So This Is Love? {NYSM: J. Daniel Atlas}

Chapter 15

Amber Journey awoke in a cold sweat with a scream upon her lips.

Pain rocked her body, spreading through her body like the fire she had seen so vividly. She twisted violently in her covers. The sheets twisted around her keeping her sealed within her sweaty tomb.

"Evan!" She screamed, "EVAN!"

She had never had to relive the nightmare before. Normally she would just see Evan burning alive or hear his voice screaming her name. But never the whole memory. Never like this.

"Evan," she cried weakly as her voice cracked.

Voices murmured outside the door leading to what Amber now realized was a room.

Part of her cared that she didn't recognize her surroundings but the rest of her was too high strung to care. The adrenaline slowly drained out of her and she sank back against the damp pillows.

Her breaths stayed rapid and dots swam in her vision. She realized that she was hyperventilating and tried to take slow breaths.

However the doorknob rattled and her heart rate skyrocketed.

Her eyelids flickered but she refused to let them shut as the door swung wide.

Muffled voices exploded into fragmented sentences and words. Indecipherable messages and phrases. None made any sense to the distraught woman.

"Something...help...needs..."

"Wrong...YOUR FAULT..."

"But...brought...here!"

"Not...fault!"

"Stop, please," Amber mumbled as she freed her arms. She placed her hands over her ears trying to block out the noise, "Please."

"Amber...okay...safe," a blurry shape said.

"No, please, leave me a-a," she slammed her eyes a shut as she struggled to form the word.

"Alone!" She gasped at last.

A cold hand found her burning forehead and she groaned.

The voices started up again and began arguing in loud voices.

"A-alone!" Amber repeated angrily.

The voices ignored her and began moving. As she tried to follow them, her head began pounding fiercely. She groaned weakly and closed her eyes. Colors dotted her vision briefly, lighting up her closed eyelids before being replaced by blessed darkness.

Amber lay still.

Jack Wilder was the first to notice and he quickly leaned over the girl and gently pressed two fingers to her throat. His stomach dropped as his palms began to sweat.

"Guys," he said in a terrified voice.

"If you hadn't told us to bring her here-"

"OUR BENEFACTOR SAID TO! I WAS FOLLOWING ORDERS!" Daniel yelled angrily.

"Like Helheim, I believe that," Merritt spat, "Last time I checked, Atlas, the only person you listen to is yourself."

Daniel raised an eyebrow.

"Perhaps that's true, most of the time however I, want to be in the Eye so I have followed their orders. Which included," he continued in a dark tone, "Kidnapping Agent Journey."

"GUYS," Jack repeated.

No one responded to the young man's call.

Henley crossed her arms across her chest and glared at Daniel.