The Unnamed | The Unnamed Duology Book 1

THE ELITE CH. 3 - SAMPLE

3: Turning Tables

Daniel's breath catches in his throat as he looks at her. The Unnamed are coming back for him.

"Elite Runner Daniel," the remaining Guard says quietly. "What would you like us to do with her?"

"We shall wait for the Doctor," Daniel commands. He's afraid to touch her, afraid to keep his eyes on her for more than a split second. What had happened to her?

They wait. It seems like hours have passed. The other guard should have been back by now. Where is he?

Daniel looks up at the Guard standing by his side as he sits in the black chair, his head resting in his hands. The soggy note sits on the blue coffee table in front of him, the black letters staring back at him.

"Check her pulse again," Daniel says quietly, afraid to touch her.

The Guard touches the side of her neck with his gloved hand. He nods and looks back up at Daniel, confirming the girl is still alive. But where is all the blood coming from?

"Master, I'm worried about the other Guard."

Daniel looks up at the boy and sees his eyes glistening with fear. His heart breaks for him. He knows that kind of worry.

"Go find him," the Elite Runner tells the boy. "Hurry."

The Guard nods and bolts to the door, making sure to lock it behind him. Daniel sighs nervously. His front door is no longer protected. No lock could keep the Unnamed out. Rose proved that when she had shot Mortimer, Daniel the Elite Runner's Master.

Glancing up once more at the girl on his couch, he feels emotions swim through his body. She had saved him that first night in this house from Blaise. He hadn't seen her since then, until tonight, and she shows up bleeding, soaking wet, and with a threatening note for him. Why her, of all people? Is it because she had, in fact, saved him once? Could it be that he knows her and she him? What games are the Unnamed playing on Daniel?

"Strange how the tables have turned," Daniel sighs as he slowly stands to his feet. Stealing a look at the clock, he begins to make his way over to the girl. It's almost as if every step he takes is one step closer to his death.

Her eyebrows are scrunched together, as if she's having a confusing dream in her cold unconsciousness. Her lips are slightly apart as she breathes heavily, and her eyes dart quickly below her eyelids. The girl's body twitches ever so slightly in different places as goosebumps rise along her skin.

Daniel pulls the throw on the back of the black couch and drapes it over her. She seems to relax a bit, her mouth closing. Daniel takes a step back, looking her over once.

The blanket fills with blood quickly just over her stomach. Daniel pulls it back slightly, still afraid to touch her. She's definitely bleeding from her stomach.

"Where are they?" He mutters.

He makes a beeline for the front door, peering out the side windows. Through the heavy falling rain, something flashes silver. The Runner's eyes try to focus on where the light was coming from, but he can't see really anything through the water.

Slowly he opens the door, his heart pounding like a drum. He looks around and sees nothing, sees no one. Taking a step outside, the moist air swallows him up and makes him shiver. A cold front has blown through.

Something in the distance catches his eye, somewhere around where the light had come from. A dark heap of something lays on the ground, a long knife reaching to the sky. Red swells around it and washes away with the rain. Could that be...?

Daniel's foot kicks something.

He looks down to see the second guard. His eyes are open and blood drips from his mouth. A long knife sticks up from his chest. A kitchen knife.

Daniel's stomach lurches inside of him, and a hand comes up to his mouth. He looks up to try and see whatever killed his Guards, forgetting for the moment that he is in danger. His dark eyes find nothing.

And then another flash. A thud.

Daniel cries out. The thunder mutes him. Lightning illuminates one figure in the distance. A woman with a malevolent smile on her pointy face. More faces begin to appear, standing in a great circle around the Elite Runner's Mansion. The Unnamed have returned, and they aren't holding back.