Shadow Of The Past Trilogy ∞ THE DISPLACED

4 ∞ missing

Day One ∞ Friday morning

IT HAD TO BE A DREAM, these shadows...

These shadows brushing past him, teasing him, refused to be seen face to eye. They danced and swirled, daring him further into the brooding forest. And he followed, compelled to find something—he didn't know what. He just knew he'd know when—or if—he found it.

Trees dwarfed him to the ground, closing in on him. The deeper the elusive shadows beckoned him, the thicker the silence grew—loud and pressing. Yet he continued, persisting onward until he found it.

The column of swirling mist.

It had been waiting for him. Suspended between tree trunks like a cocoon, surreal and larger than human, it solidified before him. It acknowledged his presence with a rumble, shedding one layer of light—and it floated down like a leaf in still autumn, a wisp dispersing before it touched the ground. Then another layer peeled and fell, exposing black and silver strands of hair. The rumbling amplified with the shedding of each layer, more hair flowed, untangling, freezing him to watch. Soon he'd know what he'd been looking for all this time, and why. Soon he'd—

A thunderclap.

Danny jerked in his bed as the cocoon shed the last of its layers, revealing a pale, still face surrounded by hair dancing in the swirling breeze. He caught his breath. It was staring at him with eyes that glistened bottomless black.

Deep and alluring...

His eyes flew open and he found himself staring into a semi-darkness that flickered with distant lightning. Then thunder and instant daylight filled his room, the round wall mirror dazzling the flash back at him.

Groaning, Danny clamped his eyes shut. His forehead felt tight with the weight of sleep still waiting for him. He reached for the pillow on the floor and covered his head with it, trying to block out the intermittent rumbles. For a while, he lay still. But sleep was elusive now, and his sluggish thoughts started to circle an unsettled corner of his mind.

He'd been dreaming something strange. He tried to remember—it had something to do with last night. But last night hadn't been a dream...

He snapped up on his elbows when it hit him. The girl!

A strange girl. And a strange night.

It was just after eight and drizzling when Danny stepped out of the bathroom and paused in front of the guest room door. It was open a crack, and after a moment he decided to knock.

No response.

He stuck his head in as lightning softly illuminated the room through the closed curtains. The girl lay propped up with her head turned away from the door. A breakfast tray sat on the bedside table under the lamp. He entered quietly to check if it was ready to be collected.

It was.

Good, at least she's strong enough to eat. Is she sleeping? As he skirted the bed to check, a soft shadow surrounding her head and neck shifted, echoing his movement. Then the room flickered again, a play of shadow and light.

It looked like she was asleep. A Band-Aid on her cheekbone interrupted her flawless features.

Flawless... He tore his gaze away from her, about to return for the tray when her eyes flew open, startling him. They seemed more intense than they were a few hours ago, like emeralds.