Everything Is Eternal (Book Two)

III

Everything felt so good. So warm and beautiful.

If only it could feel this way forever...

There was only darkness. A sweet, enveloping darkness that took away all pain, all feeling, all sense of self.

Then thoughts returned, little pinpricks of light piercing the shield of darkness. The lost soul could now feel the shackles of a body and her name returned. Many names.

Katharine Sullivan. Kitty. Katie. Miss Sullivan. Katharine Sullivan-Morris. Mrs. Morris.

Lost Soul. Whore. Daughter. Wife.

Kate.

The bubble of darkness popped and light rushed in everywhere. Kate squeezed her eyes shut, terrified it was the Eternal Light. A moment passed before she realized it was just morning light. She was facing a wide window, and the glare was hitting her eyes. She couldn't remember ever waking up to such a great window and she always lived so close to the Edges, so the morning light was muted.

Her body had never felt so heavy, but she forced herself up into a sitting position. It only took a quick look around the room to determine that she wasn't in a sanctuary. She was in a large, curtained bed, though the lavender curtains were pushed back. The room was spacious, every inch far grander than could have been conjured by her imagination. The window ran all the way from the ceiling to the floor, bordered with a cushioned window seat. A fireplace with a low burning fire kept everything warm. An ornately carved mahogany wardrobe was near the bed. When she craned her neck, she found a bookcase with more books than she could quickly count, fine chairs, and a long table. Beautiful landscape paintings lined the walls. She had never been in such a fine bedchamber in her entire life.

Matthew might have been right. The afterlife might have a paradise.

But if the afterlife was a paradise, Kate wouldn't be alone. Her body wouldn't feel so sore and worn.

She knew she was alive, but she had to find out what was happening. With an exhausted huff, she pushed back the blankets and inched toward the edge of the bed.

"No, no! Mrs. Morris! You must stay in bed!"

A maid entered the room and hurried over, insisting Kate lie back down.

"Wait!" Kate protested. "What's going on? Where am I?"

"I can't be saying!" the maid said nervously. "Allow me to fetch the master. He'll explain all. Just... please don't move. I wasn't supposed to leave you unattended."

Kate was too exhausted to move, but not too exhausted to worry. Who was this master? Why was Kate even there? The worst possibilities whirled in her mind. She heard occasional reports of servants of the Eternal selling unwanted women to the wealthy as sex slaves. She tried to tell herself that those were just shadowy rumors, but Vanessa never laughed off those rumors. That was another reason for her anger when Kate had been arrested at fourteen.

"What if it hadn't been some thirteen-year-old rich boy who saved you?" Vanessa scolded. "What if it had been a middle-aged pervert? All he would have to do is tell the Sanctuary that he would see to the salvation of your soul and give them a lot of money. Then even Jon Knight wouldn't be able to hunt you down!"

Of course, Kate wasn't fourteen anymore. So that cut down the chances of being sold to a deviant by a third. But damned if she would let herself be used that way.

Unable to stop herself from hyperventilating, it felt like she blacked out for a second. She looked around the room for something she could use as a weapon. Maybe a fire poker? But it was so far away.