Caught

by L. L. Frost

  Scooting off the bed, I lead Landon out of my house and back to the first apartment complex Aren took me to, showing him the cocoons.

  Landon studies the bodies one by one, careful not to touch them.

  When we return to the street, he shakes his head. “If those were done by the same drone that stalked you, then the cocoons would have dissolved once Tac killed it.”

  “Aren says the cocoons started appearing two weeks ago, which means I wasn’t the only link to the Between.”

  “We don’t know that for sure.” Landon’s gaze sweeps over the gray street as if he can see past it to the human city. “More than one could have followed you back.”

  “He says people have been having new nightmares, more vivid than usual. And it takes a week from onset until the cocoon forms.” I grip Landon’s arm. “I didn’t go to the Between until after that.”

  His expression grows troubled. “That’s not good. That means we’re dealing with two bridges linking the Between to the human plane.” He scrubs a hand over his face. “We know the first bridge is in your backyard. With your link to the Between destroyed, we could locate and clear it. But that won’t fix things if there’s a new bridge somewhere else that we can’t find.”

  Swearing, he paces away from me.

  I follow after him. “How did the Dreamer escape the first time?”

  He spins back to face me, his lips tight. “The Dreamer’s not from the Between. It’s not a demon. It’s a manifestation of humans. We simply put it in the Between as a means of locking it away.”

  Hope rises. “Can’t you call up the same people to relock it up, then? If you lock the cage again, then the bridge should be destroyed, right?”

  The look of pity returns. “It’s not that easy.”

  No, of course it’s not.

  “And even if it were,” he continues, pacing back away from me, “there’s only two of us left from the original group. It took five people last time. Accessing the Between is impossible now.”

  My voice comes out small. “I went there.”

  “Because you’re you. You thrive on doing the impossible.” He throws up his hands in frustration. “But going there on accident and going there with intent are two different things. It requires more power than you could harvest in a millennium. I’m talking big mojo here.”

  “If all you need is someone powerful, what about Emil, Tobias, and Kellen?” They’re the most powerful demons I know, and they’ve been around in one form or another since the beginning of time.

  But Landon shakes his head. “It has to be someone who can access Dreamland freely.”

  Hope surges back. “Kellen accessed Dreamland a few hours ago.”

  Landon casts me an exasperated look. “I’m not talking about in dreams.”

  I cross my arms under my breasts. “Neither am I.”

  That gives him pause. “Explain.”

  “Kellen ripped his way into Dreamland using his power over clouds.” Or something like that. Aren might have thought it was obvious, but I’m still confused by how the storm demon managed it.

  But Landon looks thoughtful, as if he fully understands the concept now that I brought it to his attention. Slowly, he nods. “That might work. But that’s only three people, if I can even convince the other one.”

  Hesitant, I offer, “Cousin Cassandra?”

  He snorts in disgust. “She’d rather watch the world burn.”

  “Yeah, I thought that might be the case.” Glum, I kick at a cloud of gray, then another thought strikes. “Could a baku do it from this side?”

  “A baku?” His incredulous look gives way to consideration. “It’s possible, but there aren’t any powerful enough.”

  “There might be. I know someone.” I remember the way Dreamland makes way for Aren, and he’s at least twice Tally’s age.

  Surely that puts him up there in power? Unless he sundered himself recently. Does Aren have a little baku running around somewhere in Dreamland? Somehow, I can’t imagine it.

  I sweep the area for any sight of his grotesque form and find the streets eerily empty. Usually, there’s a baku or two running around. My attention returns to Landon. Are they scared to come out with him here?

  Landon looks skeptical. “It’s a slim chance. At that power-level, they’d be a risk to Dreamland’s structure.”

  “I’ll talk to them.” I bite my lip. “But that still leaves us one short.”

  “Possibly two.” Landon’s fingers push back through his white curls. “I’ll have to be convincing. She’s grown cantankerous over the years.”

