by Gareth Otton
“Which is why you come to me instead,” Stella said as she let herself into the room. “The regular police aren’t prepared for this, with you being a ghost and all. It will draw attention, which will definitely get you the interest of anyone who might be looking for you. However, my unit is designed to deal with this sort of thing. We can do it quietly, and I can vouch for my people. The odds of someone in a group so small and so new being corrupt is much smaller anyway, and I have spent a lot of time vetting my people. I can help you.”
“You can?” he asked, sounding hopeful for the first time.
“Wait a minute,” Tony said. “Why take the risk? Thomas already said he couldn’t go to the cops. I think Tad is the best person to help.”
“Despite his position on the Dream Team, Tad isn’t actually police. Outside of the work he does for us, he has no experience or authority to help. He would just be in the way,” Stella said in a matter-of-fact tone that made it clear she wasn’t trying to insult Tad. “This is best left for professionals who have been trained for this. I was just on the phone with one of our detectives. They’re expecting you to pop round. I promise, you’ll be taken seriously and your brother will get the help he needs.”
“Really?” Thomas asked, looking like he was on the verge of tears. “And this will work? It won’t come back on—”
“No,” Stella interrupted, not letting him finish. “Please, trust me. I’m so sure of it, I’ll take you to the detective myself. We can help you, I promise. Just maybe not how Tony said. Besides, it doesn’t sound like a Proxy is what you need, anyway.”
“I don’t even know what a Proxy is,” Thomas said, grinning. “Tony mentioned something about helping me stay here…”
His words trailed off as Tony violently shook his head to get him to stop, but the damage was done.
“Of course he did,” Tad said. “If we helped your brother, do you even want to stick around as a ghost?”
“No, I don’t think so,” Thomas answered a bit too fast. “I don’t like this. It’s not the same as being alive, kind of like I’m not really here. I just didn’t want to see my brother get hurt. He’s got a big future ahead of him and—”
“And we’ll make sure he gets to live it,” Stella interrupted. “Come with me Thomas, let’s get this sorted out.” To Tad she added, “I’ll run him in, introduce him to Cathryn, then come right back.”
“You want me to dreamwalk you guys there?” he asked.
She looked pointedly at Tony and shook her head. “I think you might be busy.”
Silently agreeing, Tad said goodbye to Thomas before turning his attention to Tony who, just like everyone else in Tad’s life tonight, was sulking. The door closed, Tony jumped on the defensive.
“Don’t even start at me for this. It’s not my fault you’re so stubborn.”
“Me stubborn? You have ignored me every single time I said I don’t want another ghost, and now you’re using a desperate ghost to convince me. How low can you sink?”
“Low?” Tony asked, voice rising. “I’m trying to help you, you idiot. You’re a Proxy with only one ghost. It’s ridiculous. I know you have these new powers, but you’re forgetting there’s more to a Proxy than dreamwalking. Look at you. If you replaced Miriam, you’d have solved those Dreamcatcher killings on your own. If you replaced Charles, you’d be a lot more cautious. If you took the SAS guy you met the other day, then you’d be better adapted to the danger you’re always in. You’re just being selfish by—”
“I am not Joshua King!” Tad snapped, jumping to his feet without realising he had done so and screaming at his ghost. “Why don’t you get that? Ghosts are people to me, Tony. Not just talents I need to use up and discard when they’re no longer needed. The fact you don’t understand that about me is pissing me off. You need to stop thinking about the world as seen through your eyes and grow the hell up. Your antics just aren’t funny anymore.”
In the sixteen years Tad had Proxied for Tony, this might be the first time he’d ever screamed at his ghost. It was also the furthest Tony had ever pushed him, and he just couldn’t take anymore.
“Tad, you’ve got to listen—” Tony tried, but ended up blinking in surprise when Tad interrupted him.
