Chapter 35

******Dani's POV******

"Axel! It's happening again!" I choke out, glancing around the table at the familiar faces to find an ounce of comfort. Nothing could calm me down right now though - this was getting too much...

"Doll what is it? What's going on?" Axel grabs my wrist tightly in attempts to regain my focus.

The crowds began to cheer in excitement, causing my chest to heave up and down drastically. The room continued on as normal, swallowing me alive in the atmosphere as everyone watched on.

"A... Em...it's... No... It can't be!" My broken words fail to knit together a coherent sentence as I glue my eyes back to the stage - them going wide for the second time tonight.

"It's another one... a demon... they are doing this to me again Axel! It's not real!" I attempt to say, turning fully to lock my eyes with his own confused ones, pleading with him to help me.

"Please make it stop!" A whimper comes next, causing Axel to stand to his full height almost instantly.

"STOP THIS SHOW! EVERYONE GET FUCKING OUT RIGHT NOW!" Axel booms, taking everyone by surprise.

I watch as everyone pauses briefly in shock, before grabbing their belongings and practically scrambling away from the scene. I then panic again, looking back to the stage to see two guards pinning the magician onto the floor as he squirms beneath them.

What the hell is going on?! Why is it always me?!

"Axel... is everything alright sweetheart?!" Anna moves towards Axel now concerned, as I turn to see his father scoping out the room for any sign of danger.

"Mom take the girls home I'll handle this!" Axel snaps out, clearly tense from the situation already.

Anna doesn't seem fazed by his tone though as she nods slowly and picks up a sleepy Viv - followed by Sophie who holds Tori.

"Son?" Kyron questions next, as my breathing slows noticing the room becoming quieter by the minute. Everyone was basically gone now... but she was still there!

"Dani, you have to tell me whats going on so I can fix it!" Axel leans down to look me in the eyes as I sigh shakily.

"Axel it's..." I choke out a small sob, realising that I was now crying from the whole ordeal.

This man must think I cry about everything! I’m an embarrassment!

"It's what doll? What happened?!" He hurries me, as I attempt to take a slow and calming breath.

"Lily..." I pant out, my heart rate speeding up again.

"What?" He questions, his eyes roaming my features for more information.

"The girl in that cage... she looks like my friend Lily! My best-friend from back home!" I ramble out, trying to make it make sense.

"That magician... he must be another demon playing tricks on me! He's making me see things that aren't real! First my father and now her too! Why are these people doing this to me Axel? I can't take it anymore!" I sob, as his eyebrows pull together in confusion for a moment - processing my words.

"Doll..." He says slowly, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look up at him again.

"That isn't a demon playing tricks on you... that girl down there is very real!" He concludes slowly.

She's real.

She's real.

"SHE'S REAL?!" I scream and stand instantly, looking over to see a weak looking Lily on stage as a couple of guards wrap her in a blanket and help her out of the dirty cage.

She can't be here! How did she get here?! It doesn't make sense! I don't understand!

"Axel... I... how?" I rush out, as he calls out more orders around us. I was too distracted to know what he was saying but I watched as the magician was carried off by the large guards - now tied up and unable to move in their hold.

"We will figure it out doll don’t worry you’re safe... I have to go and deal with Nolan over there since he's freaking the fuck out for no reason and Grey can barely control him! I'll be right back so just stay here with Belle just now!" Axel nods to Belle, who instantly appears by my side and pulls me into a comforting hug.

I watch Axel move towards the front doors, where a struggling Grey stood pinning a very distressed looking Nolan to the wall... that's weird.

"You've got this Dani I'm right here by your side! Let's go over and see your friend... I can bet she's been through a lot already and seeing you will probably be best for her right now - she must be terrified." Belle sighs looking over to her, as I close my eyes for a moment to calm myself down.

She's right... I need to get it together! If that really is Lily over there, then she didn't look too great. She needs me right now!

With that thought, I began to walk down the small steps and towards the stage where two men had her seated - giving her a drink of water and some pain killers.

She looked filthy with her hair all matted and skin smudged with dirt. Lily was never like this back home - my heart cracked from the sight of her alone.

I shakily walked forward knowing that she couldn't see me yet due to the two large men covering us.

Belle was right behind me every step, looking as nervous and as curious as myself.

"Lily?" I question warily, my voice cracking slightly as I come into her view.

She stares at me briefly, failing to show a single ounce of emotion on her face as her eyes rake up from my feet to my face. I seem to do the same, as I aimlessly stare back at her, convincing myself that she was indeed seated before me!

After a moment, her eyes slowly grow in size before she does something unexpected- she melts into floods of tears.

I instantly move to her, throwing my arms around her small frame as I begin to cry with her. I couldn't explain the overwhelming mix of emotions that I was feeling as she hugged me back tight.

"Are you actually real? Dani is it really you?" She hiccups out, as I pull back from our hug to wipe my eyes.

"It's really me Lily! I can't believe I'm seeing you again so soon! But I don't understand... how did you get here? I don't understand any of this! You should be back home - with your Mom!" I rant out quickly, as Belle places a comforting hand on my back to silently let me know that she was still here to support me.

"I- She- It's a long story..." She explains, as more tears roll down her face.

"I thought he killed you Dani..." She sobs again, causing me to hug her once more.

"I thought he was going to kill me too… I really did... but then I ended up here! I was worried that I wouldn’t see you ever again!" I explain, as she nods frantically.

"I am so so glad you're alive - it's a miracle that I've found you again Dani... you won't believe what I've been through since you left!" She sniffles, followed by a shiver from the nights breeze.

"I'll take you back to our home don't worry! You're safe now Lily, you can even sleep in my room with me and we can talk about it all in the morning. We have this amazing bath that you’re welcome to use and you’ll love it too! I’ve never seen anything like it! We can talk tomorrow but you definitely need a good rest first!" I state, as she swallows harshly before standing with me.

"Thank you..." She links her arm in mine, holding me for support as she takes shaky steps forward.

"I've got you hold on!" Belle steps in, linking up with Lily’s other arm to help support her.

"I'm Belle by the way... I'm Dani's friend here!" She smiles bright, being just as welcoming as she was to me when I first arrived. Lily smiles back at her, or at least attempts to since you could see how exhausted she was.

"Thank you both..." She sighs out deeply, as we begin to walk towards Axel who was now stood alone - making a call on his phone.

Although I was somewhat happy to see Lily again, I had to find out how she got here and fast! I would hate to assume the worst but for now... I'll have to wait.