(Song: Venus by Sleeping At Last)
********
I found him. I can't believe this. The building, the dreams, him, they're all real.
I stay hidden behind the rock, trying to make myself as small as possible while I try and calm myself down. Luckily, it's more like a boulder than a rock, and it's big enough that no one would see me, especially this late at night. I sit there trying to listen to the conversation that is going on in front of me, but between my breathing and heartbeat in my ears, it's difficult to make out. I close my eyes and will both to return to normal, breathing in and out, trying to calm my nerves; after a minute, they do, and I can barely make out the people in the distance. I turn around and peek over the edge of my hiding place, looking for another spot a little closer. As quiet as possible and as much as I can be with my whole body still shaking, I move up and hide behind a large tree, again trying to make myself as small as possible. I still can't make out the conversation, but I can hear a bit better, making out two male voices. Both voices are deep, gruff, and loud enough that they probably carry quite far in the right place. I hear their voices start to get softer until there is nothing. An engine spurs to life, and whatever it is attached to rumbles away until the only thing I hear are the noises of the forest I have become acquainted with over the course of however many days I've been out here. (Three maybe, but I don't know or care anymore.) After a minute of nothing, I move forward slowly, using the little bit of light from the building to guide my steps as much as possible.
I creep forward until I'm on the edge of the tree line, still hidden in the shadows, but now I can see the building in full force. Just like in my dream, the building is covered in ivy with about half of the windows still covered, and the other half either deliberately stripped away or have yet to reach that far up. Both floors seem to have their own light source, the second floor being the brightest and the first floor just slightly dimmer, not what you would expect from an abandoned building in the middle of the woods. The small clearing that wraps around the building has gotten bigger as well. Probably to fit those vehicles through, which makes me wonder how long these people have been here.
In the first dream, the building looked as though it hadn't been touched for years but looking at it now and how it was in the last dream, I can't help but question it. The dreams themselves are weird as is, but they seemed to be in real-time. The second and third dreams seemed as if they were back-to-back. Even though I only heard the second one, they said something like 'come back tomorrow,' and Frank said a few things that hinted at it. The first dream is the only outlier. Nothing was present that made me aware of when or how I was there; I don't even remember seeing my Counter.
A noise from the building breaks me out of my thoughts, making my heart race and making me crouch further into the cover of the trees even though I am close to invisible as is. Another man walks out of the building, the light of the first floor turning off as he walks out. By the light of the second floor, I can make everything but his face, and he's big. He must be 6'5 or 6'6, about as tall as the doorway, maybe a little taller, with broad shoulders, muscular arms, and a wider stomach. He starts walking toward me, and I swear he knows I'm here but turns and goes around the backside of the building and out of view. An engine roars to life, and he rides away on some motorbike, the headlights just passing over the boulder I was behind a few minutes ago.
When I could no longer hear the engine, I stick my head out once more, listening for any movement. It's silent for a few minutes, and eventually, I stand up straight and grip the straps of my bag so tight I swear they might rip. I take breath after breath, deciding to just go for it and stop overthinking. I walk as quickly and as quietly as possible to the building crouching below one of the windows and peeking in. As I expected, it's pitch black, well almost. There is a small amount of light coming from the stairs leading to the second floor. I move to what used to be the main entrance and hesitate before going in; there is no door, just space where there was one, so that's one less obstacle, but I still hesitate. I look at my Counter, and my thoughts race with the same questions as before: 0000486. This is it. I don't know what to expect. If this was a trap, it's waiting for me at the top of those steps, but if it wasn't, who's up there? What will happen to me? What about him? Who is he? Is he up there? Will he hurt me?
A noise from the trees makes my heart race like crazy and makes the questions disappear for the time being. Still a little hesitant, I look toward the stairs in the corner and breath. I fold the knife up, slip it into my pocket and cross over the threshold, taking two steps before a breeze drifts through, sending chills down my spine. It freezes me in place, and my mind starts to scream at me to leave, similar to the way it did in the first dream. My eyes drift from the stairway to a small doorway right in front of me. It's quite noticeable, actually, probably one of the first things you would see if you were to walk in. I smile. it's too dark in here to see it at the moment, even I can barely make it out, but I know it's there, and I know where it leads. I stare a moment longer before I look back toward the staircase. I release a breath I didn't realize I was holding. Though weirdly enough, when I exhale, my heart slows, and my shaking disappears, not the reaction I was expecting but ok.
I move toward the stairs and start up, moving slowly and quietly. When I reach the top, all air is knocked out of me for two reasons. The first is that my Counter now reads 0000006. The second, at the other side of the room, someone else is there with their back to me. He is in a chair with his arms behind his back, and his head is down. I don't need to get close to know that it's him, that he is my soulmate. The one in my dreams. The pair of golden eyes that stared at me with enchantment only a few days ago. Grandmother was right about one thing; I just know. It was partially instinct that told me, but it is also his wrist. Though his arms are trapped behind him, his left arm is on top of his right, and the rope that holds him in place is weaved through the chair and around the entire top half of his body, though his wrists are visible.
Right there, an inch below the end of the hand is a red illuminated number in the same format and reading the same as mine, but instead of a sun under the number, there is an intricate picture of a lily.
Comments (0)
See all