Insight (Web of Hearts and Souls #1)(69)
“What do you mean?” I asked, panicking.
“Jessica can’t hear, Hannah can’t talk, and I can’t see.”
I looked at Hannah. She was afraid. In here, she couldn’t see or talk.
“Hannah you can still see. It’s just dark in here. You’ll see in just a few minutes.”
I reached for Jessica. I had to help her, so I concentrated as hard as I could to take away her fear and give her peace. After a moment, her screaming stopped, and she laid her head on Brady’s chest and fell asleep.
“You changed it,” thought Landen.
“I don’t know if I did or not. She may have just given up.”
“I felt it,” he assured me.
Others were beginning to come into view. We were close to Chara. People shot us concerned looks as we passed, and someone in the crowd called out to Landen as we got closer.
“You kids all right?” It was an older man with a long gray beard.
“We’re fine. If you see Jason Haywood, will you tell him we need him at my house?”
The man nodded and pushed past the others, going into the passage. Our passage was just a few minutes past the large entrance. As we left the string, Hannah’s eyes brightened as she realized she could see. Dane sat her down to let her walk. Jessica still lay sleeping in Brady’s arms. Knowing that Olivia couldn’t see, Chrispin carried her to the jeep. He was whispering to her. I couldn’t hear him, but I knew that whatever he was saying was making her feel happy and at ease.
Chapter Thirteen
The Jeeps rushed through the field; adrenaline was still coursing through all of us. When we reached our house, we all filed in one-by-one. The girls were laid on the couches in the living room. When Chrispin tried to step away from Olivia, she pulled him back to her. He didn’t falter and sat by her side.
“Did you see that? Where they were?” Landen asked Brady. Brady looked at me. It was easy to see that he had.
“What was that?” asked Brady.
“I don’t know, but it was pure evil,” Landen said, looking at me and trying to hide his fear.
Clarissa had gotten a warm towel and was wiping away the streaks of Hannah’s mascara, telling her she was fine.
“Do you know where you were?” I asked Olivia.
Olivia stared blankly into the room, then said, “I remember being on the boat. There was a really bad storm that came out of nowhere. I woke in a chamber that looked as if I’d stepped into a movie set in medieval times. The walls were made of stone, and large tapestries hung from the ceiling to the floor. It had three large beds, two massive fireplaces, and chairs circled the fire. No windows. When the fire went out, darkness filled the room. Once a day, we’d find a large cart of food and water. I noticed that after we ate, I would fall into a deep, blissful sleep. Dreams would consume my mind, giving me a numbing feeling. I knew I was losing touch with reality and any hope of an escape, so I convinced Hannah and Jessica not to eat.”
Tears drizzled down her face, then she continued, “We pretended to sleep, and after an hour or so the fireplace slid aside. The room was filled with people wearing long black robes, and shadows covered any signs of their faces. They lined the room. When I foolishly opened my eyes wider to focus, I lost my sight, Jessica screamed as the chants began, and Hannah started to pray out loud. That is when she lost her voice.
“We were carried into another room,” Olivia’s voice quivered.
I touched her hand, concentrating again, hoping to help her, too. Olivia leaned in closer to Chrispin, hiding as much of herself as she could behind him.
“They...they stripped our clothes and washed our bodies. They dressed us, prodding us for hours. Then we walked. It was cold, and the ground was uneven. It felt like we were going uphill. The air became damp. We stopped and the chants began again then you came like they said you would.”
Everyone was hanging on Olivia’s every word, and now the fear she felt was filling the room.
“Who said she would come?” Chrispin asked softly, being gentler than anyone else was capable of being.
“When they were dressing us, I focused on the people talking. I heard Drake talking to a man with a husky voice. Drake was angry with him, telling him ‘Now you’ve done it. Willow is sure to feel this, and the moon is not full.’ The husky voice just laughed, saying there were always more people to be taken if need be. I prayed you would come, Willow. I didn’t know what you could possibly do to help, but it was easy to see that at least Drake was afraid of what you could do.”
I stood and tried to hide my fear, my anger. Drake would keep taking people I loved, tormenting us all. Hannah had been nodding along as Olivia spoke, she motioned to me; she wanted something to write on. Dane left the room swiftly and retuned with one of my sketchbooks. I tore out a clean sheet and handed it to her. On the top of the page, she wrote ‘this is the man who had the husky voice.’ Hannah began trying to sketch a picture, she’d taken lessons with my mother before. She had talent, but no desire to become an artist. Hannah drew a stalky man in his late sixties with large eyes, and she made a point to draw a necklace wrapped around his hand. It had a star, and she shadowed it to make it look like it was glowing. She then drew arrows pointing to it.
“Did that star do something?” Brady asked.