Page 74 of Dawn of Hope
The others draw their weapons, the look in their eyes like death. Even Mara and Fin are poised to attack, the hatred so pure and clear in their eyes.
A beasts from the river stops next to Dane as if waiting for a command, its jaws snapping and saliva dripping from its mouth.
“Bring her to me,” Dane grumbles, his voice low and malicious.
“Dane, no!” I scream before all of them charge forward, a war cry escaping their lips. I turn abruptly, trying to find a way out. I peer over the edge of the cliff, the dark rocks so harsh against the crashing white waves. I don’t know what more to do. I have to try to save myself. I glance back over my shoulder only to see them gaining on me. I turn back, pushing off the edge of the cliff with all my strength and leap into the air, falling…
I scream as I fall toward the depths below, toward my death. I jolt, hitting the water, only to throw my eyes open and realize that I am not in the water. I’m in my bunk, gasping for breath. I frantically run my hands over the padding, grounding myself.
It was a dream. A nightmare.
Tears stream down my cheeks, my body shaking and covered in sweat. There is pounding in my ears, and I reach up to place a hand on my chest, trying to slow my beating heart. It takes me a moment to realize that it is not just my heart in my ears. Those are footsteps. Someone is running.
“Lennox?”
My platform shakes as someone clamors up the ladder. Dane’s head pops above the edge and he pushes up until I can see him from the waist up. His eyes race over me, looking for any sort of threat. “Are you alright? What happened?”
My head spins, probably from the short shallow breaths I can’t control. The hatred in his face keeps flashing in my mind, and my stomach still feels like it has fallen out of me from the leap off the cliff.
It’s too much.
My hands shake and the sobs come again, despite trying to breathe through them.
“I…you were…I…” I try to tell him what happened but my body won’t let me. This is beyond anything I have experienced before. I have had maybe a handful of bad dreams in my life, but none have ever been this vivid or had anything to do with water. I hardly remember them when I wake. This was not like that. It was real. Felt real. It was too hard to separate from this new reality.
“Shh.” His hands cup my face, and I lean into him, needing the comfort and safety his touch brings me. “It was just a dream. It wasn’t real.”
“It was…terrible…” I choke out.
His thumbs stroke across my cheeks, wiping away the tears that had fallen.
“Try to take a deep breath,” he murmurs, then inhales deeply, his eyes keeping contact with mine the entire time. I try to breathe in with him, but my breaths are staggered by sobs.
“That’s it,” he croons. He brushes a stray piece of hair off myforehead, his fingertips gently caressing my head in a way that no one ever has before.
We stay just like this, breathing together for a few moments until my breaths are less labored and my calm has returned. He hasn’t moved, hasn’t wavered. His soft amber eyes stay locked on mine the entire time, tearing down any memory of the harsh angry ones in the dream.
“Thank you,” I mutter, feeling slightly embarrassed that I am so worked up over something that wasn’t real.
“Of course.” The pad of his thumb runs across my jaw as he slides his hand into my hair.
I ignore my heart rate picking back up for a different reason this time and ask, “Why were you awake?” I look around camp, but it is still dark, and no one else is wandering around or ready to leave for the day.
“Couldn’t sleep. I was going to get something to eat when I heard you scream. I thought you were in trouble. I worried it was the Castaways.”
I shake my head and sniffle. “Nope, just my dreams.”
“I hate to say this, but I’m glad it was just that.” He removes his hands from my face and grasps the top of the ladder. His head tilts in thought before he speaks. “Grab your stuff and follow me.”
“Why?” I ask warily.
“Just trust me,” he says with a smirk.
“I thought we already established that you had to earn that back?”
“Right. Well, let’s start here. Come on.”
His head disappears from the side of my platform as he descends the ladder. I quickly run my fingers through my hair and wipe the tears from under my eyes before grabbing my dagger and tucking it away.