Witness: See Series (Volume 1)(3)
Just as I went to press the last digit, the guitar sound grew louder. I looked around the room again, only to find it empty.
“I need answers…something’s wrong with Madison…if he’s doing this, I have to stop it,” I whispered behind the music.
The sound grew less violent, as if to say it understood my quest but still didn’t approve.
“Can you tell me? Will you tell me? Show me how to fix this?” I said a little louder.
The music dwindled down to a whisper. My eyes moved across the room, waiting for my father to appear. When he didn’t, I knew he wanted to help me….but he couldn’t…the quiet music playing was there to remind me that he was there – but he couldn’t help… at least not with this.
I pushed in the last digit, then texted “are you awake” to Britain.
“This would be easier if you’d just say go or stay,” I said to the room. My father and I had these one-way conversations daily. I would argue my point, and sometimes he’d appear and look into my eyes. Seeing him always calmed me down, but it never resolved my raging emotions.
My phone remained silent. I settled deeper into the couch and let my aching eyes close. “I’m afraid…I’m scared if I go…you won’t follow me there,” I mumbled as I felt myself drift off to sleep.
A warm sensation came over me, and I opened my eyes slowly. My father was next to me on the couch. I sat up slowly and reached for his hand. As he took mine, a calm that could not be mine came over me.
“I will always be with you.” he whispered in an angelic tone.
I knew then that I was dreaming; I’ve never heard him speak when I was conscious, which made me doubt that what he said in my dreams was real – that it wasn’t something my mind fabricated to give me peace.
“What’s happening to us? What’s happening to Madison? How can they find her in her dreams?” I asked.
My father reached his arm out, beckoning me to come closer. I moved my legs and crawled to his side and let my head lie against his shoulder. In my dreams, he felt so real – so alive. I felt his arm come around me, and the illusion of safety grew stronger.
“Madison’s fate is calling her…it has nothing to do with you,” he said softly
“If it has something to do with Britain – if it’s hurting her – it has to do with me.”
“My Charlie…you have to understand that everyone has a purpose that only they can see…our fates come together at times…but when the whole story is told, you will see that our path is one we must walk…sometimes…alone.”
I looked up into his dark eyes, which carried the peace I craved. “I don’t want to be alone.”
“You’re not alone…the one that carries your heart will always walk with you…one day, the one that carries Madison’s heart will walk with her.”
I furrowed my eyebrows, wondering if he was trying to tell me that somehow Britain and Madison had a fate that intertwined. That didn’t make any sense; even if it did, who was the other guy?
“Draven’s mad at me…he still wants to go…it just doesn’t feel right…at least not right now.”
The room seemed to grow colder, and the sense of protection began to fade. I looked up at my father with questioning eyes, fearing that this dream was about to turn into a nightmare. “He’s not mad at you…he’s mad at what’s happening to him…he’s scared and angry.” A painful seriousness wrapped in the ugly reality of foreboding came across his peaceful expression. “You can’t let him push you away…he needs you now more than he ever has.”
I sat up quickly. “What?! What do you mean?! What’s happening to him?!”
At that moment, the room began to vibrate and my father vanished. I reached for where he was just as I was awakened from my dream and found my phone vibrating against my chest.
I rubbed my sore eyes as I pushed myself up. It was almost six, and Britain had texted me three times.
The first said, “I am now – why are u up so early”, followed by “are you OK?”. The last one said, “You’re scaring me – I’m on my way.” That was the text that woke me.
My fingers raced across the screen: “You know you can’t come over here.”
He texted back instantly: “Iol I was just trying to get a response.”
“Mission accomplished,” I texted back
“It’s getting old not seeing you. I think I should talk to your sister.”
Because I had played dumb – let Britain think that I my memory was missing once again – he thought that Kara and my mom were oblivious to what really happened that night my car crashed through the bridge. Even though I never clarified if it was him or Bianca behind the images that nearly killed me – killed Draven, all of us – I knew he was well aware of every moment I endured. Part of me lavished the idea that he was furious with Bianca like he was the night of my party and somehow punished her for hurting me….the other part of me - the dark, untrusting part of my soul - told me that he not only knew what happened to me, but condoned it….I tried to ignore that part.
A week went by after that night before I heard from Britain again. When he texted me late one night, I panicked at first…then text by text, I devised a plan to let him think I was just a weak little girl. I told him that I had crashed my car, that because of the crash I’d lost a lot of my memory, and the pain medicine I was taking was only making what memory I did have worse; that because of that, my mom and Kara were even more overprotective of me now.