*Isla*
“It felt so real, Isla,” Ben says to me from his position in bed. “It was like we were really there.”
I smile at him from my chair near the window. I was really hoping he’d fall asleep, but he hasn’t, and even after I went and cleaned up and checked on Poppy, who was fine and helping the injured, Ben is still wide awake.
I even asked the nurse to put something in his IV, and I think she did, but he’s still chatting about his dream, and I know he wants me to ask him exactly what his dream was about, but I am hesitant. It’s clear to me that Maddox doesn’t think there’s anything special about the dream Ben had when he was dead–if dream is even the right word–and it’s probably silly of me to even ponder asking him.
But Ben isn’t going to rest until I tell him. “What happened, Ben? In your dream. Or vision. Or whatever it was?”
He takes a deep breath, and his eyes glass over a little bit so that he is looking off in the distance. “We were standing on the island, you and me,” he begins. “Your belly was a lot bigger, too, like you were almost ready to have the baby.”
I try to smile, but the idea of having the baby makes me so nervous. What if there’s something wrong with the baby because of the drugs I was given? Maybe Ben is about to tell me something that’s meant to make me feel better about it, and even if what he says ends up seeming like a vision and not a dream, I think I will never feel completely comfortable thinking that everything is okay with my child until the baby is born and in my arms, safe, sound, and whole.
“We were by this mountain,” he continues. “Everything was so green. The grass beneath our feet was soft and velvety. The vines growing up the trees and the side of the mountain were lush and emerald green. Bright flowers grew all over everything, too. They were like sunshine–yellow and orange. Some of them were a bright red color, like fire. It was amazing! And the trees were so tall. It was like a mix between the forest and the jungle.”
I nod and force a smile, rubbing my stomach, even though it’s not big enough to seem like I’m pregnant yet, I know there’s a baby in there.
“We stood there, looking at this brilliant blue waterfall that cascaded down the side of the mountain and spilled into this big pool at the bottom. The water was blue, but it was also clear, and we could see the rocks at the bottom. They looked like volcanic rocks, they were black and dark gray. But they weren’t sharp. Like the water had dulled them or something, and there were all of these big, beautiful fish in a rainbow of colors swimming around. It was amazing!”
“It all sounds really pretty,” I say, trying to sound more enthusiastic than I feel. I don’t remember Mystica saying anything about a waterfall flowing into this magical pool, so I don’t know if she just left that out or if that’s not what Ben saw when he was dead. Or maybe the whole thing is just made up.
“Anyway, we were standing there, taking it all in, but you started having pains in your belly, so you finally got into the water. You were wearing this long flowing dress in bright blue with red and orange flowers all over it. You got in the water, and after a few minutes of you being in pain and shouting, this baby just floated up to the top of the water. You picked him up, and he was perfect. He was crying, but when you held him close, he stopped. He wasn’t hurt at all.”
I give him a moment to bask at the end of his story, smiling back at him, but then I have to ask, “Were we the only two there, Ben?”
He shrugs. “I’m not sure. I didn’t see anyone else around us, but they might’ve been behind me or something. I was just paying attention to you–and how beautiful it was. It was so peaceful. I just wanted to stay there forever. But then, I heard you crying, and I felt like I needed to leave. It wasn’t you in the water that was crying, though. It was like you were far away and crying, but I could hear you, so I turned around and walked away, through the forest, and it got really dark, and then I opened my eyes, and I was back here, in the castle.”
It is an interesting story, and in a lot of ways, it reminds me of my visions, the ones I’ve had in my sleep about Zabrina, Private Wylie, and even the man and woman in the meadow, whom I have to wonder about. Could that boy who reminded me of Maddox have been my son? Was the woman he was with his fated mate? I hadn’t spent too much time considering it because I am so worried that something will happen to my baby.
