Find Me If You Dare (Dreamcatcher Book 2)

by Vicki Leigh

  Daniel, Kayla said, prodding my arm and pointing toward the opposite corner—where Margaret was bound and gagged inside a metal cage.

  That’s why the Nightmares were here. They were guarding Richard’s prize.

  I went visible and released Kayla’s hand so I could grasp my daggers. If this battle didn’t end soon, Chad’s strength would collapse, and all of the Magus would die, along with the Catchers. Once the Magus were clear, they could get out of here.

  “Get Margaret!” I shouted at Kayla before running to where the witches and warlocks huddled. Not wanting to miss and strike one of the Magus by accident, I waited until I was closer and used the Nightmares’ distraction to my advantage. I stabbed the smaller one in the side of its neck, then reached around the bigger beast and sliced its throat. Black blood squirted onto Chad’s invisible shield. One of the witches screamed.

  The smaller monster swung at me before I could drop my arms from around the bigger one. Its claws caught my elbow, but the pain was too familiar and the wound shallow. Turning, I ducked the Nightmare’s next blow and stabbed my second blade into its stomach. Take that, asshole. The beast bent over with an ear-splitting scream. I yanked the dagger from its neck and dug it under the creature’s jaw, then, simultaneously, I ripped both blades from the fiend. It fell, limp, to the floor.

  “Grab on to me!” I yelled at the Magus. When five hands gripped my arms, I evaporated to Shawnee State Park, taking them with me. Two of the Magus collapsed to their knees, sobbing, the moment we landed.

  I turned to Chad. “Get them back to Caelum as soon as possible. The parking lot’s on the other side of these trees. If you call Trishna for help—”

  “I can start a car with my magic. Go,” Chad said.

  I nodded and evaporated back to the cellar in Kentucky. By now, the twenty Nightmares were down to ten; the Protectors had dwindled from eight to five. A quick glance at Kayla showed she struggled to get the crate open, but she was all right. I joined my comrades, dodging claws and sharp teeth, slicing through the remaining Nightmares. The skin beneath their hairy bodies was tough as rawhide.

  While Kayla’s back was turned, one of the Nightmares broke free of the pack and slithered for her. Kayla, watch out! I shouted, pulling my blades from the body of the beast I’d just killed.

  She turned and stepped back, her hands rising to light the monster on fire. But before she could expel any power, the Nightmare’s claws scraped her torso. She hadn’t moved far enough away.

  For what felt like hours, all I could do was stare, watch as she gasped and faltered backward, her palms expelling no more than sparks that startled the monster. As her hands pressed against her stomach, heat burned up the back of my neck, and my nostrils flared.

  This fucker was going down.

  With a roar, I gripped my daggers tighter, every muscle in my body twitchy. To my left, a one-eyed beast charged me. I side-armed a dagger into its head, hitting the Nightmare in the temple with enough force that its blood caught me in the face. As the fiend collapsed to the floor, I ripped my blade from its skull, desperate to get to Kayla before the Nightmare hurt her again.

  I chucked the dagger in my right hand so hard my shoulder hurt. The knife stuck in the monster’s spine. Its primal screech made my ears ache, but I closed the distance in a few large strides and kicked the bastard across the room. Before it even hit the wall, my other blade was out of my hand. The knife lodged in the monster’s throat, where a man’s Adam’s apple would be. It collapsed with a gurgling scream.

  Kayla fumbled with the lock to Margaret’s cell, using her powers to try to break the charm that kept the gate closed. Sweat lined her forehead, and her bloodied hands shook. Her face scrunched with every shaky breath.

  I grabbed her arm, preparing to evaporate, but she snatched it from my grasp. No, I almost have it. A tear fell from her eye, and the front of her white shirt was drenched with her blood.

  Kayla, there’s no time.

  I’m not leaving her!

  Grimacing, I spun around, pulling my guns from their holsters. Bullets wouldn’t kill the Nightmares, but they’d slow them down, hopefully long enough for Kayla to finish freeing Margaret. Another broke free of the pack, charging us. I shot it in the head, and it slumped to the ground. Seconds later, the beast rose to its feet again. I pulled my gun’s trigger, and it stumbled again. Finally, one of the other Protectors stepped out of the group and dug her blade into the back of the Nightmare’s neck.

