Night World : Soulmate Chapter 14

Stay here(predicate), Rashel utter sharply, scarce Hannah ran with the rest of them toward the front of the theater. Shecould hear a ferocious snarling and barking awayside-a precise familiar discriminate of sound.Nilsson and the other CIA guys were running about. They looked smugglight-emitting diode and efficient, moving fast butnot frantically. Hannah accomplished that they knew how to do this sort of social occasion.She didnt run into Lupe.The snarling outside got louder, building to a volley of short barks. there was a yelp-and then ascrambling noise. After a moment of concealment there came a sound that lifted the hair on Hannahsforearms-a ferine and eerie and beautiful sound. A animate being howling. Two other wolf constituents joined the first,chording, rising and falling, interweaving with each other. Hannah found herself gasping, her accurate skinshivering. because there was one long sustained note and it was over.Wow, the tiny sandy callight-emitting d iode Gillian whispered.Hannah rubbed her bare arms hard.The front door opened. Hannah snarl herself musical noteing toward the ground, but null four-legged came in.Instead it was Lupe and two guys, all disheveled, flushed, and grinning.It was just whatsoever scouts, Lupe said. We ran them forward.Scouts from Maya? Hannah said, tactile sensation a tightness in her stomach. It really was true, then. Maya wastrying to storm the house to get to her.Lupe nodded. Itll be okay, she said almost gently. scarce I suppose all of you better stay inside to solar day. You nominate watch movies or play games in the game room.Hannah spent the day talking with the dress circle Daybreak members. The more she found out to the postgraduateest degree them,the more she care them. Only one thing make her uncomfortable. They all seemed to defer to her-as if,somehow, they judge her to be wiser or better because of her former lifetimes. It was embarrassing,because she knew she wasnt.She tried t o keep her drumhead off Thierry and Maya.But it wasnt easy. That night she found herself walking restlessly by implicates of the house. She wounding up in a illumetle anteroom on the second cornerstone that looked follow out on the enormous living room.Cant unloose?The lazy murmur came from behind her. Hannah turned to see ash, his lanky beauteous remains proppedagainst a wall. His eyes looked silver in the dimly lit room.Not really, Hannah admitted. I just wish theyd find Thierry. Ive got a inquisitive beliefinging about it.They stood for a moment in silence. thus Ash said, Yeah, its hard to be without your soulmate. Onceyouve found them, I mean.Hannah looked at him, intrigued. The elbow room he said thatShe spoke hesitantly. This morning Thea said you were all here because you had human soulmates.He looked across the room at French doors that led to a balcony. Yes?And-well peradventure shes dead, Hannah intellection suddenly. Maybe I shouldnt ask. And youwant to n otice where mine is, Ash said. I didnt mean to pry.No. Its okay. Ash looked out at the sliminess beyond the French doors again. Shes waiting-I hope.Ive got some things to endow chastisefield before I see her.He didnt seem scary allmore, no matter how his eyes changed. He seemed-vulnerable.Im sure she is waiting, Hannah said. And Ill bet shell be iris to see you when youve put thingsright. She added quietly, I know Ill be glad to see Thierry.He glanced at her, hold upled, then smiled. He had a very overnice smile. Thats true, youve been in her shoes, thrownt you? And Thierrys certainly tried to make up for his past. I mean, hes been doing level-headed wrenchsfor centuries. So maybe theres hope for me after all.He said it almost mockingly, but Hannah caught an odd glistening in his eyes. Youre same her, youknow, he added abruptly.Like my-like Mary-Lynnette. Youre both wise.Before Hannah could moot of something to say to that, he nodded to her, straightened up, and went key stone into the hallway, whistling softly through his teeth.Hannah stood alone in the dim room. For some reason, she felt better suddenly. More optimistic aboutthe future.I entail Ill be able to sleep tonight. And tomorrow, maybe Thierry will be here.She clamped fell hard on the rush of hope that filled her at the thought. hope and concern. Afterall shed said to him, she couldnt be absolutely sure how Thierry would soak up her. What if he doesntwant me after all? Dont be silly. Dont think about it. Go outside and get a breath of air, and then go tobed.Later, of course, she realized just how stupid she had been. She should have known that getting a breathof fresh air only led to one thing in her life. But at the moment it seemed like a levelheaded idea. Lupe hadwarned her not to open any outside doors-but the French doors only led to a second-floor balconyoverlooking the thornyard. Hannah opened them and stepped out.Nice, she thought. The air was just cool comme il faut to be pleasant.From here she could look across dark stretches of grass to flood-lit cover trees and softly splashingfountains. Although she couldnt see Thierrys people, she knew they were out there, stationed around thegrounds, watching and waiting. Guarding her. It made her feel safe.Nothing can get to the house with them around it, she thought. I can sleep just fine.She was about to turn and go backward inside when she heard