The Lady of Dark Lake Read online

  Air, arm, air. Lady’s mind screamed at her, repeating a mantra of fear and need. She kicked up and headed for the surface. The arm wasn’t attached to anything anymore. She would get to the surface, breathe, and then figure out how to get the cursed hand to let go.

  Lady couldn’t use both hands to swim upward. She couldn’t use even one stuck to the arm like it was. Using her legs was slow going. She wasn’t sure she would make it in time. The corners of her vision were darkening, growing fuzzy. Then the arm, impossibly, yanked down hard. Lady gasped, swallowing water in the process. She choked and coughed. Her chest spasmed and more water got in. This was it, she thought as the dismembered arm dragged her back down. This was how she died. Althea had been right. She really wouldn’t be leaving Dark Lake.

  Chapter Four

  Lady was in a large and empty space. It was a white void, she thought as she sat up and looked around. Where was she? Why was she here? What did she remember?

  The arm. It came back to Lady’s mind’s eye in a flash. There was an arm, a sticky, gummy, evil arm. She had been trying to rescue its owner. Instead, the arm had pulled her down, down, down into the lake. Was she dead? Lady took a deep breath. She placed a hand to her breast and felt her heart pounding. It didn’t feel like she was dead. Someone must have saved her from the lake.

  All at once, the white void wasn’t a void anymore. She was sitting on the dock she had jumped from. Her feet were dangling over the choppy water of the lake. The skies were still dark. Thunder boomed. Rain was falling. Lady wished it would stop and, shockingly, it did. Not that it mattered much. When she looked down she found she was wearing only her tank top and underwear. They were both sodden with lake water. She swore and looked around for her pants. They were folded on the dock only a few feet away. Her tennis shoes sat on top of them. Thank goodness. She scrambled to her feet. She wiggled into her jeans first and then the shoes. She looked around as she did so, trying to spot her savior.

  There was no one on the docks nor any of the other docks as far as she could see. That didn’t make sense. Why would they rescue her just to leave her alone, out in the rain?

  Maybe Andrea and Destiny hadn’t been strong enough to carry Lady. Maybe they were afraid to move her. They could be in the office right now calling an ambulance. All that sounded reasonable. She could see the office from where she stood on the dock. There were definitely lights on inside. Soaking wet but still eager to get out of the rain, Lady ran for the office building.

  It was nice to get out of the rain, even if she was still soaked. “Andrea!” she called. “Destiny?” There were no answers. The lights were on and it felt like the heat had been turned up high, but Lady still didn’t see anyone. “Hello?” They couldn’t have just left her on the dock. They couldn’t have gone much further than the office. It wouldn’t make sense. Lady went around the front desk and into the back. Nope, no one there either. They really had just left her on the docks. As thankful as she was for them rescuing her, she couldn’t help but feel some anger stirring. They had just left her at the end of the pier! In the rain! No one had called in a medical professional or even bothered to wait to see if she was all right! What the heck?

  Lady turned and left the back room. She would call 911 herself. Someone had to. She was trying to remember where she had left her bag when something called her name.

  “Lady.”

  Thank goodness. She wasn’t alone. Not that she recognized the voice. It was a man’s voice. “Who’s there? Where are you?” She didn’t see anyone standing around in the shop. She jumped when something jumped on the counter. It was a yellow tabby cat. “Lion?” Lady couldn’t believe it. She reached out and took the cat’s head between her hands, stroking beneath its chin with her thumbs. “How did you get all the way out here?”

  “All the way out here?” Lion turned his head to one side. His mouth wasn’t moving, but there was no doubt about it. The words were coming from him. “No, I’m still at the inn. We’re both at the inn. You’re asleep.”

  The idea that she was asleep comforted Lady immediately. She exhaled the breath she had been holding. “Oh, okay.” Of course she was dreaming. She had very vivid dreams sometimes. Occasionally she even became lucid during them. “I wish I’d realized that sooner. I hate dying in dreams. I thought I was drowning. It felt so real.”

  “Oh, no. That happened. You did almost drown.”

  Lady didn’t particularly trust a character in her dream world telling her what was and wasn’t a product of her imagination. “I’ll figure out what happed when I wake up.”

