Rise of Alpha (The Prodian Journey #1) (32 page)

“If that’s the case, why would you move her there?”
 

“The reversal must be performed in Tranak. The circumstances are complicated, but I can assure you that she’ll be fine. I will not allow it to progress. Shannon will be her old self in a matter of hours. She won’t remember much of today’s events until her birthday. The day after, she will be taken to our home, and the process of removal can commence. The method is tiresome, but it’s her chance to expel Axhatas’ hold on her.”

“So after her birthday, she goes?” The prospect was enough to trigger another set of tics. While I shuddered and tried to control the spasms, Detherina touched my arm, and a vibration flowed through my system, effectively halting any further shaking.
 

“What about . . .
 
her and me?”

“The future is always full of surprises. Don’t give up just yet. Now, you should go home.” Detherina pulled me into a brisk hug.
 

Once she released me from her fierce embrace, I walked to the door to give her the chance to be alone with Shannon.
 

“And, Brian, don’t worry about calamities you can’t prevent. They are going to happen whether you know ahead of time or not. The Ergans are toying with you, making you question your sanity so you will want to step away.”

A few minutes later, I walked out of the house and to my car trailed by Mark and Darryl, who still appeared dazed. I had one lingering thought. How could I
not
worry about my dreams when innocent people were the ones being targeted?

Aarmark Maturity

Luck was still with me. Thanks to Matro, we all made it home in plenty of time. When my parents came back from the fundraiser around midnight, I was already showered and in bed.

There was a knock on my door, and I pretended to have been asleep. “Hi,” I said in a groggy voice.
 

Dad poked his head in the door. “I’m just checking on you.”
 

“How was the fundraiser?” I asked, wiping the pretend sleep from my eyes. At the rate I was going, an acting career might be in my future.

“It went well. Your mother won something at the silent auction. She is now the proud owner of an autographed book by Dr. Phil.”
 

“Are you kidding me?”

Dad shook his head and laughed, and I joined in. Then he opened the door wider and stepped into my room. I sat upright, not knowing what to expect.
 

“I was thinking things over tonight,” he began, making himself comfortable next to me.
 

All ears, I leaned against the headboard and waited for him to continue.
 

“I don’t want you to miss your first-ever dance, and I hate the thought of you being grounded on your birthday, too.”

Dad was right. This would be my first time attending a dance, or any social function for that matter. But the real reason this one was special was because I was taking Shannon. With all the excitement and commotion, I’d forgotten that it would be my birthday as well.
 
Eighteen wasn’t a big deal to me, except that I would be able to emancipate myself from my parents, if necessary.
 

“Thanks, Dad,” I said, grinning like an idiot.

“There is one thing I want to ask of you.” He waited for me to settle down. “Pick your battles. Life is difficult enough as it is, so think things through before you act. Always remember that a handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains.” He pulled me into a tight hug. “I love you, son.”

“I love you, too, Dad,” I answered, feeling a sense of déjà vu.
 

He released me and left my bedroom, and I thought about what he’d said. Before my run-ins with Kevin, I’d led a pretty quiet life, content to stay in the background. I did wonder about the reasons behind his change of heart, but I wasn’t going to complain.
 

I was about to turn off the light when another light tap sounded on my door.

Dad came back into my room. “I want you to have this.” He held out a pendant of a rose in the center of a circle that was attached to a tri-color rope. It was about the size of a half dollar and quite heavy.

“It was your grandma’s. I want you to have it. Just a reminder of how much you mean to me. You can give it to someone special one day.”

“Thanks Dad.” I wasn’t sentimental by nature, but couldn’t stop the tears that pooled in my eyes. “It’s beautiful.”

When he left, I swore I could see tears in his eyes. A bit too emotional to think about anything else, I turned off the lamp and stared into the darkness, fantasizing about the perfect dance with the perfect girl.
 

Sleep, which had once been my escape from reality, had turned into torture, the visions coming at me in waves. It became a constant struggle to accept that I couldn’t save everyone. That night was no different. I woke up drenched in sweat after yet another dreadful nightmare.
 

Countless catastrophes and senseless deaths flashed before my eyes, haunting me while I padded along the dark, quiet hallway and down to the first floor. I turned on the kitchen light and pulled out a carton of milk from the fridge, wracking my brain for a clue as to what needed to be done.
 

At such an ungodly hour, I doubted that Mark or Darryl would appreciate a wakeup call, so I returned to my bedroom, feeling drained. This time, I sank into a restless sleep, tossing and turning and waking up every hour. At around six in the morning, I gave up and turned on the television. There was nothing on but infomercials, so I went ahead and popped a DVD into the player to pass the time.

It was about nine when I jerked awake to discover the sun was peeking through the blinds. I got my phone to reach Mark, but the call went straight to his voicemail. “Hey Marko, call me as soon as you get this,” I said and hung up.

A few minutes later, a grouchy Mark returned my call. “This had better be good,” he said.
 

“Bro, I had another dream.” I recounted all the details while Mark listened. Once I’d chronicled each frightening aspect, I asked, “What should I do?”

When Mark spoke this time, he sounded awake. “You mentioned Detherina said something to you about your dreams last night.”

