Face the Dark (Hunters of the Dark #3)
Page 35
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Now that we’ve neutralized the werewolf threat,” Hunter said, back at the mansion, where he spoke to them in the infirmary over Rachel’s bed. “We can concentrate on the situation with this sleep demon, which is far more serious that we expected, it seems.”
Shanna watched Rachel’s chest rise and fall and felt a growing panic within that that could be her the next time she closed her eyes.
“Her vitals seem to be just fine,” Jade announced, looking over some charts. “She just won’t wake up.”
“Well, this isn’t a medical issue,” Amelia said impatiently. “This is supernatural. What we need to do is figure out why it’s here, what it is, and then kill it.”
“Like you did with the werewolves?” Brett challenged.
Amelia glared at him as Hunter commanded the attention of the room again. “The scholars will be working with us to identify the creature that Shanna and Rachel have described. Many are already hard at work in the library, where I encourage each of you to go as well.”
“Of course,” Jordan nodded.
“And hopefully, we can do away with this other threat as quickly as we did Trivillis.”
They all left the infirmary, save Felicia, who was going to be monitoring Rachel and keeping them apprised of any change in her condition.
“This seems hopeless,” Jordan said, walking slowly down the hall beside his sister. “The scholars have already been looking for this, and did you see how many books are in that library? If what we need is in any of them at all…”
“Hey,” Cameron looked back sharply. “We’re going to find what we need to find.”
Jordan glanced away, nodding glumly.
“I still think there’s some sort of connection between Trivillis and this other demon,” Amelia voiced. “Maybe if I can find out who marked us, it’ll become clearer, maybe point us toward a solution.”
“It’s worth a shot, at least,” Jade shrugged. “All we have beyond that are these symptoms and a description of the monster. Not much to go on really.”
They fell into silence and drifted apart in the library as Hunter pointed them toward texts that still needed to be investigated, but Shanna couldn’t help but feel that Jordan was right. It was overwhelming. They needed to somehow narrow the search. But how exactly were they supposed to do that? She sighed as she flipped open a book, and realized that her eyes were drooping already. She needed more coffee.
“Maybe we could have some adrenaline shots nearby,” Cameron suggested, watching her from across the table. “Just in case.”
Wrinkling her nose, Shanna slowly shook her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. They haven’t worked on Rachel.”
“Just in case you get close to falling asleep. Please?”
Shanna opened her mouth to protest, but closed it. She realized that Cameron felt very helpless at the moment, unable to do anything to help his girlfriend from becoming Sleeping Beauty. If it made him feel better…
“Sure,” she said through a smile. “Just in case.”
Cameron grinned and stood up. “Be back shortly.”
Shanna watched him go, noting how happy he looked to be able to do something for her. It figured that in a time when she should be helping him, he needed to watch out for her. She would have to be more attentive to this relationship, should she stay awake long enough to see it continue.
A wave of exhaustion stole over her and she stood up abruptly, hoping to head it off. But the sudden act of standing so quickly sent a curtain of darkness over her eyes. She panicked for a moment before she righted herself, then let out a faint sigh. “Close one,” she murmured.
“Shanna!” a startled voice cried from nearby.
She turned to see Jordan rushing toward her. “I’m…okay,” she laughed. “Just got dizzy for a…” She let her voice trail off as she watched him kneel down on the carpeting near her feet and pick her head up off of the floor gently. Her stomach dropped as she looked down at her hands, realizing that she was in astral form. Ghostly. She had left her physical body. And this time there were no strings to anchor her.
Moving quickly, she tried to jump back into her body, but she just went through it. She bit her lip and looked around, trying desperately to come up with another solution. But her eyes landed on the demon instead, watching her from the doorway of the library. His toothy grin widened.