Page 160 of Trials of Dusk and Dreams
“Maybe,” I reply. “But I can’t leave anyone to die in their sleep. That makes us as bad as the Nightmares.”
He lets go and drops to Irisa. They don’t take long to rouse, and after explaining the situation, I’m surprised they join us on our mission to wake the rest of the exhibitors. Dahlia was almost friendly to me in Burn After Reading when she thought we had no reason to be competitors. I’d like to think if things were different, she wouldn’t be so vicious. I’m sure once this trial isover, it’ll be every exhibitor for themselves again. But I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it.
I wake Sarah and a few others I recognize. Alfie, the fucker, refuses to do anything but read his scroll, his eyes darting across the parchment with feverish intensity. We instruct anyone awake to rouse those caught in the dreamscape. With Sarah and Corey at my side, I run toward Becky but can’t see her through the growing group of exhibitors. I’m pleased to see her blond head at eye level when we arrive. Heath must have worked some kind of magic—I didn’t think it was possible for a Never, but a Shadow would undoubtedly have a few tricks up his sleeve.
The relief squeezing my heart is so powerful that I hug her. Tight. “I’m so fucking glad you’re okay.”
She hesitates but then hugs me, too. “Me too.”
Nodding, I pull back and search for the next person I’m worried about. This exhibition isn’t over yet. I see him huddled with some Youngies, their faces pale with fear.
“Colin,” I shout. He turns to me, eyes rimmed with red. It’s the same gangly frame, too-large hands, and an awkward smile. Alive.
“Are you okay?” I ask, pushing past an older exhibitor to get to him. I can’t see blood on his dull uniform.
“I knew you wouldn’t forget us,” he mumbles, voice hoarse. He turns to his friends. “See? Didn’t I tell you guys? Goodfellow’s wrong.”
My throat clogs. “He wasn’t wrong.”
“What?” Colin gasps, betrayal flashing in his eyes. “But?—”
“You’re not wrong either,” I quickly say, holding his stare so he knows I’m telling the truth. “I might have a past I’m not proud of, but I’m not going to leave you all to die.”
I recognize Ji-Soo with the bangs, but I’ve not met the nervous male with olive skin and deep-set eyes. She’s holding an arm to her chest as though it’s hurt. He’s favoring one leg.
“Where’s Maggie?” I ask Colin.
His expression curdles my stomach. It’s fear, grief, and a step away from madness. This is too much for him—for anyone. I need to give them something to do—a distraction.
I turn to every exhibitor in earshot and shout, “Start cataloging the Terrors. Know their weaknesses so we’re ready when they attack.” I point to the closest buttress where a Terror matches Emrys’s description. I never imagined something this grotesque was behind that stall door. A furry hindquarter is crudely stitched to a skinless ape-like torso. Its eyes swivel independently. One reptilian slit focuses on me while the other bulbous and insectoid eye scans the crowd. The stench of decay wafts from its patchwork body. A string of drool dangles from its mouth. Maybe it recognizes me from the stables.
My hand covers the charm Legion gave me just before entering. It’s supposed to hide my pheromones, but my usual scent would still penetrate. Interestingly, I haven’t felt the crippling effects of my heat since I put it on. I have at least another day of fever in me. If I lose this charm, my pheromones will leak again.
An idea forms in my head.
“That’s a Graftspawn,” I say, gripping my sword. “It’s mine.”
“Fine with me.” Colin gives a little hysterical laugh.
“Colin.” I grab his shoulder. “Start listing all the Terrors you recognize. Stay with your Youngies. Safety in numbers, okay?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’ve got this. Bodin wouldn’t have offered you a traineeship as a Phantom if he didn’t think you were capable. Make sure your friends are all doing the same thing. I need you to keep watch for me—to shout warnings for those of us fighting, okay?”
He nods vehemently. “Yeah. We can do that.”
“We only need to kill one to trigger the next trial. Until then, everyone just needs to survive.”
Ji-Soo nods, her eyes wide but determined. The olive-skinned boy swallows hard but squares his shoulders. Their fear is evident, but so is their resolve. These kids are tougher than they know.
“Good,” I say.
“We woke everyone we could,” Max announces, panting as they reach us. No sooner are the words out of his mouth when the brand on my palm burns like fire. I hiss and hear a chorus of others doing the same. We all feel the pain. When I glance down, the raised welt has changed a shade darker. No longer pink, but blue.
A ripple of tingling air filled the smell of rotting flesh gusts over us. The arena shimmers, and reality warps like a mirage. The ground grows colder, frost crystals spreading in intricate patterns across the sand and grass. Clouds form from our breath. A torrential downpour of nightmarish shrieks lifts the hairs on the back of my neck.
The second trial has begun.
