Dark Side of Dawn: The Nightmare Chronicles (9 page)

Home.

The griffins turned, swinging the carriage to the right, giving me another postcard-perfect view. Too soon the lights grew closer, the darkness less dim, as my flying vehicle drew closer and closer to the ground.

A slight bump—touchdown—and the carriage was still. I climbed out as soon as the door opened.

I was standing on the side of a mountain; a wide ledge that jutted out over the almost sheer cliff face. There was no road that I could see, nor any kind of path that could lead to this spot. There was enough room for the griffins and the carriage—perhaps another as well—and me. Obviously the temple didn’t get a lot of visitors.

As for the temple itself, I could only assume it was in the cave behind me. The wide mouth yawned invitingly, dark rock smooth and worn. Iron sconces were driven deep into the walls, lighting the sloping path inside.

I went in. Not like I could go anywhere else.

The ground beneath my feet was scuffed from thousands of years of shuffling feet, and buffed to a soft finish. It gradually eased deeper into the cave, taking me into the mountain. I could hear music coming from the depths below.

The walls sparkled with little grains of crystal, flashing dots of blue, white, and pink when the flickering torchlight hit them. I kept walking, one hand tracing this shimmery wall for balance.

Finally, after what felt like forever, I reached the bottom, entering a large open hall. The floor was set with different color tiles—all purples and grays as I had come to expect from Hadria. The walls were glossy and dark—like onyx. Stalactite-like cones of light dripped from the ceiling, bathing the room in a rich, golden glow.

And alone, in the center of this room, sitting at a rough table peeling fruit that looked like a cross between a pomegranate and an apple, was Hadria.

“A pleasant evening to you, Princess,” she spoke, her rich voice filling the room. “You honor me with your company.”

“Call me Dawn,” I said. Only Verek could call me Princess without me squirming. And if she was so damned “honored,” how come she never looked at me?

She stilled in her peeling and then turned her freaky
gaze in my direction. “All right. Won’t you sit,
Dawn
?”

I took the chair to the left of hers—back to the wall, watching the entrance. Of course, there were probably other doors to other chambers leading from here, but I’d take what security I could.

There was an extra knife on the table in front of me. “May I help?” I asked.

“Thank you.”

I picked one of the ruby-red fruit from the large silver bowl and began peeling, separating the discarded flesh into a wooden container. “I’ve never seen fruit like this before.”

“No? It began to bloom here around the same time your human stories of the fall of the Garden of Paradise began. We call it Eve.”

I stared at the fruit in my hand. Huh. The fruit of the Tree of Knowledge? What would happen if I took a bite…?

“It is very good, but potent. We use it in our truth-seeking ceremonies.”

“Truth seeking in a world built on illusion.” I couldn’t help but chuckle at my own wit as I slid the blade of my knife through the thick rind. “That must be an interesting bag of tricks.”

I looked up and found Hadria watching me, a smile on her iridescent face. “You are welcome to join us some time. If you wish.”

Oddly enough, I would like to do just that. “Thank you. There’s still so much I don’t know about this world.”

Her smile grew. “You’ll learn.”

I dropped my gaze and kept peeling. Tart smelling red juice ran down my hand. “Not if the Warden succeeds in having me unmade.”

“I don’t believe that will come to pass. The Warden leads the Council, but Padera does not speak for it.”

Oddly enough, her words gave me some comfort. I finished peeling the Eve fruit in silence, placed it in the bowl, and reached for another. I was almost finished with it, my hands sticky and delicious smelling, when something caught my attention from the corner of my eye.

I raised my head, and sitting on the table beside me was a huge train case filled to overflowing with cosmetics—the good stuff too. Every brand and pretty color I could ever drool over sat there in brand-new bottles and tubs and containers—like treasure—in a MAC professional case.

“Um, what’s that?” It hadn’t been there before, so it seemed a pretty safe assumption that Hadria had brought it there.

Hadria barely acknowledged the case. “See something you want?”

