Dreamscape (10 page)

Her jaw muscles jump. “What does that have to do with
anything? He’s a nice kid that shouldn’t be involved with that guy and his
army. I don’t want anything bad to happen to him.”

“Neither do I, Amelia. Richard is doing his part to protect
your world from the Erobos. Tis true he’s a lad, but that does not preclude him
from being an asset to our cause.”

With every excuse I utter, her frown hardens. “Why can’t
someone else help? Why does it have to be him?”

Her attachment to him is deeper than I could have guessed.
“I must take those who respond to contact. Richard is talented. Since he knows
you, you might be able to assist me in training him, once you are trained, of
course, assuming we can figure a way around the obvious barrier of you being
hunted now.”

“Of course,” she says, rolling the hem of her shirt between
her fingers. “You take what you can get, right?”

“Precisely. I am hopeful that once you are trained, you
will be able to recruit those who are out of my current reach. We could make
real progress with your assistance.”

She cocks her head. “You want me to believe you have a
whole army of dreamers out there waiting to help rid the Earth of the Erobos.”

“I not only have dreamers, like Richard. Other members of
my team are not from your world.”

“Right,” she says. “So they are from that Netherworld
place.”

“Not exactly. They came to the Dreamscape through the
Netherworld.”

Her eyes narrow fractionally. “How?”

“Showing you will be preferable to telling you. There are
some things that are not quite translatable into language. You exhibited much
promise in the Dreamscape. I am eager to start your training.”

Going pale, she swallows. “What do you mean? You’re not
talking about today, are you? You’ve seen me in the Dreamscape?” She lifts a
hand, pointing to the landscape behind me. “In my dream world?”

I nod.

“I don’t remember seeing you, ever, especially in my
dreams.”

“It’s time for me to disclose some truths to you, Amelia.
This will be hard for you to face, but you must have this information before we
can proceed with your training.”

Her face drains of the last remaining color she had, but
with each word she utters her cheeks grow redder. “I’m ready.”

Our gazes lock. “I know you, Amelia, and you know me.” I
motion at the pool. “This is the first place we met.”

My eyes can’t seem to stay still. I look at everything in
the flames but Seth. There’s no way he should know about my most intimate
dream, not to mention my most embarrassing, yet here he is violating the
sanctuary I had with Jason, just like that other guy. Wow, I almost forgot
about him. What was it he told me? I can’t remember at the moment, but maybe I
should give it more thought. It may be significant. If Seth reached me through
the Dreamscape, does that mean someone else could too?

My dreams have always been vivid, but this one was surreal.
I was only fourteen when I had it the first time. I was lying on a used
mattress infested with bedbugs. The itching was so bad sometimes I couldn’t
sleep at all, but that night I fell into this amazing dream.

The first thing I noticed was a waterfall so high I could
barely see the top. The cool mist caressed my already wet skin, taking away the
sting of the bites all over my body. The next thing that caught my eye was the
half-naked boy dipping into the pool not ten yards away from me.

His black hair was slicked back and his tanned skin glowed
in the afternoon sun. I’d never had a dream like that one—the kind that feels
so real you’re sure you’ll never wake up…but unfortunately I always did.

“I’ve never met you in a dream or otherwise. What’s your
angle?” When he doesn’t answer right away, the tug of a frown pulls my lips.
“Answer me!” I demand.

“I was there,” Seth says casually, taking a seat on my
favorite rock and crossing his legs like one of those sophisticated businessmen
Justine always drooled at.

For a moment I’m so mortified even my fingers blush, then
I’m just mad. He had no right to see private moments like that. I give him a
hard stare and say, “So you
are
a perv.”

He laughs. “It is not what you think, Amelia. Even though I
do have the ability to monitor dreams—”

“Perv and a voyeur.”

He laughs again. Why does the sound make my stomach erupt
with butterflies? Images from my favorite dream float into my mind—me, dipping
a bare toe into the water. The first time my gaze connects with Jason’s. The
way his dark hair falls over his forehead in that undeniably sexy way. His
unusual eyes, the color of a morning sky.

I stare at Seth, who eyes me speculatively. He’s got the
same-colored eyes as Jason. In fact, they share many traits. The strong jaw.
The tall frame. The long, tapered fingers. The major difference is hair color,
that and a few extra years. I mean, if you made Jason’s cheeks a bit more
chiseled and cut a slight dimple in his chin, they could be brothers, or… My
blood rushes to my toes. Is he saying he was there, there?

My hand covers my mouth, and I shoot to my feet. He did say
he could transform, but I thought he just meant like into a leopard or
something.

He stands, his eyes traveling over me. I’ve seen that look
before.

It’s Jason. Seth is Jason.

Tears trickle down my face from just thinking of him. I
haven’t dreamed of him in weeks. My dreams just stopped.

Seth stands there looking at me calmly, as if my world
didn’t just disintegrate. “What is the matter, Amelia?”

I can’t let him know that I know. It’s too weird. All the
feelings I’ve had for Jason rush into me, and all I want to do is join Seth in
the place that feels like home to me, but I can’t reconcile the man in front of
me with the one I met at the waterfall.

Why disguise his appearance at all?

