The Nightmare Affair (8 page)

My mom, a study in contradictions.

I decided it was time for a subject change. “Where’s Bethany?”

Mom scowled. “Don’t worry about it. I took care of her.”

“Geez, Mom, what did you do now?” I looked around for cops again.

“She’ll be fine. You don’t want to learn from her anyway. She’s a horrible woman.”

“But where
is
she?”

“Taking a little nap. Long enough for you and me to get out of here.”

I groaned, certain she had used a sleeping spell. I kept hoping Mom would give up her habit of breaking The Will, but apparently, it was never going to happen. Just how she got away with it was a mystery, although most of the rumors suggested she was friendly with a lot of high-ranking Will-Workers, those weirdo magickind whose job it was to keep The Will running smoothly, and who made sure the spell knew who it needed to keep in check by maintaining the registry.

“I can’t believe you! You’re going to get us both in trouble,” I said.

“Don’t be ridiculous. We’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Come on. Let’s go.” She reached for my arm.

I pulled away. “No.”

Moira frowned, a look of momentary surprise in her pale, almost white eyes. She wasn’t used to people defying her. Shame. If she’d stuck around more often, I’d have given her loads of practice.

“You’ve got to come away with me, Destiny.”

“Not until you tell me why.”

She blanched. “I can’t tell you.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not five anymore, Mom. You can’t just make demands and expect me to obey without question.”

“Fine. Because it’s dangerous, and I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Well,
there
was a satisfying response. Common sense told me I should be afraid of anything that provoked this much anxiety in my mother, but as usual I felt the opposite. My curiosity skyrocketed, and for the first time, I envisioned myself solving the mystery, saving the day. Being the hero.

“Well,” I said, “that’s too bad, because I’m
not
running away with you, and I
am
going to do what the senate wants and be the best dream-seer
ever
.”

“You are so stubborn.” Moira shook her head.

Encouraged by her frustration, I added, “You forgot rebellious and a smart aleck.”

She glowered at me for a second, then grinned. “I know. I’d expect nothing less from
my
daughter.”

Crap.
I hated when she turned the tables on a perfectly good argument. Why did she have to get all proud about my misbehavior? Why couldn’t she stay angry and maybe ground me like a normal parent? I supposed I could turn the tables back on her if I started behaving like the perfect kid, always doing what I was told, never back talking, but I just didn’t think I had it in me.

“All right,” Mom said. “I suppose running away really isn’t an option.”

I stared, speechless at her sudden reversal, and a little suspicious, too.

“Don’t look so shocked. Contrary to what your father says, I
can
be reasonable. But I’m not happy about this. You’ve no idea the danger.”

“I’ll be fine, Mom.”

“Of course you will, until the killer finds out you’re a dream-seer. When he does, what do you think he’ll do next?”

I gulped as horrible visions of the killer coming after me flashed in my brain.

Moira smirked. “That’s what I thought. You
haven’t
thought about it.”

“Wait a minute. If that’s true, why hasn’t the senate kept me and Eli a secret? Far as I can tell, everybody knows about us.”

“That’s because the discovery of a new dream-seer pair is too
prestigious
for the senate to keep it quiet.”

“How do you mean?”

“It’s about status, Destiny. A dream-seer is a powerful tool, a
weapon,
and the Magi Senate is now the only governing body in the magical world to currently have one. The Magi Parliament in Britain had the last pair years ago, and it helped them gain the power they have now. The senate will seek to do the same with you. They’ll want everybody to know.”

I frowned, less than thrilled at the idea of being the government’s shiny new gun. “So you’re saying I might predict more than just stuff about the killer?”

“Yes. In the past, dream-seers have identified spies, uncovered assassination attempts, all sorts of things.”

So much for hoping this would be a one-time gig. I bit my lip. “So we’re like the psychic CIA.”

Moira tapped her foot. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“But why are dream-seers so important? It seems a lot like being an oracle to me.”

“Not at all. Oracles only see what they are able to see. They have little control in directing the subject of their visions. Dream-seers don’t.”