I laughed. “All of it.”

She stilled, watching me with those swirling purple
and silver eyes. “You could just take what you want. Take it all.”

Frowning, I glanced from her to the case. Shit, had it gotten bigger? Was that Prada perfume I saw on the top tier? Ohhh, and Lancôme lip gloss. I love Juicy Tubes.

And suddenly, like a great revelation, I knew that it was very, very important that I did not take a single thing from that glorious case—no matter how much I wanted to.

“No, thanks.” I turned away before I could change my mind. “I don’t need anything.”

“You are quite a remarkable young woman, Dawn.”

“I’m almost thirty.”

Hadria smiled sweetly. “Infant.” She held up the bottle of wine. “Drink?”

“Please.” I probably shouldn’t, but was it even possible to get drunk in this world? Besides, it was good. “What do you think makes me so remarkable?” Pardon my ego, but I wanted to know.

Hadria handed me a towel for my hands. “The flesh of Eve fruit has great powers of temptation.”

Something in her tone made me glance at the case again, but it was gone. I was surprised, but not much as I directed my gaze back to the priestess.

“Eve brings out your every desire, no matter how small or how vile and offers them to you. But every
time you give in, you lose a little bit of yourself, until there’s nothing left but a shade.”

“A shade.”

She nodded to the darkest corner of the cavern. “A ghost.”

Following her gaze I thought I saw something moving in the darkness. I looked away, my heart pounding in my throat. “So this was a test?”

She nodded. “And you passed.”

I stared at her. I was hurt. I had thought…well, I had thought that she liked me. “You bitch.”

She set a glass of rosy wine in front of me, not reacting at all to my proclamation. “Do you know how many people succumb to Eve’s temptation? Almost everyone who comes in contact with the fruit. You’ve had its juices on your skin, handled its flesh, and yet you were able to resist. Only your father and myself have that ability, and I have had to work hard to acquire it over the years.”

Another trait only me and Morpheus had. Swell. It didn’t take the sting out of being duped. “What if I hadn’t resisted?”

Hadria shrugged. “Then I would know how easily you could be corrupted.”

Understanding began to edge through my thick skull. “But now you can tell the Council that I can resist?”

“Yes. That your soul is untainted will make it difficult for them to think ill of you.”

I wiped my hands and took a sip of wine, not really pissed off anymore. “What’s the damage with people thinking I’m some kind of destroyer?”

Her gaze met mine. “Because long before you were born, back in the days when humans first developed the ability to dream, a priestess of Ama received a vision. She saw Morpheus give his heart to a mortal, and she knew a child would be born from that union—a child that could walk between both worlds. This child was to be born and grow in a time of change, and soon after reaching maturity, she would become involved in great strife and either bring upon the destruction of our world, or be the savior of it.”

She had mentioned before that she thought that I was going to save the Dreaming. Personally, the obliteration or salvation of this world wasn’t a responsibility I wanted to shoulder.

“So all this crap is because of a vision some old woman had, like twenty-seven centuries ago?” I shook my head. “I mean,
come on
. Doesn’t that strike you as stupid?”

Hadria reached across the table and refilled my glass of wine. Her expression was sympathetic. “It might, if I hadn’t been the ‘old woman’ who had the vision.”

You’d think that given my true nature—and the total fantasticness of it—that I would be really good at keeping secrets. Not to mention that my job requires a degree of discretion. But no, I’m awful at sitting on something that I know I shouldn’t share, especially with people I care about.

I wanted so badly to tell Noah about Hadria’s prediction, but I didn’t know how. Hell, I couldn’t quite explain it to myself when I thought about it later.

I mean, really. Imagine me destroying a world. Now imagine me saving it. Hard, isn’t it? Still, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. That prophecy took almost as much of my brain as Phil the doll maker did.