“Yeah. She wants me to keep quiet about the visions, but I don’t understand why I can’t try to prevent them.”

“Look, if we don’t have the when, who, and where, there’s not much we can do anyway. You said yourself that you have no idea who’ll be hit.”

“I guess all I can do is keep an eye on the news to see if I come up with any clues. It still doesn’t feel like I’m doing enough, though.”

“I’ll help as much as I can,” Mark said. “Oh, before I forget—happy birthday, dude. We’ll have to celebrate tonight.”

“Thanks, bro. I’ll see you later.”
 

Once we’d hung up, I got up and went to shower. Now that I was allowed to go to the dance, I didn’t have to hide any preparations from my parents. My closet was filled with raggedy school clothes, so I had eight hours to find something decent to wear and get a corsage for Shannon.
 

The house was humming with morning activity by the time I made an appearance, ready to tackle the task at hand. Dad looked up from the newspaper when I walked into the kitchen.
 

“Good morning,” I said with a grin, moving through the kitchen to give my mother a sloppy kiss on the cheek.
 

She turned around and beamed at me. Dad joined her in singing “Happy Birthday” to me while she took a cake out of the fridge. When they’d finished, Dad produced a lighter and lit the candle.

“Make a wish,” Mom said.
 

I closed my eyes, wished for Shannon’s safety, then blew out the flame.

Mom put the cake on the table. “We’ll have some after breakfast.”
 

“Okay,” I smiled, totally on board with the plan. It was carrot cake, after all—my favorite.

Then she took an envelope from her apron pocket. “This is for you.”

“Thanks, guys.”

“They watched me attack the envelope, in which I found a hundred-dollar gift card from a local game store. This was a big change from all birthday presents I had gotten in the past. Grateful for their thoughtfulness, I pulled both of them into a hug. “You guys are so cool!
 
This calls for a shopping trip.”
 

“You seem . . . happy,” Mom observed.

I nodded to my dad. “Dad gave me the go-ahead for the homecoming dance.”

Mom’s mouth hung open for a beat before she broke into a big smile. “Oh, that’s great! Your first dance!”
 

“Actually, I’m headed out after breakfast to find something decent to wear.”

“Gerald, why don’t you take him to your tailor? I bet he can put together something ‘cool’ for him.” She winked at me before turning her attention back to the bacon sizzling in the skillet.

The way she emphasized ‘cool’ made me want to squirm. “Um, I can go to the mall and find something,” I muttered.

“Nonsense. Omar will have you looking spiffy in no time.” Dad rose from his seat and folded the paper.

Spiffy?
“Really, I don’t want to take up your time, Dad.” Somehow, I managed to avoid sounding unappreciative.

“Finish your breakfast, and we can leave in an hour. Let me call Omar so he can meet us at the shop.”
 

I ate, torn between happiness and misery. Hideous Elvis outfits, stiff-looking suits, and candy-colored blazers flashed before my eyes. Resigned to the inevitable, I met Dad in the garage.
 

With the roadster’s top down, conversation was next to impossible, so we drove in relaxed silence. Watching the buildup of early Saturday traffic, I began to daydream about Shannon. I also worried some about the dagger Detherina had given me. Carrying weapons to school-sanctioned events was forbidden, but I wondered if it would be smart to carry the dagger anyway.
 

We stopped in front of a shop that wasn’t even open yet, but the moment we stepped out of the car, the glass doors swung wide and a smiling, short man came out to greet us.

“Gerry, it’s a pleasure to see you.” The gentleman shook dad’s hand and ushered us inside. Apparently, the shop didn’t open until noon and this was a VIP service he was offering to one of his most treasured clients.

“Omar, thanks for coming on short notice. I owe you one.” Dad made himself comfortable on one of the plush leather sofas.
 

I looked around, and my earlier qualms disappeared. Rows of mannequins, decked out in cool suits, lined the display window.
 

Omar regarded me with interest, running his gaze up and down until I wanted to squirm. “So you’re about six-one, around one hundred seventy pounds. Am I correct?”

Close enough. I nodded and stashed my hands in my pockets to keep the tics from rolling. Being inspected like that made me nervous.
 

“Follow me. I’ll show you the suits we have.”
 

We walked through several rooms until we came to an area with clothing that looked appropriate for people my age. I’d heard Dad talk about Omar being a celebrity favorite, but I hadn’t believed him. Now that I’d seen the shop, I swore never to doubt my father again.

Omar stopped by a rack, pulled out a dark grey suit, and held it up. “What do you think of this one?”
 

My knowledge of fashion was limited to T-shirts and jeans, so this was a good time to defer to an expert. “That looks cool.”

He beamed at me and then took me to the dressing room “The slim cut will make you look taller.”

I nodded in reply.
 

He came back and handed me a crisp white shirt and a tie that would match Shannon’s outfit. We were done and back in the car in less than two hours.
 

“Where to now? You need a corsage for Shannon, right?” Dad merged into the swelling weekend traffic.
 

“I can go by myself if you have stuff to do.”

“Oh, c’mon. I’m never too busy for my son.” He reached across to pat my back. “But before we go to your mom’s florist, let’s grab some lunch.”