Chapter 20
Jillian
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By the time seven o'clock rolled around, Jillian had cleaned the kitchen twice, reheated the coffee once, and checked the window every few minutes like she was waiting for a storm to roll in. Moe paced, keeping his thoughts to himself, but she could tell he was anxious and bracing for impact.
When headlights swept across her living room wall, Moe stopped mid-stride.
"They're here," Jillian whispered, even though he already knew.
She opened the door before they could knock.
Finn stood on her porch, broad-shouldered and serious. Beside him was Kallie, soft-eyed and carrying the kind of quiet strength Jillian recognized instantly.
"Hi, I'm Jillian," she said, stepping aside.
Finn offered a polite nod.
"It's nice to meet you. I'm Kallie." Finn's woman inhaled deeply. "We've wondered where Moe ended up."
Moe stared at Finn like he was trying to reconcile two versions of reality. Then he finally stepped forward, shoulders tight, jaw locked.
Finn clapped a hand on Moe's shoulder. "Good to see you, brother."
Moe didn't say anything, but the tension in his body eased a fraction.
Kallie gave Jillian a warm smile. "Thank you for having us."
"Of course," Jillian said, though she wasn't sure what "having us" meant in a situation like this. She led them to the living room, where Moe hovered close enough to her that she could feel the warmth coming off him.
Finn and Kallie sat on the couch, Jillian in the chair, Moe standing behind her like a guard dog who refused to relax.
Finn leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "We spotted you running from the cops a few months ago."
"I lost you both after I went through the veil," Moe said immediately. "How are you surviving? How did you get hooked up with the Brotherhood? Why didn't you come find me? What happened to Everstill? And how—?"
"Moe," Finn cut in gently. "One question at a time."
Jillian touched Moe's hand. He didn't look at her, but he linked their fingers.
"First off, have you discovered how old you are?" asked Finn.
"Fuck..." Moe shook his head. "That was a shock."
"I hear you." Finn grunted. "I'm probably older than you."
"At least someone is," he muttered. "Tell me what happened when you arrived here."
Finn exhaled. "I wouldn't have survived without Kallie. She had a life here. She helped me adapt. In Everstill, everything is routine. Emotionless. Coming back... all the feelings hit at once. It was a shock I wasn't prepared for."
Kallie nodded. "He had to relearn how to live outside of Everstill."
Finn's voice dropped. "The veil chose her a long time ago. Whether it was to get me out or not, I don't know."
Jillian leaned forward. "The veil chooses who can go there?"
Finn nodded. "That's the theory. The veil doesn't open on its own. Keys open it."
"Keys and doors," Moe muttered.
Finn pointed at him. "Exactly. Some people are keys. Kallie is one. She opened the veil. That's how she visited me when she was growing up."
Jillian whispered, "I don't understand."
Moe said, "Copper explained it like this: keys open the veil. Doors let people pass through it. And some people get pulled."
He nodded toward Kallie. "She's a key. She opened the rift. Without her, I couldn't have crossed. If I would've tried by myself, it would've killed me."
Kallie offered Jillian a soft smile. "I didn't know I could. It first happened when I was ten."
Finn continued, "When the storm hit, Kallie opened the veil. I held on to her and got pulled through. I didn't open anything. I was taken."
Jillian's pulse kicked. "And Moe?"
Finn looked at Moe with quiet understanding. "He didn't open the veil. He followed because it reacted to him. It let him pass."
Moe's jaw tightened. "Didn't feel like it let me do anything. Doors don't control the crossing, but they make it possible. A door can't come alone."
Jillian swallowed. "I'm a door?"
"A strong one," Moe said, his hand brushing her shoulder.
Finn blew out a breath. "You didn't force anything. But the veil reacted to you. You were the door Moe passed through."
Jillian's breath caught. "I didn't do anything."
"You did everything," Finn said. "Without you, Moe would've died between worlds."
Moe exhaled. "Copper warned me."
Her stomach flipped. If she had known there was a chance of him dying, she never would've agreed to bring him home with her.
Finn continued, "Keys open the veil. Doors let people through. And the ones who cross? Everstill marks them. It doesn't let go easily."
Jillian looked up at Moe. His jaw was tight, eyes locked on Finn, but his hand stayed wrapped around hers.
Finn leaned back. "And that's why we need to talk about what comes next."
Jillian's pulse hammered.
Finn exhaled. "Everstill isn't a place. It's a force. A consciousness."
Kallie added softly, "It's alive, Jillian."
Jillian's voice shook. "What does it want with us?"
Finn rubbed his jaw. "It wants to cross. It wants to bleed into this world. And it uses doors to do it."
A chill slid down Jillian's spine.
"The darkness you saw in Everstill?" Finn said. "The shadows? The things that moved? That was Everstill trying to reach you."
Jillian's breath caught.
Finn looked at Moe. "And it followed you."
Moe's jaw clenched. "I haven't seen anything."
"You will," Finn said quietly. "Both of you will."
Jillian whispered, "What kind of darkness?"
"A shadow that thinks," Finn said. "A presence that learns. It watches keys and doors. And when one crosses, it follows."
Jillian's stomach twisted. "Is it here?"
Finn nodded. "Yes."
Moe's hand tightened on her shoulder.
"Everstill marks the ones who cross," Finn said. "And it tries to open again—through them."
Jillian's chest tightened. "So it's following me?"
"And Moe," Finn said. "He passed through you. Everstill sees you as one crossing."
Kallie added gently, "You'll feel things before they happen."
Jillian whispered, "I already do."
Finn nodded. "That's the darkness. It's not here to hurt you. It's here to find a way back."
Moe stepped closer, voice low. "It's not touching her."
Finn held his gaze. "Then you need to understand what you're up against."
"Everstill wants an opening," Finn said. "And it wants them to stay open."
Jillian's heart pounded.
She finally understood.
Everstill didn't just want Moe through the veil. It wanted her—so the darkness could spread.