Dark Spirits (27 page)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Paige

My cheek was smashed against something cold and hard. I was lying on my side, curled into a ball, shivering.

My eyes were closed.

I had to be dreaming.

Nothing made sense.

My head ached and throbbed so violently I wouldn’t have been surprised if my skull cracked open to release the pressure.

Someone kept moaning.

A strong smell of mildew and dirt punctured a hole through my hazy mind.

 Had I fallen asleep in my basement? Why would I do that?

Somebody moaned again.

Carrie had to be watching a scary movie. She loved to watch scary movies.

Cold air pressed on my bare back.

Was I wearing a shirt?

My body kept shaking, and my wrists were heavily weighed down. As I dragged my hands toward my chest, something clanked and rattled.

My throat vibrated as another moan reached my ears. With a start, I realized I was the one making that noise.

 God, my head was hurting.

But why was I in my basement? Omigod, what if there were spiders crawling on me. With a quick jerk and a loud cry from the stabbing pain inside my head, I sat up and opened my eyes.

“Sleeping Beauty finally awakes,” a deep voice said from across the room.

Horror pulsed through my veins as my eyes took in the domed room. The walls were made of stone, slick and black. In the center of it, a single light bulb dangled on a frayed wire from the concrete ceiling, giving off a dull glow. The edges of the room were cast in shadows, and the man who had just spoken stood in the far corner to my right, but I could see him perfectly. Then the events from earlier came back to me, and I knew who he was.

Roeick.

Looking down, I saw my parka and shirt were stripped from me. All I had on was my white lace bra. He left my pants and boots on, but my ankles and wrists were in heavy shackles. The manacle device connected to a thick chain attached to a single lag bolt on a wall constructed of stone. I thought about the premonition I had. It talked about shackled wrists to a stone wall and something about the light of day . . . damn, if my head wasn’t killing me, I’d be able to remember it.

I scooted closer to the wall. Pressing my knees to my chest, I wrapped my arms around them. I wondered how long I’d been here and where
here
was? For all I knew, I could be far from Astoria.

“Your disguise was quite clever.” He moved out of the shadow holding something black and round in his hand. It looked like a thin, roped belt. “However, you’d forgotten about one thing.” He paused beneath the bulb, and his dark eyes widened in amusement. His face became animated, a dark-skinned ghastly creature with a long mouth turning into a jester’s grin. “Some of us can see your radiance, and I’m one of them.”

 Crap. I hadn’t thought about the stupid light inside of me. I was such a moron. If Nathan had been with me, he would have thought of that.

Nathan.

Max!

My heart sank when the thought of Max entered my mind. He was looking for me at the same time Roeick appeared.

Oh, no, what if something bad happened to him?

I lifted my hands, rattling the chains as I clutched my throbbing head. Why in the hell did it hurt so damn bad? I recalled Roeick placing a cloth over my face, and it had a sweet funny smell.

I closed my eyes and groaned. “Max . . . what was on that cloth?” Disorientation scrambled my words.

“Chloroform. As for your buddy, he’s lucky I’m a fan of his food.”

“Wh-what do you mean?” I took a couple deep breaths and rested my forehead on my knees, rubbing my temples.
Please let Max be okay
. I should have never visited with him. But again I wasn’t thinking. I was now getting what Nathan told me about not having enough experience.

“He’s alive. Banged up. But he’ll survive. When he caught me smothering you and saw you go limp in my arms, he demanded I release you, then tackled me. The boy is strong and put up a good fight. However, I’m much stronger and knocked him cold.”

Still holding my head, I let out a sigh of relief.
Thank God. He was alive.

“I called Aosoth, and she’s thrilled I was able to snag you so easily.”

I peeked at him through the gap in my arm. He was uncoiling the roped belt. But it wasn’t a belt like I thought. It was a bullwhip. Fear and the feeling of helplessness gripped me. I lifted my head, unable to take my eyes off it. My mind raced with what I could say to save me from the pain I was sure to come. “You don’t have to do this.” My voice sounded weak. “I don’t even know where the incantations are.”

