When my eyes came back into focus, Eleni stood beside me with fairy magic swirling around her at a dizzying pace. When it landed on the ribbons, they shrieked and drew back. The fence started to glow brighter, and the light reflected off the gold and amber in Eleni’s hair. “I’m not going to let you hurt my sister,” she said, her eyes narrowed. “You already took Mama, Kimala, and Genu. I won’t let you take her, too.” She reached out her hand and helped me get to my feet. “Are you okay?”

“Never better.” I bit back my pain. “How . . . how are you in my dream?” Not that I was complaining. I’d be double-burned toast right now if she hadn’t shown up.

“I’m not in your dream,” she said, frowning. “You’re in mine, aren’t you?”

Well, that didn’t make any sense. Was this the real Eleni or a dream version of my sister created by my subconscious mind? “Maybe our minds somehow intersected on the crossroads,” I said reluctantly.

The Lord of Shadows growled as he shot his ribbons out again. This time toward both Eleni and me, but they stopped short. Eleni was shaking as she clutched the fence hard. Her fairy magic was fading fast. She wouldn’t be able to keep this up for long. “Some help, please,” she said. “We can close the door to the crossroads if we work together.”

I rushed back to the fence, but I tripped over my feet and fell against it. Clumsiness aside, I concentrated on the door to the old house. That was how the Lord of Shadows had snuck into my (and apparently Eleni’s) dream. He always had another trick up his sleeve. No wonder the celestials hadn’t been able to stop him. It didn’t help that he fought dirty.

My magic added to Eleni’s, and the fence glowed brighter. The Lord of Shadows shrank back, with his ribbons fanning around him in disarray. For a moment, we couldn’t see him. Then the ribbons peeled away to reveal an aziza boy a little taller than Eleni. He had red-and-purple semitransparent wings with yellow along the edges. His eyes were large and round in a way that reminded me of a lost puppy.

“What happened to us being friends forever, Eleni?” he said in an innocent voice. “Don’t you remember that you opened the gateway to save me?”

Fat tears rolled down Eleni’s cheeks, but she didn’t falter. She looked at me, and I said, “It’s time to shut this nightmare down.”

Eleni tilted up her chin. “I quite agree, Sister.”