“Okay. So... what? Nightmares come out? Don’t the Dream Devils run the show? Why can’t they clear it up?”
“They can’t clear it up because there’s nothing to clear.” Frustration added a sharp edge to his voice. “The rule system, the structure–it’s not just broken. It’s gone.” He looked at her unflinchingly, like he was right at home in this terrifying mess but still hated it. “The Dream Devils work inside the system. But when the system collapses, they’ve got jack shit to work with. The Devils, the Shadow Keepers... It’s like asking firefighters to put out a blaze that burns even though it’s not real.” His voice dropped lower. “This isn’t about containing a nightmare, or a manifestation gone rogue. This is about the Dreamscape not holding itself together.”
They passed the post office and turned onto the road that led out of downtown, heading toward Lachlan’s.
A woman appeared on the road, walking barefoot in a nightgown, arms limp at her sides. She stopped in the middle of their lane. Her eyes were rolled back white, her lips twitching. The air rippled around her like cold heatwaves.
“Is she real?”
“Yes.”
Hunter slowed down and swerved around her with a muttered curse.
“That lady might be real, but she’s not okay, not one bit. The Dreamscape breaking is why people are losing their minds. Her, all the others from this afternoon.”
“Yes. Dreamers start losing connection to their real-world self. They forget who they are or rewrite their identities based on nightmare logic, and nightmares start manifesting. Think voices or physical symptoms from nightmare injuries. Devils can lose track of time, get stuck in a looping dream-state.”
Daphne had nothing to say to that. The sandwich rolled in her coiled stomach, and her breath came in short and hard.
And when a tall, twisted figure flashed in the rearview mirror, standing exactly where the woman had been, she didn’t scream. She swallowed and reached for his hand. He squeezed it, gave her one of his swaggering smiles.
And even in the middle of this waking nightmare, it was the safest thing she’d ever felt.
When they finally pulled up in front of the Mayor’s home, a couple of cars were parked askew on the sidewalk in front of his house. Hunter maneuvered the car into the closest spot he could find, pulling in close. He didn’t ring the bell or knock; he simply pushed the door open, his hand never leaving hers, and stepped inside.
They walked right into a chaos of voices, noise, and people. It was six of them, but it felt like more in the homey living room. There was purpose in it, though, a current of focused urgency that pushed back against the chaos. Elbows brushed the backs of chairs. Someone’s boot tapped the floor in time with a ticking clock.
Magic buzzed against the walls, thick and impossible to ignore. It made perfect sense. This room held the most powerful beings not only of Mystic Hollow. The air felt heavy by it to the point of being uncomfortable.
Two small clusters of people had formed.
The smaller group by the fireplace was made by Harper’s husband, Nick, who towered over Jade, a petite, glowing nymph whose rainbow dragonfly wings buzzed in distress.
In the group at the table, she recognized Melisandre, the town doctor and Magistra of the covenant. Aryon and Elara, the Lord and Lady of the elves. And Lachlan. They poured over a map she guessed was Mystic Hollow.
She? She was just Daphne. Human. The reason why all these people looked like they needed a vacation and some anxiety meds.
And for a heartbeat, she wished she could fold into the wall. Maybe fake a phone call and ghost out in the back.
The thought screeched like nails on a chalkboard.
Was she overwhelmed? Yes. Was this her fault? Also yes.
And she could shrink, sure. She could hide somewhere and pray no one noticed the human-shaped liability in the room.
Or she could do what she always did when the world went sideways: square her shoulders, shut up the spiral in her head, andhandle it.
So fuck it.
She straightened, lifted her chin, and walked farther into the room.
And she noticed that Dorian was missing.
He’s trying to slow the unraveling, Hunter told her in her mind.
Are you always in my head?she shot back, because damn it, she didn’t want him to know her moment of weakness.
No, I jump in and out. I’ll teach you how to shield as soon as we’re done here. “Yo, wizard,” Hunter called out when nobody bothered turning in their direction.
