by I. T. Lucas
Ella took the laptop and typed: I’m special because I can communicate telepathically. Mr. D wants to find me and take me.
Julian felt his fangs elongate and his venom glands swell. “Over my dead body. But that’s an empty threat because he can’t find you. You’re safe here. Just don’t give him any clues.”
She rolled her eyes again and pointed to the previous line she’d typed.
“I get it. That’s why you want to block him.”
She nodded.
“Let me text Kian. Maybe he knows of a clan member who can help with that.”
His text was short and to the point. Ella found a way around the silencing compulsion. She can type what she can’t say. Lokan is invading her dreams, and she wants to know how to stop him.
Kian’s answer came back a moment later. Bring Ella to my office at five in the afternoon. I’ll get Turner and Bridget.
“Five o'clock at Kian’s office. Turner and Bridget are going to be there too.”
“Good. Can you explain this to my family?”
“Sure. Your mom invited me to stay for lunch.”
As he and Ella entered the living room, Parker and Magnus were setting up the table.
“Right on time,” Magnus said. “Take a seat.”
Julian glanced at Ella. “Should I wait with this for after lunch?”
“What is it?” Vivian put a large salad bowl on the table.
“Ella found a way around the compulsion. She can type what she wants to say, but without mentioning his real name. She calls him Mr. D.”
Vivian grinned. “My clever girl. I knew you’d find a way.”
“I wasn’t sure at all,” Ella said. “It was a last-ditch effort after I tried communicating it to you telepathically and then writing it by hand.”
Parker came in with a plate piled up with toast. “What is everyone talking about?”
“Remember what I told you about the clan’s enemies?” Magnus said.
“The Doomers.”
“Ella has met one, but she didn’t know that he was a Doomer.”
“There is more to it,” Julian said. “Apparently, this guy has the ability to intrude on people’s dreams.”
Magnus lifted his hand. “Let’s serve the soup before it gets cold. You can tell us the rest while we eat.”
“Need any help?” Julian got up.
“Vivian and I got it.” Magnus clapped him on the back.
When everyone was seated, Julian waited for Magnus’s signal to continue. Perhaps the Guardian didn’t want Parker to hear the rest?
Feeling Julian’s gaze on him, Magnus lifted his spoon. “Eat your soup first, Julian. The story isn’t going to get cold. The soup is.”
For the next several minutes, no one talked. When Julian was done, he wiped his mouth with the napkin and glanced at the Guardian again.
“Go ahead,” Magnus said.
Thank the merciful Fates. Sitting on exciting news like this wasn’t good for digestion.
“What Ella typed on her laptop was that Mr. D has been invading her dreams. What I think happened was that he discovered her telepathic ability during that one face-to-face meeting they had, and he decided that he wanted her for himself. I’m guessing that he didn’t act on it because he needed Gorchenco for the weapons, so he couldn’t antagonize him by taking Ella by force, and he couldn't thrall the Russian to give Ella up either. Somehow, though, he must have established a connection with her that has allowed him access to her dreams.”
Julian turned to Ella. “Is this a correct assessment so far?”
She nodded.
Vivian groaned. “Is this nightmare ever going to end?”
“I’m so sick of guys coming after Ella,” Parker said. “Maybe if she gets married, has ten kids, and gets really fat, it will stop.”
Ella threw a crumb of toast at him. “Oh, gee. Thanks, Parker. That’s exactly what I want from my life.”
“What?” The kid threw his hands in the air. “Isn’t having ten kids better than being chased by every evil guy who sees your face?”
Chuckling, Vivian looked pointedly at Julian. “Why jump all the way to ten? One child might do.”
Uncomfortable, more for Ella than for himself, Julian raked his fingers through his hair. “Ella is only eighteen, so this conversation is pointless. Besides, I don’t think it would stop someone like Lokan. He’d probably want to get his hands on Ella’s child as well.”
7
Kian
“I’ve never heard of a dream walking talent,” Kian said. “Have you, Bridget?”
She shook her head. “Nope. I can ask Merlin. The guy is a fount of knowledge. We could also ask Dalhu and Robert.”
Kian waved a dismissive hand. “I doubt they know anything. But go ahead.”
“What about the goddess?” Turner asked. “Maybe there were dream walkers among the gods or the early immortals?”
“I’ll do it right now.” Kian pulled out his phone, at the last minute deciding to call instead of texting.
He hadn’t called her in a while, and Annani would be on his case for being a neglectful son, contacting her only when he needed something. Which regrettably was true, and there was no excuse for it.
After all, he wasn’t only her son but also her regent, and it was his duty to call her with regular updates, which he failed to do. She had every right to be upset with him.
“Kian, my beloved son. How good it is to hear from you.”
“Hello, Mother. How have you been?”
“Excellent, my dear. But I know you are not calling to inquire after my well-being. How can I assist you?”
There was no point in denying the truth, especially not with the audience listening in.
“Have you ever heard of a dream walker? A god or an immortal who could enter another person’s dream from afar?”
