Dead Dreams ((Young Adult Paranormal Romance) ( Dead Dreams Trilogy)) (42 page)

“
I guess that’s down to you babe. I’ve changed since I met you, before I was someone I didn’t like at all, now I’m kind of getting a good feeling about me. I’m not so arrogant or selfish anymore.
”

No more words were needed as they stayed together hugging and kissing. Nothing mattered at t
hat moment except how they felt. A
live or dead was of no consequence as long as they were together. Adam felt as if he’d grown up overnight and become a man,

A sense of pride swept over him that he’d gone out of his way to help some
one disregarding his own safety
.
N
ever before had he reached out to someone on such a deep level.

“
Do you believe in soul mates?
”
He asked.

“
I don’t know maybe.
”

“
I do now
and I think that’s what we are…you…me…
soul mates.
”

It was the first smile he’d seen in a long time and her eyes didn’t seem so sad anymore.

“
I love you Adam
.
”
She said stroking his cheek lightly.

“
I love yo
u too Summer Haze.
”

They set up camp under the stars
confident
they were far enough away from Dave and the cabin. They hoped he’d had given up the
laborious
task of searching an entire forest
and gone back to drinking and coke sniffing.

“
I think if we get to the
heart of the forest
we’ll find the light.
”
She said.

“
Why
do you think it’s there
?
”

“
I don’t know why, just as I know I don’t want food anymore. Now I’m sure I’m dead it doesn’t seem so important. But I don’t get it, the dead thing, it’s confusing.
”

“
Me too, everything seems the same but it’s not is it? Some things are different but what happened in the cabin…how could that happen if we’re dead?
”

“
I don’t know but if I was still alive I’d be a total mess after something like that, it doesn’t feel so bad now, like it was a bad dream or something.
”

He was pleased to hear that she’d managed to get past what he saw as a horrific rape, maybe she was right, if he was to look at what happened as a bad dream he wouldn’t feel so angry.

For the first time since they were together they made love, even though it felt different and for both of them the first time they
were
experie
ncing
real intimacy,
it was far above any sexual act- it was
an unexplainable
merging of souls.

“
If this is
a
pretty cool dead dream
then I’m happy
!
”
Summer remarked.

The next morning they woke with optimism
and after making love again they
set off hoping to reach
their destination
fairly quickly. Because they took off from the cabin in the opposite direction they had to come
around
on themselves taking the long way so as not to find they were back where they started.

The longer they wa
lked the more they
lost they became
. The forest was extremely dense and in some areas impassable. Trying to find easier routes to walk was taking them further and further away from their destination
and
with each step, frustration set in as they realised they were trapped. Adam never liked camping when he was a boy.
Roy
was an avid camper and insisted on a once a year camping trip without fail. If
he
dared to object he was told to ‘man up’ and do as he was told. He hated the
mosquitoes
and the strange noises at night and was utterly miserable when it rained. Julie
supported
Roy
’s decision that
Adam
should be grateful that
he
went out of his way to bring him to such lovely spots to camp out under the stars.
Ignoring the fact that he drank even more when they were away, his alcohol breath got Adam more riled up with each new trip and the older he got the less forgiving he became.
He never shared their
joy for camping
and cringed when
Roy
barked out orders like a
sergeant
major controlling the troops. Now he was forced to c
amp and unlike in the past when
camping spots were never too far away from the car or
civilisation
, he was caught deep in the middle of nowhere
.
It was
like
being in
a maze
and
unable to
get out, the added threat of being found by Dave always in the back of their thoughts.

“
Where are we?
”
Summer asked.

“
I don’t know we don’t seem to be getting anywhere, it’s like we’re going further away.
”

“
I
ts
best we stop right here for a while,
so we can
think of something.
”

Summer wanted more t
han anything to be out of the mess. S
he kept dreaming up ways to attract the light. Maybe calling out for her mom even though she couldn’t stand her in life for
what
she did
,
she still loved her
,
and wanted her to be there to help. She even tried to
think of Adam’s father and hoped he’d come to their rescue, or an angel or
a kindly
angel
who
wanted to take pity on them,
a
nyone.

“
Maybe we should start thinking about the light, you know, talk to it or something?
”

“
What are we supposed to say,
hi there light let me in please?
”

“
No, I mean something more serious like call for people we know, your dad my mom.
”

It sounded so far-fetched, that
calling out names of dead family members would bring them reprieve. Adam was afraid of what was beyond the light and doubted if it even existed.

“
Maybe it’s
be
cause we’re afraid that’s why we’re stuck here.
”
He said.

“
I’m
not
afraid now
and I didn’t think you were? W
hat’s to be afraid of
,
it can’t get any worse.
”

“
We still don’t know how we died, maybe we need to remember that as well?
”

“
Adam you’re making it sound like we have to pass some kind of dumb test and who said there was a light anyway, maybe this is it right
here
,
the
afterlife-
for you and me.
”

He wasn’t buying her analysis one little bit
. Being
stuck alone in a forest with the chance of two psycho’s showing up was far from his idea of heaven
,
and surely it
didn’t
consist of just two?

“
I think we need to keep moving
and finding our way.
”
He said cautiously.

“
Adam, I know what’s wrong why we don’t see the light!
”

“
Okay let’s hear it then.
”

“
It’s the guilt that’s ke
eping us here…
be
cause I think
we both killed ourselves.
”

He stormed off leaving her to grab everything and
catch up
, fleeing
through the trees with Summer
hot on his heels calling
repeatedly
for him to stop he ignored
her cries
.
He told himself
that the further
away from her
he went the
more the problem would go away smarting all the while at her words. He was u
nable to face the damn
ing word
‘
suicide
’
that spun round
and round
in his thoughts all the while the
fear increasing
when he figured out that maybe he’d be punished for an unholy deed
. That
thought
propelled him to run even
faster.

“
Adam…
stop!
”
She
called
out
in desperation.

But he didn’t
stop
and
frightened
that she’d be left
alone in the forest she
did her best to
catch up
,
all the time angrily thinking what she’d say to him when she did. S
uddenly out of the blue a figure
stepped out from behind a tree
stopping her dead in her tracks
.
It
wasn’t Dave or
Caesar
.
It was the
lone figure of a fair haired woman.