A Touch Of Lightning (COMPLETED!)

Chapter 59 The Hunt 3

Chapter 59 The Hunt 3

Callin peeled his eyes open, his mind sluggishly crawling up from strange, dark places. Places filled with pain and confusion, betrayal and vengeance. He looked around, wondering if he was still dreaming. Having his eyes open hadn't helped erase his confusion at all.

He was in a rough woodshed with no recollection of how he had got there. It was a room full of shadows, the dusty, rough-cut wood and dirt floor acting like light sponges, sucking lazily at the few shreds of light. The meager sunlight was provided by a scum-yellow piece of plastic acting as a window pane, reluctantly letting in sunlight only after it had fouled it up. His nose was overwhelmed with potent scents. His ears were hammered by nearby sounds. He could smell dogs, birds, cats, a coyote, and various other creatures, their scents all jumbled together in the small space. And they were all chirping, barking, and howling, a crushing wall of discordant sound that pierced his ears and sent bolts of confusion spearing into his mind.

His hunter's eyes let him see the cages scattered about the woodshed. Cages holding all the various creatures that were obviously trying their best to drive him insane through sound alone. He tried to sit up, then fell back, finding his arms and legs restrained. He lifted his head, seeing he was lying on an old mattress on the dirt floor. And he was handcuffed and leg cuffed to four thick wooden posts at each corner, spread-eagled and wearing only his boxers.

Even over the racket in the room, his ears caught the sound of approaching footsteps. He had never felt so vulnerable in his life. Panic rose up inside, an old enemy, more terrible for its fangs of familiarity, as he began to thrash and twist. Desperate to break free, yanking so furiously that the cuffs cut into his skin, his blood falling to be swallowed by the uncaring dirt floor. He was whimper-snarling softly, the sound of a trapped and terrified creature, hating it but unable to find the willpower to stop it.

The door to the shed swung open, the blinding sunlight searing the shadows, cutting into his eyes, making him turn his head away. A welcome river of fresh air washed over him, and he found himself swallowing at it deeply, sucking it in with great gasps, his heart racing so wildly that it felt like a vibrating, burning lump of coal in his chest.

He had given up trying to break free the moment before the door had opened, horrified at how weak he felt. At how utterly ineffective his struggles had been. He vaguely wondered if not having his bone armor was making him weak, on top of causing his senses and healing power to fail. He could still feel the cuts on his wrists on his ankles seeping blood, stinging. An unfamiliar sensation. He remembered his healing power flooding back into him the moment the twins had used their powers to hold his own powers tight together. When they had essentially taken the empty place inside him of his missing bone armor.

Now, so far away from them, he didn't feel their power working inside him. He guessed that there was a limit how far they could send their power, even through the apparent link they had with him. He kept his head turned to the side as he heard the footsteps cross the room, coming to stand directly over him.

He was questing inside. Could he reach out to the twins? He couldn't feel them inside his mind at all. Could he telepathically call anybody for help? Even if he could, even if his powers were still functioning enough for that, what would be the chance they could get here, wherever here was, soon enough?

He heard a slight rustle of clothes, the muffled pop of cartilage in knees, as somebody crouched next to him. And a faint, clean, raspberry scent drifted over him. A scent that completed his memories, that cleared away much of his confusion. Now he knew roughly where he was, and what had happened.

The strange, tiny, insane girl had chased him. He was hundreds of miles away from the mansion. He had pushed himself too far that day, he hadn't been able to escape her. He remembered passing out. She must have dragged him here to this shed, she must be the one who had handcuffed him.