The Ocean’s City
Chapter 7

I held my breath and remained facing Dannie as I listened.

“Your friend doesn’t look so well. Is she okay?” An unexpected voice asked, standing at the door frame. It was a male’s voice, but much older than Dalton or Hutson. I jumped and turned, nearly spilling the water on the side table.

“Wooooh, careful there. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m actually looking for Hutson and his brother Dalton. Are they around?” He was much older, with a green fisherman hat, fish hooks dangling from it, a ratty black t-shirt, and dusty cargo pants. It was hard to see his appearance between the hat and his peppered beard.

“No, they said they would be back soon,” I responded as I cursed to myself about these robotic people always around. I wouldn’t be surprised if Dalton sent this puppet to spy on me. It made me feel anxious. What did his powers extend to?

“Oh, okay, I guess I’ll just come back tomorrow morning, then.” He paused, looking at Dannie on the bed. “Do you need help with anything?”

“No, thank you,” I grunted agitatedly as I turned back to Dannie.

“Are you sure? Your friend doesn’t seem so well.” His voice deepened as he asked.

“We are fine.” I rolled my eyes, wishing he’d leave already.

“Well, just let me know. The doctor here isn’t as good as the doctors in the real world,” he said, like he was showing me his playing cards. Like we were in a game and knew how to win it.

It took me a second to register what he had said, and even then, I doubted I heard him correctly. Everyone else pretended like we were in some kind of Brady Bunch show. He just admitted that we were in some weird false reality.

I quickly turned from Dannie to see he was no longer standing at the doorway. Without hesitation, I chased after him, but there was no sign of the older gentleman. My hair flew left and right as I checked each direction before making my way to the only entrance I knew.

I streaked through the moonlit house, my heart rate rising as I reached the front porch. Crickets were chirping, a bat was squeaking, and the waves were crashing, which brought the smell of salty, fresh air. There was no sign of the man anywhere.

Car lights flashed as they pulled up to the driveway. It was too late to run into the house and pretend I wasn’t just looking for my potential escape. Dalton’s car came to a stop, followed by Huston’s car.

Dalton got out and frowned at me. “What are you doing outside?”

I choked back my breathy gasps and responded, “There was a man here looking for you two.”

“It was probably Greg,” Hutson explained. “I’ll swing by tomorrow and see what it is.”

Dalton searched my expression, causing me to panic. What would he do to me if he thought I was lying? “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” I lied. It took everything in me to hide the truth. Eventually, I tore my eyes from his and looked out into the darkness. I needed to talk to that man again.