Beneath the Watching

15. Mabel

15

MABEL

The terrain surrounding me was thick with large boulders, moss, vines, and lush ferns. Tree branches wound above, knitting themselves together and letting in streams and rays of light to cast a pleasant green tint over the landscape.

The ground was softer than I was used to, having trekked multiple times through the New England woods. The paths at home were overwrought with large rocks, broken glass, and knotty roots whose single goal was to see you fall flat on your face. If I hadn’t been lost and confused, I would have enjoyed the smooth journey.

At any moment, I knew, the sun could disappear. It was disturbing, to say the least. Shelter was needed, and soon, so I wouldn’t be caught in the middle of the forest during the night.

I kept hoping the voice in my head would guide me some more, but it remained frustratingly silent. No one had come after me and I was now at a loss. I’d even asked it about what I experienced before I ran away, but it didn’t answer.

While I trudged forward, I wondered about this clairaudience thing Stefan had said I had. There was no reason I should be psychic, if that’s what it was. How had I not noticed before?

That last thought gave me pause. From what I could remember, I hadn’t experienced this until I’d been in the tunnels with Stefan, and I was pretty sure I’d remember something like hearing voices .

My mind wandered back to the clubbing nights at the casino with Madison and the rest of my friends and how for some reason, Id started to notice things I hadn’t before. Things such as the strangely beautiful men with glowing eyes that had somehow always seemed to have been there.

Was it all related? There was also the matter of the exaggerated explosion when I’d gone back to the abandoned house and tried to destroy the bottle.

As hard as I tried, I still couldn’t pinpoint an exact moment of the change in everything.

The sound of gently trickling water caught my attention, and I veered off the path when I spotted the glistening liquid. The sky was clear of branches over the stream, allowing the sunlight to sparkle and dance across its slow-moving surface and reflect the deep royal blue of the sky.

I knelt down to scoop some water into my palm for a drink, marveling at the shiny silver minnows darting about. When I brought my hand up to my mouth, the reflection in the water shifted and a tall man stood behind me, his eyes smoky black and his dark hair pushed away from his face. I fell back on my haunches, twisting to look.

There was no one there.

Whipping my head around, I looked back into the water. The man stood there behind me; his gaze curious as he examined me. His clothing stood out, not being dressed for a trek into the woods. The style matched Stefan and his friends, with the elegant suit and coat and he was equally attractive despite a profoundly sinister aura.

This time, I swiveled around slowly but was again disappointed.

There was no way to fight a man who wasn’t there and no way to know if he would be friend or foe.

Neutral , the voice reassured me.

My heart thudded, and my pulse raced, even with the positive message.

“What do you want?” I asked.

The man blinked. It was the first movement I’d detected in him, convincing me I was really being observed and wasn’t facing an illusion. He was there, and not a vision or apparition, the mirror of the water showing the background I was familiar with. Turning again, I reached my arm out only to be met with dead air.

“Are you a ghost?” I asked, before returning my gaze to the brook.

The figure smirked lightly and vanished.

If it wasn’t for the feminine cadence and sound of the voice, I would’ve suspected the man with the black eyes was responsible for my new abilities to converse with the disembodied spirit in my head. Shivering, I had to consider he’d been following me around for ages. There was no one out here but me so the interlude had to have been personal.

Upon further reflection, I realized he’d been peering at me with clinical curiosity and not as if he were familiar with me. That revelation made me feel a tiny bit better.

“Why was he here?” I asked, hoping for an answer. None came and I scooped more water into my dry throat.

There’d been no shelter anywhere that I could see, and I was exhausted. I stood up and walked to a cluster of bushes that seemed like they’d hide me at least temporarily. Curling up underneath, I tucked my legs in toward my chest and rested my head on my hands, closing my eyes. The best I could hope for was that eventually, I’d find myself back home.

When I woke up, everything was dark. Something was by the water, lapping at the edges of the stream. I couldn’t see it, but I heard the throaty swallows and the messy drips hitting the stones along the shoreline while I stayed unmoving in the brush. The squeaking of tree frogs and occasional flapping of birds’ wings were the only other disturbances in the quiet of the night.

The thirsty animal left after what seemed like forever and I crawled out of my hiding place wondering if it was safe to return to the castle. There was no choice but to return to Stefan’s home. I knew I’d never make it out here in the wilderness of a strange land.

“Did you want me to run into the woods?” I asked, tilting my head, and hoping the voice would answer.

