Nightstruck - Jenna Black Page 0,10

met the One.

The fastest way to get back to his own apartment was to cut through Logan Circle, and he was all for the fastest way. In the daytime, there were always people around, taking in the view of the impressive fountain in the center of the circle, but at this hour sensible people were shut up tight in their heated homes, not taking in the sights, and Logan Circle was deserted.

For reasons he didn’t understand, his footsteps slowed when he got within a few yards of the fountain, and the hair on the back of his neck prickled.

At the center of the large circular fountain, there was a raised area with three larger-than-life bronze statues reclining. The highest jet of the fountain rose up from between those figures, and jets all around the perimeter of the circle sent water streaming toward the center. From where Jimmy stood, the feathery jets veiled the figures in the center, revealing only shadows and glimpses.

Jimmy blinked. It had to be his imagination, or just his tired mind messing with his memories, but he could have sworn the bronze figures were reclining farther from the center than they used to be. He took another few steps, moving away from the jets on the edge so he had a better view of the center.

There were steps in the center of the fountain—people often cavorted in the water or sat on those steps on hot summer days—and there were raised sections in the steps for each of the statues. The statue closest to Jimmy was a hollow-eyed naked woman lying on her side with her head raised so she was staring out at anyone who stood near the edge. She was kind of unsettling on the best of days, her eyes shadowed, her stare holding a hint of malevolence, at least in Jimmy’s opinion.

And the more he looked, the more Jimmy was convinced the statue wasn’t where it was supposed to be. Its hand was usually propped on the top step, its body draped over the rest of the stairs. But now it was lying at the bottom of the stairs.

Jimmy swallowed hard and rubbed his eyes. It had to be an illusion of some kind, or just some kind of brain fart.

When he dropped his hands from his eyes, Jimmy’s insides turned to pure ice. Because the statue wasn’t reclining anymore. It was sitting up, one arm draped over its knee, the other hand resting casually on the bottom step.

Jimmy’s breath came in soft little gasps, white puffs of frozen air emerging from his mouth like smoke. He was seeing things. He had to be. Either that or Maria had put something in his drink—but if she’d done that, surely he’d have felt the effects before now. He shook his head, as if that movement would make the sight before him change.

The statue’s lips curled up into a smile, and Jimmy cried out, stumbling backward, in such a hurry to back away that he tripped over his own feet and landed on his butt. The statue’s smile went broader, metallic muscles rippling as it slowly rose, those hollow eyes fixed on Jimmy.

Jimmy no longer cared if his mind was playing tricks with him or whether he was having a psychotic episode or what. The look in that statue’s eyes was pure malevolence, and Jimmy wasn’t hanging around to see what would happen next.

He sprang to his feet, the combination of cold-numbed feet and terror making him clumsy. It didn’t help that he couldn’t seem to tear his gaze away from the crouching statue.

Finally, Jimmy got his feet under him and forced himself to look away. He ran for all he was worth, looking frantically around for another person, preferably a cop with a gun. If they hauled him off to the loony bin, it would be worth it. But there was no one in sight.

Behind him, there was a metallic screech and a sound like a giant hammer beating down on concrete.

He couldn’t help it, couldn’t stop himself from looking over his shoulder, though if he’d been in his right mind he’d never have slowed himself down by looking back.

A terrified scream tore from his throat when he saw that the statue was giving chase, its arms reaching for him.

This can’t be real, his mind insisted. I’m having a nightmare, and any moment I’ll wake up in a cold sweat.

But then a pair of giant metal arms grabbed him and lifted him from the ground.