The Wicked and the Wondrous by Christine Feehan Page A

Matthew,” Kate replied. “Did you have a particularly disturbing dream, Mr. Deveau?”
    Jackson whirled around and stalked toward her from across the room, his body moving like a large predatory cat’s. “What’d they tell you about me? That I’m crazy? That I have nightmares and can’t sleep? What the hell do you want me to say?”
    Kate noted both Jonas and Matt were close to her, ready to defend her if necessary. In spite of the shiver of fear, she calmly looked up at the deputy. “They didn’t say anything. They’ve told me next to nothing about you. Most of the children in town seem to have had a collective nightmare. So far, none of the adults have admitted to it, but everywhere we’ve been today, there’s unexpected tension. I thought maybe you would be able to tell me about it. I’m getting garbled accounts from the children, and so far no adult has been courageous enough to admit they had the dream too.”
    Jackson raked both hands through his dark hair, the muscles rippling under his thin, tight tee shirt. He looked from Jonas to Matthew as if expecting a trap. “Kids have been having nightmares?”
    Kate nodded. “Last night, after the fog rolled in, something bizarre happened. This morning, children from all over town were distressed and in tears, some traumatized by a dream they all seem to have shared.”
    “About what?” For the first time since she’d entered the room, Jackson sat down, his hands still gripping his head as if he had a violent headache.
    “They described a skeleton man in a long coat and old hat.”
    Jackson hesitated, clearly reluctant to discuss his problem with her. He looked from Jonas to Matt and finally capitulated. “The coat and hat were old-fashioned, a heavy wool, maybe. There was no real face, just white-gray bones. There was a woman and a baby and a shepherd, or at least someone with a shepherd’s staff.” He scrubbed his hand over his face. “I go after real people, real threats, but this thing, this was from a place I can’t get to, and I sense that everyone is in danger.” He looked at Kate. “More than the actual dream, it was the feeling the dream left me with that’s disturbing. The danger was real. I know it sounds crazy, but dammit, it was real!”
    Matt stiffened. Jackson Deveau had never feared very much, certainly not his own mortality, yet he was deeply shaken by the nightmare.
    “Then you felt it too. That the threat is real,” Kate said, leaning toward Jackson.
    Jackson drew back. Matt had forgotten to tell Kate the deputy didn’t like physical contact. “I know it is.” He looked at Jonas and Matt. “You two probably think I’ve finally gone around the bend, but I swear, whatever that thing was in my dream, he’s looking for a way to walk among us.”
    “He uses the fog,” Kate explained. He was no child to be soothed with Christmas stories and loving smiles. He was a grown man, a warrior, and what he needed was the naked truth. It was the only thing he would accept. He needed facts to assure him he was not losing his mind. “Whatever he or it is, he’s growing stronger. I think the earthquake cracked a seal locking him deep in the earth, and he managed to escape. Matthew and I found a broken lid in the basement of the old mill. Something came out of a crack in the form of a noxious vapor. I’ve smelled the same odor in the fog.” She met Jackson’s gaze steadily. “If you’re losing your mind, so am I. So is Matthew. And so are all the children of Sea Haven.”
    Matthew heard it then, that magical note that brought absolute peace to a troubled mind. He had become attuned to it, aware of the surge of energy in the room, going from Kate to the person she was speaking with. He was also aware of her absorbing the negative energy, taking it in and holding it away from its victim.
    “That’s a relief. I thought this time I was really losing my mind. I have nightmares, and I can deal with them, but this was something out of a