Jace couldn't move. He wavered. She knew his father. She knew him. Who is she? Could she be trusted? He'd never met anyone, much less a woman, who made him rethink his own sanity. "I'm still asleep." He spoke out loud. "This day has been too much."
"We can't really rest you know." Michelle stepped up examining his newly found wounds and bruises. She found the huge scar he had across his back. "Good Lord boy!" Michelle exclaimed tracing the line. Jace gave a half chuckle. "Beijing, sword, nearly sliced me in half." Michelle stared at him. He looked like a man of intelligence, but the scar proved otherwise. Jace eyed her, unsure of what to say or how to say it. "BED TIME!" Making Michelle jump half way out of her skin. He screamed it without warning. Jace was laughing. Michelle wasn't. He waited for her to respond but when she didn't speak, he stood. "I'm ok." He smiled. "See? I'm still kickin." Jace got up and started for the door. "Wait." Michelle started, but didn't finish. Jace looked at Michelle. "It's ok, this way I can watch for the enemy." Jace remembered how his father use to spend the nights in his car, now he knew why. To protect his mother.
**
"Mommy mommy!" Jace ran down the yellow brick road. A road that somehow turned orange. Then red. Then reddening blue. Everything caught on fire. The trees. The people. The dogs. He stopped. He turned. Two tall men in black blocked the way. He could hear his mother scream. "RUN JACE! RUN!"
**
Jace bolted upright. He looked around. He was in his car. "Another sleepless night." Jace sighed. He was getting hungry, he needed to pee. Jace found and empty cup and began to relieve him when he heard a tapping on his window. He looked up in alarm. Two tall men in black pointing guns at him. Jace dropped his cup and finished all over the floor of the car instead. He zipped up and slowly opened his door.
"How did you.." Jace started.
"Find you?" He was cut off. "Hands up." The tall one demanded. He obeyed. The shorter one looked like he had been shot. The taller one, a broken nose. "Turn around now, face the car." He obeyed. In an instant, he felt pain across his sholder, white lights exploded behind his eyes. Then nothing. The two knocked him out.
**
His dreams came in short bursts. His mother at the park. The same two tall men. A well. He was looking into it making a wish. He fell through. He was stuck. He had a broken leg. His bone protruding from his calf. A pair of menacing eyes. Red. Angry. What do they want? Who are they?
"Heellooo???" A woman's voice. Just ignore it. "Hola?" Nope. "Well I'm just going to have to lick your nose." You wouldn't dare. A poke. A prod. A shake. And then she left. "Well I tried." He heard the voice again. He drifted back to sleep.
**