But I want to believe Ben’s story. I want to think that if I go to Maatua and have my baby in the magical pool, he will be okay. I don’t know if I could stay here and have him in the castle and use my own blood and tears to save him if something is wrong, but I’m not really willing to take the chance. Maddox doesn’t want to believe it, though, and if he won’t let me go, I’m not sure what I will do. I could end up making him angry again. And I don’t think I can sneak out. I promised I wouldn’t try again, and that would be dangerous, as I’ve learned.
“You should rest,” I tell Ben for the hundredth time.
“I know,” he says. “But it’s hard to sleep when I keep going over all of it in my mind.”
I nod in understanding. I feel the same way when I have a vivid dream that seems to be real–and often ends up being real. “But if you don’t sleep, you won’t heal. You didn’t heal completely, you know.”
“I feel fine,” he argues.
I laugh at him. “You have an IV with Mystica’s best pain medicine in it. Of course, you feel fine.”
He shrugs. “That’s a good point.”
“Listen, I need to go try calling Mom and Dad again,” I tell him, even though I don’t want to. The last time I’d tried calling them, they hadn’t answered. I hope that they didn’t hear about the uprising at the castle because that will worry them, and I don’t want them to be scared about anything. I’m fine, and Ben is, too, now. They don’t need to freak out, but I am sure they will be upset that he came all the way to the castle without telling them he was leaving.
“All right,” he says with a sigh, and for the first time since he opened his eyes, I can see that apprehension is his primary emotion. “Do you think they’ll be mad enough to kill me again?”
I laugh at him. “I hope not. But they probably won’t be happy. You can’t do this again. It’s almost fall break–don’t think you’re going to come back here for that on your own.”
“You know, if there hadn’t been an execution at the castle while I was here, if there hadn’t been an uprising, if I hadn’t been stabbed, I would’ve been able to pull this off.” He seems pretty proud of himself for someone who literally managed to get himself killed doing something his parents would’ve told him he wasn’t allowed to do.
“Yes, it sounds like the Moon Goddess was conspiring against you,” I say with a chuckle. As I start to get up, he stops me with his hand on my leg. “What?” I ask him. The look on his face tells me that whatever he’s going to say is serious.
“Are you okay about what happened with that woman, Isla? That lady who stabbed me?” His eyes are wide, and I can tell he’s curious but doesn’t want to upset me.
I take a deep breath, not sure how to answer that. “I don’t feel good about it,” I tell him. “But I know that I did what had to be done. I couldn’t let her stab you again or hurt me and the baby.”
“Who was she?” he asks me.
I shake my head. “I asked Poppy, and she said she’s worked here for a really long time, and she has no idea why she would suddenly start acting that way, but she didn’t know what pack she was from. Poppy was going to try and find out. Maybe she was from Zabrina’s pack or something.”
“Or Hill Country pack?” he asks me.
I nod. “I guess so, but I don’t even know that the rebels were from one of those two packs. I haven’t found out anything since Maddox left. He’s been so busy with everyone out in the courtyard.” I was hoping to see him soon, and not just because I wanted to see if he could answer my questions. I just wanted to hold him.
“Well, I think it was really odd that she acted that way. I remember the look in her eyes, vividly,” he continues. “She looked… crazed.”
I didn’t get too good of a look at her face because I was trying to make sure she didn’t stab me, but I believe him. “Maybe she had problems and no one knew.” I can still picture her body lying on the stone floor, her throat bleeding everywhere. I never would’ve thought I was capable of something like that, cutting someone’s neck, killing someone, but I guess it shows what a mama will do to protect her young, and that includes both Ben and my baby.
“Now, get some rest while I go try Mom and Dad again,” I tell him. He withdraws his hand and I push out of the chair.
But I don’t make it more than a step when there’s a soft knock on the door, and Poppy sticks her head in.
Immediately, I can tell by her face that something's wrong. “What is it?” I ask her.
She clears her throat. “Sorry to disturb the pair of you,” she says. “But… you have company.” She steps aside and I lock eyes with a very pissed woman who looks like she wants to kill me.