Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 124341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 497(@250wpm)___ 414(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 497(@250wpm)___ 414(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry you suffered. I truly am. But you still have your whole life ahead of you. Take it and make it count.”
Autumn nodded. She intended to do just that. She pulled away from Chantelle, the unmistakable sound of the files shifting under her sweater causing Chantelle’s eyes to widen. Autumn dipped away from her and raced out of the room.
“Autumn!”
She heard Chantelle’s voice from behind her and picked up her pace, rounding a corner and then another, practically flying down the stairs and then running for the main door.
She ran as if her life depended on it, her painful past and her bewildering connection to her moonlight boy clutched firmly to her chest.
Chapter One
Nine Years Ago—Mercy Hospital for Children
The dream was always the same.
She was running through the woods as quickly as her frail body was able, something—no someone—fast on her trail. The moon was high and full, a glowing orb in the sky above the trees, casting the dense forest in fluctuating streaks of pearly light. Her breath came heavy, lungs aching, heart hammering. Whoever had given chase meant her terrible harm. She could smell his intention, enveloping her far before his arms were able.
Hide. Her head whipped back and forth, searching for a suitable location but finding nothing. There were only thin tree trunks and a carpet of pine needles.
She tripped then and went sprawling, fear and frustration clashing inside her, an internal gong of soul-crushing defeat, as she rolled to her back, ready to face her attacker. She was certain she’d be no match for the person in pursuit. She’d be no match for a young child if he or she had an ounce of strength, and that unfortunate truth didn’t change in her dreams. But she refused to die unaware. She’d face what was coming. She’d look death in the eye as he overwhelmed her, her spirit the muscle her body lacked.
The blur of a fast-approaching figure. A flash of silvery white. A gasp of breath. Hers.
And then the dream…changed. Always before, she’d hidden, rolling herself into the smallest ball she could inside a fallen tree trunk or behind a large enough rock.
Her pursuer skidded to a stop, and his face came into view. Her heart lurched, staggered breath pluming in the chilly air. Autumn blinked, lifting her head as far as she was able from her reclining position. A breeze blew, the boughs of the trees taking command from the wind and leaning aside in tandem. Moonglow glittered through the created opening and fell over the man…no, boy.
He’s a boy, no older than me. But…
Her gaze danced over him once and then again before she met his eyes. The trees swayed, the shaft of moonlight fading to sterling tinted night. But in that moment, she’d seen him. All of him.
He was a boy, yes, but he was larger than any adolescent or teen she’d ever seen and unusually muscular, his chest bare, a large, jagged scar running from his throat to his navel.
And his hair. His hair was stark white and bone straight, hanging over his ears and in front of his eyes, a striking contrast to his smooth, light brown skin. He gave his head a small jerk, his choppy bangs shifting from his forehead to reveal midnight eyes, dark and fathomless.
And there was something protruding from his hair on his right temple. It looked curiously like a bolt.
What are you?
What are you going to do to me?
Her heart quickened, the forest wavering. This was a dream, of course, brought on by the medication, but it was the most vivid dream she’d ever had. And the only time she’d been caught.
She felt the bite of the cold, the hardness of the earth under her, and the burn of her weakened muscles, crying out from her efforts. She couldn’t explain it, but in this bizarre hallucination where her brain was somehow registering her senses, it only stood to reason she’d feel whatever he did to her as well. Fear quaked inside.
She lifted her chin, drawing her shoulders back.
“Do your worst.” Her voice quivered, but her gaze did not.
His heavy brow lowered as he leaned forward, peering at her more closely. His fists were clenched, but she no longer sensed that violent intention rolling off him the way she had before.
He took a step forward, then another, looming over her now, seeming to want to get a closer look.
He was…something. His hair…it…sparkled. His dark eyes were an endless universe.
“How did my mind come up with you?” she wondered aloud.
His head twitched again, gaze narrowing. Light shifted, tree branches swayed, and still, they stared. She saw now that his eyes were a deep twilight blue, the shade of the sky mere moments before it dimmed to black. Her breath released. She wasn’t scared anymore. It seemed like years that she’d been running from him, hiding, and now that she’d come face-to-face with her nightmare, she was no longer frightened. Funny. His pale brows twitched.