As we descended the steps of the boardwalk, we were each handed our own candles smelling of white citrus. We followed Willow down to the table. The flowers were much larger than they had appeared from a distance. Intertwined with ivy and strips of lace, it was the most amazing arrangement I’d ever seen. Another hurricane vase sat in the center of the table with a single, large blue candle surrounded by pearls and turquoise stones. Willow pressed her hand to one of the frames, tears rolling down her cheeks. I gave her a light hug and faced the frame with her.
A beautiful, young woman with bright red hair framing large green eyes smiled back at me.
Images of a previous reverie exploded before my eyes. A flash of red catching my attention. A couple arguing on the beach. The woman lying on her side in the sand, blood pooling around her. I could feel my own blood drain from my face. It was Nicolet that I had watched die during my blackout. Last week.
I grabbed the edge of the table to keep from falling as a wave of nausea washed over me. I turned and ran back towards the boardwalk. I slipped beneath it, surrounded by dunes and the sounds of people above. Clutching my stomach and trying to be quiet, I got sick. I started to shake uncontrollably and collapsed on the sand. I put my head in my hands, wrapped my arms around myself, and rocked back and forth. The dream wasn’t real. It couldn’t be real.
“Stasia?”
I looked up to see my three roommates ducking under the boardwalk to join me.
“Oh, ew.” Phoebe pinched her nose.
“Are you okay?” Willow rubbed my back, while Carmen threw sand over the spot I had thrown up on. My skin tingled everywhere her hands touched me. I slowly stopped shaking and I realized they were still waiting for my answer.
“I know it’s her. I saw him. She died.” I knew I wasn’t making sense, but it was all I could make my mouth say.
“You knew Nicolet?” Carmen looked at me, perplexed.
“No. I…I saw her hair. I couldn’t feel the wind.”
“What do you mean?” I saw them looking at each other. Probably wondering why they didn’t bring some sort of tranquilizer for the crazy girl hiding under the boardwalk. I dropped my arms and shook my head, hoping to get rid of the hazy panic hugging my brain.
“I had a dream about her. Before I came here. I saw her die. She got stabbed.”
“But, she wasn’t murdered, Stasia, and it just happened yesterday. It must have just been a dream. It’s okay.” Willow tried to comfort me.
“How could I dream about someone I don’t know?”
“Maybe it was a reverie that morphed into a dream?” Phoebe guessed. Applause erupted from the beach, meaning the ceremony was starting. I had to get myself together. Willow was supposed to be the one who needed comforting, not me.
“It’s okay, I’m okay. Let’s go back out there, I think they’re starting.” I urged them.
“Are you sure? You still look a little pale…” Carmen helped me stand.
“Yea, I’ll be fine. Promise.” I forced a smile as we made our way back out to the beach, but my legs were still shaking and I had an awful taste in my mouth.
As we walked to the front of the crowd, each person lowered their eyes at Willow and allowed us through.
“I still can’t believe she would kill herself,” Phoebe said softly, shaking her head. Suicide.
They said she committed suicide, but I had seen her being stabbed. I watched her blood disappear into the sand next to her lifeless body. She didn’t commit suicide, she was murdered. At least she was according to my dream. Or reverie. How did I even know it was real? Maybe she really did commit suicide yesterday and the reverie was just a fluke. I groaned inwardly, since I had no way of knowing.
If I could just remember what the man looked like. Dark hair? Or maybe brown? He was definitely big and very strong. She was no match for him. He was probably a Triton or Son of Daimon.
Son of Daimon. Finn. Why was Finn there? Was he keeping watch while the man killed her?
Was he helping him? He obviously wasn’t helping Nicolet. I couldn’t shake the thought that he had something to do with it. Why else would he have been there? And if it was real, how did she just die yesterday? I had to talk to Finn. He was the only person who could tell me what happened. I swept my eyes over the crowd looking for him, hoping he may be there. Was he a murderer? Is that what he’d been Chosen for? He said himself that he wasn’t the one that had to pay the price of being Chosen. So it would make sense that the innocent people he killed would pay the price. My heart constricted at that chilling thought. My search halted as soon as my eyes fell upon Kira.
She was standing to the right of the table in a simple, black sundress. She looked like she’d been awake for days and been crying for longer. My eyes began filling with tears at her obvious pain.
Next to her were two other girls who appeared just as heartbroken. The pictures on the table kept distracting me, though. It felt as if Nicolet was staring right at me through the frame; accusing me. I couldn’t help but wonder if she had seen Finn and I arguing as she was helplessly stabbed to death. I sent out a silent plea to her. I’m so sorry Nicolet. Please forgive me.
A tall, blonde woman stood in front of the table. Her white, long dress billowed out around her in the ocean breeze. She bent over and lit the blue candle inside the large hurricane vase. There was a small wreath of white flowers set atop her head, resembling a crown. Bright blue sapphires dangled from her ears, neck and wrists. Her piercing blue eyes settled upon the crowd of grievers.
“That’s Priscilla, she’s our Maven,” Carmen whispered in my ear. I stared back at her blankly, hoping for more of an explanation. “You know, the head mistress, leader, priestess, whatever you wanna call it.”
When Priscilla started to speak, my chin hit the ground and a shadow of dread fell over me.
I’d heard that voice before. “We’ve come too far to have this orphan girl ruin everything.” I studied her long blonde hair, the glow she emanated. It was definitely her. I could still visualize her in my dream, gliding down the hallway with Isadora, as I tried to blend in with the wall.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight we mourn the loss of a great student, friend, and Tyde; Nicolet Stephens,” she announced. The light breeze carried her voice over the crowd, “She will be greatly missed.” She went on to speak of Nicolet’s many accomplishments and what she had meant to the House of Lorelei. I heard an agonizing sob as Kira held on to the other two girls. I glanced over at Willow. Her usually flowing blonde hair had been pulled up into a messy bun and her blue eyes were splotchy and red. Her shorts and tank top were wrinkled and disheveled. Her bottom lip quivered slightly as she held back her tears. I squeezed her hand.
Priscilla picked up the hurricane vase delicately, her bracelets clinking against each other.
Several more women in similar flowing white dresses joined her at the table. They stood perfectly still and held hands. They were each extremely beautiful, but that wasn’t what made them so captivating. It was as if the sun shone from within them, broadcasting beauty and allure to the world.
If it were possible to gather every new spring blossom, every savory smell of a summer garden, and every sparkle of morning dew and then combine them into one creature, the result would be standing before us. It was difficult to look directly at them without becoming completely overcome by their brilliance.