  “It’s a start.” I clap my hands together, feeling lighter for having a game plan, however unsteady it may be. “You go talk to Kellen and your old partner. I’ll talk to the baku I know. The guys might be able to think of someone else.” My lips twist with distaste. “They’ve known a lot of succubi over the years.”

  He nods and steps up to me. “I’m proud of you.”

  The smile I offer wobbles. “Even with all my screw-ups?”

  “Even with them. We’ll get through this. However long it takes.” He cups my cheeks. “Now, let me return this energy before I’m tempted to digest it.”

  His mouth lowers to mine, the briefest brush of lips to trigger the power flooding back into me, eager to return to its original host. My bones rattle with earthquakes, my lungs burn with summer forest fires, and my limbs grow heavy with landslides. Snowflakes and lightning follow, weaker but still present, and the threads that link me to the guys grows stronger, welcoming the return of power.

  My body hums, more filled in a moment than from the hours of sex with Kellen. The skin between my shoulder blades itches, yearning for wings, but I restrain the urge to build a new form. I need to conserve what I gain if I want to power up. No frivolous use of energy.

  Landon draws back, then presses another kiss to my forehead, the warmth of his lips fading as he does. Fighting back the loneliness that instantly rears its ugly head, I square my shoulders. I’m not alone, and I have a mission.

  Spinning on one heel, I go on the hunt for a baku demon.

  “I’m not going to eat you!” I dodge the small trunk that slaps at my face and give the tiny baku a shake in reprimand. “I’m just looking for Aren. Where is he?”

  After an entire day of searching for Tally’s brother, I gave up and caught one of the small baku demons that started following me around as soon as Landon left. The little suckers can move fast when they put their minds to it, disappearing through buildings and into cloud banks without a trace.

  I never properly appreciated what a sport hunting the little dream eaters was when my cousins boasted about it. But I finally caught one.

  She wiggles and flails in my hold, the slick scales on her hide deflecting my talons with ease. When she starts to slip through my grasp, I shift my grip to the mottles brown and black fur ruff around her neck. From the corner of my eye, I spot movement as other baku circle close. While succubi are the superior species here, I’m obviously not powerful, and a pack of them could probably take me down.

  Small, clawed feet kick against my stomach, knocking away the protective clay layer that clings to my skin. I never thought I’d be happy for the baked-on crust, as it protects my delicate stomach from evisceration nicely.

  Disgruntled, I hold the baku at arm’s length and turn toward the gathering. “You know who I am. You’ve seen me with Aren. We got separated, and I just need to find him again. I am not upset that one of you collected a bounty on me.” It’s a guess on my part, but that lot got more leery of me after my mentor showed up. “I applaud your ingenuity and hope you make good use of the favor you claimed.”

  Ears flap, and liquid black eyes blink as the baku stick their heads together in quiet conversation before the largest of the group steps forward. “Aren is the mightiest of us. You will not be able to feast on him.”

  “I don’t want to.” As a show of goodwill, I release the baku in my grasp.

  She whip
s around and clamps sharp teeth onto my big toe, then flees before I can kick her in retaliation.

  Glaring after her fleeing rump until she disappears through a wall, I turn back to the speaker. “Look, he was showing me those strange cocoons. The ones that appear after humans have vivid nightmares. We’re working together to figure out what’s causing them. We’re partners.”

  “Succubi and baku are not partners,” the speaker trumpets, and the others wave their trunks in agreement.

  “That’s not true. I like baku,” I coax, though that’s not necessarily the truth. I like Tally and tolerate Aren’s perviness. “I work with Tally on the human plane. You know Tally, right?”

  This wins me disapproving stares. Okay, maybe my pink friend isn’t the best reference. She’s not exactly a standard baku demon.

  At last, the speaker trots forward, its ruff rising in an attempt to make itself bigger. “I will take you to where he last feasted.”

  I give it a solemn nod. “I appreciate it.”

  Unlike Aren, this one only comes up to my knee, and its lion tail sticks straight up from its rump, more stub than actual tail with only a small puff at the tip.

