Waiting.
The one closest to her lifted a hand. Keira was sure he’d seen her somehow. He seemed a breath away from pointing at her and shouting, but instead he adjusted the shoulder of his robe and dropped his hand back down by his side.
Keira shuddered. The Darkside wind that always seemed to be blowing ruffled her hair.
Keira pulled herself all the way back into her bedroom. She realized with a shock that she was having trouble keeping Darkside out of view, instead of the other way around. Before, it had always been something that disappeared unless she was focused on seeing it. Or unless Walker was touching her. The sudden effort of keeping only her own world in view sent a wave of worried nausea through her.
Walker could see both worlds any time he wanted to. Was this what it was like for him?
Sympathy clanged through Keira, making her head ache. It was horrible. How did he do it?
Her mother’s voice floated in from the kitchen, followed by Walker’s rumbling laugh. Keira shook herself, remembering that she was supposed to be changing. She pulled off Susan’s clothes and wondered if it would look weird if she showered.
She decided it would.
With a sigh, she pulled on a clean bra and underwear, trying not to think about it too hard as she reached for the prettiest ones in her drawer. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but what the hell. Maybe Walker would see them. Who knew? She was owed a little optimism, right?
Trying to hurry, she pulled a pair of jeans and a white cami out of the closet and added a purple corduroy shirt on top. The purple of the shirt and the dark denim of the jeans would be decent for hiding Darkside if she had to. The cami was practical—layers seemed practical.
She threw on socks and a pair of running shoes, remembering the ballet-flat disaster from that morning.
Fine. She was dressed.
Keira grabbed an empty bag from the corner of her closet and stuffed in a few extra pairs of everything, a hairbrush and her deodorant, and threw the bag on her bed.
Before she zipped it, Keira reached to snatch the car charger for her phone off of her desk. Her gaze landed on the little framed picture next to the cord. In the photo, she was about ten. Her parents had taken her to the beach for an impromptu picnic and her mother had asked a nice-looking girl to take their picture. Keira and her parents stood, their arms tangled around each other, squinting into the sun. They had matching sunburns across their noses, matching windblown hair, matching smiles. It was the smiles that broke her heart.
Keira snatched the picture off her desk and slipped it into the bag too. She wiped her eyes. They’d be wondering what was taking her so long. It was time to go, and she turned to leave her room. She tried not to think about everything she was leaving. She tried not to think about saying good-bye.
It was just too terrifying.
Keira stopped in the bathroom to grab her toothbrush and splash some water on her blotchy face before she headed back to the kitchen. It didn’t matter. Walker and her mother still looked worried when they caught sight of her expression. Keira dropped her bag in the corner.
“You okay?” Walker asked quietly.
“Fine,” she said. Her mother turned to open the pantry and Keira shot Walker a look that she hoped said, Oh, my God, we are in seriously deep shit. He looked alarmed, which—ironically—left her feeling relieved.
“Oh, no!” Her mom spun around, her eyes scanning the counter.
“What?” Keira and Walker asked in unison.
“I’m out of spaghetti.” She glanced desperately at the simmering tomato sauce and boiling water. “Shoot. Um, let me, uh . . . ”
Keira watched her mother flail for an answer. “Walker and I could go get some more?” she suggested.
“No, no,” her mom snatched her purse off the counter. “Just keep an eye on the sauce for me. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes. You can play for a bit—I know Susan doesn’t have a piano.” It sounded a little bit like an apology and Keira glanced at Walker, wondering exactly how hard he’d had to work to charm her mother out of her suspicions.
The garage door slammed and Keira looked at Walker.
“Oh, my God, Walker, it’s right there.” She kept her voice low, aware that her mother hadn’t driven away yet. “There’s practically nothing between us and Darkside.” Her voice rose and Keira stopped, fighting for control. “I have to work not to see both places at once. It’s making my eyes hurt. How do you do that?”
She pressed her fingers to her temples, trying to slow the beat of her pulse.