by Lauren Eason
My phone buzzed on my nightstand as I laid awake in bed staring at the glowing stars scattered across my ceiling. Being the nerd that I was, I had placed them into identifiable constellations. It was supposed to be comforting, a technique suggested to me by Dr. Clayborn. Tonight, I guess it finally was.
I lifted my hand to touch my lips where Jason had lingered before dropping me off at home. Turning over, I grabbed my phone to see a text from Raven. I dialed her number and waited for her to pick up.
“I’m glad you’re still awake,” Raven said softly as if she were trying not to wake someone. “We found some things out today that we didn’t know before.”
“We?” I asked with a smirk on my face.
“Hey, Aislin.” Melissa’s voice sounded on the other end of the phone. “Raven, you’re not very quiet.”
“Maybe you’re just a light sleeper.”
“Guys,” I said, trying to pull Raven back to focus on the topic at hand.
“Right,” Raven said, clearing her throat. “So, remember when I told you about Elias’s affair with his student?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, turns out the poor girl committed suicide after discovering Elias dismissed the divorce papers from his wife due to his financial losses. Turns out not every girl wants to be told that money is more important than them,” Raven went on. “They found her hanging in her dorm room closet.”
“Are we sure that one was a suicide?” I asked, sitting up in bed.
“Yeah, but that’s not the interesting part,” Melissa replied. “That detective you’ve been talking to was her brother. Did he ever mention that to you?”
“No...” I murmured. “Maybe it was painful, or he didn’t know—”
“Oh, Detective Highwater knows, alright,” Raven confirmed. “Melissa was able to hack into a sealed document where Highwater got into an altercation with Elias right before he died. He was probably upset about a married man taking advantage of his sister and blamed him for her death.”
“What—what am I supposed to do with this information?” Detective Highwater knew I was poking around in the cases. What if he already knew about the information Raven and Melissa had dug up?
“I think you should be careful about what you say around him,” Raven mentioned.
“But why would he be feeding Aislin information then?” Melissa asked, confusion in her voice. “He’s been talking to her since day one. I mean, he knows she broke into Steven’s house for crying out loud.”
“Raven,” I growled low under my breath.
“Sorry!” Raven apologized. “I had to fill Melissa in on what we were doing before she agreed to help.”
“What else does she know?” I asked, fear seizing my heart.
“Just about the case,” Melissa commented. “Why? Is there something else?”
“No, that’s about it,” Raven replied so I wouldn’t have to. “Well, I’m going to let you get some sleep, Ais. I’m going to practice my lucid dreaming.”
I said my goodbyes before hanging up the phone and throwing it onto my nightstand beside me. Flopping back onto my bed, I waited for my eyes to adjust to the darkness once again.
My breathing slowed as I closed my eyes, letting my plush pillows envelop me. Moments later, I was conscious in someone else’s mind. The scene started along a dark highway with trees lining either side. The forest was thick with brambles reaching out towards me. Glancing around, I failed to spot any human figure to determine who the dream belonged to.
Wrapping my arms around me, I walked along the dark road until I eventually saw a light post with a bus bench underneath it. The soft yellow glow illuminated a small circle around the area as I made out the outline of a seated woman. A light breeze blew by, rustling my hair as I reached up to brush it back.
I stopped, suddenly aware that the dream was affecting me in ways that had never occurred before. I had experienced storms and wind, but I could never feel the coldness, and it never affected my seemingly ethereal body. Patting my clothes, I wondered if I was somehow solid in this dream.
“I’ve been expecting you,” the voice said from the bus stop.
My blood ran cold as fear seized my heart. Willing myself to step forward, I walked around to the front of the bench to peer under the overhang. The woman leaned back and looked up at me. It was Maria.
“How are you—you see me?” I asked, bewildered.
She nodded, a sad smile upon her face. “I’m dying, and in this brief moment, I’m able to reach out to you. I knew you were special the moment I first saw you in my dreams.”
“What’s happening?” I asked, worried I would lose the connection.
“It’s okay,” Maria explained calmly. “It only takes moments to die, but here, it can seem like an eternity.”
“Why are you dying?” I choked out, feeling my legs shake underneath me.
“I was marked a long time ago. I thought I had escaped them, but I was delivered straight into the hands of the beast.”
I took a brave step forward. “Maria, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Tell me what’s happened. Where are you?”
I watched in horror as blood trickled from Maria’s eyes, nose, and mouth. She coughed as more blood spilled from her body. “Don’t let them die like me. Save them.”
Rushing forward, I placed my hands on her shoulders as her head drooped. Panicking, I shook her to keep her focused on talking. Maria grabbed my wrists forcefully and pulled me close, whispering in my ear.
“The nurse...find him, and he will lead you to her.”
Maria pushed me back as her body burst into flames in front of me. Her screams echoed throughout the dream as the scenery faded away like ash taking the last of her with it. My heart pounded in my chest as I spun around in all directions trying to make out anything through the darkness.
Catching my breath, I tried to calm myself. “Okay, Aislin. Count back. Ten, nine, eight...”
I didn’t understand why I wasn’t waking up.
