Tangled

166

166

166 Lisa: Fevers and Dreams

LISA

How long has it been?

A few days?

Weeks?

The sun should keep me oriented, but a fever gets me the first night I'm there.

The girl, Marisol, comes by every so often. Always with food. A few times with bowls filled with some noxious liquid that has my nostrils trying to close, avoiding the smell coming from within. She's expressionless as she shoves it down my throat, and I'm too weak to fight her off.

It's medicine, I think.

I think that because I slowly get better after the third bowl,

In between moments of lucidity, I dream.

Normal life. Home. Mom and Dad.

Working with Ava at Beaniverse.

Flirting with that cute guy who accidentally wandered into our professor's Eng Lit class instead of some sort of philosophy class

two doors down.

Cozy, happy dreams, of a place far from here..

An escape from the reality that chains me.

17:37

At some point the dreams turn from happy comfort to something uneasy and dark.

Sunshine warms my face as Ava and I relax at our favorite cafe,

sipping lattes and chatting. For a moment, the world feels right again, like I'm back where I belong

But then the shadows come

at the edges of my vision, dark tendrils snaking across the ground. I try to warn Ava,

behind her.

shadow reaches for Ava, engulfing her, dragging her away as she kicks and struggles. I lunge for her,

the armrests, making a joke about the turbulence. I reach for her hand to comfort her, but the plane lurches, throwing us forward. Oxygen Ava's screaming. I'm screaming. The world outside the windows is a blur of sky and ground, rushing closer and closer

Impact.

and rends. Flames erupt. Pain

Ava, drowning

55000

monsters. And always, I'm helpless to save her,

watch as she suffers.

up. The horrors play out again and again, an

I

sweat. My throat feels raw, my limbs heavy and weak. Marisol kneels beside me. holding a bowl of

bitter liquid hits my tongue, but I force myself to swallow. Anything to chase away the lingering images of

torment.

with a curious intensity. "How often has the Master fed from you?" she

by the question. "Just once," I rasp out, wincing at

once?" She shakes her head. "The withdrawal shouldn't be this strong, not for a single feeding." There's

you

mutters, "He must favor y greatly,

know how to respond to that. The idea that this monster might favor me fills me with nothing but a sickening

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tie lase mast but no words

weten, my mind dealle

Mariel's odd

all I want is to curl

ere will die

mure endle

wees to

me agan her hate

detach that

not sure what she's doing. Her fingers press against my neck, my wrists, my ankles. It's only when she peers down at my shoulder that

out, my voice rough from disuse and screaming. "He only

intensity. "Only once," she repeats, as if tasting

to respond to that. The memory of his fangs sinking, the agonizing pain, and the sickening rush of pleasure

return.

trying to push

she stares at me. There's something wistful in her expression, a longing that I can't quite comprehend. "When did you know? she asks softly, her eyes never leaving mine. "When did you realize you were

Fevers and

For