Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 110492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 442(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 442(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Vic nodded. “I wish we had some idea of how far away they are. Did they give you any indication in your previous dreams?”
Torri shook her head.
“No. The…the Evil One—the AllFather, I mean—just said he was coming.” Her voice shook a little. “I don’t like to think about it,” she admitted.
“I don’t blame you,” Vic said grimly. “The Scourge are not a pleasant subject. Come on,” he added gently, lifting her to her feet as he stood up himself. “Let’s see if we can find you anything to wear and we’ll leave this place.”
“Leave and never come back!” Her voice sounded a little stronger now and Vic sensed that anger was overtaking sorrow. That was good—she had a right to be angry for the awful way her mate had mistreated her.
“Exactly,” he said and pulled her close for one last comforting hug. Torri clung to him, her small, curvy body pressed against his larger, harder form for a long moment.
Impulsively, Vic tilted her chin back and gently kissed her wet eyelids.
“You’re beautiful and wonderful and warm and caring,” he murmured, stroking her cheek as he looked down into her eyes. “You don’t deserve what he tried to do to you, sweetheart.”
“Th-thank you.” Her heart rate had sped up and she was looking at him in a new way—a way that made Vic’s own heart start beating faster, for some reason.
But there was no time for the attraction between them now. They had to get back to his ship before the human authorities started pursuing them. Even now, they might be looking for the vehicle they had stolen. Also, he had a job to do—the Scourge were coming and the Mother Ship must be alerted.
Reluctantly, Vic let Torri go.
They had to hurry if they were going to get the Kindred here in time, before the Earth was overrun.
Twenty-Seven
Torri dug through the closet—which was full of Amanda’s clothes—and eventually found a few cardboard boxes in the back. Someone had written “Goodwill” on them in sharpie marker. When she opened them up, she finally found out what had become of her clothes.
“I guess it’s a good thing they didn’t get around to dropping these off yet,” she said dryly, as she picked through her discarded belongings. She got out some sweaters and jeans, some underwear and bras, and some shoes and socks. She also found a nightgown to sleep in. All the clothes were jumbled in together—not even folded. Clearly Amanda and Chuck had just crammed everything of hers into boxes and jammed them in the back of the closet so Amanda could have the space.
They probably did it the very first night I was at St. Elizabeth’s, she thought grimly. She doubted the predatory Amanda would have been willing to wait any longer. Especially since Chuck had apparently had an agreement with Dr. Burrows right from the start to keep her there.
Well, she was out now and she’d be damned if she was ever going back! Even if the Seeing Dreams came back and started tormenting her again, she was never going to allow herself to be locked up in any kind of facility where she lost her free will, ever again.
After packing her clothes in an old duffel bag, which was also at the back of the closet, she felt almost ready to go.
“I just need a quick wash and I’ll be done,” she told Vic. “Um, do you want me to see if I can find some old things of Chuck’s you could wear?”
She wasn’t sure if her husband’s—no, make that ex-husband’s—clothes would fit him, but Vic still had on the boring beige scrubs and the soft-soled slip-on shoes that were issued to the patients at St. Elizabeth’s.
He shook his head.
“I am fine as I am. I have a spare uniform in my ship.”
“All right then, I’ll just be a minute.”
Torri slipped into the bathroom to wash up and change. She had wiped most of Tanya’s blood off her mouth once Vic had freed her from the restraints, but it still felt good to wash her face in hot water.
Amanda hadn’t gotten around to redecorating the bathroom yet, though she had dumped all of Torri’s personal items into a bottom drawer under the sink vanity. Torri picked through the drawer and found a brush, a toothbrush and toothpaste, and a little bit of makeup, which she decided she would use later to make herself more presentable to meet the Kindred.
She also found an old bottle of Nair, a hair-removing lotion she often used on her legs. On impulse, she dumped the contents into the half-full bottle of shampoo in the shower stall. It might be a mean and petty gesture, but then, so was Chuck planning to steal her inheritance and keep her locked up in a mental institution for the rest of her life!