Nightwalker

Eight

Martie

''So your father had her journal this whole time and didn't share it with you? That's kinda sketchy, don't you think?''

''He was just being protective, my father's always been like that--he kept her stuff in a safe! Anyway, get this, I was reading my Mom's journal last night and saw there were TONS of shit written in as a language I'm not quite familiar with, so I did a little digging--''

''Riordan! Slow down!''

She comes to a halt and frowns a bit.

It was lunch time as usual with us in the back of my truck. I'm the typical talker of the lunch hour, so it surprised the hell out of me to see Danny talk without a breath or a pause.

Her eyes were sunken in and her hair more wild than usual. She was wearing the same outfit as yesterday and her voice broke after every other word that spewed out of her mouth.

''Danny, how much caffeine have you had?''

''None at all.''

''For someone who hasn't slept for a day, you're a bit energetic, no?''

She visibly swallows and looks anywhere but my eyes.

''Give me your backpack.''

''What?''

''Am I speaking fuckin' Italian? Dammi il tuo zaino ora!''

She hands her backpack reluctantly.

''Well if it isn't my fave and my less favorite girl.'' Thor appears out of nowhere and hops into my truck.

''Go fuck yourself.''

''Already ahead of you.''

''Ew!'' We both say simultaneously and he laughs.

''What're you up to?'' Thor asks.

I pull out a bottle of caffeine pills and three empty 5-hour shots from Riordan's backpack and hold them up for display.

''What did we say about having these?''

''Holy fuck, Danny, you're taking those again?'' Thor takes one of the empty 5-hour bottles and examines it.

''I need it!''

''No you don't, not after last year!'' I yell.

''Yeah, I don't wanna see you go down that rabbit hole again--you were like addicted to caffeine.''

''That's a bit of a push, I so was not.''

''I thought we agreed on max a cup of coffee a day! You had one last night!''

''Last night? Why were you drinking coffee at night?''

''She's avoiding a lucid premonition.''

''So that's why you look like shit.''

''Can both of you shut up? I discovered something AMAZING last night and you're here lecturing me about my fucking caffeine intake?''

I shake my head annoyed at how poorly Danny treated herself. Sometimes I felt like her mother. ''What did you discover?'' Thor asks and I hand Danny's backpack back to her.

''My father gave me my mother's dream journal last night. I've been reading it, but there's so much to get through and more than half of it is in a language I can't even decipher.''

''Back up, your mother had a dream journal?''

''Yeah, and get this, I have an aunt. She gave it to her, meaning she probably knew about the dreams my Mom was having.''