Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 110492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 442(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 442(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
“Sorry about that. We were roommates when I first got here and she hated me right from the start,” she explained.
She almost said, “Anything I have, she wants” but stopped herself. Because of course, she didn’t have Vic, except as a new friend. And no matter how much she was growing to like him, she didn’t really know him at all.
“She is…” He seemed to be struggling for words. “Not…well,” he got out at last.
“Well, most people here aren’t well,” Torri pointed out. “Tanya claims she has demons inside her, but honestly, I think she’s just spoiled rotten.”
“Rotten?” Vic gave her a confused look.
“That just means she wants her own way and throws a tantrum when she can’t get what she wants,” Torri explained.
Vic nodded thoughtfully.
“Not…nice,” he amended.
“No, I’m afraid not.” Torri sighed. “Don’t let her bother you. She’ll only keep picking at you if she thinks she’s getting under your skin.”
Vic nodded again, this time without speaking. Torri was afraid the incident had put a damper on their new friendship but when dinner was over and they were all getting up, he smiled at her again.
“I enjoyed…eating…with you,” he said.
“I enjoyed eating with you, too.” Torri smiled up at him. “You know, I think your speech is really improving.”
“Trying…” He tapped the side of his head. “Words…come…faster.”
“Hopefully soon,” Torri said encouragingly.
As they went to dump their trays, she smiled at him again and pretended she couldn’t see the murderous glare Tanya was still giving her.
There was definitely going to be trouble from that direction down the line but there was nothing she could do except try to be ready for it.
Fifteen
But strangely, there was no trouble that entire week—not until the very end.
Tanya seemed content to stew in her own juices and just shoot nasty looks at Torri across the room from time to time. O’Toole was still gone—hopefully permanently—and Torri had no more night terrors.
Well, maybe it wasn’t quite right to say she didn’t have them anymore, Torri admitted to herself. It was more accurate to say that she had them, but her new dreams of Vic stopped them almost before they could start.
Every night when she found herself in front of those tall alien doors with their neon-green writing, the Kindred scout would appear and take her in his arms and tell her to take them someplace else. And each night, Torri closed her eyes and used her determination to bend the night terror to her own will.
She almost always took the two of them to the meadow outside Nana’s cabin. It was peaceful there—and beautiful. It was always springtime in her dreams. She talked about her childhood and showed Vic the different flowers. She explained how to pinch the end of the honeysuckle blossom to pull out the long stamen of the flower and lick up the tiny drop of sweet nectar at the end of it. She told him how she missed her grandmother and her old life, before St. Elizabeth’s. She told him how it felt like she and Chuck had grown apart and she didn’t know what trajectory her marriage was on now.
This last bit of information was something Torri would have normally kept to herself. She was a private person when it came to her relationships, and she didn’t like to “air her dirty laundry” as Nana used to say.
But she was dreaming and dreams aren’t real—so what harm was there in telling Vic about Chuck, she reasoned to herself. Besides, Vic was a wonderful listener—he never offered any judgment, just let her talk about the things that bothered her.
But Torri didn’t do all the talking. Vic, in turn, told her about the many missions he had been on for the Kindred. He had what seemed like a million different fascinating stories of first contacts with alien civilizations—some of which had resulted in lasting friendships for the Kindred and some which were absolute disasters.
They talked and talked about everything, until Torri felt like she knew him better than she had any right to know a stranger she’d just met a week ago. She felt safe with Vic—protected and cared for. He always pulled her protectively close to his big body while they stood in front of the alien doors, but she found that she didn’t want to stop touching him even when they had both been transported to the safety of Nana’s meadow. It got harder and harder to leave the shelter of the big Kindred scout’s arms and put distance between them.
During her waking hours, Torri told herself she needed to be careful. She barely knew Vic and of course, she was certain the dreams weren’t real. Also, she was still married. But despite all that, she couldn’t help the fluttery feeling she got in her stomach every time he was near.