Countdown

But suddenly there came the sound of police sirens, and the intruder fled, without another sound, without a word, into the night. He was never caught.

I hadn’t even said good-night to my family. And then they were gone forever.

Ever since that night, the inky black of darkness just reminded me of how close to death I’d come. How powerless I was. Darkness, any darkness, felt like hands clutching at my throat, holding me down.

“No... No...please. Not again.”

“Kira, it’s okay. You’re going to be okay. Open your eyes. It’s okay. I’m with you.”

A warm touch brushed away my tears and stroked the hair back from my face.

My eyes shot open. The first thing that came fully into focus was Rogan. He sat on the edge of the bed I was lying in. He looked like hell, still dirty and bloody and a total mess, but the sight of him managed to chase away the last traces of my nightmare.

He frowned. “What’s that?”

“What do you mean?” My voice sounded croaky.

“That thing on your face.”

I reached up. “What is it?”

“I think it’s...yes, it’s definitely a smile.”

I let out a long breath and rolled my eyes. “Obviously a total mistake. There’s no reason for me to be smiling right now. Is my leg still attached?”

He glanced down the length of my body and then looked back up at me with half a grin on his face.

“For now.” The grin faded. “You were having a bad dream.”

“I can’t imagine why I would be. We’ve been having so much fun.” I tried to look around but didn’t see anything other than a bland room with a small window that only looked out to another building. “Where are we now?”