I still hadn’t told Noah about him either. It had only been a day, though, so it’s not like I’d had long to feel guilty about it. Not only did I want to avoid a fight, but I didn’t know what he would do with the information. I thought he would be able to control himself. I
hoped
that he would do just that, but I also knew that it was a lot to ask. It would be very tempting for him to take the law into his own hands.

I’m not trying to make excuses for myself, or for Noah. It was human nature to want revenge—an eye for an eye. If someone I cared about had suffered what Amanda had, I don’t want to tell you the things I’d be tempted to do. Even the memory of Jackey Jenkins wouldn’t be able to stop me.

So, I was going to do it my way. That made me something of a hypocrite, I know, but I was more willing to risk myself than him. My way was outside of police jurisdiction, and if I was careful, which I planned to be, not even the Warden would be able to find fault.

Or rather, I didn’t think she’d be able to find fault.

So, here I was, sitting on Amanda’s couch, having accompanied Noah on his daily visit. She’d been home a few days now. As my attention refused to leave that bandage on her scalp, I knew I was right to keep my silence. My way was better for all involved. And it was certainly safer.

Noah was going to stay with Amanda for the eve
ning since I was having a girl’s night at my place. She didn’t like to be alone, he’d said, and he didn’t mind keeping her company. I tried very hard not to be resentful. After all, it wasn’t like he was standing me up to be with her. Still, it wasn’t easy to sit there while he looked so totally comfortable in her home—like he belonged there.

So, after half an hour I decided it was time to leave. I had to go home and shower, and get ready for the arrival of my BFFs.

I said my good-byes to Amanda, and then Noah walked me to the door. He braced a hand against the frame, preventing me from leaving right away. His back was to his ex-wife, preventing her from witnessing our exchange.

The black T-shirt he wore pulled tight against his upper body. The arm beside my head was strong and taut, despite a lack of tension in his posture. He wasn’t big by any stretch, but he was all muscle. Compared to him I’m helplessly out of shape, but he seems to like my curves, so I’m not going to complain or go all insecure.

He smelled good, and he looked even better. He had the shadow of a beard on his jaw, giving him a rough look. His wide mouth was set in a soft curve as his dark eyes sparkled. Sometimes I got the feeling like he was constantly amused by me—or maybe it was the way I drooled whenever he was close.

“Will you be in my dreams tonight?” he asked, voice low and gravelly.

Goose bumps.
Everywhere.
So long resentment and jealousy. “Do you want me to be?”

“I want you, Doc.” He leaned closer, so that I could feel the heat of his breath on my cheek. “Very much.”

I was mush—literally. I was also curious. “What is it with you and dream sex?”

He arched a brow, and the onyx of his eyes glinted even brighter. “I can do everything I want to you in a dream. I can stay inside you forever in a dream.”

Oh God. When he put it that way…I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry, damn him.

“You kill me,” I muttered. My voice was so hoarse I sounded like Joan Rivers.

Noah smiled, his gaze flitting over my face in the sweetest way. “Funny. I think you save me.”

Yup, I was going to fall so hard for this guy. Who was I trying to kid? I had already fallen hard for him. I’m surprised I didn’t have bruises.

“What?” he taunted sweetly. “No comeback?”

I shook my head, grinning. “Nope.”

He came in even closer, brushing his lips against mine with the softness of a butterfly’s wing. It was enough to make me shiver, but not enough to satisfy the craving for him.

“Mandy, I’m going to walk out with Dawn.” He said
this over his shoulder as he straightened. I was able to open the door then. Good thing because I needed the air.

I called another farewell to Amanda and left the apartment. Noah walked me downstairs and out into the street.

“You don’t have to do this,” I told him, even though I thought it was sweet.

He frowned, shoving his hands in his jeans pockets. It was a chilly night and he hadn’t put on a coat. “Are you kidding? I’m not letting you out of my sight at all if I can help it. Not while that bastard’s still free. Not ever.”

I arched a brow, fighting a little spurt of guilt. “Now, if you could just thump your chest I’d be really turned on.”

He shot me a glare—not much of one, but it was there all the same. “Don’t be glib.”

