Light of Darkness Read online

  The sun on Airca’s skin is refreshing. I don’t feel so enclosed anymore. A cold breeze rushes by Airca, sending a chill up her spine. Suddenly, Rica’s bag seems to implode, falling apart at the seams. “Oh man, I just got this.” She stops and starts picking up her stuff. After a second, we move on.

  “S’cuse me, miss, you forgot this on the ground back there,” says a voice with an Australian accent. We all turn around to see a guy holding a tube of lip gloss in his fingers. The sweat on his tanned skin glistens in the sunlight as he stands there, his Hawaiian shirt hanging open to reveal his lean, muscular body.

  Rica’s eyes grow wide as she looks up at him. “Th—thank you, I thought I got everything.” I have never heard Rica stammer like that; she must find him attractive, and I’ll give it to him, he is. His face is symmetrical, smooth, and the bright smile that spreads across it is just icing on the cake. Airca’s heart quickens at the sight of him.

  He hands Rica the lip gloss. “No worries, it’s my pleasure.” There’s an awkward silence as they all gawk at this handsome stranger like dogs waiting for someone to drop a piece of meat, drool and all. He spreads his fingers through his messy-styled, dark blond hair. “Oh, how rude of me, not introducing myself. The name’s Ben, Ben Riley, and yours?”

  Rica moves a strand of red hair from her face and timidly answers, “Rica Cove.”

  “Rica Cove, eh? Pretty name.” His gaze shifts to Page. “And yours?”

  Page giggles. “Page.”

  “Oh, like a book?” She nods. “And would this beautiful, main character have a last name?”

  “Quartze,” she says with a smile.

  “Page Quartze,” he says slowly. As the last syllable of her name leaves his lips, another chill runs up Airca’s spine, causing her skin to crawl. Ben finally sets his sights on us—on Airca. His cloud-gray eyes lock on hers. “And, may I ask, what’s your name, sheila?” All types of feelings are running through her now: flattery, nervousness, and excitement. The one stifling everything, though, is fear. There’s something about this guy that just doesn’t seem right, and Airca can feel it.

  Silent, she examines the rest of him. He has on snakeskin boots, skinny blue jeans, and a belt with a huge belt buckle that has a rattlesnake on it. Looks like he couldn’t decide on whether he wanted to be a surfer or a cowboy. Airca starts to laugh.

  There’s a slight twinge of annoyance in Ben’s eyes as Airca stands here snickering. “What’s so funny, can’t remember your own name?” he asks in a joking tone, walking up to her.

  “Oh, I can remember my name. The question is, do I want you, Mr. Surf and Turf, to know it?” she says lightly, pushing him back.

  He grabs her hand, lightly stroking it with his thumb. His hand…it’s so cold. Airca’s stomach tenses, and her lip turns up a bit in disgust. She tries to pull away, but he tightens his grip on her. She looks to Rica and Page for support, but they’re focused on Ben like nothing else is around or matters. Their eyes are glossed over, like Airca’s had been back in the bathroom. She looks back to Ben. His smile grows sly. “I think you do, love.” Why is this guy so bent on having her name? For a split second, the entirety of his eyes flicker black.

  Out of nowhere, Airca’s head begins to swim, and her body becomes heavy. To me, though, it’s like the concrete around my body has turned to water. What’s going on?

  She starts to laugh again. “You wanna know my name?” she asks, tapping him on the nose. He smiles and nods. “Well, my name is…”

  Whoa! I flex my arm. Her arm follows suit, and I cover my—her—mouth.

  I can move her now? I try to make her take a few steps away from him and keep her hand over her mouth, but my control is apparently short-lived. The restraints keeping me inside her take hold again. Airca, don’t give him your real name. Please don’t give him your real name.

  She tears her hand away from her face and looks at it, confused. Then she looks at Ben, who seems just as confused. “Umm…my name is Sara, Sara Quinn.” Oh, thank God. That’s the name of her favorite book character.

  “Sara Quinn,” he says slowly, trying to mimic each syllable the way she said it. “Sara Quinn,” he says with confidence.

  The space here in Airca grows cold. There’s a rattling noise of metal all around me. Chains appear, wrapping around my legs, arms, and neck, choking me. They try to lock over my chest. Two ends of a chain fight to come together, but it seems that they are a link or two short.