  A snap sounded from behind me. I got it! Kayla said. She tugged on the door, groaning with the movement. I reached around her and pulled on the gate, and it opened with a loud screech.

  All right, let’s go. “Margaret, grab hold of me.” She followed my instructions as I lifted Kayla into my arms, and the three of us evaporated inside Allegheny Tunnel.

  Kayla whimpered in my arms, and Margaret stayed on my heels, as we hurried to the entrance. Twice, I checked over my shoulder to make sure we weren’t being followed, that Richard hadn’t yet sent a team to our location. When the tunnel was still clear, I turned so Kayla could touch the wall. If my evaporation this close to home brought Magus and Protectors, I’d have to pray they’d never find Trishna’s sign on the tunnel wall.

  Kayla pressed her palm against the tiny drawing with a wince and whispered the spell to open the gate. The three of us rushed inside to the sound of wailing sirens, the signal that someone without Trishna’s mark entered the city.

  “Oh no,” Trishna said the moment we popped out of the tunnel into Caelum. Her gaze fell past me to Margaret. “You—stay where you are! Daniel, get Kayla to a hospital bed, now. Stop whatever bleeding you can. A healer will be there as soon as possible.”

  I was almost to the entrance of the hospital’s passageway by the time Trishna finished speaking, and I hurried Kayla into the same, curtained-off room where I’d once been. I laid her on the bed.

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t fast enough,” she said.

  “Don’t apologize. That was brave, what you did, saving Margaret in the midst of this.” I lifted her shirt, exposing her stomach. She groaned as the fabric peeled from her wounds. Four cuts from the Nightmare’s claws. The gashes weren’t deep enough to have done any serious damage—thank God—but she was still bleeding at a rapid pace.

  I fought the urge to let out a deep breath. My stomach was squeezed in a giant’s grasp. This is what I’d been afraid of: Kayla getting hurt. I’d known it was inevitable the moment I let her join me in the field, but that understanding didn’t stop the boiling in my chest. I shouldn’t have separated from her in that basement. I should’ve stayed by her side as she freed Margaret. Damn you, Daniel.

  I grabbed large strips of gauze from the metal table near the bed and pressed them against her stomach. Kayla shrieked.

  “Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth,” I told her. “Think about your favorite song or your favorite story. It’ll help with the pain.”

  She gripped my wrist with her small, shaking hand and squeezed her eyes closed, breathing how I instructed. A single tear rolled out the corner of her eye, and I ground my teeth to keep from screaming.

  Trishna ran into the room. “How is she?”

  I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. I hated myself, my irresponsibility. Kayla never should’ve gotten hurt. My jaw clenched until it hurt, and I stepped out of the way, gently removing the gauze from Kayla’s wound.

  Taking Kayla’s hand in mine, I stood to the side as Trishna placed her palms on Kayla’s stomach. With the stone in her hand, she spoke the healing spell I’d heard so many times. Kayla let out loud whimpers between her clenched teeth and squeezed my fingers as her injury closed. Sweat rolled down her neck. I kissed her fingertips and shut my eyes, nauseated. Kayla’s whimpers turned to loud groans, but then she quieted. I opened my eyes slowly.

  Trishna wiped her forehead with the back of her bloodied hand. “Your turn, Daniel.”

  “What?”

  “Your arm.”


  As if her words had powers, the ache in my tricep returned. The Nightmare had caught me while I’d saved the huddled Magus. A hot throb ran from my wound to my wrist. I grimaced as I rolled up my sleeve, exposing the gash. Trishna healed me, and I held my breath as my cells regenerated. I let out a puff of air when Trishna’s cold hand left my arm.

  “You two really need to stop getting hurt,” she said, her tone half-joking. After wiping her hands on a paper towel, she left us alone to tend to whatever task she had next.

  Kayla’s eyes could barely stay open. Before we’d left to answer Chad’s distress call, she’d been exhausted. Now, after exerting her powers to break the lock on Margaret’s cage and losing so much blood, her energy level was at empty.

  Again, I lifted her into my arms. “Come on, love. Let’s go home.”

