Ultraviolet

Chapter Eleven: Confrontation and Confession

Grand Central Station

Manhattan, New York

Friday, December 18, 2009

The evening before Isi and her dad flew down to D.C. again, Isi and Emma went up to Midtown to hang out, glad to have shaken off the tension that had hung around them over the past month. They took the subway from Emma's parents' place in Auburndale, where V's assistant Ariana had dropped Isi off, to Grand Central Station and grabbed pizza in the station.

"I've been nervous a lot," Emma admitted. "Especially in restaurants. My head knows I'm safe, but..." She pulled the purse she'd brought off her lap and opened it, showing Isi the Swiss Army knife she kept there. "I wanted to bring something bigger, but my mom caught me before I went out and shrieked."

Isi debated for only a moment before saying, "I brought a... tool of my own. I'll show you sometime, not in public."

Emma arched her eyebrow and nodded, picking up her slice. "I'll hold you to that."

"I wouldn't want it any other way," Isi said. She was cheered constantly by the slight pressure of the metal in her sleeve. It was a strange sensation, but her feeling of it was enough to reassure her: she was safe, so long as it was there.

They left soon after, still nibbling on the crusts of their meal. It was full night now, cold but clear, with no snow—Isi's kind of winter. They joined the throng of people hurrying by, their scarves flapping in the breeze, wandering down Park Avenue.

For a while it was New-York quiet: the cars and horns and chatter faded into the background. Isi tipped her head back to look up at the sky, wishing she could see the stars. At ALB, they were out in the country, and while it was by no means perfectly dark, there were thousands of stars to be seen. She wanted to take an astronomy class once she was done with the required science credits to get an American degree.

Out of the corner of her eye, Isi caught Emma glancing around, her gaze locked on the people around them.

"Still nervous?" Isi asked.

"Yeah," Emma answered. "But... I think it's something else."

"Like what?"

"Like..." She glanced around, her eyes snagging on the bare tree branches above. "Like someone—something—is watching us."

"Something?" Isi echoed. She, too, started looking at the passersby more closely. "What—" She turned around to glance behind them, and froze in place. Crouched a block or two away was a massive black dog, the edges of its coat blurring and twisting, almost like it was phasing out of view. Two red eyes blazed like fire through smoke in the creature's head.

"What?" Emma asked, and looked back, too. Her eyes skidded over the dog even as it slowly advanced on them.

"You don't see it? It's dark, but it's right there." She pointed with a trembling hand.

"No—not at all—what is it?"

"A black dog. Red eyes."

Emma frowned. "It might not be for us."

"It's looking at us." Isi tried to ignore how her voice shook and got all thin. "Do you know what—"

"A hellhound." Emma grabbed Isi's hand and started dragging her away; Isi let her, stumbling after her friend on legs that had turned to lead. After a few steps, she got her feet under control and ran, Emma next to her. They shoved through a group of tourists and darted down an alleyway, turning one corner and then another. Isi's heart pounded with every step; she realized she could feel Emma's blood moving under her skin where their hands were clasped. A bark rang out over the streets. Isi risked a look back, but it wasn't behind them, not yet.