Empyreal: Awaken - Book One Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Besides, you've been so tired lately
... And well, between helping your dad and me with the Benefit, and
working so hard on your studies ... I thought that you may need
some rest, Cor.”
    “Yeah, I guess, but ... I mean
–”
    “You’re welcome and you can thank me
by getting up and getting dressed.” Katelyn said, leaning down to
kiss her daughter atop her head.
    “Mom –” Coralie started.
    “Yes, Honey...” Katelyn stopped just
before walking out of the bedroom door.
    “Umm...” Coralie paused. The words
would not come. How crazy her mother must be thinking she is right
now. She suddenly questioned herself. Questioning, had she really
been asleep all day ... had she really never left the house ... had
she not taken Jacques for a walk ... had she really not ran into
some psycho-creep-canine-keeper, who had tried to kill her? Yeah, she thought, that didn't sound crazy. She
snapped back into reality to see her mother’s questioning stare.
“Nevermind, Mom.”
    “Okay, Hon.” Katelyn smiled and
answered innocently, then turned to exit the doorway. Coralie sat
on the edge of her bed, listening to her mother's footsteps descend
the stairs. She shifted her eyes and stared at the book that lay on
her bedside table.
    She sighed. She had already told her
parents about her dreams once. She recalled the concerned looks on
their faces. A few more mentions of this kind could get her an
express ticket to seeking professional help.
    She took a deep breath and decided to
keep this one mention to herself. It was not like she had made a
regular practice of keeping things from her parents, but this
seemed a bit necessary ... just until she could shake this feeling.
The feeling that something was going on ...
    Her dreams had seemed real . Too
real. But it had to be real, right? If not, if what she was
experiencing was all a dream ... then, what did she have to worry
about? Dreams couldn’t hurt you, could they?
    “Coralie...” she heard her mother call
from downstairs, “I don't hear you stirring...”
    “I'm up, Mom...” Coralie said as she
rose to her feet, walked across her room, and looked down from her
window. The sight made a grin spread across her face. She saw
Jacques resting underneath the big oak tree in their
backyard.
    Maybe it was just a dream
... a vivid, crazy dream ...
    As she strode lightly across her room,
she took a hair tie from her wrist, and pulled her hair into a
short sprig to the back of her head.
    Something caught her eye.
    Her eyes widened as she quickly moved
back into view of her mirror. She moved in closer to the mirror,
checking out her extremely visible, bruised shoulder.
    She touched it lightly, causing a
sharp pain to run up her arm. It was a dark shade of purple and
blue that stretched over her entire shoulder, highlighted with red
& pink scrapes.
    She closed her eyes tightly. She said
to herself, “This is not real...it was only a dream... only a
dream...”
    Eyes still closed, she touched her
shoulder again. Still painful, she winced. She opened her
eyes and took a deep breath inward.
    Looking at her bare shoulder,
underneath the skinning strap of her tank top, the bruise gawked
back at Coralie, taunting her. Her parents could not see this. What would they think?
    She heard lightly ascending footsteps,
coming up the staircase. Quickly, she grabbed at her sweatshirt
that lay across the back of her arm chair from the day before, and
through it over her head.
    “Coralie?” her dad said, as he knocked
lightly on the door frame.
    “Hey Dad!” she answered,
quickly.
    “A little jumpy, huh?”
    “Uh, no ... well, yeah, I guess ...
still not quite awake yet...”
    “Well, are you awake enough for a
mid-afternoon snack?” Cal asked, as he pulled a plate from his
back. “I made you an ultimate grilled cheese – your favorite –
well, aside, of course, from Mom's cold spaghetti...”
    “Well, of course...” she said with
agreement.
    “... so, I thought that since you had
had