We drove in the dark on an unpaved back road farther away from where I wanted to go. An old country road that was presumed to be less traveled on. The road was on his Grandfathers' property. Joel came to a sudden stop. He grabbed his flashlight and jumped out of the truck.

"This is the end of Grandfathers' property; we will have to walk the rest of the way." He turned on the flashlight so we could find our way through the dark woods.

I got out of the truck and followed close behind him, through the old path. As we started up the hill and back down he turned off the light. "Don't want anyone to see us coming." He whispered.

We continued to walk with only the light of the moon showing us the way through the darkness until we saw the lights in the distance from the old house. We eased our way up the house. It looked like everyone was outside in the back, having a small get together or something. I wondered if they could feel us there; could they smell us? I felt Joel grab my arm and pull me back to the ground. "This is far as we go. You can't go tonight to get the journal they will see you."

"But I have to get them. Joel we came this far. I know the room; I know where they are. I just need to get in and get out without anyone noticing." I started to get up again but he pulled me back again.

"If it is that important to you, then you must go. But I warn you to watch your back, things may get pretty ugly." He bent closer to me and nudged his lips on my forehead and then kissed my lips ever so lightly. "Please be careful."

"I will." I kissed him back and then stood quietly. I tiptoed to the front of the house and peered inside making sure that no one was around.

Everyone must have been out back, for I did not see anyone roaming in the house. I turned the knob carefully and pushed the door open, praying for it not to squeak. As I entered the house, my heart began to pound and I could feel the blood racing ever so fast now. The house seemed so old and antique. Everything in the living room was white and spotless just like a museum. There was a family portrait above the fire place. The same old woman that I had met at the deli; she was standing by her husband both in black and three children. The oldest was a girl, the girl that I had been dreaming about, my mother looked about twelve and not smiling. Beside her was a young boy and then on the other side of him was another girl just a little younger than she was, both of them were smiling ear to ear.

On the left side of the entry way was the staircase that led to a darkened upstairs hallway. I crept up the steps silently, noticing old photos on the wall along the way. As I reach the top, I walked back to the last room and turned the knob. It came right open. I took one last look around me to make sure that no one was watching me as I stepped in and closed the door behind me.

Her room was rather small. One twin bed in the middle of the room, covered in pastel pink with lace and ribbons. The furniture as well as downstairs was white. Not the shiny white as if it was right out of the factory, but an old antique white. There was a small vanity on the right side of the bed to match. Along the mirror were several pictures of her with her family and her friends. She was pretty. As I looked at the pictures up close and then looking at the mirror in front of me, I could see the small resemblance. I had her facial features; her same smile, her same eyes. I was startled back to reality when I heard a screen door slam from down below.

I moved away from the vanity, only to pocket one single photo of her. I went over to the bed crawling under to find the loose board. I fought with the boards quietly until I was able to open it up. As I looked inside, the journals were still there exactly where she had left them. I placed them into my handbag and rose to my feet, walking over to the door to make my escape. As I opened the door, there was still a house of silence from down below. Even though I knew I heard someone come in for I heard the screen door slam, I hurriedly went down the steps and just then when I opened the door, he was standing on the other side staring at me squarely in the eyes. I gasped for air in pure shock.

"What are you doing here?" he asked suspiciously.

What was I to tell him? Could I make up a small little white lie? Would he even believe me? "I was looking for you silly." I tried to play dumb, making my way out onto the front porch.

"How would you know that I was here?" He questioned. "This is not my house."

"Isaiah. Alright you caught me." I threw my hands up in the air like the cowboys did back in the day. "You see I had this really bad dream and somehow I ended up here. I must have been sleep walking." All right that was even more wack, keeping digging a hole for yourself Shay, one day you'll get out.

Of course he didn't believe it. "Shayla this is like ten miles or so from your house. Tell me why you are really here?" He requested.

"O.K. I really did have a dream; I'm not lying about that. Do you remember a while back when I told you about the lady in my dream? I dreamed of her again and this is where she brought me. I don't know why I am here or how I really got here. All I know is that here I am and you are here." I pretended to be confused.

"I think you should leave before they see you." He looked around to make sure no one was watching us.

"Are you trying to keep me from something? Who am I Isaiah? I know that you know; I need for you to tell me." I stared contently.

"I don't want them to hurt you." He nudged me towards his car. "Go get in my car and I will take you home."

"You want to take me home."

"How else are you going to get there, didn't you say you walked?"

"Yeah!" I looked a little confused. "I guess I could use a ride home." I went to get into his car. Looking over my shoulder, I tried to see if I could still see Joel in the dark bushes. I got out the cell and dialed him; he picked it up on the first ring. "I'm fine. I will explain everything later. Isaiah is giving me a ride home so you can leave now."

"Isaiah!" He hissed. I know he told me to watch my back with him, but I had to trust him this one time. He promised that no one would see me.

"Get out of there Joel. I will see you tomorrow."

"But...."

I didn't wait for him to finish because now Isaiah was back and I didn't want him to know about Joel.

He took me home just like he said he would. We didn't speak for over five minutes and just as he pulled up in my grandparents drive he blurted out, "What in the heavens are you doing? Do I have to watch your every little move to make sure you stay out of trouble."

"You're not my father or my brother Isaiah. No one asked you to watch after me." I fumed.

"Why were you really there; how did you know about that house?"

