Dream and Nightmare

Chapter 17 - Welcome to the South

The next couple days were a blur to Anah. She remembered Kellen holding her hand, telling her that Kendelyn was pregnant, and promising her that she was getting better. Kendelyn prayed over her for a bit, giving her a big smile and a bigger hug when she saw that Anah was awake. A couple times when she woke up, Teena would be there with some soup, or some pills she had to take. But usually when she woke up, it was Jack sitting at her side with a gun held tightly in his hands. 

The last time she woke up there was a curtain of orange hair over her eyes. "Felidy?" she asked. 

"Almost done, Anah. Hold still." She sounded tired, but her tone was as friendly to Anah as it had ever been. She must not have been upset about Anah finding out her secret since everybody knew after Rendel's confession. "Why don't you try standing up?"  

When Felidy stepped back, Anah could see everyone watching her. Jack was at her side, a hand extended to help her up if she needed it. Next to him was Rendel and Felidy, both looking battered and sleep-deprived. Kellen, Kendelyn, Roze, and even a blank-eyed Teena were also there though Roze seemed much more interested in the state of her nails than the state of her sister. It was amazing how easily Roze could get to her without even speaking.  

"What's up?" she asked everyone as she kicked the blankets off her legs.  

Kellen laughed. "You've been out of it for a couple days, Chica." 

Anah rolled her eyes at the affectionate name. "Don't call me 'chica'. I'm not Spanish." 

That made Kellen laugh again. "No you're not Spanish; you're Mexican." 

"Am I?" 

"Yes. Our mother had the accent and everything. She used to call you her chica bonita. Dad was proud Englishman. He just called you 'Monster'." 

Anah smiled, thinking of her own nickname for her terror of a little sister. Her body ached from disuse, and though her headache was bad, it wasn't crippling. Taking Jack's hand more because she wanted to rather than necessity, Anah stood. No black spots obscured her vision, and her knees held steady. Jack didn't waste his time holding her hand. He let go of her quickly, but she'd work on repairing her relationship with him later.  

"I'm half-Mexican," she whispered to Jack. 

A little smile crossed his face. "I'm half-Elvita," he retorted. 

"Not as cool." She crossed the room to give her brother a big hug. He picked her up in the air, squeezing her ribs until she had to tell him to stop so she could breathe. "Congratulations." 

"Thank you, Chica." He winked at her before she gave his wife a hug, too. 

"You'll name her Anah if it's a girl, right?" Anah teased. 

Kendelyn laughed. "No. We were thinking Ella. From your mother's name, Mariella. But that just if it's a girl. We haven't decided on a boy name yet." 

"That's just so cute!" Rendel said in a heavily sarcastic voice. "But we have a princess to save from a sociopath, and Felidy and I didn't bust our asses to get here so you could chit-chat about baby names." 

Anah leaned against her brother with a little bit of dizziness. "Grumpy," she mumbled. 

Rendel gave her a dark look that nearly made her shudder. "We had to go the long way around to catch up with you, Anah. Not all of us have Shritaum's power to get us through busted portals." 

"Shritaum?" Her pulse sped up in alarm.  

"He wanted you back in your world so you wouldn't start dying. I told you, he wants to keep you alive." Rendel raked his hair back with his fingers, making it stand up on end. He and Felidy were leaning away from each other like there was an invisible force pushing them apart. Anah's curiosity didn't extend so far as to ask about it, and Rendel was already in a bad mood without her questioning him.