Chapter 7 Unveil
CHAPTER SEVEN
UNVEIL
A nightwalker cannot take a human consort.
— Serun’s Law
Light brown hair. Dark brown eyes. Creamy skin. Quite ordinary? He has no scars, no stern expression, nor does he strike me as the kind of person who could instil fear at the sight of him.
He is young. In his early twenties or maybe even late teens—it’s hard to tell.
Regardless, he is a Bleeder who just sent Bianca off to a settlement. Does that mean she is alright? That Summer is alive?
Maybe Emily and Manni will know more. I grew up in a village by the water, far from prying eyes. I didn’t know much about the world until I got here.
I shuffle back and turn around, running straight into the hanging light.
“Shit,” I blurt out as I reach for the swaying bulb to steady it.
Shaking fingers settle the movement, and with a sigh, I look down into the room.
My stomach drops at the sight of a Bleeder staring up at the vent.
Even though they wear a mask, it’s like they are looking directly at me.
The Bleeder’s hand rests against the gun secured to his hip. “God, is that you?” An earnest hope lathers his otherwise dry tongue.
I clamp my mouth shut. He thinks I’m a nightwalker.
I could shatter my glamour and pretend to be his “god”, but do I want to? Am I ready to reveal what I’ve been trying to escape from my entire life?
Another voice seems to flow from the darkness, smooth and elegant. “Yes.”
The Bleeder turns away from the vent and faces the shadows behind them. Silence stretches out while my heart pounds like drums against my ribcage, aching with fresh waves of panic surging in my throat.
Darkness consumes the light, swallowing the fluorescent lights. It tremors. Alive. Creeping up to the ceiling and dripping like melting paint in a house fire.
The Bleeder moves closer to the shadows. “God?”
The darkness dripping from the ceiling splits and trembles. They move, cleaving into clawlike fingers to hover on either side of the Bleeder’s head. The slowness of the movement keeps my heart in the pit of my stomach.
That thing is no god.
Shadows pool across most of the room, marking the line between the light where the Bleeder stands and the darkness that swallows everything in sight.
I creep back, when suddenly, the oozing inky hands snatch at the Bleeder and pull him into the night.
My stomach tightens, and my arms stiffen. As desperately as I want to flee, I can’t tear my eyes from the moving shadows. Gargled coughs echo from its depths, then a splash of crimson splatters across the tiles.
The darkness trembles, rippling like tar bubbling over an unfinished road. And when the choking sounds subside, there is a thump, and a head rolls into the light.
The shadows move again, swallowing everything in their path. They glide across steel tables, chairs, and papers until they coalesce in a corner.
I back up, only to hit the fucking light, again! Losing sight of the room below, I curse under my breath as I grab the light and position it back above the vent. Once it stabilises, I scan the area, but the…thing…has vanished.
The rest of the Bleeder’s body lies in a pool of blood, with fleshy splatters congealing everywhere. In the centre, there is a neat, clean note resting on the mess.
Fuck this.
I dash back the way I came, up to the first floor, and make it to my room unscathed. Yet my body still responds to what I saw. My fingers tremble as I grip the vent, making more noise than usual as I slide it to the side.
Shaky breaths splutter from me as I recall how the shadow moved. How it killed.
I kick my feet down through the opening, and as I shuffle to the edge, there’s a bite of ice on my exposed skin. With it, a chill sweeps along my neck as I drop down onto my bed.
Manni lets out a choked cry.
“Shit,” I exhale, stepping off her chest. “Sorry!”
Emily is wide awake, eagerly waiting for an update as Manni returns to her own bed. But before I speak, I close the vent.
“So?” Emily bounces up and down, making me believe she has actual working springs in her mattress. “Did you see anything?”
I nod, grab the edge of the mattress, and peer into the bottom bunk. Cole is still asleep. I sit up and shuffle until I find a comfortable spot. “They took her to Padbury.”
“Padbury?” Manni furrows her brow. “That’s near where I lived after I left Sydal with my family.”
“Where are you from again?” Emily asks.
“Raynel. On the edge of Pyra’s border.” Manni turns her focus back on me. “Why are they taking her across the state?”
“They said it was a settlement that would take her in…like Summer.” I gesture to the back of my neck. “They gave her a barcode here.”
They exchange bewildered glances, just as confused as I am.
Manni looks back over at me. “Why take them across the state? And why a barcode?”
“Maybe they’re protecting pregnant women?” Emily shrugs.
“To secure the future of their food source,” I murmur. Emily and Manni look as if they are starting to grasp what is happening. “Maybe that’s why they don’t mind if we fuck around.”
With a yawn, Emily says, “Well, I guess I am going to fuck Dan again and hope for the best.”
Manni glares at Emily. “You’d really risk it? And remember, it would just be you. Dan couldn’t come along!”
“So?” Emily laughs bitterly. “I ain’t gonna die for some dick. If I get a shot at freedom, I’ll grab it.”
I pick at my cuticles. “We still have our escape plan.”
“And what if that fails again? At least I’ve got this as a backup,” Emily says. “Tell Jax I’ll be heading through the vent tomorrow night. I want to see Dan.”
“Okay,” I say with a nod.
Manni leans back in her bed and faces me. “See anything else?”
I press my lips together, biting at the skin as I ponder whether to tell them about the Bleeder and the creature who killed him. Would it just add fuel to the fire?
Besides, I don’t want them to tell Jax.
I lie flat and burrow deeper into my sheets. “Laura was finger-blasting herself over Jax.”
Emily starts choking, sits up quickly and hits her head on the bars of the top bunk. Manni cackles as Emily moan-laughs. A breathy chuckle escapes me before I press my lips together and bite down on my smile.