She took a long moment before answering. “It should be possible for someone like Yamanu to thrall people from afar while they are asleep. But I do not think he can pinpoint a specific person.”
“I’m not talking about thralling. I’m talking about interacting with a person in his or her dream, conducting an actual face-to-face conversation.”
“I do not see how it is possible. Again, an elaborate thrall can mimic a dream. But it would be like planting an entire scene in the person’s head. They would not be really interacting. Do you understand what I am trying to say?”
“I do. Except, it seems that one of Navuh’s sons has the ability.”
“Are you sure? It could be trickery. I would not put it past Navuh and his subordinates to pretend to have powers they do not.”
The thought had crossed Kian’s mind. But to determine that, he needed to ask Ella some more questions. “Thank you. I need to investigate this more in depth. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
“Please do. It is very troubling. We could be vulnerable to dream attacks.”
“Indeed. I’ll talk to you later. Goodbye, Mother.”
“Goodbye, my son.”
Ella, who was the only one who hadn’t heard the other side of the phone conversation, was looking at him expectantly. “What did the goddess say?”
“Annani has never heard of a god or immortal who could interact with another person in his or her dream.” Kian tapped his fingers on the conference table. “I need to ask you more questions. Are you going to type your answers?”
She opened her laptop. “I’ll do my best.”
“In those dreams, did Lokan try to get information out of you?”
Julian cleared his throat. “We should call him Mr. D from now on. It makes things easier for Ella.”
“No problem.”
In the meantime, Ella finished typing and handed the laptop to Julian. “You can read it out loud for everyone.”
He nodded. “Ella says that he didn’t ask her anything. Sometimes she felt as if he was leading her into revealing things, but she was always careful not to.”
“How much in cont
rol of the dream are you, though?” Bridget asked. “Can he glimpse your thoughts while sharing your dream?”
When Julian handed the laptop back to Ella, she typed up a quick response and handed it back.
“Ella says that she’s in full control. It’s the same as if she were awake. Because of the telepathic connection with her mother, she has practiced blocking from a young age, and her shields are always up. She has to lower them to communicate with her mother. Mr. D can’t see what she doesn't want him to.”
Frowning, Ella took the laptop and typed some more before handing it back to Julian.
“The only exception was the sanctuary. In one of the dreams she was walking the grounds when Mr. D joined her, and as he commented on the landscape, she said that it was typical of the region. That could’ve given him a clue as to where the sanctuary was located. In another dream, he joined her at the diner where she used to work, so that’s not a problem, and then he met her at her favorite San Diego beach. Ella is afraid that he might enter a dream while she’s dreaming about the village and see it through her eyes.”
“The village is not a problem,” Turner said. “Seeing it through Ella’s eyes will not tell him anything about its location. The sanctuary is another story, though. The Brotherhood might have records of the place from when it served as their base. He can recognize the landscape from pictures if they kept them, and if he suspects what and where it is, he can find old newspaper articles about the sanctuary from its monastery days.”
Kian leaned back in his chair. “I don’t think we should be overly concerned, but just as a precaution, it’s a good idea to beef up the sanctuary's security.”
“I agree.” Turner flipped his notepad open. “I’m on it.”
“The question is how to protect Ella from his visits,” Bridget said. “This must be really hard on you.” She cast Ella an empathic look. “Going to sleep is probably stressful instead of relaxing.”
Ella grimaced. “It is.”
“Killing Mr. D or putting him in stasis would solve the problem,” Julian hissed through slightly elongated fangs.
Kian snorted. “For that, we would need to find him first.”
Ella took the laptop from Julian and spent a couple of minutes typing away.
“Ella says she can do some snooping around and ask him questions. Maybe he’ll tell her where he is. We know what he looks like. So, if we know where he is, we can catch him.”
“That would require Ella to pretend she enjoys his company,” Bridget said. “Can you do that?”
Ella snorted. “I fooled a paranoid mafia boss into believing that I liked him.”
“That’s true.” Bridget looked at Kian. “Gorchenco had a reason to be suspicious of Ella’s motives. Mr. D has none. He’d be much easier to fool.”
Perhaps. An old and experienced Doomer would not be so easy for Ella to wrap around her little finger. Was Lokan old? Kian had forgotten what Dalhu had written in the dossier he’d prepared on the guy.
Besides, Lokan was likely spending most of his time on the island where they couldn’t get to him anyway.
On the other hand, Lokan wanted Ella and was probably planning to lure her somewhere where he could snatch her. He knew she was in California, so that meant that he knew he’d have to be in the States to get her.
Which would make catching him much easier.
It could be an incredible step forward for the clan. As Navuh’s son, Lokan would know the location of the island. Not only that, they could hold him as a negotiating chip. Navuh didn’t care much for his rank and file, but he must care for his sons, if not emotionally, then for their usefulness.
The question was whether they would manage to get Lokan to talk.
The Doomers the clan had captured in the past hadn’t been privy to the information, and on top of that, they’d been under compulsion not to reveal any of the Brotherhood’s secrets. Even Dalhu suspected that he’d been compelled before leaving for his mission in the States.
