Blakeshire (Insight #9)(40)

“Talking to Aden.”

His eyes questioned me. “About?”

“Dreams and such.”

“Dreams that you will not tell me about?”

“He could see them.”

He held in a grin that made me question once more if somehow Draven had taught him to see.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he said as he stepped closer and wrapped the scarf around me, tucking it beneath my collar. That was when I noticed he had one on, too, only his was on the inside of his jacket.

“Is this like a uniform or something?”

“Sort of,” he said with a shy smile “Shall we?”

I took his hand and stepped off the porch with him. The passages to the string—the white, glowing path that connected all the dimensions—were all over this dimension, but there was one that was very close to Olivia’s house; it was only one hilltop away.

I didn’t bother to fill the silence with meaningless words. That was never my style anyway, and I was sure if I tried I would sound like a fool.

Drake guided me over the hill and then right through the wave that danced on thin air.

Do you want to hear something odd? A friend of mine named Austin was the one that had managed to connect my friends and me with the idea of other dimensions. The one who allowed us to think we could escape the darkness around us.

Austin is from Chara. He’s a traveler, a person who guides others from dimension to dimension. He stumbled across us a few years ago. When he figured out that it didn’t really shock us that he appeared out of nowhere, and that we were not your ordinary teens, he told us of other worlds. He instantly wanted to bring us to Chara, but time and circumstance never seemed to line up the right way. Austin tried to prepare us for what we would see or endure when we eventually would travel with him.

I remember feeling how mesmerized Aden and the others were with seeing the gateways to the passage, that wave that divides the air. The sensation was different for me. I was scared. Scared because I knew, deep inside, those passages would link me to my dreams one day. For me, it was easier to want than have. If I wanted it, the best of my life was still before me; once I had it, I’d have to fight to keep it.

Drake gripped my hand tighter once the white glow surrounded us. Now that I wasn’t seeing vibrant auras, this experience was all new once again. I could still see the shades of light that led to various other worlds, but white dominated the glow around us.

“I would ask you if you were afraid, but I assume fear is still absent to you,” he said as he glanced at me.

The string had this illuminating glow that seemed to absorb the gaze of its passengers, but the light was not powerful enough to lighten his dark eyes; instead, they glistened. The allure that resided in his gaze was magnified—which pretty much blew my mind. They were already too much to handle at times.

“You make it hard to focus on any dark emotion.”

That glint in his eyes filled with astonishment. Apparently, his bluntness made me face my dark emotions, and mine made him believe there was reason to feel positive ones. He brought my hand to his lips and let them linger there for a moment. I felt fire burn through my soul and a deep anticipation clench my core.

“I feared it the first time I was in here,” he murmured as we began to walk.

“You? Afraid?” I teased.

I thought he would smile with that phrase, but his expression turned morbid, cold. “Donalt held a knife to my mother’s neck and demanded that my father teach me the paths. He told him if he ran, if he chose not to bring me back, he would kill my mother slowly, ensure that she bled out for days.”

I felt a sickness settle in my throat as rage encased my soul. That ghost better hope that Willow finds a way to end him before I get my hands on him. Because I can guarantee that she will have more mercy than I would.

“He brought you back,” I supplied, trying to focus on the one solid father figure he did have.

“And when he did, when he was alone with my mother, she scorned him for hours, didn’t speak to him for weeks. She wanted him to run, but he couldn’t.”

“Because he loved her.”

“More than anything,” he said as pride absorbed his emotions.

I knew it was a good thing that he was getting this out in the open. To keep him on this track, I had to find a way to show him some positive aspects. “Where did he take you the first time in here?”

“A special place,” he said as the grin I was searching for emerged on the corners of his lips. I love his subtle smile simply because you never really knew what he was thinking when it emerged. Walking mystery. That was what this boy was.

“At least you got to spend time with him outside of Esterious.”

“When I was younger, it was fun; as I got older, we fought,” he answered as grief and anger took over the pride in his emotions.

If we pushed through this, would he be better for it?

“About?”

“Where I wanted to go. I could see all of the passages, but two were brighter than the others. He always wanted me to go to the less bright of the two. Donalt convinced me that he was purposely keeping me away from the girl that was in my thoughts.”

I smirked, realizing he had avoided saying the name of that girl.

“I’m sure you asked him why and he gave you a solid answer.”