"What are the odds?" Josiah said with a laugh as he made his way over to the booth.

"Willy Ashbury, back in town, just as we were about to head over to the Ashbury Mausoleum."

The mention of the mausoleum made the hairs on his forearm prick up. He glanced at Ivy and Coop, who both winced knowingly at the words.

Josiah slid into the booth next to Ivy, Leslie sitting down quietly beside him. She looked uncomfortable, as if she could sense the misery they were intruding on, but didn't know what to do about it.

"Yeah," Josiah continued, oblivious to the weight his words carried. "Figured Leslie's never seen it before... the mausoleum... and she likes weird old stuff. It's like, the coolest, creepiest place in town, right?"

Willy's eyes flicked to Leslie, and for a moment, it was like he was seeing Caroline again. She had more of her aunt in her than she had of Helen. Willy had always liked Helen, but she wasn't the same as Caroline. Caroline had fire in her soul, buried under layers of quiet caution. Now, he saw the same sharp eyes, the same quiet intensity in front of him. He couldn't shake the feeling that seeing Leslie was like seeing the ghost of Caroline's younger self.

He looked at Ivy and Coop. Yes, Caroline was still absent from their reunion. But now she was a little less absent.

Ivy managed a strained smile and turned to Josiah. "Funny you say that, 'cause we were just heading to the mausoleum, ourselves."

It was this coincidence that pushed each of the five at that table over the edge. All five of them had seen too many coincidences in their lives recently. This was the one that made it clear. None of them had been coincidences at all.

The connection between them all was palpable. Willy could feel it in his bones, and he knew the others could feel it too. They were stitched together now, by something deeper than blood, something none of them fully understood but all of them felt. He had the sudden urge to protect the four people surrounding him. It was like a family bond, though he'd only just reconnected with three of them and had just met the fourth.

They all locked eyes with one another. They didn't have to say a word. They all felt it.

Josiah's grin was gone. His voice dropped as he spoke again, quieter now. "Has anyone else had strange dreams lately?"

Willy's heart pounded in his chest. He, Ivy, and Coop nodded.

Leslie frowned, her voice soft and hesitant. "What do you mean?"

The silence that followed was suffocating. No one spoke. Willy stared into his mug, unable to meet her eyes. How could they explain it? How could they tell her that they had all been dreaming about her, about her running through the fog, chased by something deadly?

Josiah looked down at the table, his fingers gripping the edge tightly. Ivy's eyes went to Coop, to Willy, then back to Leslie, but no one said a word.

Leslie's confusion deepened, her voice trembling slightly. "What... what do you mean about your... dreams?"

No one could answer. They all stared at her, the truth hanging in the air, thick and unbearable. She looked between them, her eyes widening as realization slowly began to dawn on her.

"You're all having the same dream?" she whispered, more to herself than to them. "And it's... about me?"

Silence.

"Well, what is the dream?"

The silence only grew.

Finally, Ivy stood, cutting through the silence with a strength that rivaled Coop with his axe. "I'll get us some coffee to go," she said, her voice tight. "We're going to need it. Who knows what we'll find when we reach the graveyard."

Why do you think Willy's nightmares about his grandfather returned after so many years of peace? What does that have to do with Old Sam and Leslie? Could Willy's dreams about his grandfather be a warning about the present? What role will the Ashbury Mausoleum play in the coming events?

Let me know what you think in the comments!

Thank you for reading.

-K.R.H.