Chapter 23

Gray-blue waves rolled toward shore. At first, Winnie didn’t understand what it meant. Her head throbbed, and the sun burned too deeply into her scalp for logical thought. Finally, the meaning behind the moving water sank in. I’m home! Dorothy had needed ruby slippers. All Winnie had to do was fall out of a tree. Or wake up. She breathed in the fresh salty air.

Nearby, Mikey built a sandcastle and hummed to himself.

She sat next to him, happy to be back. “Hey, bud, you’ll never believe the dream I just had. Your queen was a giant white toad!”

He blinked at her from under his long bangs.

“And her people tried to kill me. Some crazy dream, huh?”

“That was rude, but they won’t try that again. You have my word and the oracle’s.” His little hands gently patted more sand into place.

“I don’t think you can control my dreams. Can you? I mean, in my last one the lurk in never came.”

“Good thing they’re slow, huh? That’ll give you time to recover before they reach the shore.”

“Maybe in my next dream, I’ll be able to fly. Ya know, like Superman? If I can see the lurk in from the air, I can soar back to the castle and warn everybody. The wig gets probably won’t carry the mel-yew fighters over the ocean, but we can still fight from the air. We’ll get the flying snakes to spit coconuts at them.”

“Coconuts!” He fell over backward, laughing. “You’re funny, Windy.”

She pressed her palms to her temples. “I’m a laugh a minute. Come with me to the house. I need aspirin, and you can’t be out here alone.”

“Dream aspirin won’t help you.”

“Ha ha. Frama-12 was the dream, not this.”

Or was it? Mikey hadn’t created a typical formless little-kid sandcastle. He’d perfectly designed a replica of Queen Bogen’s fortress in the sand. It even featured detailed arches and battlements.

Her mouth dropped open. “Wait. This part can’t be the dream. I smell the ocean. I feel the sun burning down on me. And I have one killer of a headache.”

“I’m not sure about the smells, but the heat is from your fever.” He sat back on his heels. “The headache is from the fall you took.”

She stared at the sand, desperately wishing to be home. Why couldn’t the lurk in threat be the dream? Her head hurt too much to handle a battle, even with a delay. And, as much as she hated to admit it, she wanted her daddy.

Mikey stood and dusted the sand from the back of his bathing suit. “Your dad’s dreaming about exploring the North Pole right now. But he’ll come if you ask him to.”

“Yeah, right. Abracadabra, Dad appear.” She meant it as a joke.

A man Dad’s size materialized on the beach. He wore a snow-covered parka, tinted goggles, and furry boots.

The Arctic man shoved his fur-lined hood off his head. Gobs of melting snow plopped onto the sand, sizzling in the heat. The winter clothes melted into tan shorts and a white T-shirt. Winnie’s dad smiled. “Hey, Win. This is weird, huh? Weren’t we just on a Ferris wheel?”

She grinned up at him. “For you, maybe. For me, it’s been a couple days. Dreams are funny like that.”

Now that she’d brought him here, she couldn’t remember why she wanted him. The fact that he appeared gave her a new, intriguing thought. Did she have the power to make anyone appear? Anyone…like her mom?

Her wish emerged as a smoky whisper that rippled beside Dad. It grew into Mom’s solid shape, so vibrantly alive and dressed in a white, one-piece bathing suit.

“Glynnis?” Dad said in an awed whisper.

Winnie jumped up and let out an excited squeal. “Mom!”

Dad cocked an eyebrow. “This isn’t right. Glynnis, you can’t be here.”

Mom’s smile dissolved along with the rest of her.

Angry tears blurred Winnie’s vision. “We need to bring her back.”

“Win.” Worried lines appeared on his forehead. “That’s not how it is now. We have Maria.”

She sank to her knees on the sand. She didn’t have to look up to know Dad had vanished. She felt the void in the air.

Mikey knelt beside her. “He just woke up. You have to leave too.”

She squeezed her eyes shut. “I want Mom.”

The desire brought her back. Winnie rested her head on Mom’s soft shoulder. She hugged as hard as she could, but Mom dissolved again, leaving Winnie alone with Mikey.

Even with her eyes still closed, she sensed him at her side. Neither spoke. The waves splashed against the shore. The pounding headache worsened. Maybe if she slept, she’d escape the pain. Warriors had to sleep sometime.

“Rest is a good idea,” he said. “To get your strength up.”

She nodded. “I need another minute before I go.” She opened her eyes. The ocean waves rolled in and out. She silently prayed for the strength to do what needed to be done.

“Windy?” He slid his hand back and forth in the sand. “Could you…could you tell my mom I love her?”

“You’re asking the wrong person, buddy. I’m still in Frama-12, remember? Your mom’s right here.”

Mikey stared back with sad eyes. “I meant my Frama-12 mom.”

“Ohh.” Takka would naturally miss his family. If her head wasn’t killing her, she would have figured that one out sooner. “What’s her name?”

Before he answered, Winnie fell away from the beach and into a black void.