Kian wasn’t sure he was right, though.
Dalhu had claimed that the compulsion had eased the longer he’d stayed away from the island. But that sounded more like a thrall than a compulsion. Then again, immortals could only get thralled by gods, and Navuh was no god.
Kian had the passing thought that maybe Annani’s half-sister Areana had something to do with it, but he then dismissed it out of hand.
First of all, they had no proof that Areana was alive. Neither Dalhu nor Robert had ever heard of her. And secondly, Areana was a weak goddess. According to Annani, her sister had been weaker than some of the more powerful immortals.
“I want you to keep me updated,” he told Ella. “Every time you dream about him, text me the details. Or you can type it in your laptop and text me the page. Whatever works for you.”
She nodded. “I’ll do that.”
8
Ella
“I’m hungry,” Ella said as she and Julian climbed the steps to her front porch. “I hope my mother saved dinner for us.”
With all the excitement, she hadn’t eaten much at lunch, and the meeting had taken longer than expected.
He rubbed his stomach. “We should’ve gotten something from the vending machines. I’m hungry too, and I don’t want to impose.”
“Don’t be silly.” She cast him an incredulous glance. “Even if there are no leftovers, I can whip us up a couple of sandwiches, or we can heat up a frozen pizza.” Other than salads, which she had several good recipes for, that was the extent of her culinary expertise.
As she opened the door, Ella scanned the living room for her mother, but no one was there. It still felt strange to her that the front door remained unlocked at all times, even when no one was home, and stranger still that she had no need for a key.
Heck, she didn’t even have one. Maybe there was no key?
She wasn’t sure. On the one hand, it was nice to know that the village was so safe that no one locked their doors, but on the other hand, having no key to open the door with made her feel as if this wasn’t her house.
It was just a passing feeling, a niggling in the back of her head, or maybe just an uncomfortable sensation in her stomach, not a conscious thought. Logically she knew that this was home, even more so than their old house.
Her family didn’t belong in the human world. They belonged right here, in this village, and in this brand new, gorgeous house that was theirs to keep.
“Mom? Where are you?”
“I’m right here.” Vivian entered through the glass doors with Scarlet trotting behind her. “I was reading outside. How did it go?”
“Good. Is there anything left over to eat? I’m starving.”
Vivian waved them over to the table. “I would have waited for you, but Magnus had to leave. I have your plates in the warming drawer. You can tell me everything after your bellies are full.”
Once they were done with the main course, Julian summed up the meeting for her mother.
“I don’t like it,” Vivian said. “Encouraging those dream visits is asking for trouble.”
Ella couldn’t argue with that assessment. Her mother was right, but she was going to do it anyway.
Finally, Kian was taking her seriously and seeing her as a valuable asset, and not the pesky human girl with grandiose ideas.
Ella hadn’t missed the sparkle in his eyes when he’d realized that she had access to one of Navuh’s sons and could get information for the clan that they couldn’t obtain in any other way.
Julian put down the bread roll he was munching on. “Kian doesn’t think it’s dangerous. Even if Mr. D can see the village through Ella’s eyes, it’s going to be meaningless to him. Ella doesn’t know the location, and there are no landmarks visible from here.”
“The ocean is a big one,” Vivian said.
He waved a dismissive hand. “It’s only visible from the very edge of the village.”
“And I never saw it,” Ella added. “I’ll just avoid that spot.”
“Oh, good. Now I can go to a club.” Ella opened the envelope and pulled everything out. “A driver’s license with an awesome picture, a passport, a social security card, and a birth certificate.” She glanced at Julian. “You guys are thorough.”
Popping the lid off a Snake Venom bottle, he smiled. “I’m only the doctor. I know as much about the production of fake papers as you do.”
“This is freedom.” Ella lifted the driver’s license and waved it in the air. “Now I only need a car.”
Her mother flinched. “It’s not safe for you to go out by yourself yet. The danger from the Russian is not over.”
“I can take you out,” Julian offered. “We’ve just eaten, so a restaurant is not an option, but I can take you to a night club.”
Across the table, Vivian sucked in a breath.
It’s okay, Mom, Ella sent. I’m not ready for a club.
Relieved, her mother slumped in her chair.
“How about a movie?” Ella turned to Julian. “I haven’t been to a movie theater in ages.”
He put his beer down. “You know that we have one in the underground complex, right?”
“I do. But you probably don’t have any of the new movies that are now playing in theaters.”
He snorted. “Are you kidding me? Have you forgotten about Brandon? We get new movies before they are released to the public. He gets us the early screening copies.”
“Do you have Vampires in Paris? It’s supposed to come out next month.”
“I’ve never heard of it, but I can check.” He pulled out his phone. “We have a list of available movies on the clan’s virtual board.”
“Let me see.” She leaned closer and peered over his arm at the phone. “Anything else interesting on that board?”
He handed it to her. “Take a look.”
“Class schedules, a list of movies, and some items for sale. That’s uninspiring.”
