Addict (Hunter #2)(95)

“Ease her down on the bed.”

I was moving. Someone held me. I wasn’t sure. My mind couldn’t keep up with the flashes, the warnings, the moments that might be. They flashed through my head, tendrils I couldn’t quite catch.

“Kelsey, I need you to follow the sound of my voice.”

I could make out the words but they seemed so far away. The low moan that came from my mouth was much closer. I moaned because my body ached. Age. I could feel it. So much age and death. Those were certain fates, and those lines seemed to crawl across my flesh like ants, biting and stinging their way. Anger. There was so much anger in the world. It was fuel for fate. So many different outcomes could be traced back to a single act of fury.

“If you don’t follow my voice, none of this will work, youngling.”

Jacob. He was the way out of this terrible place. I caught on his voice and tried to follow.

“That’s right. Grab on and ride with it. Come to me.”

The flashes of fate changed suddenly to vines. The world around me was filled with a million plants and trees. The leaves and branches were infinite possibilities. I strode through the jungle I found myself in, pulling away when the vines would try to wrap around and haul me back in. If I got lost, I would be here forever. I would be adrift in the never-ending potential. As one fate became reality, another formed to take its place. As one event occurred, another tree or bush sprouted.

“Hello.” Jacob was suddenly in front of me. He turned, taking in the space we found ourselves in. “Everyone views this place differently. It says something about you that the worst possible fates are dandelions. An interesting choice.”

Anyone who’s ever had a yard knows how awful the f*ckers are. One small breeze and one weed becomes a hundred. “How do I stop this? I don’t even understand any of it.”

“You don’t need to, though I should note you’re handling it beautifully. The fact that you formed a world for yourself to walk through is testament to your strength. Most would simply sit and scream. Your mind found a way to take some control. You’re taking a great deal of pain from him. The physical transformation is…unpleasant.”

“Will he live?” I glanced around. Things were making more sense now. The vines still tried to cling to me, but I was able to brush them off. It was all about acceptance. Sometimes the worst pain is made better by simply accepting it, riding it, and knowing it has some purpose.

The answer was here. All answers were here.

My eye caught on a massive tree in the distance. An oak. It was thick and strong, and it was coated in numerous flowering vines that looked as though they might choke the tree. Gorgeous blossoms covered the trunk with a possessive clasp.

“That’s us. That’s me and Gray.” I stepped closer and noticed a second vine. The flowers were stunning, opening for me even as I watched. As though they knew I stared and they wanted me to see, to see that two vines coveted that great oak.

Someone else loved Gray.

“Silly girl. Why on earth would he be the oak?” Jacob’s hand was in mine. “Your choice now. You can stay here and seek answers or you can do what you came to do. Already your lover has lost himself. You were correct. He’s trying to hold on to that one moment, but it’s changing, morphing, and he can’t handle it.”

I glanced back at that tree, trying to see it, but we’d somehow moved away. That tree represented all of the potentials of my life. Was I the oak? Or one of the vines competing? I studied the tree more closely and saw what I hadn’t before. The vines had been as wrapped around each other as they had the tree. The vines had somehow learned to need each other. They had to in order to hold up the tree. The tree felt so heavy at times, the branches weighing it down, but the vines lifted, gave it strength, brought great beauty.

“Kelsey? It’s your choice,” Jacob reminded me.

My choice. Save Gray or see the possibilities of my own life.

A whole bunch of those possibilities wilted and died if Gray didn’t pull this off. I turned firmly away from the tree. “What do I do?”

He stared at me for a moment. “It’s going to be fun to be around you, Kelsey. I miss my last friend. I find so few. He left me for a woman in Bali. Married with a baby. He’ll have a good life, but I miss his spirit. I think you and your group shall enliven my existence again. I do so love to watch the important events play out. Take my hand.”

He reached out and the rest of my jungle seemed to quiet. He was the master of whatever wild plane we found ourselves on. We couldn’t possibly still be on Earth. I hesitated for a moment, but took it. The minute he touched me, my mind felt calmer, more centered.

“Will I retain any of this ability?” I asked, not sure which answer I wanted.

“Perhaps, but unlike Grayson, your gift will likely come in the form of dreams that have to be interpreted, and they’ll be sporadic at best. Even what Gray sees will be highly open to interpretation. It’s the sad fact of our existence. If we could simply tell a person which path to take, the world would be so much simpler. Such is life.” He turned, gently moving me with him, and I saw a door in front of us.

“Does that mean Gray’s blood won’t ever leave my system?”

Jacob began walking toward that very elegant door in the middle of the jungle. A low light came from around it, giving the entire door a halo. “Ah, if it had only been Gray’s blood, then yes. It would leave. But there was another component, wasn’t there? The king’s blood is an interesting thing. It has long-term effects, especially when used the way you did. Almost always his blood is ingested when he heals his loved ones. Only once before did it go directly into one’s bloodstream at a precious, changeable time. Yes, I’m certainly waiting to see how that plays out. The next several years are going to be fun. But enough of that. What you’ll see behind that door is a single future moment. I’ll be with you while you experience this particular possibility. Don’t be surprised if it changes in odd ways, though the setting will remain the same. It’s merely the circumstances of the moment affecting the potential outcome. I’ll be gone when you wake, but make sure Gray knows I’ll come for him soon. I’ll teach him our ways.”