Rise of the Dreamer

by L. J. Higgins

  “How did they even know we were doing the Dual Dreaming?” asked Joe.

  “Kaelee,” gasped Harper, covering her mouth with her hand.

  “Yes, I told them.” Kaelee approached from behind me.

  “Why?” Joe stood glowering at her.

  “They made me,” Kaelee stammered.

  “Made you? Made you rat out on your friends? Are we even your friends at all? What about Harper?” Sarah spat at her.

  “I, I, I tried.” Kaelee struggled to form the words to explain.

  “Harper, say something.” Joe looked at Harper, waiting for her to weigh in.

  “How could you?” Disappointment shone in Harper’s moistened eyes.

  Kaelee answered only Harper. “I was a coward. They made me join your group, befriend you to find out what you knew and if any of you were a threat. As I grew closer to you, I tried to turn them off your trail, but they realised I was keeping something from them.” Tears welled in her reddened eyes. “They electrocuted me and I caved, telling them what you’d been up to. But I didn’t want to give them your name, I’d grown to care too much for you. You’re the most amazing person I’ve ever known. So I gave them the person I felt was the real ringleader. I gave them Amelia.” She dropped to her knees, sobbing into her hands, but nobody went to comfort her.

  Harper appeared conflicted. Maybe her compassionate nature was willing her to go to Kaelee and make her feel better. But her loyalty to her friends kept her feet firmly planted where they stood. Maybe I’d misread her earlier defence of Kaelee.

  I scrunched my nose at how Kaylee played the victim. She hadn’t said so many words since she’d escaped with Janine and me, and now she had a whole speech to stop Harper from hating her, trying to make Harper feel sorry for her. She pulled herself together, wiping at her face with the hem of her shirt and rose once again to her feet.

  “I don’t expect you to forgive me, or trust me for that matter,” she said. “But I have nothing now. I can’t go home or back to the facility, because they’ll torture me until I give you guys up.” She looked at Harper, who’d tied her dreadlocks into a bundle behind her head.

  Kaelee cared about one thing… herself. She didn’t care if they managed to get information out of her, she was only scared she’d be tortured, or worse. The memory of her voice echoed through my head as my lungs tightened. Water forced its way into my nose and stung my eyes. I couldn’t breathe as I fought against the large hand pressing my head under the water. Sarah’s hand on my back brought me back to reality. I wasn’t drowning. I was safe with my friends.

  “We don’t trust you,” growled Joe. “So you can say all you want, but I won’t believe a word that comes out of your mouth.”

  Harper turned her questions towards me again. “So what happened next? We looked for you everywhere. I even called the police, but they acted as if you’d run away. That’s when we figured out it had something to do with the MMC. We called Cameron, but he had no idea where they were keeping you, or if they even had you. Days later, Jonah called me to tell me you’d contacted him in a dream, and we called Cameron right away.”

  The sound of Cameron’s name made my throat clench tight and Sarah wrapped her arm around my shoulder, hugging me close to her.

  “I can’t even begin to describe how happy I was to find you,” said Joe. “I’d spent so many nights forcing myself to sleep, willing you to arrive in my dreamscape and searching for yours. When I couldn’t reach you for such a long time, I’d thought your dreams had been taken away, or worse.”

  For the longest time, I thought they had taken away my dreams, but the day they tried to drown me, I was able to get through to you. Looking back, I guess my fried and exhausted brain and body couldn’t muster the energy to dream. It took a near-death experience to finally reach you. Once I did, I knew it was only a matter of time before Cameron found me. It wasn’t easy, but I decided to trust Janine. She’d nursed me through many days of torture. The MMC had tricked her too, played her like a pawn in their evil game. She’d been told she was helping people, and when she questioned their motives, they threw her in a cell. She was Cameron’s boss. She was the one who instructed him to find the cure and vaccine. If it wasn’t for her, Ethan and I may have died, and you could all be sick with the virus.” I raised to my wobbly feet, holding the table for balance. “The day they tried to drown me was also the day I discovered Kaelee was with the MMC. She was the one who’d been frying my brain.”

