all that matters, right? Shaking my head, I put the phone down. “Whatever. I’ll find out soon enough.”
We complain about work the rest of dinner, and I walk Laney to her car an hour later. I do a half-assed job picking up around the house, and then shower and get ready for bed. I turn on a movie and cuddle under the covers with Hunter by my side and Romeo curled up on my chest. I’m still exhausted from the eventful weekend, and fall asleep quickly, slipping right back into that familiar dream.
I’m back in the woods, and brilliant blue light glows before me. The door that appeared between two trees swings open, and I look inside the courtyard.
“Come along, Anora,” a woman says, black cloak billowing around her feet. I take her hand and step through the door. I inhale, breathing in the comforting smell of sage and lavender. Firelight flickers ahead of us, and I eagerly look through the large, open doors of the brick building we’re heading toward.
It’s familiar, and somehow, I know I’ve been here before. I try to pull my hand out of the woman’s, but she gives my fingers a squeeze and looks down at me. Her face is blurry, but red hair sticks out from under the hood of her cloak.
“Good evening, Professor,” someone says when we enter the brick building. The woman who’s holding my hand leads me down a hall, her boots clicking on the cobblestone floor. We pass by more people, who are dressed similarly to the woman holding my hand. A few kids run by, wearing what looks like school uniforms.
We stop in front of a closed door, and the woman knocks three times before waving her hand over the door, whispering something in another language. The door swings open, and the scent of lavender hits me harder. A snowy white fox is curled up on a velvet bed near a fireplace, and woman who has to be in her thirties looks up from her desk. She’s wearing a black dress with a silvery robe overtop. She’s gorgeous, and she smiles warmly at me.
“Good evening, Headmistress,” the woman says and ushers me over to the fox, telling me to pet her so she can talk. I nod, excited to pet the fox, whose name is Artemis. I sit on the bed next to her, running my fingers through her sleek fur. The fire cracks and pops, and not long later, we’re both hot. Artemis gets up, padding over to the window to cool down.
“She’s almost at the age to come here,” the headmistress says in a hushed voice. “We can teach her, protect her. She’ll be safe here.”
“I don’t want her to have my fate,” the woman counters.
“There’s no guarantee she will.”
“My visions are rarely wrong.”
“Even if they are right, we can change her fate.”
“But what if we can’t?” The woman turns to me, face still blurry, and starts to say something else.
I wake up to Romeo, who’s under the covers and scratching my feet. I blink several times, having to pull myself out of the dream and back to the here and now. I run my hand over my face and sit up, taking in a slow breath.
Because I know now that these aren’t weird repetitive dreams, but memories.
Chapter Eight
“What about a vasectomy? I think that’s less emasculating than cutting off his balls.” Mrs. Rogers covers her French bulldog’s ears as she talks.
“Some vets actually do that,” I tell her, making a note in her file. “But we always recommend neutering. It reduces the risk of prostate enlargement and prostate cancer, and eliminates any risk of testicular cancer. You can discuss it more with Dr. Burnette if you’d like.”
Mrs. Rogers bites her lip and looks at George, her dog. “Other dogs won’t make fun of him, will they? I like taking him to the dog park.”
“One of the best things about animals is they don’t judge,” I tell her. She might sound crazy to some people, but I get it, and more so, I appreciate her devotion to her dog. “If anything, it might help him get along better with other dogs, and you won’t have to worry about your baby becoming a father.”
“Oh, he’s much too young for that!” She kisses his head. “Thank you.”
“Of course.” I open the cupboard and pull out a bag of organic treats, making sure it’s okay with her before giving George one. “The doctor will be in shortly.”