“Six, five...”
Was I meant to see something else?
“Three, two...”
This wasn’t happening.
“One.”
Opening my eyes, I stood in the center of an office. I could hear the bass of music in the background as my eyes landed on a news article on a desk. My hand floated right through it as I tried to pick it up. It appeared I was in an ordinary dream and back to the strange logic behind them. The door opened behind me as I stepped aside.
A petite woman entered the room in a tight pencil dress and heels. Her long brown hair was in a low bun at the base of her neck, held together with an oriental hair stick. She walked over to the leather chair behind the desk and shuffled papers around before glancing at the news article. Tossing it aside, she glanced up as she heard her door open.
“Steven,” the lady said, standing from her chair. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
Steven opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I was in another memory dream, and this time it belonged to the woman behind the desk. Unfortunately for me, I wouldn’t know Steven’s side of the situation.
She walked around her desk to stand a few feet away from him. I took the opportunity to look at the papers that were scattered about. Spotting a piece of mail, I discovered I was standing in the office of Sheridan Lee, the manager of the Ocean Blue Lounge.
“Do you, now? I know another man who thinks he knows what he’s talking about when it comes to me and where my loyalties lie. What about you, Steven? I know you’ve been talking to Detective Highwater as well,” she said to him, trying to appear collected.
Sheridan sighed before taking a step back and leaning her hips against the edge of her desk. “Oh, Steven. I know you don’t want to be involved with this anymore; neither do I. How about instead of working against each other, we try and find a way out of this mess?”
Steven replied to her, running his hand through his hair nervously. He appeared distraught, unhinged even
. I could tell there was some kind of internal struggle occurring.
“Hunter already has the muscle to take care of his dirty work. He doesn’t need you or me. Lockhart takes care of the product, and if you ask me, he’s the reason the cops are closing in. He’s gotten sloppy with his work. I’m going to make a deal, and I think you should too,” Sheridan explained, trying to save face. Steven sweated in the corner, trying to think about his next move. I almost felt sorry for him but then thought about how he got himself into this mess.
“Hunter may own half this town, but he doesn’t own me. I’ve already placed my resignation, and I’m sure that’s why he sent you here,” Sheridan responded, straightening from her desk. “What did he ask you to do?”
Before Steven could answer, a large commotion sounded from outside of the office. Steven ran out the door, closing it firmly behind him. Sheridan pounded against it, jiggling the handle as I heard the sound of screaming from the other side.
“Let me out! Steven!” Sheridan screamed at the top of her lungs as smoke wafted in from under the door. Sheridan tried desperately to open it as the flames blew from underneath and around the door frame.
The crackling of the fire caused Sheridan to take a step back from the burning door as sirens sounded from outside. She glanced up at the sprinkler system that failed to activate as she took off one of her heels. Using her shoe, she jumped up to try and knock the sprinkler head off. She managed to knock it loose as water gushed out all around her. I could hear the roar of the fire outside in the rest of the building as she shook with fear.
Sheridan backed away from the door as the walls started to peel. Sweat beaded on my forehead as the heat suddenly struck me. I backed away as Sheridan flinched beside me. Her eyes widened as she flattened herself towards the wall opposite me.
“Can you see me?” I asked.
She nodded. “You’re here for my soul, aren’t you?”
“What?”
“I know where they are. They’re under the—”
Sheridan grabbed her throat as she choked back the words, trying to force them out. Her lips turned blue as she struggled for air, finally falling to the ground in a heap before me.
“Wake up, Aislin,” I told myself as I remained trapped within the burning building, the fire consuming the wallpaper and furniture around me.
As the fire blazed, I rushed to the furthest corner of the room and slid down the wall. Wrapping my arms around my legs, I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to focus on anything else but the raging inferno. The flames licked at my limbs as a scream ripped from my throat. I felt the heat all around me as my skin boiled.
“Aislin!”
Shouting came from behind the door through the flames. They shouted my name over and over again as I heard pounding on the office door. The wood splintered as the sound became more aggressive.
“Aislin, wake up!”
I awoke to my father holding me down on the floor of my room with Jess and my mother standing in the shattered doorway with a gasp. My hair was slick with sweat as my father wiped my brow, a worried expression on his face. Before I could speak, he hugged me in a tight embrace as if he were afraid of losing me.
“Aislin,” my mother sighed in relief as she knelt down beside me to take me in her arms.
“What happened?” I asked, dazed.
“It was a night terror,” my father began. “I thought you were taking medication for those.”
My mother glanced over at him, having forgotten to tell him about how we had decided to forego my sleeping pills. I placed a hand gently on her arm as she opened her mouth.
“It was my decision, Dad,” I explained. “We were weaning me off the medication. It was my choice to see if I could go on without having to take pills.”
“Call Dr. Clayborn,” my father told my mother. “This isn’t normal—”
“I’m not normal, Dad!” I cried, wiping the blood from underneath my nose. “I’ve never been normal, and I’ve tried to tell you that for years. Both of you!”
“Aislin...”
“No!” I shouted at him. “Not until you listen to me. For once!”