  Joe narrowed his eyes and clenched his jaw.

  “She came down to ask for my forgiveness. And to be honest, at the time, I felt sorry for her, sorry the MMC had played her too. That’s when Cameron busted us all out,” I said.

  “When Tech set off the alarm and Cameron rescued you,” said Harper.

  “Yes, but it didn’t go to plan. I got locked in an elevator and Cameron had to save me. He helped us navigate our way through the MMC facility, but the guards found us, and they were heavily armed. Much more military than when they were in the city. They shot at us a number of times, and then they…” My throat clenched so tight I couldn’t speak for fear of tears flowing.

  The sound of ricocheting bullets rung in my ears and I covered them, squeezing my eyes shut. My shirt was covered in blood, so much blood. Sarah’s touch brought me back again. My head felt light and I sat back down on the bench. Sarah slid her arm over my shoulders and pulled me close. The urge to cry was overwhelming, but I slid her arm away and clenched my jaw.

  “I can tell them for you,” offered Janine.

  “I’m still not sure I can trust what you have to say,” said Joe, his arms still folded across his chest.

  “Amelia’s here and can tell us if she’s lying,” said Harper.

  Joe nodded, unwilling to drop eye contact with Janine.

  “They cornered us a few times, and each time we managed to get away,” said Janine. “The facility is like a labyrinth. Without a GPS or knowledge of where you’re going, it’s so hard to find where you are. But Cameron knew, he guided us to the exit. Kaelee tripped, and Cameron stopped to help her up. She got away, but before we knew it, they were upon us, and they were shooting at us. Cameron was shot. Kaelee ran into the lift and I stood still while Amelia ran back to save him. She tried so hard to get him up, to carry him to the lift. I even tried to help her, when what was happening sunk in. But he was too heavy, and it was too far. He stopped breathing, and I knew he was gone. So I dragged Amelia into the lift to save her. That’s what Cameron would’ve wanted.”

  “How would you know what he wanted?” asked Joe.

  “He was a loyal employee, and a great person. I considered him a friend. I could see how much he loved Amelia, and I knew what he wanted was for her to be safe,” replied Janine. “We escaped through the bush with the help of a backpack Cameron gave us, and we made our way to our rendezvous point where we met up with you and Sarah.”

  “A loyal employee? He was trying to destroy your corporation from the inside,” taunted Joe.

  “Exactly. I was his boss. I instructed him to find the cure and create the vaccine as Amelia said,” argued Janine.

  The vision of Cameron’s glazed-over eyes burned into my brain. The places his blood had been were etched into my skin, making it itch. My eyes stung as I tried to push the tears away, my throat clenching and my chest tight. Each of them stared at me as my breath quickened, and I swallowed while I tried to regain my composure. The emotions too raw, I pulled at the bandages wrapped around my wounded feet. Ripping them off and throwing them to the ground, I ran towards the nearby rainforest. Tears streamed down my cheeks by the time I reached the first cluster of trees, and my feet stung as I ran over sand, sticks and leaves. Ignoring the pain as best as I could, I ducked and wove my way through the trees until I came to a sandy beach and fell to my knees, wiping at my eyes with my shirt.

  A rumble formed in my lungs, growing until it forced its way up my windpipe and turned into a scream as my pent up energy came rushing out. I scre
amed until every muscle tensed up and my throat and lungs ached. When I had no more left, I fell onto my side in the sand. I watched as the water gently lapped at the shore, the horizon bright blue in the distance.

  I had to make the MMC pay for what they’d done to Cameron. If it wasn’t for them, none of this would’ve happened. There’d be no Dreamers or Non-Dreamers. They’d segregated us, and they’d made everyone, including myself, act like I wasn’t good enough. And they’d taken away two people I’d loved, first Dawn and now Cameron. I was sick of being tossed around in the sick game they were playing with people’s lives. I wanted to make them wish they’d never met me.

  The saltiness of the sand stung my feet as I stood brushing the sand from my side. I had a new focus to concentrate on. As I turned to face the trees, I noticed Sarah standing in the shade. She said nothing, simply giving me a caring smile. She came over to help me limp back to the camp, where she cleaned and dressed my feet once again.