  “So, where are you ladies heading?” he asks, his accent no longer Australian but American now.

  There’s a tug at the chain, and it slowly constricts tighter around me. Airca’s mouth starts to move. I struggle against the chain’s pull, and I feel her fighting it too. “That’s none—”

  “Our friend, he is sick,” Rica interrupts with a drugged smile on her face.

  “And we’re going to visit him,” Page finishes with the same smile.

  “How sad for him, but I have a better idea. How about you three come with me to a party tonight and take your mind off him?” A burning sensation rises in Airca’s stomach. “So, what do you say, Rica Cove?” Rica just nods. “Page Quartze?” She, too, nods. He turns to Airca, that great, stupid smile wide across his face. “Sara Quinn?”

  The chain tries to constrict around me again. Airca’s hands start to tremble a little. She’s getting frustrated. If I’m feeling her right, she wants to do whatever he tells her, but these missing links are giving her just enough room not to listen. The real question is, who or what is this guy to be able to do this to her? She takes a deep breath. “We…have somewhere to be.”

  “Yeah, with me,” he says, lightly touching her face. Airca’s heart starts pounding, her stomach lurches, and her hands are balled into tight fists. Oh man, she’s angry. The cold feeling within her breaks as her anger wells up like an intense flame. The chain starts to melt away, turning to steam around me. The strain on me and her body vanishes. She bends over, placing her hands on her knees like she just ran a few miles.

  “Sara?” he asks, reaching for her again.

  Quickly, she slaps away his hand. “I’m sorry, but our friend takes priority over some party. Plus, we don’t even know you. And didn’t you just have an accent of some kind? Where’d that go? Yeah, no.” She walks by him, grabbing Page and Rica by the sleeves of their shirts and walking them down the street.

  He rushes in front of them. “But, this is a once-in-a-lifetime party. It’ll be to die for.” There is no way to make that last part sound any less creepy. Fear mixes into the anger Airca is feeling, sending her into defense mode. “Come on, your friend’s not going anywhere,” Ben says, not even trying to keep up the accent.

  “He may not be, but we are. Come on, girls.” She leads them around Ben, but he steps in their way again, his smile turning into a frown. Airca’s had enough. “Get out of our way or—”

  “You know, you’re the first human able to defy my power, and to actually say no to me. Like, ever,” he says, getting into her face. Human? “I can’t allow you to leave. That is, if it isn’t with me. Now, you can come quietly, or I can make you.”

  The air around them grows cold. His eye color melts from that mysterious gray to pure black. Within them, an orange glow flickers to life, like candlelight in the distance. He smiles, revealing a mouth full of sharpened teeth. Airca’s heart starts to race as she watches him, milling over what she should do.

  Airca, get away from him! Defend yourself as best you can.

  “So, Sara, what will it b—”

  Airca’s leg flies up so fast that I barely feel it move. Tears flood his black eyes as they open wide with surprise. She lowers her leg as he falls to his knees, holding himself.

  “You little…” he says through gritted teeth.

  She lets go of the others, takes hold of his head, and drives her knee right into his chin, laying him out flat on his back.

  Good girl. Now run!

  She takes hold of the others’ hands and rushes p
ast Ben as he writhes on the ground. With every step, the knot that has formed in her stomach tightens. Her breathing quickens with panic as she begins to sprint, still holding on to Rica and Page. About half a block from my house and four blocks from Ben, Page and Rica begin to stir.

  “Where are we?” Page asks, her words slurred.

  “And why are we running?” Rica asks.

  Airca grips their hands tighter. “Just keep running.”

  They run as fast as their legs allow until they reach the front door of my aunt’s house. Airca is the first to get there, slamming into it. She pounds on the door as adrenaline causes her breathing to become erratic. “Serena, Serena, please open the door!” she yells.

  Page and Rica catch up and lean on the door, breathing hard. “So why were we running?” Rica asks, gasping for air. “And who’s that?”

  Airca stops pounding on the door and slowly turns to see Ben standing in front of the house, baring his fangs through an unamused smile.

