"Nick," she says again, begs, her voice starting to shake. "Nick, please. You can't get here and not wake up." Ignoring the warning cries from Salem, she's moving so that she can cradle him more easily in her arms.

She ducks down to press their foreheads together.

"Nick," she implores, and realizes his face is wet now, she's the one crying, "Nicholas Scratch, if you don't wake up, I will never ever forgive you. Come back to me, and I mean it."