The Life After Trilogy: Soul Taken / Soul Possessed / Soul Betrayed. Katlyn Duncan

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СКАЧАТЬ a stark contrast to his naked cream-colored chest. A broken chair was on the floor under them.

      I barely noticed Jamie gasp as she took in the sight before us.

      Black spots filled my vision and Ally’s limbs went numb. I leaned on the door frame as pin pricks jabbed into her legs. The black dots soon turned to red ones. Blood-red. I tried to focus but, between the rush of air whirring in my ears and the smell of blood enveloping me, I eventually succumbed to it. A familiar heat fluttered in my stomach. I nearly passed out before a vision flew to the front of my mind.

      The images flicked by as quickly as they had before, unable to decipher one from the next. I closed my eyes, willing them to slow down, but, even though I couldn’t see them, I felt them. The taste of betrayal flooded my mouth. The coppery scent of blood wafted into my nose. A girl’s scream pierced my ears. A mix of shouting and sobbing voices rang in my head. I tried to decipher what the voices were saying but my ears still roared with the sound of my heartbeat. Hot tears streaked my face. But through everything there was a sense of satisfaction that completely overruled the rest of my emotions.

      “Ally!” Seth’s shout broke my trance.

      I blinked, focusing on Seth and Krystal’s faces. Seth stood in front of Krystal, his body blocking hers. His bright white skin seemed more vibrant against hers. I was closer to them. When had I moved? Something heavy weighed in my hand. I looked down. One hand gripped a baseball bat. Where did that come from?

      Krystal was shaking violently and crying—the sound cut the thick silence of the room.

      “Jesus, Ally,” Seth said while holding his arm out for protection.

      My fingers slowly loosened and the bat fell to the floor and rolled under the desk.

      “You weren’t supposed to find out this way,” Krystal said through sobs. “We were going to tell—”

      A hand touched Ally’s arm and I whipped around, raising it to the unseen threat.

      Jamie shrunk back into the hallway.

      “What is she doing here?” Krystal asked between sniffles.

      I turned around slowly, facing the people who had betrayed Ally. The girl who I was meant to protect. Too bad I hadn’t held onto the bat.

      “How could you do this to her?” I spat. “She trusted you,” I said to Krystal then turned to Seth. “Loved you. And now she’s gone.” I let the simple fact settle deep inside of me. If the Guard hadn’t found her by now, was there any hope left of finding her before her transformation?

      “Ally.” Seth stepped forward, reaching out to me.

      Krystal grabbed his arm, pulling him back. “She’s referring to herself in the third person. I don’t think she’s well.”

      I shot her a glare. That strange yet strong energy flowed through me again. I could bring these two down without a second thought.

      “Ally,” Jamie said from the hallway. “We should go.”

      “No,” I said. I didn’t dare move, unwilling to let the sensation go.

      “Fine,” Jamie said. “I’ll be in the car.”

      Jackson appeared next to me. “Maggie.”

      I looked up at Jackson, his eyes filled with pride. I smiled.

      “Let’s go,” he said softly.

      I clenched my jaw.

      “There is more where that came from,” he said, as if reading my mind. “But our work is done here.”

      I turned my glare to the humans for the last time, moving to within inches of Seth. “Don’t ever speak to her—me again, either of you. Enjoy your dysfunctional relationship. I’m better off without either of you.”

      Turning on my heel I stormed from the room and descended the stairs, picking up speed until I reached flat ground. The tension in Ally’s body unwound the further I got from Seth and Krystal and by the time I got outside, the weight of whatever I had felt upstairs had lifted, leaving behind a sick feeling in Ally’s gut.

      I ran to the edge of the building, another pair of footfalls close behind me. Ally’s heart pounded harder and a pain in her side made her collapse. I panted, sucking in gulps of air, then knelt on the wet concrete and gagged, shudders ripping through Ally’s body as I struggled for control.

      Two arms wrapped around Ally’s body. I tried to twist from Jackson’s embrace but he held me tighter. “You’re fine, Mags,” he whispered close to my ear.

      “What the hell was that?” I said breathlessly.

      Turning me to him, he pressed his forehead against mine. “I wanted it to work, and it did. But I don’t want you to hurt. It’s in the past.”

      “What is in the past?” He was being entirely too cryptic.

      “What did you see?” he asked gently.

      I shook my head. “I didn’t see anything. Someone was screaming and there were many voices all mixed up together. I smelled blood. Whose blood did I smell?”

      “What you experienced was a memory. One of your last, I’m afraid.”

      “I thought memories couldn’t be experienced by souls?”

      Jackson stood up, bringing me with him. “There is a lot that you don’t know, Mags. A lot that Felix needs to tell you. Coming from me it wouldn’t be enough, he has the whole story.”

      “I can’t see him, though, not like this.” I waved Ally’s hands up and down, encompassing her human form. I couldn’t go into the After and Felix couldn’t come to the Living Realm. “And if Ally’s soul isn’t found—”

      “Would that be such a bad thing?” he said quietly.

      Ally’s jaw dropped. “Yes, it would. Why would you even say that?”

      “Ally!” Jamie’s voice called from up the street. “I have to head home soon!”

      Jackson’s gaze flitted across Ally’s face. “You’ll understand soon in any case.”

      He reached out to touch her face again but I brushed past him toward the car.

      How could he say that about Ally? If he wanted me, then me being stuck inside of her wouldn’t help that. Not that I considered being with him, in any capacity. Or did I? I shoved the thought away. I just wanted answers. Answers that seemed to be tangled up in my human past, and his.

      “If you want to know more, ask Felix,” Jackson called after me.

      I turned around to answer but he was gone.

      Good riddance, I thought.

      “Would you like to explain to me what happened back there?” Jamie asked, pulling out of the park and toward the Greene residence.

      “I’d like to СКАЧАТЬ