Lost Protector (Midworlder Trilogy Book 3)

by Maggie Mundy

  Anne stared into the dark as she shuffled forward. She squinted. Yep, there was definitely a faint glow. Maybe the person had a torch or a light. She willed her dream body to take steps toward the person.

  After what had happened with Virgil, she should have been running in the opposite direction, but somehow Anne knew the person in the dark needed her. It didn’t make any sense, but then again none of this did.

  She needed to hurry or the person would be lost forever if she didn’t help them.

  Where the hell had that illogical thought come from?

  Anne drew closer to the light. A man lay on the floor and his body glowed faintly. The man writhed in pain but didn’t seem aware of her presence. He screamed out again. Anne called to him. It might be foolish, but she hoped someone would help her in the same situation, even in a dream.

  “Let me help you.” Anne didn’t have a clue what she could do in this dream world. A short while ago, she’d asked the universe for an angel and didn’t send one. This guy needed help just as much. Maybe they could help each other.

  He stopped screaming and turned on his side. His arms wrapped around his abdomen as he trembled. He gazed at her, and then shook his head as if he didn’t believe what he saw. He reached out his hand and seemed so sad. Anne had an overpowering need to reach out and embrace him. To tell him everything would be all right. She stepped closer and stretched out her hand to connect with his.

  “Who are you?” he asked.

  “Anne. I was calling for an angel. Is that what you are?” she asked as her fingers reached toward his. As soon as the two of them touched, she woke up.

  Shaking, she sat up back in the room Virgil had dumped her in. The drugs must be wearing off. The kidnapping had been real. She huddled into the corner of the bed and drew the covers around her as if the material would offer some protection. Who were these people or creatures? And who was the man in the dream? Did he exist?

  Chapter 3

  New Visitor

  It took all of Soren’s energy, but he sat up from the cold floor and leaned back against the wall. The room no longer spinned around him and his gut had stopped churning. The back of his throat was raw from the acid in his vomit. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been out. As usual, his fellow householders left him on the floor. Maybe the Midworlders thought he would contaminate them. If he could give them some deadly disease, he would. Shit, why wasn’t he dead? Being alive meant the torment could continue.

  The rest of the house was kept neat and clean for Cameron’s extravagant guests. The clients didn’t come to somewhere as basic as the kitchen. People paid a lot of money to be part of the outrageous parties Cameron held. Parties where anything the customer wanted could be catered for. A lot of big names came here and liked their perversions kept secret. One of the guys in the Enclave said many of the clients came from interstate because they didn’t like to mess on their own patch. Why the fuck did people have to mess at all?

  Cameron would only allow him into the main house if he wanted him to service one of the female clients. Soren was in no condition for sex at the moment. Smelling of blood and vomit would not exactly turn someone on.

  When he returned from Pergor, Soren wanted the darkness to take him. He would rather die here than go back to Liliath’s administrations. Fuck, he hated her. When Virgil had dumped him on the floor, his body had gone cold like it did every time before. His mind had taken him to a place of darkness and constant pain. He imagined someone slicing through his skin with a knife until his whole body would be covered with scars. When he could take no more, the pain would start all over again. In the dark world of his dreams, he heard only one thing. His own screams.

  This time had been different. This time, as the darkness encompassed his brain and his skull cracked as some unknown force crushed it, a light appeared. Just a little pinpoint, but then it grew. He didn’t know what it was, or if he was losing his mind for good, but he sent his thoughts out toward it. In his dream, he thought he was dying, and this was what would come next. He could only hope things could not get any worse when death came.

  The light got closer, and he could see a face. A woman. The light glowed around her head, illuminating her blonde hair with streaks of red running through. She looked a bit crazy, so she would fit in well in his fucked-up brain. She said something about calling for an angel to come and save her. He wasn’t in a situation where he could help anyone, and he certainly wasn’t an angel. She said her name was Anne. As soon as she touched his fingers, she disappeared. Did he really think anyone or anything would come and save him? On Earth and in Pergor, people just watched out for themselves.

  When the woman went, so did any sense of comfort. Life-giving air leeched out of his lungs as if he tumbled back to Earth from a great height. He didn’t have wings and he couldn’t fly like the other Midworlders. A shit ending to a dream was what he expected, and was what he got. When he hit the imaginary ground, all went black.

  Now he sat in the kitchen with a bucket next to him. It reeked of vomit. He doubted any of the dreams over the years were real apart from being sick.

  With a groan, he stood, and surprisingly he found his legs could hold him upright. He grabbed the bucket, headed to the toilet, and got rid of its contents before the smell made him spew again. He needed to get to his room at the back of the house away from everyone. He would shower but never feel clean.

  The water stung Soren’s skin as he let it run full bore on his back. It could remove the stench but not make him whole on the inside. His stomach gurgled as he dried off. He needed to eat something and hoped he could keep it down. He grabbed some slacks and a T-shirt. The kitchen and a sharp knife to his wrist seemed the best solution right now.

