Find Me If You Dare (Dreamcatcher Book 2)

by Vicki Leigh

  But I knew her better than I knew myself, sometimes. Where there was darkness in her, there was also a lot of light. Compassion, selflessness, kindness, bravery—love. She would never leave everyone to fend for themselves.

  And I would never leave her.

  Kissing the side of her forehead, I spoke just for her to hear. You’re strong, Kayla, and your heart is pure. There’s nothing to be afraid of. Ti amo, rosa mia. I love you, my rose. No matter what.

  She loosened her hold on me just enough to look into my eyes. Hers were bright and glistening, the moonlight bouncing off the flecks of gold. I lowered my head and lightly kissed her. A flutter danced from my stomach through my lips, taking with it some of the weight off my heart.

  When I pulled away, a soft, late-summer breeze rustled through the trees and swept my dark blond hair into my face. It’d been too long since I’d cut it. With a soft smile, Kayla pushed it back, and her soft, gentle hand lingered on my cheek. Tingles, both electrifying and soothing, shot through every nerve, and when she dropped her arm to her side and stepped away, I pressed my lips together to keep from screaming. I’d give anything for just one night, one moment of ecstatic bliss with her.

  “You’ll teach me, then?” Kayla asked Nolan, breaking the silence. “I want to be able to tap into my power—all of it. But I’m afraid I won’t know how to control it.”

  I shuddered. When Richard had held us prisoner in Columbus, she’d snapped two of his followers’ necks with no more than a twist of her hands. It made sense now, her incredible strength. I sucked in a deep breath and swallowed. Between Nolan and Trishna, I had to believe they could help Kayla. But, God, I hoped I knew what I was doing. I needed to trust her. No, I needed to trust in her.

  Nolan met her gaze. “Yeah, if you want. Though, I haven’t used that kind of magic in over a year.” He scratched his cheek. “Dark magic is like a drug. You get a taste of it, you need a damn good anchor to keep you from falling under. And you’re… well, you’re going to be more powerful than any of us, meaning—”

  “It’s going to be harder for me not to give into it.” Her shoulders sagged. She looked at the stars, rubbing her arms. When she sighed, so much exhaustion and pain came with it; I had to look away.

  “What’s your anchor?” Kayla asked him.

  Nolan rubbed the back of his neck. “Now? My mom. Knowing she’d tried to save me from becoming like my dad. Kinda puts things in perspective, especially when you find out what your dad did to your mom.” He shrugged, playing it off as if it was nothing. But I remembered the look on his face when he first told me the truth. He hated Richard as much as we did—as much as Richard loathed those who had raped and killed his own mother.

  Nolan continued, scratching his forehead as if he were trying to pick the right words. “You have to find a reason to hold on to your humanity. If you give in to your dark magic, you give in to the part of you that’s demon. So, you need a reason to fight, someone to fight for, someone to love.”

  His gaze flicked to me, giving Kayla a clear clue as to who her anchor would—could—be. Warmth spread from my toes to my chest. What if I failed her? What if I was the reason she let go?

  Swallowing deeply, I stepped forward and rubbed her arms, assuring her—and myself—that I’d always be here.

  “You just have to hold on to the hope that, some day, this’ll be over, and the people you care about will still be here because of you,” Nolan said.

  “Not going to lie, mate, this level of sentimentality from you is a bit weird,” I said, trying to lift the mood. We couldn’t stand here, moping, all night. As much as I wanted to.

  He smirked. “Hey, inside my crusty shell there is a warm, gooey center.”

  Kayla smiled. “So, tomorrow, then?”

  “Yeah.” He turned his attention to me. “So, is this the time I should say something like, ‘If you hurt my sister—’”

  I raised an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t recommend it.”

  He laughed, and then the three of us returned to the barn together.

  The giant standing on my shoulders had never felt heavier.

  creams from the infected coven members kept me up most of the night, and when each shriek vibrated up my spine, I’d pop my eyes open to make sure there were no real Nightmares in the barn with us. Trishna had put up a warding spell, but I could never be too sure. Every now and then, the hairs on my arms rose, and I’d hear the beasts rustling around outside, the scent of sulfur hitting my nose. But they never came in. When rays of sunlight peeked through the cracks between the wood, I finally drifted.

