Chapter Three
“Areyousure?”Myfather’s gravelly voice carries through the paper-thin walls of our home. “Just because she’s right this time—”
“Not just this time.”
My mother’s faint voice is firm, and I know she’s defending me. Again.
I turned twelve last week and told my mother about the colorful auras. They’re getting brighter and harder to ignore. When she explained they were energy signatures a few years ago, she felt they might fade as I get older. But it’s been the opposite.
“But you can’t know for sure.” The dismissive tone means he wants to be done with the conversation. I’ve heard it a million times. It’s pretty much how every conversation with me goes. He never believes me, ignoring my premonitions and any chatter about visions.
“You can’t ignore this. She’s special. My mother said—”
“Your mother. Pfft.” Heavy footfalls travel down the hall past my room to the kitchen where I hear the refrigerator door. “I’m going out.”
The door slamming shakes the bed under me, and my eyes fly open.
But I’m not in bed. My reflection in the dark ceiling is far away, but I immediately remember where I am. The portal!
Rolling to my side, I see Alexa just beginning to stir, throwing her arm over her eyes. It’s then I realize her arm is bare, and she’s wearing a dress.
Nako’s already sitting up, staring straight ahead as she announces, “We’re still here.”
We sure are. And I take in the sheer material now wrapped around our bodies. A chill has my nipples hardening as I look down at the low V in the front, practically to my belly button.
This doesn’t bode well for our future. It also means they changed us while we were unconscious...
When Nako turns to face me, I notice the inch wide collar now around her neck. My hands fly to my throat. Sure enough, the same solid looking metal meets my fingers, and I follow it around, searching for a clasp.
“What is it?” Nako appears in front of me, tilting my chin up so she can get a better look. “A collar? Do you think it’s a symbol of enslavement?”
I shrug, looking around at the smaller room we’re in. The walls, floor, and ceiling are identical to the previous room. But it’s smaller, and the portal isn’t here. Instead, there’s a small circular table with four chairs in the middle of the room.
It’s so weird. This could be any small board room on Earth. My musings have me missing the beginning of what Alexa signs, but there’s a scramble from them both as they look over my shoulder.
“Emma!” Nako yells as we all climb to our feet.
Alexa runs toward her, throwing her arms around the missing woman, shoulders shaking. When she finally pulls away, she signs, “I’m so sorry I left you!I didn’t mean to run off and abandon you—”
Emma shakes her head violently as she runs her hands down Alexa’s arms, stilling her hands. “You know I would give anything right now to send you back. This isn’t what I wanted for you.”
Putting her arm around Alexa’s shoulders, she turns to Nako and me. “Any of you.”
Emma’s smaller than I imagined, and she looks bedraggled. Her dirty blonde hair is partially piled on top of her head, and the sleeveless wrap around dress that she’s wearing is made of the same sheer material we’re now sporting, complete with a matching collar.
But she’s alive.
Nako steps forward and pulls Emma in for a quick hug, whispering, “We’re relieved to see you well. When Alexa came to me saying you’d disappeared...” She leans back, smiling, “... I thought you’d run off, and she was covering for you. Only because she was so worked up, I pulled in our Pueblo Shaman. This is Edith Dosela, a personal friend of mine.”
Emma holds out her hand, shaking mine firmly as she waves to the table behind us. “Do you want to sit, and I’ll give you the rundown?” At the exact same time, she signs, “Can you all understand me?”
“Yes,” Alexa follows Emma to the table, sliding into a chair next to her. “Where is this place? When we crossed through the portal, a clear barrier dropped around us, and then we were gassed with something that made us pass out. We woke up here.”
Emma looks surprised, waving back to the door. “So you haven’tseenthe Ropors?”
I pull out a chair and settle across from her as we all shake our heads no.
She bites her lip, looking down at the table. The silence stretches for a moment before I prompt her. “Why don’t you start at the beginning?”