  Virgil stood door two rooms up from his. Soren had the feeling he must have missed something in the night. He had been so out of it he would not have heard a bomb go off. Then again, he didn’t want to know most of the shit going down in this house.

  Virgil glared his way as he approached. The members of the house only acknowledged Soren when they wanted something. Like the others, Virgil saw him as a freak, and they were right. Soren always thought Virgil was a giant, so it was a case of the pot calling the kettle black. They were both odd.

  Virgil placed his hand against Soren’s chest. “I need to take a leak. Hold the fort for me. I know you’re useless, but do you think you can stand in one spot for a few minutes without stuffing up?”

  “Who’s in there?” Soren asked.

  “Some wild female without a Guardian attached. Her hair has streaks of red it. Like she painted it with blood. Fucking weird, if you ask me. There were no Angelics around, so she’s ours. Cameron will take her over to Pergor later. Reckons some Elevated might be interested in her.”

  Virgil always exaggerated, but this time Soren thought the bullshit might be true. Soren watched Virgil saunter down the corridor. Could it just be a coincidence the woman in his dream had streaked blonde hair as well? His curiosity got the better of him as he turned the key in the lock. The curtains were half drawn in the room, but he could still make out a form on the bed. The woman lay on her side, her wavy hair coving her face.

  Soren bent down and gently swept the woman’s hair back with his finger. His breath caught and heart thumped hard at what he was seeing. Every part of his body stiffened at the thought something else crazy was about to happen. It was her. Even with her eyes closed he could tell. The woman in the darkness really existed and was here. She opened her eyes wide with what he could only imagine to be utter fear as she stared at him.

  She shuffled back on the bed and up against the wall. Her gaze glanced past him to the door like she was a frightened rabbit caught in the headlights of a car.

  “Where am I? Who the hell are you?”

  “My name’s Soren. You’re at the Adelaide Enclave for Demonic Midworlders.
How did you get into my dream? You called for help.”

  She shook her head then stared beyond him again. Soren could sense the heat of someone standing behind him and turned. Virgil leaned against the doorjamb with his arms folded across his chest. The stillness didn’t last long as the giant of a man stormed across and yanked him into the hall. Out of the corner of his eyes, Soren watched the woman crawl to the end of the bed. She was going to make a run for it.

  Virgil glared back at her. “I would stay put if I was you. I can tie you to the bed if I have to. In fact, I think I’d enjoy it.”

  Soren glanced back at the woman. She crawled back up to the top of the bed again.

  “Help,” she mouthed.

  “Get out of here, Soren,” Virgil said as he locked the door again. “You know you’re not meant to mingle with the guests unless it’s required. You won’t be fucking this one.”

  Soren didn’t know much, but he was pretty sure in a normal world you didn’t lock your guests up. No, the woman was like him, a prisoner in this house. His room wasn’t locked, but Cameron had made it clear that without the visits to Pergor, he would be dead in a matter of weeks. He’d made sure Soren knew it would be a particularly painful death. His description went along the lines of your body ripping itself apart. As if living wasn’t painful enough.

  Soren tromped downstairs to the kitchen and grabbed a drink and some food. His stomach still ached from the retching, but he would pretend things were normal. It was nighttime, so the other members of the Enclave were asleep or out.

  No one joined him in the kitchen as he sat and contemplated. A short while ago he wanted to slit his wrists, but not now. His body tingled since he had touched the woman. He sipped on his soda, but all he could think about was the woman upstairs. He didn’t understand what was happening, but Soren was certain the two of them were connected in some way. The truth was anyone deserved better than to be connected to him.

  She needed help, and he wanted out of this life he was living. He would help her escape. If anyone in the Enclave caught him, they might try to kill him. He hoped they succeeded. There was no way he would go through another session with Liliath. He glanced out the back door. It was still dark outside, but the sun would be up in a few hours. He couldn’t risk waiting until Cameron came back, or he would never get her away. It would be his epitaph to go out in a blaze of glory and to have at least done something good in his life.

  Soren took his plate of food and walked back upstairs. As he passed Virgil, he let the plate tip sideways so his sandwich fell on the floor. His snack landed on Virgil’s shoe, leaving a smear of dressing, causing the bear of a man to growl.

  “You fucking idiot,” Virgil said as he stood above him and sneered.

  Soren crouched then picked up the bread and meat and shoved them back onto the plate. He smiled as he took in a deep breath and straightened. As he came up, he aimed a punch at Virgil’s chin. His hand connected with the Midworlder’s face, which caused a resounding crack. The bones in Soren’s hands went into spasm at the impact. He imagined the big oaf’s jaw cracking in two. Virgil fell back and slowly slid down the wall to the floor. One thing Soren knew for certain. He needed to work fast if he was going to save the woman from his dreams.

  Thankfully, the key was still in the lock. Soren opened the door to find the woman sitting on the bed clutching a pillow to her chest. The look of terror on her face didn’t lessen at the sight of him. Why would it? He was just some stranger in a house she’d been kidnapped and taken to. He wouldn’t have trusted him either. But Soren knew he didn’t have time to gain her trust, and they needed to move, or this would all be pointless.

