Instead of the classroom, we’re standing next to a river, on the outskirts of a rain forest. Mario is now a woman, short and brown-skinned, with thick black hair.
“It’s a lot more peaceful here,” she says.
“You can go back and forth like this?” I ask, awestruck. “What are you—a shape-shifter or something?”
“It’s the dreamscape.” She shrugs. “I can look like anyone here. I can take you anywhere you want to go. Or show you anyone in any reality.”
“Won’t people notice us?”
“It’s not real. Think of it like … an interactive movie. It feels real while you’re here, but it’s just a projection.”
I glance around. “I don’t think I’ve ever been here before.”
“You haven’t. Not this you, anyway.” She motions me toward a nearby shack. There are fish hanging on a line, drying in the sun, and the red door stands out from its frame. She opens it and once again motions me through.
“How many realities are we going to visit?” I ask.
“Last one tonight,” she says. “I promise.”
We step through and we’re in the middle of the desert. Scrub brush dots the landscape, and it’s evening.
A fire has been built within a circle of red boulders, and Mario gestures for me to take a seat on one of the boulders. I do a double-take because he now looks like a young Native American boy, and he’s beautiful. His hair is long and silky, and his high cheekbones and flawless skin make him look almost too perfect in the firelight. He catches me staring and smiles as he finds a boulder of his own.
Sitting next to him is a man in his early forties, blond-haired and steely-eyed with an impeccable haircut and dressed in a business suit—which really looks odd, considering we’re sitting on rocks. And next to him …
“Hi,” Finn says. “Glad you made it.”
“Another face change?” the other man remarks to Mario in an amused tone.
“Variety,” Mario says with a shrug.
“I like this place,” Finn says, looking up at the sky. “I forget how beautiful the stars are out in the desert.”
“Where are we, anyway?” I take a seat, doing my best to get comfortable on the boulder next to Finn.
“Arizona,” Mario replies. “In this reality, your father got a job out here six years ago.” He points off away from the foothills. “If you walk that way for about two miles, you’ll be in your backyard.”
“Ahem.” Mario’s companion clears his throat slightly, and Mario gestures to him.
“Jessa, this is Rudy. He’s another Dreamer.”
“Rudy?” I raise my brows. “Why don’t you have old Greek names?”
“We’re not Greek,” Mario says. “I told you, that’s only one of the mythologies we appear in. We predate your civilizations by quite a bit. These names will do fine.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” I say, giving Rudy a nod.
“Rudy is my Dreamer,” Finn says. “Mario invited us over so we could all have a discussion.”
“Is that normal?”
“It’s highly unusual,” Rudy says. “But in this case, we feel a need to break protocol.”
Mario threads his hands together, balancing his elbows on his knees, and looks over at me.
“Jessa, it’s time to level with you,” he says. “I haven’t told you everything.”
“I would imagine there’s an awful lot more to know.”
He shakes his head. “No, not the Traveler stuff. That’ll come,” he agrees. “You need to know why Finn is really here.”
I look over at Finn, and I’m suddenly feeling uneasy. “What haven’t you told me, Finn?”
He takes a deep breath. “I was sent by Rudy to find you. This you. Specifically.”
“Me?” I clarify. “Why?”
“Because you’re at risk,” Rudy interjects.
Finn leans forward, running his hands through his hair. “Jessa, now you know that you exist in multiple realities. But the truth is, there are fewer and fewer of you every day.’”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means,” Mario finishes, “you’re being killed off. One by one. Everywhere. In every reality.”
I go cold inside. “Who?” I ask. “Who’s killing me?”
Mario’s face is full of sympathy, but Finn’s voice chills me to the bone.
“I am.”
7
The Target
I jump off the boulder, my mind whirling with panic. Oh my God, I knew it! I saw this coming! Another horrified thought invades my brain: What if I’m not dreaming? What if Finn drugged me or something and … that sounds improbable to the point of crazy, but then again, I think I’m talking to people in a dreamworld. And now they’ve brought me out into the middle of nowhere, where no one will hear me scream and no one will find my body.
“Jessa,” Finn says, coming to his feet slowly. “Sit down. Just listen.”
“Don’t touch me!” I shriek. I scramble to put the boulder between me and the three of them. “I mean it! Don’t come any closer!”
“Calm down,” Rudy orders. “No one’s going to hurt you.”
“You’re here to kill me!”
“Do we look like we’re here to kill you?” Finn asks, spreading his hands wide.
“We’re here to save you, not hurt you,” Mario promises.
I stare at them all, wide-eyed.
“What is going on?” I demand. “I need you to tell me the truth—all of it. How can I protect myself if I don’t know what I’m up against?”
“Jessa…,” Finn starts in again.
“I mean it,” I snarl. “Somebody had better start talking!”
“Fine,” Finn agrees. “But you really need to come out from behind that rock before you step on the damn snake.”
I leap away so fast, Mario breaks into laughter. I stumble a little, then glance back to see that Finn was right. A snake lies coiled just behind my former refuge.
“It can’t hurt you,” Mario reminds me, “but I can imagine it would be hard for you to concentrate with a snake nearby. Let’s move back to the classroom. Rudy looks like he’s tired of sitting on a rock anyway.”
“Indeed.” Rudy stands, brushing off his pants. Mario stands as well, gesturing to the large boulder just behind me, and the red door set within it.
Finn opens the door, and I step through warily, still not over
