Dreaming Dead Things

Chapter 3

Chapter 3Hearing Lockwood's voice made it feel like the Cab walls had closed in around me. I still knew that I was sitting across the table from Pam. I had my latte sitting there on the table in front of me, right next to my yummy chocolate muffin. But all of my attention was on the phone at my ear. Even though I'd expected this call it still came as a surprise.

“Ravyn? Are you there?” Lockwood asked.

I found my voice. “Yes. Sorry, you surprised me.”

“Is this a bad time?” His voice still sounded friendly, relaxed as if we were long-time friends.

In a way we are old friends. Inquisitor Lockwood has visited me every four years of my life. It started with my fourth birthday and every four birthdays since then he has shown up with his fellow inquisitors and a rat in a clear Plexiglas box. I hated that rat, but part of me always looked forward to Lockwood's visits. It was exciting. I didn't realize when I was younger exactly why he came, but he was movie-star handsome and mysterious in his slick red suit, with the long black tie and his dark sunglasses. Only when I was older did I realize the threat of their visits. If I woke the rat then they'd take me away and burn me, or more accurately, burn out that part of my brain responsible for my ability.

Four years ago I did start waking the dead but I learned to control it enough so that I passed his test.

I cleared my throat. “No, it's fine. I'm not in class or anything.”

Pam was giving me a questioning look, asking with her finger and face if she should leave. I shook my head.

“I thought I'd visit on Saturday, an early morning visit?”

“You're telling me when you're going to be here?”

Lockwood chuckled. “I doubt you're a threat, Ravyn. And you're old enough now to understand what we do. You were there four years ago.”

“Yes.” And I knew the full picture of what had happened.

“How does ten sound? I remember college, I don't want to wake you up too early.”

“That'd be fine.”

“Great. I'm looking forward to seeing you. It's hard to believe that you're all grown up and in college.”

“Two years now.”

Lockwood chuckled again. He had a nice laugh and my heart beat a little faster hearing it. Wow, did I still have a crush on him?

“Okay, Ravyn. I'll see you then.”

“Okay. Bye.” I took the phone from my ear and pressed the end icon. I set the phone carefully on the table.

Pam leaned forward. “Who was that? Old flame?”

I felt my face heat up and Pam laughed. “Oh, it was! Do tell me everything.”

I'd dreaded this event. People would notice when an Inquisition car showed up at the dorms, when inquisitors came inside and they'd talk. If I didn't tell Pam now she'd be hurt later. I picked up my chocolate muffin and picked out one of the dark chocolate chunks. I popped it into my mouth and that bitter sweet chocolate taste flooded my mouth. I felt a little better. Calmer. I needed to stay calm.

“That was an inquisitor.”

“Inquisitor? As in the Inquisition? Really?”

“Really.” I took a bite of the muffin and let it dissolve in my mouth before I washed it down with a sip of my mocha latte.

Pam tapped her fingers on her cup. “Why would the Inquisition want to talk to you?”

I shrugged. “It isn't really me. It's just that Helen Richardson is my grandmother.”

“Helen?” Pam's eyes widened. “Wait a sec. You mean from the Trailer Park of the Dead Things? That Helen?”

“Yes. That one. She's not like that now, of course. The Inquisition burned out the part of her brain responsible for her abilities, and a bit more. She can't even take care of herself.” That last part came out a little bitter, and I left out that fact that she almost regained her abilities not that long ago, but that was my fault.

“She's alive?”

“Yes. The Inquisition doesn't kill witches these days, not if they have a choice. There's no burning at the stake, and they aren't a bunch of religious fanatics.”

“You approve of what they do?”

I nodded slowly. “You've seen the Roland films, and four years ago there was an incident in my home town. A guy named Logan woke a bunch of dead things. He tried to frame me for it because he knew about my grandmother. It backfired and the Inquisition took him away.”

“That's crazy. I've known you for two years and you never mentioned it?”

I forced a smile onto my face. “I'm sorry Pam. I wanted to, but it always sounded so bizarre to bring up that my grandmother was Helen Richardson. And painful, my father died in that movie.”

Pam's face fell. “God, Ravyn. I'm sorry.”

I nodded. “I've come to terms with it, it's what happened.”

“Okay, but why does this inquisitor want to come and see you?”

“That nightmare I had this morning? With the zombies? That's based on a memory.”

“You can fly?”

“Not that part,” I lied. Sort of. “But when Logan raised the zombies I was surrounded at one point. I guess it isn't surprising that I'd have nightmares about it. Anyway, Lockwood visits me every four years to test me, to see if I've inherited my grandmother's abilities. That's one of the reasons that Logan's efforts to frame me failed, because they test me and tested me then.”