“No, Tony. You listen. I’m done with this behaviour. It’s time for you to either grow up or get out. I can’t have you pulling stunts like this when the stakes are so high. We’re on the brink of a third world war, I have got nightmares actually killing people, dreamwalkers getting hunted, and people protesting the very fact that I exist. Meanwhile, I have to deal with you pulling this kind of shit over and over.”
“It’s exactly because of what you just said that I’m doing this. You need new ghosts—”
“That’s my decision to make!” Tad yelled so hard his voice broke halfway through his sentence. Tony fell back onto his sofa, stunned. It gave Tad time to collect himself and in a much softer tone he added, “Tony. Enough. I can’t keep having this argument. I know you think this is the best thing for me, but I’m done humouring you. You either understand that I’ve made my decision and stop pulling stunts like this, or we’re done. I can’t keep this up any longer.”
“You can’t be serious,” Tony whispered.
“I am. I have to be. This is too much. If you keep doing stuff like this, then I’m scared people will get hurt. So the choice is yours. Grow up or get out.”
“I…” Tony started, but he didn’t know what to say. Tears welled up in his ghost’s eyes and it was hard for Tad to hold his own back as he recognised how far this had gone. He wanted to take it back, but Tony had pushed things too far. He had to stay strong and hope Tony made the right choice.
A tear rolled down Tony’s cheek and the ghost quickly wiped it away. As he saw the moisture on the back of his hand, his face firmed up and Tad knew right then that he’d lost him.
Tony didn’t speak, he just climbed to his feet and left, walking through both the living room and front door like a living person, and slamming both behind him.
Tad couldn’t hold back his tears any longer as the last ghost in his life stormed out. His presence in Tad’s mind hadn’t come close to fading as since the Merging the effects of their union lasted longer. However, he could imagine a new hole in his life and wondered what he’d do with himself without any of his ghosts.
He slumped to the sofa and buried his face in his hands, letting the tears fall freely.
A few minutes might have passed or a few hours, but he came back to himself when he felt a buzzing in his pocket. He fished out his phone, but not quick enough to answer Jacob’s call.
Tad was about to call him back when a message came through that made him sit up straight and forget about Tony for now. He couldn’t worry about his ghost when he had to worry about what this text would do to his fellow dreamwalkers.
It consisted of five simple words, but they chilled Tad with their implications.
There has been another one.
16
Sunday, 10th July 2016
18:15
Tad sat silently on a lawn chair, seemingly staring into the distance like he was lost in thought. However, he was actually paying close attention to everything. The more he came to Dream, the quicker he became accustomed to his blindness. It was hard to miss the light when Dream fed him a steady stream of information that was far more complete than his eyes could offer.
With vision he’d have focused on the man speaking and would have missed the expressions on the fifty-two other faces at the meeting, their largest turnout yet. He’d have missed how many of them looked at him when they thought he wouldn’t notice.
This evening they sat in a giant replica of Jacob’s yard. Healed from his injury but feeling the aftereffects of the attack, Jacob wasn’t up for their usual competition. Between a weekend in hospital and general weariness, he wanted something familiar. Tad agreed for his friend’s sake, but regretted that now as the absence of their usual competition only deepened the dark mood
amongst the dreamwalkers.
Tad himself was uncomfortable anyway, not knowing what to expect tonight, and was even more so when Jacob expressed his gratitude for Tad’s quick actions by taking him to the hospital. He said that without Tad he’d wouldn’t have survived and it was a debt he would never forget. Despite Tad telling him it was nothing more than Jacob would have done for him, his friend was unrelenting in his belief that it was a debt needing to be repaid and how it cemented Tad’s place as family in Jacob’s mind.
That praise, the mood, and the awkward setting left Tad uneasy as the meeting began. Things had only gone downhill from there.
“We’ve got to turn the tables, hunt them so they don’t hunt us,” Brad said, the large Texan dreamwalker already worked into a fury. “After what they did to Jacob, well… I ain’t waiting for them to do the same to me.”
The mutters of agreement gave Tad goosebumps. He really didn’t need this and was regretting his decision to be upfront with these people, sharing with them everything they had learned about the killers so far.
