Page 70 of Revenant

“You’re Sue’s sister,” I murmur, my voice slightly slurred. She looks just like the pixie, except instead of black-tipped hair, hers is tipped a baby blue.

You know my sister?Tragic hope fills her eyes, and she leans forward eagerly.Is she okay?

“Okay is relative in this place.” My smile is lopsided as I push myself upright, then grimace when the needle in my arm pulls on my IV. “My name is Rue.”

I’m Mabel.

I yank out the line, huffing more in annoyance than pain. A bead of blood swells for a second before the small wound heals shut. I swing my legs over the side of the bed, wincing when they pass right through Mabel. “Sorry!”

Her form wavers, curling around like smoke, before whirling back into the shape of a young girl. The instant my flesh comes into contact with her, it’s like being dropped into an icy lake in the middle of a Siberian winter, the sudden chill stealing the breath from my lungs.

Mabel grimaces at the contact, her body solidifies, and she sucks in a raspy breath. A second later, she fades back to her ghostly form.

Blahh.She does a full body shudder, as if shaking off the sensation, then hops up to sit on the bed behind her and cocks her head as she studies me.Looks like we’re roomies. Tell me about yourself? How can you see me?

She swings her feet back and forth, her expression eager, and I realize that she’s lonely. Though her green eyes are a tad suspicious, she’s too pleased to have company to voice them. I drag my hair away from my face, grimacing when my fingers tangle in the congealed blood knotting the strands like super glue.

I duck my head away from the cameras before I mumble my reply, avoiding answering her questions directly. Just because she is a ghost doesn’t mean she will keep my secrets. “What would you say if I told you I came to get you out?”

Her eyes bulge, her mouth dropping into a perfect O.

I ignore her for the moment and take stock of my surroundings. I’m still wearing my own clothing, and I consider that a bonus. A glance around the ward reveals a total of six beds, each one occupied by a single patient. The one resting next to me is Mable. We both look down at her too still form, and my eyes widen in shock to see how far she’s deteriorated.

Her pale skin is sallow, her hair limp and falling out, her skin slack on her too skinny frame. A sheet is draped over her chest, her arms resting at her side, the bedding so crisp, she clearly hasn’t moved in a long fucking time.

She looks like a wax doll.

No one has been home in a while.

A few of the others are set up with ventilators, but the majority of them look like they merely went to sleep and never got up again. “What happened to you?”

We’re the forgotten.She gazes down at her still body without a change in her expression, as though she’s looking at someone else.The ones that no one will miss if we disappear from the world.

“That’s not true,” I protest, but it’s weak. “Your sister hasn’t forgotten you.”

Maybe she should.Mabel whirls away in agitation, her voice harsh.She would be better off without me in her life.

I wince at the vehement tone, her ghostly appearance fading until she’s barely visible, like she’s willing herself to give up and fade out of existence.

I’m quiet for a moment, remembering a time when I thought the world would be better without me. “I thought the very same thing once, but I bet your sister wouldn’t agree with you.”

Her expression crumbles, her shoulders wilting in defeat.She is here because of me. They caught us because I was showing off. I’ve always been a little too fast, a little too strong. I picked the pocket of the wrong person, and it landed us here.A single tear trickles down her cheek, and her voice cracks when she speaks.They did things to her—unspeakable things.

“Then help me get her out of here,” I plead, sucking in a pained breath when I push off the bed and stand. For a moment, the room spins, and I grit my teeth against the need to pass out.

Mabel studies me for a moment, as if gauging my sincerity, then her shoulders slowly straighten, and her form solidifies.I can do that. What do you need from me?

I peer past her and look down at her still form. “What do you say we get you back into your body, then get the fuck out of here?”

Chapter Twenty-six

ELLIS

Something about the whole fight seemed a little too orchestrated. I don’t doubt the challenge was real—they wanted to see us fight, maybe hoping we would slip up and reveal our abilities. And Hicks did so fucking spectacularly, but I can’t blame him.

He was doing fine until the bastard targeted Rue. I saw the instant a primal rage took over. His actions were so instinctual that he couldn’t have stopped himself even if he tried…which, I suspect, didn’t even cross his mind. I watched in shock as he was engulfed in flames…then walked through them like it was nothing.

He didn’t even flinch.

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