Your choice , it said.

“Why do I hear voices? What do you want with me?”

This is your home , came the obvious answer. I’d already decided it was where I’d stay.

“That doesn’t tell me anything.”

You’re not the only one, it replied.

“Kiara can hear voices?” Stunned, I wondered why Kiara hadn’t said anything before. Then I remembered it made sense why she wouldn’t—who would’ve believed her?

Not like you. She is a source of magic. Very powerful .

A twinge of jealousy prickled me for a second before I had to acknowledge I didn’t want to be a powerful source of magic. It sounded debilitating, and I could barely handle the mental intrusion I was already dealing with. While I was okay with hearing voices, I wasn’t entirely positive I wanted to.

“But why me? What a waste.”

You allow it to be.

The response felt like a punch in the gut. Only my own head would cut to the heart of the chase. It was convenient and easy to exist in my own little world, distracting myself with my own running narrative of the things going on around me, weighing and measuring more than just food and flour. If I kept life away, I wouldn’t be reminded of all the ways in which I lacked. Fortunately for me, I quite enjoyed my own company, so it wasn’t a bad way to exist.

It just got lonely at times.

An image of my dark guardian filled my mind, his angry countenance glaring at me with a layer of what may have been love underneath. I wanted to go to him, but I didn’t know where he was. A small thrill ran through me, over the chance he might be looking for me at this very moment. It felt like too much to hope for, but he’d been adamant I stayed safe and I couldn’t completely doubt he’d search for me.

“Where is Stefan?” I asked the empty night, softly. “Who was that man reflected in the water?”

Another realm , the feminine voice replied. Other .

“What are you?”

Knowledge .

“That’s not helpful.” Immediately, I flushed. I could feel my cheeks burning after snapping at the sound in my head.

I’m everywhere and in everything. Few can hear me. Collective consciousness .

“Are you God?”

I am not the Creator .

Startled, I stood up. “Wait. There’s a God?”

I sensed rather than felt the amusement and goosebumps ran down my arms. Is this what it was like to have an invisible friend? Discomfort ran through me; I was much too old for childhood fancies. The voice seemed neutral, neither friend nor enemy.

There is if you believe there is .

“What is this place?”

What one in your shoes would consider an alternate dimension.

I glanced down at my flip-flops . Shoes would’ve come in handy. “How long have you been following me around?”

Forever .

“Why am I only noticing you now?”

Curses. Change. Everything is changing. Decay is coming .

With her final pronouncement, I felt the air shift as if a vacuum had been turned on and a void left behind.

My mind went to mine and Al’s apartment and I thought about how dirty it must be in my absence before I pictured Madison helping him clean. The cleaning lady only came once a week.

Dropping to a sitting position, I laid my chin on my knees. Distracting myself with the things that didn’t matter wouldn’t fix anything. Right now, I was all alone in the woods, facing my own personal demons.

Kiara was a combative emotional wreck; she bulldozed her way through everything while I was an armored tank, never letting a thing penetrate my iron shield. The connection wasn’t lost on me, the dysfunction in our lives and the resulting consequences.

The voice had implied there were other people caught up in this and I had to wonder what their issues were, how they’d tried to navigate what Stefan referred to as the Third Realm before finding themselves dropped or kidnapped into this magical dimension.

Back home, I was a shell of a person, drifting along doing whatever anyone told or expected of me. I took zero risks, nodding and smiling, never expressing a need, hope, or dream. My foster families had enjoyed the benefits of such behavior, dressing me up and showing me off with proclamations about how well-behaved I was, how cute my outfits were, and how easy I was to take care of.

My own parents hadn’t wanted me, not if they gave me away, and I made damned sure I was as desired as I could be with each and every family that took me on after they left.

My heart hurt, considering the possible reasons my own mother and father wouldn’t have wanted me. I was now too old to need the care of a parent a small child would, but I wasn’t too old to want the more mature guidance such a relationship would provide. I’d never had any information about my birth family, their existence seemingly wiped off the face of the planet, so I’d stopped pursuing it.

Pushing the thoughts of my origins away, I gazed at the landscape around me. It was beautiful, with the piercingly bright stars and large, heavy moon. The craters and mountains on the lunar surface stood in sharp relief, easily identified without the use of a telescope. It was breathtaking.

As my thoughts wandered, I remembered Stefan saying there was no where I could run he wouldn’t find me.

I’d run away; but he hadn’t found me.