The Certainty (Book Four in The Illusion of Certainty Series)

We Can't Go Back

“Go! Move!”

I opened my eyes and saw a forest at night. The only light came from the moon. I don't think you really know how dark that is until you're sitting against a rock, unable to see three inches in front of your face.

“Georgiana! Go!”

Michael’s voice urged me into motion and I began to run. I was scared; fear raced through my veins and skittered across my skin.

“Run faster!”

“I’m going as fast as I can.”

“He’s gaining ground! You have to move faster!”

The forest changed into a city street and I knew where I was. I glanced over my shoulder and saw him running after me. I skidded around the corner and into the nearest door. My boots thundered on the floor as I ran over to the stairs and took them two at a time.

“Faster!”

My foot slipped on the stair and I fell, banging my knee on the ledge of the next step.

“Get up!”

I looked down at what I’d slipped on and saw a puddle of blood. Panic began to rise in my chest like heartburn until it slipped into my mouth and tasted like battery acid.

“GO!”

I scrambled up, ignoring the blood that was now covering my clothes and dripping down my face.

“Third door on your left!”

“I can’t go in there!”

“Go!”

I froze in front of the door and stared at it. It looked exactly like the door from Vampire Domain. It even had the Dante’s Inferno inscription on it.

“Open it!”

“I can’t!”

I heard the door bang open downstairs. “Here kitty, kitty.”

I yelped and opened the door. I ran in and slammed the door, feeling for a lock. When I didn’t find one I began backing away from the door slowly.

“This can’t be happening. Not again,” I whispered.

“Run Georgiana!”

I turned to run but what I saw froze me in place. The room was flooded in at least five inches of blood. And there were bodies floating in the liquid, just near the surface so only their noses peaked above the water level.

“Oh my god.”

“Just don’t look down! Go to the door on the other side! Go! Now!”

I stepped forward, navigating my way until my foot caught on something.

“Don’t stop!”

“My foot…”

I looked down. I should never have looked down. My foot was caught on a necklace hanging around the neck of a body. The body’s eyes were closed and on any other occasion the person would look like they were sleeping. Except the body’s throat was slit, their face pale against the stark crimson of the blood it floated in.

“Oh my god!”

“I told you not to look down!”

The body was me.