Shimmer (Riley Bloom #2)(35)

Even though I hadn’t had a chance to check it, to see if it’d been in any way affected by everything I’d accomplished back in St. John, one look at the way they both glowed this soft, serene shade of yellow, well, I figured they probably thought that sort of information was way too advanced for someone as lowly as me.

I’d started to turn away, telling myself to just let it go since they were obviously reluctant to help, when Mort looked right at me, rubbed his chin with a set of surprisingly shiny, manicured nails, and said, “Well, first you gotta go to the place where all the dreams take place.”

I swallowed and squinted, but otherwise did my best to remain still. Not wanting them to know that up until that moment, I’d had no idea there even was such a place.

Still, it was pretty clear by the look he exchanged with his friend that they both saw right through me.

Which is why I was so surprised when he ignored his friend’s elbow nudging hard in his side as he said, “It’s easy enough to find, all you have to do is—”

I leaned forward, eager to hear every last detail, only to have his words interrupted by someone shouting, “Next!”

I turned, seeing my number flash on the screen.

“Looks like it’s your turn.” Mort shrugged, along with his friend.

I was torn. Torn between wanting to check in on the earth plane, check in on my sister and friends, and my sudden but desperate need to learn more about the place where all the dreams happen.

I’d just started to broach it again when Mort’s friend, the one who started all this, said, “Listen, you gonna take your turn or not?”

I glanced between the two of them, and it was clear by the way they both looked at me that neither one of them had any plans to tell me anything more than they already had.

But while the moment may have passed, the seed had been planted.

And as far as I was concerned, it was good enough for a start.

I thrust my ticket into Mort’s hand and made a quick exit, hoping to find some kind of library or research center, some lofty place that might offer some answers, only to find Buttercup waiting right where I’d left him, with Bodhi, chomping hard on his straw, standing right alongside him.

“It’s not what you think!” I screeched, regretting the words the instant they were out. I mean, seriously. It’s not like I didn’t know better. I was pretty well-versed in how that sort of denial never works.

“We’ve been summoned,” Bodhi said, choosing to ignore my ridiculously transparent statement. “Which means you might want to take a quick moment to spruce yourself up. Oh, and you might also want to take a moment to hope and pray that no one finds out that the very first thing you did upon your return was come here.”

I screwed up my face, annoyed by his words, but still, I did what he said. Ridding myself of what had become a pretty filthy swimsuit and cover-up, before manifesting a cool pair of jeans, some ballet flats, and a super cute T-shirt in its place.

“Better?” I lifted my brow and tilted my chin.

But Bodhi just grunted and rushed ahead, calling over his shoulder to say, “Whatever you do, just follow my lead, okay? Please. Just do yourself a favor and—”

He paused long enough for me to catch up.

“Do yourself a favor and let me handle everything.”

He rounded a corner, and then another, then he led us up a whole lot of stairs to the same smoky-glass building where my life review had taken place.

And to be honest, if I’d had a stomach, that’s pretty much the exact moment it would’ve begun to spin and curl and somersault its way all the way down to my knees.

They were inside.

Aurora, Claude, Samson, Celia, and Royce—the entire Council assembled together, waiting to hear my side of things.

There was no way to avoid it.

I had no choice but to face it.

I’d acted willfully, rashly, stubbornly insisting on flaunting my free will despite being warned not to.

No matter how well it may have turned out in the end, the fact was, it wasn’t an assignment. If anything, it was the opposite. My guide had strictly forbidden it.

I squared my shoulders, checked my posture, and promised myself that whatever happened next, whatever happened on the other side of that door, I’d do everything I could to follow Bodhi’s instructions and not make things any worse than they already were.

He looked at me and I nodded sagely in return, acting as though I was ready, even though I was pretty darn sure that I wasn’t.

My hands trembling as he reached for the door, started to fling it wide open, only to have me slam my palm hard against it, slam it so I could get a better view of myself.

My eyes glued on my reflection, which was nothing at all like the last time I’d seen it.

Sure the usual sights were all there: blond hair, blue eyes, stubby nose, flat chest—pretty much exactly the same as the last time I’d checked, but the glow that surrounded it was entirely different.

Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating.

Maybe it wasn’t entirely different.

I mean, after all, it was still green.

But the shade of green was different. The tone of it was changed.

Like a seriously noticeable, marked alteration.

The kind that can’t be disputed.

“Congratulations.” Bodhi nodded, flashing a quick smile my way. Though his face fell just as quickly, as he shook his head and said, “But before you get too carried away with yourself, you should know that there are consequences to our actions, as you’re about to find out.”