Dream Walker

Chapter 24 | Who Needs Anemones?

Callie kept her eyes squeezed shut, even when she felt the sand appear beneath her hands. She took slow, measured breaths and waited for the swirling nausea in her gut to die down. She curled her toes into the sand, reassuring her brain that she was no longer stuck in a limbo between two worlds. When she felt like the urge to hurl had safely passed, she opened her eyes.

Instead of the luminescent ocean, she first saw Alex's concerned face. He was kneeling in the sand, only inches away from her bent legs. Her skin prickled at the obvious worry in his expression. "Are you alright?" he asked. "What happened?"

Callie pulled her legs closer to her body, scooting back to create more distance between them. Alex noticed her movements and let his knees bend, resting his weight back on his ankles. He always gave her space when she needed it.

"I'm fine," she said, contemplating how much to tell him about her strange trip. Considering how honest he had been with her in the past few weeks, she should have felt guilty keeping the truth from him. Yet, she wasn't sure how he would react, or how his organization would react, if she took Cyril's offer. "I spoke too soon about successfully avoiding that lord."

"Did he—is that where you went? He pulled you into his world?" Alex asked. His tone was less frantic but still concerned.

"Yeah," Callie sighed. She wrapped her arms around her legs, just below her knees, and squeezed them tightly. "He wanted to talk."

"Talk?" Alex echoed, disbelieving. "Isn't this the same guy that sent a horde of shadow creatures after you when you were trapped in that maze? And now he's pulling you through a portal into his world with no warning? Those are not the actions of someone who just wants to have a friendly chat."

She remembered the incident in the maze. Sure, she had been terrified and thought someone was trying to kill her at first, but she also remembered that whoever was controlling those creatures made sure they didn't kill her. The bruises on her calves had taken some time to heal, but there was no serious damage done.

"I don't think he intended to hurt me. I assume the creatures were sent to track me down, then he arrived just as we were leaving." Callie held up a hand to ward off the comment she could see brewing on Alex's lips. "I'm not saying I trust him, but he gave me no reason to believe he is currently a threat to me. He wants my help, and I can't help him if I'm dead."

"What kind of help?" Alex's grey eyes swirled with something Callie couldn't begin to understand. She felt exposed under his unwavering gaze. There were two choices for her response: tell him the whole truth or keep her cards close to her chest.

"Well," Callie hedged, "he's like me, so he can teach me how to use these powers."

"And what does he get out of teaching you?" Alex demanded. The irony of the conversation was not lost on Callie. The roles had been reversed, and she was answering the same questions she'd just asked of Cyril.

"Don't badger me like I'm in the wrong for considering this offer. You said yourself that you can't help me. This is my life, and I have to live with these powers." Her tone was just as belligerent as his. She kept eye contact and refused to back down. Was she arguing with him just for the sake of keeping him at arm's length or was she actually angry? The answer was not yet clear.

"You're avoiding my question, so obviously you feel like you have to conceal his intentions. Don't make me the bad guy for bringing up these concerns." His frustration was escaping through the calm veneer he generally maintained.

"I'm not making you the bad guy. I'm looking out for my own interests."

"I'm trying to protect you, Callie."