The Imdalind Series Books 8-10: Expanded Ruby Collection (Complete Imdalind Collection Book 3) by Rebecca Ethington

Author:Rebecca Ethington [Ethington, Rebecca]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Imdalind Press
Published: 2021-08-17T22:00:00+00:00

51

Ilyan

The smell of blood was everywhere.

It hung in the air in waves of acid and salt as I sat amongst the bodies, the limp things rolling off me as I stood. Arms and wings of the tiny creatures moved as though possessed before they hit the floor with a lifeless ‘thunk’, joining the piles of the others.

They were everywhere. Hundreds of them. They covered the floor, they hung from the television and the hard plastic chairs, they sagged over the rails of the hospital bed that Kaye lay under.

Her eyes were wide as she stared at me, the brown flooded with fear.

“Are you okay?” I asked with that same heavy accent I had in my dream.

She breathed heavier, letting out several soft screams as she scuttled out from under the bed, ripping off her jacket as she jumped to stand.

“Kaye,” I said in an attempt to get her attention, but she continued to pour over her body, ripping off shoes and jeans as she stripped.

“Katenka,” I said again, using her full name as I rushed toward her, stepping on a Vilỳ in my attempt to get to her.

She still did not turn.

“Kaye!” I yelled grabbing her forearms as she finished removing her shirt, the fabric wadded in her fist.

Her focus shifted back to me, eyes wide in panic as she stared at me. She stood in only her underwear, chest heaving behind a bright red bra.

I didn’t look away from her eyes, I forced myself to maintain her focus, to breathe slowly so as to help calm her down.

But I still saw.

I saw what I had seen before but in the panic hadn’t understood.

Her hair was longer, her face was thinner, her body matured.

She was older.

Older than the girl who had giggled in hiding on the side of my bed.

I could feel my own panic growing, but I pushed it away.

“What happened?” I demanded, my accent thick under the power of my voice.

Angry tears welled behind Kaye’s eyes as she attempted to jerk away from my hold, the panic that momentarily ebbed flooding right back.

“I have to check…” she growled, continuing to push me away. “I have to know if I was bitten.”

“You would feel it if you were. It would burn like fire in your veins. You would already be screaming.”

The words were confident, self-assured, and I knew that they were true.

It was only then that Kaye looked at me. The fear of a bite left, the panic of what had just happened subsided and she froze under my hands.

“I need you to answer me, Kaye. What happened?”

“You’re alive,” she panted, taking a step closer as though she was going to rush into my arms. Luckily, she thought better of it.

“Yes.” I kept my voice calm even if inside I was panicking as much as she was. “But I need to know what happened Kaye. What happened to me? What is going on?”

“You’re …” Her awe vanished in a snap, her focus twisting from me to the Vilỳ, and back again.

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