  Chapter Four

  We spent the next three days resting at the campground. It seemed Joe and Harper were waiting to see how we were handling what’d happened to us, and waiting for my feet to heal. I spent the days sleeping and eating to regain some of the weight I’d lost in the MMC facility. My body felt so frail and thin when I’d arrived in camp, it was reassuring to feel myself growing stronger every day. It gave me hope I could get through everything that’d happened. Afraid to process the intense emotions I’d been dealing with on the first day of my stay at the camp, I kept myself busy. I spent my time alone imagining ways to destroy the MMC, to make them pay for what they’d done.

  Kaelee was like a ghost in the camp, preferring to keep to herself most of the time. It frustrated me how she played the victim, as though hiding away and acting weak was going to make us feel sorry for her. It reminded me how selfish she was, how she’d run back to the MMC every chance she got.

  One night I’d whispered to Joe as he sat next to me at dinner. “Don’t take your eyes off Kaelee. I don’t trust her as far as I can throw her.”

  “Me either. Trust me, I’m watching her,” Joe had replied.

  The second night, I’d noticed Harper taking Kaelee for a walk towards the beach. I didn’t know why they were speaking, but knowing Harper, I guessed she’d forgiven her. How she could forgive someone who helped nearly kill her friend, I didn’t know? Maybe we hadn’t been such good friends after all? Obviously our relationship wasn’t as close as the friendship she’d formed with Kaelee, even if it was based on lies.

  I spent most of my time with Sarah, who appeared to understand my need for silence. We would sit on the beach together without speaking a word. She made sure I ate and drank plenty of food and water and that no one woke me when I slept. I was so happy to have her with me. She was the one person I could trust. All she wanted for me was to be happy and healthy. There was Joe, but knowing how our bond had upset Cameron, I couldn’t bring myself to go to him or even look him in the eye most of the time.

  On day three, I was able to remove my bandages. Although my feet were still tender, it was such a relief to be able to walk along the beach and feel the warmth of the sand between my toes. Janine’s bandages had come off the day before, and she appeared to truly appreciate being free once again. I suppose she’d thought she’d live her last days inside a concrete cell. It must’ve felt like she’d been given a second chance. It would explain the happiness tugging at the corners of her eyes and mouth.

  As the moon rose high in the sky, the palms cast shadows around the campground. Sarah passed me a pile of dirty plates, and I carried them over to the communal sink to clean them.

  “Leave those for the minute, ladies. I have something I want to say to everyone,” said Harper.

  I rested the plates on the edge of the sink, and walked over to sit on the bench next to Sarah.

  “After speaking with both Sarah and Joe and communicating with the rest of our group, we’ve decided to let the three of you join us at our new home.” Harper’s eyes searched mine for a reaction.

  “Are you serious?” I blurted out.

  Sarah placed her hand on my shoulder to calm me down. All three of us? That meant they’d decided they trusted not only Janine but Kaelee too, despite everything I’d told them. Crossing my arms, I blew out an agitated breath.

  Ignoring my obvious discontent, Harper continued. “Despite how each of us got here, I think we have a common goal: to stop the MMC from killing and manipulating people. Although Janine and Kaelee will be watched closely, I think they can be of help to our cause. This is much bigger than it was in Sandhaven. We’ve been in contact with other groups of rebel Dreamers who’ve been trying to stop the MMC in their own ways. Together we think we can find a way to take them down for good.”

  I hadn’t entertained the thought there might be other groups like ours, who were trying to derail the MMC’s plans. But it made sense. Why wouldn’t other Dreamers know the truth and want to stop them? Had I thought we were special, that no-one else would be clever enough to work it out?

  “Tomorrow morning we’ll pack up our camps and head to our new home. We have a couple of caravans, tents, and a two-bedroom shack. There are eight of us living there so far,” she concluded.

  “Where is it?” asked Janine.

  “That‘s for us to know, and for you to find out… if we ever trust you,” said Joe, his arms crossed over his chest again.

