56. Chapter Fifty-Six
Chapter Fifty-Six
Sapphira
IN THE WOODS OF THE HUMAN REALM OUTSIDE RALEIGH NORTH CAROLINA
I had a killer headache.
“This is why you gotta drink more water when we go hiking, Sapphira.”
That voice.
I opened my eyes and looked up at Mariam’s face. Right. My neighbor.
Slowly, she helped me rise to my feet. My body swayed, and the headache flared.
A plane flew overhead and I covered my ears from the sound. Why was it so loud? Fuck, my head.
“Yeah, maybe hiking near the airport was a bad idea. Let’s get back to the car and get you home.”
Home. My gut twisted.
Then the sky turned black.
Which was nice for my headache, but skies weren’t supposed to be black.
Mariam stepped closer, and I noticed she had splatters on her clothes. “That’s not good,” she said, her gaze on the sky.
Did she hurt someone? I looked for blood on myself, but an explosion sent a shockwave through the woods, taking us to the ground.
The darkness disappeared. I looked at the sky, my focus on the sound of screams, and a clanking engine of an airplane on fire.
My headache flared as pain in my palms shot through me like I’d been stabbed.
“Shit. This isn’t good. Sapphira. Shit.” Mariam stood in front of me, arms wide as if she’d protect me from a crashing airplane.
I didn’t know what was happening around us. We should run. I’m pretty sure that plane was coming down nearby. But I couldn’t stand, and the darkness that had shot through the sky surrounded me.
“Don’t worry, Sapphira. You’ve got a warrior’s core. This is not your end.” Mariam covered me with her body, eyes on the sky.
A warrior’s core.
My chest ached for something I couldn’t understand. Searching, reaching for into the world for… For what?
This is not my end.
I’ve heard that before, but I couldn’t remember where.
If I survived the horrors, I’d have to ask Mariam why those few words were so familiar.