  “But, Margaret…” The words were slow and slurred.

  “Will still be here when we wake.”

  “Love… you,” Kayla said as we left the hospital. A second later, she was asleep.

  In our home, I laid her on the bed and gently removed her stained shirt and trousers. Any other moment, I would be flushed at the sight of her mostly-naked body. But I was still coming down from my adrenaline high, brought on by fear for her life. With a warm washrag, I wiped the dried blood from her stomach, then tucked her in and joined her in slumber.

  was up before Kayla and flicked on the TV in the living room. The clock on the wall to my left showed the time as six a.m. I flipped through channels until I found a local news station. Turning down the volume to avoid waking my housemates, I listened to the latest report on last week’s attacks.

  “People are sick everywhere,” one of the anchors said. “Hospitals are overflowing, and the body count is steadily rising. And it’s not just affecting the US anymore. We’re seeing people falling ill in the UK, India, China, Russia… The CDC is baffled.”

  “Yes, I don’t think we’ve ever seen a disease like this,” the other anchor replied. “Well, in case you haven’t seen the video yet—I don’t know how you couldn’t have; it’s been running all night—we finally have a confirmation that last week’s country-wide attack was led by a terrorist cell led by someone named Tamesis.”

  I shot to my feet and turned up the volume, my heart pounding in my stomach. He’d claimed responsibility? For hundreds of years, he’d stayed hidden. Any Magus not already on his, or Trishna’s, side probably hadn’t even known he was back. What changed to make him reveal himself?

  The anchor continued. “We’re going to air the video again, but be warned: this will be unnerving for some.”

  The newscasters disappeared as the recording ran. The movie was shot in an office, at a desk near a lit fireplace. Tall bookcases sat against the wood-paneled wall, shelves filled from top to bottom. Hair rose on the back of my neck. This place looked oddly familiar. The camera panned in to a man sitting in a navy blue, high-backed chair, smoking a cigar. Dark hair, slicked back—like Dracula. I caught myself on the arm of the sofa when my knees weakened.

  Giovanni.

  Not possible.

  “Ciao,” he said. “On behalf of Tamesis, I first want to thank everyone for being so oblivious to the world around you. You made our first attack so easy. Now, to those of you who are… different, who have abilities or are afraid to let the world know your kind exists: your time has come. Our attack on US soil was just the beginning. Soon, this will be our world.” Giovanni grinned that maniacal smile that still had the power to turn my blood cold. “To the rest of you, sleep with one eye open because, soon, you’ll all be begging for death.”

  I fell the rest of the way onto the sofa, turning the television off. My body was ice. My breathing stalled. This couldn’t be happening. He wasn’t real. I’d killed him. I’d felt his flesh tear when my blades entered him. I’d watched the life drain from his eyes. Giovanni was dead.

  Which meant that video must’ve been taped months ago, before Giovanni betrayed the Protectors and let Rome crumble. We’d known Richard had been planning this for a long time, far before the Mansion’s collapse, but with this video calling all supernaturals to arms…

  Everything must be going according to plan.

  I needed to talk this out with someone, strategize. Put Richard’s moves into an order, like plays on a chessboard. I needed to figure out what his next one would be.

  The front door opened. Samantha—her blonde hair a frizzy mess and her brown eyes framed with purple circles—entered, shuffling her feet. “Oh, great. I was hoping you’d be in bed,” she said.

  “No.” I stood. “Couldn’t sleep any longer. How are you feeling?” She looked like death, but she was past the worst part. A drumming filled my chest. One less friend to worry about. For now.

  “If anybody asks me that question one more time, I will punch them in the face.” Samantha moseyed past me, entering her bedroom. Minutes later, the shower ran.

  I smiled softly and shook my head. She was definitely going to be all right.

  Again, I sat on the sofa, leaning back with my eyes closed. I pinched the bridge of my nose. Think, Daniel. Piece it together.

  The battle in Columbus. Five weeks of silence from Richard. His message at the New Mexico mental hospital. Eric’s return with the letter. My capture in D.C. The attacks. The video—the video the same night we found Margaret. There had to be a connection.

