To the Falls Read online

  To the Falls

  Guardians of Arvata, Book 1

  By: Heather Renee

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Copyright © 2017 by Heather Renee. All rights reserved.

  No parts of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the production of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, live or dead, are purely coincidental.

  For more information on reproducing sections of this book or sales of this book, go to www.heatherreneeauthor.com or email [email protected]

  Dedication

  For my daughter, may you always follow your dreams and know that anything is possible.

  Chapter One

  A year ago, my life was ordinary. I went to college. I came home to the cottage I shared with my best friend Jordan. We did various things most college students did. We ate left over pizza, had cram sessions, attended parties every once in a while, and then slept like the dead. For almost a year now, when I finally fell asleep each night, I was transported to a place of wonder.

  I still slept soundly, but instead of dreamless nights or different dreams, every night I was being drawn to a waterfall just beyond a forest I couldn’t seem to enter. My dream self always seemed to forget that and I’d still end up standing at the entrance of the forest before waking up.

  Tonight seemed a little different though. The pull to move toward the large waterfall was even more overwhelming, but I still took my time, enjoying the view. Always the same luscious, green rolling hills, mini water falls along a calm, clear stream that led to the colorful trees of the forest. The sky, a seafoam green color, was always cloudless.

  Everything there was so vibrant and I was always at peace while dreaming. There were flowers of all shapes and sizes, and various fruits I’d never seen before that hung from the surrounding trees. Animals that looked similar to those I’d see back home but not quite. They were more aware, more human-like than animal.

  I could wander the hills and watch the water cascading for hours. Maybe I did. but in the dream-like state I was in, I had no idea how much time I spent there while I slept.

  I never saw other people, but that was the best part. This was my special place, and it wouldn’t be the same to have to share it with anyone else.

  My favorite spot was always the same and I found myself there every night.

  There was a gorgeous tree I’d found just beyond one of the hills and I decided to climb it during my first dream visit. This tree was special and unlike any other I’d found here while exploring. It was enormous, at least 50-feet-tall. If I had to relate the tree to one you’d see back on Earth, I’d say it would remind me of a great oak tree. The branches coming off the tree were perfect to climb. Blue and purple leaves covered the outer limbs and the bark was lightly textured and inviting.

  Halfway up the tree there was a slight, circular opening and the most beautiful owl I’d ever seen lived there. He was mostly white with specks of black and brown around his head and wings. His eyes were like liquid pools of silver with years of wisdom within them. I quickly grew quite fond of him and the silent company he provided me.

  When I came back the next day after finding the tree, there was a feather on the ground. It was pure white, soft as silk and about ten inches long. I’d hoped that when I woke, I might’ve been able to bring it back with me, but of course that would never happen. This was just a dream after all, not real life.

  Every night I dreamt, I went back to that tree and found a new feather. I would climb the tree and find the perfect spot to sit and stare at the large waterfall in the distance. Sometimes the owl would come out of his hole and peacefully stare back at me while I watched him. Other times, I would just see him flying around, keeping watch.

  Our connection grew stronger each night. I had a feeling he was more than just an owl. The draw I had to him and the comfort he provided was more than anything I had ever felt to another animal or even human.

  Today though, everything I saw appeared a little dull and the pull toward the forest was stronger than usual. I hadn’t felt a need like this before, my heart beat a little faster than normal and my breathing was heavy. The owl flew next to me and stayed close today as well, which I appreciated. He helped to keep me from completely losing it.

  As I walked closer to the trees that led to the great waterfall, my heart continued to hammer in my chest and my palms became sweaty. The only positive was that I was almost to the forest which meant the dream would soon be over and hopefully tomorrow it would be back to what I was used to. The large waterfall finally came into view and brought a smile to my face.

  What I could see of the waterfall was breathtaking. It reminded me of the one near my parents’ house, except it was three times the width and the water was bright blue with hints of white and teal coming off the mist. I could only glimpse the top half of the waterfall, and desperately wanted to see the beauty I knew it would hold within.

  When I took a step off the path to attempt to go through the trees like usual, there was a hard shove on my chest and I was pushed out of the dream.

  Damn that hurt! I awoke covered in sweat and my heart still racing. What the hell was that?

  I usually woke up feeling calm and ready for the day after the dream, but this time I felt like someone kicked me out of the dream. My chest physically hurt and I was finding it hard to breathe normally as I tried to shake it off.

  I even pulled my sleep shirt back to see if there was a mark, but nothing was there. It hurt so bad, I was surprised there wasn’t.

  I didn’t understand why the dream had changed, but hopefully I’d figure it out. I didn’t need this now. I had my last final at school today before summer break. I needed to concentrate or all that studying would be a waste.

