by Diana Nixon
“Of course,” I said with a tense smile. “I’d better go take a rest,” I added, turning away from his scrutinizing gaze.
“Okay, and I have some more things to do here,” he said.
Barely closing the bedroom door I heard someone knocking. “May I come in?” Marion asked quietly. “Eileen, I don’t like the way you look,” she said, coming to my bed. “Are you sure you want to help Evan? Maybe we should let him do everything on his own?” she asked, touching my forehead.
“No, no way!” I said, closing my eyes tiredly. “How much time will I have?” I asked, recalling our previous conversation about my plan.
“About a minute, maybe a little more than that.”
“It should be enough,” I whispered.
“You have time to change your mind.”
“I know. But I’ll be fine, I promise. All I need now is a good sleep. I will feel better by the night.”
“All right, then,” Marion said, rising from my bed. “I will wake you up when the time comes.”
She left I turned to the wall and let my exhausted body relax, forgetting about the burning pain and everything around me, burying myself in a sweet oblivion of my dream.
A few seconds later I found myself standing on the shore of the familiar lake. The weather was warm and sunny. Small grains of golden sand were tickling my bare feet and light kisses of summer wind were touching my cheeks, making me smile.
“Hey,” Christian said, joining me. “How do you feel?” he asked, putting his arms around my waist. “Are you ready?” he whispered into my ear, kissing its lobe.
I closed my eyes and leaned against his chest, losing myself in his aura and our tattoos' radiance.
“Ready for what?” I asked dreamily, enjoying his tenderness.
“To find me.”
“Find you where?” I asked, frowning. I turned my head to see his face.
“You promised to find me, remember?” he said, touching my cheek with his palm.
“Yes… no, I mean I don’t remember anything,” I said, confused.
“You have to remember, Eileen,” he said again, looking into my eyes. “You have to remember, remember me, remember….”
I sat up abruptly in my bed, breathing heavily. What a strange dream, I thought, rubbing my eyes sleepily. I didn’t have much time to think about the dream, as the next moment I was paralyzed by incredible pain piercing through my body.
“Ow!” I screamed, trying to move, but my legs and my hands were frozen. Hearing my scream, Evan, Marion and Elena burst through the door.
“Eileen, what’s wrong?” Marion asked, frightened, running up to me. “Do you feel pain? Where?” she demanded, touching my clenched arms.
I was going to say everywhere, when the pain suddenly disappeared.
“No, I’m fine,” I whispered, shocked.
“Did you have a nightmare?” Evan asked.
“Yeah, I guess so. How long have I been asleep? What time is it?” I asked, touching my pulsing wrist.
“You have been asleep all day,” Marion said. “It’s almost midnight.”
“Oh, God! We need to hurry!” I exclaimed, trying to get off the bed.
“That’s why I’m here.” Elena nodded. “You are running out of time. Patrick, Frederick and I are about to start today’s guard tour. If you don’t leave the hut by that time, they will feel you here.
“Yes, we need to go,” Marion said, giving Elena one last thoughtful gaze. “Eileen, can you walk?” she asked, watching my pathetic attempt not to lose my balance. No, I wasn’t sick, but I was a little dizzy and clumsy.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I smiled reassuringly, surprised to feel myself much better after my tormented sleep. “I told you I needed only a few hours of a good rest.”
I tried to gather my messy hair into a ponytail. Maybe I looked like a fuzzy chicken, but I didn’t care. I was sure that Christian would recognize me anyway.
“By the way, you are the only one who has managed to get some sleep,” Evan said, suppressing a yawn. “I wish I were you right now!” He shook his head tiredly.
Thank God, you are not me, I smiled sadly to myself thinking about all the problems I was about to face in less than half an hour. I lowered my lashes guiltily, hiding my shameful eyes under their shadows.
Taking everything we needed, the four of us headed for Dever’s western gate. Evan, Marion and I were using the invisible circle again, following Elena, who was giving her last instructions. Fortunately, the way to the dorms was empty, so we relaxed a little and almost forgot about the circle.