  “Any other questions?” asked Harper.

  Everyone looked at each other, shaking their heads. I kept my steely glare focused into the darkness of the rainforest.

  “Right, I think we should get an early night. We have a rough drive ahead of us tomorrow.” Harper squeezed Kaelee’s shoulder as she left towards her tent.

  I screwed my nose up and glared at Kaelee, who dropped her gaze to the ground and left.

  “I can’t believe she forgave her,” I said to Sarah as we started washing the dishes.

  Sarah was surprised at my tone. “I’m sure she has her reasons. You know what Harper’s like.”

  “She tried to kill me, Sarah. She told them where to kidnap me. I nearly died. But Harper, she doesn’t care. Kaelee’s so important to her, everyone’s happy to forget what I went through. What she put me through.” The sense of betrayal brought tears to my eyes.

  “Of course, we care. I sure as hell haven’t forgiven her, and I’m pretty sure Joe hasn’t. I can’t speak for Harper, but I’m sure she doesn’t trust Kaelee either, but what can she do?”

  “I know exactly what she can do… she can send her back to the MMC. Let them do to her what she let them do to me. Maybe then she’ll stop feeling sorry for herself and give a second thought to how she’s hurt others. But hey, what would I know right? I was only the one who was tortured and almost killed.” I threw the tea towel on the bench and stormed off towards the tent, leaving Sarah with the dishes.

  Climbing onto the mattress, my chest was tight, and I clenched my teeth together to stop tears from flowing. I couldn’t let them see me be weak again. I couldn’t be like Kaelee. As I stewed on the conversation between Sarah and me, I heard the sound of unzipping and rolled onto my side, facing the tent’s wall and closed my eyes. I wasn’t in the mood to talk to her, and I hoped she would realise I wanted silence again.

  “Amelia?” Joe’s soft voice loosened the muscles, which had tightened in my neck. “I know you’re pretending. Can I come in? We don’t have to talk.”

  I rolled over and looked into his earthy eyes, which appeared to plead for me to say yes. I squeezed my eyes shut and rolled back over. Taking this as an invitation, he crawled in and lay beside me on Sarah’s mattress. I expected him to try to talk to me, to tell me they were worried, that I needed to talk. But instead he simply lay next to me so I wouldn’t be alone. And I was happy to have him there. To be protected and know he cared about me. I shouldn’t have doubted him. I could depend on Joe to have my back. He had a knack of knowing the right things to say and what I needed. In his presence
, I found myself easily drifting off to sleep.

  My stomach twisted and turned, threatening to lodge in my throat. I tumbled through darkness, my arms and legs flailing around me. My screams echoed as I plummeted faster and farther into the black abyss below. When I thought my descent wouldn’t end, light appeared below me, and I could see the floor approaching. Closing my eyes, I braced for impact.

  “Thank you for picking me over Amelia.” I opened my eyes to find Kaelee wearing a broad smile.

  “Of course. You’re my best friend. She’s nothing to me.” Harper grinned back at her before embracing her in a hug.

  “Are you kidding me? She got Cameron killed. She almost got me killed,” I yelled at Harper who turned to meet my burning glare.

  “Kaelee? No, Kaelee wouldn’t do such a thing. But Amelia would.” Her eyes darkened as she easily covered the distance between us. “You want to know the real reason Cameron is dead? Because of you. You lead him into danger. You put him in situations where he had to save you. It’s your actions that killed Cameron.”

  I shook my head, unable to comprehend the hateful words coming from her lips. “No, it wasn’t my fault.”

  Both Kaelee and Harper came closer and closer until they were right up in front of my face, staring me down with their dark eyes. Taking a step back, I tripped over something lying on the ground and lost my balance, falling to the floor, landing beside Cameron’s lifeless body, blood oozing from the wound on his chest.

  “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” I said leaning over him.

  Cameron’s eyes shot open, no longer the bright blue they once were, but dark and menacing like those of Kaelee and Harper. He mumbled something inaudible and I leaned closer to his face, straining to hear his raspy voice. His cold lips brushed against my ear as he muttered three words.