“Think of Josh,” Nicholas said.

Sophie concentrated on visualizing her brother, determined to see him in every detail. The skull’s empty eye sockets turned dark, then mirror bright, and abruptly an image formed in the air above the crystal, but it was vague and fragmented, little more than a smear of colors.

Sophie felt Aoife’s fingers tighten on her shoulders, and a cool strength soaked into her flesh. She realized that the warrior was giving her some of the strength of her gray aura, and then she felt the woman’s breath warm against her right ear. “Think of your twin,” Aoife commanded.

Her twin brother: the same blond hair, the same blue eyes. Twenty-eight seconds her junior. Until they were three, no one had been able to tell them apart.

And suddenly the shifting colors floating above the skull whirled and settled, taking on shape and definition. They were looking at the image of a melting steering wheel. They were seeing through Josh’s eyes.

After a while, the dream became boring.

Josh wished he could wake himself up.

He drove for a long time on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, then turned right onto Highway 1 and then Shoreline Highway. It was a narrow two-lane road, wreathed in early-morning mist that bounced off his headlights, but he wasn’t concerned. Nothing could happen to him in a dream. If he crashed, he’d wake up. Still, it was a shame it was a driving dream; it would have been much better if it had been a flying dream. He loved those.

“How is he doing this?” Sophie whispered. “Is he awake or asleep?”

Nicholas leaned forward, put his elbows on the table and rested his chin in his cupped hands. He stared hard at the images hovering in the air over the skull. “He is probably aware on some level, but something has taken control of him. I believe that something-someone-has called to him.”

Prometheus eyed the skull with an expression of profound disgust. “If I’d known you had that abominable thing, I would not have allowed you to bring it into this Shadowrealm. My sister spent most of her life and squandered the family fortune destroying these Archon toys.”

Nicholas glanced sidelong at Perenelle before looking up at Prometheus. “Archon? I thought these were Elder.”

Prometheus ignored the question, concentrating his attention on the perfect three-dimensional image floating above the skull. “We could possibly shock him awake.”

“No!” Sophie said immediately, instinct warning her that it would be the wrong thing to do.

“No,” Aoife agreed. “He could lose control of the car.”

“So we sit and wait for him to reach his destination?” Prometheus asked.