Savina walked toward me. She was wearing the same
gown as last time too. I ran and hid behind a bigger tree,
squatted down, and covered my mouth from breathing so
hard. Someone came up behind me.
I jumped to my feet and whipped around. I scowled at
Savina. “Get away from me!”
Rage burned in her eyes as she circled me.
“What do you want?” I shouted.
She ignored me.
I turned around and rushed away.
“Don’t you dare walk away from me.” Her voice seemed
like she was talking into a tin can.
⁓
⁓
A lump formed in my throat, and my steps weakened,
but I managed to keep walking. Savina caught up to me,
snatched my hand, and dragged me along with her.
“Let me go!” I dug my nails into her skin.
Savina continued pulling me and looked up into the dark
sky. I tried to shake off her grip, but I found that she was too
powerful.
“Let go of my hand!” I demanded.
She walked on until we arrived at a large lake with murky
water.
When a loud roar came from the sky, I squatted down
and tilted my head back, trying to see what it was. Seconds
later, a figure with black wings, gold at their tips, swooped
down toward us. I looked again and gasped when I saw it
had talons for feet and a blurry face. When the winged man
with red eyes drew closer, I screamed. I pounded on Savina’s
arm.
Savina turned to me with black eyes, let me go, and
leaped over my head like a cat.
“Viata!” Kaylee yelled in my ear as she shook my
shoulder.
Mr. Roberts and Kaylee came into focus.
“How did I get in the corner of the room?” I looked at
the entire class huddled on the other side of the room, staring
at me like they were afraid of me.
“Ms. Vandell, you were walking around while talking
and yelling,” Mr. Roberts said, concerned. “Are you okay?”
I ran over to the desk, snatched my bag off the floor,
and hurried toward the exit.
⁓
⁓
“Viata, go to the nurse,” Mr. Roberts commanded.
“Kaylee, go with her and make sure she’s all right.”
“Okay,” Kaylee said in a shaky tone.
I charged out the door and ran down the empty hallway
until I reached the exit.
“The nurse is the other way,” Kaylee yelled from behind
me.
I ignored her and continued until I was outside, where
a burning sensation ran through my head. Not again. I
stopped, dropped my bag, and clasped my head between my
hands. When the pain subsided, I retrieved my bag and
continued to my car. As soon as I got in, Kaylee knocked on
my window.
I rolled it down. “I can’t talk right now. I need to go
home and take some Tylenol.”
“Tell me what happened first?”
“I must have passed out and had another dream with
Savina.” I sighed. “I need to go home before I freak out.”
Constin came out of nowhere. “I saw you running down
the hall. What happened?”
“It’s nothing,” I mumbled.
He wasn’t convinced.
“She had a nightmare in class.”
“Kaylee!” I screeched. I couldn’t believe she just told
the guy I liked about what happened. I was so pissed off.
She frowned and looked at the other students’ cars. “I’m
sorry.”
“Do you want to talk?” Constin asked me.
“Maybe some other time. I gotta go.”
⁓
⁓
Kaylee looked at me with concern. “Viata, you were
walking around the class with your eyes open while having a
conversation. You need to talk to someone.”
I started the car and backed out, almost hitting the truck
behind me. As I drove away, I looked in the rearview mirror,
and Kaylee was crying. Constin looked around and walked
away like he was in a hurry.
I took off down the road, wondering what to do.
⁓
⁓
aylee kept calling me, but I ignored her. I was mad
that she told Constin about my dreams and what
had happened to me. That was the last thing I
wanted him to know.
I sat in an empty parking lot until school was over, trying
to figure everything out but got nowhere. Part of me wanted
to call my parents and tell them what was going on, but I was
afraid they would take me to the hospital. I feared I had a
brain tumor or something.
At home, I pulled in and saw Liam’s Jeep in his
driveway. I decided to talk to him about what was going on.
On the way, my footsteps faltered. Do I want to tell him? I
shook my head and continued to the doorway. I rang the
bell.
“Hi, Viata.”
“Hello, Ms. Moore. Is Liam home?” I leaned down to
pet their pure black German shepherd, Cujo.
When Cujo growled, I yanked my hand back.
“Yes, he is. Hold on while I put him in his cage.”
She disappeared inside. As I stood there listening to her
wrestle Cujo, I wondered why he was acting so violent.
She opened the door again. “He’s a strong dog. Come
in and sit while I get Liam.” She walked up the stairs, calling
for him.
