Page 44 of When Storms Ruin

He stood, his eyes landing on me. But he couldn’t see me, could he? His lips curved into a sinister smile and I let out a guttural scream, pulled from the very depth of my soul when I saw that the eyes looking back at me were now entirely black.

“Diana, Diana!” Nik’s voice was frantic, his hands on my shoulders, shaking me awake. “Diana! You need to wake up!”

I blinked back the tears that welled in my eyes, the familiar sight of my bedroom in the Prins Townhouse coming into focus. I couldn’t catch my breath, no matter how hard I tried to fill my lungs with air.

“I’ve got you, I’ve got you. Just breathe.” Nik’s voice turned soothing as he saw my eyes snap open, the tears rolling softly down my cheeks.

He held me to him, rubbing a hand in soothing circles against my back. I blinked, the tears staining his shirt as I grabbed it in my fist.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, my voice sounded rough and broken.

I felt absolutely and completely hopeless.

“You were screaming,” he replied, his eyes soft.

Again.

Nik had woken me screaming…again.

When would the nightmares end? Except these weren’t nightmares at all, they were reality.

“I…I…” I tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come out. I was paralyzed by my own fear. Paralyzed by what I had seen in the dream. By what Donika was capable of.

“It’s ok. Just breathe. You don’t need to speak yet. Just breathe.”

Nik held me tighter, his arm wrapping around my shoulder as the tears fell in earnest now. I sobbed into his chest, the visions of black eyes haunting me from behind my closed eyelids.

The only clear thought that could make it through the haze was that I needed to study the Kotova grimoire, and I needed to do it now. I needed to find a spell to even the scales, no matter what it took. Donika was creating an army of corrupted Shades, and if she succeeded, we had no hope of winning this war.

Of surviving.

“Zion is coming back,” I stuttered, pressing back enough to look into Nik’s eyes.

Mother above, Ihatedhim, but I couldn’t help but think…he was always here when I needed him the most.

He searched my eyes in the dark.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“I saw Donika,” I choked out. “She said Zion had left. That he had betrayed her. She sent soldiers after him…but wasn’t hopeful she would find him.”

Nik nodded. “Good, we need his help. It’s about time he stopped playing spy and joined the right side of this war.”

“That’s not all.” My voice sounded strangled as I wiped the tears from my cheeks. I needed to tell him what I saw.

“Donika is creating…monsters,” I started, biting my lip.

“More monsters similar to the Araneoch?” he asked, his hand falling from my shoulder to my thigh where he gave me a reassuring squeeze. My eyes fell to that hand, and I swallowed hard, shaking my head.

“No, not like the Araneoch. People. She is using her black magic on people, infecting them. They are horrible, Nik. Their eyes are as black as hers, but that’s not all. Their veins…they are black, too. Their hands have turned into claws and theirteeth into fangs. Their magic is amplified, more powerful than ever. She is creating an army.”

Nik reached out with his other hand, turning my chin up towards him so I would meet his eyes. When I blinked, another tear spilled forth as I stifled back a sob. I wanted to be strong, but I felt as if I was falling apart. I had tried so hard to push all of these emotions down after escaping the Stormvault, but they were all bubbling to the surface again.

“We will face whatever it is she has done, and we will win.”

“You can’t know that,” I replied, shaking my head, his grip on my chin never wavering.

“Diana…whatever happens, I will be by your side. First thing in the morning we will take this knowledge to the council as we wait for Zion’s return. He might have more information.”

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