Horizon

by Christie Rich

  A clattering in the hall startles me. What has she done now?

  I fling the door out of the way and am into the hallway before she can yank another sconce off the wall.

  She whirls around then throws herself onto the discarded candelabra before she brandishes it in front of her like a sword. “Stay away from me!” she demands in a hoarse voice.

  No small miracle she still has a voice with all the screaming she’s done. Hot wax clings to her flesh, and I know it has to hurt. However, her eyes are feral and her body shaking.

  “Amelia,” I whisper. “Calm down.”

  “Don’t you tell me to calm down, you sadistic freak! What did you give me? I’m hallucinating, right? This can’t be real. This can’t be real!”

  My instincts tell me to show her just how real this is, but I slow the rushing blood in my veins. “I know how frightening this must be for you,” I say. “Please, come back inside.”

  She shakes her head. “What’s the point in having a hallway if it doesn’t go anywhere?”

  I’ve asked myself the same question for millennia. Unfortunately, I still do not have an answer. With cautious movements, I raise my hand toward her. “Please, Amelia. Come back inside. We’ll talk.”

  “And what else?” she hisses at me.

  It’s not hard for me to catch her insinuation. I shake my head. “I will not harm you. I make a solemn vow to never harm you.”

  Her tongue flits out and slides along her bottom lip. I close my eyes against the image. She should not do such things. Hoping she will follow me, I swallow and turn away from her, away from my instincts.

  The candlestick twangs against the cobbles before her sobs fill the space. I’ve never hated myself more than I do in this moment.

  She doesn’t even protest when I pick her up and carry her into her room. Baltek moans at me as I walk by. I give him a silent command and he takes his place on the rug. I’ve neglected him today. I’ll have to make it up to him later.

  Amelia cries into my shoulder, and I want nothing more than to hold her for the rest of eternity, yet I have to let her go.

  I lay her down gently, and she curls into a ball. I’ve been expecting this reaction from her; I just never thought it would cut so deep. “Rest well, sweet one. I’ll be in my room if you need me.” Before I make it out the door, I turn back to her. She doesn’t respond, but I’m quite sure she’s listening to my every breath. “And Amelia, you may ask me any question you like, but know this: I will always tell you the truth.”

  Amelia

  I cry for hours or days; maybe it’s been years. I don’t know.

  What I do know is that I have to stop. I have to think. Being irrational won’t get me out of this place.

  Seth was so gentle with me, too gentle. I can’t imagine why a man like him would have to resort to kidnapping to get a woman, but maybe he gets off on it. I shudder at the thought. I don’t know a thing about him, and it’s beginning to scare me more than I want it to.

  I’m not quite awake, but no matter what I do I can’t fall asleep.

  I flop onto my back and stare at the ceiling. My stomach aches from crying and my eyes throb to the beat of my pulse. It’s as if every part of me is aware of Seth, even though he’s sitting in the next room.

  My fingers ball up and I pound the mattress. I blew it. I totally had things under control until I had to go and let my inner wimp convince me that I was long overdue for a tantrum.

  Maybe I was.

  But as I lay here in the candlelit room, I’m convinced the only way I will ever get out of here is to go with the flow. The only problem is I can’t seem to make myself get up because, once I do, I’ll have to talk to him. I’ll have to look into his entrancing eyes and hope I can clean up the mess I’ve made.

  I meander toward the door but stop when I notice my reflection in the mirror. Someone unrecognizable stares back at me. I’ve dealt with pain. I’ve dealt with heartache, but I’ve never felt this lonely…this isolated.

  I’m sure that’s what he wants me to feel. Too bad for him, I’m no wilting rose. Justine taught me to be strong, and I’m not about to cower in this room for days or weeks when I can still function. I’m gonna see what his deal is one way or another, but he’d better watch out. This rattler is ready to strike.

  I shake my head at my reflection. Big talker, I tell myself, wondering what I did to get myself into this predicament. For years I’ve prided myself on being hyperaware of everything around me, yet I never noticed him. Not once.

  There’s no way I’ve ever seen him before. I would have recognized someone as hot as he is, so my only conclusion can be that he is pretty darn good at stalking. Another shiver slices through me.

  Why’d he have to be so nutso anyway? If he wanted a date all he had to do was introduce himself, maybe suggest a movie and dinner after flirting with me for a while. Now, there’s just too much weirdness involved for me to ever be willing to think of him in a romantic way, no matter how he looks. My inner voice shoots me a yeah right, but I ignore her. She isn’t the one in control here. I am.