  Someone shook me after what felt like only seconds of sleep.

  “Seth and Ivan are waking,” Samantha said. “And Trishna needs to talk to you.”

  I blinked a few times, trying to rid the sleepiness from my eyes, and glanced next to me. Kayla was gone.

  “She and Nolan left about a half hour ago,” Samantha said, answering the question I hadn’t yet formed.

  I nodded. Glad they hadn’t waited for me to wake before sneaking off to train. If it hadn’t been for Samantha, who knew how long I would’ve slept.

  A look passed over Samantha’s face, a stare I recognized from twenty years ago when I told her the sex had been a mistake, and again the night I’d kissed her in the gym.

  Jealousy had never been a good color on her. But this time, her glare was not directed at me.

  “Did Kayla or Nolan say where they were going?” I asked.

  “No.” Anger flared in her wandering eyes.

  I smirked. Too easy.

  Sitting up, I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to tame my bedhead. “Does he know how you feel about him?”

  Her gaze locked on me, and she pretended to be insulted. “Who, Nolan? Please.”

  I tipped my head slightly and raised an eyebrow. “You were my understudy for one hundred years, Sam. You can’t lie to me.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Fine. No. There’s your answer. Happy?”

  “Why not?” I pushed myself up from the dirt floor and brushed off my clothes before rolling my neck. This lack of bed support was making me stiff.

  “Because I haven’t said anything, okay? He hits on me, but he also hits on anything with boobs.” She crossed her arms and flinched.

  My stomach sunk. “You’re afraid of getting hurt again.”

  Samantha narrowed her eyes. “I’m done talking to you. I hate it when you do that.”

  “What?” I followed her as she wandered to where Seth and Ivan sat chatting with Lian and Trishna.

  “You’re always reading between the lines, trying to figure out what I’m thinking. I’m not admitting anything to Nolan because he has a thing for Kayla, and you might be able to trust her, but I can’t trust him.”

  I bit back the words I really wanted to say. Telling Kayla that Nolan was her brother was one thing; to tell Samantha would be incredibly wrong. “You don’t have to worry about Nolan.”

  Samantha stopped and whipped her curly, blonde ponytail to glare at me. “Why? For all you know, he’s trying to convince Kayla to drop you right now.”

  I touched her arm. “He’s not. Trust me. Talk to him. With everything that’s going on, you deserve some happiness, too.” Not to mention, I knew he was interested.

  Before the battle in Columbus, I’d told her there was someone out there for her. And then Nolan had admitted to being attracted to Samantha. He might not have approached her yet because, let’s face it, she wasn’t exactly the welcoming type. Not unless you wanted to get kicked where it counts. But for all her cattiness, Samantha was genuinely brave and a loyal friend who’d do anything to protect those she cared about. She truly did deserve someone who’d care for her.

  For a second, her wall came down, and a bit of fear and uncertainty passed over her face. Narrowing her eyes, she hid her gaze from me, turned around, and trekked the rest of the way to the boys.

  Seth smiled when we approached and held out his hand to me for our “secret handshake.
” I returned the gesture and asked, “How are you both feeling?”

  “Like I got farted outta Satan’s ass,” Seth replied.

  Lian’s face scrunched as Ivan chuckled.

  Trishna rolled her eyes. “It’s been non-stop jokes since he awoke.”

  “Hey, I’m makin’ up for lost time, yo.”

  Does he know about Tabbi, yet? I asked Samantha.

  No.

  Let’s keep it that way for now.

  “Good news is: their fevers have broken,” Trishna continued. “But they both need to rest today.”

  “Yay! Eat, drink, and be merry time,” Seth said.

  “Or we can figure out how to kick that ublyudok’s ass,” Ivan replied.

  “I’m with Ivan,” Lian said. “There’s no time to party.”

  I sighed. I’d wanted to wait to tell them of my plans for Kayla. But if they were this determined to go after Richard, I needed to reveal the truth now. Well, with the exception of a few details.