  Lion’s little shoulders raised a little. “Suit yourself,” he said. “I’d like to talk about something else anyway.”

  Lady climbed up onto the counter. This was a dream. She didn’t have to worry about anyone thinking poorly of her for it. “What do you want to talk about?” Lady patted her lap, inviting Lion to sit on it. It was dry now. She was dry. She wasn’t sure when that had happened. Probably around the time she had realized she was dreaming.

  Lion climbed into his owner’s lap and purred. Lady could feel him gently vibrating as she stroked his soft fur. “I’m sorry I got you kicked off that bus.”

  “That was really out of character for you. But, I mean, it was ultimately my fault. You’re just a cat. I shouldn’t have stuffed you in a bag for as long as I did.”

  “No, you’re a good owner. You left home to be with me. The bus was the only way you could afford to travel. I got us kicked off the bus on purpose. I’m trying to be a good cat, but we belong here in Dark Lake. I can feel it.”

  “And why is that?” Lady wasn’t taking the conversation seriously. How could she, given that it was all taking place in a dream?

  “There are people like us here.” Lion had a calm, even voice. He was patient.

  Lady laughed. “You’re not a people, Lion.”

  “Well, it’s where you belong, and I belong with you,” Lion snapped. Maybe he wasn’t so patient. “I can sense it, and since you’re so keen on leaving this place behind, I imagine you can’t. You need me.”

  “I do need you. I love you. That doesn’t mean you can just decide where we’re going to live. I’m the human. I get to decide.”

  “Humans are so self-centered.”

  “Well, when you start making money and doing the shopping and chores, you can have a say in things too.”

  Lion made a low grumbling sound. “I don’t possess the same skill set as you. I’m trying to help now, and you’re just… making it difficult. We need to be here. There’s magic here. I can feel it.”

  Lady laughed again. “Magic?”

  “Yes, that’s what I said. There’s magic here. You should be close to a place like this. You belong here. I sense magic in you too. That’s why I was so drawn to you. That’s why we were so drawn to each other.”

  “So I’m a wizard, huh?” Lady wasn’t even bothering to keep the amused smile off her face.

  “I would call you a witch, but it’s the twenty-first century. You can call yourself a wizard if you want.”

  “So I can do magic and stuff?” Lady wiggled her fingers in the air. A top hat appeared. It dropped to the counter she was sitting on and a white bunny poked its head out looking curious.

  “Not like… Not like that,” Lion said with a sigh. “You’re dreaming right now, so you can do whatever you want. In the material world you won’t be able to summon things out of thin air. I don’t think anyone can just create new matter like that. Also, you’ll need training.”

  “Ah.” Lady nodded like that made perfect sense to her. “Right, I’ll need to find someone here to teach me how to be a wizard. Is that why we stopped here? Is there a wizarding school nearby?”

  “No,” said Lion. His voice had gone flat. Lady suddenly felt a little guilty. She knew she was dreaming, but being mean to Lion didn’t really sit right with her, even if it was only in a dream. “You would be better off getting an older witch to teach you. Talk to Ms. Poole about it. Maybe s
he can point you in the right direction.”

  “So Ms. Poole is a witch, huh? Yeah, I could see that.” Lady still didn’t believe in magic, but it was easy to imagine dour old Ms. Poole stirring a cauldron or baking kids in an oven. She seemed like the sort of woman people told stories about. On Halloween, kids probably dared other kids to run and knock on the door. Maybe the bravest kids went inside and hit the bell on the desk. “Sure, I’ll ask her.” Lady didn’t intend to ask her, really. She just didn’t want to disappoint Lion the dream cat.

  “Good.” Lion rose up on all four paws. “I’m glad we had this talk, but you should probably go on and wake up now. You’ve been asleep all day.” He leapt from the counter then. Lady didn’t hear him land so she leaned forward. He wasn’t on the floor.

