Suddenly, from somewhere in the distance, I heard him yell to me.
“Cassia! Hide!”
Frantic, I searched for cover. I had no idea who or what Keanu had seen, but I obeyed quickly by cowering behind one of the bigger boulders.
That’s when I heard the noise, a low rumbling that seemed to resonate in the air around me. Echoing off the walls of the cliffs in the canyon, I suddenly realized what it was.
Glancing around from my hiding spot, I tried to see where Keanu went. I couldn’t spot him anywhere.
Considering he was an agent—former agent—he was very obviously very skilled in the art of concealment. Me, on the other hand, I felt like I should’ve been wearing a big red target. With only the rock to shield me, I contemplated making a run for the nearby mountain. At least there were trees and possibly caves to hide in.
A black helicopter circled overhead. Sand whirled beneath it as it moved closer to the ground.
I wasn’t sure if they’d seen me, but it was obvious they’d spotted the red minivan. Hovering just over the vehicle, I positioned myself behind the rock, hopefully out of their line of sight.
Keeping myself as low as possible, I watched as the helicopter gently touched the ground. The blades slowed but didn’t stop as two men in black exited the side. While I didn’t recognize either of them, hatred swelled inside me with the sight of them.
Tears welled in my eyes as I thought of Amy, the shock of her death refreshing itself within me.
I watched as they searched the inside of the van. They pulled out various papers and items that Keanu and I had left behind, nothing important though, just garbage, receipts and whatnot.
After pulling everything out of the van and inspecting it, the two agents stood and talked with one another, probably deciding their next plan of action. One pulled a cell phone from his jacket pocket and made a call. With the constant hum of the helicopter’s blades gyrating, however, I couldn’t hear anything he said. I could see his mouth moving and his head nodding occasionally.
With a final nod, he pushed a button on his phone and replaced it into his pocket. He said something to his partner and they immediately ran toward the helicopter.
How I wished I could read lips! If we knew where they were headed next, we could go the other direction.
Throwing dust in all directions, the long blades of the machine spun faster and faster, chopping into the air around it. Eventually, it lifted off the ground, humming like a giant blender, and turning sharply to almost a ninety degree angle, it flew off to the north.
Sitting up and pressing my back against the cool stone, I closed my eyes and took in deep breaths. They hadn’t caught me—this time. Next time, I might not be so lucky.
“Keanu?” Feeling safe, I raised my voice to a shout. “Keanu?”
“Over here.” His voice was muffled as he called to me from several feet away. Scanning the landscape, I was relieved as I saw him crawl out from beneath a miniature forest of Yucca plants. He was lucky to have found enough shelter to cover his huge body in the middle of the desert.
Running to him, we embraced. It felt so good to be in his arms again. Even though I knew all could not be forgotten in just mere minutes, but I hoped that, in time, he could look at me like he did before I told him about Meyers and the baby.
We were both covered in sand and with the hot sun stalking the sky, we were starting to sweat. Even though it was considered to be winter, the desert only cooled slightly. We were lucky it wasn’t summer; we’d have a lot more to worry about than we already did. No matter what the season, dehydration was as big a threat in the desert as hypothermia was in the Arctic.
We needed to find shelter and water fast.
“Those mountains.” I pointed toward the nearest rocky range. “We should hike up there. There’s shade and hopefully some caves.”
Keanu nodded and we started walking toward it.
Fatigued from lack of food, I pushed my body forward. The weight of my growing belly, however, slowed me down. My stomach seemed to be growing bigger by the hour. Keanu took my hand and gently urged me along.
Reaching the base of the mountain after what felt like hours, a plethora of trees greeted us. Lying down under a large Juniper tree, I rested.
“Where do we go from here?” His voice was lethargic.
“We have to find the cave.” My throat was dry and I felt like this venture was becoming hopeless. If we couldn’t even walk a small ways without becoming completely exhausted, how was I going to lead us to a cave that I hadn’t been in since I was a baby?
Laying my head on a bundle of moss, I slipped quickly into unconsciousness.
The dream swept over me like a soft, warm wind. Draping itself over my mind, it seemed to throw a blanket over my sorrows.
No longer was I scouring the desert for a long lost cave or for a mother that time had long since forgotten, I was safe.
The Majestic 12 and Meyers were gone, no longer my concern.
Just peace.
Wandering like a ghost, I found myself lying upon my back on a pedestal made of stone. Clad in a long white gown, my long hair flowed around my shoulders like a black satin cape. My eyes were closed as if in sleep and I was ever so still. Holding a bouquet of lilies close to my chest, my body lay poised like a statue.
Death.
Death had kissed my pale lips and left its permanent mark upon me.
Floating closer to my body, and then hovering over it, I wasn’t sad, in fact, I felt relief. The pain and suffering I’d endured was over, I was…satisfied with my life and that I’d done what I came here to do.
I struggled to remember what my purpose was and how I’d completed it, but the foggy amnesia that clouds the mind within dreams would not clear.
Examining my former body and admiring the soft features of my face while embraced in a deathly slumber, I smiled as I recalled the adventures and the hardships of being trapped within that body. Though the suffering meant little to me now, I knew it was all for a higher purpose.
I noticed movement in the corner of the cave…my grandmother.
Frowning, I wondered why she was here. Unaware of my phantom presence, the sadness painted upon her face was heartbreaking. She moved toward my body, slowly and reluctantly.
Confused, I noticed something shiny glint within her hand.
A knife.
I wasn’t concerned about her hurting me, I was already dead.
Tears ran down her sad face and I somehow knew that she’d held a secret within her for many years and it had nearly eaten her alive.
I watched as she approached my body. Raising her arm, she held the tip of the knife to my chest. Cutting open the bodice of my dress, she began to carve a mark into my flesh. As she pierced my skin, a white light poured out from the opening.
Pulling her hand back, the white star that had been branded between my breasts was no longer.
Instead of a white star was a new mark, the bane of my dreams for so long—the number.
II.
“Cassia! Up here!” I awoke to Keanu’s excited shouts. Shaking off the dream, it faded into the recesses of my mind like all the others.
He had gone scouting up the mountain over an hour before, leaving me to nap at the base of the mountain. Though it probably wasn’t safe for us to stay in the same area, let alone so close to our abandoned minivan, I had no choice but to obey my body’s desire for rest. The baby was growing at an alarming rate now, there was no denying it. I no longer appeared five or six months along, I looked due at any moment.
Pushing myself to sitting, I followed the direction of his voice and saw him several meters up the mountain,
