Chapter 20 I'M NOT SAYING GOODBYE.

SATURDAY
The light around me was bright and highly disturbing. I blinked a few times before opening my eyes. I was lying on the ground, in East valley. I didn't know how I could tell this was the forest, I just knew it was. I was in a shaded area; an all around me was illuminated with intense yellow sunlight.
"How did I get here?" I asked myself.
The forest was quiet, the light was bright. I shielded my eyes with my hand. And to my own bewilderment I noticed that my arm had grown back. I looked at it, amazed. I seemed to be all alone but then I saw Dawn appear out of nowhere, she was holding a bunch of flowers and smiling gleefully at me.
"Dawn?"
She smiled even brighter.
'Come Kaldar, no one can disturb us… no one can harm us." She said.
"Dawn how did we get hear?"
"Come to me Kaldar." I heard a low growl and a big black wolf jumped out of nowhere and swallowed her up.
'No, no, no, no, no, no."
"I'll destroy you demon."
The forest suddenly turned dark, except for a large bright beam of sunlight.
I felt a force lift me off the ground and levitate me through the air towards the wolf. I started to enter the intense beam of sunlight.
"No, STOP!" I yelled.
"Yes, Kaldar. Come to me."
The light touched my forehead and I felt the blistering and burning away of my flesh. I screamed in pain but the force hung me in the air under the sun.
"No, Stop. Please..."
The sunlight burned at my skin, the pain was agonizing and I felt the skin on my arms burn away as well.
‘Oh yes Kaldar, I am all around you… I am in your head—`
'NO!"
The sun was burning me but I wasn't dying.
"NOOO!!!" I screamed and I woke up from the nightmare. It was late now. I rubbed at my eyes with my right hand and tried to clear the fog from my sight. I was only a nightmare, I felt so real. I needed to meet Dawn, at least to tell her about our move. I saw a pair of strap boots; I was Jhan had been the one to get these for me, Jeremy wild probably enjoy watching me try to tie up my shoe laces with one hand. I got down stairs and to the parlour. Leya was lying on one of the sofas, wearing a yellow rain coat.
She always wore the weirdest clothes.
"You still wear raincoats in the house?" I asked her. She got up sharply with an astonished look of shock on her face. She got up quickly, rushing over to me and grabbing me in a hug. I had to put one leg back to attain balance.
"Whoa, someone's happy to see me," I said, surprised.
"Jereum told me you were dead," She said, and just then I noticed that she was actually crying.
'That lying crook,' I thought.
"I'll never die Leya, as long as I got you all to live for," I said.
She pulled away and I looked at her sad face, her big brown eyes swimming in tears.
"Don't cry Leya, I'm still living—"
"Your arm..." She trailed off, looking at the arm in terror.
"It'll grow back," I said, in consolation to her.
"Doesn't it hurt?" She asked.
"I won't lie—it does."
She looked at me, I was already in custom strap boots and had out on my jacket.
"You are going to her."
I thought she'd be disapproving of the idea but she said, "If you are doing this, then that can only mean that she means that much to you, I just hope she likes you too."
"Oh I know she does."
"The others would soon be back," She said, "this is thirty past eight so don't take took forever."
"I won't."
I got to the door and looked at her over my shoulders. "Leya, thank you."
She nodded once and I stepped out into the night. I sped up to Dawn's house and once I got around it, I saw her. She looked out of the window resting her elbows on the windowsill. She noticed me.
"Kaldar!" She said in excitement.
She got off the platform, I wasn't sure she had seen my broken arm. I leaped for the sill grabbing hold of it with my right arm and throwing myself in. She gazed at my face, a large smile on her face. But something was wrong and I was sure she had noticed it. My body wasn't perfectly outlined by the moonlight, she noticed my lost arm and I saw her mouth drop.
"K-k-kaldar..."
She stepped closer, trailing a finger down my arm and ending at the broken off point.
"What happened?" She asked in a shaky voice.
"I just had a little encounter, that's all."
"Who did this to you?" She asked, ignoring what I said, "is it because of me?"
"What?! No."
"Then why did they take your arm?" She asked, her eyes on the bandages at the end.
"It not what you think it is—" But I was cut off by her teary eyes.
"Don't worry it will grow back," I said, but didn't stop the tears from rolling down her face.
I was too close to her, way to close. But I had learnt to resist it now. I could hold it back, hold back the demon inside that wants to drink blood.
"But why did they do this?"
"It wasn't a vampire who did this."
"Then could have been able to tear away your arm?"
"A werewolf."
I saw the look of disbelief in her eyes, the uncertainty, the denial.
"A werewolf?"
"Yes, they are real."
Fear slowly wrapped her up and I saw the corner of her lips as it twitched. Everyone knew the legends of the werewolf and I was sure they also knee the stories that the vampires were the mortal enemies to the wolves. It only made sense that tow powerful creatures could not coexist in one world, one must fall under the other.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I was only certain when I encountered them, I thought the to be myths just as you thought I was a myth."
She kept quiet for a moment, and I was sure she was looking for the next smart question to drop.
"They are not in the town, are they?"
"No, from what we know they aren't here. But keep away from the forested areas at night. That's when they are active. Especially East valley."
"What's East valley?" She asked. Only vampires it as general knowledge that the place was once a valley. Humans on the other hand would just see it as it, a low sloping area.
"The Forest at the east side of Town, it was once a valley but the land was degraded for building purposes a very long time ago. Just stay away from that place, those beats are not friendly."
She nodded.
I glanced at her, unsure on whether to say it or not.
"Oh, and we will be moving. Away from here to the neighbouring town, but it's temporary."
"Why?"
"Because the higher court thinks that those wolves may come after us again."
"Please Dawn, just stay indoors at night. I beg you."
She saw the concern in my eyes; I would rather die than let anything bad happen to her.
"Okay."
"I need to go back, I can't let the others know I left the house. They wouldn't like it."
"Okay, just. Come see me once you're back."
"That's the first thing I'll do."
I turned around to leave, but I felt her grip on my right arm.
"Aren't you forgetting something?"
I smiled slowly knowingly. And she carefully wrapped her hands around my neck and kissed me slowly. Like she was being careful because I was without an arm.
"I love you Kaldar," She said, once she released me.
"I more than love Dawn."
I was out onto the grass in no time and speeding towards home. I got around the back and into the house. Leya was sitting on the sofa, she looked tired.
"How did it go?" She asked.
"It was okay."
"Did you... You know?"
"Who taught you that?" I asked her, perplexed.
"I've seen some kids in my class in do it."
"Oh..." Then I looked her with suspicion. "Have you?"
"No."
"Are you lying?"
"No."
"Are you lying that you're not lying?"
"No."
She looked as innocent as ever so I was compelled to believe her.
"Does your arm still hurt?" She asked. My arm did hurt indeed, and I could feel a throbbing sensation in it.
"Yes."
"You should rest," She said, her eye lids drooping. She was obviously as sleepy as could be.
"Come on Leya. Let's get you to your room."
She hopped off the sofa and took my intact hand and we walked towards the stairs. She got to her room door and I opened it for her. She got in and looked me through her sleep laden eyes.
"Goodnight Leya."
"Goodnight Kaldur," She was so sleepy she couldn't even pronounce right.
She closed the door and I heard her little steps from behind it. I walked to the door that led to my attic-room, opened it and started up the short flight of stairs. I got to my dark room and I remembered the nightmare I had had and I felt goose bumps rise on the back of my neck.
I lay down and felt myself immediately start to drift away into the peaceful unconscious realm of sleep.