Hidden Realms

by Dean Murray

  “Bum-scum!” I shouted into the night. My shrill words hung momentarily in the air before shattering into silence. I shoved my hands through my hair and squeezed my eyes shut.

  Cassie shifted in her seat. The aged leather let out a shadow of the groan I currently had caged. I glanced over at her.

  Her gaze locked onto mine before she licked the side of her mouth and sighed. “I wish you’d swear like a normal person, Rayla.” Her tone sounded more irritated than she looked. “That is so disgusting.”

  I gawked. “Are you really razzing me about my cursing habits now?”

  Her full lips pursed before she gave a faint smile. “This seems as good of a time as any.”

  Wait. What was going on here? She saw him, and she saw that thing. There was no way she would have reacted to an ordinary guy by screaming and hiding the way she did. What was she doing? This was the worst time I could think of for her to start messing with me. I shook my head. “You don’t find anything odd about being run down by a man on a motorcycle that turns into a pegasus and back again just before he disappears?” I frantically searched the sky again. “Where did he go?”

  She seemed to be trying for casual indifference, but fear transmuted her normally delicate features into a mousy mask. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  I smirked, narrowing my eyes at her. I could only guess what was going through her mind right now, but there was no way she was getting me to think I hallucinated a fire-breathing Pegasus or the man who would haunt my thoughts, probably forever. “So when did ‘it is not there’ become your new mantra?”

  Her fingers worried the bright white seam of her dark designer jeans. She shot a glance at me, barely making eye contact before she looked out the window again. “Rayla, drop it. We’re fine. He’s gone.” She shrugged. “You should be happy.”

  “Happy?” I choked out. “I just had a real hell’s angel chase me down, and you’re acting like he was a dorky date!” A maelstrom of emotions swirled through my body. My heart pummeled my ribs. My breath came in halted gasps. Rivulets of sweat trickled down my back, as though I had run twenty miles. If that wasn’t bad enough, my right front tire perched precariously on the gravel shoulder. A few more inches would have sent us plummeting onto the endless sea of sagebrush below the high-desert highway. I grunted. “Was he a figment of our collective imagination?”

  “Maybe he—”

  I refused to let her explain this away. “Come on, Cass. I know you saw the thing, so don’t bother denying it. That guy was weird. Did he make you feel strange, like you knew him or something?”

  She looked out the window, but I still caught her grimace. “Could we just get moving again? We’re going to be late, or would you rather go back to Snow?”

  Snow College was in the opposite direction. I was not turning around. She’d already given up her chance to change her mind. “You’re actually telling me you didn’t see a Pegasus. Why were you so scared?”

  She slapped her hand against her thigh, startling me. “Mythical creatures are just that. They. Do. Not. Exist!”

  I would have agreed ten minutes before, but that beast and rider wouldn’t leave my mind. I was pretty sure even with my imagination I couldn’t have come up with something like that on my own. How had he disappeared?

  A tiny part of me had hoped to see the guy fly through the air for affecting me so much only without the aid of his demon mount. I needed to make it clear to him, and more importantly myself, exactly who had control over my body.

  I had never liked the dark. Now I had an actual reason to distrust the inky hours that always brought a shiver of trepidation to my spine. I expected my maiden voyage away from home to be full of excitement but nothing like this.

  I shoved my fingers under my shirt to scratch my scar again. Even though I needed to stop, I couldn’t. It was already raw. What the heck was wrong with me? Could this trip get any worse?

  . . . . .

  Lunch was awkward. Cassie remained really quiet. We came out of the cheesy restaurant in utter silence. The place had saddles for barstools, wagon wheels for chandeliers, and a mechanical bull in the corner. The only entertainment I’d had for the past hour had been watching complete strangers repeatedly fall off the thing—not as funny in real life.