  Creepy changing dreams would have to wait. I knew I could tell myself that all day, but it wouldn’t be far from my mind until I went back to sleep tonight. Hopefully, the dream would be back to normal then. Well, as normal as dreams can be that you’ve consistently had every night for almost year. Yup, totally normal.

  ***

  Finally, I finished my last final for sophomore year at the local university in Portland, Oregon. Even though I'd be here all summer for swim practice, I was officially done studying for three months. The relief I felt when I walked out of class was evident. My body relaxed from the lack of added stress that finals brought and my shoulders felt a lot lighter than they had this morning.

  The college gave me a full-ride scholarship for my swim skills and I wouldn't let them down. Plus, I loved swimming more than anything so it wasn't a hardship on my part. Something about being in the water made me feel complete. Swimming seemed to be the only time I felt that way lately. Especially with the dream changing, I needed to be in the water soon to help relieve some of my stress.

  "Kaliah May, we’re d
one with sophomore year!” My best friend Jordan called out excitedly as she greeted me with a hug. “Can you believe it?"

  She thought she was so cute when she used my full name and tried to irritate me in public with it. Thankfully, most of the time she called me Kali, which I preferred.

  "Cheese and rice Jordan, do you have to be so loud and use my full name?”

  Jordan was over the top about everything and even though she was a bit crazy, I loved her all the same. We bonded over our love for boy bands in the sixth grade and we’ve been making history ever since.

  "I finished my last final almost an hour ago. It's time for some fun.” She grinned with that evil smile she did so well and waggled her eyebrows. “An early birthday celebration of sorts."

  "Tonight?” I pouted. “We just spent two weeks straight doing nothing but studying. I'm exhausted. Can't it wait a couple more days until my actual birthday?"

  I doubted I would get my way, but I couldn’t give up without a fight.

  Jordan was a very spur-of-the-moment person, whereas I was the planner. Everything we did always had to have a plan if I had something to say about it. I did have plans for tonight and they were definitely better. My plans didn’t require fancy outfits, makeup, or loud music.

  We left the campus and headed home. Thankfully, it wouldn’t take us long to get there. I was so happy last year when we were approved for offsite housing so close to campus, but far enough away that we didn’t have to deal with the parties and constant noise. Not that I was anti-social but I liked my quiet and I dealt with enough noise from Jordan.

  "We can't wait. Remember your parents have plans with you already?” Jordan said. “You don’t want to miss what they have planned. They’d be devastated."

  Suddenly, Jordan seemed too serious. She knew something but wasn't giving up the details. I could see it in her emerald green eyes. She would always blink too much when she was trying to hide something from me like it was hard for her to keep her stare while being secretive.

  My parents and Jordan had always been close, though. Jordan's parents weren't around a lot and she’d practically lived with us since I met her. I had only met them a handful of times and felt bad for Jordan that she was left alone so much. So, I couldn’t be too surprised that they’d tell her about what they had planned for my birthday and make her swear not to tell me.

  "Oh, of course. The secret that I can't know about yet. The one I'm pretty sure you already know about,” I said as I glared at her. “I won’t miss dinner with my parents, you know that.”

  "Soon my bestie, soon you'll be in the know and we’ll see what you think then. Just know that you're my best friend in this whole universe and everything I've done has been because I love you."

  "Well, when you put it that way, how can I be mad at you? I love you, too.” I nudged her with my shoulder as we walked down the sidewalk toward home. “Let's stay home, binge watch my favorite vampire movies, and stuff our faces with junk food. I'm in the mood for some paranormal romance and pizza tonight."

  I pleaded with her knowing it was pointless, but I had to try. She hated my vampire movies and thought watching them was a waste of time. She preferred the action type movies, which never held my interest and would always put me to sleep.

  "You wish, we're dressing up and having fun whether you like it or not." Jordan winked at me and raced up our driveway and through the front door before I could catch up.

  She always said I was fun to dress up since I was smaller than her. Even now, years later, my 5' 2" didn’t come close to her 5' 9". She despised my regular jeans and t-shirt style and looked for every opportunity to dress me up. I didn’t see anything wrong with being comfy. I wasn’t trying to impress anyone.

  I finished walking up the driveway to our yellow, two-bedroom cottage and Jordan was already out of sight by the time I walked in the door. I probably should have been more worried about where she ran off to, but I’d figure it out soon enough.

  I dropped my book bag in the entryway and headed to the kitchen. The fridge was calling to my stomach since I didn’t have time to eat lunch between my finals.

  I was so relieved that I could focus just on swimming for the summer. Coach Tucker canceled swim sessions for finals so we'd have more time to study. That was a blessing and a curse. Being away from the water too long made me edgy, but I appreciated the extra study time. Maybe the dream changed because I've been so stressed?

  I grabbed a bottle of water from the kitchen and a snack to hold me over until I found Jordan. She was likely making a mess in my room and the sooner I found her the better.

