by Pam Brondos
Gasping, Soris emerged from the woods farther upriver and stumbled onto the gravel bank. The Nala jumped from a branch and slammed into Nat, sending her crashing into the icy water. The current pulled her feet toward the violent water racing down the center of the river. She coughed up water and called out to Soris just as the creature turned and sprang onto his back.
“Natalie, help me!” Soris shouted from the riverbank, thrashing his arm at the slick blue-skinned creature.
Leave him alone! Water poured into her mouth, preventing her from answering Soris’ cry for help. Nat swam against the current, trying to reach the bank, but the water pulled her farther and farther downstream. She grabbed on to an overhanging tree branch and twisted around in time to see the Nala bite into Soris’ shoulder.
Soris’ cry reverberated through the river valley. Nat’s hand slipped. She clutched the branch with her other hand and watched, helplessly, as Soris’ skin turned dark blue, an exact match to the Nala looming over his body. The creature stood upright, exposing its arachnid-like abdomen.
“He’s mine, Sister,” it hissed. Nat choked, unable to breathe from the shock of hearing the familiar voice and recognizing the slanted gash in its gut.
“I killed you!” she shouted. She stared in disbelief at the creature; it was the same Nala that had bitten Soris on the riverbank in Fourline months ago. “This is a dream! It has to be!” she yelled. “I killed you!” Her hand slipped from the branch, and she fell into the water.
Nat swam blindly into the inky depths of the river, frantic to leave this nightmare for the safety of her dream space. Her fingers fumbled over the rocky river bottom, searching for the rough ledge to her haven. Her knuckles slammed into its jagged surface, and she pulled herself over. Coughing violently, she flopped onto the floor of the dark, empty space where no one—no images, no nightmares—could reach her unless she invited them in.
“Lights,” she said weakly. The protective bars of light shot up along the ledge. She closed her eyes and let her tight muscles relax as the nightmare played out beyond the barrier of her dream space without her. “The Nala is dead,” she said over and over, reassuring herself that the creature from the nightmare no longer existed.
The clock read 4:45 a.m. when Nat opened her eyes. The room felt stuffy. She threw her blanket off and stared at the ceiling before climbing down from the loft bed. The frame creaked under her shifting weight, and Viv mumbled in her sleep. Nat grabbed a towel and headed toward the shower they shared with the adjoining dorm room.
The hot water kicked in after a few seconds. She stuck her face under the spray and shivered despite the heat. She thought back to the nightmare. It was so similar to what had actually happened, when the Nala had attacked both of them on their return from the Chemist’s quarters. But unlike in her dream, she’d killed the Nala after it bit Soris, and its lifeless body had floated down the river. Why do I keep having this nightmare? she wondered.
She pressed her head against the tiled wall, letting the water slide down her back. The hot stream stung her shoulder, and she stepped to the side to avoid the pain. She glanced at the wound. The ugly bluish-purple spot the length of her thumb was the same. Two months with no ebb to the ache. “The wound that never heals,” she said to herself, thinking of Soris. She switched off the shower and dressed for a run.
Viv was still curled into a ball on her bed when Nat returned from her run around campus and into town. She kicked the leg of the bunk, and Viv groaned.
“I’m going to breakfast, want to join me?” Nat pulled on a pair of rumpled jeans and ducked, avoiding Viv’s pillow.
“I have a headache, leave me alone.”
“I told you to steer clear of Butler’s punch. It lit on fire when I dropped a match in it.”
“Stop making noise and go away,” Viv said, her muffled voice rising from under the comforter. “Wait,” she called out just as Nat put her hand on the doorknob. She emerged from under the covers, her hair sticking up in every direction. “Did Dermot ask you out last night?” She yawned.
“Why do you ask?” Nat crossed her arms.
“No reason. He just . . .”
“You put him up to it, didn’t you?” Nat glared at her roommate. Viv slunk a little deeper under her covers.
“You need a life,” she said indignantly. “Besides, he’s wanted to ask you out for ages.”
“The last thing I need right now is a boyfriend, especially one that needs encouragement from both my roommate and a drink.” Nat glanced at the worn carpet. “He’s not really my type, anyway.”
“Type? You don’t have a type.” Viv tossed the comforter to the side and clambered out of bed.
“I do, too, and it’s definitely not Dermot,” she said, thinking of Soris’ green eyes.
“Then who? The foreign guy from your theater class last semester, Estos? What about him?” Viv clutched the loft post and rubbed her forehead.
“Estos? No, he’s just a friend, and I think he took the semester off, anyway.” She grabbed her backpack, wanting to end the conversation. “I’ll see you this evening, I’ve got class all morning and lab in the afternoon. I want to squeeze in—”
“Another run. I know.” Viv waved her arm at Nat. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to avoid me.”
“You could always run with me,” Nat offered.
Viv hefted a book from her bedside table and threw it just as Nat ducked out the door. The book landed with a thud.
Nat dropped her backpack by the empty cafeteria table. The ache in her shoulder was worse. Maybe it’s time to see campus health again, she thought as she slid her tray onto the circular top with her left hand and sat down.
A few students wandered along the buffet, filling bowls with cereal and grabbing fruit. She stared out the dining-room windows, past the dormitories to the bleak snow-encrusted fields. Clouds hung heavy in the morning sky. She played with her oatmeal, her thoughts straying to Soris and his broad smile. She tossed her spoon into her bowl and pushed the tray away. I miss you, Soris. Maybe it would be better if I could just forget you, forget Fourline.