  As I walked to the car, the air grew thick with electricity. Every hair on my body tried to take flight. Suppressing a shudder, I glanced around the desolate landscape but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

  Although my scar had been itchy, tingling almost nonstop since my near-miss with that motorcycle, my terror had vanished with the sunrise. It was back like recurrent heartburn. I snapped my neck around when I heard a throaty rumble close by.

  A leather-clad rider pulled onto the road from the gas station across the street. Figures, I only caught the back of him. It could have been the guy from last night. There had to be thousands of black motorcycles in America ridden by huge men in leather, right? When her gaze locked to the motorcyclist, Cassie’s face went three shades paler than vanilla ice cream.

  “Do you think it was him?” I breathed.

  She hadn’t moved a muscle, as if frozen where she stood. “Who?”

  Why was she acting like I was nuts? She’d have to do better than that if she wanted me to drop the subject. “Don’t,” I said.

  She glanced up at me coolly. “I really can’t imagine what you’re talking about, Rayla.”

  I steeled my expression, not getting why she refused to admit what had happened. “You should try harder, like when we were kids.” She glared before stalking away. Arm outstretched, she stood at the driver-side door. I handed her the keys. “Why won’t you talk about it?” I asked, sliding onto my seat. “We both saw the thing.” My mind told me I couldn’t have really seen that pegasus, but something in my heart refused to deny the experience.

  Her hands shook while she fumbled to get the key into the ignition, and her usually steady voice held an edge of fear. “You should get some sleep. You look exhausted.” She hadn’t even glanced at me. I had never seen Cassie this freaked out.

  I couldn’t blame her. Even though the motorcyclist was gone, his presence clung to me like a second skin. How was I supposed to sleep believing that man was somewhere in this world? I hoped my senses were wrong — that he wasn’t actually following us, unseen. I tried not to think about it, but the vision of him troubled me every time I closed my eyes.

  Chapter Two

  The rest of the trip was a blur. Nothing weird happened, so I had turned my mind to more important things…like school.

  Taking a deep breath, I pulled into Le Mans Hall’s humungous circular driveway. My mouth fell open. This was going to be my home for the next four years.

  The building was amazing — sort of gothic mansion meets military barracks. The square bell tower loomed above us, nestled between a regal set of flanking wings.

  Were the rumors true? Had a student really hung herself up there? I shrugged off the tiny shiver racing through me and stepped out of the car.

  Shielding my eyes from the late morning sun, I found the fourth floor. Which room was ours? A view of the lake was probably out of the question for freshmen, but there was always a chance.

  With the ornate moldings lining every wall and the marble tile gleaming under the fluorescent light, the dorm had an old-world cool factor. We took our things to our room, which surprisingly, was pretty great.

  A bunk bed rested tight against an aged ivory wall. Two small closets were nestled in the corner. A couple of dressers and a desk lined the other walls. We even had a small living area and a private bathroom. All we needed now was a comfy sofa and a shower curtain. Speaking of curtains, I peeked out the window and smiled. The lake glittered softly below us.

  Too bad I didn’t have time to explore; I still had to call Aunt Grace. After we unloaded our things, I told Cassie I was going to park the car. She didn’t even ask to go with me, but she did wish me luck. Since we arrived, she’d
lost some of her agitation.

  She probably didn’t want to be in earshot of my conversation. I didn’t want to hear it either, but I couldn’t put it off any longer. I wasn’t about to make her come along for the torture.

  After I shut off the ignition, I pulled out my phone. Exhaustion from lack of sleep and my weird trip here washed over me. I had to put that guy out of my mind. Nothing else had happened, and I already convinced myself Cassie had been reacting to the guy, not an imaginary pegasus. I’d probably dreamed it up because last night had been the first time in years I’d gotten up the courage to even be outside at night. And the motorcyclist? Well, thinking more about him could wait for later.

  True to her nature, Aunt Grace left twenty-four messages. I didn’t feel like getting angry, so I decided to skip them.