A haunting sound comes from me, and I stand, shaking my
head.

He grimaces. “You said you would try not to freak out.”
When I don’t answer, he says, “Amelia? Talk to me, please.”

He can’t know what I’m thinking, but his tone says
otherwise.

He’s only a few feet away. My heartbeat bangs so loud, I’m
sure he can hear it.

Not knowing what else to do, I say, “Just show me, Seth.”

She knows.

My heart soars on a cloud. All I can think about is holding
her like I’ve done so many times before, but now she will know whose arms are
wrapped around her.

With her staring on from my living room, I shift. The air
around me hums with electricity, and I close my eyes to focus on the
transformation. It takes only a few seconds if I concentrate. “Hello, Amelia,”
I say in a slightly higher voice. “It’s good to see you again.”

Her mouth falls open, but I force myself not to laugh at
her bewildered expression. She stammers for a second. “You just—” Her hand
covers her mouth as she sways on her feet. “Why?” she asks. Her face contorts
in pain.

Taking a deep breath, I swallow my regret. “I thought it
was necessary. If I could go back and change things, I would never have been
anyone but myself with you.”

“How can I trust you? You lied to me.” She backs up toward
her room. “I thought you were going to tell me Jason was your brother or part
of your team.”

My pulse throbs in my ears. “I’m so sorry, Mel.”

“Don’t call me that! You’re not Jason. You can’t be Jason!”
She folds her arms over her chest. “How could you use me like this?”

I scoff. “Use you? I’ve saved you.”

“I never asked you to do anything. I can take care of
myself.”

“That was evident. You were about to be evicted.”

“Who the hell are you?”

“I’ve already explained this, Amelia.”

“Stop saying my name!”

“Why? Why does it bother you so badly?”

“I just—” Her chest heaves as her heart races. She tips
forward, her eyes rolling back into her head; she’s going to swoon. She’s
right. I am a jerk.

I rush forward and catch her before her knees hit the
floor. I should have realized she wasn’t strong enough to face this yet. Even
still, I know my options are limited.

She weighs so little, she’s like carrying a child. I
protect her head with my shoulder and carry her to the couch.

Because I may not ever be able to do this again, I hold her
close, savoring the feel of her weight in my lap. In this moment, my need for
her is not sexual. I’m overcome with the desire to protect this woman, yet I
have purposely placed her in harm’s way.

I inwardly scold myself for ruining her life. From the
moment I first noticed her all I could think about was what I wanted, how she
filled me with hope. Now all I can think about is how selfish I’ve been.

I tell myself I made the right choice. She was the
strongest. I tested them all, but now, in this moment, I wish I had picked
another. I could have made sure she had a prosperous life, but I chose to laden
her with my burdens.

My fingers trace the sinewy line of her long neck. To feel
her for real has been a dream of mine, yet this moment is more nightmare than
dream.

Finally, her breathing steadies and her muscles relax. I
will let her rest.

Giving Baltek a silent command to stay, I take Amelia back
to her room. Releasing her is painful, but I make my arms lower her to the bed.
I spread the blankets over her body and lean over her. A gulp of regret sticks
in my throat as I allow myself to kiss her lips.

I square my shoulders and shut the door behind me.

Man that was a weird dream. I’ve had some doozies before,
but this one has got to be the weirdest. I’ve got to get some food in me.

My body aches as if I haven’t moved in days. Even twisting
to my side shoots pain down my back. I’m no old woman, so this worries me a
little.

I shrug it off, though, because I don’t have time to think
about stiff muscles. I’ve got to find new digs today.

Flashes from my dream still linger with me. The man, I even
remember his name: Seth. A shiver slices through me. He was so real.

I’ve never had such a visceral response to a man that
doesn’t exist before. Not even Jason. I stop my mind from going there. If I
allow the corruption to spread, I won’t be able to distinguish the two men. Not
that either exists, but Jason has been important to me. He’s given me hope when
I didn’t have any. Now this Seth wants to take his place? I don’t think so.

It’s still pitch black outside. All I want to do is curl
back into sleep, but my mouth is so dry, I could empty the Great Lakes. Even
though my legs don’t want to move, I force them over the side of the bed. The
minute my tootsies touch the carpet, panic hits me. It’s wrong. It’s all wrong.

The carpet in my apartment is berber, not this luscious
junk under my feet.

Where am I?

A horrifying thought hits me. Is it possible I wasn’t
dreaming?

My eyes slowly adjust to the darkness, and I slam them
tight again when the silhouette of the wardrobe across the room comes into
focus. I’m in Seth’s place.

Conflicting thoughts and emotions bombard me. Seth? Jason?

I’m out of my mind. I’ve been here so long, yet I couldn’t
tell you how many days.

Dreams aren’t real
, I
tell myself again.
He’s twisting your mind. He’s manipulating you. He gave
you something to make you hallucinate.

The horrifying part is I don’t believe a word I’m thinking.
I push down the anger I have for Seth, and think. What if what he has told me
is true? What if he is one of those Onerwhatsits? He’s done his job. He took me
to help him save the world. I get it now, yet all I want to do is leave. I
don’t care if he is Jason. Jason was a lie.