My phone vibrated in my pocket halfway across the shimmering expanse. I stopped rowing and pulled it out, happy for the chance to take a quick break.
The message was from Trina. Where are you? You’ve been gone for ages.
I bit my bottom lip, trying to figure out a good response. I had no idea why, but something was telling me to keep what I saw on the island to myself. Unfortunately, that would be difficult if I went back to the party drenched in sweat from rowing, along with all the lake water that had splashed up onto me. Trina and Adam would want to know why I was in such a state, and I knew I’d end up blurting everything out.
Sorry, not feeling great,I ended up saying. Stuck in bathroom. Might just go back to my dorm when I’m done.
She replied right away. That sucks :( Think it’s food poisoning? What did you eat for dinner?
Just stuff from the cafeteria. Guess it didn’t agree with me,I said. Sorry to ditch. I feel bad.
Trina:It’s fine! You still came and had fun for a while! Also no one really bothered you, so that’s cool! Except Jess F, but she can suck it, haha. Anyway, do you want me or Adam to meet up with you and walk you back to your room?
Me: Thanks for the offer, but I’ll be fine. You guys stay and have fun! Keep talking to your guys… ;)
Trina: Ok. Let me know when you get home safe plz. Love ya xoxo
I felt bad for lying to her, but the more I thought about it, the more I didn’t want to involve her or Adam in what I’d seen tonight.
I still couldn’t figure out why, though. There was just a strange, dark feeling in the back of my mind; one that whispered insidiously, telling me I’d be in trouble if I ever breathed a word of what I saw to anyone, and that my friends would be in trouble too if they ever found out.
By the time I made it back to the RFA boathouse, my legs and arms felt like they were about to fall off. I had to sit and rest on a bench for ten minutes before I could even begin to make the trek to Blair Hall.
When I finally got back, I took a steaming-hot shower, crouching on the tiled floor because I was too tired to stand, and then I quickly texted Trina, put my pajamas on, and fell into bed. My body felt weak and boneless from overexertion, and my eyes were already scrunched shut before my head hit the pillow. I figured I was probably going to sleep for at least twelve straight hours.
Instead, I woke with a scream in my throat sometime in the middle of the night.
I’d been having a dream where I was back at that strange party on the island, only this time someone saw me behind the tree and pointed me out to the rest of them. The whole group suddenly sprouted stone wings, faces twisting into hideous, monstrous expressions, and I realized they were all giant gargoyles. They flew at me, shrieking and clawing at the air, and I ran blindly into the woods, only to encounter Hunter and the rest of the Princes in a dark clearing.
You shouldn’t have come here,Hunter said, eyes gleaming wickedly in the darkness.
You don’t belong here. You don’t belong here. You don’t belong here! the Princes chanted behind him. Even Chris was there.
I turned to run away from them and came face-to-face with the gargoyle monsters. I was trapped. The ground suddenly gave way, a cavernous sinkhole opening directly beneath my feet, and then I was falling, flailing, screaming…
That was the moment I woke up.
“Shit,” I muttered to myself, breathing heavily as consciousness slowly filtered back in. “What a crazy dream.”
My voice had barely faded when I heard something else in the room. Not another voice. Movement. Just the faintest of footsteps and the slightest rustle of fabric.
My eyes bulged wide open, and I clutched my blanket in white-knuckled terror and slowly sat up, heart pounding.
There was a man standing at the end of my bed.