With a sigh, I lifted up on my toes and kissed his cheek. “I appreciate the concern, really.”

“Do me a favor.”

“Anything.” And I meant it. Oh, I knew the protective thing was all part of his own issues, but I was only human and the guy I thought the bestest of the best wanted to be all alpha for my benefit.

The look he gave me was coy. “Don’t do anything that could get you in deeper shit with the Warden.”

I blinked—and it wasn’t a fake one either. Why would he assume I was going to do something that could get me in “deeper shit”? And how in the hell did he know me so well? “Like what?”

He smiled again. “You know what. Anything that requires you going into the Dreaming. You’re already doing enough for Mandy, you don’t need to risk yourself.”

Now, I knew all of this was said because he wanted me to be safe. However, there was a part of me that thought he was suggesting that maybe I didn’t have enough sense to be careful. That maybe I was stupid.

Like he knew that I would do something—which of course I was going to.

“Because Amanda already has one protector, right?” Oh, I sounded snarky. “She doesn’t need another one?” Wasn’t he the one who had wanted me to help her in the first place?

His hand whipped out of his pocket and wrapped around my back, pulling me tight against him in a cobra-fast motion that stole my breath. “Because I don’t want you to get hurt,” he informed me hotly. “Because I’d go fucking nuts if anything happened to you.”

Well. Those were certainly better reasons than mine. And really, I was just as bad. I hadn’t told him about Durdan to protect him—keep him from doing something stupid. “Okay,” I squeaked.

He kissed me then—long and hard. And when he lifted his head, mine was still spinning. He hailed a cab—that seemingly magically appeared at exactly the right time. He even closed the door for me as I slid into the backseat—after checking out the driver, of course. Paranoia, thy name is Noah. And I loved him for it.

I arrived home safe and sound, of course. I even called Noah’s cell phone to let him know the good news. When we were about to hang up, he wished me “sweet dreams” for later that night. I actually blushed at the blatant innuendo in his tone.

My roommate Lola—mixed race and curvy (she calls herself a bucket of chicken—all breast and thigh)—laughed as she walked by me into the kitchen. She was wearing low-riding lounge pants and a tank top. Her dark hair was in pigtails. She was so cute I could have backhanded her.

“Talking to Noah?” She grinned.

I smirked. “My dentist.”

Her expression was appreciative. “I gotta change dentists.”

I grinned because I couldn’t help it and practically skipped off to my bedroom to change into my own comfy clothes.

Julie—another petite brunette—arrived a few minutes later. I felt like a giant next to the two of them, but I’ve become fond of my height so I didn’t mind. In
fact, I was becoming fond of a lot of things that used to bother me. I hardly thought about my size anymore, and had settled into a solid size 12. I could be skinnier, sure, but Noah liked me the way I was and I had to admit I kinda did too.

Weird, huh? I wasn’t sure if Noah was to blame for this sudden confidence, or if facing my dual nature was the culprit.

I hugged Julie and then the three of us sat down with various menus, searching for the right food for the evening. We decided on Chinese—yay!—and I placed the mountainous order while the other two picked through DVDs to watch. No worrying about Wardens or being the destroyer of worlds tonight.

I wanted to watch
Devour
but was vetoed by my friends. “It’s awful!” Julie wailed.

“But it has Jensen Ackles.” I pointed to the too-pretty-to-be-legal face on the cover. “We love Jensen!”

Julie rolled her eyes and I sighed, putting the movie aside. I’d have to watch it—again—on my own.

Lola suggested
French Kiss
with Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline, and Julie and I gave it a big thumbs-up. I knew what would happen. We’d watch, recite dialog in all the right places, and be in love with Kline by the end. Then we’d spend the rest of the evening talking to each other with very bad French accents.

Are we wild or what?

Julie grabbed
The Replacements
as the second on our double bill. A good choice. Not only did it have Keanu at the pinnacle of his hotness, but it had Rhys Ifans, who I think is totally adorable despite his obvious attempts to be anything but.

