As Mark Latros was defeated, the white, sterile hallways vanished. The laboratories, the restraints, the experiments all disappeared as if they had never existed in the first place.
What remained was a simple backstage room, the kind used by staff to rest or store equipment. The sudden normalcy left them disoriented.
Dylan was there too. "Where is everything?" he asked, looking around. "I swear I already got the torso."
Confusion was written across his face, and Diane looked just as lost.
"We’re in reality now," Seamus said. "This is only my theory, but everything you saw feels like something that once happened. Mark Latros just chose to show it to us."
"But why?" Diane asked.
Seamus had no answer. Maybe Mark had tried to recruit them. Maybe he wanted to be understood.
But forcing Diane and Dylan to experience something worse than a nightmare felt excessive, even for that. There was something hidden he had failed to grasp.
For now, there were more urgent matters.
Maria needed help.
"We need to send Maria back to the Velstrath Orphanage," Seamus said quietly. "She needs treatment as soon as possible."
The thought lingered uncomfortably. Could they trust Caduceus’ doctor?
"Madeline, I’ll use the mirror," he murmured.
He turned to Diane. "Call Bianca. Tell her it’s an emergency."
Diane nodded and retrieved the doll still tucked inside Maria’s pocket. As she began explaining the situation to Bianca, Madeline appeared beside Seamus, exhaling deeply.
"But you can’t go back to Rowani," she said.
"I don’t plan to," Seamus replied. "I’m heading to the west wall. I’ll catch up to my father there. Something big happened, I’m sure of it."
Madeline’s expression was unreadable. It might have been sorrow. It might have been a pity. Either way, it was not reassuring. It felt as though she had already seen what awaited him.
"Is it that bad?" Seamus asked softly.
"I can’t tell you. But you’re strong enough to face it. You’ll be fine, Seamus."
He did not press further. He knew how much she carried on her own.
"I just hope you’ll still be here when I come back."
Madeline frowned, then stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, holding on tighter than usual, as if letting go would make the future arrive faster.
"Is it just me," she whispered beside his ear, her voice low and teasing, "or do I really want to have sex with you right now?"
Seamus shivered, then smirked.
"After this," he said, giving her a light slap on the backside.
Madeline laughed softly, though her arms did not loosen.
"Hey! We’re in the middle of an emergency here," Diane snapped as they finally separated. "Hello?"
"Sorry, Diane," Seamus said, half expecting her to explode.
Instead, she just sighed.
"I already told Bianca everything, the doctors are there and preparing for treatment."
Seamus’s expression darkened. "Is Ben one of them? He’s a traitor. I killed him, though I don’t know if that part was real or not."
"Ben isn’t there," Diane replied.
Her voice lowered. "He disappeared. Daniel was found dead in his clinic. These are new doctors."
"I see," Seamus said quietly. "Tell Bianca she has to stay inside the operating room with Maria and the other vampires. We don’t know what those doctors might do. For now, assume they’re all enemies."
Diane nodded and called Bianca again while Madeline stepped forward and activated the mirror. The gate shimmered open, revealing Bianca waiting on the other side.
Diane carefully lifted Maria and carried her through. She looked exhausted, pushed far past her limits.
"Take care of her," Seamus said gently and gave her the eyeball. "And take care of yourself too. Congratulations on evolving."
Diane froze for a moment, then nodded. Her eyes glistened as she turned away, clearly holding back tears.
"She really is different," Seamus murmured to himself. "Different from every vampire I’ve ever met."
There was still empathy in Diane. It made her stronger, brighter, and it stirred something unfamiliar in him. Pride, perhaps.
Behind him, Madeline groaned softly as two of her mirrors cracked and shattered after the gate closed.
When they left the staff room, the bar was already shut down. Staff members were in the middle of cleaning, pausing only to stare at them. They looked ruined. Bloody, exhausted, hollowed out.
They left the city in silence, driving away with only Seamus and Dylan in the car. Strangely, they did not argue at all. The question lingered between them without ever being spoken.
Was it a dream?
Or reality?
The thought alone was disturbing.
Then Dylan’s phone vibrated. He glanced at the screen and hesitated. It was Connor’s mother.
His hand trembled slightly, but memories of the domain hardened his resolve. He answered.
"Oh, Dylan!" Elena said warmly. "You finally picked up. Is it true you’re moving far away?"
Her voice was gentle, motherly. It made his chest tighten.
"Yes, but I’ll come back when everything is over."
"Oh really? Call us when you do. We’ve been worried about you."
Dylan clenched his fist. If she knew the truth, would she still sound like this?
"You’re like a son to me," Elena continued softly. "I hope you’re safe and comfortable wherever you are. None of what’s happening is your fault."
Dylan’s eyes widened. She didn’t know the truth. Yet somehow, that was enough.
"Thank you," he said, his voice breaking. "Thank you, mom."
Elaine gasped loudly through the phone. "He finally called me mom! Did you hear that, honey?"
The mood on the other end turned bright and lively, and Dylan laughed despite himself.
After his own mother was admitted to a psychiatric hospital, Elaine and Harry had taken him in.
They had supported him until he found work and could pay for his own university education. Even then, he had kept his distance, convinced he did not deserve that kind of love.
Now he knew better.
As the city lights faded behind them, Dylan rested his head back against the seat. For the first time in a long while, his heart felt steady.