Chapter 18
Rue had just changed into her pajamas when her phone lit up.
A new message from Silas popped up:
[Maybe try to see if there’s something in your dreams you’ve forgotten—doesn’t have to be exact, even remembering the vibe or setting helps.]
She plopped down on her bed, legs crossed and pillow hugged tight. She was about to respond when a second message buzzed in:
[But if you can’t, don’t push it. Just get some real rest.]
Her finger hovered over the keyboard for a second, then she sent back a gif of a nodding cartoon cat.
Just as she was about to lock her screen, his status bubble popped up again—“typing…”
It blinked five, six times. Then:
[Goodnight.]
She smiled to herself and sent back another gif—a tiny cat pulling a blanket over itself.
[Goodnight.]
Sleep didn’t come easy.
Sometime after midnight, Rue found herself in a dream—standing barefoot on a beach, waves crashing around her like static. A sticky ocean wind tangled her hair, thick with something she couldn’t name—urgency, dread.
She kept turning toward the house behind her, clinging to a yellowed scrap of paper. Somewhere in the surf was a ticking sound—metallic, steady, like a countdown.
Each tick stabbed at her chest.
When Rue woke up, her pillow was soaked with sweat. Heart racing, she grabbed her phone and messaged Silas.
[I remembered something. Not everything, but pieces of it. The feeling was so clear.]
He called almost instantly.
She picked up, still groggy. “You’re up late. Hospital shift?”
“Yeah,” his voice was quiet, with the rustle of papers in the background. “Can you describe it? Your dream. The setting, anything specific?”
Rue sat up, thinking. There hadn’t been any signs or landmarks, but her gut screamed it was North Bay.
“It felt like North Bay,” she said slowly.
Silas wrote it down.
“Come in today,” he said. “I want to run some full tests.”
He paused.
“Then I’m taking a few days off. We’ll go to North Bay together.”
Rue didn’t catch the tension in his voice. She perked up at the idea.
“Let’s ask Willa too. Girls’ trip plus our resident therapist.”
Silas chuckled, voice warming. “Deal.”
Later, after confirming the plan with Willa, Rue’s phone pinged again. This time it was her brother.
[Lunch menu. You pick. I’ll eat anything—except kale. You know I hate kale.]
She packed the bento-style meal and headed to his office.
As she walked in, she froze.
Julian Carter was seated on the guest couch, phone to his ear, looking like he hadn’t slept in days. The second his eyes met hers, something shifted in his expression—like the static had cleared.
Rue set the food down, keeping her tone light.
“You’ve got clients here and didn’t give me a heads-up?”
Liam, her brother, peeked over a stack of folders with a grin. “You know how he is. Claims he likes my vibe. Says it’s good for decompressing.”
Julian sipped from a glass of water, ignoring the jab. Rue felt his eyes on her like heat under the skin.
She ignored him, turning back to her brother. “By the way, I’m heading to North Bay for a few days. Need a breather.”
Julian’s head whipped around.
Liam raised an eyebrow. “That’s sudden. Who with? You booked it already?”
“Willa and Silas. We’re leaving tomorrow. Just a casual trip. Hotel’s already sorted.”
Julian didn’t say a word. But something about the way he gripped his phone tighter, the flex of his jaw—Rue didn’t miss it.
