Protection

I woke up screaming. It took me more than two or three minutes to fully acknowledge that I was in my bed and my apartment, not inside my horror scene from four years ago. I dreamed about that night many times, but this time my dream was different. The gaps in my memory finally filled, presenting one detail that my brain had erased before, a detail that now caused my whole body to rattle. There was someone else in that room, someone I had forgotten. It was a man, possibly in his thirties, with short black hair and a scar…

My scream brought Emily to her feet. I felt guilty for waking her up, but when I told her that I was all right and that she should go back to sleep, she replied, "Bullshit! I will wait until you calm down!"

She lay down beside me on the bed, grabbed my hand, and tangled our fingers. Minutes passed, and my breathing rate finally slowed down. My pulse became less frantic, and my mind put my thoughts in order. I told Emily about my nightmare and about the new fragment I