Page 84 of Demons In My Head: Exposing the Exiled

I watched as Jasper's form flickered, a sad smile crossing his spectral features. Before he could respond, Palmer let out a whimper from the couch. My body moved before my brain caught up, and I found myself kneeling beside her.

Her face was scrunched up, clearly caught in some kind of nightmare. Sweat beaded on her forehead, and her breathing had become erratic. Without thinking, I reached out and brushed my fingers across her temple.

I stepped into her dream, finding myself in a stark white room. Palmer stood in the center, surrounded by mirrors that showed different versions of herself—some stronger, some broken, all of them screaming. Scorpio's laughter echoed through the space, bouncing off the walls until it was impossible to tell where it was coming from.

"Palmer," I called out, my voice carrying more authority than usual in this dreamscape.

Her head snapped toward me, eyes wide with recognition. "Misha?"

"It's just a dream,kukola. You're safe."

The mirrors started to crack, spider-web patterns spreading across their surfaces. Palmer stumbled backward, but I caught her before she could fall.

"Make it stop," she whispered, clutching my shirt.

I wrapped my arms around her, using my power to shift the dreamscape. The white room melted away, replaced by my workshop. The familiar scent of metal and leather filled the air.

"Better?" I asked, still holding her.

She nodded against my chest. "How are you here?"

"It's what I do. Dreams are... my thing." I rarely shared this particular ability. It had been used as a weapon for too long.

Palmer pulled back slightly, looking up at me with those big blue eyes. "Thank you, and Misha, I'm so fucking sorry."

"Hush now, you need to rest." She had no business even trying to focus on anything in the real world after what she'd been through. Absolute rest is what was required.

"Everything happened so fast, the club, the maze, how deep I got in, and then how deeply I began to feel—"

I scooped her up, cutting off her sentence. She didn't need to explain this to me, not right now. "Quiet,kukola. I'm going to hold you in my arms and you're going to sleep."

She yawned and blinked slowly as I lay down on the couch with her on top of my chest. "Are you mad at me?" she questioned, her voice sounding so small.Sweet little rabbit.

"No. I'm not." My fingers danced through her hair and traced her spine. "But I will be disappointed if you don't close your eyes and go to sleep."

And within three breaths, she was out cold. I sighed. It had been a long time since I'd done it, but I was able to leave a dream version of myself behind. It wasn't something I had any control over once I left the dream; that was up to the person who was dreaming. I carefully extracted myself, leaving mydream body sleeping comfortably beneath her, which was her vision.

"Sleep well,kukola," I whispered as I withdrew myself completely.

Back in the real world, I removed my hand from her temple. Her features had relaxed, her breathing steady once more. Time passed so fast in the dreamscapes that, realistically, it had probably only been ten seconds here. But that was long enough for these fuckers to notice what I had done. When I looked up, they were all watching me with knowing expressions. What they thought they knew, I'd love to fucking know.

"The fuck you looking at?" I growled quietly.

"Nothing," Rhodes replied, but his smirk said otherwise.

Talon did a pirouette. For no reason. Nailed it.

Jasper shrugged. "Just interesting to see you care so much."

I stood up, putting distance between myself and Palmer. "She's Exiled now. We protect our own."

"Uh-huh." Jasper's form flickered again, his smile growing wider.

"Shut up," I muttered, moving back to my spot against the wall.

Felix looked up from his sketching. "Did you just tell a ghost to shut up?"

"Yes." I crossed my arms, daring anyone else to comment.