I sat on the couch, tapping my foot while looking
around at all their high-end black furniture. Loud footsteps
came down the stairs, and Liam turned the corner smiling at
me. He sat on the edge of the coffee table facing me.
“What’s up?”
Before I could say anything, Ms. Moore came back
downstairs. “Hey, I’m going to the store. Do you guys need
anything?”
“I’m good, Mom.”
“No, thank you,” I said.
After his mom shut the front door, Liam looked at me
with a massive grin on his face. “Where were we?”
“Did Kaylee call you?”
“No, why?”
“Do you think my dreams could be real?” I said bluntly.
Liam got up, shaking his head. “Come again?”
“I’m serious.”
“Why, what happened?”
I hesitated, then told him what had happened in class.
“Damn. Why do I have to miss all the action?”
I shot him a dirty look. “Seriously?”
“Sorry.” He tried to keep a straight face but chuckled.
⁓
⁓
“It’s not funny, Liam!”
“Viata, come on now. This crap has gotten to your head.
Look at how you’ve been acting since you got back from
Romania. You barely even hang out anymore. And you’ve
been staying up all night. I would believe my dreams were
real, too.”
I got up and paced around the living room. “You think
I’m crazy just like Kaylee and Constin do.”
“I never said that.” He placed his hand on my shoulder,
stopping me from pacing. “Can we have the old Viata back?”
I turned to him and managed to smile.
“There she is,” he said.
“F
unny. Thanks for talking to me. I’m going to go tell
my parents about what happened. I’ll see you in a few
months.”
“Why is that?”
I folded my arms. “Once I tell them what happened,
they will lock me up in the mental ward.”
He hugged me. “They aren’t going to lock you up for a
sleeping problem.”
“I hope not.” I opened the door and continued down
the steps of his house. I looked back at him. “Thanks, Liam.”
“No problem. I’ll see you tomorrow at school.”
“Hopefully.” I walked toward my house.
Instead of heading for home, I decided to go for a walk
to a small neighborhood park that was a block from my
house. I was upset that Liam didn’t believe me, and I wasn’t
over the dream. On my way there, I looked up at the dark
sky, and raindrops fell on my face. The weather matched my
mood. At the park, I sat on the wooden bench and closed
my eyes.
⁓
⁓
After a long time of thinking of what happened to me,
the rain picked up, and twigs snapped behind me. I turned
to see what had made the noise, but only a few trees and a
swing set were in my line of sight. Beyond that was pure
darkness. I remembered the animals that were on the news,
and I gulped. What was I thinking? I rushed up, and a black
shadow hovered over the road in front of me.
“Viata,” a male voice called out in an Italian accent.
I stepped back and shielded my eyes from the drizzle as
I looked all around me.
“Viata,” he said again, provoking me.
The black shadow moved toward me.
“What the hell?” I ran toward the road, but the shadow
darted in front of me at an incredible speed. I came to a halt.
“What do you want?”
The shadow slowly moved side to side. I slid my phone
out of my back pocket to turn the flashlight app on, but it
was dead.
“Crap!” I smacked the phone a few times and got
nothing.
The shadow grew closer and formed into a person. It
reminded me of the dream I had with Savina. Am I dreaming?
I turned in all directions, looking for somewhere to go. The
woods behind the park was my only option. As I ran across
the grass, the sound of branches snapping echoed through
the woods. I picked up the pace, looking over my shoulder,
making sure no one was following me.
I came to a stop with thick bushes in front of me.
“Screw it.” I charged through them.
Tears filled my eyes as the branches scratched my arms.
⁓
⁓
Out of the brush, I stopped and stared at the houses that
lined the street, surrounded by tall trees.
A young woman walked toward me but her face was in
the shadows. “Are you okay?” Savina called out.
I froze. How is she here?
A loud growl came from behind me. I looked back, but
nothing was there. When I turned around, Savina was in
front of me, wearing black leggings with a white blouse.
I gasped and fell backward onto the grass. “Get away
from me!”
Her eyes widened. “Why are you acting as if we’ve met
before?”
“We did. You’re the woman from my dreams. How ...
how are you here?”
Savina snatched my arm with her ice-cold hand and
gazed into my eyes. “You’re lying. Now, tell me how you
know me?”
I jerked my arm away and stepped back.
She grabbed me by my hair and looked into my eyes.
“You’re not wearing contacts, are you?”
I ignored her and closed my eyes, hoping I would wake
up.
Savina pulled me into her and sniffed my neck. “What
has he done?” she bellowed.