  I pounded my fist on my forehead. Come on, you bloody idiot. It was right there.

  A traitor. Hadn’t we been concerned about a mole in Caelum? How else would Richard have known about Albuquerque, the asylum, that I’d taken the arrow, and that I’d be in D.C.? Eric was dead. The rest of my team I trusted, and no one else knew I’d picked that Walmart in New Mexico.

  My eyes snapped open. Chad. It had to be. He’d been present for every meeting. He knew the route my team was taking. He’s the one who called me to come save them… which was where we found Margaret.

  Trishna, have you seen Chad? My heartbeat pounded in my ears.

  No. Why?

  Blast. He’d never returned to the hidden city. Bringing Margaret here was a mistake. This is what Richard wanted. That’s why Nightmares had been protecting her, not Magus or Protectors who could lead us to him.

  Margaret was a trap.

  I leaped off the sofa and wrenched open the front door, sprinting as fast as I could through the stone tunnels of Caelum toward the corridor designated as a jail, where I was sure Trishna and Margaret would be. Margaret had put on a good show, crying in the cage, shaking with terror when we evaporated to Caelum. Trishna would consider her one of Richard’s victims. She’d try to save her, but not until she was one hundred percent sure Margaret was on our side.

  I reached the holding cells in record time, adrenaline pumping through my veins like water gushing down a waterfall. Iron bars sectioned off each chamber, and in the third one, Margaret sat on a bed next to Trishna. Crossing the room in a few, quick strides, I grabbed Margaret’s arm and yanked her out of her seat, not caring about being gentle.

  “Ow!” she shouted and tried to wrestle out of my grasp. When I didn’t let go, she squealed.

  Trishna jumped up. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  “Are you here to betray us?” I asked Margaret. When she didn’t reply, I squeezed her arms harder. “Answer me now!”

  Again, she shrieked, then, with tears in her eyes, she lifted the hem of her shirt. On her dark skin was a pink brand. I shot my head toward Trishna.

  “You didn’t think to check her, did you?” I said.

  Trishna, eyeing the symbol for the first time, pressed her fingers to her lips. “That’s a locator mark. It’s like a supernatural GPS.”

  “Did you know about this?” I asked Margaret.

  She nodded, tears falling from her eyes. “I’m sorry. He said I had to. He tortures me. The Nightmares… they’re coming.”

  My legs weakened. “How many?”

  Margaret trembled and moaned.

>   I shook her and yelled, “How many?”

  She shuddered, sniffling between her sobs. “I don’t know.”

  I pushed her onto the mattress. She curled in a ball and cried.

  “It’s a trap. All of it,” I told Trishna. “Your mole—it’s Chad. We were supposed to find Margaret. I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s been playing us since Columbus. Bartholomew already called everyone back from the field, but screw not evaporating into Caelum. We need everyone here now. Pray we’re not attacked before then.”

  Trishna nodded, her jaw trembling. I raced from the room. There was no moment to spare. Kayla, Tabbi, Nolan, and Samantha needed to be awoken; they had to know what was coming. So many of my teammates—Seth, Ivan, Lian—were still unconscious due to the poison. Who knew how many were left from the other teams?

  Images of the attack in Rome flooded my head: Nightmares shredding through Protectors, bodies of my colleagues lining the twelve stories of steps, the gothic mosaic of red and black blood on the white tile in the foyer.

  Breath caught in my throat. My eyes burned as I sprinted down the main road. If Margaret was right, and a horde of Nightmares were coming after us tonight, the stone beneath our feet would be slick with blood.

  I burst through the front door of my home. Kayla and Tabbi were already awake and seated on the sofa, chatting. They both shot to their feet when they glimpsed my face.

  “Daniel, what’s wrong?” Kayla asked.

  I flinched at the sound of her voice, slammed with thoughts of my nightmare in Richard’s dungeon—her screams, her body ripped to shreds before my eyes. The walls of our little home never felt so confining. I braced myself against the wall when my knees weakened. She couldn’t be here. I wouldn’t watch her die.

  I sucked in a breath, then tried to speak as calmly as I could. “Bringing Margaret here was a mistake. She’s a trap. Tabbi, I need you to take Kayla somewhere safe.”