  It stays a healthy distance away from me, and after chasing the baku all over the city, I’m pretty sure if it decides to run, I won’t be able to catch it.

  Even so, it doesn’t move that fast, its stumpy legs trotting but its pace like a snail. I limp along beside it, my toe smarting from the bite, but don’t comment. I have time. Too much of it, in fact.

  After a couple blocks, the baku waves its trunk at me. “I’m not afraid of you, just so we’re clear.”

  I eye the ruff, still fluffed out to make its head twice the normal side. “Never said you were.”

  Its spine arches to accentuate the small hump between its shoulder blades. “I don’t know why you’re so interested in the unawakening. They can’t provide sustenance.”

  “Because the humans inside the cocoons are dying.” My hands open and close in helpless fists.

  It snorts. “What do demons care if humans die?”

  I stare down at it. “What will you do if humans no longer dream?”

  It peers up at me. “Demons dream.”

  I may question Landon’s decision to raise me to care for humans, but if the alternative is this lack of reverence for life, I’ll take caring too much over apathy any day.

  Annoyed, I face forward once more. “The thing that makes the cocoons is eating the humans. It’s hunting in our territory.”

  That gains the baku’s attention, and it lets out a hiss that sounds halfway between a snake and a tea kettle on the verge of whistling.

  A flicker of red off to the left catches my attention, and I hold up a hand as I freeze. “Did you see that?”

  “What?” Despite its wariness, the baku hops closer to my side as it peers around. “Another succubus?”

  “No.” I spin slowly in a circle, searching for another flash of red. “Something more dangerous.”

  “There’s nothing more dangerous than a succubus.” The baku’s rough hide bumps against my calf as it shuffles around.

  Putting aside the whole hunting each other thing, Dreamland is usually a safe place. Other demons can’t come here, and humans can’t fight back.

  But now, every swirl of gray cloud makes me nervous. Every soft cornered building offers a hiding place for one of the Dreamer’s drones. I assumed the hideous floating eyeballs attacked people on the human plane, but now, that feels like a very naive way of thinking. Just because the drone attempted to get me while I was corporeal doesn’t mean that’s how it always works.

  “Let’s keep going.” I motion for the little demon to continue leading the way.

  The sooner we find Aren, the better. The large baku makes me feel safer, less vulnerable while out in the open. Hopefully, I’m right about his power level, and he can help to lock the Dreamer’s cage once more.

  As we near another apartment complex, this one smaller than the first two, my steps slow. The area feels familiar, and as I spin in a slow circle, I realize I know where we are. This is my old apartment building. The bakery is a few blocks over, with Kellen’s club, Fulcrum, halfway between. Unease rolls my stomach into a tight knot.

  Why here? This can’t be a coincidence.

  Something hard bumps against my calf, and I leap back, claws rising, before I register the baku. It shuffles away from me, its eyes wide in fear.

  “Sorry.” My arms drop back to my sides. “I’m just a little on edge.”

  The skin between my shoulder blades itch, and I peer back over my shoulder, searching the street for watchers.

  A rough trunk wraps around my knee. “Let’s get inside.”

  “Yeah.” I turn and follow the baku into the fake safety of the apartment’s lobby.

  Nowhere in Dreamland is truly safe. Not when every wall can be walked through.

  As we head toward the stairs, I glance down at the baku. “What’s your name?”

  Its stumpy tail wags. “You don’t really care.”

  I smile at its attempt to play it cool. “Sure, I do. You’re helping me out. I’d like to know who I’m thanking.”

  “Well, if you insist.” It lifts its trunk proudly. “My name is Cassidy.”

  I keep all humor from my tone. “A solid name.”

  Its tail wags faster. “I like to think, if a human were to wake up and find me eating their nightmare, a name like Cassidy will bring them comfort.”

  I cross my fingers that theory is never put to the test.

  Cassidy pauses on the third floor, looking left and right, and I hold my breath. Please don’t turn toward my old home. Please don’t turn toward my old home.