“Let me go!” I cried
“Tell me where the Sicuro is.”
“What is that?”
“Don’t play games with me.”
“I’m not.”
She cocked her head. “The dagger I impaled you with.
Do you remember that?”
⁓
⁓
I gasped. “Savina, stop it!”
“That’s impossible. Where is Bain? I know he told you
about me and the dagger.”
A loud hiss came from the woods, then Savina released
my hair and whipped around.
I took off running toward the houses. “Help me!”
Something flew over my head with a scent of
sandalwood, followed by a low growl from behind me. I
didn’t look back and kept running, then cold strong hands
grabbed me around my waist, lifting me off the ground.
I screamed and tried to look behind me, but I couldn’t
see who was there or where we were going at such a quick
speed. Savina was gone, and the houses disappeared rapidly
into the distance.
My abductor abruptly stopped and stood me upright.
“Be silent. It’s me, Bain.”
I spun around and stepped back from his sandalwood
scent, wondering if he could fly. “How ... how is this
possible?”
“How do you know Savina?”
“I dreamt about her just like I did you. Why, how do
you know her?”
Before he could answer, tree branches broke above our
heads, then something growled.
thought I was on a slingshot. He stopped, set me down, and
gently placed his hands on my face.
“Viata, you need to go to Ro—” He grabbed his head
and groaned. “You need to go to Romania and meet with
Muma Pădurii.”
What’s wrong with this guy? “What? Who is she?”
⁓
⁓
Bain looked like he was holding his breath from the
pain. He grabbed the thick branch next to us and squeezed
it. “She’s a woman who can tell you important information I
can’t.” He grunted and snapped the branch in half. “You
must go to her before it’s too late.”
“No!” Savina hissed and jumped down from a tree.
Bain turned around and stepped back toward me.
“Savina, stay back,” he thundered.
Savina charged toward us with red eyes.
Bain grabbed Savina and flew her straight up into the
trees.
“Where is the Sicuro?” Savina shouted.
I screamed and took off running in the same direction I
had come from. As I ran for my life, I glanced over my
shoulder at the trees swaying, followed by growling. When
throbbing pains rushed through my head, I dropped to my
knees.
Flashes of an older man, wearing a medieval gold tunic,
was standing in a room that looked like the inside of a castle.
When the hallucination stopped, I jumped up and sprinted
toward my house, looking back to make sure no one was
behind me. My heart pounded against my chest as I ran up
my front steps and shoved open the door.
“Help me!” I yelled.
Dad came out of the kitchen. “What’s wrong?”
I paced the hall, running my fingers through my hair.
“The man ... the man from my dreams just saved me from
an evil woman who impaled me with a dagger.”
Mom ran down the stairs with a towel wrapped around
her. “What are you talking about?”
I sounded crazy, but in my mind, it was true.
⁓
⁓
Dad came up to me. “Did you just say that a man from
your dreams just saved you from a woman from your
dreams? Did I hear that right?”
I glanced at Mom’s worried look. “Yes.”
Dad jerked my chin to face him, tilted my head back,
and looked into my eyes. “What the hell are you on?”
“Bret, our daughter doesn’t do drugs.”
“Julia, she said she was talking to people from her
dreams. If she’s not on drugs, then why would she say that?”
I yanked my head out of his firm grip. “Thanks a lot!” I
rushed to the living room and sat on the couch, thinking how
insane it sounded.
Dad stormed in, yanked me up, and let go of my arm.
“You’re going to the hospital. You need help!”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
Mom raced over to me. “Honey, you need to see
someone.”
I grabbed my head and sat down. “It’s these headaches
I’ve been having. I think what happened on the plane,
happened again in school. Except, this time I was walking
around while yelling.”
“Why didn’t you tell me right away?” Mom asked.
I sighed. “I didn’t want you to get upset.”
Dad reached his hand out for mine. “Viata, let’s go to
the hospital and make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m scared. What if I have a brain tumor like grandma
did?”
Dad’s eyes watered up. “Viata, just because my mother
had one, doesn’t mean you will. Please don’t fight with me
and come with us.”
I took his hand.
⁓
⁓
“I’ll meet you in the truck.” Mom raced upstairs to
change.
As we waited in the emergency room, I wondered what
Savina was and how Bain new her. And why Bain was always
grabbing his head in pain.
After another hour, a nurse called my name. We
followed her into a small room, where we waited another
hour before Dr. Lendon, one of the three doctors in the ER,