The food arrived within the first half hour of
French Kiss
before KK’s charm reached full throttle. We glutted ourselves on fried wontons, General Tao’s chicken, pork lo mein and garlic vegetables. And for dessert—Lindt chocolate. As if that wasn’t bad enough, cocktails followed.

By the end of the night, I was still full and half tanked. I felt lovely. Lola and I sent Julie home in a cab—watching from the window as she pulled away. I guess we were almost as bad with her as Noah was with me—but I hadn’t been drunk. Julie was trashed.

I went to bed after washing my face and brushing my teeth—habits that I never broke no matter how bad the state I was in. Once my head hit the pillow I had another dilemma. Did I go after Noah first or did I try hunting down Amanda’s attacker?

It didn’t matter that I was tipsy. I probably wouldn’t be in the Dreaming. Booze didn’t seem to matter there, as I’d learned when having wine with Hadria. I didn’t want to give up this lovely feeling, but I had to at least try to find the rapist—if for no other reason than because I could.

Okay, and I was just looped enough to admit that the sooner that S.O.B. was behind bars, the sooner Amanda could find closure, and Noah and I could go back to trying to build a relationship that only included the two of us, and didn’t include either one of us trying to save the world or a small portion of it.

It was decided. I’d go check in on Noah and then I’d go after Durdan.

I settled in, letting my foggy brain drift further and further away from this world. I was going in the old-fashioned way—less risk of doing something that would get me into “deeper shit” as Noah so eloquently put it.

Sleep came with ease. I was getting better and better at putting myself to sleep when I wanted, although I had my sleepless nights just like anyone else. Fortunately, I could whip open a portal to the Dreaming and rejuvenate my mind and body that way.

Since Noah was expecting me, I reached out to him with my mind. We’d done this a few times now, so he easily opened his dream to me. He had already set the stage, and was in a dream version of his bed—bigger, with sheets that felt like butter—waiting for me.

Clad in a little tank top and boy-cut panties, I climbed in beside him, slipping eagerly into his warm arms. God, he felt good. Because of his amazing ability as a lucid dreamer, this was as real to him as it was to me. Almost.

He gave me a squeeze. “How was your night with the girls? Did you get loaded and have pillow fights in your underwear?”

I laughed at the thought. “No. But we did make out.”

Now he was the one chuckling. “Did you take pictures?”

I shook my head. “Video. It’s on YouTube.”

He was silent as we both enjoyed the light moment. Then of course, I had to ask, “How’s Amanda?” So much for levity.

“Better.” A man of many words, my Noah.

I patted the hand that rested on my stomach. “She’s going to be all right.” It wasn’t a promise or a platitude, it was something I knew in my gut. She had to be all right or he and I were in trouble. I felt that in my gut too.

“You can’t fix everything,” he said quietly, with just a touch of bitterness that I had to tell myself wasn’t directed at me.

“Sure I can.” Look at me, trying to force lightness into our conversation again. I didn’t want to spend this time with him letting the real world intrude. I should have known better than to open my mouth in the first place.

“You can’t make sure that bastard pays for what he did.”

I wasn’t thinking clearly, otherwise I never would
have said what I did. “Sure I could. I could make him think he was a sewer rat if I wanted. I could make him spend the rest of his days in the grip of nonstop nightmares.”

Noah went still against me. His gaze locked with mine. “Isn’t that against the rules?”

I shrugged. “Without a doubt, but they never said anything before.” I should have said yes, it was definitely out of the question. Shouldn’t let him entertain the idea—or myself for that matter. But it was out there, hovering between us now.

“Jackey Jenkins.” I was surprised he remembered her name. “What exactly did you do to her?”

I kept my eyes closed. Tried to remain calm and not let my mind go there. “I don’t remember.”

God love him, he left it at that. We both had our secrets and for now we both respected that. Some day he’d want to know more. And someday I’d want to know about his father, but not today.