  To the left was my room and Jordan's was further to the right past the kitchen. The split floor plan was perfect for studying when you had a roommate that liked to listen to loud music while she studied.

  I walked into my room and found a tornado had landed. Jordan was mumbling to herself about my lack of fashion sense and had my clothes thrown all over my bed and shoes mismatched on the floor. This was going to take forever to clean up.

  "Kali, time to play dress up!" Jordan said with a crazy smirk.

  That smirk was going to be the death of me.

  "You're lucky I love you so much.” I groaned. “Let's get the torture over with and then you can put my room back together."

  She rolled her eyes at me and I knew I’d be doing clean up as well as sitting through her torture.

  Chapter Two

  Last night was more fun than I’d probably ever admit to Jordan. I was glad she dragged me out of the house, especially since we were able to spend the night with Jenn and Becca before they went home for the summer. The only downside was that while Jordan did a great job dressing me up, I had massive knots throughout my thick, chestnut hair from the curls she added. Then there was the raccoon eyes from the smoky look she said would make my teal-blue eyes stand out against my fair skin.

  One more day until my birthday and Jordan would probably be trying to drag me out again. Considering it would be my birthday, I’d convince her otherwise. While I enjoyed last night, I could only handle going out in moderation.

  I walked away from the mirror after seeing the damage from last night and stretched. My body was craving physical activity after a couple weeks of mental exhaustion. I needed to get to the pool and gym today. My muscles were cramped, but the stretching was helping for now. I still felt jittery from my dream. It was different again and I woke the same way as yesterday. I hoped getting back to a normal routine would help whatever this was.

  Maybe since the dreams started last year on my birthday, they’d go away on my birthday. A girl could wish, right? I just hoped this new version of the dream wasn’t here to stay. The ache in my chest was not something I wanted around permanently.

  ***

  “Kaliah May, that smells amazing. How did you know I’d need sustenance this morning when I woke up?” Jordan asked as she sat on the stool at the counter in the kitchen while I handed her the breakfast I had made.

  I rolled my eyes at her. She always needed sustenance in the mornings. I’d lived with her long enough to know it was better to feed her first, especially if I wanted to try to have any sort of meaningful conversation with her. Though sometimes she drove me crazy with how much energy she seemed to have, no matter how much sleep she got.

  I glanced at Jordan and noticed she looked a lot better this morning than I had. Her blonde, shoulder length hair was somehow still presentable and her emerald green eyes weren’t surrounded by black circles like mine had been. Definitely not fair.

  “You treated me to a fun night out, so I figured I could repay you with french toast, bacon and eggs.” I shrugged. “What are your plans today?”

  “Nothing much, probably staying home and relaxing,” Jordan said between mouthfuls of bacon. “You’re still going to your parents’ house tonight, right?”

  For some reason, my parents wanted to give me my gift the day before my birthday, but I still hadn’t figured out why. Maybe they’d bought me a
trip and I’d leave tomorrow to go tour Europe. I doubted it, but it didn’t hurt to hope for the best.

  “Yes, but I’m going to the pool and gym first,” I said. “Why?”

  “Do you mind if I tag along with you to your parents’? I’d love to be there for your birthday celebration and to see your parents.”

  “Of course you can come. I can’t believe I forgot to tell you to come anyway.” I said as I grabbed my gym bag from the closet. “You’re always welcome, especially for a celebration, even though my parents couldn’t do it on my actual birthday for some reason. I still find that weird.”

  “Perfect,” Jordan said with a smack of her lips. “Swing back by here after you’re done swimming and pick me up.”

  “Sounds good, be ready by four o’clock. I told my parents that I’d be there by five. I’ll text you when I am leaving the pool.”

  I hated being late. Even if my parents didn’t care, I did. I didn’t appreciate it when someone left me waiting, so I tried to make sure I never made anyone wait on me.

  “See you then!” Jordan called out as I walked toward the door.

  ***

  A little after four, we were traveling down I-84 toward Multnomah Falls and traffic was surprisingly light for the time of day. Sometimes going to my parents’ house took forever with Portland traffic, but it was worth the drive.

  My parents lived up on a mountain next to Multnomah Falls and I could easily forget the outside world when I was there. The house was a single-level log home. It was spacious on the inside with 16-foot ceilings and an open floor plan. My favorite spot was the large lounge chair next to the fireplace in the living room. I could sit there for hours, lost in another world, while reading in that chair.

  I also loved the various colors all around their property, too. During the fall season, the leaves changed so many different shades of yellow, red and orange, I could never keep up.

  The view of Multnomah Falls from the house wasn’t bad to look at either, with the dense forest and streams that surrounded the area. The 620-foot-tall waterfall was purely amazing. No words could accurately describe the beautiful area. The view was my favorite view during winter. The waterfall would freeze over and everything was white and peaceful.