Nikki, I need you. Don't leave me.
The cry made her heart weep bitter tears. She wasn't worthy of the urgency in that entreaty, wasn't sure she was even capable of understanding it. And it was too late. Far too late. Dancing in brightness, she drifted closer to the light.
Nikki, do you want to live?
Did she? The question echoed through the soft warmth surrounding her. Did she want to live? Images of Michael ran through her mind. Oh yes, she wanted to live. But only with Michael. And that was an impossible dream.
It was too late anyway. The choice had gone.
No! If you trust me, there is a way.
No! Not as a vampire! Better death than a vampire.
Cold steel filled his thoughts. Do you trust me?
Trust was a flickering fire, so easily put out. So few people had earned its warmth after her parents’
death. Only Jake, and he too was dying.
Jake needs you Nikki. I need you.
She closed her eyes against the pain in his entreaty. Michael didn't need her. He didn't need anyone. Maybe that was half her problem. He could walk away, and it wouldn't matter to him. But Jake had to live. He couldn't die because of her.
Come to me Nikki. Let me save you. For Jake's sake, if not for mine. She spun in confusion, afraid to go forward and afraid to go back. The warm light pulsed, healing and calming. She sighed. Here at last was the peace she had searched so long for. It would be so easy to give in to its warmth. Easy, but was it right? She didn't know, and that scared her more than the thought of dying.
Forgive me, Nikki. I can't let you do this.
Something grabbed her soul and yanked her down into darkness. The golden light began to recede. She wept and reached out towards it, a desperate swimmer fighting the tide pulling her away. Her efforts were ignored. The light disappeared, and she was thrust through layers of darkness and gathering pain. Then the red mist enclosed her brain and swept her away.