  “Lion?” Lady looked around. “Where are you? Come back.” She was the one controlling her dream so she fully expected for Lion to appear again. He did reappear. He was suddenly on the counter, meowing softly, except it wasn’t quite right. The Lion Lady had seen moments ago had looked so solid. The sounds he made were clear. The Lion that sat beside her now was sort of fuzzy around the edges. Even the markings on his fur looked uncertain. They wriggled about, stretching and undulating almost imperceptibly. When he meowed or purred, the sound was echoey and muted. It was like easily spotting a fake after seeing the real deal. “Weird,” Lady muttered to herself. She reached down and petted the cat anyway. He purred. “Super weird… I think I’m ready to wake up now.” Lady closed her eyes and willed herself to wake up. She dropped down from the counter but never hit the floor. Her stomach went up to her throat as she fell and fell and fell. Her pulse quickened, her eyes shot open, and then…

  Lady jerked away, eyes wide and lungs sucking down air. She was in bed. For less than a second, she thought she was back in her room in Atlanta. It didn’t take long for her to realize where she actually was. She was at the inn, in the room Ms. Poole had given her for the night.

  Lion was at the foot of the bed, eyes wide and back arched. He must have been sleeping on top of her when she bolted upright. He slept on top of her a lot. “Sorry, boy.” She reached out and scratched Lion beneath the chin, feeling him purr.

  “Oh!” There was sudden movement in the corner that startled Lady like she must have startled Lion. “You’re awake! Good. Gosh, I was so worried. Hang on, I’ll go get someone.” It was Andrea. She was wearing a thin flower-print blouse and blue skinny jeans. Her eye makeup was smudged a little on one side. It looked like she had fallen asleep with her head propped up on her hand. She slipped her feet into the strappy sandals at the base of her chair. “I’ll be right back.” She hurried out of the room before Lady could ask even one question out of the half-million she had.

  “The heck?” Lady swung her legs out of bed and rested her bare feet on the cold floor. She was wearing a gown made of scratchy brown cotton. It was long and hideous. She didn’t own any nightgowns. She didn’t remember getting dressed in a nightgown. Whose clothes was she wearing?! More importantly, who had undressed her?!

  “Well, look who’s up and about.” Althea entered the room with a tatty rag in her hands. She looked to be drying them off. “I told everyone you would be rejoining us today. Everyone kept asking me if I was sure. Of course I was sure! I’m never wrong about these things.” Al was looking especially round today. A handmade blouse was tucked into the elastic band of a skirt. The print was one of alternating pastoral settings. It looked like the tacky kitchen curtains kitschy housewives made by hand… except Althea had turned those curtains into an ensemble.

  Lady looked around the room as if it might have some of the answers she was looking for. Andrea stood behind Al looking fidgety and uncertain. “What happened?” That was the first thing Lady wanted to know.

  “Did you forget?” Al raised her eyebrows as she walked to the bed. “You nearly drowned. Do you remember nearly drowning? Millie thinks it was stupid of you, but I think trying to save someone is noble.” She placed her hands on either side of Lady’s face and closed her eyes. It was creepy.

  “What are you doing?” asked Lady, trying to pull away slowly.

  “Just checking up on you. It’s easiest with skin to skin contact. Mmm, yes. Good.” Al dropped her hands. “You’re fine now. Though you might feel a bit sick. I imagine you’re groggy and quite hungry. Take it slow today.”

  “How long was I out for?” Lady looked out the window. It was still day light.

  “Just a little more than twenty-four hours,” Al said like it was no big deal. Lady didn’t see things quite the same.

  “What?” Lady stood. Her head spun from standing too fast. Al put a hand on her shoulder, but Lady shrugged her off. “Why didn’t anyone take me to a hospital?!”

  “Because we knew you were going to be fine. Millie called me here, and I confirmed it. I can tell these things, remember? I’m good at it. I’m a healer.”

  “You know what?” Lady was losing her temper more and more with each passing second. “I don’t really care about the hippie New Age crap, but how about you leave emergency medical situations to the professionals?”

  “Well,” Al began slowly, taking Lady’s accusatory tone in stride. “I worked as a nurse in the ER for about thirty-nine years or so. Does that make you feel better?”

  It did a bit, actually. It also disarmed her. “O-okay, but you still should have taken me to the hospital when I took that long to wake up. What if I’d had brain damage from oxygen deprivation or something?”