  “You hit harder than I would have expected from a human girl. Rica, Page, you want to come with me, don’t you?” he asks, inching closer through the yard; his voice is soft as if talking to children. Airca looks to them. Again, their eyes gloss over as they both answer with a nod. “Good, so let’s go.” Airca’s mind and body are a mess. All she wants to do is curl up and cry. “Come on, girls, there’s a party with your name on it.”

  Airca leans back on the door, scared out of her mind. Where is everyone? They’ve been chased almost five blocks, and none of the neighbors have said a thing. Come on, Airca, stop them. She doesn’t do anything. She just sits there, sobbing. I should do something. Airca, I don’t know if you can really hear me, but let me take control. Let me stop them.

  She’s silent for a second. “Please. Help them,” she says weakly.

  The restraints around my arms and legs disappear. A weight lifts off my chest, and for the first time since I’ve been within Airca, I take a breath. The tension around my body goes from water to air, and I feel her body stop trembling. I look to the left and right to see Page and Rica walking slowly toward Ben. I try to move quickly to grab them, but Airca’s arms are heavy, like they weigh a hundred pounds each. This must be the effect of her fear and panic.

  With a deep breath and all the strength I can muster from her body, I push off the door. Rolling forward, I manage to grab each of their ankles. They continue forward, dragging me. Come on, Airca! I know you’re stronger than this. Your friends are in trouble. Help them!

  Her muscles tense and grow lighter. With our combined strength, we pull on Page and Rica. They trip and fall, while Airca and I drag them back toward the door. “Wake up, you two. Wake up, please,” Airca says from behind me, her voice trembling. We get back to the door.

  It opens, and we fall back into the house, pulling Page and Rica along with us. Aunt Serena stands over us, wearing a black robe, drying her face and hair with a towel. “Sorry, hun, I was in the shower.” She looks down. “Airca?”

  “Aunt Serena, help them,” I say through Airca.

  She looks at us, bewildered, and then looks out the door at Ben, who is just standing in the middle of the yard. She sets her eyes on him. Her face is more serious than I’ve ever seen. Her expression quickly relaxes as she looks down to Airca. “It’s okay, sweetie, I’ll take care of this.” She walks past us to Rica and Page, who are still trying get to Ben. She places her hands over their eyes. “Go to sleep, you two,” she says in a light tone. They stop moving and fall over onto their sides, fast asleep.

  That’s what Shadow did to me just before I ended up in Airca’s body.

  I sit Airca up. Aunt Serena walks out into the yard, still drying her hair, until she is about three feet away from Ben. She doesn’t appear intimidated in the least.

  “Excuse me, sir, why are you harassing these kids?” she asks him.

  He looks her up and down, wary. Probably wondering why she isn’t afraid of him. “They are needed.”

  She wraps the towel around her neck and sighs. “You cannot have these three. Go on out of this neighborhood and fill your quota elsewhere.”

  Again, he just looks her up and down, focusing his hollow eyes on her. “You are a bit too young to be ordering me around,” he says, stepping closer.

  She chuckles. Fog appears over the grass. Ben quickly backs away from her, his face full of shock. “And you are too presumptuous to think that my age means anything. Your presence has become annoying. Leave now, before I make you.”

  “All right then, I’m gone.” He looks to Airca. “You’re lucky. You get to live, for now.” He backs out the yard and vanishes in the haze of the summer heat.

  Aunt Serena runs her hand through hair and growls a little bit. She turns around, walks back over to Rica and Page, and starts looking them over. She looks up at us, her deep-brown eyes filled with worry. “Airca, are you okay?”

  Airca takes hold of her body. The panic and fear return, and she starts to tremble. “I’m—I’m fine. What was that? What was he?”

  Aunt Serena is silent for a second as she examines Airca. “Don’t you worry about it, sweetie,” she says, placing her hand over Airca’s eyes. “You just sleep.” Airca’s body goes limp, her mind goes numb, and I’m plunged into darkness.

  Airca shimmers into existence before me in this realm of her subconscious, wearing a yellow dress. Slowly, I walk up to her. When I’m within arm’s, she opens her hazel eyes, and her face lights up with a smile. “Kyle!” She runs up to me, taking me into her arms. “Oh, Kyle, I was so scared. What was he? Why did he want us so badly?”

