Witness: See Series (Volume 1)(67)
I nodded as I gazed at that photo and let my mother’s dream play out in my mind. The story behind her words was so numbing, it took my breath away. Part of me thought that her love for my dad and me had caused her to see that dream through a diluted perspective; that according to both Britain and Silas, Draven was my second attempt at finding a balance between what they were and the light that I was. Then there was another part of me, the part of me that craved the presence of Draven, that remembered how calming and addictive Silas was to me. That part of me told me it had to be love that pulled me away from the life I had then – from the love Silas had undeniably given me at one time. That part of me was the one I chose to listen to. I chose to listen to that part of me because I knew right now - without a doubt - that I’d make the same choice. I loved Draven…I loved his soul.
“Is it cliché to think that this is gonna happen on my birthday? That eighteen marks when my power or light will tempt both Draven and Britain – the moment I’ll have to defend them from Silas?”
“Only if you think so,” my mother said. “Truth is that your light has been powerful enough to do just that from your first breath; the only reason it seems to be brighter now is because you’re realizing it for the first time.”
I nodded again, understanding her simple wisdom. “I’m gonna try and find a way out of here before that happens. Draven has this concert planned; whether it goes as he hopes or not, I’m ready to go to Chara. If I’m a bright light - or whatever you call me - then those people must be, too. They believed solely in love...they can help me protect him.”
My father smiled with pride in his dark eyes as my mom looked from him to me. “Just don’t think that world is an ending for you....it will be a beginning to what you’re really fighting.”
“I just need help,” I mumbled.
My mother stepped forward and reached her arms around me. As she squeezed me tight, she said, “Now you can go without fear of saying goodbye to me. You’ve learned to move your soul to where your mind wishes to take it…you can come to me at any moment.”
I squeezed her back. “If I knew that before – I’d already be gone.”
She extended her arms and looked into my eyes once again. “You wouldn’t have believed me if I told you a few months ago; you had to learn on your own - just like with everything else.”
I smiled shyly, hating that she was right – that she was right to keep me in the dark all these years. “I gotta go; I gotta find Austin.”
She nodded as she let me go. My father smiled at me. I held his gaze as I thought of my room, where I knew my body was sitting. Instantly, I was there again – staring at my father. The thousands of tiny rocks were still across the floor. He broke my stare, and I watched as the pile of rocks began to move and spell out another message for me.
Chapter Fourteen
As the small rocks magically moved along the hard wood floor, I knew a simple message from my father was about to be shown to me. The first word the rocks outlined was ‘ the’, then they shaped the word ‘answers’, then to ‘are all’. I already knew what the next word would be, but I watched patiently as he spelled out the words ‘ around you’.
I nodded once, then the rocks slowly began to rise. The sound of my father’s guitar changed; it changed to the song I’d been working on. Mesmerized by the rocks, I almost didn’t notice that the sound began grow stronger – more demanding. A beat, drums, were laced through the sound of the guitar, one that was in rhythm with the beat of my heart – fast and out of control. The rocks parted into two sections, then the ones on the top fell to the bottom as the ones on the bottom half-rose to meet them. The drums began to beat so violently, I felt the vibration in my soul…I focused on every beat as what was once a fleeting idea was shaped into a song.
Once the rocks were one again, they began to glow brightly in my dim room, then they circled in place – a perfect circle. I felt heat on my skin as I reached for the rock on my bracelet, then my eyes fell into my father’s. The glow of these rocks had changed him; he looked real – I mean, really real. His eyes were glowing, and peace was emanating from his soul. In that instant, all the tiny rocks came together as one and the lamp was restored, sitting perfectly on my side table.
“WOW! Now that was weird,” I heard Madison say. I broke my gaze with my dad to see her standing in the doorway with wide eyes.
I quickly looked back at my father, who winked at me before he faded away.
“What was that?” Madison asked as she stepped into the room.
“An answer,” I said quietly as I sat on the edge of my bed, desperately trying to hold on to the memory of those drums – the backbone of my song.
“To what?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” I mumbled as I looked at her. She had showered and was ready for whatever we were going to do today. She was wearing dark jeans like mine, with layered, tight shirts that reflected her small frame. Her dark green hoodie seemed to amplify her eyes even more.
“How did the phone call with your mom go? Or has that happened yet?” she asked as she came to my side.
“It happened. Not a call – face to face, a family meeting,” I said as my thoughts raced through everything my mother had said – what my father had shown me. My phone beeped loudly, and I looked to my nightstand to see that it was now fully charged.