The Eden Series: The Complete Collection (6 page)

“Aiden!” his mother yelled up the stairs at him. Looking over at his clock, he saw it was only seven in the morning. That was another thing that was driving him mad. Originally, he had viewed his suspension as the perfect vacation away from school, and the chance for him to sleep in. His mother, on the other hand, did not see it that way. She woke him up at the same time as usual, and gave him a list of chores to do in order to keep him busy. Groaning, he swung himself out of bed and looked for a decently clean pair of pants to put on, amongst the mess covering his floor. “Aiden!” she yelled again.

“I’m up!” he yelled back. “I’m up.” Running his hands through his hair, he actually thought it would be nice when he could go back to school. There was a thought he had never imagined having.

He climbed down the stairs to the upper floor, and saw Eddie standing in her crib from the outside hall. “Good morning,” he said, smiling at her. She reached out for him, so he obliged and went in to pick her up. As they were going down the stairs to the main floor, Eddie giggled as he pretended to be a horse, running her down the hall to the kitchen. His mother was in there making breakfast for the baby. She smiled when she saw the two together.

“Good morning, my beautiful children.” She smiled, tickling Eddie’s belly. It would be better, he thought, if he were allowed to sleep in past seven. “I want you to clean up that room today, Aid,” she started right away. “When you’re done that, you can go outside and cut the grass in the back. Your dad is working late tonight, so he won’t have time to do it himself.”
Sure,
he thought.
She’s just looking to torture me as much as she can.

“Yes, Mom,” he mumbled. She set down a bowl of cereal in front of him and kissed the top of his head, before sitting beside the high chair to feed Eddie.

“And how is my little angel this morning
?
” she started cooing. Eddie responded in indiscernible words. Aiden sat there miserably as he ate his cereal, wondering what else she would throw at him once he got the first two things on his list done.

That afternoon, he found himself pushing the mower across the long grass in the unbearable heat of the sun. The air was unseasonably warm, and sweat poured down his face. Cursing the whole time, he walked the length of the backyard back and forth until the whole area was short and manicured. His mother walked out with a glass of water, taking a look at his work.

“You’ll need to rake up the grass when you’re done,” she pointed out. He rolled his eyes, but didn’t say anything. Instead, he drank the whole glass of water in one shot, feeling dehydrated from sweating so much. “There are garbage bags in the garage.”

“Okay,” he replied, walking back over to where he had left the lawnmower.

“Isn’t being suspended fun?” his mother called out, before turning to go back inside. He looked over at her retreating form in anger.

“Someone, kill me,” he breathed out loud.

After cleaning up the grass, Aiden had the bright idea to stay in the garage and appear busy. So far it had worked, because his mother had yet to come out and find him. He sat on one of the lawn chairs in there and watched the cars drive by. It wasn’t much fun, but it was better than doing more chores. Around three thirty Ethan came up the driveway and saw Aiden sitting in the garage.

“Hey,” he called out. “What are you doing in here?” he asked, looking around.

“Hiding,” Aiden replied honestly.

“Hiding? From what?”

“My mother,” he replied. “She has been on me ever since I got suspended. She keeps giving me all these things to do around here, and it’s driving me nuts.”

Ethan chuckled, grabbing a seat beside him. “Well, I guess it is her job to punish you, right?” Aiden looked over at him like he had just been betrayed. “Sorry,” he said, laughing and holding up his hands. “You’re right: that evil woman! What was I thinking?”

“Whatever,” Aiden replied, kicking at a pebble on the floor. “So how was school today?”

“Boring as usual, so don’t worry—you haven’t missed much. Although Melissa did ask about you today.”

Aiden sat up and looked at him in shock. “Really? What did she say?”

“She just asked what happened to you, and when I told her you had been suspended, she asked if you were all right.”

“Really?” Aiden smiled. She had actually asked if he was all right. She cared about how he was.

“Yes, really.” Ethan rolled his eyes. “She also professed her undying love for you, and said she can’t wait to bear your children.”

