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of grass as if it were midday. Better, in fact. I was really starting to like this dream world.
    Even though standing on that flat cliff top reminded me of my earlier anger and fear, it didn’t shake the sense of calm and delight that pervaded this idyllic dream. I was curiously detached from my rage. Real life only crept in for a moment as I silently wished I could bottle the peace and use it whenever Piper and Missy really got to me.
    Michael strode to the very edge of the cliff. Strangely, I felt compelled to join him. As I walked toward him, my feet felt heavy, almost leaden, after the ease and lightness of flying. Michael smiled at me, as if he understood that walking had become foreign to me after all the flying, and offered his arm. I grabbed on to it tightly and followed him back to the precipice. Somehow I knew what we were about to do, and I welcomed it.
    We stretched out our arms and dove.
    The wind whipped against my face as we plunged headlong down the sixty-foot cliff face. Jagged rocks and smooth-edged boulders whizzed right past me, but I wasn’t scared; I was exhilarated. Anyway, I knew that, if it got to be too much, I could always wake up.
    Just before we hit the sand headfirst, we leveled off. We floated down the remaining few inches and landed feetfirst in the cove, our hands still locked together. In the hazy moonlight, the white sand of the cove shimmered against the blackness of the sea. I was so happy Michael had brought me back to Ransom Beach. It occurred to me that perhaps that had been his intention earlier that day—to share this beautiful spot with me.
    “It was my intention. In part.” He spoke as if answering my thoughts. Or had I said my thoughts aloud?
    “I realize that now. I am so sorry that I got mad and cut our visit short.”
    “Don’t be sorry, Ellie. It’s my fault. I had another intention, one you weren’t ready for.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “I wanted to show you something. But it was too much, too soon.”
    I didn’t respond. I knew what he was going to say next, but I didn’t want him to say it. I wanted to remain in this tranquil moment, happy with Michael and this place. But I knew he couldn’t let it go—wouldn’t let it go—once he started, and I knew his words would shatter the serenity.
    “I wanted to show you what we are.”
    I shook my hand free of his. “Michael, I told you already. There’s nothing to show.”
    “Ellie, think about it. The flying, the insights we have about others, and the power of blood. Especially the blood.”
    I felt myself getting mad at him again. “And exactly what does this bizarre equation equal?”
    “I think—” He stopped as if the words were hard, even for him. “I think that we’re vampires.”
    Even I hadn’t guessed his ludicrous theory, and I was torn between laughing and hitting him. I opted for laughing. “Come on, Michael, that’s ridiculous. And anyway, this is just a dream.”
    “This isn’t a dream, Ellie. Don’t you remember the apple tree leaf caught in your hair from your last ‘dream’?”
    I didn’t want to hear any more, so I willed myself to wake up. The cove started to blur, and I could feel myself fade away.
    Before I totally disappeared, I heard Michael call out. His voice was muffled and faint as if from a far distance, but I swear he said, “When you leave your house tomorrow morning for school, I promise that I’ll be waiting for you. That way you’ll know that this is not a dream.”

Chapter Fourteen
    I sat up in my bed. The quilt slipped off my shoulders, but sun streamed through my bedroom windows and warmed me up. The clock flashed seven A.M. Only twenty minutes to get ready before my mom drove me to school, so I had to move fast. I was glad I didn’t have too much time to think.
    Racing around, I washed my face and brushed my hair. I threw on some blush and mascara and pulled my hair back in a ponytail. Jeans and a sweater would have to suffice, since I didn’t have the