was moving.
It was coming closer.
It soon spread from horizon to horizon, further blackening the dark sky. It rolled back gathering from bottom to top like a curtain.
I screamed in fright.
Revealed there was an enormous sickly eye, and it stared right through me.
Michael shook his head, popping out of a dazed trance.
He was angry.
He wanted to hurl the Bloodstone into the depths of the Columbia River. It was, after all, only a short walk away. He walked to the window, his body containing a bundle of nervous energy. He parted the curtain on a sunset that had turned the river’s waters into a red-orange torrent of blood. He shuddered, though he knew not why.
Then, like a lightning bolt out of a pitch black sky a simple thought came to him: Airel. Love. He breathed in deeply but it was ragged and spastic, as if he’d just been weeping his heart out. He exhaled and a tear escaped and ran down his cheek. He wiped it away with his hand and realized: he knew what he had to do. And why.
CHAPTER XVI
I OPENED MY EYES and stared at the ceiling. For the briefest of moments I could remember everything. Then it was gone, “like a fart in the wind,” as Kim would say. What did I miss? I felt dirty, like someone or something was watching me. I knew we were being followed, I could feel it. Was it the Brotherhood? Was it right now? I didn’t know.
Kim had snuggled up with most of the blankets in her sleep, leaving me chilly and naked on the bed. Becoming more aware of my surroundings, I panicked: Is Michael in the room? I covered myself as best I could and looked around. I spied Ellie in the bed opposite. She was sleeping. Do angels sleep? I guessed I had seen Kreios sleeping. I crossed my arms over my chest and sat up slowly.
I looked closer at Ellie. She was out cold. I figured maybe we would miss dinner. At least some of us would, anyway, and I was capable of getting some takeout for the rest of our little group so they could have something to eat whenever they woke up. As for me, I was hungry. Freaking starving.
But I was naked. Yikes. I looked around again. Ellie had been on a mission to get some gas station clothes, last I knew. Sure enough, there on the desk chair sat several shopping bags, and it looked promising: they were a big step up from convenience store quality. They were mall quality.
Go Ellie!
I grabbed the bags and made a dash for the bathroom. I never was the kind of girl who could walk brazenly across a women’s locker room, whether anyone was aware of me or not. I didn’t know how some women could do that. I was too shy for prancing in my birthday suit; it always made me uncomfortable. But what else could I have done? I wasn’t going to get dressed right back into my filthy clothes after I had showered. Gross.
I shut the bathroom door behind me and flipped the light on, rummaging through the haul of stuff Ellie had brought back. I was stunned. It was like I had been out shopping myself. There were a couple of pairs of designer jeans, some really cute little tops, even some accessories like a little packet of hair ties. And—thank God—some high quality unmentionables. Where did she find this stuff? Did Arlington, Oregon have a Victoria’s Secret? It was crazy, and everything fit perfectly. The other bag had some shoe boxes inside. No way. Again, I was stunned. I pulled out a pair of sturdy lightweight hikers with an aggressive tread on the sole. They fit my feet like they had been custom made. Insane. I ran my fingers through my hair and tied it back loosely with one of the hair ties. Lookin’ good. I didn’t know what to think.
I checked my reflection one last time and then turned off the lights.
I quietly left the room and went down to the lobby.
Michael was sitting in a chair by the coffee maker, reading a newspaper. He looked clean and fresh, wearing jeans and a button-up shirt. He saw me and smiled, folding the paper and setting it down. “Hey. You get a good nap?”
I nodded and hugged him, laying my head against him. I could hear his heart thumping in his chest. “You smell good,” I said, relishing the familiar. “So…you’re catching