Page 30 of Visions of Darkness

Jenny’s eyes went wide in shock.

Gasping, I dropped my hands like I’d been burned and backpedaled on all fours across the floor. My back slammed against the side of my bed. Pants raked from my raw throat, and my heart clattered within the confines of my chest.

“What was that?” Jenny whispered as she reached up to cover her cheeks where I’d been holding on to her.

Swallowing hard, I shook my head, barely able to speak. “I just wanted you to know you’re not alone.”

Uncertainty rippled across her forehead, and she slumped forward as if she’d also been drained.

“I’m so tired, Aria.” It rang of confusion, and she slowly moved to drag her covers down and then slid beneath them, blowing out a bewildered sigh as she slumped onto her pillow.

Trembles continued to rock through me where I sat on the floor, propped against the bed.

Wave after brutal wave.

My shoulders heaved and my spirit screamed.

Frenetic energy scraped from my lungs.

What is that? What is that? It’s impossible. Impossible.

Terror thundered through my blood, and I lifted my shaking hands to look at my palms.

My palms that had bloomed a bright, fiery red.

The door suddenly banged open.

A bolt of panic surged, and I pressed harder into the bed, my feet pushing against the floor in an attempt to get away.

Terror gripped me in a way it’d never done before.

“Oh, goodness, sweet girl, you can’t be on the floor.”

I peered through the fogginess of my brain at the woman who had come in. She wore pink scrubs, and her brown, curly hair was cut in a short bob. She abandoned a cart just inside, and concern radiated from her demeanor as she came to kneel in front of me.

“Let me help you.”

She stretched out a hand. Warily, I accepted it, my feet unsteady as she pulled me to stand. I swayed to the side, and she looped an arm around my waist. She pulled down the covers as she guided me onto the bed.

“There we go. It’s all right. I’ve got you.”

Trembles continued to roll through me, though they began to slow.

“You’re fine,” she promised.

A stethoscope was suddenly pressed to my chest, and I could feel the distinct concern in her movements. “Do you have a history of panic attacks?”

“No. I think ... I think the sedative they gave me earlier when I was admitted made me almost faint.”

At least I had the fortitude to give her that. I had to be careful what I said and did, or I was never going to make it out of here.

I fought to draw air into my lungs while I lay staring at the ceiling, my mind whirring with the fear and questions that wouldn’t let me go.

I’d never, ever heard of that happening while awake before.

Of a Laven binding a Kruen, or even sensing one.

Still, a comfort had begun to seep into me. A comfort that promised I wouldn’t feel the same loneliness echoing from Jenny any longer.

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