Forsaken (13 page)

“You can…you actually
do
see me?” I whispered in disbelief. 

“Your soul shouldn’t be visible to anyone in reveries
, even me.” His dark blue eyes brightened as he watched me closely.  “But you’ve always just…appeared.  Then poof, you’re gone again.” 

As my
real world and my dream world suddenly collided, I felt slightly off-kilter.  And not in a good way.

“I thought you recognized me the first day I was here, but I wasn’t sure.  And you saved me….” I wasn’t sure how to finish.  He probably knew I could breathe under water
then too.  Why did he go to all that trouble if he knew I wouldn’t die?  “Why’d you save me if you knew I could breathe under water?”

“
You
didn’t know you could breathe under water, plus I knew you were scared.” he grinned at me, amused by my question.

“I wasn’t scared
,” I retorted. 

“I must have imagined that look o
f sheer panic on your face then,” he mocked me and I thought about how many looks of sheer panic he’d seen on my face in my reveries.  No wonder he recognized it so quickly.  How humiliating.

“The seaweed wrapped around my legs and wouldn’t let go!  Then all the fish…” I notice
d how hard he was trying not to laugh.  I sat up and put my hands on my hips, “I hope some seaweed attacks you someday so you know how it feels.” 

“I’ll be sure to keep my seaweed
machete on me at all times,” he laughed. 

“Not funny.  You are officially banned from my reveries.” I
suppressed a giggle.  I mean, who gets attacked by seaweed?  Me, that’s who. 

He watched
me for a moment, thoughtful. “Did you have one today?”

“
No…” I recalled the entire day.  No dreams.  No blackouts. “Why?”

“Just wondering how frequent
they are.”  But something told me that wasn’t why he wanted to know.  He looked at the ocean in deep thought.

“I don’t understand how we could see each other in my reve
ries before we even met,” I said, willing him to share his thoughts with me.

Instead
, he stood and pulled me up with him, tucking me in his arms.  No matter how many times he touched me, it always felt like the first time.  His skin sizzled against mine.

“The first time I saw you, I knew I woul
d never be the same.”  He leaned down, lips inches from mine, “I didn’t know if you were real.  But then I touched you.  Felt that you were really here and I knew you’d finally come back.”

“Come back?” I whisper
ed as he leaned down to kiss me.  My question was lost to me as my entire body caught fire. 

I listened to my phone beep for close to ten minutes, hoping I’d be able to tune it out and go back to sleep.  I finally gave up and reached for it on my nightstand.  Kira had texted me wanting me to call her.  I threw the covers back over my head and stretched my legs, still smiling from last night.  I had probably slept with a big goofy grin on my face too.  Good thing I didn’t share a room with anyone.  Finn had walked me back to Maren and then walked the short distance to Rostrum, right next door.  Knowing he was so close brought another smile to my face.  My heart pounded as I pictured him lying in bed sleeping; covers gathered around his waist, bare chest, messy hair…

A
loud bang in the kitchen made me sit straight up in bed.  I opened my door and saw Carmen bending over, cleaning the floor as curse words flew from her mouth.

“Shhh!  Yo
u’re going to wake up Stasia!” Phoebe shushed her from the living room.

“It’s oka
y, Stasia’s already awake,” I smiled as I sat down on the couch.

“How’
re you feeling?  You missed an awesome movie last night!”

“
Worst. Movie. Ever.” Carmen muttered from the kitchen.

“Actually
, I started feeling better after you guys left and I went down to the beach.”

“By yourself?” Carmen
looked up from her mess.

“Well…”
I hesitated.
              “You were with Finn weren’t you?” she accused me.

“Finn?”  Phoebe
squeaked, “As in Finn?  Like, THE Finn?”

“Yes Phoebe, THE
Finn.  And he’s not cursed, you guys, he’s Chosen.” I began to back pedal.  I knew this wouldn’t go well.

“Chosen or not C
hosen, he’s cursed.  I heard that anyone who gets involved with him will lose their soul.”  Phoebe whispered, her eyes wide.

“They won’t
lose
their soul, it’s held captive in the Underworld,” Carmen corrected her, “and their body will stay here, never to be reunited.”

“Just an empty body, not really de
ad, but not really alive either,” Phoebe added, grimacing.

“I seriously doubt
that’s true, you guys.”  I shook my head at them.  They were starting to sound like a bad sci-fi movie.

Willow’s bedroom door
swung open and we all turned to say good morning, but stopped short when we saw the defeated look on her face.  Her eyes were red and tears were streaming down her cheeks.

“Willow!  What is it?  What’s wrong?”  Phoebe r
an over to her.

“She’s gone.”  She stared
at us blankly.

“Who’s gone?” Carmen handed
her a tissue.

“
Nicolet.  She’s gone.”

“What?  How do you know? What happened
!?”  Phoebe cried.

“Who’
s Nicolet?” I asked.  Willow’s watery eyes shifted to me and her tears began to flow steadily.

