Visionaries

eleven

"Why are you mad at me for wanting to spare you, your family and Cass?"

He stares at me. He slowly lets his gaze fall.

He doesn't say anything for a while. I don't know if he hates what his answer is and doesn't want to hurt me or if he really doesn't have an answer.

"Were you having a nightmare before you woke up?"

"Why? Was I talking in my sleep?"

"Shaking. Screaming. What were you seeing?"

I'm startled as to what my physical reaction was to dream. I don't know what about it would have me in such a state.

"You."

He shakes his head as if I was making it up. He sighs and stares at the bathroom. We give ourselves a few deathly silent minutes.

"It's so quiet without her here."

"I know. I hate it," I whisper staring at the guy walking around picking flowers in the park.

"I got the description of the guy that took Cass," I say stretching to get my phone from the nightstand. I open the text I got from Nikita and show it to Darius. He's already sitting on the side of my bed.

He reads it out loud.

"Male, most probably caucasian. Ran the blood in the school's ID system just for fun, don't tell anyone. The DNA belongs to a relative of someone by the family name of Keller that either works here or goes here. The blood cells are in abmormal shapes. I'm not in Med, but I know that the cells are rigid and that can be Sickle-cell disease."

"So this guy has an illness and is a relative of that teacher you guys like, Keller, right?"

I nod.

"Have you talked to him about this?"

"Not yet. I got the text late at night. I was planning on seeing him today."

"I'll come with you."

"Let me make sure he's at school today."

I find the card he gave us on our first day here on the desk. I call his school number. If he answers it means he's here.

"Yello?" Keller says in a very upbeat tone.

"It's May. I just wanted to know if you're at school. I'm coming by to see you in a few minutes."

"Okay, but make it quick. I have a meeting in a half an hour."

I look at the time on my phone and realize it's noon.

"I'll be there soon."

I hang up and grab a shirt and pants before running in the bathroom and changing. It takes me a second to brush my thin hair and just like that, in under 5 minutes, we're out the door.

Darius doesn't say another word until we reach Keller's office. They greet each other. Keller shakes my hand too to keep it formal.

"So, what's up?" Keller says as he adjusts himself in his seat. Darius and I are already sitting in the two chairs on the other side of his desk. I make sure the door is closed behind us before I start talking.

"Do you have a brother?"

He seems taken aback by the question.

"Why?"

"Because he might have something to do with Cass' disappearance and I cannot give you more details until you tell me if he exists."

"Yes, I have a much older brother that I haven't talked to in ages. He left the house when I was still a kid and never came back. I haven't even heard his voice since then."