I started to nod then stopped. “Hang on. How do
you
know so much about dream-seers? Until yesterday I’d never heard of such a thing.”

A somber look crossed Moira’s face. “Because you’re not the first in our family to be one. Our ancestor was one over a thousand years ago.”

I frowned. “Well, if I really am so important to the senate, they must be doing something to keep me safe.”

“Are you
sure
?”

Well, no, but I refused to admit it. “The killer’s not just some random psycho. He’s looking for something specific. Rosemary was guarding something, or at least the Keeper spell on her was.”

“How do you know that?” Mom sounded breathless with shock.

I thought about placing the blame on Elaine, but I wouldn’t put it past my mother to take vengeance on the old lady. “I put two and two together.”

Moira crossed her arms. “I know you don’t
really
expect me to believe that.”

I closed my mouth and refused to say more.

She sighed. “Well, I guess it’s too late to pull you out of this. I suppose I’ll just have to keep an eye on you myself.”

I tried not to laugh. “You’re going to be my bodyguard?”

“Either that or I’m going to kidnap you.”

I put my hands on my hips. “You could help me instead. The sooner they catch the killer, the more likely I’ll live to see junior year.”

“That’s not funny, Destiny.”

“I’m serious. Nobody will tell me anything. I don’t even know what it is I’m supposed to be looking for other than the obvious. But I doubt this guy’s just gonna show up in Eli’s dreams.”

Moira nodded, her short, pixie-cut blond hair fluttering around the sides of her face like butterfly wings. “You’re right. But nobody can tell you what to look for. There’s no way to know. Every minuscule aspect of a dream could be brimming with signs of impending doom. Or it could mean nothing at all.”

“That’s helpful.”

“But I
can
teach you a few tricks about dream-walking. Come on. Let’s get to it now while we’ve got a chance.” She strode toward the door.

“Where are we going?” I said as I followed after her.

“The janitor’s closet.”

“Mind telling me why?”

“That’s where I put Bethany. She’ll make an ideal candidate to practice on.”

*   *   *

You know how they say nurses make the worst patients? Well, the same was true of Nightmares and dream subjects. Bethany detected us almost at once. Her dream was taking place in a vast room that bore a strong resemblance to the pictures I’d seen of Senate Hall where Consul Vanholt and the rest of the Magi held their meetings. Bethany appeared to be occupying the consul’s chair.

She stood up at once and pointed at my mother. “
You
. What are
you
doing here?”

Moira gave her a little wave, almost like a salute. “Hello, Beth. Long time no see.”

“Get out,” Bethany sneered. Then she charged us, which would’ve been scary enough in the real world given her resemblance to a gorilla—she was thick and stout, with black bushy eyebrows—but she was twice as scary in her own dream. The black-and-white world around me began to melt as Bethany’s mind neared consciousness. Any moment now and I would be kicked out. I closed my eyes, bracing for the inevitable pain.

Bang!

I opened them again to see Bethany lying on the ground a few feet away, moaning.
What the—?

“Never do learn, do you, Beth?” Moira said. She took hold of my arm and hauled me toward the two huge doors at the hall’s entrance.

“What did you do to her?” I said to my mother.

“Glass wall.” Moira pushed open one of the doors and stepped through. I followed her into the middle of a shopping mall. It wasn’t unusual for the scenery in a dream to change without warning, but I knew at once this was different. For one, the scene was solid again, all the melting and slippage now gone. For another, I was pretty sure this was the Macy’s department store in New York City, one of my mom’s favorite places in the whole world. Every summer she took me on a five-day shopping spree in New York as part of her annual attempt to buy my affection. I found it pretty unlikely Bethany would be dreaming about Macy’s of all places. From the looks of her, she hadn’t bought new clothes since 1989.

“Did you do this?” I asked.

Mom grinned, her bright eyes flashing as she faced the door we’d just come through. It was now normal sized and labeled
JANITOR
. She waved her hand over the doorknob, and the lock clicked into place.

From the other side of the door Bethany screamed, “Stop manipulating my dream, you bitch!”