  The only thing is—how am I going to get his guard down without chumming up to him? More importantly, how in the world am I gonna convince him that he needs to let me go?

  I glance in the mirror again. Man, I need a shower, but I’m afraid to ask where the facilities are. Unfortunately, my bladder isn’t about to let me get away with that excuse for long. I peruse the room again looking for a door that I know doesn’t exist.

  There’s an enormous closet thing against the far wall I didn’t notice before. Maybe it’s a wardrobe. Either way, it takes up nearly the entire wall, which, in this room, is saying something. The dark wood is carved in intricate scrollwork that matches the bed.

  The place is elegant. I’ve never seen something so ritzy in my life. I’m kind of afraid to touch anything, yet all my fingers want to do is trace the oval inlay in front of me. The scene is of some kind of lake with wildlife all around it. What’s weird, though, is there’s a creature hidden behind a grouping of trees. Only its outline is visible. It could be a bear on its hind legs, but for some reason, I don’t think it is.

  I let my fingertips glide along the wood, wondering who made this piece, wondering if it somehow could transport me into the magical land depicted in its glassy depths, away from this stifling space, away from Seth.

  When I pull open the doors, I’m surprised to see a gigantic rack full of freshly pressed dresses, skirts, shirts and pants. Along one side is a row of shelves with sweaters. Shoes in every assortment I can imagine rest on the bottom shelf.

  A husky voice cuts through my musing. “Ah, I see you’ve found your wardrobe.”

  Feeling rather than seeing his approach my body stiffens. I thought he was going to stay in his room.

  I grit my teeth, pretending his presence doesn’t affect me as much as it does, pretending he’s invisible. It doesn’t work. “Leave me alone,” I say. I’m not ready to see his face, or am I just not ready to face him?

  He doesn’t answer right away, but he doesn’t leave either. I’m sure he’s waiting for me to acknowledge him, and he’s gonna be waiting until hell is blessed with its first frost.

  His arm brushes my shoulder as he sidles in next to me. I make myself step away and walk calmly toward the bed, knowing there’s no use in me sprinting past him again. A burning rage ignites inside me. It’s all I can do to keep myself from landing a solid punch to his pristine face.

  I can’t risk it. Beatings I can take, but I’m still not sure what he wants from me, so I’m saving my strength in case I need it.

  When he clears his throat, I whirl around, expecting to see frustration in his blue eyes, but all I see is patience, which only manages to make my blood bubble a little more. I grit my teeth then say, “What do you want from me, Seth? Don’t give me that crap about dreams, either. I’m not in the mood.”

  Authors I Enjoy Reading

  If you are like me you read much faster than y
our favorite authors can write. I honestly wish I could release a book a day, but alas, the writing process is much more time consuming than the reading process, lol.

  I thought you might like to know some of the authors I’ve read lately that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed. Here they are in no particular order.

  Nancy Straight—her Touched Series is one of the most original I’ve encountered. Blood Debt is the first book and I had to finish that book! I even took it grocery shopping with me. I think the other customers thought I was insane when I yelled, “No way!” right in the middle of the frozen section. The Centaurs in this series are gentlemen and they are hot. What more could you want? Oh, how about a free book? Meeting Destiny from her Destiny series is free for download. That was a great series, too, but I love the Touched Series more.

  Helen Boswell—I’m reading Mythology right now, and it has me glued to the pages. I love her concept of Angels, which she calls guardians, and Demons. This is a refreshing read that hasn’t let me down yet.

  CJ Archer—Holy crow, I love this woman’s writing. I read her Emily Chambers Spirit Medium Trilogy. The first book in the series is free. The minute I started reading I was pulled into the story. Miss Archer writes both YA and Adult regency romances that seem to always have a bit of the paranormal in them.

  SM Boyce—If you have a bit of a fantasy lover in you, you might enjoy Boyce’s Grimoire Trilogy. It has an epic feel, but it is more modern than other epics I’ve read. There’s a deep seeded Romance throughout the books, so far, and I’m totally into it. Two books are out in the series and the third should come out sometime this fall. Oh, and did I mention that Boyce has recently made Lichgates free?

  Rebecca Hamilton—Her Forever Girl Series is original and heart pounding. I loved the world she created and her vampire mythology is different than any I’ve seen. It’s taking her a bit longer than I want to get the books out, but she runs her own publishing company and is the mother of young children. I’m giving her a bit of slack, lol. The next in the series will be released this year.

  There are so many others I love, but these are a few of the authors you may not have heard of that I’ve absolutely enjoyed. I’d love to hear your recommendations, too. Friend me on Goodreads and we can talk about books!