Page 39 of Addicted in Blood
“Come to me, Devon.Let me help you.”
His movements were slower than I expected as he stood to his full height.Even with his slight hunch, he was a few inches taller than I remembered him being.His tattered clothes hung like rags from him, showing a bulkier muscled frame than was normal.His hands ended in long fingernails that appeared razor-sharp.The better to gut you with, my pretty.
I shook my head and focused on his eyes.Still blue, still warm, the pain easily seen, as was the fear.
“You have nothing to be afraid of.”
Then he was on me before I had a chance to even consider my options.He wrapped his arms around me, the words nothing but guttural sounds.He stank of rotten meat, cedar, and damp earth.I breathed through my mouth rather than my nose, but it didn’t make much difference, since I was being crushed against him.
“You’re hurting me,” I whispered.“I need to breathe.”
It took a couple of seconds before his arms relaxed, but he didn’t let go.
The beast lifted his head, scenting the air.I managed to squeeze an arm out of his hold, and I touched his cheek.He dropped his head and grunted.He’d lost the ability to speak.The tears that blurred my vision now fell.One of his claw-like fingers traced a tear down my cheek.
Then I did something the others didn’t know I’d planned.They thought I was only going to talk with him.But when the beast held my gaze, I pushed my hair aside, and bent my head to the left, offering him my neck.
Ice-cold water splashed over me, and I woke, sputtering from the chill and the unexpected soaking.My arms and legs flapped around like a bug on its back.When I managed to pull myself into a sitting position, I stared up at the fiery gaze of Colantha.Frederick held the empty bucket, but I growled at her, knowing damn well she gave the order.
“What the hell, lady?”I got to my feet, drenched by the two inches of water filling the bottom of my pit, the blanket I’d been laying on nothing more than a sodden rag.
“You’re supposed to be attempting a vision, not sleeping away the day.”Her words were filled with vitriol.Where the hell was her rage coming from?It wasn’t like she’d given me much direction.Maybe she just hated to have her day wasted, and I could understand that.Except, I hadn’t been sleeping.
“You didn’t give me any instructions other than think of a place I’d been with Devon.I tried staring into that damn flame.”I pointed at the offending object the water seemed to have missed because it continued to glow with defiance at its ability to defeat me.
“I checked on you several times but didn’t want to interrupt.You’ve been here for three hours with no success.”
I glanced around the dark room as if a clock had magically appeared.It wasn’t like there were any windows to tell me anything different.
I climbed out of the pit, pulling the sodden clothes away from my body to release any remaining water.Frederick tossed me a towel, which I caught one-handed and started drying my hair.
“And I wouldn’t say it was without success.”
Colantha had been on her way out the door when she stopped and turned.“Explain.”She sat on her stool and waited.
Another stool had been brought in, and I dragged it away, so I wasn’t too close to her.I continued to dry myself as I recalled what I’d thought was only an hour, not three.
“I cleared my head as I’ve been trained to do in the past.”I gave her a rundown of all the locations I tried to maintain for a construct, and why I thought some were stronger than others.She nodded as I spoke but never interrupted.“Whenever I thought I had a location, the image was immediately replaced with an alley.The place I’d last seen Devon where he’d been in his beast form.”
I almost missed the glance she gave Frederick before turning her attention to me.“Go on.”
“I didn’t want that to be the location for the construct, so I’d stop and start over.”
She nodded.
“No matter what I tried, it didn’t work, and I was giving myself a headache.I was so tired, I thought I’d take a quick nap.”I glanced at Frederick then back at her.“I guess I could have used more of that juice.”
She snorted but didn’t say anything.
“I guess it was more than a nap because I was suddenly back in the alley, though it was different than when I was there before, outside the dream.”
I explained the dream, including the others that had been there, though I never actually saw them, just sensed them.Then I detailed my interaction, as brief as it was, with the beast.
When I finished, her gaze moved to the flickering candle.After several long minutes, she asked, “Do you feel as if you were in control?”
I considered that.“I don’t think I was in control of the construct, but I was in control, or at least I think I was, of my own actions and decisions.”
“You’ve said the majority of your dreams have been prescient.”
