Chapter 21

“Kay, wake up,” someone says while gently shaking my shoulder. I open my eyes slowly, to be met with dazzling sky-blue iris. Sadness and regret quickly filter through them. 

“Here, drink this.” Chris thrusts a bottle of water into my hand and turns away. He looks out of a dirty and dusty lone window, which is accompanied by old worn brown curtains. 

Slowly I sit up. The smell of rotten foods and sour milk drifts into my nose. 

“Where are we?” I ask, scrunching my nose up. 

“A motel,” he answers. 

Great, we are back to being evasive. 

He turns towards me. “You need to drink.” He turns his back on me again and proceeds in looking out of the window. 

He is right, I do need a drink. My throat is parched and my mouth dry. I drink the water greedily, within seconds. He tosses some items onto the bed. 

“Why don’t you brush your teeth while I call James?” 

“They have toothpaste, in this wreck?” I ask sarcastically, but I cannot help the small smile that creeps onto my face. 

“No, I bought them while you were sleeping,” 

“Oh…you could have picked a better place than this dump,” I mutter.

“Oh yeah, if I did, we would have the police all over us like a rash. Look at the state of us.” He points to the dried-up blood covering his once blue t-shirt. I hate to admit it, but he does have a point, both of us are covered in blood muck and God knows what else. Plus, our clothes look like we’ve gone through the mills. 

I jump up, eagerly remembering about the toothpaste. My mind feels a little foggy, not surprising after the blood I have lost. Blood rushes to my brain, sending me into a dizzy spell. The room begins to spin rapidly. My legs give way. I grab the closest thing to me, the curtains, which come loose as soon has my hand makes contact. My knees crash to the floor. Chris grips my forearms and pulls me up, steadying my wobbly legs. 

My mind quickly becomes fuzzy. A tingling sensation spreads from my brain to my scalp. My head feels like bugs are crawling all over me, tickling and itching. Terror takes centre stage as I thrash around. My mind screams at me to rid myself of any creepy crawlies. My hands pull at my hair frantically, while high pitch screams erupt from my lungs. 

I hate spiders, how they scuttle in random directions. I hate their cobwebs that always hang from rafters and disturb forgotten dust. They are called creepy crawlies for a reason.

My back hits a soft musty surface, dust rains down on me, causing me to sneeze repeatedly. Immediately a heavy weight pins me in place. 

The weird sensation suddenly disappears. Chris holds my hands firmly above my head while a heavy weight straddles my waist. Worry flashes through baby blue eyes. I shove him off with the remaining strength my battered body has and scramble from under him. For a second, I thought I saw hurt flash in his eyes. 

“You need to check my hair,” I say through gritted teeth as I throw my legs over the edge of the bed, letting my feet hang freely. 

“What?” he asks, looking at me like I have gone mad. Well, I have just had a hysterical breakdown, who can fault him. I had a perfectly good reason for my break down. I blame the spiders.

“Just do, it, I have spiders in my hair!” I near enough yell. I am seriously not in the mood for his smart-ass attitude. 

“I can ensure you the dark ones do not have nits,” he laughs.

I shoot daggers at him with my eyes. Who said anything about nits? I am talking big spiders.

He kneels beside me and gently begins to part my hair, tugging at the knots which have formed. 

“There is nothing there, if you don’t count the twigs, leaves and mud.” 

“I felt them.” I sulk. I am sure there was spiders in my hair. I could feel their feet on my head. The feel of a spider crawling over you is an unforgettable feeling. 

He laughs a deep laugh that explodes from his belly. 

“I would not like to see you come into contact with a real spider,” he says through his laughter. His hand clutches his stomach. He pulls his hand away and mimics a spider then begins to tickle my side. Laughter escapes my lungs as strong currents run through me. 

“Stop!” I yell through fits of giggles. He pushes me back and holds me firmly in place while his other hand tickles my side and ribs. I kick my legs frantically. The motion sends me flying of the bed. I crash to the floor with a bang. Pain runs through my back. 

Chris breaks out in more laughter; tears fill his eyes. I glare. I have never seen him act so carefree before. 

I throw a pillow at him that has escaped off the bed. He quickly moves to the side. His phone comes hurting towards me. I roll to the side just before it can hit me in the head. I pick it up. The screen is shattered. Water swims behind the broken glass. I hold the phone up for him to see. 

“Great, now what?” 

“We don’t need the phone, go get cleaned up before James arrives. I would avoid the shower if I was you, there’s a nest of spiders waiting for you,” he calls after me. 

I slam the door leading to the bathroom. James’ faint voice drifts through just as I reach the sink. 

“What’s up with her?” 

Everything begins to fade as my head starts to spin. Black creeps over me, plunging me into darkness. 




***




“The girl must die. She should never have been born!” A small chubby man, in his late forties with a bald head and brown beady eyes, yells as he slams his fist down on an old, chipped table. 

Strange shadows dance on the walls of the dimly lit room. Six men all neatly dressed in business suits sit around a large circle table. 

“She is just a child, Henry,” a younger man with soft brown eyes responds. 

“Nonsense, Simon. In two years’, time she will be an adult. Her powers are already great, and they are just beginning to show themselves. She will become the most powerful supernatural we have ever seen. She will be dangerous. That much power in one being can send her mad, a disaster waiting to happen. The king of the underworld is already looking for her, and if he finds her, then what? We will all die. The life of one for the lives of many,” Henry cries. 

“The walls of Enchanted will keep her hidden. Our people will teach her, help her tame her powers, they will guide her. Show her our way,” Simon responds. Taking the life of a child is not something he will take lightly and will avoid at all costs. 

“I believe she is the girl from the prophecy. The child from light and earth,” Henry’s voice booms around the small room. “I have seen the power she wields with my own eyes; she is the one,” he adds. 

The room erupts into chaos. All six men shout at once. Their voices rise to be heard through the mass of noise.