Free Night Terrors (Sarah Beauhall Book 4) by J. A. Pitts Page B

nuts. Qindra was dealing with it, but she hasn’t called back yet.”
    “When is this going to end, Sarah?” Julie asked. “When is too much?”
    What could I say? I didn’t have any answers for her. “I don’t know.”
    We let it hang there for a long time. I stared out onto the highway, letting the lights from the traffic hold my attention.
    “Would you feel safer at Black Briar?” I asked finally.
    Julie laughed an angry bark. “Hell no, we’re not bolting. Mary has her hunting rifle out and I’ve got the shotgun. Edith is keeping Jai Li calm. No way we’re letting a little fear drive us off the farm.”
    I smiled. House full of tough women. “I stand corrected,” I said. “No one better to watch Jai Li for us.”
    “Be careful,” she said. “I’ll text if Jai Li has any new brain waves. Otherwise call in the morning.”
    I hung up and stared at the traffic a bit longer. What other enemies were out there? How was this related? Who else did we know who had ties to this shit?
    Skella.
    I called her and filled her in. Surprised to find her in Bellingham. She was hanging out with a group of college kids up there. The news about Katie and JJ didn’t make Skella happy. She agreed to help if she could and I promised to call when I had more news.
    Then I called Rolph and let him in on the situation. He didn’t have any advice either, but the more eyes and ears we had on the ground, the better I thought we’d be. I told him to hug Juanita for me and left him to his family. It scared me how vulnerable we all were—especially the young ones, and Juanita was due any time now.
    Deidre patted me on the knee when I sat back down again. Jimmy had gone off to get coffee. I told her about Jai Li and we lapsed into that silence that overcomes people in waiting rooms. The sheer volume of silence becomes too heavy a burden to carry.
    So we waited. And oh, how I loved to wait.

Twelve
    The doctors came out again around two in the morning. Katie was stable. They were feeling much better about her condition, as the aspects of shock seemed to be lessening. They were going to keep her in ICU for the immediate future, however. I shook the doctor’s hand, thanked him, and let him move on.
    Jimmy sat with his hands in his lap, wringing them to keep from punching something. He looked just like Clyde from earlier in the night. A lifetime ago.
    Deidre was making noises about staying for the duration, but I could tell she was flagging. She’d been making excellent progress with her physical therapy over the last year. The wheelchair was second nature to her now. But she didn’t have the stamina she used to. By three I pulled Jimmy aside and convinced him to take her home. I offered our apartment, but he wouldn’t hear of it. Wanted her in her own bed.
    I called Skella back to see if she could take Jimmy and Deidre home via the mirror travel and she was eager to help. By the time she could get away for a bit, another twenty minutes had eked by. It was good to see her. I’d grown fond of the elf. And I wasn’t unhappy at all when she hugged me.
    “Sorry,” she said, giving me a final squeeze. “Call me if things change.”
    I envied her at that moment. I wish I had some action I could take, some way I could make a difference.
    Jimmy would get his truck the next day. He and Deidre disappeared down an empty corridor. Several minutes later I got a text from him that they were home and that Skella was heading home herself. I was to call any of them if things changed.
    I paced a little while, letting the blood work its way through my limbs. I was growing stiff just sitting there. Moving at least felt like I was doing something. Illusion was better than nothing. At three-thirty, I gave up and went back to the couch, letting my head fall back against the wall. The ceiling tiles were very white.
    Sleep defeats even the greatest warriors. If that’s not a famous saying, it should be. One of the nurses shook me awake around five to