To be fair, Duncan was not an expert in the Transcendent realm, nor was he knowledgeable about the disciplines related to the Dreamscape and the spiritual domain. Nevertheless, he faintly discerned that the scenery displayed on this street should be more than just what Sherry "saw in her dream."
Because the whispering ashes for help gave him a peculiar déjà vu—
He thought of that factory, thought of the people burned to ashes in the fire, hidden behind the curtain.
Of course, the ashes in the factory did not call for help—the ashes gave him a more direct and intense signal: they let him directly see the "echo" of the fire that occurred eleven years ago.
Subconsciously, Duncan believed there was some connection between the ashes on the street in Sherry's dream and those in the factory.