the scratching.It came from to a higher place her. From the roof. She glanced up and got the shock of this particular lifetime. in that location was a bat hanging from the roof.A bat. A bat.A big bat. Upside down. Its leathery black wings were wrapped around it and its bitty red eyes shoneat her with reflected light.Wild thoughts tumbled through Hannahs mind, all in a fraction of an instant. Maybe its a decorationno, idiot, its alive. Maybe its individual to guard me. God, maybe its Thierry.But all the while, she knew. And when the instant of paralysis passed and she could assertion her bodyagain, she sucked in a stocky breath to scream an alarm.She never got the chance to make a sound. With a noise like an umbrella opening, the bat unfolded itswings suddenly, displaying an amazingly large span of black membrane.At the same moment something like sheet lightning seemed to hit Hannah, a eye-popping surge of pure mentalenergy. She saw stars, and then everything faded to darkness.Something ache.My head, Hannah thought slowly. And my back. In fact, she hurt all over. And she was blind-or she hadher eyes shut. She tried to open them andnothing changed. She could feel herself blinking, but she could only see one thing. Blackness. Utter,complete blackness. She realized then that shed never seen real darkness before. In her bedroom atnight there was always some diffused light presentation at the top of her curtains. Even outdoors there wasalways do work or starlight, or if it were cloudy, the reflection of human lights, however faint.This was different. This was solid darkness. Hannah imagined she could feel it pressing against her take care,weighing down on her body. And no matter how wide she opened her eyes or how fixedly she stared,she couldnt see so far the slightest glint breaking it.I will not panic, she told herself.But it was hard. She was fighting an lifelike fear, hardwired into the brain since before the Stone Age.All humans panicked in complete blackness.Just remain, she told herself firmly. Breathe. Okay. Now. Youve got to get out of here. First things first.Are you hurt?She couldnt tell. She had to shut her eyes in order to sense her own body. As she did, she realized thatshe was sitting up, instinctively huddling into herself to keep safe from the darkness.Okay. I dont think youre hurt. Lets try standing up. Very slowly.That was when the real shock came.She couldnt stand up.She couldnt.She could send away her arms and even her legs. But when she tried to lift her body, even to transmute positio nslightly, something bit into her waist, keeping her immobile.With a crawling feeling of horror, Hannah put her hands to her waist and felt the rough texture of lap.Im level(p). Im tied. thither was something hard against her back. A tree? Her hands flew to feel it. No, not a tree-tooregular. Tall, but squarish. A post of some kind.The band seemed to be wound many times around her waist, tightly enough that it constricted her existent a little. It bound her securely to the post. And then it fastened above or far behind hersomewhere-she couldnt find any knots with her fingers.It felt like very strong, very sturdy rope. Hannah knew without question that she wasnt going to be ableto squirm out of it or untie it.The post seemed very sturdy, too. The ground at a lower place Hannah was dirt and rock.Im alone, she thought slowly. She could hear her own gasping breath. Im all alone and Im tied herein the dark. I cant move. I cant get away.Maya put me here. She leave me to die all alone in the dark.For a while, then, Hannah simply wooly-minded control. She screamed for swear out and heard her voice echo oddly.She pulled and twisted at the rope with her fingers until her fingertips were raw. She threw her wholebody from one side to the other, trying to loosen the rope or the post, until the pain in her waist made herstop. And finally she gave in to the galloping fear inside her and sobbed out loud.She had never, ever, felt so desolate and alone.In the end, though, she cried herself out. And when shed gasped to a stop, she found that she couldthink a little.Listen, girl. Youve got to get a grip. Youve got to help yourself, because theres nobody else to do it.It wasnt the cool wind voice or even the crystal voice-because they were both just part of her now. Itwas Hannahs own mental voice. She had evaluate all her past selves and their experiences, and in returnshe felt she could call on at least some of their wisdom.Okay, she thought grimly. No more crying. Think. What can you tell about your situation?Im not out in the open. I know because theres no light at all and because of the way my voice echoed.Im in a big room or something. Its got a high ceiling. And the floor is rock.Good. Okay, do you hear anything else?Hannah listened. It was hard to concentrate on the silence around her-it made her own breathing and knockerbeat seem terrifyingly loud. She could feel her nerves stretch and fray but she held on, ignoringher own noises and trying to remove out into the darkness with her ears. then she heard it. Very far away, a sound like a faucet soaking slowly.What the hell? Im in a big black room with a rock floor and a leaky faucet.Shut up. Keep concentrating. What do you smell?Hannah sniffed. That didnt work, so she took long breaths through her nose, ignoring the pain as hermidsection pressed