really been there at all. I certainly didn’t feel any comforting presences. I just felt…alone.
********
That night, I lay on the couch, trying to go to sleep, but my mind was plagued with questions—millions of them. Strangely enough, one of the most recurring ones was about something Fahl had said earlier, about each of us being “occupied” with something.
Could it be that Dad had been right all along? I’d scoffed at Pastor Mike’s sermons for the last year and a half, and dozens of other preachers before that. Where would I be now if I’d believed?
It was that troublesome thought that ushered me into a fitful sleep. The up side was that when I finally relaxed enough to dream, I dreamed of Derek.
I was on a huge flat rock that was anchored in the side of a cliff and stretched way out over a slow-moving river. The sun was shining brightly straight over head and I was in a bikini working on my tan. I could smell the sweetness of coconut oil mingling with the crisp freshness of running water. The heat of the rock at my back and the sun on my face was like a tranquilizer, lulling me into a semi-comatose state of relaxation.
A cool fingertip on my stomach forced me to crack my eyelids the tiniest bit. It was Derek, leaning over me, a beatific smile on his face. Immediately, my insides warmed faster and hotter than my outside.
“You’re here,” I said breathlessly.
“I’m here,” he said softly, his fingertip drawing lazy circles on my belly.
“I’ve missed you.”
“And I’ve missed you.”
“Can you stay?”
“Not very long. Your dreams aren’t safe. A part of you already belongs to him.”
“But I haven’t done anything yet.”
“No, but you made the deal. That’s all that matters. There’s no backing out now,” he said sadly.
“But I did it for you.”
“I know. And I wish you hadn’t. I did what I did to set you free. But now…”
“Why? Why did you do it? We’d have been fine if—”
“No. I led him to you, Carson. I-I was so selfish and I had so much guilt and he used that. He knows every weakness, every single one.”
“But if you hadn’t, I would never have met you. And I wouldn’t trade that for…well for anything.” I paused, love spilling out of my heart and trembling on the tip of my tongue. Then I realized that I had nothing to lose; it was only a dream. “I love you.”
A tender expression came over Derek’s handsome features and my heart melted. “I know.” He dipped his head a few inches further toward me until our lips met. His were cool and firm and he tasted just like I remembered. Then he pulled away. “The only thing I would have traded meeting you for is your soul. I’d give anything to know that it’s safe, that you are safe.”
His silvery eyes were like warm, shimmering pools, swirling and hypnotic. I could’ve stared into them forever, gladly drowning in the depths. But then they hardened and he said, “He’s coming. I have to be quick.”
“Who’s coming?”
“Fahl. This is where the undecided souls separate from their bodies. You picked a bad spot to sunbathe,” he mentioned wryly. “Listen, Carson,” he began, leaning up and pulling me into a sitting position. “There are some things I want you to know, things that will help you. He’s going to use you as a reaper, like Grey. You’ll be able to see them right before their time is up. If you can find them, you can warn them, maybe save them.”
“But how do I find them?”
“Now that you’ve made the deal, there’s a house you can use. I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard others talking. Some black house that has a bunch of doors. They’ll take you to the marked. Just be careful. Watch out for her. And watch out for the others.” He stood to leave, looking out across the water, scanning the shoreline.
When he mentioned “the others”, it reminded me of something that I had wondered about, something that had bothered me. “Wait!” I said, grabbing his arm. “Last night, why did you hit me?”
Derek turned his attention to me, a pained expression on his face. “I had to do it. That’s something else I found out over here. When your skin is broken, what’s underneath is like…it’s like…” I watched him struggle for the words. Rather than the disgust I would have expected him to feel over my creepy white layer, he features