  At last, we turn away and walk down the hall to the apartment at the end. I hadn’t lived in this building long, nor made a point of greeting my neighbors, but I remember this one belonged to an attractive, nerdy man in his mid-thirties. He’d tried to hit on me a couple times when our paths crossed, his awkwardness charming.

  Cassidy trots through the door. “Yo, Aren, you still here?”

  Breath held, I follow. Part of me hopes for Aren to not be here, for the bed in the back to be empty. As much as I want to find Tally’s brother, I want him to be wrong, for the nightmare creature to not be here, so close to where I once lived.

  “Looks like he already left,” Cassidy calls from down the hall, and relief sweeps through me.

  I walk to the bedroom doorway, gaze sweeping the room just to be sure. No Aren, and no cocoon.

  Cassidy turns back to me. “We can go over to the city park. Aren likes to pretend he’s an elephant in the jungle sometimes.” Then his eyes widen. “Don’t tell him I told you that.”

  I mime zipping my lips. “He’ll never hear it from me.”

  Then my focus shifts to the wall on the left, where a half-formed dresser wars with a bureau. The urge to check in on my cousins weighs on me. At this time of day, they’re most likely out seducing rich humans out of life and money, but there’s a chance they’re home early, preparing for a hunt. It would be nice to see them, even in passing.

  “Hey, Cassidy, why don’t you meet me outside? I just want to pop over and check on something real fast.”

  The baku hops over to my side. “I got time. I can go with you.”

  I crouch to be closer to eye-level and offer an unhappy smile. “Succubi live in this building. I’d rather not risk you.”

  “Got it. I’ll see you outside.” And with that, Cassidy sinks straight through the floor.

  I stare at the empty spot in front of me in surprise, then pat the soft gray floorboards. While they give beneath my touch, they resist when I push harder. Is that because I believe they’ll resist, so they do? Or do baku just have a better understanding of Dreamland than me?

  Leaving the human’s apartment, I walk down the hall to my old home. Hazy shapes fill the apartment, the furniture moved and replaced too often to show a solid presence. But the layout of the wal
ls makes my chest ache.

  There’s something to be said about returning to the first place I called my own. I stroll to the kitchen, running a hand over the island, and remember all the batches of cupcakes I tested here, the long nights with my laptop, putting together a business plan for my bakery.

  It was a solitary life, quiet after living with Landon’s noise. I needed it to find my feet, to figure out my place on the human plane, but I don’t want to return here. My home is miles away, in an attic with rafters shaped like a star.

  I peek into the bedroom, disappointed but not surprised to find it empty. Sophia’s on the demon plane, and the others have their own lives.

  With a sigh of disappointment, I walk through the nearest wall, angling toward the staircase. It resists more than usual, forcing me to push through, and wisps of gray cling to my skin when I step into the bedroom that shares a wall with my old one.

  Brushing it off, it sticks to my fingers, and my skin crawls. I peer around the room, at the pair of cocoons on the bed and the web that crisscrosses across the open doorway. Balls the size of my fist cling to the ceiling over the bed, with wisps of fog trailing down to the cocooned prisoners. They pulse, pale energy creeping up the lines.

  My heart pounds as I step closer, eyes fixed on the ceiling. Through the swirl of gray, something writhes, the sides bulging, and red flickers in and out of view. Eggs. Not only did a nightmare creature make it into Dreamland, but it’s multiplying.

  Blood rushes to my head as I count them. One dozen. Two dozen. Thirty in total. If one nightmare creature could do this much damage in Dreamland already, what will thirty more do?

  As I watch, a small tentacle thrusts through the egg, spilling mist into the room. A moment later, the newly hatched creature slithers down the line that links it to the cocoon, burrowing beneath the surface to feed.

  Red flickers near the door, and I spin to face it as a basketball-sized eyeball pushes through the wall.

  Its glowing red gaze fixes on me, and a chainsaw sound fills the room.

  Spinning, I sprint for the exterior wall, aiming for the thinner veil of fog that forms the window, and dive through.