“Aislin, I know...we know,” my father said, grabbing my face between his hands. “We only wanted you to have a normal life.”
“What do you mean you know?” Jess asked, stepping forward.
Our parents glanced at each other.
“You knew?” I sobbed, tears threatening to spill. “All these years. All the pain I went through. You knew I was telling the truth?”
“Aislin, we—”
I stood up, trying to steady myself. “I have to get to school.”
“Aislin, it’s three in the morning,” my mother pointed out. “Right now, I’m a little concerned that you may need to go to the hospital.”
“Tell me the truth,” I demanded, pulling myself to the edge of my bed.
My father sighed, shaking his head as he turned to my mother. She stood up and sat on the other end of my bed as Jess took a few more steps into the room.
“Your grandmother—my mother—also had night terrors,” my mother began. “She feared that one day I would have them too, but I didn’t. When you started showing signs as a little girl, your father and I had hoped it was a phase. That’s why we tried our best to comfort you.”
“You made me feel like a freak,” I replied, sniffing.
“We did the best that we could with what we knew,” my father said. “It wasn’t the right method, but we tried.”
I turned away from them. I didn’t care that they still believed it was only night terrors. I only wanted to feel accepted. “I’m tired.”
“Okay,” my mother whispered. My father took her hand as she lifted herself from my bed.
“I’ll stay with her,” Jess said. My mother squeezed her arm before moving past her and down the hall with my father. Jess came further into the room as I scooted onto my bed, laying on my side.
I felt Jess lower herself beside me as she clicked off the lamp on my bedside table. “You should’ve told them.”
“And say what? No, Mom, they’re not night terrors. I’m actually inside your head when you’re asleep? There’s a reason our grandmother never told her the truth. I’m not trying to do a stint at a mental hospital here,” I admitted. “Trust me. It’s better this way.”
Jess sighed next to me through the darkness as we lay silent. I was painfully aware of her as I listened to her breathing. It was evident we weren’t going back to sleep tonight.
“Is she still alive?” Jess whispered.
“I believe so.”
“I promised her parents every time they dropped her off for practice that I would take care of her,” Jess said. “I feel like such a failure.”
Turning over to face her, Jess turned her body towards me. My eyes adjusted to where I could make out the shape of her. “We’re going to find her. I’m close. I know I am.”
“That’s what we thought about Emily,” Jess said before rolling over away from me.
I turned onto my back and rubbed my eyes, trying to piece together the puzzle in my mind. As soon as Jess’s breathing slowed, I got out of bed and headed over to my desk. Before long, I found the most recent news and discovered Sheridan Lee had died in the hospital from the injuries she accrued during the fire. The last person she was in contact with was none other than Detective Highwater.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Opening my locker, I shoved my books inside as I saw Melissa heading straight for me. Her regular posse was no longer to be seen. It was amazing how drastically things could change for a person when they decided to be true to themselves.
“Hey, Aislin,” she greeted with a smile, leaning against the locker next to me.
“Uh, hey. Is everything alright?” I asked, genuinely confused.
“I’m doing okay. I dropped Raven off this morning at the center. She told me to let you know she’s well and that she put your name on the list to call and visit her whenever you want,” Mel
issa added.
“I assume you’re also on that list?” I asked, closing my locker door and slinging my backpack over my shoulders.
Melissa shrugged as some students walked by, averting their eyes from her gaze. The gesture gave me pause as I glanced around the empty hallway before the first bell.
“What’s going on?” I questioned. “Why were those kids acting that way?”
Melissa cleared her throat. “This isn’t exactly a town that likes change. I’ve been on top for most of my high school career, but I suppose it’s about time I’ve taken a backseat. I’ve been an awful person, and nothing will make up for my past, but I’m going to try to correct my future. Raven was right about me. She always was.”
“What do you mean?”
Melissa sighed. “Raven was the only person who could see through me and what I pretended to be. She knew that none of my friends were real. They just liked being associated with a popular crowd. Did she tell you how I basically forced her out of rugby?”
I nodded. “Sounded like a sore subject.”
“It was,” Melissa agreed. “I’m the luckiest girl in the world to get a second chance from someone like her. And I have you to thank for that.”
“Me?” I asked incredulously. “I’m not trying to ruin my street cred here, but to be honest, I was pretty skeptical about everything when Raven told me.”
“I would be surprised if you weren’t,” Melissa replied with a smirk. “Raven told me about how supportive you were when you found out. That meant the world to her, and it meant a lot to me too. I’m glad she has a friend like you.”
Melissa put her hand on my shoulder as the bell rang for class. We glanced at each other before racing down the hallway. Mr. Suddath was going to kill me as I quietly opened and closed the classroom door. The students looked up from their desks as Mr. Suddath glanced over at us from his podium.
“Glad you could join us, Ms. Smith and Ms. Clarke. Melissa, you may take a seat. As for you, Aislin, you’re needed in the principal’s office,” Mr. Suddath said, waving me off. I gave him a confused look before closing the door.
“Well, that’s odd,” I whispered under my breath as I made my way back down the hall towards my new destination. Entering through the front office's glass door, I sat down in a chair and waited patiently to be called.