THIRTY-EIGHT #2
“Captain,” Gellar said, his tone neutral.
“Angela Duboise. We’re ready. The Sleep Wizard and his team are just through those doors.
We’ll give you two a moment.” With Bellus beside him going over his notebook filled with checklists they moved farther down the corridor.
While Bellus talked about patrols, Gellar’s expression remained neutral as commander, but also a friend who gave Zarek a nod before returning his attention to their historian.
Angela’s hand tightened on Zarek’s arm, feeling her fear spike as she stared at the doors.
He covered her hand with his and squeezed gently. “I know I said it before, and I’ll say it again: you don’t have to do this.”
She pulled her arm free. “I need answers. And I need sleep. If this can get rid of my nightmares, I’m willing to try anything.
” She looked at the door. “You know, my Aunt Claudine recommended I do something similar when the nightmares first started. As much as I’d complain or roll my eyes, I’ve always trusted her judgment… and I trust you, Zarek.”
That meant more than he’d ever admit.
“Where will you be?”
“The human realm. At the Bone the men sworn to protect this realm were hoping she was something more, to justify what their captain had done. What he could not undo.
Because if the dreamscape found nothing, and if Angela Duboise came out of that room unchanged, and still perfectly, stubbornly human—
There would be nothing left to argue about.
Zarek knew what the Accords said about a captain who had been with a mortal. And somewhere behind that closed door, Angela held his fate, decided by the answers she found today that he hoped would be enough to save his life.