The Tracker Hive Academy Year One - Avery Song Page 0,74

it wouldn't matter how loud or far my words reached.

That man always had the last laugh, the same eerie, mocking sound that flooded the room and escalated in volume, until my head was filled with his obvious amusement.

He was happy because he'd won. He always won, and this wasn't any different.

I can't let him win again. He can't take what I love the most. Never...again.

* * *

"Jade, baby?"

I was struggling to get out of the dreadful dream that had trapped me. The dark hands that gripped my mind wanted me to return to its inviting arms and relive the scene of how my family died.

It was a cycle, and though I mentally knew it, I still whimpered quietly, wishing for a way out.

"Jade." My body was wrapped in something warm and instead of the cold pull of darkness that always swallowed me back into the fearful land of dreams, a soft light wrapped around my subconsciousness.

Calm and clarity flooded me, and the longer it resonated with my body, the more relaxed I became. Suddenly I wasn't afraid to go back to sleep, and when I did, I was greeted with a happy dream of love and laughter.

I was with the Maxwell brothers, and we were having a picnic of sorts. It was a simple dream, one that made me smile and laugh as I listened to their bickering.

Zackery was being dramatic as he tried to persuade me to eat his version of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Zion was making a contraption that would use our thoughts to control a kite. Zeus was grumbling about how annoying Zackary was being and offering me a classic sub sandwich.

Zeke was chuckling, his head lowering to my lap as he looked up to me with loving eyes.

I was happy and not afraid of losing this all. It had to be one of my best dreams in a long while.

To dream without the fear of it being a broken illusion. A dream that was pure and one I could cherish in a box of joyful ones.

When I turned over, I snuggled closer to the warm body next to me. I moaned quietly, wondering if it was worth trying to fall back to sleep or let the comforting dream shimmer within my mind for a little longer.

"Jade?"

Zeke's tender voice reached me. It sounded far away, but that could have been because I was on the verge of sleeping again.

"Kill!"

"Hmm? Hey, Shadow Jade.”

I wondered what I was dreaming about this time, but then I felt something run through my hair and down my back.

"Jade?"

"Sleeping! Kill. Kill. Kill."

"Shadow Jade. Don't destroy that."

"Why?"

"We have to pay for it."

"But destroy."

"You can destroy the paper in the book over there."

"Not fun."

"It is if you rip the pages up into tiny pieces and throw them in the air."

"Oh."

"Yup."

"Kill!"

The thought occurred to me that we were in the hotel room, and as the conversation began to sink in, I realized Zeke was talking to Shadow Jade.

Opening my eyes, I looked up to see Zeke staring down at me. I stared back for a long moment, unsure of what to say yet.

My brain was still playing catch-up, but I wasn't sure which was more important to tackle first: The chance of Shadow Jade going on a destructive spree or confronting Zeke about why his eyes were more silver-white than their normal black.

"No more bad dreams, it seems." He moved a few strands of my hair from my face.

"You..." I wasn't sure how to respond, but it didn’t matter as his lips met mine.

This kiss was comforting, healing. The sensual movement captured my attention and helped me not to panic about Zeke's knowledge of my nightmare.

It may have been a common occurrence for me, but that was my battle I faced in the comfort of my own space. Being caught having a nightmare meant I had to explain, and that only heightened my vulnerability.

Kissing him back, I enjoyed the pleasure his kiss delivered as I braced for his flood of questions about the dream.

When he released me, he kissed my forehead and looked to the desk. Following his gaze, I realized Shadow Jade was sitting in the wooden chair, her legs crossed as she stared at blank sheets of paper in a book.

I wasn't sure where the book had come from, let alone how the room was still in one piece after my nightmare.

Shadow Jade loved to create chaos that matched the nightmares that plagued me. It was always extra tiring to wake up in