“Tell you what. I’ll let you have two closed subjects between us. Two topics we’ll keep completely off limits. Three is ridiculous.” My tone carried a bit of hostility, but I didn’t really care.
He closed his eyes, finished swallowing, and sighed.
“So which one are we going to talk about...our plan to reach the compound, the reason you won’t let me Claim you, or my boobs? You choose,” I dared him.
He set his burger on his plate and took a drink. “They will be waiting for us on all three roads. We could try to leave the bike and take to the woods, but I think they will have scouts ready for that as well. And we’d be slower on foot. Our best bet is to anticipate them and break through before they know when to expect us.”
“So the longer we take to get there...”
“The more likely they are to be ready for us,” he agreed.
After my stunt at the last hotel room, they’d probably caught onto the fact that we knew they were after us.
“Any word from that Elder?” I asked.
“He asked for an update, but I kept it vague. He’s not pushing for anything more. He offered his assistance if we needed anything further.”
That sounded non-threatening. Perhaps we were wrong about him. Still, I’d rather not take the chance.
“Okay then, wolf-man, let’s get going.” I waved the waitress over for the bill as he finished in one huge bite. I waited impatiently as he paid and she flirted. Now that he’d admitted what I already knew—they would be waiting for us—I wanted to get going. With relief, I walked out the restaurant door.
“Tired?” he asked before we reached the bike.
“No,” I lied. After a day on the bike, I was ready for bed even without the pull of waiting dreams, but I didn’t want to delay getting to the Compound.
He turned to glance at me and only shook his head, not believing me. “We can’t go far with you tired.”
“And if we take too long to get there, it will only be worse.” I’d had enough creatures flying out of the trees at me. I didn’t want to give them extra time to gather.
“I could call Gabby and let her know.”
“No, we don’t know who is betraying us.”
“You think she would?” he settled on the bike and fully turned toward me tilting his head to study my expression.
“No, she wouldn’t. At least, not purposely. But, who does she believe she can trust? She could say something to the wrong person. If we stayed on our own, we might actually make it to the gates of the Compound.” I swung my leg over the back and settled behind him offering the strap. “I’ll do my best to stay awake,” I promised.
Chapter Ten
Birdsong and sunlight drifted along the spring breeze that teased my hair. My hair, not someone else’s or a past me. I recognized where I stood. It was the meadow of my others dreams. Only, the great stone monoliths had aged and weathered to stunted broken pillars. Was this then a real dream, pointless and meant to be forgotten as soon as I woke? Unsure, I waited for the Taupe Lady to appear.
Nothing moved in the open field surrounding the stones. I turned in a slow circle. The dream felt empty, a shadow of what it should be if it were a memory. Yet, real dreams, the pointless kind, were so rare now. I couldn’t believe this was one of them.
“We need to talk,” I called out. I wanted to shout my questions and make threats, mostly just to vent, but I held it all in hoping she would come to me if I was nice.
The wind carried her answer to me. “My daughter. Your path is your own to choose. I can influence it no more than I have already done. Remember,” she whispered. “Dream.”
The dream shifted.
I sat on a bed covered with a light pink quilt and squeezed the teddy bear in my arms as I listened to the footsteps pause outside my door. Using my sight, I checked everyone’s location in the house.
Justin had come home for winter break just tonight. I hadn’t met him before but had talked to him on the phone. He’d been so nice to me. His mom usually fostered two kids at a time. They had the room, she’d said, in their hearts and in their house. I’d hoped it would be different here. The other foster girl with me didn’t really like me, but the other girls usually didn’t. Justin, though, had seemed so nice. I’d hoped he would just stay away at school.
When he’d given me a hug in greeting, it had been just a little too tight. When he’d pulled back and looked me in the eye, I knew.
I gently lifted the phone from the receiver with a heavy heart. I’d already disabled the sound so he wouldn’t hear me dial from in the hallway. The knob on the door turned, and I quickly set the phone to the side.
“What are you doing, Justin?” I asked calmly as he opened the door.
“I just wanted to check on you,” he said with a smile. He stepped in and closed the door behind him.
I clutched the bear tighter. “I’m fine. I think you should leave.”
“Don’t be like that,” he begged softly as he sat on the edge of the bed. “I see you got the bear I sent,” he nodded toward the bear I clutched. I’d hoped it would remind him of my age.