“And it has been four years?”

I nodded and took another bite of the muffin. I savored the chocolate flavor. Chocolate was one of those things that could help me stay calm and in control. I didn't like not telling Pam the whole truth. What I'd told her was true, leaving out the one essential fact that I could wake the dead.

“Yikes. So what do they do? How do they test you?”

“With a rat.”

Pam looked so shocked that I laughed. She glared at me.

“What do you mean, with a rat?”

“That's it, really. They have a rat in a clear Plexiglas box and they ask questions. If the rat so much as wiggles a whisker then they take me away.”

“I don't understand, don't rats normally move around?”

“Oh, the rat is dead.”

“Ick.”

I sipped my coffee and shrugged. “I guess I'm used to it.”

“So the Inquisition is going to show up with a rat in a box, ask you some questions and then go away? Right?”

“Right.” I shrugged. “It's no big deal, really, but people are going to talk when they show up. It'll get out that they came to see me, I wanted you to know the truth before that happened.”

“Thanks. I appreciate it. I'm afraid we can't be friends anymore.” Pam stood up and held out her hand. “No hard feelings?”

My heart rate spiked. If there'd been a roast chicken on the table I think it'd have gotten up and danced. Tears welled up in my eyes.

“Oh s**t!” Pam sat down quickly. “Ravyn, I'm so sorry. That was a joke. That's all. Really, I was kidding. I'm sorry.”

I sniffled and wiped at my eyes with my napkin. I took a deep breath and then another before I trusted myself to speak. “That was mean!”

“I'm sorry.” She gave me a half-smile and reached out, taking my hand. “I wouldn't do that! What kind of person do you think I am?”

“I didn't think you were that mean!”

“I'm sorry. Really. It was a joke.”

A joke, and one of my worst fears. Coming to college had been a chance to start over. No one knew who I was, and I didn't have to deal with the aftermath anymore. After the incident during high school the other kids had treated me like an outcast. Except for Trisha I didn't have any friends at all. It didn't matter that the Inquisition cleared me. Not to them.

“Ravyn, please, say something.”

I shook my head, but then said, “It's okay. Sorry, dredged up some bad memories, that's all.”

“I'm sorry.”

“It isn't your fault. You couldn't know what it was like. It didn't matter that the Inquisition cleared me. Most of the kids still thought I had a hand in what happened. Why wouldn't they, when they found out who my grandmother was?”

“That sucks. I didn't know. I'm really sorry. I don't judge you because of your grandmother.”

“Thanks.” I nibbled on the muffin. Chocolate helps so much. Just the taste of it melting on my tongue made me feel somewhat better.

Pam leaned closer and grinned. “But you never got to the old flame part of the story.”

I knew I blushed again, I felt my face burning and Pam chuckled. “There isn't anything to tell.”

“Right.”

“Seriously,” I insisted. “There's nothing. A school girl crush, maybe.”

“On the inquisitor that called?”

I nodded. “Lockwood. He's good-looking, mysterious and all of that, but he's also twenty years older than me.”

Pam grinned. “So he's like forty now, right? That's not old, really.”

“He's old enough to be my father!”

“If he started young, sure, but you don't think of him that way.”

I shook my head and then drank more coffee.

Pam lowered her voice. “Has he ever, you know, come on to you?”

I coughed and coffee went up my nose. More sprayed onto the table. Pam jerked back laughing.

“Pam!” I grabbed tissues and blew my nose. After that I got more from the dispenser and wiped up the mess. “That wasn't fair. And no, that would have been creepy. The last time I saw him I was only sixteen.”

“Just checking.”

Pam picked up her own coffee and tapped her finger on the rim. “Wow, Ravyn. You've been full of surprises today. Anything else?”

I tried to keep my face blank. “No, nothing.”

Evidently she bought it. She took a drink and then leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes. “I'm so tired today.”

“You should head back to the lab and get some sleep. Who knows? You might actually get out of your apartment this time.”

“I can stay,” Pam said. “I'll have time.”

I actually wanted some time alone after everything that had happened, but I wish I had asked her to stay. It might not have made any difference, there's no way to tell. Instead I tapped on my journal, and said, “I'm just going to work on my journal entry. Then I might go over the EEG printouts. Nothing too exciting.”

Pam yawned again and shook her head. “Okay, fine. I'll catch up to you later?”

“Great. Sweet dreams.”

She flashed me a smile and rose. After she was gone, I picked up the journal and ran my hand across the cover. I hesitated and then flipped open to the page marked with a paper clip. I closed my eyes and thought about zombies crowding around me, decaying hands reaching out, and then I started writing.