  I wasn’t surprised at all when she answered on the first ring. “Hi, Aunt Grace,” I said, a little less enthusiastically than I had intended.

  To say worry clouded her tone would be the understatement of my life. “Rayla … thank the heavens and the stars! Where are you, girl?”

  From her tone, I was in the land called Trouble. She had probably figured out I wasn’t at Snow College already. I set into my speech, hoping she wouldn’t interrupt me.

  “Grace, I made a decision—”

  “Where are you?”

  “I know you won’t be happy with it, but—”

  “Rayla, you have no idea what you’ve done!”

  “This is my life, and I feel it’s time—”

  “You feel?” she said in a huff. “Where are you?”

  She wasn’t giving up, so I decided to get it over with. “Notre Dame.”

  “Indiana!”

  No — Paris. “Yes,” I stated calmly, waiting for her to lose it.

  Her tone lowered, deflating like a spent balloon. “What have you done?”

  Not the response I had expected. “Like I was saying, I decided—”

  “Did you ever consider I’ve been so strict with you for a reason?”

  Of course I had, but I wasn’t buying her excuses anymore. I had finally taken control of my life — whether she liked it or not. “I thought you were just being overprotective because of Mom.”

  There. It was out. I hadn’t found the statement as hard to say as I thought I would.

  She sighed. It was a lonely sound. “I guess I should’ve simply told you, but I was hoping to keep you from ever knowing about what you are.”

  I chuckled, picking at the steering-wheel. “You aren’t going to tell me I was actually born a boy, are you?”

  She harrumphed. “This is serious, Rayla. I didn’t think you would ever be so foolish.”

  In what messed up universe was choosing a great school over a mediocre one foolish? “What are you talking about?”

  Her voice held an accusation I didn’t miss. “Why didn’t you tell me you still wanted to go to St. Mary’s? You haven’t mentioned it in over a year.”

  “Are you kidding? You would have never let me come!”

  “You’re darned right! I can’t protect you now. None of us can.”

  Would she always treat me as a child? “From what?” I asked. “I’m not that pathetic. I can take care of myself, you know.” Hadn’t I already proven my skills last night? Besides, I wasn’t about to make excuses for trying to be an adult.

  She didn’t say anything for a while. When she finally spoke, her voice was so soft I could barely understand her. “I’m truly sorry I failed you and your mother.”

  “What does this have to do with Mom?” Was she about to tell me I had cancer or something worse? Had my mom passed on a congenital anomaly of some kind? Had she really died a horrible death that Aunt Grace refused to let me see?

  Would I finally get to name what had stolen my mother from me?

  I braced myself for something terrible. I had never known Aunt Grace to exaggerate — ever, but she had to be now. Her tone insinuated I was in real trouble.

  Her voice was strained, as though it was hard for her to talk. “I can’t tell you. It’s too risky. They’ll only find you sooner.”

  They? “Who in the blazes are you talking about?”

  She whispered, “You need to be very careful, honey. There’s more to this world than you can see. There are people who want you. Your life is about to change in ways you can’t even imagine.”

  Huh? “Aunt Grace, I don’t know what has gotten into you, but what you’re saying doesn’t make any sense. Are you telling me to come home? Because if you are —”

  “No, Rayla,” she hissed. “You can’t come home! I have to think about more than you, now.”

  I snorted. When had she only thought about me? I had been the last one in her household she even bothered to glance at most days, let alone think about. “Would you get to the point?”

  Her exaggerated groan was loud and clear. “Oh, to heck with it. They’ll find you soon enough anyway.” She huffed a couple times, as though she were trying to control her temper before continuing, “Fae lords will be coming for you.”

  I sat there for a moment, blinking at the trees ahead of me, sure I had misheard her. “Uh, would you mind repeating that?”

  “Good grief, girl, listen to me! There’s no telling how long we’ll have. Fae. Lords. Will. Be. Coming. For. You.”