“Um, guys, I think you should be more careful.” Elena chuckled. "I can see your hands dangling in the air."
“Shit!” Evan swore under his breath. “Sorry, I weakened the spell. Is it better now?”
“Much better.” Elena nodded approvingly. Despite the importance of our rescuing operation, I smiled happily, thinking about my up-coming meeting with Christian. God, I missed him like hell!
“There you are!” called Patrick’s voice somewhere behind our backs. “We’ve been looking for you everywhere!” he said, running up to us.
We all came to a dead stop. He couldn’t see or hear us, but the four of us stopped breathing and I felt Evan’s iron grip on my wrist. I pressed my lips together so as not to scream in pain and silently prayed to make Patrick get out of our away. We were so not ready for his talks, and we had only fifteen minutes to bring our plan to life.
Elena cleared her throat and finally broke the frozen silence, “Um… I went to breathe some fresh air,” she said tensed, plastic smile on her face. “Shall we start the guard tour?”
“Yes, it’s about time.” Patrick nodded, looking at his watch. “Frederick is leaving for Norfield tonight, so we wanted to start earlier. Are you okay, Elena?” he asked, seeing our friend’s anxiety.
“I’m fine,” she said, taking a step to the door. “Let’s go.”
She wanted to take Frederick away from us as soon as possible, and we all sighed with relief when the two of them closed the door behind them.
“Okay, looks like the danger’s over,” Evan whispered, loosening his grip on my hand.
“You could have broken my bones!” I hissed, rubbing it.
“Two more floors and we are home.” He smiled, ignoring my words. "And we’d better get there unseen,” he added, taking a step to the elevator.
Thank God, it was late and most of the students were sleeping, so the halls were deserted. Coming to Evan’s room, we opened the door with the key, and closing it behind us, reactivated the protective spells, removed by Elena.
“Home, sweet home!” Evan exclaimed happily, releasing us from the invisible circle.
“Ten minutes left,” Marion said, looking at the round glass clock on the wall over Evan’s bed.
“Great! I have some time to take a shower!” He grinned in response. Marion and I gave him a warning look. “Okay, okay, I’m just kidding. So, what do you want me to do?”
“Nothing, I will take care of the preparations,” Marion replied. “Eileen, could you pass me those herbs from my bag, please? Oh, and you, Evan bring me some water and something metal as well. Any big plate will do.”
“Are you going to start a fire in the middle of my room?” he asked curiously.
“Just a small one.” Marion smiled, removing a coffee table to the opposite wall to have more space in front of Evan’s couch. “Don’t worry, I promise not to burn your room to ashes.”
"You'd better keep it safe," Evan mumbled as he headed toward the bathroom to check for a metallic object.
“Eileen, where’s the music box with your memories?" she asked quietly so as not to let him hear our conversation. “We need to put it under the couch." I nodded silently in response and did what she said.
"Do you have the silver brooch?" she asked, referring to one more attribute of my secret plan. I nodded again and patted my jacket pocket where the brooch made of magical silver lay.
“Good. So,
the mirror will be over there, on the table,” she said, reading through her notes. “The window and the box I will open as soon as you and Evan disappear and I will light the herbs a few minutes later. What else?” she asked herself thoughtfully. “Oh, yes! Do you remember the spells? Great. And don’t forget to give Evan a minute to disappear first.”
“I know,” I said, trying to suppress my growing worry. The closer we were to midnight, the more nervous I became. My palms were sweating and my knees were trembling. I took a deep breath and tried to calm down. Fainting was the last thing I needed. We had done too much to just stop before the very end. And if I fell unconscious right then and there, Evan and Christian would both die. What a cruel outcome it would be! And, oh God, even being dead Evan would find a way to kick my ass for all the mess I had made. The last thought made me smile. It was so much better and safer not to piss him off.
Marion needed the music box to secure my connection to reality and my safe return from Eric’s dream; and an opened window was supposed to let the wind in, as the wind was my only chance to find Christian in that God-damn illusion.