“She’s a
graduate student here,” her face crumpled, “
was
a graduate student here.  I…I just met with her two days ago.  I didn’t hear from her yesterday, but I thought…I just thought….” Her sobs took over and Phoebe held her tightly, gesturing for Carmen to get more tissues.

My phone rang, so I ran
back to my bedroom to grab it.  It was Kira.

“Hey Stasia
,” I heard something heavy in her voice, “I’m sure you guys have heard already, but I wanted to call and talk to you.” She sniffed and I knew she’d been crying.  “One of the graduate students, my roommate…..she passed away.  They found her.  They think it was…a suicide.”  Her voice caught on the last part.

“
Oh, Kira, I’m so sorry.” I instantly felt horrible for not calling her back sooner.

“
It doesn’t seem real.  I just don’t understand.” She was silent for a moment, “Is Willow alright? Nicolet was her mentor.”

“She’s really upset, but we’re
taking care of her. I hope you know I’m here for you too, Kira.”

“Th
anks Stasia, that means a lot to me.” I could tell she was crying again, “I wanted to let you guys know there’ll be a candlelight vigil for her on the beach at sunset.”

“We’ll be there.”

~Ӂ~

That night
, we made our way down to the vigil. A dark shadow had descended upon the entire school, as word of Nicolet’s suicide circulated.  The rumor was that she had been missing since yesterday morning and a couple of Tritons had found her body this morning near a boardwalk on the north side of campus.  Her wrists had been slit. 

A massive group of people had
converged on the beach for the candlelight vigil, each holding a small hurricane vase with a tea light inside.  The whole beach flickered and came alive as the collective glow brightened with each new arrival.  Lining the beach in both directions were much larger hurricane vases with candles running parallel to the ocean.  They’d been secured in the sand just out of the reach of the waves. A beautiful ornate white table had been placed in front of the row of candles, acting as a memorial.  It was overflowing with beautiful exotic pink and orange hibiscus blooms and topped with several large picture frames.  More colorful bouquets littered the sand below as people brought their own dedications.

As we descended the steps of the boardwalk, w
e were each handed our own candles smelling of white citrus. We followed Willow down to the table.  The flowers were much larger than they had appeared from a distance.  Intertwined with ivy and strips of lace, it was the most amazing arrangement I’d ever seen.  Another hurricane vase sat in the center of the table with a single, large blue candle surrounded by pearls and turquoise stones.  Willow pressed her hand to one of the frames, tears rolling down her cheeks.  I gave her a light hug and faced the frame with her.

A beautiful
, young woman with bright red hair framing large green eyes smiled back at me.  Images of a previous reverie exploded before my eyes.  A flash of red catching my attention.  A couple arguing on the beach.  The woman lying on her side in the sand, blood pooling around her.  I could feel my own blood drain from my face.  It was Nicolet that I had watched die during my blackout.  Last week.

I grabbed
the edge of the table to keep from falling as a wave of nausea washed over me.  I turned and ran back towards the boardwalk. I slipped beneath it, surrounded by dunes and the sounds of people above.  Clutching my stomach and trying to be quiet, I got sick.  I started to shake uncontrollably and collapsed on the sand.  I put my head in my hands, wrapped my arms around myself, and rocked back and forth.  The dream wasn’t real.  It couldn’t be real.

“Stasia?”   

I looked up to see my three roommates ducking under the boardwalk to join me.

“Oh,
ew.”  Phoebe pinched her nose. 

“Are you okay?” Willow rubbed my back
, while Carmen threw sand over the spot I had thrown up on.  My skin tingled everywhere her hands touched me.  I slowly stopped shaking and I realized they were still waiting for my answer.

“
I know it’s her.  I saw him.  She died.”  I knew I wasn’t making sense, but it was all I could make my mouth say.

“
You knew Nicolet?” Carmen looked at me, perplexed.

“
No.  I…I saw her hair.  I couldn’t feel the wind.” 

“What do you mean?” I saw
them looking at each other.  Probably wondering why they didn’t bring some sort of tranquilizer for the crazy girl hiding under the boardwalk.   I dropped my arms and shook my head, hoping to get rid of the hazy panic hugging my brain.

“I had a dream about her.  Before I came here.  I saw her die.  She got stabbed.”

“But, she wasn’t murdered, Stasia, and it just happened yesterday.  It must have just been a dream.  It’s okay.” Willow tried to comfort me.

“How could I dream about someone I don’t know?”

“Maybe it was a reverie that morphed into a dream?” Phoebe guessed.  Applause erupted from the beach, meaning the ceremony was starting.  I had to get myself together.  Willow was supposed to be the one who needed comforting, not me.

“It’s okay, I’m okay.  Let’s go back out there,
I think they’re starting.” I urged them.

“Are you sure?  You still lo
ok a little pale…”  Carmen helped me stand.

