Alistair glared sharply at Asher. If it had been real and not just a dream, then that meant... Seraphina would have been in that hell already!
"But no one came to look for her as no one gave a damn about her." He said, blaming Asher.
Asher felt uneasy at his gaze, but more than that, he felt guilty as if he wasn’t wrong.
Alistair let out a low breath, trying to steady himself, but it didn’t work. His words were still laced with disbelief. "I thought it was just a nightmare. My mind is playing tricks. But what shocked me most was that the dream continued from where it last stopped in bits and pieces."
"Every time it was blurry, but horrible, making me wake up covered in sweat.
Asher didn’t speak. His expression hardened as he heard everything with a serious face.
While Lucien’s gaze didn’t leave Alistair either, his fingers curled slightly at his side, rage surging beneath the surface.
"Do you...remember something specific?" Asher asked, his voice quieter than before. He was eager to find that place anyhow.
Alistair looked at him for a long second. He didn’t know why he was even talking about this... Why was he discussing his stupid dreams like a trade secret to these guys? It was really ridiculous.
But somehow, standing between his brother and his best friend, telling them whatever he could, he couldn’t help but feel as if it had all been real all this time.
"No," he muttered in a low voice. "This is all I remember."
He paused. His throat felt tight as he forced out the next words.
"But I still don’t understand how it could be true. How the hell could something from my dream match Sera’s?" He looked between them, asking for a literal answer. "And more than that... how could any of it be real?"
The silence spread between them as no one knew how to explain these things.
Then a familiar and soft voice cut through the tension between them.
"What is the same as me?" Sera asked. "And what is real?"
All three men turned sharply.
Seraphina stood a few feet away, now out of the car. Her brows were pinched together, fingers absently clutching the edge of Lucien’s blazer wrapped around her shoulders. Her voice was low but coarse after crying hysterically a moment ago.
She looked dazed... tired... and yet somehow her words were clear.
"Were you talking about me?" she asked again, a little slower this time. Her eyes flicked from Lucien to Asher, then to Alistair. "What was real?"
Lucien’s mouth tightened.
Asher held his breath.
And Alistair... He looked like he’d just seen a ghost crawl out of his nightmare and speak.
"You’re awake?" Asher’s voice echoed through the silence. It was colder than he had expected. He let out a sharp breath and added. "What the hell are you doing out in the middle of the night?"
Her fingers twitched around the edge of Lucien’s blazer that was still hanging off her shoulders, drowning her in his warmth and his scent.
But Asher was watching her under his burning gaze so that she could hardly breathe.
She didn’t know how to answer him... Not only was she caught by Alistair, but Asher too. How could she explain this to him? Especially when he still hadn’t told her which side he was on or had chosen to pick her.
Her throat felt tight, her voice dry. She opened her mouth, but no words came out.
She was still contemplating how she should answer when Asher moved from his place in silence.
Asher stepped forward, his expression unreadable, and without saying a damn word, his hand reached for her, pulled Lucien’s blazer off her like it infuriated him to see her wearing it. His jaw clenched as he tossed it back toward Lucien without even looking at him.
Then, without hesitation, he shrugged his own jacket off and threw it around her.
She flinched a little as her fingers gripped the fabric. But she didn’t stop him.
"So, why are you here?" Asher asked again, his voice quieter this time, but still sharp. "Don’t you get it yet? You shouldn’t show up in front of the people you don’t want to lose while your enemies are still keeping an eye on you?"
He reached out before she could answer, tugging the jacket around her properly, shielding her from the night’s cold. Somehow trying to make up for all the times he hadn’t been there for her.
His fingers brushed against her shoulders, carefully. And Sera just stood there, staring at him like she didn’t recognize him. He didn’t look like the same brother who used to turn away when she needed him most.
Her eyes were wide and confused, but her lips were twitching as she hardly stopped herself from smiling.
"What?" he muttered, trying to sound irritated, but his voice wavered. "What are you looking at me for?"
He stepped back, his fingers moving before his mind could react, brushing away the strands of hair that had fallen over her face. His touch lingered for a second too long.
"Fix your face," he said quietly, almost bitterly. "Don’t let them see you ."
But his hand trembled just slightly as it dropped to his side.
"Brother..." Seraphina whispered, her voice light, and before she could stop it, a small smile broke across her lips. "I’m sorry... I shouldn’t have come out, but... I... I couldn’t say no to him."
She looked a little guilty, but there was warmth in her eyes, too, which Asher hadn’t seen for himself before.
Asher froze for a second.
The word brother was more than enough for him to go soft as his heart raced, but still, he maintained his cool persona.
"Next time... tell me," he muttered in a soft and hoarse tone. "Or tell Alis. We’ll take you out to see him, alright?"