On the other side of the payphone door, Sophia and Luke found themselves dashing down the aisles of a train after Deirdre. Dee dodged the irritated looks of seated coach passengers, and hopped past luggage in the storage car to get to the private cabins. Sophia didn't have to look behind them to know that she was being followed.
It was only after the their tiny shadow group climbed into the sleeper car with Deirdre, that her dirty disheveled state of dress became apparent. An ever so slight baby bump registered with Sophia.
The sleeper car was tiny, with two bench seats on either side. Luke and Sophia plopped down on the padded bench opposite Deirdre. There was a small door that Dee opened just long enough to hide her weapons in. Sophia watched Dee stow her sword and pistol behind a toilet that sat mere inches from a tiny lighted sink with mirror.
Then Dee quickly slammed the bathroom door and pulled down a slat table between the two benches. Light shown into the room, and Sophia looked out of a tiny window that peered onto a train platform. Dee pulled the curtains shut roughly.
"Right then." Dee muttered through heaving breaths.
Deirdre began pulling a strange assortment of things out of her backpack and piling them on the slat table. A dagger. A swimmer's nose clip. A brand new package of handkerchiefs. A large plastic bag. A small glass vial filled with white power. A wallet. Four granola bars. A bottle of orange juice.
Sophia watched with fascination as Deirdre pulled one of the handkerchiefs out of the package. It was white with a lace edge and a large red rose machine-embroidered in the corner. Dee spread it out flat on the table. Then she used the dagger to prick her finger and drip three drops of blood directly onto the rose. The flower darkened, but otherwise, the stain was completely concealed it its petals.
Dee then put the nose clip on and opened the vial, carefully measuring a small pile of white dust onto the white cotton. She then folded the handkerchief carefully and rolled it between her palms.
The door rattled as a hand banged on it, and even Dee jumped.
"Biglietti, per favore!"
"Si, uno momento!" Dee responded.
Sophia watched Deirdre shove the vial, nose clip, hankies and dagger into the plastic bag then stowed the bag back into her backpack. Arranging the food carefully on the table before opening the door.
A man in a navy hat and coat tipped his head in. Deirdre smiled at him, and pulled a small piece of paper from her wallet.
"Tickets, yes?"
"Si, signorina. Grazie"
"Prego."
As Dee held her ticket out, she let it flutter to the ground. "Oh, dear! I'm so sorry."
"Iz alright Miss. No Problem." The railman bent to retrieve the ticket and Dee deftly slipped the doctored handkerchief into his jacket pocket.
Sophia gave Luke a questioning look. He simply shrugged back at her.
When the railman righted himself, Dee gave him a desperate look. "Please, signore, I have reason to believe I am being followed. There were two men at the last station whom I do not know. They followed me onto the platform and may have boarded the train. I am traveling alone to Budapest…"
The railman held up a hand. "Say no more, signorina. We are committed to the safety of our passengers. We have a RAILPOL agent on board and I will notify him immediately."
"Molto Grazie, signore!" Deirdre made a show of shaking his hand.
Sophia was sure she could see some large bills transferred in that handshake.
The railman closed the door. Dee locked it behind him. A few moments later, there were sounds of an argument, followed by a struggle. A loud sneeze, then shouting. Deirdre looked at her wristwatch, and pulled the window's curtains apart.
Sophia peeked out the opening again. This time she saw two ragged looking men being hauled off the train in handcuffs by multiple police officers. Both men were massive and Sophia could tell by the gleam in their eyes that they were wolven. There were both sneezing uncontrollably.
The poor railman appeared on the platform, holding a cloth to his bleeding forehead. He shouted at them in Italian with accompanying hand gestures before reboarding the train.
Dee sighed. "Sorry mate, it's a shame to waste good cocaine on werewolves. If I could've spared some for you, I would've. At least you'd not be feeling your wounds."
Moments later, the train started moving. Dee had a look on her face that was a mix of relief and utter exhaustion. A metallic ringing sound echoed through the cabin. Dee grabbed her cell phone out of her backpack, read the faceplate, and cringed. She flipped it open.
"Lucas," Dee answered in the cheeriest voice she could. "How are you, brother? What? No, just tired from a hard days' training."
Deirdre placed a hand on her stomach briefly, then began removing her outer layers of clothing and settling in.
Sophia heard Luke's sharp intake of breath when he saw the bruises on her arms and chest. There were tears in his eyes, and she could tell he was swallowing back whimpers. Sophia grabbed Luke's hand and intertwined their fingers.
"I remember that conversation," Luke choked out, "she didn't tell me…"
"Her choice," Sophia soothed.
