Page 34 of Demon Hunger
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Myfirstnightbackin my room was horrible. The worst nightmare ever had me sitting up on my bed, panting and sweating.
“You’re soaked,” Jenna said, suddenly appearing beside me, her hair standing on end.
“So-rry I woke you up.” I blinked and blinked, trying to dispel the feeling of dread the nightmare had left behind.
“You’re fine. Let me get you something dry.” She dug in my closet and brought back a tank top.
I grabbed it and wrung it like an old rag. My heart was racing, showing no signs of slowing.
“Nightmare?” Jenna asked.
I nodded.
“A lasting symptom of schizonevima. Don’t worry. It’ll get better.”
But it didn’t get better. In fact, it got a lot worse, so much so that I feared laying my head down on the pillow and going to sleep. The nightmare was always the same. There was a sort of portal in front of me, a blinding light coming from it along with desperate voices crying out:Lucia, help!
As the days passed, the nightmare seemed to build, and after a week, I realized that the screaming voices belonged to my family. They were in terrible danger and needed me, except every time I crossed the portal and tried to find them, it was impossible, and instead, I ended up on my knees, sobbing while my mom and sisters kept calling for help that never came.
After the first few times, Jenna grew used to the night terrors and slept right through them. I didn’t mention they were still bothering me. Why worry her? Besides, what could she do about them? Dani was the healer, and she would know a solution, so once she got back from a trip to the Fae realm—she went there often to purchase supplies for her remedies—I called her.
I was between classes, sitting in the common room.
“Hey, big sis,” I greeted her.
“Hey, little sis. How are you feeling?”
“Well…”
“I’m listening.”
“I’ve been having this horrible recurring nightmare every night. It’s more like a night terror, really.”
“That’s a normal symptom of schizonevima, though by now, they shouldn’t be a problem.” She sounded puzzled. “I’ll do a little reading to see if there’s a reason for lingering nightmares related to the condition. I’ll text you what I find out and can overnight you a remedy if needed.”
“Sounds good.”
I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye and turned to see Drevan. Smiling, he plopped into the chair in front of me.
“Absolutely no more demon portals, Lucia!” my sister admonished me on the other side of the line.
Dani?Drevan mouthed, wincing.
My sister went on. “If you do it again, youwilldie, and I’m not saying that to be dramatic.”
“I understand.”
“I warned Drevan… I don’t know how, but I will kill him if something happens to you. That was so reckless. But I made him understand he can’t do that again, no matter the circumstances.”
“I think he got it.”
I sure did,Drevan mouthed.
I rolled my eyes.
“Mom would have a stroke,” Dani added. “You need to consider your family when you go around gallivanting with demons.”
