the letters kept coming.
N E
“ Mine. ” The strangest sensation swept through me, a vague, relentless current of disjointed energy. “I-I don’t un-n-nder-tand—”
Vaguely I was aware of Victoria’s scream—and Chase twisting toward me. But the room started to dissolve. Like raindrops, sliding down glass. But none of that mattered. None of it felt real, only like … a dream.
“W-w-w…” My tongue thickened against my mouth. “Wh-at are y-you taw-king … abwout?”
Behind me something crashed, and the room started to strobe. I could see my hand shaking, even as the triangle jolted from letter to letter.
TOO LATE
Chase was lunging toward me then, his voice so very, very far away. And he let go. He let go of my hand, and grabbed me by the arm. “Trinity, stop!”
Around me everything crackled.
“Omigod!” Victoria screamed, but I couldn’t see her anymore. Couldn’t see anything. Only the beautiful warm glow of the board, and the rapidly moving pointer.
DREAMS
“Y-yes.” The vibrations made the word echo. “Y-yes—”
Faster, faster, never slowing, never stopping.
NEVER LET
“Go,” Victoria murmured.
NEVER LET GO
“I w-w-w-o-o-o…” Won’t. The word was there, in my mind. My heart. I could think it. I won’t. I won’t let go.
But I couldn’t give it voice. Couldn’t give anything voice. Wasn’t sure I still had one. Everything was pulsing, twitching—
“Oh, God!”
On some distorted level screaming registered. But it wasn’t real. It wasn’t happening. There was only the triangle veering along the roman letters.
“Chase—omigod, what’s happening to her?”
“Trinity!” He was holding on tighter now, tugging, trying to wrap me up … “Say good-bye—say good-bye now !”
The shadows slipped closer, swallowing—consuming. I tried to fight them, to fight the disjointedness of my own body. But the cold paralyzed me—and a new word formed.
FOREVER
Everything stopped. The buzz fell silent. The candles went dark. Only breath remained—slow, hypnotic. Mine. Chase’s. Victoria’s.
And the room’s, cold—vacant.
“Don’t go,” I whispered, and this time the words came clearly. With a strange tingling in my hands and feet, my face, I stared at the pale finger remaining against the pointer, and realized it was my own.
“Come back,” I whispered. “Mom—”
It took a second to realize Chase had his hands on my face, and every ounce of blood had drained from Victoria’s.
“Holy fucking crap,” she whispered.
I blinked against the heaviness.
“Trinity.” Chase’s voice. Quiet. Strong. “Look at me.”
Through the haze I did, sifting through shadows that weren’t there to find him crouched beside me, his eyes like steel on mine.
“What do you see?” he asked, his voice so phenomenally steady.
I don’t know why my eyes flooded. “You,” I whispered, moistening my lips. “I see you.”
His throat worked. “Say good-bye.”
I blinked, lifted my free hand to join the one he had against my face. “I’m not ready…”
“You have to,” he said again, this time harder, more forceful. “To that stupid board—”
Slowly I turned to the golden glow of what so many people believed was nothing more than harmless fun, and the small pointer resting over the letter R.
FOREVER
“Do you believe in forever?” Victoria had asked me only a few days before.
Now I stared.
“Close the portal,” Chase said. His voice was unbearably gentle. “Close it before—”
He didn’t finish. He didn’t need to. Sometimes words were necessary, and sometimes they weren’t. Sometimes there simply were none.
I stared at the board, the vibration now a deceptive hum, the last dying breath of a current. “I-I can’t.”
“You don’t have a choice,” he said, and then his finger was there again, side by side with mine. And together we guided the triangular pointer. Victoria joined us as we crossed the U.
Together, we brought the triangle to rest
N E
“ Mine. ” The strangest sensation swept through me, a vague, relentless current of disjointed energy. “I-I don’t un-n-nder-tand—”
Vaguely I was aware of Victoria’s scream—and Chase twisting toward me. But the room started to dissolve. Like raindrops, sliding down glass. But none of that mattered. None of it felt real, only like … a dream.
“W-w-w…” My tongue thickened against my mouth. “Wh-at are y-you taw-king … abwout?”
Behind me something crashed, and the room started to strobe. I could see my hand shaking, even as the triangle jolted from letter to letter.
TOO LATE
Chase was lunging toward me then, his voice so very, very far away. And he let go. He let go of my hand, and grabbed me by the arm. “Trinity, stop!”
Around me everything crackled.
“Omigod!” Victoria screamed, but I couldn’t see her anymore. Couldn’t see anything. Only the beautiful warm glow of the board, and the rapidly moving pointer.
DREAMS
“Y-yes.” The vibrations made the word echo. “Y-yes—”
Faster, faster, never slowing, never stopping.
NEVER LET
“Go,” Victoria murmured.
NEVER LET GO
“I w-w-w-o-o-o…” Won’t. The word was there, in my mind. My heart. I could think it. I won’t. I won’t let go.
But I couldn’t give it voice. Couldn’t give anything voice. Wasn’t sure I still had one. Everything was pulsing, twitching—
“Oh, God!”
On some distorted level screaming registered. But it wasn’t real. It wasn’t happening. There was only the triangle veering along the roman letters.
“Chase—omigod, what’s happening to her?”
“Trinity!” He was holding on tighter now, tugging, trying to wrap me up … “Say good-bye—say good-bye now !”
The shadows slipped closer, swallowing—consuming. I tried to fight them, to fight the disjointedness of my own body. But the cold paralyzed me—and a new word formed.
FOREVER
Everything stopped. The buzz fell silent. The candles went dark. Only breath remained—slow, hypnotic. Mine. Chase’s. Victoria’s.
And the room’s, cold—vacant.
“Don’t go,” I whispered, and this time the words came clearly. With a strange tingling in my hands and feet, my face, I stared at the pale finger remaining against the pointer, and realized it was my own.
“Come back,” I whispered. “Mom—”
It took a second to realize Chase had his hands on my face, and every ounce of blood had drained from Victoria’s.
“Holy fucking crap,” she whispered.
I blinked against the heaviness.
“Trinity.” Chase’s voice. Quiet. Strong. “Look at me.”
Through the haze I did, sifting through shadows that weren’t there to find him crouched beside me, his eyes like steel on mine.
“What do you see?” he asked, his voice so phenomenally steady.
I don’t know why my eyes flooded. “You,” I whispered, moistening my lips. “I see you.”
His throat worked. “Say good-bye.”
I blinked, lifted my free hand to join the one he had against my face. “I’m not ready…”
“You have to,” he said again, this time harder, more forceful. “To that stupid board—”
Slowly I turned to the golden glow of what so many people believed was nothing more than harmless fun, and the small pointer resting over the letter R.
FOREVER
“Do you believe in forever?” Victoria had asked me only a few days before.
Now I stared.
“Close the portal,” Chase said. His voice was unbearably gentle. “Close it before—”
He didn’t finish. He didn’t need to. Sometimes words were necessary, and sometimes they weren’t. Sometimes there simply were none.
I stared at the board, the vibration now a deceptive hum, the last dying breath of a current. “I-I can’t.”
“You don’t have a choice,” he said, and then his finger was there again, side by side with mine. And together we guided the triangular pointer. Victoria joined us as we crossed the U.
Together, we brought the triangle to rest
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