Insight (Web of Hearts and Souls #1)(14)

“It sounds too perfect,” I said, trying to see it in my mind. The evil place in my nightmares would not let me hold any serene image.

“You will be happy there. I promise,” my father said quietly. He looked so tired. “Tomorrow, just have fun with your friends. It may be a few months before I feel safe enough for you to come visit,” he said as he stood and began to walk back down the stairs.

Months. Good. He planned to get me past this Blue Moon.

He glanced up at me and smiled. I smiled back then stood to climb the stairs, trying not to think about leaving my friends. Right now, I just needed to make sure that my family got to Chara safely. If evil was coming for me I didn’t want them in the crossfire.





Chapter Three




This dream was different. It was not the sweet place that I always go to, or even that dreadful nightmare. I was standing next to a large white windmill in the middle of a field. In the distance, I could see a beautiful home. There were gorgeous flowers of every color throughout the field. I knelt down to get a closer look and saw that the petals on the flowers were all different. Some looked like roses, others looked like daisies…it was as if they coexisted, but had no knowledge of one another. Ironic.

Next to me, I found a flower more unique than the others. The petals were deep blue with emerald green tracing through the center. The colors were separate, yet one. I stared in awe as I glanced across the field at the other flowers; they began to sway with a breeze that brushed through the field.

I stood slowly, wanting to explore, when all at once I felt a pull from behind me, the same way I felt when I touch one of my images.

A rush of love, passion, and excitement absorbed my soul.

Nervously I glanced over my shoulder, and there behind me, my blue-eyed boy stood. As I looked in his eyes, I could feel his disbelief. He stepped closer to me and reached his arms out.

I lost my focus and woke without warning.

I cursed under my breath as soon as I figured out I was pulled away from him.

I laid in my bed, trying to find my way back to my dream, but my effort was hopeless. The daylight peered through my open drapes. I sat up and grabbed my sketchpad out of the tote bag beside my bed, then turned to a clean sheet and began to sketch as quickly as I could. I was afraid my memory would leave me before I could call back the details. I sketched the beautiful field and the flowers, highlighting the most unique flower, the blue and green one, by making it larger than the others. I made a mental note to add the color later, hoping that I’d be able to find blue and green paint that would do justice to the colors in my dream.

My mind drifted to my blue-eyed boy. I wanted him to have a name, to hear his voice. Most of all, I wanted to find him. I decided to sketch his addictive image. I guess I thought in someway that it would make him more real. That it would bring me closer to understanding how I knew that someone I had never met belonged to me.

I almost felt normal as I gazed into the sketch that was coming to life. I did not want to wait two years to find him. I didn’t want to face what was in front of me without him. I even halfway feared that if I didn’t sleep right here in this bed that I would never dream of him again. That hurt. The idea of never seeing him again was more than I could take. Which was beyond ridiculous. I’m just not that type of girl. Love sick and pathetic.

I could hear my sister and mother giggling in the bathroom next to my room, so I placed my sketchbook in my tote bag and pulled my robe on as I walked to the bathroom.

“What’s so funny this early in the morning?”

“Look at this bathing suit I found for Libby,” Mom answered.

It was bright yellow with a big smiley face on the front and a sad face on the back.

“It makes sense: happy to see you come, sad to see ya go,” I said, teasing Libby.

“I thought it was perfect when I saw it,” my mother said, looking me over and sizing up my night of sleep.

“I get to go swimming today, Willow!” Libby exclaimed.

“You do? Where?” I asked.

“I’m going over to Abby’s grandmother’s house again.”

“So, I assume you’re still going to the lake with everyone today?” Mom asked.

I nodded, remembering that this would be the last day I would be with them for a while. Good thing shock was still seizing my emotions.

“I told everyone that I talked to that we were just taking a trip to Paris to see the school and look for a place. They think we’ll be back in a few weeks,” my mother explained.

I looked down at Libby, trying to judge her response to my mom’s words. “Libby is very excited about our trip,” Mom said. As she finished pulling her hair back into a ponytail, Libby smiled up at me, then left the bathroom and went to her room to get her sandals.

“Willow, I promise…we did not keep this from you to be spiteful. We have always had your best interests in mind.”

I didn’t show any expression on my face. The whole thing had left me confused and exhausted. Libby charged back into the bathroom, dancing in place while waiting for my mother.

“Come here, munchkin, and give me a hug. I love you. Have lots of fun today,” I said, looking down at Libby.

Libby wrapped her arms around my waist. “Miss you,” she whispered.

Mom kissed me goodbye. I turned and went back into my room and closed the door behind me. All I wanted to do was go back to sleep, but I knew I’d have to find a way to wear myself down in order for that to happen. I went to my closet and pulled out a few luggage bags, then rushed around my room, going through all of my stuff and deciding what could stay for now. No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t stop thinking about those blue eyes.