  “I already have a plan.” When they stared at me like children around a campfire, I continued. “There’s a locator spell that can lead us to Richard. I saw it in Trishna’s Book of Spells when Kayla was studying it.”

  “That’s a blood spell,” Trishna interrupted before I could finish. “I don’t do dark magic.”

  “I never said you would. Kayla can do it.”

  Lian, Seth, Ivan, Samantha, and Trishna’s eyes all widened.

  “Daniel, I don’t recommend that,” Trishna said. “She’d have to use her own blood to find Richard, which would weaken her when we need her at her best. Not to mention, I don’t think she’s powerful enough to do a blood spell.”

  I shook my head. “She’s plenty strong enough. I’ve seen her in action. She just needs to learn control, which is what Nolan’s doing right now.”

  “Nolan?” Ivan asked. “He’s not much more than a trickster, if you ask me. Simple spells and charms. He can’t help her.”

  “He’s more powerful than he looks.”

  “That’s beside the point,” Samantha said. “Let’s say Kayla does manage to find her dad without killing herself.”

  I flinched.

  “Then what?” she continued. “We go barging in there, the twenty of us against him and his thousands of Nightmares?”

  “Not all wars are fought on a battlefield,” Lian replied. “Many times, warriors sneak in the middle of the night and kill the monster while it sleeps.”

  “What about that whole ‘cut off the head of the beast, two grow in its place’ thing? How do we know he isn’t expecting us to do what we’re planning?”

  “Because, to Richard, I’m predictable,” I said. “He thinks that I’m going to hide Kayla away and protect her from him. Not only will he never expect me to let her use dark magic, but when Kayla leads us through his door, as strong as him, we’ll have caught him off guard.”

  “You really think she’s that powerful?” Trishna asked.

  “Yes, I do.” I made sure to keep my eye contact firm. I wasn’t going to tell them about Apollyon; I wouldn’t hurt Kayla like that. But I needed to make it very clear that she was as strong as her father.

  “What are we waiting for?” Lian asked. “I say we train until she’s ready, and then we go get that son of a bitch.”

  Trishna refused to let Seth or Ivan out of her sight, so Lian stayed behind to keep them company and ease them into the news about Tabbi. Samantha, not wanting to be around to witness Seth’s reaction, joined me after I checked in with Kayla to see where they were.

  We trekked through the forest, silent and single-file. Samantha hadn’t even bothered to look at me after asking if she could come along, and when I’d tried to make conversation, she’d sped her pace. After rolling my eyes, I began to mentally map our surroundings in case there was ever a point we had to find our way back by foot—my reason for not just evaporating to Kayla and Nolan. The earth was damp, and the trees smelled like bark and mildew. Only shimmers of sunlight broke through the thick covering of branches. To my left came the sound of running water, maybe a river or a waterfall, and a few squirrels scurried away at our approach. I made a note to ask Lian about wild game in case we needed to worry about hunting.

  Hadn’t done that in a long, long time.

  When we broke free of the trees into the open field where our teammates practiced, my eyebrows rose. Kayla and Nolan battled each other ferociously, using their abilities to throw balls of fire, waves of water, pockets of air, and pieces of the earth between them. They moved fast, as did their attacks, and their foreheads gleamed with sweat. Both were desperate for victory.

  “Holy shit,” Samantha said, stopping beside me.

  “You can say that again.”

  During a normal battle, two Magus wouldn’t be able to stay so focused on each other, given the attacks that would come at them from every direction. Imagining getting caught in the middle of something like this, something so dangerous, made my heart pump wildly.

  Kayla’s eyes were locked on her brother’s. With each of Nolan’s attacks, she blocked him, throwing a shield up just in time. Whatever element he threw at her disintegrated upon impact, and then within seconds of blocking or dodging one of Nolan’s strikes, she tossed out her own. Seeing her so focused, so incredible… I wanted to grab her in my arms and kiss her and tell her how proud I was.

  Their battle continued for a few more minutes until Kayla struck the finishing blow. With a loud grunt, she threw a ball of fire as hard as she could. It spun like God himself pitched the sun at Nolan’s chest. Wide-eyed, Nolan raised his hands, but not fast enough. The flames hit him square in the chest. He flew a few feet before landing on his back.

