Page 4 of The Rising Dark
“So where are we going?”she asked.Out of London, that much was clear.He had turned onto one of the large roads radiating out of the city.Pools of streetlights flashed by as the car quietly glided down the road.She should probably be nervous that she was in a car with two strangers, going to some unknown location.It certainly wasn’t what her mother had taught her to do, but after the night she’d had, this seemed a safe as anywhere else.
“I’m taking you to our base, where I can keep an eye on you.It’s towards the north, past Nottingham.”It would be at least a couple of hours, then.It was a relief to leave the city, and its demons, behind.The more distance between Michelle and the creature, the better.
Still, she should probably let someone know where she was.If she was being kidnapped in some very elaborate way, at least someone should know where to start looking.
Michelle slipped her phone out of the bag at her feet.Lines like a dense spider web traced across the glass screen.Michelle winced.That was going to be expensive to fix.She was still paying off the phone, and she couldn’t afford a new one any time soon.Luckily, it sprang to life at her touch.She opened up the conversation with her friend Iris and quickly tapped out a message.She wrote that she was staying with a couple of new friends for the weekend, and shared the location on her phone.She watched the little dot on the map steadily moving north for a moment.Iris would see the message in the morning and would almost certainly be full of questions.That was a problem for tomorrow.For now, Michelle felt a little better knowing that at least someone would know where she’d gone.Even if she didn’t exactly know where she was going herself.
If the worst happened, at least Iris would have something to show the police.She smiled to herself at the thought of her short friend yelling at some tree of a detective.The movement pulled on the scratch on her cheek, and turned into a grimace.
Lavinia glanced at her, focusing on the wound.“Is it giving you trouble?”
“Not too much,” Michelle lied.She didn’t want to admit that the scratch throbbed with every beat of her heart.She didn’t want to complain about her scratch when Lavinia was covered in them.She was about to ask Lavinia about hers, when she caught a look at Lavinia’s arms.Michelle did a double take.Even in the bad lighting, it was clear that the skin of her bare arms was smooth and unblemished.
She could have sworn…
“I should have given you some painkillers,” Lavinia said.“Zachary, when we get out of the city, let’s stop at a gas station and get some for Michelle.”
“No, that’s okay—” Michelle started.She didn’t want to be a bother.
“I insist,” Lavinia said with a smile to soften the steel in her voice.Michelle couldn’t help smiling too.It wasn’t often that someone took care of her, instead of the other way around.She settled deeper into the soft leather of the seat and let herself be carried to some mysterious place in the north of England, in the care of this beautiful warrior woman.
Chapter Three
Michelle surfaced from a fitful sleep.Slowly, she regained her senses.First sound, the low rumble of an engine and soft voices, then smell, leather and a whiff of old aftershave and cigarette smoke.It took her a moment to realise where she was, but then the events of the night all streamed back with horrifying clarity.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?”a male voice asked.
“It was the only option.I can’t leave her there.Not only is it too dangerous, she is the only real connection we have to whoever summoned that demon.”
“Luce isn’t going to like it.”
“Luce doesn’t like anything.It’s her job.”
The man chuckled.Zachary, that was his name.“True.”
The leather creaked as Lavinia shifted.“Besides, I’ve got a strange feeling about this.She isn’t one of us, so why is she a target?It seems strange, and I want to know what’s going on.”
“You know what they’re like.There isn’t always a rational reason why they do the things they do.”
Lavinia sighed.“I know you’re right.But something about this feels off.”
“You’re getting attached.”There was a note of reproach in Zachary’s voice.
“I know,” Lavinia said softly.“But I can’t stand idly by either.And neither could you, if you were in my position.”
A pause, and then Zachary said, “True.Sorry.It’s not my place to criticise you.”He sounded embarrassed.
“I am always happy to hear your thoughts.Even the insolent ones.”
Both of them laughed, the tension dissipating.
In the silence that followed, Michelle blinked the sleep from her eyes and peeled her face from the leather seat.Lavinia smiled at her, and her heart skipped a beat.Damn, she was gorgeous.In the twilight of the car interior, it was almost as if she glowed.Her pupils were pools of darkness in which it would be so easy to drown.“We’ll be there soon,” Lavinia said.
“I can’t believe I fell asleep.”Michelle started to rub her eyes, then remembered the scratch, and thought better of it.
“You’ve had a big shock.Plus, it’s pretty late.”The clock on the car dashboard read 3:30 AM.They had left the glow of the city behind, driving down a dark highway with hills rising around them.Only a few distant rear lights flared ahead, like beacons in the dark.
“That usually doesn’t bother me,” Michelle explained.“I’m a nurse, late hours are part of the job.When I have the evening shift, I usually don’t get home until one at night anyway.After a shower and some food, it can easily be two or three in the morning.”