  I sputtered, “Fae. Like in Faeries?” I laughed until tears formed in my eyes. A vision of thumb-sized men with iridescent wings riding miniature horses galloped through my mind—my favorite childhood fantasy.

  Many times, I had imagined being swept off my feet by a fairy prince. He had cast a spell to make me fae. My wings had been pink and purple, my hair a silvery light-blue.

  Her voice couldn’t have sounded more hysterical. “Yes!”

  I laughed uncontrollably. I couldn’t help it — until an image of a lone rider on a tricked-out Harley turned pegasus popped unbidden into my mind. My humor binge turned into an elongated, “Ohhhh!”

  Her tone kicked up a few decibels. “Have you seen them already?”

  I huffed. “How should I know what a real one looks like?” The motorcyclist couldn’t have been fae, could he? Even if they did exist, which I wasn’t saying they did, that man was anything but diminutive.

  Any second Aunt Grace was going to yell just kidding then, laugh her butt off. I waited. And waited.

  What came out of her next startled me. “They are stunning, cunning, and can be lethal.”

  “Come on,” I mocked.

  “You will listen to me! You can’t allow yourself to be alone with any boy!”

  I knew her game. She wanted to scare me into coming home. She was still trying to control me from more than a thousand miles away. “I can hold my own with men, Aunt Grace.” If she only knew the situations I had gotten myself out of already, she’d probably disown me.

  “You say that now. You don’t know how they can get to you. If they wouldn’t follow you, I would insist you come home.”

  That one word was all it took. My temper skyrocketed. “I don’t care who’s after me. You can send freaking King Kong. I’m not leaving! I need my degree.”

  “You’ll never get to use it!” she screeched. “Why do you think I’ve tried to interest you in other things?”

  “Uh-huh, like an uncomplicated career at the pig farm?” I regretted the words the moment they escaped my lips. I didn’t mean to be rude, but my brain-to-mouth filter wasn’t working.

  A self-conscious whine worked its way into her voice. “It’s been good enough for me.”

  “How can you go there every day?” Grace was a strong woman, but she had given up on herself way too soon. “You could have been so much more.”

  “How I live is more important than my occupation,” she said. “Besides, you have no idea what I do every day!”

  I dreamed of being so many things, but a production worker in a stinky factory wasn’t one of them. “I know enough to not follow in your footsteps.”

  “There’s no chanc
e of that happening now. You’ve ruined any choices you did have.” The heat in her tone faded until all that was left was a forlorn hum. “I’m afraid the ones facing you will only lead to misery.”

  Her faith in me was comforting. “Yeah, ‘cause I couldn’t possibly make a right decision on my own.”

  “I didn’t say that. You won’t have much to choose from, sweetheart.”

  The condescension in her tone blasted through me like a pistol shot. “I hate it when you call me that!” I was an adult. It was about time she treated me like one. The pregnant silence stretched to near bursting. For a moment, I thought she hung up on me. Then, I heard her breathing. I tucked the phone against my ear and crossed my arms. I wasn’t going to say anything until she did.

  “Rayla, please, let’s not fight. I’m only worried for you.” Even though I didn’t want it to, her love for me seeped through the phone and into my heart.

  I took some deep breaths to calm down. “Tell me what’s really going on then.”

  She spoke measuredly, as though carefully choosing her words. “What do you think I’ve been trying to do? What exactly are you asking?”

  “I want the truth. Did you send someone to follow me here?” I didn’t think she knew any world renowned magicians, but anything was possible.

  “How could I do such a thing when I didn’t even know you left the state?”

  I ignored the hurt in her voice. “Something strange happened on my way here.” She gasped, but I continued, “There was this creepy guy—”

  “Only one?”

  Wasn’t that enough?

  She wouldn’t even let me finish a sentence. “I did say guy, as in singular.” Funny how she didn’t comment on the creepy part.

  She sighed heavily, her voice calm when she finally spoke. “They run in packs during the hunt.”