Dee went on talking to her brother on the phone, on the other side of the world, deep in her memories.
"Yeah, I've got time now…. So tell me more about your Sophia, I'm dying to know."
The door to the train cabin opened of its own accord. Without a word, Luke and Sophia got up, and walked through it.
They were chasing after Deirdre again, this time through a huge crowded city.
"This running crap, is getting really old." Luke grunted.
They turned down a long winding road then up an incline. Deirdre kept looking over her shoulder, never seeing her Dream Walking companions. Sophia knew that they were still being followed. The skin was crawling at the back of her neck.
The road meandered upward. It was only after the city and surrounding village fell away, that Sophia realized it was raining. Moreover that she could somehow feel the drops on her skin.
Sophia tried to get her breath, but when Deirdre turned a corner, she and Luke followed.
Sophia's stomach dropped like a stone. There was a huge stone castle in front of them. Sophia recognized it immediately. It was the castle that Sophia had followed Deirdre to during the first of their Dreamwalking escapade. The dream Sophia had entered by accident.
"Is.." Luke stuttered, "is that the castle from the newscast that Adam showed us?"
Dumbstruck, Sophia nodded.
The castle was surrounded by a huge iron fence with a towering gothic gate. Instead of opening as Deirdre approached, as in her dream, her memories revealed a small call box. Thankfully, the call box was shielded by an awning.
Sophia and Luke huddled close to Dee, feeling the pressing of her ever growing belly, as they tried to get under the awning with her. Dee pressed the button and the speaker above crackled to life.
"Da. Cu ce vă pot ajuta?"
Deirdre wrapped her coat closer around her shoulders before responding. "Vă rog. Vorbesti engleza?"
"Yes, of course I can speak English!" The annoyed voice on the speaker replied. "What do you want?"
Luke growled menacingly.
"He can't hear you." Sophia hissed.
"Then, why are you whispering?" Luke asked.
"I need to speak to Daniela Ionescu. My name is Deirdre Pierson. Alex Moreau of the Luna Foundation would've called ahead for me."
"Hold on."
Dee shivered again while the speaker box went silent for several minutes. Sophia felt the cold and anxiety seeping into her own bones as she was sure they had for Deirdre. Sophia internally reflected on how these memories of Deirdre's, that she and Luke were trailing through, were becoming more and more real as they went along. Sophia imagined she was beginning to feel Deirdre's own feelings.
Finally, after an eternity of nothing but downpour, the speaker box crackled to life again.
"Ms. Ionescu bids you welcome to the Bucharest Legacy House."
The monstrous gate rolled open on motorized casters and Dee, Luke and Sophia stepped through.
On the other side, they were in a marvelously warm great room, centered around an enormous marble fireplace alight with a merry blaze.
Deirdre sat in front of the fire in an antique high backed chair, wrapped in an ornate wool blanket. The effect was incredibly homey, and a welcome calm settled over Sophia's nerves. A tall woman in a smart suit carried a tea tray into the room and set it on a small side table. She took the seat across from Dee. Sophia noted the woman's graying updo and kind eyes.
"There now." The woman said in heavily accented English, "How are you feeling my dear?"
Dee gave a contented sigh. She wrapped both hands around her teacup and began to sip greedily. "Much better, doamnă. Thank you so much."
"Pssh." The woman made a dismissive gesture. "It is the very least we can do. You are after all a Legacy member, even if only a novice. And besides, this is no less hospitality than we should show any creature in need. Let alone a young lady in your condition."
Deirdre stopped sipping her tea. A guarded expression crossed her face. "My condition, doamnă?"
"Daniela. Please." The woman said, taking a sip from her own cup. "And yes, Alexandra informed me of your delicate state when I called her just now, to let her know that you arrived safely. I believe she thought it best to tell me so that we might accommodate your comfort properly."
Deirdre relaxed, nodding. Unconsciously, she matched her sips to Daniela's. "Again, I thank you for your hospitality."
"Of course. We will speak of it no more." Daniela smiled.
This time, the smile gave Sophia an uneasy feeling. It must have done to Lucas as well, because Sophia could feel his protective hand on her shoulder.
Dee gave another odd little sigh and began to slump in her chair. Her eyelids started to droop.
"Drink your tea all up, my dear, and then I will take you to your room." Daniela's lips broke into a full out grin. "Then you can tell me all about how a Slayer came to my door, pregnant. And about your night of lust with a Legacy Prefect."
Dee gave a grunt of protest, lazily tossing her cup to the ground. Sophia could feel the lethargy stealing over Deirdre. Dee attempted to rise from her seat but slumped back. Her feet would not support her.
"You drank the tea." Dee bit out drunkenly.