“Okay, I’m not sure if this will do…” Evan said, coming from the bathroom with some curly metal thing in his hands.
“Perfect!” Marion approved. “Wow! Isn’t it one of your family’s relics?”
“Kind of.” Evan shrugged indifferently. As it turned out it wasn’t just a piece of metal, but a very old bronze plate that was handed down from generation to generation.
“Why do you keep it in your bathroom?” I asked, looking at the thing in Marion’s hands.
“Oh, I thought it would be a perfect soap dish,” he smiled, and I shook my head in disbelief, smiling back. Evan could be such a clown sometimes. “Is there anything else I can do?” he asked Marion.
“No,” she said. “This is all I need for now.” Then she put some of the herbs around the same couch where Christian was last seen and added a few more plants to Evan’s soap dish. He and I were so wrapped up in our own thoughts that the last minutes passed too fast.
“Almost midnight,” Marion said, breaking the silence. “Evan, are you ready?” Sometimes it seemed as if she was worried about us even more than we were ourselves. She didn’t try to hide the colors of her aura. Endless fear and overwhelming anxiety were interwoven tightly with each other.
“I’m ready,” Evan said. Now he was calm, concentrated and dead serious. “Shall I start?” he asked, coming to the couch.
A few moments later Marion nodded. Evan closed his eyes and pronounced a spell.
Just as it was the first time when he was piercing into his own memories, now I could feel everything he was feeling. The power of magic was enveloping his body with its shining light and warmth. His mind was sinking slowly into the fog of magical dream and the reality surrounding him was melting in the shadows of Nowhere land.
“Now, it’s your turn, Eileen,” Marion said, squeezing my hand in support. I nodded and smiled nervously, feeling my wild heart beating. Then I swallowed my fear, promising mentally to come back as soon as possible and closing my eyes, I followed Evan into the darkness.
However, my own transit to the dreamy world wasn’t as easy. And my feelings were completely different. I was freezing and trembling with cold, my lungs refused to breathe. The frost was so sharp that even Antarctic winter would seem like hot summer in comparison. I was wearing only a pair of jeans and a sweater that Elena had brought from my room. My cheeks were burning with icy fire that was also freezing my lips and eyelids. And I could feel the ice crunching on my palms. God, if I knew it would be a real winter there I would have worn something so much warmer!
I looked around and found myself standing at the bottom of some mountain. I couldn’t see the peak. It was high enough to reach the heavens. Evan was standing not far away, with his back to me. He immediately felt my presence.
“Eileen, what the hell are you doing here?!” he shouted through the wind. His eyes were full of surprise, fear and anger. Perfect combination, I thought to myself. He’s gonna kill me with his bare hands! But I didn’t have time to think about his revenge as I had to do something I had been planning for so long.
“I’m sorry, Evan, but you are not supposed to go any further,” I said guiltily, looking into his crystal-blue eyes. And before he would realize the meaning of my words I immobilized him with that spell that Marion had told me about before. I couldn’t let him risk his life for me, so his presence in that dream was needed only to help me and Christian get back to reality.
Apologizing mentally for everything I was doing, I looked up, trying to see the top of the mountain and pronouncing another spell, I flew into the air.
Just as Marion supposed, my ability to hear Christian’s voice was caused by the fact that the wind was everywhere in that dream. It was swallowing everything around me as if I were in the heart of a very strong hurricane. But this time the wind wasn’t helping me, making my way to the top of the mountain harder. I kept telling myself that the dream was just an illusion.
Reaching the snow-covered peak, where the spell brought me to, I looked around, trying to decide what to do next.
Suddenly the wind stopped and my body temperature became normal. My skin was warm again and I could breathe freely. But the next moment something else happened, my heart missed one beat and I fell to my knees, losing my balance. The scenery was dancing in front of my eyes, turning into one huge blurred wall. I tried to stand up, I blinked once, then twice, but nothing helped. My movements were unsteady and my thoughts… oh, God, they all were gone!