He gave me a stern look. “No. But you will.” He snapped the whip. I winced at the loud crack and hugged myself. “I’ll be calling Aosoth soon, but first I want to have some fun.”

“Wait!” I shifted against the floor, turning my body toward him, raising my hands as he drew near. He halted and a curious smirk crossed his face. “Why are you with Aosoth? She doesn’t love you. You know that, right?” I was trying to do what Anwar had taught me on the island: get inside the enemy’s head.

Roeick narrowed his eyes, and a laser beam of light swiped across them. My stomach twisted, and I broke out into a cold sweat. “You don’t know
shit,
little girl.”

My nerves were pushing words out of my mouth so fast I couldn’t stop them. “She has the hots for the ‘old one.’”

“She
had
the hots for him, but he betrayed her.” He quickly advanced on me with a lunatic’s gleam in his eyes and lifted me by the armpit. His movements were harsh and forceful. His fingers dug into the soft, fleshy part beneath my arm, causing me to bite down on my lip. “Your juvenile tactics are quite pathetic. I’m not an idiot. I’ve been to war.” He sounded disgusted. My legs wobbled, and I dropped to my knees. In desperation, I grabbed the chains and leaned forward, trying to pull them out of the wall.

He laughed. It echoed around us, traveling into my ear canal, seeping into my bloodstream, freezing my heart. “Stupid girl. They’re anchored in heavy steel. Even your immortal strength can’t break them.” He dropped his whip and snatched my arms, pulling me to my feet. He yanked me around so I was facing the wall and pressed my chest against the cold stone. His large hand lingered on my back as if he were contemplating his next move. I tried to ignore the warmth against my skin and what he planned on doing. Truthfully, though, thoughts of him taking advantage of me reeled. But then he stepped back and for a second, I thought maybe he’d leave the room.

I was wrong.

It wasn’t over.

Not by a long shot.

Once again, fear assailed me, and even though Nathan had broken my heart, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I wondered where he was. Then a phone rang from across the room. I silently begged for Roeick to go to it, hoping it would distract him for a while.

It kept ringing.

Please, Please, Please answer it.

But he didn’t even acknowledge it. Instead, he lifted my shackled wrists above my head and placed them inside a contraption that looked like an iron claw sticking out of the stones. The device snapped over the shackles, binding me. He moved my ponytail over my shoulder, kicked my legs apart and knelt down. He snatched my ankle and shoved it forward. After the clicking sound, he grabbed the other one, and did the same thing. When it snapped, he stepped away. A brush of air whisked across my back as he moved passed me.

“Did you know the ‘old one’s’ name is Bael?” My words came out in a fearful rush when I heard him picking up the whip. I tried to twist around to look at him but couldn’t. I was like a smashed bug against the wall.

“The name doesn’t mean shit to me,” he spat, and when he continued, his voice turned cruel. “The wounds I’m about to inflict will heal rather fast. However, the agony delivered upon you by my own hand will give me great satisfaction knowing you cannot escape it.” He leaned close to my ear and whispered, “You will feel
every
thing.” I jerked my head away, my heart beating painfully against my chest. Stepping behind me, he went on, “When Aosoth arrives, you’ll already be beaten down. This will please her and gain me favor in her eyes.” He snapped the whip and let out a dark, boisterous laugh when I flinched. A string of whimpers rose in my throat. I pressed my lips together, refusing to sweeten his enjoyment. “I’m just getting the feel of it.” His feet shifted into place, and I held my breath. Squeezing my eyes shut, I braced for the impact.

Mom. Dad. If you’re there, please give me strength to endure this.

I could hear him raising the whip again, then a
whoosh, whoosh, whoosh
sound as he spun it in the air. I gritted my teeth and pressed my forehead to the wall.

SNAP!

The tail of it lashed at my skin with such quick force my body jerked forward, and I gasped at the searing pain. My eyes filled with tears, and I could feel something wet trailing down my back. And then I heard the whooshing sound again. I whimpered and braced myself for another blow.