  She’s trembling. I wrap my arms around her, and she relaxes. “You can see me?”

  “And feel you too, if that makes a difference.”

  I laugh, hugging her a bit tighter. “I don’t know what he was. I’m just sorry that I wasn’t there to protect you.”

  “You were. I could hear you in the back of my mind, guiding me. Oh, and thank God that your aunt was there.”

  “Yeah, thank God for her.” We hold each other for what feels like hours. I’d love to stay like this, but I need to get back to my own body, to my own mind. “Hey, Airca.” She pulls back, looking at me. “When you wake up, I need you to come see me. It may help my situation.”

  “Okay. Whatever you say.” Things begin to shimmer into existence around us: a recliner, a glass coffee table with magazines and remotes on it. “See you in a bit,” she says as she fades from my arms.

  With a deep breath, she opens her eyes to see the ceiling fan slowly spinning above. She’s on the couch in the living room. “What happened?” Airca asks, rubbing her eyes. Something shifts under a cover on the other side of the couch. She jumps to her feet, taking a pillow as a weapon. With the pillow, ready in her right hand she pulls the cover back with her left and gears up to swing. It’s Rica, fast asleep. She scans the room when she notices Page on the armchair, her mouth wide open. “Where am I? What time is it?”

  “You’re in my house, and it’s ten till nine.” Aunt Serena says from the kitchen. Airca drops the pillow, walking around the sofa and through the archway into the kitchen. Aunt Serena is at the huge wooden table with a book turned facedown. “You’ve been asleep for about four hours.”

  Airca sits down. “Whoa, four hours? What happened to us?”

  Serena sips at a cup of tea. “What do you remember?”

  “Leaving from Rica’s to come here. Meeting this really handsome guy, then…waking up.” She doesn’t remember what happened; she must have gone into shock at some point.

  Aunt Serena takes another long sip of her tea. “Well, when you three got here, I let you in and you took a seat in the TV room. It was only minutes later that you all fell asleep. I took the liberty of calling and telling your parents that you were staying the night, and I ordered pizza. It should be here soon.”

  “Is that okay? I mean, you still have Kyle to worry about.”

  “Oh, it’s fine. It would seem he’s been up and about wit
hout my noticing anyway.” She says, looking in Airca’s eyes.

  Weird. It’s like she knows I’m in here.

  “Would you like some tea?”

  “No, thank you.” Airca just puts her face in her hands. She tries to recall the events of the day, but only stirs up a small spark of fear. “How is he doing?”

  “He’s fine. He’s due to awake anytime now.”

  “I need to see him. Do you mind if I…”

  Aunt Serena smiles a little. “Of course. You know where his room is.”

  Airca gets up from the table, makes her way through the hall to the stairs. She takes each step slowly, mentally preparing herself. At the top of the stairs, she just stares at my door. I feel the butterflies in her stomach. She’s nervous? She’s walked into my room countless times without knocking.

  Go on, Airca.

  She steps up to my door, taking the handle. With a sigh, she enters. My body shifts at the sound. Except for the last rays of light from the late summer sun coming through the blinds, my room is dark.

  Treading lightly across the room, she sits on the edge of my bed and watches me. I agree with Shadow; it is weird seeing yourself lying there. At least I’m not dying like he was.

  She puts her hand on my chest. “Hey, Kyle. How are you?” She sits for a second, waiting for a reply. “I’ve been crying a little bit, but that’s because I’m worried about you.” I feel her indecision as her stomach is pulled in different directions. Airca sighs, shaking her head. “This is weird. I don’t really like how I feel right now. I’m just so scared—for you, of your feelings, and of what that may mean…I don’t know.” She moves her hand down my arm and takes my hand, lacing her fingers with mine. I feel a tug at my chest, like when Shadow dragged me out of that room. “Maybe I’m just overthinking things, but we’ve known each other since we were four. We’ve been through so much, and I don’t know if us being together will mess that up or not.” She stares at me. “But to have this conversation right now really isn’t fair. We’ll talk when you wake up.” She stands up and lets my hand go. That tugging feeling vanishes and I snap back into her mind. Goosebumps appear on her skin as she stares at me. She bends down over me, bringing her face to mine, and kisses me on the forehead.