I didn’t remember anything. No names, no places, no people. I didn’t even know who I was. There was nothing in my head, but an endless emptiness. I was weak and frightened. And I was powerless. The moment I closed my eyes, I fell deeply asleep, losing myself in a pleasant golden light, covering my body like a sunny blanket.
When I opened my eyes I was standing in my room, combing my hair in front of the mirror. I was reaching for my hair pin when someone’s hand stopped me.
“No, leave it like this,” Christian said quietly. I turned around and smiled.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, feeling his hands slowly caressing the bare skin of my arms.
“I’m waiting for you,” he said, bending his head to kiss my lips. His palm moved up to my shoulder and lowered one strap of my nightdress, making my fiery tattoo shine and sparkle in the darkness of the room. Every nerve of my body was fluttering and my heart was singing happily, enjoying the tenderness and sweetness of our kiss.
It was very slow and sensitive, teasing and provocative, as if we both were dying to give each other so much more than that one kiss. Christian’s palm slid down to the edge of my dress and pulled it up so he could lift me up to the bureau. I wrapped my legs around his waist and he pressed me closer to his chest, deepening the kiss and making my breathing stop. God, he was so good in everything he was doing and I wondered how on earth I was still able to think. Then Christian broke the kiss and taking my face in his palms, he whispered, “You have to find me, Eileen. You have to remember. I’m lost without you.”
I opened my eyes abruptly and he was gone. I wasn’t in my room anymore, I was lying on my back with white soft snowflakes covering my cheeks. I gasped and sat up trying to remember where I was. And then I heard him.
“Well, well!” he said in a singing voice, clasping his hands happily. “What a pleasant surprise!”
Even without seeing that face I knew it was Eric, standing behind me. Gathering all the courage I had, I turned to face him.
“Eileen,” he murmured, squinting like a cat at his prey. “I’ve been waiting for you for so long that now I can’t find the right words to describe how glad I am to see you here,” he said, coming to me slowly. I rose to my feet, giving him my killing look. “No trouble getting here?” He raised his eyebrows, obviously enjoying the moment. His patience was even more irritating than his diabolic nature.
“Where’s Christian?�
�� I hissed, ignoring his question. He laughed loudly in response. His disgustingly sweet voice was ringing in my ears. Only the sound of our voices had broken the silence. There were just the two of us standing in the middle of some damn snow-white abyss.
“You don’t think it will be so easy, do you?” still chuckling, he asked.
“You won’t make it,” I said as calmly as possible. “You can’t use the Cup to get my power.”
“Hmm… are you sure about that?” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “What makes you think so?” he asked, sliding his hands in his trousers pockets. “I’ve been dreaming about this day for so many years!”
“Alexis lied to you,” I said, mimicking his cattish smile. “She used you to get to Christian. And me,” I continued, taking a step closer to him. He took a step back, surprised. “You know that she’s the only true owner of the Cup, don’t you?”
“Bullshit!” he snapped. He was obviously tired of my speech. “Who told you that? Your all-knowing daddy?” He spat out the last word as if it was poisoned.
“It’s true, Eric,” I said, ignoring his sarcasm. “You will never be able to become almighty, because you can’t control the Cup. Did your beloved sister mention that fact? Where’s she now, by the way? Do you think she’s still in prison? Far from it! She killed Nora and ran away, stealing all her powers. And now she’s looking for you,” I added, taking one more step closer. This time Eric didn’t move. He froze, thinking over my every word and I was silently praying for him to believe me. “Of course, she doesn’t want to share her success with you. The only thing she really wants is to get rid of you once and for all, so she would finally become the only owner of the Cup.”
“You are lying!” Eric shouted in exasperation. His face was burning with anger. And I hoped I would be able to run away before he could take revenge for everything I had said. “Alexis would never do that to me!” he continued. And, oh man, I almost felt pity for him, because at that very moment he seemed so weak and helpless. His world, his life and everything he believed in was crashing in front of his eyes. And it was my fault. Well, not that I felt guilty, but I was more than sure that Eric thought otherwise.