Why did he want to keep the house a secret? My mind exploded of different thoughts and images, trying to find some meaning to all of this. "I told you already. I had another dream. The funny thing is now you are in some of my dreams. What are you doing in them? What do you know?"

He shook his head. "I can't." He turned away from me and then looked down at the steering wheel.

"Can't what, Isaiah. Do I have something to do with Shady Grove? Do they want my soul?" I grabbed his arm.

"Who have you been talking too?" He shot back a furious look.

Finally I struck a nerve right in the right place. I pulled the picture out of my back pocket and showed it to him. "This is who I have been talking to. Who is she?"

"Kamilah." He whispered, pausing for only a second or two. "She was said to be the perfect one. But if she really was the perfect one then why is she gone. Her parents had requested for her to marry my father, but she went her own way and conceived a child with another. My father was very heartbroken. When he found out that she was expecting, he meet up with my mother and she became pregnant with me. Over the years he still had strong feelings for Kamilah. I believe he still cries for her even till this day, she must have put a spell on his heart or something. The night my mother died, it was because of him. She got tired of being compared to her all of the time." He stated hatefully, gripping the wheel until his knuckles turned white. "She just couldn't take it any longer. I remember coming home and going into the bathroom to find her. In one hand she held the razor blade and with the other a crumbled up picture of her." He looked at both of his hands as if he was remembering the day all over again.

"What about the other guy, the one that she left your father for?"

"Sonam. Who knows whatever became of him. No one ever talks about him."

"What if I told you that I thought that I was Kamilah's daughter, would you tell them?"

"They already know about you. There is no thinking about it; you are a spitting image of her. The day that you went into the café they wanted you. Their all dying to get a taste of your blood; they hope that you are the one after all. I just keep telling them to wait, telling them that you are not ready for the truth. How did you figure it out?"

"Like I said, she comes to me in my dreams."

"So that's why you were really at the house. She wanted you to have something didn't she? Did you get what you were looking for?"

I couldn't tell him about the journals. It had to be my secret for now. I hated to lie to him, all right not really there was no reason for him to know about it. "I just needed to see a picture of her. Please don't tell them I was there."

"I won't however they probably already know. You can't keep anything from them, especially the way that you smell. They know you have good blood; they have been searching a long time for it." He got out and went around the car to open the door for me. "I suggest you be more careful next time."

"I will, thanks for the ride home." I got out of the car and started to walk up to the house, quickly I turned around and was going to ask him something else, but he was already pulling out of the drive.

As I opened the door, my Grandmother had asked, "Where have you been; you should have been home hours ago?" she fumed.

"Sorry Grandma. I was out with Joel and then met up with Isaiah." I had a feeling that she did not believe me. "I said I was sorry, it won't happen again."

"That's what you said the last time. It's not like you don't have a phone on you; you could have called. Very well, here is your supper." She pulled it out of the oven and sat it on the table. She sat down across from me. "Is there anything you would like to talk about? It must be difficult being a teen without a mother to turn to."

I sat and ate half of everything on my plate, watching her weary eyes. She watched carefully with every bite that I took. She was just about to get up when I opened my big mouth. "Grandma can I ask you something?"

"Sure sweetie, ask away."

I didn't know the proper way of asking and if I did would she even tell me the truth. Would she pretend that nothing ever happened? I finally got up the nerve. "Am I....am I adopted?" I asked.

Her throat tightened. I could see the concern in her old eyes. Yet I had a feeling that she would not tell me the truth, so I asked the question differently, "My mother did not give birth to me did she? Did she find me somewhere?"

"Why do you ask these things?"

I shrugged. "Ever since I was a little girl, I had weird feelings of not belonging to my parents. It's kinda hard to explain, I was hoping that you could tell me the truth," I requested again, raising my eyebrows for an answer.

She patted her hand on top of mine, taking a deep breath. "Your mother and father loved you very much sweetie. They had always wanted a child; unfortunately they were not able to conceive. One dark mysterious night your mother was doing something around the house nothing unparticular. She had noticed a dim light in the woods, knowing that there were no houses behind hers. She went and got your father. Together they walked into the woods and came upon an old ruin down house. They didn't know what to expect to see. Comes to find out you were their all alone. They believe that you were about two to three hours old. They took you in, gave you a name and told everyone that you were their baby girl. Your birth mother was found a few days later. They said that she past giving birth to you."

"Why didn't they tell me? Was I not supposed to know?"

"You were their baby and that's all that really mattered at the time. There was no reason to mention any of this to you or anyone. Everyone was looking for you. But your mother," she sighed with a wink of her right eye, "kept you hidden. She knew she couldn't keep you in the dark forever. So your father suggested that the three of you should move out of state and only come here once a year, hoping that no one would see you within a weeks time."

"The accident wasn't an accident was it? It was meant for them, kinda like a payback."

"Things happen for a reason Shayla." She looked up toward the ceiling, towards heaven. "The good Lord knows what he is doing."

"The good Lord had nothing to do with it Grandma, the soul keepers did it."

"Soul Keepers, why I haven't heard that name in a long time now." She stood and walked away from me now. I knew that she would not tell me about them, yet in fact they truly existed I could see it in her eyes. She was frightened but she would never admit to it. "You have nothing to worry about dear." She couldn't think of anything else to say so she left the room for me to finish up eating. However, I just pushed the plate aside and went up stairs to look at the journals.