The Nightmare (The Mist #2) - Regine Abel Page 0,32
was the case. My Letho is a little too much like a man’s nightmare.”
I recoiled at that comment, while Riley narrowed his eyes.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Haven’t you noticed the high percentage of female candidates?” Julia asked. I stilled and scanned my memories, indeed remembering thinking that there was a disproportionately high number of women. “There’s obviously a reason for it. Men’s Nightmares tend to be the real deal, the true extreme. They can’t be reasoned with. They’re like Jason, Michael, and Freddy Kruger: single-minded and relentless in their bloodthirst. Whereas women’s Nightmares tend to walk the fine line between psychopaths and Dark Desires.”
I nodded slowly. “Beauty and the Beast. Women often fantasize about the villain falling in love with them.”
Riley snorted, drawing our attention. “I was in love with my biggest bully in school.”
“There was no love involved in what spawned my Nightmare,” Julia said grimly. “Unlike both of your Nightmares, Letho hasn’t been haunting me since my youth, but since the past six years. I’m a former special op. My helicopter went down over a contested area. Only two others in my unit survived. We were captured and tortured. My comrades were maimed, crippled, and eventually killed. As for me, well… you know what happens to women.”
My heart broke for her. I wanted to reach out and hug her, but the professional in me recognized she didn’t need it and wouldn’t welcome it. I couldn’t help but admire her strength. There had been no tremor in her voice, no physical tell of denial. She had faced her demons and learned to cope with them instead of letting them control her.
“So, there are definitely no dark desires between my Nightmare and me,” Julia continued, “No Stockholm Syndrome either. Letho is the embodiment of my pain, my hatred, my rage, and hunger for revenge. He’s a wild and an uncontrollable animal, a beast… a demon.”
“A demon that you now must tame,” I said, matter-of-factly, although she understood my underlying meaning.
“Yep, again!” Julia said bitterly before shoving a mouthful oatmeal with dried fruits in her mouth.
Why she’d chosen all the ‘lamest’ things from the buffet baffled me.
“So, your Zain created some excitement last night,” Julia continued. “Everyone pretty much pissed themselves when the alarm went off. Thomson told us—meaning only Riley and me—that your Nightmare broke through the protective glass.”
“He told you!” I exclaimed, flabbergasted.
They nodded. Beyond my shock upon hearing this, my respect for the program director went up a notch. His ‘failure’ to protect me had shaken my confidence in the organization. But the transparency he displayed throughout the process so far certainly inspired trust. This was a new, experimental process. Of course, accidents would happen.
“Is it true that Zain branded you?” Riley asked. “Thomson says if we proceed with the project, we will need to let our own Nightmares mark us as well.”
“It’s true,” I said before lowering the collar of my shirt to show my brand. It still throbbed, but it was thankfully no longer tender to the touch. “There it is.”
They both leaned forward, examining it with fascination. Oddly enough, I didn’t feel self-conscious having two strangers all but staring at my boob.
“Did it move?” Riley asked, awe filling his voice.
I nodded. “Yeah. Well, it’s more like the lines waver a little, the way smoke does,” I corrected.
“What happened?” Julia asked.
I gave them a quick rundown of everything that had happened, from the crashed window, to Zain dragging me to the Mist.
“Oh my God, you already asked?!” Riley exclaimed. “Did he accept?”
I frowned and pursed my lips, unsure how to answer. “I don’t really know. Part of what he said, when he was hitting on me, implied that he was going to do it, if only to have me. But another part hinted that he wasn’t ready to commit yet and wanted to think about it.”
“He’s going to cross over,” Julia said with a certainty that took me aback. “He spent too much time building up his reserves to bail at this point, especially now that you want him to come. I think he’s mostly trying to decide if he wants to do it under his terms or following ours.”
My head jerked right to look over my shoulder. The beaming smile with which the older man addressed me had me perking up with curiosity and something akin to excitement.
“Good morning, everyone,” Thomson said, stopping next to my chair. “I’m pleased to see