Chapter 3: The Shared Dream

We stood in the living room, our hearts hammering against our ribs as we watched the jewel. After what felt like an eternity, the sinister crimson glow began to fade slowly, returning to the soft, icy blue light we had first seen in the barn.

Outside, the sudden storm ebbed into a quiet drizzle, but the storm brewing inside our minds was far from over.

Night crept in, and we remained in the living room until nearly eleven o'clock, completely unable to focus on anything else. Unanswered questions hung heavy in the air, each more unnerving than the last.

Whom did this relic belong to? What kind of magic did it possess? And why was there not a single trace of its existence anywhere on the internet?

"It's as if this necklace was completely erased from history," George muttered, leaning his head back against the sofa, exhausted from hours of searching on his phone.

When it was finally time to turn in, we split up for the night. George and Amelia headed to the master bedroom at the top of the stairs, while Emma and I were set to sleep in separate rooms down the hall.

Before stepping into her room, Emma lingered at the doorway. She wrapped her arms around herself and looked at me with wide, anxious eyes.

"James... I'm scared," she admitted in a barely audible whisper. "I'm terrified of this necklace and everything that's happening right now."

I swallowed hard, feeling an overwhelming urge to pull her close and protect her. Forcing myself to stay composed, I gathered all the determination I could summon to reassure her.

"You don't need to be afraid, Emma," I said softly but firmly, locking eyes with her. "I'm right here. I won't let anything happen to you or anyone else. Leave the necklace with me tonight."

She nodded slowly, visibly relieved by my confidence.

Stepping into my room, I set the necklace on top of the nightstand beside my bed. The stone continued to cast its faint, chilly blue light into the dim room. I lay down, keeping my eyes fixed on the jewel until exhaustion finally won, pulling me under.

In the dead of night, a sharp, blood-curdling scream pierced through the silence of the house.

I snapped awake, my heart racing uncontrollably. I recognized the voice instantly—it was Emma.

I bolted out of bed, completely forgetting about the necklace on the nightstand, and sprinted down the hallway. I burst through her door just as George and Amelia rushed out of their room, equally pale with panic.

We threw open the door to find Emma sitting upright in bed, trembling from head to toe, her face deathly pale and drenched in a cold sweat.

"Emma! What is it? What happened?!" I asked, dropping to my knees beside her bed and taking her shaking hands in mine.

She stared at us with wide, terrified eyes, struggling to catch her breath before she could form the words.

"I... I had a terrible nightmare," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I saw an old tree... right near the barn where we found the necklace. And standing beside that tree... was a woman. A woman being burned alive..."

A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the bedroom.

George, who had been leaning against the doorframe, completely froze. All the color drained from his face.

"Did she... did she have logs of wood stacked all around her?" George asked, his voice unusually quiet and deadly serious—a stark contrast to his usual playful demeanor.

Emma looked up at him, startled through her tears.

"Yes... she did. How... how do you know that, George?"

George swallowed hard, glancing at Amelia and then back at me, his eyes filled with pure terror.

"Because I dreamed about her, too."

The revelation sent an icy chill straight through the room. A single nightmare could have been dismissed as stress or coincidence, but two people sharing the exact same vivid horror on the same night?

Fear settled over us, thick and inescapable. The necklace wasn't just showing us its light anymore... it was invading our minds.