Insomnia

Chapter 24: Darkness

I bolted upright, dripping with sweat. My fingers were wrapped up so tightly in my sheet that the tips were white and I couldn't feel them anymore. Disentangling my hands, I shook them back and forth. They tingled with stinging pains as the blood flowed back into them. The clock read 7:05 a.m. It was almost time for school, but I wouldn't be going. One by one, images from the dream infected my mind until it transformed into an oozing wound, disgusting and deadly. 

What had I done? I knew it was only in a dream, but what if it had some effect on real life? I'd been able to break the barrier with Addie and Mia before, even if just slightly. I snapped the dental floss still connecting me to my headboard and jumped up from my bed, tugging on some jeans and a T-shirt. My head was pounding with the same ferocity it had the night before, but I ignored it. Running through the kitchen, I grabbed my car keys and was shutting the back door when Mom walked out of the pantry, already dressed in her suit of the day. 

"Have a good day at schoo—hey! Did you have breakfast?" She frowned and raised an eyebrow at me. 

"Yep," I lied through the closing door, jamming my finger against the garage door opener. 

As I backed out of the driveway, I saw Mom standing in the doorway. Even from the street, I could see the concern on her face. I knew there were frown and worry lines. It wasn't only me who was being affected . . . my life was hurting her too. It all needed to stop. I needed to make it all stop. Faking a smile, I gave her a quick wave and drove down the street. 

The drive was torturous. Something dark and sinister had awoken inside my mind. I wasn't sure what I would find when I got to Freeburg's house. According to the Internet listings I'd pulled up on my phone, only one Dr. Clive G. Freeburg lived in the Oakville vicinity. If everything was fine and the dream was simply a dream, then I planned to confront him about the e-mails. It had to be him. He was a pervert. 

If everything wasn't fine, and somehow my actions in the dream had followed me into reality, then I didn't know what I'd do. A twisted corner of my mind felt hopeful at this idea and I heaved the darkness back, along with the bloody visions plaguing my thoughts. 

When I parked across the street, the doctor's house was as still as a coffin. The dark side of me shivered with pleasure at the thought, and I felt sick. Squeezing my eyes shut, I rested my head against the steering wheel for a moment. I couldn't—I didn't want to feel like this. It was time to face the truth before the menacing thing that stirred within me gained any more power. 

I needed help. I'd never felt so out of control—so violent. There was a disturbing desperation to my dark side. It was determined to keep me alive—at any cost. I'd never imagined myself capable of some of the things I'd done over the last few months. Stalking Mia was terrible, but if I was losing control, I couldn't stop. And this was only the beginning. 

I tugged on my black gloves, got out of the car, and made my way across the street to the house. The front door was locked, but I found a side entry into the garage that wasn't. Dr. Freeburg's blue BMW sat in the stillness. The house was so quiet. Impossibly quiet. 

An iciness slipped through the concrete floor and wrapped around my legs, freezing them in place. I wanted to run, to get as far away from here as possible. Freeburg was probably sleeping in, that's all. I didn't join his dream until late last night. He must be tired. 

My hands shook so hard that even sticking them in my pockets accomplished nothing. Quick breaths wouldn't slow as I fogged up the window on Dr. Freeburg's car. 

A thirst started in my gut. A need. I didn't give them permission, but my feet shuffled from the garage, through the door into the house, past the kitchen, and up the stairs. I was standing outside double doors that had to lead to the master bedroom before I managed to slow my breathing a little.