SNAP!

The blow struck right below the first one. Again, my body surged forward, and I broke into a sweat as the skin on my back softened and split from the burning pain. My body shook and tears rolled down my face. I didn’t know how much more I could take, and hoped I would pass out. Anwar had told me, in a situation such as this, blank out, and I wouldn’t feel the pain. If my head weren’t throbbing, maybe I could have done that or turned the light off. But the pain was too great. I couldn’t do anything. I was powerless.

Oh, God. Not again.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

But then the sound stopped. I released the air from my lungs in a groan. I could hear Roeick moving across the room. My back was on fire, and I groaned again from the intense pain. In the middle of my suffering, I thought I heard Nathan’s voice, and he sounded pissed.

“That motherfucker. How in the hell did he find her?” I could hear Roeick’s heart racing, and his breaths were coming out short and heavy. He moved in quick steps toward me. The air thickened with hostility, and when the whooshing sound reached my ears, my muscles stiffened.

“She’s right here, Nathan,” he said, and the whip cracked against my back with such violent anger, I couldn’t help but scream out in agony.

 I think I lost consciousness because the next thing I knew, Roeick had the whip wrapped around my neck, choking me. The leather tore into my skin, cutting off my air. Involuntarily, my head and body moved from side-to-side, struggling to break free.

“Your boyfriend will be here soon. He promised to deliver Aosoth to me in exchange for you.” He released my neck and shoved the back of my head forward. My forehead struck the wall. I coughed and gagged as he continued. I wanted desperately to rub my neck, but couldn’t. “He better keep his word, because if he doesn’t, I’ll kill you.”

Blood dripped down my face, into my mouth, filling it with the taste of copper. I coughed and spat out the blood. I could tell the wounds had healed, but my back still burned. All I could think about was Nathan had Aosoth, and he was coming for me. I swallowed back the sobs when those five words kept replaying in my mind:
he was coming for me.
And although we were no longer together, I was beyond relieved he found me.

“I have to admit,” Roeick said, sounding impressed. “He is one hell of a tracker because nobody knew about the cabin.” He grabbed my chin, jerking it so I had to look at him. A wild lunacy swam in his dark eyes. “I promised him I wouldn’t hurt you.” He leaned closer and pressed his lips to my ear. “But I’m going to let you in on a little secret.” His hot breath blew in my ear, and I scrunched up my face. “I enjoy hurting you. It gives me pleasure.” He stuck his tongue out and licked the side of my face.

“Get away from me, you sick fuck!” I jerked my head away, pressing my ear and cheek against the cold stone.

“If I wasn’t with Aosoth, I’d take you right now,” he said, ignoring me. “But since I can’t have my way with you,” he went on, stepping away. “I’ll beat you again instead.”

Please. Not again.

The blood on my back had already dried, and though the wounds had sealed, my skin felt raw and sore. I so didn’t want him to do it again, but I wasn’t about to beg. It seemed if I were to do so, it would fuel his twisted desires. I gritted my teeth when I heard that horrible sound and braced myself.

SNAP!

An agonizing scream ripped through my tight lips when the whip lashed across my back where the old wounds were, and a white-hot pain seized my body, shaking it uncontrollably. At the same time a thunderous bang vibrated through the chamber followed by a fierce primal snarl.

“I’m sorry!” The whip smacked the concrete floor. “Here’s–here’s the key. Take her and leave us alone.” There was a loud thud and several cracking noises. Roeick howled. “My legs! My legs! You broke them!” He was crying, and I wondered about Aosoth and what Nathan had done to her.

Then a gentle hand rested on the back of my head. Tears spilled down my cheeks from the humiliation and relief I felt. I should have listened to Zeruel and stayed home. I peeked at Nathan, wishing he didn’t have to see me this way. When our eyes connected the hardness in his dark blue eyes melted for a brief second. But then they froze over, and his face became hard. He quickly unlocked my shackles, and I stumbled to the floor. When he caught me, I yelped from the pain of him touching my back.