“Yea, I’ll be fine.  Promise.”  I force
d a smile as we made our way back out to the beach, but my legs were still shaking and I had an awful taste in my mouth.

As we walked to the front of the crowd, each person lowe
red their eyes at Willow and allowed us through.

“I still can’t believe she wou
ld kill herself,” Phoebe said softly, shaking her head.  Suicide.  They said she committed suicide, but I had seen her being stabbed.  I watched her blood disappear into the sand next to her lifeless body.  She didn’t commit suicide, she was murdered.  At least she was according to my dream.  Or reverie.  How did I even know it was real?  Maybe she really did commit suicide yesterday and the reverie was just a fluke.  I groaned inwardly, since I had no way of knowing.  If I could just remember what the man looked like.  Dark hair?  Or maybe brown?  He was definitely big and very strong.  She was no match for him.  He was probably a Triton or Son of Daimon. 

Son of Daimon. 
Finn.  Why was Finn there?  Was he keeping watch while the man killed her?  Was he helping him?  He obviously wasn’t helping Nicolet.  I couldn’t shake the thought that he had something to do with it.  Why else would he have been there?  And if it was real, how did she just die yesterday?  I had to talk to Finn.  He was the only person who could tell me what happened.  I swept my eyes over the crowd looking for him, hoping he may be there.  Was he a murderer?  Is that what he’d been Chosen for?  He said himself that he wasn’t the one that had to pay the price of being Chosen.  So it would make sense that the innocent people he killed would pay the price.   My heart constricted at that chilling thought.  My search halted as soon as my eyes fell upon Kira.

She was
standing to the right of the table in a simple, black sundress.  She looked like she’d been awake for days and been crying for longer.  My eyes began filling with tears at her obvious pain.  Next to her were two other girls who appeared just as heartbroken.  The pictures on the table kept distracting me, though.  It felt as if Nicolet was staring right at me through the frame; accusing me.  I couldn’t help but wonder if she had seen Finn and I arguing as she was helplessly stabbed to death. I sent out a silent plea to her.
I’m so sorry Nicolet.  Please forgive me.

A
tall, blonde woman stood in front of the table.  Her white, long dress billowed out around her in the ocean breeze.  She bent over and lit the blue candle inside the large hurricane vase.  There was a small wreath of white flowers set atop her head, resembling a crown.  Bright blue sapphires dangled from her ears, neck and wrists.  Her piercing blue eyes settled upon the crowd of grievers.

“That’s Priscilla,
she’s our Maven,” Carmen whispered in my ear.  I stared back at her blankly, hoping for more of an explanation. “You know, the head mistress, leader, priestess, whatever you wanna call it.”

When
Priscilla started to speak, my chin hit the ground and a shadow of dread fell over me.  I’d heard that voice before. “
We’ve come too far to have this orphan girl ruin everything.”
  I studied her long blonde hair, the glow she emanated.  It was definitely her.  I could still visualize her in my dream, gliding down the hallway with Isadora, as I tried to blend in with the wall.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight we mourn the loss of a great student, fri
end, and Tyde; Nicolet Stephens,” she announced.  The light breeze carried her voice over the crowd, “She will be greatly missed.”  She went on to speak of Nicolet’s many accomplishments and what she had meant to the House of Lorelei.  I heard an agonizing sob as Kira held on to the other two girls.  I glanced over at Willow. Her usually flowing blonde hair had been pulled up into a messy bun and her blue eyes were splotchy and red.  Her shorts and tank top were wrinkled and disheveled.  Her bottom lip quivered slightly as she held back her tears. I squeezed her hand.

Priscilla
picked up the hurricane vase delicately, her bracelets clinking against each other.  Several more women in similar flowing white dresses joined her at the table.  They stood perfectly still and held hands.  They were each extremely beautiful, but that wasn’t what made them so captivating.  It was as if the sun shone from within them, broadcasting beauty and allure to the world. If it were possible to gather every new spring blossom, every savory smell of a summer garden, and every sparkle of morning dew and then combine them into one creature, the result would be standing before us. It was difficult to look directly at them without becoming completely overcome by their brilliance.

As they all closed their eyes, a
beautiful sound like no other began flowing from them.  The song of a Siren.  It was a haunting cry that filled the night air and wrapped around every living creature.  I could feel it enter my conscious, resonate throughout my senses, and settle into my soul.  It trumped my thoughts and numbed my feelings.  Becoming uncomfortable with the intrusion, I pushed the sensation back out, away from my ears and back in to the breeze.  Although it resisted, I was finally able to think again and felt my own emotions returning to me.  Everyone around me appeared to be in some kind of trance.  I looked up at Priscilla and inhaled sharply.  Her emotionless eyes were boring into mine with a burning fury I could almost feel.   The song ended abruptly and Priscilla immediately reverted back to her role as caring Maven.  Everyone around me began moving and whispering again, but her chilling gaze stayed with me.