Tree Of Souls (Transfusion Saga #6) - Stephanie Hudson Page 0,67

She was staggering down the narrow aisle with her shoes dangling from her fingers. She was also swaying slightly, before she steadied herself on someone else’s door, apologizing to no one before she continued on. I muttered a curse again and made off running down the length of the corridor after her, hoping to catch her just before she got to her room so I could see for myself.

However, the second I saw her disappearing around yet another corner I snarled in anger, hitting out against one of the doors as I passed. I rounded the same corner, only I was too late as I wasn’t met with a door like I had hoped to be. No, instead I was suddenly inside her room. And that was when I saw her.

The image of her as I knew she was now. Curled up on the bed, still wearing her dress, one that had bunched around the tops of her sun kissed thighs. Her shoes remained at the side of the bed where she had obviously dropped them and next to her, was a half-consumed bottle of water. But it wasn’t the water that took my interest, no it was the room’s phone that she was clutching to her chest, the receiver off the hook and in her hand, as if it brought her some comfort.

The sight caused me to stop dead in my tracks and all earlier anger fled me. She looked so lost. So lonely and vulnerable, that all I wanted to do was scoop her up in my arms and hold her through the night. To whisper in her ear that I would take care of her and to beg her to stop running from me. But two things stopped this and the first was when she whispered my name in her sleep,

“Lucius, you promised.” After this I was about to ease her mind and tell her to go back to sleep, when something else caught my eyes. So, I glanced from her sleeping form and found,

Another window.

It was small for a hotel room and as it started to come more into focus, rising from the shadows, the size wasn’t the only thing I noticed. It was the view beyond that had me transfixed. The seemingly endless abyss, that this time wasn’t just part of her Void.

Nor was it a sight that had been conjured up from the random access of memories.

No, this time her dream had quickly become my nightmare, as the reality of where she was had finally come to light.

Because Pip had been right…

My heart was at sea.

Amelia

Chapter 17

Lonely Life at Sea

I woke the next day and wasn’t surprised when I discovered I’d slept most of the day away. Not that I had anywhere I needed to be or really anything to do on this floating hotel. I mean, I had spent the first few days trying to get over being seasick, something that finally calmed once I got used to the movement. I knew most of it was mind over matter as I didn’t like boats, something I discovered after taking the one and only trip on my father’s yacht, that he had naturally named The Catherine. This was actually my mum’s first name, but she always went by Keira, her middle name.

Well, needless to say that after spending the week throwing up, I think it was safe to say that I wasn’t a natural seafaring girl by any means. In the end, my dad had arranged travel for me to get back home after realising that my green skin wasn’t going to change anytime soon. It was also one of the reasons I had chosen to get to Europe this way. I knew it would be the last journey anyone who knew me would think I would take. Besides, everyone always goes straight for the airports and no one ever thinks about cruise liners.

Granted, this particular way of escaping was a little out there, especially as it would take me twenty-one days, eight of which were spent at sea. But I also had to say that the second I stepped on board and we finally left the port in Miami, I could finally breathe. I made myself relax, taking a breath and all with the knowledge that I had made it.

This was all made possible the day after I had left the hotel in my new Dodge, after Lucius had found me. I had driven just under two hours and sold my car to