But she couldn’t, and Annin wasn’t around to wipe her memories. Annin would be back in Fourline with the rest of the former rebels-in-exile by now, anyway. Nat had seen Sister Barba and Professor Gate from a distance a few times since her return, but no one else. Besides, she told herself, I don’t really want to see any of them except Soris.
She cleared her tray and wandered out of the cafeteria. Students threaded their way past her, and she stepped cautiously to the side to avoid bumping her shoulder. From a distance, she saw Signe’s tall figure pass through the Science Center doors. Nat hurried down the path. If she caught up with her, they could work through their lab notes before class. Her phone vibrated as she jumped over a pile of slushy snow. She pulled the phone from her back pocket and checked the number.
“Hey, Mom.” She grimaced from the sharp ache in her shoulder and shifted the phone to her left hand.
“Nat.” Her mom sounded surprised. “I wasn’t expecting you to answer.”
“It’s your lucky morning,” she said through the pain.
“Really? Doesn’t sound like it. What’s going on?”
“Nothing, just a busy week, that’s all.”
“Hmm. You’ve been pretty busy since January, as far as I can tell. Which brings me to the point of my call. I am officially giving you three weeks’ notice so you can free up some time.”
“For what?” Nat passed the library and skipped onto the path leading to the Science Center.
“Cal’s decided. She’ll be attending school with you next year.” Her mom’s voice rang with pleasure. “She has an appointment with the dance department the third week of April to meet with more faculty.”
“What? Cal’s not coming here.” A flock of pigeons scattered at the sound of Nat’s voice.
“You can’t afford the tuition to send her here.” She regretted the words as soon as they came out of her mouth.
“Your new scholarships freed us up to help her, and the dance department gave her the Shiffer Scholarship. She would be a fool to turn it down,” her mother said stiffly.
“I didn’t go through everything I did to get those scholarships so Cal could leech off you.” Nat’s voice seethed with anger. The money for her tuition wasn’t from a scholarship. Estos had originally agreed to cover her tuition in exchange for her traveling to Fourline to help him. The fact that she no longer had to worry about her tuition only served as a reminder that she’d ruined Soris’ life.
“Leeching off us!” her mom yelled through the phone. “I can’t believe you said that. Natalie, I stayed silent when you chose not to come home during your breaks, I even bit my tongue when I saw that absurd tattoo on your arm over Christmas, but I won’t keep quiet while you insult your sister. Cal is not perfect, but neither are you. She is as deserving of the chances and opportunities you’ve been given. If you opened your eyes and saw how talented she is instead of cutting her down, you’d know what I’m talking about. I thought with time you two would grow close again like when you were younger. But after that comment . . .” Her mom’s voice broke off. Nat’s ears rang with the echo of her anger. She listened as her mom took several deep breaths. “Your sister will be there in three weeks, and you will treat her with respect, do you understand me?”
“Yes, Mom,” Nat said, feeling lower than a worm. Her mom disconnected the call. Nat shoved her phone into her pocket and dropped her chin. She stormed down the path to the Science Center and brushed against someone in her haste.
“Natalie!”
Nat looked up to see Sister Barba tripping off the path. She reached for the Sister’s elbow to steady her.
“You’re in a rush,” Barba said as she stepped back onto the path. Nat dropped her hand. The breeze lifted Barba’s red hair in every direction.
“I’m sorry, Sister,” Nat mumbled as she shifted from one foot to another.
“Not a problem. I was hoping to run into you. Maybe not so literally, but I did want to see you. How are you, Natalie?”
“Fine, I’m fine, Sister. Just a little distracted today.”
“Hmm. I suppose you are wondering about Soris?” Nat’s head shot up when Barba said his name. The lines around Barba’s eyes deepened. “Ethet took him back to Fourline shortly after you returned. He is in good hands, Natalie,” she said reassuringly. But Nat felt anything but reassured. She wanted to run as far from the Sister as she could.
“I need to get to class.” A knot formed in Nat’s throat. “It’s . . . it’s good to see you,” she lied and pressed past Barba.
“You, too, Natalie,” Barba said. Her eyes lingered on Nat’s wrist when she opened the Science Center door. Nat glanced down at the edge of the vine and spear pattern, then at Barba. “There is a reason your markings never faded, Natalie. Please find me if you’d ever like to learn why.” The Sister gave her a sad smile and walked away, leaving Nat so rattled her hand shook as she let go of the door.
On the Meldon Plain will be released on January 19, 2016. Preorder today.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to my agent, Valerie Noble, for her belief in this story and her encouragement. Special thanks to the editors at Skyscape for all their guidance and support. Thanks to Nina M. for sharing her social-media savvy and answering all my ridiculous questions. There will be more. Thanks to John O. for responding to my questions about college financial aid without ever asking why. I have a family of the best cheerleaders imaginable. This book is dedicated to my husband, who teaches me each day that life is meant to be lived to its fullest. Thank you to my children for their support, patience, and inspiration. Finally, thanks to my mom for feeding me with books and teaching me how to tell a story.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © 2015 Ally Klosterman
Pam Brondos grew up in Wyoming. After college and a brief stint in Asia, she returned to the wide-open spaces of the West. She is a science-fiction and fantasy junkie with a penchant for historical nonfiction. For more information on Brondos and the Fourline Trilogy, please visit her website at pamalabrondos.com.