I just stared. “How are you doing it?”

Moira grabbed my hand and pulled me down the aisle at a run. “Any Nightmare can change the content of a dream. If you’ve got enough power, that is.” She stopped and ducked behind a shoe rack display, yanking me beside her. She whispered, “That’s one of the reasons why the Magi only want you to feed every other week. A fully charged Nightmare can do whatever they want inside a dream. Here, we’re like gods.”

A chill went through me at her words. It all sounded a bit too much like
A Nightmare on Elm Street
for my tastes. I understood the danger of that much power, having experienced enough bad dreams in my lifetime to know how scary and
real
they could be.

Moira continued. “Now that you’re allowed to feed more often, you can do this, too.”

“But why would I want to manipulate someone like that?”

“Lots of reasons. A dream-seer is two people, Destiny, not one. As the Nightmare, you read the dream’s content, but Eli is the channel for the contents. It flows
through
him. If you’re not getting anywhere, you can always help the flow by setting the scene.”

“You mean I could re-create what he saw about Rosemary?”

“Maybe. At the very least you can simulate the locale.”

I shook my head, but before I could ask any questions, Bethany burst through the door and came running down the aisle toward us. Moira stood up and faced her.

She glanced at me, and said. “You can also do
this
.” Moira raised her hands, and this time I saw the glass appear in front of Bethany, boxing her in.

Bethany slid to a stop and pounded on the glass with both fists. “Let me out. This is
my
dream.”

“All in good time, sweetheart.” Mom faced me. “Now I want you to create something. It should be small, inanimate, and familiar.”

“Don’t teach her that!” Bethany shouted.

Moira waved her hand again, and this time all the noise Bethany was making vanished. Mom turned back to me. “Go on.”

I hesitated, glancing at Bethany’s rage-twisted face. “Are you sure about this?”

“Quite. Beth’s just being paranoid. There’s nothing to worry about. Now go ahead. Try and create something you know well.”

Silly, I know, but the first thing to come to mind was a Milky Way Midnight bar. It was my favorite candy, and I was starved from skipping lunch. Plus, I’d always liked the wrapping with its purple-and-black galaxy background. No sooner had I pictured the thing than it appeared on the display table in front of me.

Moira spotted it at once and beamed. “Good job.”

I wasn’t used to her complimenting me, and I flushed as I picked it up. The candy was solid in my hand, and when I peeled off the wrapping, the smell of the dark chocolate made my mouth water.

I glanced at my mother. “I don’t know how I did it.”

She waved off my doubt. “Just try again.”

I did, but this time nothing happened.

Moira said, “Changing a dream works like mind-magic, but instead of using your mind, you use your imagination.”

“What’s the difference?”

“More than you’ll ever know. Now try again.”

I closed my eyes and did as she asked. Instead of visualizing the candy bar, I sort of day-dreamed about it. It took a long time, but I eventually managed to create a second Milky Way. The effort left me feeling like I’d run a marathon.

Mom patted me on the back. “Don’t worry. It’ll get easier the more you practice and the more you feed.”

She probably meant this as encouragement, but being reminded of my feeding duties only made me want to quit. “Can we go now?”

“You first. I need to let Miss Grouchy Pants out of her cage.”

I figured Bethany had a right to be grouchy, but saw no point in arguing. I slipped out of the dream into my body. To my astonishment the Milky Way I’d created was still in my hand. I tightened my fingers around it, testing its solidity. It vanished.

My mother came back to her body a moment later. She stood and pushed me toward the door. “Go on. Get out of here before Beth wakes up. I’ll smooth things over.”

Somehow, I doubted that. I wanted to ask her about the candy bar, but Bethany’s eyes opened and now obviously wasn’t a good time. I backed out of the janitor’s closet and closed the door. A second later I heard loud bangs and muffled shouts, but I refused to worry as I headed down the hallway out of earshot. Physical violence was restricted by The Will, so whatever they were doing to each other couldn’t be too bad. Besides, with my dream-feeding session with Eli quickly approaching, I had my own battles to worry about.

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