Page 62 of Visions of Darkness

He’d been fully at ease when he’d come through. The second he caught sight of me, he was instantly on guard.

His free hand moved to the Taser at his side while he stood frozen in the doorway.

Darkness spilled in from behind him and into the bright lights that shone above, the silence so acute I heard the foreboding woven in its fibers.

“Is there a problem here?” His attention swung between us, gauging the situation.

The man was tall and too thin. I’d peg him in his midfifties. He was doing his best to appear fierce. Confident. Though I didn’t miss the tremors that rolled through his body.

Irritation beat a path through my senses, the lure coming from behind that door growing intense.

Severe.

Overpowering.

It was almost impossible not to listen to it and force my way through. I shifted on my feet, trying to keep the turmoil at bay.

The echo of her spirit.

The shout of her soul.

Pax. Pax. Pax.

I swore I could hear her pleading my name.

Jill turned to wave him off. “No, we just need a moment of privacy, Will. Thank you. If you’d step out for a second.”

The frown he developed promised it went against protocol. “Are you sure? I’ll be—”

A crash suddenly echoed from somewhere in the recess of the facility. Metal clattered against a hard floor, reverberating off the walls and traveling the hall in a flurry of desperation.

One second later, a scream pierced the air. “Help!”

Her spirit pierced and slayed, and the sparks glinting beneath my skin burst into flames.

At the commotion, the security guard whirled around.

I didn’t hesitate to take the opportunity.

I acted.

Grabbing the edge of the door he had propped open with his body, I swung it open wider and shoved him out of the way.

It took him the flash of a second to realize that I was pushing around him, and a hand darted out to try to grab me by the arm. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? You can’t go in there.”

I didn’t have time for wavering.

Spinning around to face him, I cracked my elbow down on the top of his shoulder in the same motion, hoping it would incapacitate him enough to buy me some time.

It dropped him straight to his knees.

“Oh my God.” Shock gasped out of the nurse, and her hands flew to her mouth. The iPad she’d been holding toppled to the ground just as there was another crash reverberating from somewhere down the hall.

My eyes met hers for one knowing beat before I swiveled and ran.

Ran toward the one person on Earth who’d ever meant anything.

My boots pounded on the hard floor, driving the mayhem higher.

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