Page 68 of Reap the Night
I wanted to yell back that I was trying, but my lips were frozen. Something snagged in my hair and yanked. All I felt was pressure because my body was going numb.
Show us.
Join us.
Be us.
“Orina, throw the salt!”
The specters pressed in on me, stealing my oxygen, and the edges of my vision began to darken.
No. I had to fight. The salt. My hand was in the bag. Just clench and grab a handful. Throw it.
Ours now…
Never leave again.
Stay forever.
My blessed markings heated, and blissful warmth spread down my arm and into my hand, releasing my fingers from the specters’ icy grip. I grabbed a handful of salt and flung it, then another and another until the bag was empty.
The specters screamed, enraged. The blizzard died. I crawled across the floor toward the spirit box.
Dread pressed in on me, vibrating around me as the specters gathered and regrouped. I had no doubt the next assault would be the most violent, and I had nothing to temper it with.
I grabbed the box, scrambled to my feet, and ran for the exit. But the exit shot away from me, the passage growing longer as the malevolent energy behind me gave chase.
Daisy materialized in front of me, gliding backward, her hand held out to me. “Faster! They’re almost on you.”
I pushed harder, thighs burning, lungs aching, my focus on the door. Was it my imagination or was it getting closer?
“Yes!” Daisy said. “You’re doing it. You’re doing it.”
My muscles burned, chest aching with effort as I fought against the specters’ hold. Come on! Come on!
The door rushed to meet me. My fingers grazed the handle, and triumph flared in my chest. The moment lasted a heartbeat before an icy hand grabbed my nape and hauled me away from escape.
The ceiling slammed into me, and agony cut fractured pathways across my body and into my bones.
I lost my grip on the spirit box.
The unseen force shook me, rattling my bones before crushing me to the ground. The air rushed out of my lungs. I gasped, fighting the pressure, eyes bugging because I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t fucking breathe.
Daisy’s dark eyes fixed on the spirit box a mere foot from me. “We had a deal,” she said. “Remember we had a deal.”
“What—”
She dove for the box, and as she made contact, bright light lit up the room, stinging my eyes.
NO!The unified wail battered my ears.
The light flared brighter for a beat before dimming to reveal a motherly figure.
Ingrid…
Her gaze fell to me, her mouth a tight line. “Now you let go of her right this minute,” she snapped.
The power holding me captive eased, and I was free. I rolled onto my side, sucking in lungfuls of air.