  Samantha ran to him as he started to laugh, and my concern for him waned when Kayla put her hands on her hips. Her chest rose and fell with quick breaths, and a grin broke her face.

  “You think I’d fight her without putting a charm on my shirt?” Nolan answered in response to whatever Samantha had said.

  Kayla turned to me, beaming. “How’d I do?” As if she had to ask. By the snarky look on her face, she knew she’d bested Nolan.

  I crossed the small distance between us and put a hand on each shoulder, staring her in the eyes. “That was remarkable.” I hadn’t seen her this happy since we’d stood on the rooftop in Paris and watched the Eiffel Tower sparkle. She was so beautiful; my breath caught.

  She grinned even larger. “It felt awesome.”

  “Yeah, well, I must be an awesome teacher,” Nolan said, reaching us. Samantha trailed close behind. “Score one for me. What have you done lately, Danny Boy?”

  Kayla covered her mouth, her eyes smiling brighter.

  I played along. “Give me a few hours of combat training with her, and then let’s see how funny you are after she lays you out.”

  “Dude, I have no need for combat training.” Nolan frowned.

  I tipped my head and raised an eyebrow.

  “Okay, maybe there’s an off-chance I might have to fight like some mediocre Protector,” he corrected. Samantha shoved him, and he laughed.

  “I’m so not coming to your rescue when your powers don’t work again,” she said.

  “What do you mean ‘again?’” Kayla asked.

  Nolan glared at Samantha, who blushed, having let a secret slip.

  He rolled his eyes. “I sort-of tried to take on a few of the shooters in Philadelphia and got my powers bound. Trishna had to unlock them when we landed in Caelum.”

  “Yeah, and I took two bullets in the back for that one,” Samantha said.

  I shook my head. He’s lucky they didn’t outright kill him. “All the more reason for Kayla and you to learn how to fight without magic. Though, I have to admit, it is nice to hear Sam had a damsel in distress to save.”

  Kayla laughed, and Samantha grinned.

  Nolan huffed. “Now, who’s the cheeky one?”

  The corner of my mouth rose in a lopsided grin. “Take a swig of your water, and then
we’ll get started, ladies.”

  Nolan pointed a thumb at me. “Did he just call me a girl?”

  For about an hour, we practiced, Samantha shouting pointers at Nolan while I taught Kayla what to do. Samantha and I pinned them against each other and watched them fight, pulling them aside from time to time, like coaches with boxers in a ring. When Nolan complained that we were being too harsh, I called a time-out.

  “You’ve never really fought a Nightmare before, yeah?” I asked.

  He rolled his eyes. “No.”

  “Then you have no idea what you’d be up against. If we’re in Richard’s lair, and he has thousands of Nightmares at his disposal, what do you think he’s going to send after us: men who think before they strike, or rabid creatures with animalistic instincts?”

  “If it were me, I’d send the Nightmares,” Samantha said.

  I pointed to her. “Exactly. Not only are they more vicious, but he has more of them at his disposal and wouldn’t risk losing his coven. Kayla, let me step in a sec.”

  She nodded, obviously exhausted, and I shook out my hands. “Now, pay attention. I’m going to come at you like I’ve seen Nightmares do thousands of times.”

  “And that’s not an exaggeration,” Samantha added.

  Nolan sighed and raised his fists, his arms floppy like he thought this drill was stupid. Without giving him warning, I lunged at him and clocked him in the jaw.

  “Shit!” he said. “What the hell? I wasn’t ready.”

  “So?” Again, I swung at his face. He blocked it this time, but then I jabbed him in the stomach. He grunted, and I backhanded him across the face.

  He jumped back, raising his hands. “All right! All right, I get it.”

  “No, I don’t think you do.” I kicked him in the chest. He fell to the ground.

  “Daniel, stop,” Kayla said from behind me.

  Samantha held up a hand to her, and I dropped to a knee next to Nolan, pressing one fist to his throat and the other to his stomach.