whisper against his conscious, his presence as non-existent as a ghost. The air was colder, or at least it seemed like that. Talon slammed his fist on the counter, a great rush falling off his chest.
He slid to the ground, head light. If he weren’t trying so hard to keep his eyes dry, he would have sobbed with relief. He would be free --but with a price.
The price of Jamie’s life, and her ultimate betrayal. Of body, mind, and soul — he would try his hardest to overcome his reserves about touching and feeling, and Jamie would know nothing of it. He planned to use her, to take her, but she would not know.
Talon’s feet carried him to the main room, where Jamie had fallen asleep with such a fright in her mind. He shoved the guilt aside, wondering how he was going to even start this. Talon didn’t want to know what would happen tomorrow if he failed to take Jamie. He should give her time, give her comfort, give her...something.
He growled at himself, sitting on the bed. The towel was around his waist still, the water long dried. As he stared down at her, he wondered what would happen to her, and how he would take to watching her die.
Talon wouldn’t tell her of anything; that would be his gift to her.
Sheets rustled as she turned on her side, facing him. Her hand was curled against his thigh, face nuzzling into the bed. Foreign emotions riled through him — the top of them being regret.
“Jamie, get your coat on,” her mother came into the room, eyes panicked. Her normally cool demeanor was crumbling before her eyes.
She put the coat on without questions, lip trembling. “Mother?”
“Not now, dear. We need to go, we need to go...” Her voice trailed off as she ran from the room, coming back a second later with keys in her slender hands.
Jamie had been in her room, emailing a friend of hers from school. She had put off her homework, believing that talking to her friend about her cheating boyfriend was much more important. The pink walls had always been comforting, her bed as plush as a cloud. The desk was grand, white and full of papers and cassettes.
Her father complained to her often about the clutter, but she paid no heed. He would leave in a fit, and the subject would be dropped till he caught a glimpse of her desk. The only time she bothered to clean was when he had people over, but they didn’t come to her room so it was never that big of a deal to her.
Now, though, she had a feeling that this would be the last time the walls would be a comfort. The pink room, the happy room, was an opposite of what now pounded through her heart.
Trembling, she grabbed hold of her mother’s hand and tugged, even as she slipped into her loafers that sat next to her desk. “What’s happened? Why are we leaving? Mom, I have a test tomorrow,” she said, panic threading her voice, matching her mother's. “We’ll be back, right?”
Her mother didn’t seem to hear her. Clammy hands grabbed onto hers, pulling her through the room. The window was wide open, Spring air rushing around them. Jamie didn’t have time to look back in her room before the door was pulled close and she was being taken down the grand staircase. Alabaster handrails, a sweeping entrance, a noble carpet... It was all the making of a a US Senator.
“Mom!” she pleaded, pulling back her hand. Her mother’s hand was shaking wildly, her whole body following suit. She had a white pull over, her brown slacks elegant on her long legs. Blonde hair was coiled on her head, diamond ear rings dangling from the side of her face. Her cheekbones were high, and normally looked elegant and regal. Right now, though, they looked too pale, sickly, the tears falling from her face completely at odds with her outfit, her normally composed demeanor.
Jamie felt her heart stop at the site of a long car, men on either side of the door that was being held open. Right then, Jamie realized what was happening. She jerked herself from her mother's grip, fighting the urge to cry, to scream.
She held her ground. “I’m not going,” she said, steel lacing her voice. “I won’t leave Dad alone.”
“Baby, you don’t understand... You don’t know.... Please, hurry up and come with me,” her mother begged, reaching for