against the rope.Its nonprogressive in here. Dank. It smells damp and cold.In fact, it was very cold. Her panic had kept her nimble before, but now she realized that her fingers wereicy and her arms and legs were stiff.Okay, so what have we got? Im in a big black refrigerated room with a high ceiling and a stone floor.And its musty and damp.A root cellar? A cellar without windows?But she was just fooling herself. She knew. The skin of her face seemed to sense the pressure of tons ofrock above her. Her ears told her that that musical dripping was water on rock, very far away. Her nosetold her that she wasnt in any building. And her fingers could feel the natural irregularity of the groundunderneath her.She didnt want to opine it. But the knowledge crowded in on her, inescapable.Im in a cave.A cave or a cavern. Anyway, Im inside the earth. God knows how deep inside. Deep enough and farenough that I cant see any light from an entrance or vent hole.Very deep inside, her heart told her.She was in the loneliest place in the world. And she was going to die here.Hannah had never had claustrophobia before. But now she couldnt help feel ing that the mass of rockaround and above her was trying to crush her. It could fall in at any minute, she thought. She felt aphysical pressure, as if she were at the bottom of the ocean. She began to have difficultness breathing.She had to get her mind off it. She refused to turn into that screaming, gibbering thing in the darknessagain. Worse than the thought of dying was the thought of going insane down here.Think about Thierry. When he finds out youre missing hell start looking for you. You know that. And hewont give up until he finds you. But Ill be dead by then, she thought involuntarily. This time, instead offear, the idea of her death brought a strange poignant loneliness.Another life where I missed him, she thought. She blinked against weeping suddenly. Oh, God. Great.Its so hard. So hard to keep hoping that someday its going to work out. But Ill meet him again in mynext life. And maybe I wont be so stupid then I wont fall for Mayas tricks.Itll be harder for him, I guess. Hell have to wait and get through the years day by day. Ill just go tosleep and eventually wake up somewhere else. And then someday hell come for me and Ill remember . .. and then well start all over.I really did try this time, Thierry. I did my best. I didnt mean to mess things up. Promise me youll lookfor me again. Promise youll find me. I prognosticate Ill wait for you. No matter how long it takes. Hannah shuther eyes, leaning back against the post and almost unconsciously touching the ring hed given her. Maybenext time shed remember it.Suddenly she didnt feel sad or afraid anymore. Just very tired.Eyes still shut, she grinned weakly. I feel old. Like Moms always complaining she feels. Ready to turnthis old body in and get a newThe thought broke off and disappeared.Was that a noise?Hannah found herself sitting up, leaning forward as far as the rope would allow, straining her ears.She thought shed heard yes. in that location it was again. A solid echoing sound out in the darkne ss.It sounded like footsteps. And it was culmination closer.Yes, yes. Im rescued, Im saved. Hannahs heart was pounding so hard that she could hardly breathe toyell. But at last, just as she saw a bobbing head teacher of light in the blackness, she managed to get out a hoarsesquawk.Thierry? hullo? Im over hereThe light kept coming toward her. She could hear the footsteps coming closer.And there was no answer.Thierry ? Her voice trailed off.Footsteps. The light was big now. It was a beam, a flashlight. Hannah blinked at it.Her heart was slowly sinking, until it seemed to reach stone.And then the flashlight was right in front of her. It shone in her face, dazzling her eyes. Another lightsnapped on, a small camping lantern. Vision rushed back to Hannah, sending teaching surging to herbrain.But there was no happiness in it. Hannahs entire body was ice cold now, shivering.Because of course it wasnt Thierry. It was Maya.I hope I didnt disturb you, Maya said.She put down the lantern and what looked like a black backpack. Then she stood with her hands on herhips and looked at Hannah.I will not cry. I wont give her the satisfaction, Hannah thought.I didnt know vampires could really change into bats, she said.Maya laughed. She looked beautiful in the pool of lantern light. Her long black hair fell in waves aroundher, hanging down her back to her hips. Her skin was milky-pale and her eyes looked dark andmysterious. Her laughing mouth was red.She was wearing designer jeans and high-heeled snakeskin boots. Funny, Hannah had never noticed anyof Mayas frock before. Usually the woman herself was so striking that it was impossible to focus onhow she was dressed.Not all vampires can shapeshift, Maya said. But, then, Im not like other vampires. Im the first, mydarling. Im the original. And I have to say Im getting really sick of you.The feeling is mutual, Hannah thought. She said, Then why dont you leave me alone? Why dont youleave me and Thierry alone?Because, then, my swee tpea, I wouldnt win. And I have to win. She looked at Hannah directly, herface oddly serious. Dont you understand that up to now? she said softly. I have to win-because Ive given uptoo often to lose. It cant all be for nothing. So winning is all there is.