  “Oh, no, it wasn’t anything medical keeping your body asleep. At least, it wasn’t anything they could have helped with in a hospital. You were journeying, Dear. That’s not something that typically needs to be interfered with.”

  “Journeying?” Lady repeated. She was feeling light headed again. She sank back down to the bed.

  Al nodded. “Dreaming or using the astral body. There was something that wanted to be heard. Did you hear it?”

  Lady thought back to the dream she had been having shortly before waking up. She recalled Lion talking to her, but it was ridiculous to think there was any meaning to that. It was just a dream, a lucid one. She had those all the time. “I should have gone to the hospital and had an MRI done.”

  “Could you have afforded that?” asked Al “How’s your insurance situation?”

  “They can’t just refuse you treatment if you get rushed in comatose! I’d rather be in debt than dead!”

  “I knew what I was doing.” Al’s usual smile fell into something closer to a frown. “But, I’ll keep that in mind next time. Do you want me to call an ambulance now?”

  “There won’t be a next time. I’m leaving here the next chance I get and… No, um, no ambulance. I think I’m okay.” For all her big talk, Lady didn’t want to drive herself deeper into debt even if it was risky to her health.

  Al’s dark eyebrows rose again. “Suit yourself.” She spun on one heel and left the room.

  Andrea closed the door behind her. A few seconds later she was giving a low whistle. “I think you made her mad. I’ve never seen her mad. She’s always, like, annoyingly upbeat.”

  Lady’s attention snapped to Andrea. She had nearly forgotten that Andrea had been one of the last people she had seen before passing out. “Hey, what happened at the lake? Destiny! Is Destiny okay? Is she the one that pulled me out?” Someone must have saved her, and the only one who had been anywhere nearby had been Destiny.

  “Her boyfriend showed up and helped.” The way Andrea spoke suggested she didn’t much like Destiny’s boyfriend.

  “Well, I’m glad he did. I’m not sure I would have made it if someone hadn’t helped.”

  Andrea looked down at the floor. “Sorry,” she said softly. “We’re not supposed to jump in and try to save someone who’s drowning that far out. We can offer them, like, a long pole or something if they’re nearer to the dock. People aren’t supposed to be swimming there anyway. There’s other places to swim at. You aren’t supposed to swim at the boat
s and—I’m sorry. I’m making excuses. I’m sure none of that means anything to you.”

  Lady was quick to shake her head. “No, you’re right. It was a dangerous thing to do. I shouldn’t have jumped in honestly, but I was worried about Destiny and have swimming experience so I thought…” Lady sighed. “How is Destiny?”

  “She’s fine. She’s mad at you, if you can believe it. She said you shouldn’t have gone in if you were such a weak swimmer.”

  “What?”

  “Don’t worry. I told her off for you.” Andrea winked. “What are friends for? I didn’t save your life, so the least I could do was defend your honor while you were out of commission.”

  Friend. Lady did her best not to smile. How long had it been since someone had called her a friend? “Did they find the…” Lady struggled with what to call the arm. It hadn’t been a man. It couldn’t have been the person calling for help. Except, it had to be. Her brain had been oxygen starved. The water was murky and hard to see in. She had imagined things in that darkness and panicked. That had to be it. “Did they find the guy who was calling for help?”

  “I never heard anything,” Andrea said softly. She shifted her weight to one foot and gave Lady a sympathetic look. “And you were the only person they came back to shore with, so… No, I guess not.”

  “But there was definitely a voice, and Destiny said she saw something! I… saw something too. At least, I’m pretty sure I did. If they didn’t rescue anyone but me then… They should probably drag the lake.” Lady didn’t like saying that last part, but it was the truth. Someone was dead down there. She felt sure of it.

  “I don’t know what Destiny saw or heard.” Andrea shook her head. “After she got back to the dock with that boyfriend of hers, she said she must have imagined things. We called our boss, and he didn’t want us making a big fuss out of it. You know how bosses are. They’re only interested in the bottom line.”

  “You should have called the police anyway!” Lady didn’t understand how this could be up for dispute. At the very least, someone should check. That’s how people did things, right? She didn’t know exactly how this dragging the lake stuff worked, how many eye-witness accounts you needed.