Chapter 126

Arya

All the air seems to have sucked out of the forest. I'm breathing hard, clutching my chest as I look at Nancy.

It feels like a big clock is ticking over my head, telling me that we're running out of time, saying that something is not going right.

"No," I mumble. "Nancy. . . ."

Arthur and I scramble to our feet and we both rush towards her. Things seem to happen faster, as though the fact that we came close to her is the catalyst for things to go south. Arthur heaves her into his arms and together we rush out of the forest. My mind is whirring with possibilities and my chest is tight with fear.

What happened with Nancy? What is happening right now?

What did she do? What did she have to do just to get rid of the bats? I haven't even been able to wrap my head around the simple fact that we were all driven here by the same dream that turned out to be a trap, and I hate that this is what it turned into.

"Where are we going to go?" Arthur asks shakily as we get out of the forest. "Wher