The Nightmare (The Mist #2) - Regine Abel Page 0,71

and it robbed him of the ability to think straight—not that he ever had before.

I pounced on him, pinning him to the floor. Straddling him, I began feeding on both his exponentially growing terror and his lifeforce. It was slimy with malice and bitter with fright—just the way I liked it.

“No! Noooooo!” he shouted, struggling vainly to free himself.

I grinned with evil pleasure the moment Tobin realized he was about to die. The terror on his face was blissfully delicious. In a desperate, last ditch effort, the Nightmare attempted to siphon me. I backhanded him so hard it dislocated his jaw and a few teeth flew out.

His remaining shield collapsed, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he struggled to remain conscious. I cursed inwardly, realizing my mistake. If Tobin passed out right now, his state of unconsciousness would give him access to his human mind’s doorway into the Mist. The Weasel still had sufficient energy left to cross over… barely. Granted, if he succeeded, he would be as weak as a newborn Spark and wouldn’t be a threat to anyone for a loooong time. But I wanted his lifeforce, first as my reward and second to help me defeat Darryl.

I siphoned Tobin with greater greed and speed, the electric glow of his lifeforce flowing into me bathing the dark and dirty room in a blinding light. His tendrils were the first to turn to ash. I held his gaze with malicious joy and watched with fascination the tears that trickled down his cheeks. Tobin’s mouth moved but only a choked, gurgling sound escaped him as the last of his ethereal essence turned to ash around him. Only his wounded human body remained.

“You were pathetic,” I said in a cruel and merciless voice. “I always said I would kill you someday. There shall be no rebirth for you. Goodbye, Little Weasel.”

With these last words, I drained his human vessel, enjoying the sight of it caving in on itself like a deflated balloon. But his death was even more enjoyable than those condemned humans I had hunted yesterday. When they’d died, the core of their soul flew away, I had no idea where. But not Walkers. I devoured the last fragment of his essence. His death was like an electric shock at the back of my throat which then ran down my spine.

I released Tobin’s remains and resorbed my tendrils into me. My vessel thrummed with an insane amount of energy. But now that the rush of battle was abating, agonizing pain coursed through my entire body.

“He did it!” Tate whispered behind me with awe and joy.

“How are you feeling, son?” Thomson asked, his voice filled with worry as he carefully approached me.

Grinding my teeth through the pain, I got back up on my feet. Thomson flinched when I turned to face him. Although he quickly controlled his expression, it had been enough for me to know I looked as dreadful as I felt.

“Let’s get you back to the base and have Dr. Chandra take care of you,” Thomson said in a gentle voice.

I didn’t argue, although all that I really wanted was to hold my woman in my arms. I turned my gaze towards the female, who was hugging her torn clothes close to her body. Although she didn’t whine or complain, she was clearly freezing. Confusion and a bit of worry filled her eyes as they flicked between the three of us before resting on me.

Thomson and Tate cast an inquisitive look towards me. They already knew what the answer would be but wanted confirmation.

“Yeah, she’s a Wish,” I said in a tired voice before starting to walk towards the exit.

“Nightmare!” the female called out. I stopped to glance at her. “You saved me.”

“Yes, and?” I asked, annoyed by this additional delay. I really wanted to get off my feet.

“Why?” she asked, confused.

“Do you wish I hadn’t?” I snarled. “That can be rectified.”

Her eyes widened with greater confusion, and she cast an uncertain look towards Thomson. He shook his head at her in a way implying she should just let it go. Wise advice. As I couldn’t be bothered any longer, I just limped back to the car. To my surprise, four more agency vehicles had surrounded the location. The agents, weapons in hand, were visibly waiting to ambush Tobin had he gotten the upper hand.

When they saw me coming out, quickly followed by Tate, Thomson, and the female, they began clapping. The happiness and