Chapter Fourteen
"Cousin? Cousin, are you okay?"
Larry jumped as if he'd been shot and clutched his chest. Where was he? The last thing he remembered was being inside the cottage and waiting for the police to arrive.
"Cousin, I heard you moaning in your sleep. Did you have a nightmare?"
Larry looked up at Balki before he placed a hand next to him and felt the warmth of the blankets on his bed. He had been dreaming? "I–I was here the whole time?"
"Well of course you were; don't be ridiculous!" Balki told him, sitting on the edge of his bed. "Where did you think you were; the Halls of Monty Python? I was in my room, writing Mama and I heard you say something in your sleep. When I come in, you are moaning and saying something about being normal."
"I guess I was having a dream. It seemed like it went on forever and it didn't make very much sense."
"Well, Cousin, most dreams don't make sense. They are just our minds turning tricks on us. What did you dream of?"
Larry ran a hand through his soaking wet ringlets of hair. "I–I don't really remember too much."
"Was it about flying? Did you dream you were a superhero and able to stop Loco's motives?"
Larry looked at Balki, dumbfounded. "No, I can honestly say it wasn't either one of those. Look, maybe if I get up and move around, I can remember my dream and I'll tell you then, okay?"
"Okay, Cousin. It's time to get ready for work, anyway. Mr. Gorpley wants me to make a copy of the dictionary for him so he can look up really big words in his office instead of going upstairs to look. He says he wants to expand his mind. That don't sound too good to me, but it's his mind."
Larry watched his cousin leave before he stood up and looked at himself in the mirror above the bureau. So everything that happened with Max and Bianca was nothing but his subconscious working overtime! While he was glad they had never been kidnapped or in danger, he remembered parts of the dream so vividly that it felt as if it had actually taken place. He could still feel the rain on his face and taste Bianca's sweet lips as they kissed–
"What am I saying? It was a dream and I'm in love with Jennifer!" he told his reflection. "It was only a dream. Bianca's not here and everything is back to normal."
Suddenly, the realization that Bianca had been in danger from Max hit him and he literally gasped for air. What if his subconscious was trying to warn him that Bianca was in some sort of trouble? He had to find out, but how?
Quickly but quietly, he exited his bedroom and saw that Balki was tucked away in his room, getting dressed.
Grabbing the phone from the bar, he dialed the operator and jotted down a phone number. He knew it was a long shot, but he had to know for sure. It was the only thing he knew to do. As he dialed the phone number, he held his breath until he heard the person on the receiving end pick up.
"Hello?" the male voice asked.
"Hi. I'm sorry to bother you, but my name is Larry Appleton from Chicago and I need to speak to you. It's very important."
"What is this call pertaining to, Mr. Appleton?" the man queried.
"I'm calling about Bianca Pierson; your granddaughter."