“I understand your feelings,” Tad said. “But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I already mentioned that we’re looking into this. We’ll deal with these people through proper channels. I don’t want anyone playing vigilante and getting themselves hurt.”
“Vigilante?” Brad asked. “We’re protecting ourselves from people the law can’t do anything about. You can continue whatever it is you do across the pond, but in America we don’t wait to be hunted down like animals. We fight back so hard no one will ever come at us again. These people need to pay for what they did to our friends. After what happened to Jacob, I thought you’d be with us.”
The mutters of agreement were stronger this time, and the stares Tad felt directed at him were less kind.
“I’m not saying don’t protect yourselves. I’m saying—”
“Tad, let me,” Jacob interrupted, laying a supportive hand on Tad’s shoulder before he turned his attention to the crowd. “Everyone, calm down and remember that we’re in this together. Turning on each other won’t serve us any better than if we didn’t meet at all. Brad, you’ve made good points and I understand where you’re coming from. The thought of sitting back and waiting for these assholes to find me is not pleasant. I want to step up with you and hunt them before they hurt another soul.”
Tad failed to hide his shock at his friend’s words, regretting letting Jacob speak for him. However, Jacob wasn’t done.
“But, let’s not forget everything Tad has done for us. Without him working so hard in the Borderlands, who knows how the world would feel about us. If he hadn’t dealt with Joshua King, who knows if we’d even be here. He’s battled nightmares, saved my life, and after all that he’s somehow brought us together and created this community so we can talk about this. If that’s not enough, he’s already looked into these murders, uncovered their supernatural nature, and started an international manhunt. So before we speak about how we do things differently in America, how about we give him a chance? He hasn’t let us down before and he was brave enough to come here today and be honest with us. He didn’t need to do that. He’s put his neck out tonight to give us the information we need to protect ourselves, so the least we can do is show him some patience as we try to work out what we do next.”
Brad sat back down, looking chastened, and Dream told Tad he wasn’t the only one. It was as hard for Tad to hear as Jacob’s praise had been earlier, and it was all he could do to keep himself from interrupting as he really felt like he hadn’t done that much. However, it had calmed everyone down and Tad would only undo his hard work by protesting now.
After a pause, Jacob turned to Tad, not finished.
“Tad, that being said, please understand where we’re coming from. We’re scared. It’s bad enough that we need to fear normal people and these nut jobs in the Children of ADaM who are turning militant if that attack on the Dream Gate is anything to go by, but at least with them we’ve got an advantage. Any of us could flee to Dream if we felt threatened. These dreamcatcher people, they’re coming after us with powers of their own. We were lucky to escape with our lives the other night, so please have patience with those of us who want to protect ourselves.”
“I understand that,” Tad said, trying to sound patient. “I just need time to deal with this in a way that won’t blow back on us. If we hunt these people, the world won’t see that as us removing a threat, they’ll see it as us becoming one. Despite how groups like the Children of ADaM try to portray us, no dreamwalkers have been a threat to anyone. The very second we take a life we become something to be feared, and history has never been kind to the things mankind fears.
“Give me and Stella time to bring these people to justice the right way. It’s only been a week and we’ve already come so far. Imagine how far we can come in another week.”
“But what if there’s another killing?” Brad asked, not nearly so strongly as before, but still a little stubborn. “We have to be able to defend ourselves.”
“Of course you should,” Tad said. “I’ve never been against that, just the idea of hunting these people. Take precautions, be on the lookout, and if you even feel doubtful about something, dreamwalk to safety and call me so I can get this sorted the proper way.”
“Is there anything we can do to help?” another voice asked from the circle, a short Indian man Tad couldn’t remember meeting before.