Aiden shoved him, almost sending him right off his chair. “Shut up,” he said. Ethan laughed in response, telling him he was a lovesick fool. The two of them sat in the garage for a while, before his mother finally found them. She told Ethan he had to go, reminding Aiden that he was grounded and therefore was not allowed to see his friends. Ethan said his goodbyes, and once again Aiden was left alone in his prison.

“Come inside and watch your sister for a bit,” his mother said, waiting for him to get out of the garage before closing it. His one last sanctuary was gone. “I need to go to the store and grab some things for dinner.”

After they ate, Aiden went up to his bedroom and hid from the rest of his family. He was exhausted from the day’s chores, and looked at his bed with longing. He still had too much homework to do, though, so sleep would have to wait. Turning on his computer, he waited while the thing booted up. Ethan chatted to him while he worked, and before he knew it, it was already ten. Letting out a long yawn, he told Ethan they’d talk tomorrow and shut down the computer. Walking down the stairs toward the bathroom, he passed by Eddie’s room and saw her standing in the crib.

“Why, hello, little one.” He smiled, entering the bedroom. She smiled back, reaching up for him to grab her. “It’s bedtime,” he said quietly, lifting her into his arms. Sitting on the rocking chair that sat in a corner of her room, he picked up a book that lay beside it and started to read to her as they rocked. Eddie sat contently in his lap as he read, resting the back of her head against his chest.

“What’s going on in here?” he heard his mother say. He looked up to see her standing in the doorway.

“Just a quick bedtime story,” he answered, smiling.

“Sucker,” she said. “Looks like she knows who’s wrapped around her finger.” He shrugged, knowing it was the truth. There wasn’t much he wouldn’t do for his sister. He finished reading and then passed her off to their mother, giving her a quick kiss on the forehead. Heading toward the bathroom, he wondered what it must be like to be a baby. Everything was done for you. There were no responsibilities, no problems at that age.
How nice it must be,
he thought.

Climbing back up to the attic, he called out a quick goodnight to his parents before shutting the door.

“See you in the morning, buddy,” his dad replied.

“Love you,” added his mom.

He crawled into bed and immediately fell asleep.

It didn’t last for long.

As he lay in bed, his mind deep in sleep, there was a voice calling his name in the distance. At first he thought it was part of the dream, but something tugged at his conscious mind, and suddenly he found himself sitting up in bed, his covers lying next to it on the floor. He stared at the wall in front of him, trying to gather his wits, before he realized something had woken him up. Looking over at the clock, he saw it was midnight. Something about his room was off. He realized there was a ray of light coming through the small window on the side of his room, which lit up the whole space.

“What the hell is that?” he asked out loud. Getting off the bed, he walked over to peer down to the side yard. At first he couldn’t see anything, the light practically blinding him. Then he realized someone was standing there, shining a light right at his room. Opening the window, he yelled down at the figure, but the person didn’t seem to hear him. Cursing, he left his room and headed outside. He was tired, and it got cold outside at night, but he had to tell the person where to go, so he or she would stop shining the damn light. Trying to be as quiet as he could, he crept down both sets of stairs, and went to the back patio doors that led off the kitchen. Making his way through the backyard, he wondered what kind of person found this type of prank funny. He certainly didn’t.

As he rounded the corner, he saw the light was gone, but the figure still stood there.

“Hey,” he called out. “Get out of here! What do you think you’re doing?” The person didn’t respond; instead, the figure continued to stand still, the head turning slightly toward him when he spoke. Feeling his anger rise, he stormed over to the person, ready to give him or her a piece of his mind. “Look, I don’t know if you think this is funny or something, but it’s not. Who do you think you are, pulling a prank like this?” As he came closer he saw it was a
woman
.

She stood rigid, regarding him up and down as he approached. His voice seemed to fail him as he stood in front of her. Something was odd about her. She wore a long robe made of pure white that sparkled in the moonlight. She had long blonde hair, and her eyes seemed to look right through him. She still hadn’t spoken a word, but something about her made him uneasy.

Finally, she smiled at him, making his face feel hot. Who was this woman?

