Chapter 14
They sat around Homer’s dining room table. Dylan eyed the stack of pizza. His mamaw hadn’t exaggerated. There were five of them, and she had instructed his mother to order six extra-large pizzas. He wondered if this was an attempt to make sure he ate for the next few days—as a child, cold pizza had been his favorite.
Gabriel had tried to ask questions. She had stopped that quicker than even Dylan had expected.
“No talking until the first slice is finished. You boys need to eat. You both look like you’re starving to death.”
Dylan chuckled under his breath at the way Gabriel’s eyes scrunched together at her admonition until he saw Gabriel’s shoulders slump in resignation.
They ate the first slice in silence, avoiding eye contact. When everyone had finished the first slice, his mamaw cleared her throat.
“Ok. I know all y’all have questions. Dylan, would you hand me another slice of the pepperoni? Who’s going first?”
Merrin grinned. Dylan locked eyes with Gabriel. They both shrugged. Gabriel shook his head and spoke first.
“What is going on?”
His mamaw chuckled. “Son, you go right for the hardest one of all.” She turned to Dylan. “Is it ok with you if I start at the beginning? Can we all agree no secrets here?”
He nodded. He had planned to keep Gabriel in the dark for his own safety, but if his vision had been correct, it wouldn’t do any good. They were connected in a way that put him in danger. Not knowing could be worse than knowing.
She took a bite of her pizza. “Remember, we didn’t know much before we got here, so this is going to be spotty.” She took a sip of water before she continued. “From what we’ve put together in the last hour, there are an infinite number of worlds. The way Homer described it, they run like a building where you go from room to room, but the rooms only run in a straight line. This world connects to two others. The next world over connects to another, and so on. These worlds are all slightly different from our own. Some are filled with magic and wonder. Others with monstrous creatures.”
Gabriel was biting his lip, looking as if he were going to burst out laughing. She glared at him but spoke to Dylan. “Dylan, see if you can show him.”
Dylan flinched and asked in a shaky voice, “Are you sure?”
She nodded and continued to glare at Gabriel.
Dylan took a deep breath. He hadn’t known what he was doing the last time something had happened. He stood up and took a step back from the table, closed his eyes, and thought about Rex. It was easy, familiar. He pictured the dog when they first got him as a puppy, looking like a little white fuzzball. The longer he thought about it, the warmer he was. He opened his eyes, and everything was dark. He whined, and a gentle hand pulled him from the tangle of his clothes.
New but familiar smells washed over him. He wriggled to be put down and followed his nose to the sweetest smell. He couldn’t name it, but that smell made him want to curl up beside Gabriel and never leave. His mamaw snatched him from the ground before he could reach his target. His mother followed them to the next room, carrying his clothes. She set them on a counter while his mamaw looked into his eyes.
“Show’s over for now. Time to change back. If you’re not out in a couple of minutes, we’ll come back and talk you through it.”
He whined when she closed the door behind them. He wanted to be back out there with his family. With Gabriel.
Dylan opened his eyes as a cold draft made the hair on his arms stand on end. He smiled. His arms. He’d managed to do it again. He dressed as fast as he could. When he opened the door and walked out grinning like an idiot, Gabriel was staring at him, slack-jawed.
“H-how did you do that?”
Dylan shrugged. “I’m still not sure. That’s only the second time I’ve done it, and only the first time I’ve done it intentionally. I just learned I could right before you got here.” He narrowed his eyes at his grandmother. “You know how to peer pressure better than any teenager.”
She beamed. “Point needed making. Now sit your ass down and eat.”
She took a drink, emptying her glass, and motioned for Merrin to fill it for her again.
“Now where was I. Oh yeah. So apparently Homer’s family were some sort of gatekeepers. They were here because there is a gate somewhere in the woods between our houses.” She paused and added. “Not sure exactly where, though. Anyways, the best we could put together is that this world was always neutral territory. Something happened. We’re still piecing together what it was, but it caused a huge influx of refugees into this world. My family among them. There were some cryptic entries, but I’m not sure about all of that yet. He had just started looking into Mr. Coinin’s family and run into a brick wall in figuring out where they came from, and Gabriel was kind enough to fill in the blank. His ancestor must’ve been a refugee’s child—or smuggled out for his own safety.”
“Why were we keeping track of who was from these other worlds and who wasn’t? It’s not like we were at every gate,” Dylan interjected. “Or at least I assume we weren’t.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. You’re going to have to dig deep into all of this, assuming we have time. Maybe Gabriel here would like to help?”
Dylan watched Gabriel’s stare turn slowly towards her. “Me. Help? What?”
She smiled at him. “Yes. Now eat up. Y’all have a lot of reading to do. I think we’ll all be safer staying here. He did mention some kind of magical protection around the property. Maybe whatever it is will keep whatever is out there from getting in before we know what exactly is going on and what we need to do.”