Page 35 of A Touch of Darkness

The pain I harbor for her is relentless. I don’t know that seeing Lara will change anything for her. It may only serve to slice her deeper. Though, she knows herself best in this lifetime.

“We understand,” Jacobs begins, his tone shifting, becoming more measured, colder. “But there’s something you need to know, Miss Rosenthal. Something that has... slightly complicated matters.”

Sylvie’s eyes narrow, confusion creeping into her expression. “And what’s that?” she asks, concern etched on her face in a way that makes her look both delicate and damning.

“Miss Rosenthal,” Jacobs says, his voice low, “Lara’s body is missing from the morgue.”

I’m standing in a place that makes no sense—like a corridor but also somehow a meadow, the walls and ceiling shifting in and out of focus and flowers are floating in the air. My lungs feel leaden, my steps weighted, as though I’m moving through water. Somewhere far off, I hear a dull roar, like the crashing of ocean waves, but maybe something else. The noise comes in and out, muffled. The air shimmers, crackling with an energy that prickles over my skin to the point of pain. Like being shocked by static electricity.

Suddenly, my eyes land on her. On Lara. She’s suspended in midair as if she’s floating on her back. Her head is slightly tilted back, her long dark hair fanned out in a ghostly halo. A faint glow surrounds her—I can’t begin to describe the color; it’s unlike anything I’ve seen. Pale gold, tinged with specks of silver. It flickers and pulses like a heartbeat, making her look both angelic and hauntingly fragile. It’s almost as if invisiblewires are holding her up, like a puppet caught between two realities.

I call her name, and my voice echoes strangely, as though it’s been engulfed by distance before it can reach her. She doesn’t respond. Her eyes are closed, her lips parted, as if she’s on the verge of speaking. But no sound comes out.

I try to move forward, every muscle in my body coiled with a sense of urgency. I have to reach her. With each step, the scene ahead of me warps, like I’m pushing through layers of impenetrable glass. My breath comes in ragged puffs. The glow around Lara intensifies with each faltering step I take, strobing in my vision. It physically hurts to look at her, but I can’t tear my gaze away.

In the half-light, I catch glimpses of something else—a shape in the corner of my eye. A presence that stands just beyond my line of sight, as if waiting. My heart thuds harshly against my ribcage. The corridor-meadow around us darkens and the flowers fall to my feet, the edges fraying like burned paper. I try again to call out to Lara, but the words stay lodged in my throat.

I watch as she slowly turns her head toward me, and her eyes suddenly flutter open, but they look distant—like she’s not really seeing me. Her mouth moves, trying to form words. I think I see my own name on her lips. A single tear slips down her cheek, suspended in that same eerie glow. Instinct takes over; I reach out, straining to touch her hand, to pull her out of this suspended nightmare and bring her back to me. The moment my fingertips brush the edge of that glow, a jolt of energy surges through me, paralyzing my arm with a cold, electric sting.

“Lara!” I scream, though the sound feels muffled, like I’m underwater. My cry is swallowed by the swirling darkness that rushes in from every corner. In that split second, Lara’s bodyjerks as if she’s seized by an unseen force, or as if her heart is being shocked back to life. Her eyes lock on mine, filled with terror and helplessness, and a flash of golden-silver light erupts around her.

The brightness blinds me. My vision whites out, and for a breathless second, there’s nothing but the rumble of blood rushing in my ears. When it clears, Lara’s gone—vanished from the air as though she were never there at all. The glowing residue lingers in the empty space, drifting like embers in the wind, before flickering out.

I stagger, collapsing to my knees. Confusion and dread roar through my veins. The corridor-meadow around me glimmers violently—walls melting into grass, grass warping back into cold stone. I’m cold, suddenly, like my body just realized how unnatural this dream is. Hot tears pool in my eyes, and I try to scream again, but no sound comes as I look at the dying flowers under my feet.

The dream—orvision, I can’t tell which—lingers as I wake in a cold sweat. It’s vivid, too real to brush off.

I sit up in bed, the image of a suspended Lara burning in my mind. My heart races, the cold sweat clinging to my skin like a damp second layer. This can’t just be a nightmare. I know it’s something more—or I’m just crazy enough to believe it after everything. My chest tightens as I think of her, of what the Solstice Society might have done. They said she’s dead. The authorities said she’s dead. Yet somehow, I know she’s not fully gone…especially after last night and what was revealed at the police station.

Someone is lying to me.

And I’m starting to feel like multiple forces are working together, conspiring for something greater. It makes sense thatthe Solstice Society would be behind it. But do I have blinders on?

I swipe my phone off the nightstand beside me and the screen illuminates my face, making me squint through the pain of brightness. There’s only one person I care to talk to right now.

Professor Draedon.

He left me with his number the last time I saw him, and though I hadn’t planned on using it, at least not yet anyways, I’m grateful for it.

Me: Can you meet with me?

I glance at the time.Two in the morning.

Vampires are up all night, aren’t they?

Then, I take a moment to really think about it and realize that has to be part of their lore, too, although he didn’t mention it. He’s awake all day in classes, so he’s clearly not nocturnal like the books describe vampires.

Me: Sorry it’s so late…early. I need to talk to you about what I found out last night.

Me: And some new developments. I need to learn more about what’s happening.

Me: Please. It can’t wait.

There’ssomething about him that gives me feelings of both safety and fear, and I still haven’t been able to put my finger on it.

When he finally replies, he does so with his address and tells me he has a free period in the morning, and I can meet him at his house. He says he has an extensive library with research material. I agree, thank him, and tell him I’ll see him in a few hours.

But then, I can’t fall back asleep.

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