“How the hell…?” I stare at the calendar on my phone screen. Only two days have passed since I dropped into Vakeeli. How is that even possible when I spent nearly five days there?
I expected to come back to missing posters with my face on it and cops swarming my apartment, but instead, all is normal. The bed is unmade, clothes still strewn all over the place. Even my takeout containers are still on the dining table.
The only difference is the note on the fridge from Garrett, who is concerned about my whereabouts. I’m not surprised by that, considering he visits me daily when he thinks I’m not working.
Call me when you see this. I’ve stopped by twice and you weren’t here.
I pluck the sticky note off the fridge and place it on the counter, then grip the edge of it. The last thing I want is talk to Garrett, but I’m sure he’s going to stop by again sometime, so I send him a quick text to let him know I’m fine.
He responds almost immediately, but not with a text. A call. I groan and reluctantly answer.
“Willow?” he hisses into the phone. “Where the hell have you been?”
“Why are you whispering?”
“I just walked out of the middle of a meeting,” he says hurriedly. “That’s not the point. I’ve been worried! You left your phone at home. What’s going on with you?”
“Everything’s fine.”
“Where’d you go?” he demands.
I try to think of a lie, but I’m stumped. Surely there’s no way I can tell him I was sucked into a vortex and dropped into another universe. He’d never believe me.
“I just needed some time away from everything, so I went to a hotel.”
“And you couldn’t tell me that?”
“I just needed time, Garrett. I didn’t think I had to tell you or anyone.”
“Well, that’s seriously fucked up. I thought something happened to you!” He breathes hard into the phone, clearly agitated. “Anyway, I was worried about you, so I called Faye to see what was up.”
Shit. I avoid groaning.
“You should check in with her if you haven’t already, let her know you needed some precious time away.”
I roll my eyes. “I will.”
“Sure. Look, I have to get back, but I’ll call you on my break.”
“Kay.”
Garrett hangs up, and I walk back to my bed, sitting on the edge. I send Faye a heart emoji, and she replies BITCH! and I laugh. I reply, I’m okay. I promise.
She replies, You better be but don’t think I’m letting it go that easily. After my shift you’re telling me what the hell is going on with you.
I debate whether I should tell Faye the truth or not. Surely, she would understand—or at least try to. Then again, trying to explain that I was in another world full of guns and violence, with a sexy, broody man I didn’t know but made out with, sounds delusional. It sounds like something straight out of a book or movie, and don’t get me wrong, Faye is all for swooning over a fictional hero, but she knows the difference between reality and fiction. For all I know, she’ll be telling me to go to a psychiatric clinic to seek help, not a small practice therapist.
Regardless, it’s nice to be back to normality, but as I look around my apartment, being back doesn’t feel the same. It’s all so simple, compared to Vakeeli. Cars drive by outside my window, people going about their lives, not even realizing mine has been altered.
I lock my phone for a moment and close my eyes, hoping I’ll still hear Caz’s voice, but I don’t. I don’t hear anything but silence and the footfalls of the neighbors in the apartment above me.
Will I ever hear him again, or did that chant end everything? Maybe by returning to my world, we’re no longer Tethered. It’s a thought…but I have a feeling it doesn’t work that way.
Regardless, I can’t sit here thinking about it. Or him. I have to get back to my life and forget all I went through. I check my phone again and have three missed calls from Lou Ann. Work will be a good distraction. It’s better than lying around here.
I give Lou Ann a call back, and she asks to see me. It’s a Sunday, but it must be important if she’s wanting to meet on a weekend, so I agree to meet her for lunch.
I shower, get dressed, collect my satchel, and then check the mirror. There is nothing left of Vakeeli on me. I cleaned up, refreshed my hair, and the bruises and scars have somehow disappeared. They were already fading after the kiss from Caz but…
The thought fails me.
That kiss. That damn man. I need to forget him.
I tip my chin—reclaiming confidence—and leave the apartment, locking up and heading to my car.