“My name is Diana,” she said, almost answering his thought. “I come from a land called Eden, and I’ve come to get you, Aiden.” She knew his name. Taking a step back, he looked around for other people hiding in a bush, ready to start laughing at him, or a camera focused on him to capture his reaction.

“What kind of joke is this?” he asked, turning back to her. “Who are you?”

“I told you who I am, Aiden. I am Diana, a witch from Eden, where the High King and High Priest have sent me to get you. You must come with me to Eden. It is where you will fulfil your life’s purpose.”

Without warning, he began to laugh. In situations that were either exceptionally sad, or awkward, Aiden had the reaction of laughing. It was uncontrollable, and usually inappropriate. The woman, Diana apparently, didn’t seem to take offence, and simply waited for his laughter to subside.

Taking a deep breath, he tried unsuccessfully to wipe the smile off his face. “You don’t expect me to believe this, do you?”

“I realize you are only of the age of fifteen, but you must understand that there are things in this world bigger than the one you know. Within our worlds we coexist, in separate dimensions, but always side by side. It is very rare for anyone from Eden to cross over here, and almost unheard of for someone from here to come over to Eden, but now is the time for precedence to change. You must come with me—our world depends on it.” Her voice seemed to echo in the silence around them, and with each word Aiden grew more and more serious.
She must be a local crazy,
he thought,
probably drunk or on drugs.
Taking another step back toward the house, he started to get his father. He would know how to get rid of her.

“Right, well, it is cold out here, so I’m just going to go inside and get a sweater, and then I’ll be right back out,” he lied, turning toward the doors.

Aiden walked around to the back, where the patio door remained open. As he got closer, he could hear the woman speaking words that he couldn’t quite make out. He looked back at her, wondering what she was saying, and realized she was no longer speaking English. The language was foreign to him, but seemed to have a hypnotic effect. He stood rigid, and his mind started to feel blurry. Reaching out for the wall, he braced himself against it, feeling the sudden urge to throw up. He fell suddenly to his knees as the dizziness in his head became overpowering. All the while, the woman stood in the same spot, repeating the same chant over and over. Aiden tried to call out to her, but his words came out in a jumble. As the heaviness in his head increased, his eyes began to close, and darkness overtook him.

The dream that followed was even more confusing. It felt like he was floating at first, and then almost flying. The feeling was so real, almost like the breeze flying by him was really there. He called out to someone, but heard only echoes. The world around him was a blur of colours, any distinction completely obscured. When he woke up he wondered what was going on with him. First, the dream with the strange lady in it, and then the flying dream.

“I need to stop going on the computer before bed,” he said out loud. It must have been something he had seen or read before falling asleep that brought them on. The light in the room was dim. He wondered what time it was, or why his mom hadn’t been calling for him to wake up yet. The sun was clearly up, so it had to be mid-morning. Perhaps his mother had let him sleep in for once, forgetting that he was supposed to go back to school that day, he thought optimistically.

Turning over to see what time it was, he found himself almost falling right off. The bed he lay on was much smaller than his, and there was no clock beside it like he had expected. Sitting straight up, he looked around in alarm at his surroundings. He wasn’t in his room. Panic began to set in, sweat building at his brow. The room he was in was small, and packed full of things. Plants hung from everywhere on the ceiling, and a large wood stove sat in the middle of the room. There was old, beat-up-looking furniture in one corner, and a small kitchen in the other, while the bed he sat on was situated way in the back. It must have been a small house, consisting of only this one room. He looked around for someone else, but it looked like he was alone.

Slowly getting up, he went over to the front of the house, and peeked out the window that was beside the front door. His panic increased. He was in the middle of a forest. What forests were around his house that he could have gotten himself to? The trees were huge, blocking out most of the sunlight, except for a single ray that filled the tiny window. The grass outside was overgrown with wild flowers and weeds. It looked like the place was abandoned, except for himself. Trying to work up some courage, he opened the front door and walked outside. The air was mild, the sun high in the clear sky, with not one cloud in it. He took a deep breath in, trying to calm his nerves. There had to be a reasonable explanation as to how he had made his way there.