Skye could only sit, stare and barely blink at
Dominic. There were silent conversations going on all around her but the
thoughts swirling in her head were the only ones she heard. “What, you don’t believe him?” asked an
unfamiliar voice, yet it felt familiar and almost warm. The memories were
rising and falling like breathing in her head, one would come to the surface as
another one faded “Oh come now Skye…as
they call you now” the voice teased “You
have always felt I was here and I always will be…” It paused and whispered
to her softly “set me free…”
Skye
could feel the words taunting her, feeling them swirl inside of her but was
more concerned with the memories she couldn’t latch on to and dismissed it as
nerves. As she tried and tried to pull up something of her past before Deacon
or her childhood and parents Skye felt like something was there and she couldn’t
quite grasp it. More things came and went in a faded haze that didn’t make
sense. Clothing that wasn’t right, a landscape slightly changed and she could
feel herself starting to get agitated again and then little noises from the
room started seeping in like a TV being turned up. She looked around and suddenly
wanted everyone to go away, she needed time so she could understand what she
was being told. Wanting to scream and rip her hair out but doing neither she
let her eyes had settle on the white milky box in front of Dominic, the sounds
quickly evaporated and was then replaced by another sound.
Thump-thump she heard and her body began to replace the tension filling her
muscles with soft vibration and she felt more serene. Thump-thump
she heard again and then somehow felt this one deep within her like a pulse.
The box appeared to rise and fall again like it had before and this time she
was more aware of it, more aware of how it didn’t seem to move like wood should
and briefly wondered if anyone else saw what was happening. How it looked soft
and wanting to be touched and caressed. Skye leaned forward with her hand
outstretched wanting to do just that.
Just
then there was a loud smack on the table and she jumped.
Skye was no idea that she had been holding her
breath until she tried to gasp and coughed out the stale air. Inside for a
moment she felt lost and disoriented as well as unsettled in her skin. She chalked
up the thumping to being her own heart pounding in her ears. Too much was going
on and she wanted it all to stop but more than ever she wished the love of her
life was here to make her feel safe.
“It’s
not your heart…” whispered the voice inside her
head and she barely resisted the urge to shiver.
***
Dominic had heard enough of the racket going on
around him, it was growing louder and louder after she startled Skye out of the
trance he knew she had fallen under. Cyrus was yelling at everyone to get out
but the men stood their ground and disregarded him. Chase was trying to calm
Kyra while she was reacting to the tension in the room and sitting with her
knees pulled up under her chin on the chair rocking back and forth. He could
feel that something was off with her but not spending much time with her made
him hesitated because he didn’t know if this was normal for her since Deacon
was gone. He had no idea that she was feeling the Shadow coming and there was
almost a shimmer in the air around her mother that she could see and thus
scaring her more.
Chase had approached her quietly and rested
a hand gently on her shoulder as he squatted down to meet her eyes, he could
see tears beginning to form. He took a finger, placed it under her chin and
then turned her to face him. “It’s ok,” he said softly. “It will be quiet
soon.” Kyra took a slow shaky breath and although she felt like she had no
reason at all to trust him… soon found she had no reason not to either.
Dominic sighed heavily stood up and barked at
the crowd of men that had spread out in in the small space creating even less
of it. “Chase, Maury you stay here, the rest of you go wait out back until
we’re done with this.” No one argued and a few even seemed relieved. One by one
they moved out the back door as they grumbled to each other but were otherwise
grateful for the extra room and to be out of the tense kitchen.
After a moment Kyra slowly stopped rocking and
lowered her feet to the floor, Cyrus had stopped yelling but continued to pace
behind his mother mumbling under his breath that she couldn’t hear and Savannah
as she still sat on her mother’s lap held Skye’s hands in hers patting them
lightly and hummed.
Skye removed her hands from Savannah’s and leaned
forward on her elbows as they were around either side of her daughter. “Ok, I don’t
understand. What you’ve said it sounds crazy!” frustrated she added “You’re
cryptic and shady Dominic so just tell me the truth…Please…or are you just
trying to rattle me.” The exhaustion was coming back and Dominic knew he would
just have to spit it out. He let out another heavy sigh and felt another 100
years older. “Like I said…you are a vessel trapped in this form and cursed to
live and die over and over again. In the statue you are so eager to touch it
the spirit of the goddess that will take you over and causing you to no longer
exist on this plane and she has control of your body and mind while she lives.”
He paused and motioned for Chase to get him a glass of water.
“You never age,” he continued “You never change.
When you die you come back on the first full moon afterwards and usually we
have someone there to meet you.” Chase returned and handed the glass to Dom. He
took a big gulp of water. “The statue in this box houses the soul of
essentially both souls at separate times because you cannot inhabit your body
and mind at the same time.”
Skye shook her head slowly, disbelievingly and
at the same time felt like there was a stitch of truth in his words and that
absolutely terrified her. “How do you know this and why should I believe any of
it?” He took a quick look across the faces around him and replied soflty,
“Because we’ve been looking after you for a long time Skye, we were sent to
protect you in this form…and if necessary kill you in the next.”
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