face. She looked positively angelic.

  “Seriously, Ang, you look amazing.”

  “Want me to get out your dress and shoes?” she asked.

  “Sure, thanks.” I pulled my hair up in a high ponytail and started curling chunks into tight ringlets. I twisted the ringlets and pinned them to my head around my ponytail to create a loose, textured bun. I pulled a few strands down around my face and curled the ends to soften the look.

  Ang zipped me into my dress, and I stepped into the silver wedges. Mom came down to check our progress just as I was spritzing myself with perfume.

  “You girls look … beautiful. So grown up.” Her hand fluttered across her heart.

  She pulled out her camera, and Ang and I posed for a few shots. I was a tiny bit excited. Maybe I was getting into the whole dance thing. The doorbell rang, and the three of us filed upstairs. Mom opened the door, and Mason stood there in a black suit, green shirt, and gray-and-green striped tie. A green pocket square that matched the dark green in his tie was tucked into the breast pocket of his jacket. The waves of his sandy blonde hair were sprayed perfectly in place. I was actually speechless for a second.

  “Hey, you look great!” I said when I finally found my voice. I motioned for him to come in.

  My mom whistled and hugged him.

  Mason turned to me, lifted my hand, and slipped a delicate, white rosebud corsage over my wrist. He bent down to kiss my cheek, and I inhaled the spicy vanilla smell of his soap.

  “You look like a dream,” he whispered in my ear. It’s possible I might have blushed a little.

 
; My mom pushed a white rose boutonniere at me, and my hands trembled as I pinned it to Mason’s lapel. My heart was dancing around like water on a griddle, and it was all I could do to tear my eyes from his. I had a crazy urge to touch the spot where his lips had brushed my cheek.

  “So, are we ready to go?” Ang asked, practically jittering in her cream heels.

  I grabbed my clutch and black, dress coat, and we waved goodbye to my mom as we trooped out to Ang’s mom’s Volkswagen. Mason opened the door for me, and I climbed into the backseat.

  When we got to Toby’s house, Mason and I stayed in the car to let Ang have her moment. I stifled a yawn against the back of my hand. “I meant to take a nap this afternoon, but it didn’t happen. You must be exhausted, too.”

  “Yeah, it was a rough night, wasn’t it?” He stuck his hand into his jacket and came out with a flask. With an evil smile, he removed the lid and took a swig, and then he held it out to me. I raised my eyebrows, but took the flask and drank a long pull. I coughed a little as the liquid burned a track from my mouth to my stomach.

  “What the hell is that?” I coughed again.

  “Just something to help us forget last night,” he said. He slipped the flask back into his jacket, slid his arm along the back of the seat, and leaned toward me. “We’re going to have a good time tonight if it kills us.”

  Ang returned to the car with Toby, and I had to muffle a giggle against my fist. Ang was positively glowing, a perma-smile on her face. Toby turned around in the front passenger seat to say hello to me and Mason, and reached back to shake Mason’s hand. “Welcome back home, man. It’s good to see you.”

  Ang cranked some vintage Madonna on the stereo and drove us the short distance to a little bistro where we had dinner reservations. There weren’t many fine-dining options in Tapestry, so several other Tapestry High couples already occupied tables.

  During dinner, Mason told stories about his year in Africa, and Ang gazed at Toby while hardly touching her chicken cordon bleu. In the car on the way to the dance, Mason passed me the flask under the cover of darkness. I leaned down so Ang wouldn’t see me in the rearview mirror and drank a few swallows. I bit my lips to stifle a snicker and handed the flask back to Mason.