She flew at me again, flew at me in a full rage, half woman, half bird, pecking and pounding and beating. I stabbed at her with the switchblade, but it was as if my knife passed through thin air.

I dodged past her and ran, and I was still running full out when someone shouted, “Olivia! Stop!”

Had it been anyone else, I wouldn’t have listened. Even then, as soon as I put on the brakes, I cursed, certain I was hearing another mimicry. But I still skidded to a halt. My foot dropped, as if through the floor itself. Then there was a snap, and I was back in the original hall, inches from falling down that damned hole again. Gabriel stood on the other side, his hands out.

“Thai for lunch,” he said. “Bacon and eggs for breakfast. The scratches on my back are not from the melltithiwyd.”

I sputtered a laugh. “You’re quick.”

“I’m learning.”

“You’re also not supposed to be here.”

“Yes, well, I am.”

“Gabriel…”

“I’m not doubting you could have handled it. I’m not suggesting you require my assistance. But they aren’t going to kill me, Olivia. I’m too valuable as a tool to control you.”

“Ricky—”

“I may have incapacitated him. I may have left him in Patrick’s care. He is not going to be pleased with me when I return, but I will return. The sluagh won’t kill me. I could not guarantee the same for him.” He looked behind me. “You were running. Was something chasing you?”

I glanced back to see the empty hall. “Stacey Pasolini manifested. She’s one of the melltithiwyd now. She claimed she didn’t kill anyone and then didn’t like it when I failed to express the proper degree of sympathy.”

“Whatever her situation, there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“That’s what I said. I think she expected more.” I squinted down the hall. “But I thought I was running along a different hall. Seems I’m caught in one of those mental mazes, like at the asylum and the villa.”

“Hmm.” He crouched and eyed the hole. Then he reached out to touch it, nodding when he discovered it was really there.

“Maybe I can…” I eased my foot along the six-inch strip of floor remaining between the wall and the hole. It crumbled on contact. “Nope. So, I wonder how my long jump is these days?”

“No, please. Go back down the hall and look for another way. I’ll ask you to not go out of sight. And tell me what you see.”

I walked down the corridor. “I see hall.” I looked both ways. “Yep, hall.”

“Are you sure?”

“Well, that’s a little tough to answer when I haven’t figured out how to see through a vision.”

“No, but your foot felt the hole before you saw it. Do you see those windows?”