  “If you want to get out of here, you need to follow me now.” He held out his hand. She stared at it and then back up at his face but didn’t move. “I need you to trust me. The others in this house are like him and they won’t have any problem with making you suffer more. I will help you get out.”

  She jumped off of the bed, threw the pillow aside, and grabbed his hand. It was probably just the fact of needing the touch of someone else, but his whole body relaxed and he sighed. It wasn’t something he did much. He wanted to pick her up and swing her around. What the fuck? Tingles before and now this. He shook his head to get himself back to reality.

  He gripped the woman’s hand and guided her down the landing to the back of the house. Soren yanked the lever to open the external fire escape. The warm night air hit him after the cool air conditioning of the house. The night was still hot with a strong North wind which made the gum trees bend and sway.

  He closed the door behind them and motioned for her to follow. At the bottom of the steps, he signaled for her to track through the trees to the garage. He kept to the shadows as the security lights from the house lit up the surrounding area.

  Inside the garage, he could make out three cars in the dim light. The keys were left on a rack inside the door, depending on who wanted to drive. He had driven around the city with some of the Midworlders before but never got out of the car. In the past, he had told himself he couldn’t afford to be away from the Enclave if one of his dark moods threatened. Random dead bodies around Adelaide caused attention. He grabbed the keys to the old van. He reckoned the other cars were all too big and noticeable.

  The woman jumped in on the passenger side. Soren pressed the button for the garage door to open and hoped the sound wouldn’t wake anyone. He drove out as quietly as he could. So far, so good. No one was rushing out of the house and following them down the driveway. It would not be long before someone noticed she was gone. Once Virgil came around, all hell would break loose. As he drove through the main gate, he realized he didn’t have a clue where to go. He hadn’t really thought beyond getting her out of the house. Soren turned toward at the woman. Her arms were folded around her chest as she stared at the road ahead.

  “Where do you want to go?” Soren asked.

  “I don’t know. This is ridiculous shit. My aunt's place, I suppose. I need to get some of my things and go somewhere they can’t find me.”

  Soren knew the quickest thing to do would be to read her mind, but he would not be surprised if she said get stuffed. He pulled over.

  “Why are you stopping?” She reached for the door handle.

  He didn’t want to scare her but knew there would be no point in her running. “You need to get away from here fast. If I touch your temple, I can read your mind and find out where the address is. It’s quicker than you trying to tell me.”

  She didn’t move. If they stayed here any longer, they risked the others finding them. He touched her arm. She jumped as if burned. Then she turned toward him with tears in her eyes.

  “I’ve been kidnapped by guys who can control minds and bodies. You come and rescue me and say you want to enter my head. At his point, I want to jump out of this car and run. But where the fuck would I go?”

  Soren allowed her time to come to the only logical conclusion.

  She hesitated for a moment and then nodded.

  “Thank you for your trust.”

  “You can read minds. Who the hell are you people? You’ll only look for the address, right? I’ll admit your lot’s weird, but my family isn’t normal either. You don’t want to mess around in my head.”

  Soren nodded. He had never considered the people in the Enclave his family but didn’t say anything. He placed his fingers on her right temple. The calm he sensed before filtered through to him again. In his mind, he could see the address and picture the house form in her mind. He moved away from her and she let out a sigh. He drove away but still constantly checked the rearview mirror to see if they were being followed. He wanted to say something to comfort her but, “It’s all going to be fine,” would not work, so he kept silent.

  “Tell me, are they going to come after me again?” she asked.

  He would n
ot lie to her. She needed to know as much as he could tell her. “They will try.”

  She wrapped her arms around her middle and stared out the side window. Soren wished for better news for her. Wishing did nothing.

  “What did I ever do to them? Are you all some sort of super mind-reading guys the government has trained? Virgil chatted about Demonics and Guardians and some other crap.”

  “No, they’re not involved with the government. The people back at the house want you because you don’t have a Guardian.”

  “I don’t even know what you mean. Is it like a guardian angel or something? It’s the pixie angels I see, isn’t it? I used to see mine all the time when I was a kid. When I grew up, she went away. Thought I’d imagined it. Tonight I saw her again after all these years.”

  Soren knew some humans could see their Guardians, but it was rare. The Demonic Midworlders said those people were usually insane. Anne didn’t appear insane. Her eyes were wide and her whole body trembled, but she seemed rational.

  “The people at the Enclave are Midworlders, or what you would call aliens. They watch over the Guardians attached to people.” Soren expected her to open the car door and jump out at his comment.

  “Aliens. You’re fucking kidding me,” Anne said as she glared at him.

  Soren studied the road ahead. Would she believe any of this, anyway?

  “You’re not kidding, are you?”

  Soren shook his head. “The Guardians, or what humans call Guardian angels, are only here in spirit. They absorb energy from the people they’re connected to. Their real form is maintained on another world.”