Unshift 261
Unshift 261
261 Ava: Yanking At Her
It's almost like a presence saying hello.
Thinking of that little string, I tug back. Twice.
An answering jerk. One. Two. Three
The words I just spoke drift into my head: It's like the book is alive.
it crazy to talk into this void in my head, in the general direction I hope the book is in?
Sure. But at least no one can see or hear me doing it.
Hello? I call out, trying to
there?
Use the same mental channel I use to speak with Selene. Are you
Another tug on that string.
I really, really need you to come to where I am. It's safer here. Or something. How do you explain. to a book that the world has gone to shit and you want to keep it from being used to create further catastrophe?
Please.
Being polite never hurts.
This time, that string-y feeling yanks, and it feels like my heart is constricted, interfering in its ability to beat.
I can't breathe. Pain explodes in my chest, radiating outward like a supernova. My lungs burn, desperate for air that won't come. The world around me blurs, sounds fading into a high-pitched buzz that fills my
cars.
eternity compressed into
darken, reality slipping away like sand through
as suddenly as it began, the pain recedes. The world snaps back into focus, colors sharpening and sounds returning. I gasp, drawing in a ragged breath
but insistently. I blink, trying to orient myself. We're still in the truck. Marcus is at the wheel, his knuckles white as he grips it tightly, eyes darting between the road and the
mirror.
croak. Swallowing hard, I try again. "I'm
vise, like something was trying to pull it right out of my chest. And that string, that connection to the book-it's still there, only it's
Ava Yanking
thrumming in my
"Your face went white as a sheet
air sends a shiver down my spine.
eyes meet mine in
said. And then..." I trail off, unsure how to describe the sensation. "It was like it grabbed hold of me. I
shaking her head. "Stupid question. How would we
questions, and so few
Marcus's
careful with this. Magic books that try to yank your soul out of your body don't exactly scream 'trustworthy'
surprised
again,
risk you getting hurt. Maybe we should wait until we reach Lucas
my body
try contacting the book again. Too many weird things keep happening to
sense of self-preservation in me
if I desperately want to
sends a pang through
fragile and desperate. Vanessa shakes her head, a worried frown creasing her brow. "No, nothing yet. Vester should be able to reach me by now. It's strange." "How
hour? It felt like mere minutes had passed. The realization is chilling.
24
Yanking At
slipping away into that strange,
once," he admits. "But it was brief. Flectr before I
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