Tad hesitated to bring this up, but finally he nodded. “Yes. I know we’ve spoken about this before, but I want to bring it up again. There are still open positions for Dreamwalkers who want to help with the efforts in the UK. We always need more Dreamwalkers on the Dream Team, and there’s an open invitation for other, more private and less dangerous jobs within the government. The truth is we need all the help we can get and the more dreamwalkers out there working with the government, helping with the issues caused by the Merging, the better the world view us. It will make this easier. So any volunteers, please talk to me after we’re finished.”
There was an immediate hush as people absorbed his words, no one eager to answer. It was Jacob who finally broke the silence.
“Everyone knows where I stand. It’s too soon to throw our lot in with governments. I’d like to know what their intentions are towards Dreamwalkers before I trust them not to use us and mean us harm. We also don’t know how the world will feel about us in a year. The last thing we want is to be close to people who are beholden to popular opinion should the average person turn on us.”
“There’s no proof they’d betray us,” Tad argued. “So far they’ve only been—”
“So far,” Jacob interrupted, surprisingly passionate. “So far they’ve been friendly, welcomed us with open arms. But they need us right now, and barring a few crazies people don’t hate us. But what if that changes? We’d no longer have the anonymity that protects us now and we’d be at their mercy.”
Tad opened his mouth to defend Norman Geller as a man who was trying to do the right thing, but he thought better of it. He had his own doubts. Not so much about Norman wanting to do the right thing, but rather that there was something about the man he couldn’t trust. There was a veneer of falsehood over the politician. He was holding something back. Jacob might be right on this, but it didn’t change the fact that Tad needed help.
“They’re good points,” Tad reluctantly agreed. “But with the information I have available right now, I don’t see helping as an immediate danger. But it’s up to you. Like I said, just speak to me after the meeting.”
Jacob thanked him and moved the meeting to a new topic. However, no one’s heart was in it as their minds were fixed on the killings and the danger to themselves. So it wasn’t long before they brought the meeting to a close, and one by one dreamwalkers started disappearing. Soon it was only Tad and Jacob who remained, and then even Jacob was gone leaving Tad alone to think about what just happened.
Suddenly he felt like there was a time limit on finding these
killers. That thought only doubled when he considered how soon there had been another killing. He was stunned at how quick they managed that considering the damage at least one of them had suffered by Tad’s hand. They shouldn’t have recovered so quickly and he couldn’t suppress his fear at the thought of the damage these people could do.
Standing around in Dream worrying about it wouldn’t help though. The last thought on his mind as he dreamwalked away was that there hadn’t been a single volunteer. Sadly, he couldn’t blame them for that.
17
Wednesday, 13th July 2016
02:33
Mitena perched on the open tailgate of an old, well used Ford F150, parked outside a picturesque farmhouse in rural Kansas. The barn behind her, the house to her right, and the grain silo were old but well maintained. The place was a working farm, a home, and looked after with love. It was the epitome of an American ideal, something that belonged in a movie or TV show. It was not where she’d expect to find a serial rapist and killer.
As she glanced at the stars that were clearer than she’d seen in a long time, she couldn’t reconcile that a place of such beauty could house such evil.
Not the only evil here tonight, her inner voice whispered. Despite the warmth of the night, she shivered and wrapped her arms about herself.
This was the last one. After tonight, their list ran dry and the killing would stop. She could almost weep for joy that this journey would end. It wasn’t a mistake, theirs was work that needed to be done. But she wasn’t suited to it. What did she or Kuruk know of killing when they had lived such sheltered lives?
Now they knew too much.
Mitena was ready to let it all go and was glad to be done with it.
Kuruk, on the other hand…
As if the thought summoned him she heard movement from the house and turned to see her brother step down from the porch and into the open night air.
He stood tall, eyes turned up to the stars overhead and a peaceful, satisfied expression on his face. He was shirtless as was his habit with the recent killings. With the sides of his head freshly shaved, spatters of blood over his body and the now countless tattoos that littered his flesh, it saddened Mitena that she couldn’t see much of the man her brother had been at the start of this. Now she saw a battle-hardened warrior, a killer. She didn’t even know this man who once had been close enough that she considered him an extension of herself.