"I drugged the cup." Daniela countered. "Sleep, fluturaș. Sleep, and we will talk more later."
As if by Daniela's command, Deirdre promptly lost consciousness.
The lights in the room dimmed around Sophia. The fire continued to flicker, but she could see less of it. It was like Sophia herself was losing her ability to see.
"Luke?" Sophia cried out in fear.
Immediately his arms were around her. "Right here, always."
The world went black.
The next thing Sophia could see were blurry images of a dark room. Deirdre was in the white dress that she'd worn the first time Sophia Dream Walked with her. Only this time, Deirdre was bound to a stone table in a dark room. She was surrounded by figures in dark red robes.
The figures chanted in some archaic language that Sophia didn't know. One of their number drew strange symbols in the cloth over Deirdre's belly. Another cut into her palm, spilling Dee's blood into a dark chalice.
Deirdre came awake suddenly. Struggling against her bonds, she managed to free her injured hand and deck the guy holding the cup.
"Traitors!" Dee shrieked. "You betrayed your oath! Trai-
She kept screaming until a third cult member held a cloth over her mouth. Deirdre pulled back the figure's hood as she fought against unconsciousness. It was Daniela Ionescu.
Dee collapsed again, and again the world went black.
When the lights came on again, they blinked into harsh fluorescence.
Sophia felt for Luke. Turning toward him, she ignored the scene momentarily, to clutch at her boyfriend in wordless terror. She buried her face in his chest. Luke held her. As always, her rock.
"I can't look." Sophia trembled in Luke's arms.
"I know." Luke's voice was harsh. "But I think you have to."
"Why?" Sophia cried.
"Because I can't seem to see anything until you do."
That statement took too much for Sophia's brain to unpack. With a last desperate squeeze to Luke's middle, she took a deep breath and turned back around to view the newest memory.
As soon as she did, Sophia wished she hadn't. Deirdre was waking to find herself chained to an old fashioned steel medical bed. There were tubes running from Dee's body to IV's and monitors surrounding the bed.
But it was when both Deirdre and Sophia looked down at Dee's pregnant belly that they both let out terrified screams. The belly had tripled in size.
Deirdre continued to scream in the cinderblock room. And something wrenched Sophia backwards.
"Sophia, wake up!"
It was The Slayer spirit returned to guide them. Except Luke was nowhere to be found. Sophia continued to scream along with Deirdre. An unending cry of terror.
"Soph, you gotta wake up honey!"
The voice coming out of The Slayer's mouth was strange. Deep and husky, like a man's voice. The Slayer kept telling her to wake up. She stepped back, revealing the door with the gargoyle knocker.
Sophia was still screaming as the Slayer shoved her through the door.
When Sophia awoke, she was still screaming. She was clutching at the comatose Deirdre's midsection, and Sophia's father had hold of her shoulders, shaking her.
"Sophia, you gotta wake up!"
"Daddy?" Sophia could feel moisture streaming down her face.
Matthew Donner's concerned face melted into relief. "Yeah, honey, it's me."
That drew a fresh bought of sobs from Sophia. "Oh, daddy, it was awful! Deirdre was attacked, and Adam was killing people, and there were coked out werewolves, and that woman Daniela kidnapped her for some weird cult ritual…"
"Slow down honey," Matt urged. "You're not making any sense."
"Luke!" Sophia shrieked, "Where's Luke?"
"Right here, babe."
Luke appeared on Sophia's other side, producing a glass of water, which she gulped greedily. "They pulled me out right before you, but we couldn't get you to let go."
Luke pointed downward, and Sophia followed his gaze. She still had one hand on Deirdre's belly. She pulled it away.
"It would appear that we have arrived in the nick of time, so to speak," said an accented voice to Sophia's right.
That's when Sophia finally realized they weren't alone in the room. Vivian and Nick stood to the back of the room with three strangers. One blonde woman about Matt's age, and a lovely African American woman not much older than Ruby flanked Nick. Next to Vivian, stood a man in a leather jacket with cut features and silvery hair. It was he who had spoken.
"I'm sorry." Sophia grumbled. "Who are you?"
Vivian took a step forward to make the introductions. "Sophia, Luke, this is Dr. Derek Rayne, Prefect of the San Francisco Legacy House. And this is Alex Moreau and Dr. Rachel Corrigan. They are colleagues of Nick and Deirdre's."
"You!" Sophia rose to her feet. She stumbled toward the African American woman. "You sent Dee into that house. Something terrible happened to her there!"
Alex held up her hands in appeasement. Derek stepped between them.
"But, you see Miss Donner, that is the problem. She didn't. Alex didn't make that phone call."