Hellcat

Chapter Twelve

Flash images popped through mind, bursting forth in full color and surround sound. It was real. It happened. All of the bodies. All of the blood. "Allison," a soft, familiar voice called to me. I stood at the edge of a river of blood, bodies floating downstream slowly. Blood from the dead added to the river, washing away the shore. "Allison," the voice called again. My eyes scanned over the faces of the bodies. Most of them had dead eyes, staring up at the sky. They were all faces I recognized, but none matched the voice. Until one did.

The body washed up on the shore by my feet, staring up at me with blind eyes. His chest moved raggedly, blood soaked through his clothes and tinting his skin. I gasped, hand flying to my mouth as I felt my heart plummet through the floor. "I'm sorry," I whispered as I stared down at Matt. He was slowly dying, blood pooling at the hollow of his neck and flowing down the sides to meet the earth. A gash was cut cleanly across the pale skin. "Allison," I heard him call once more, his voice raspy, yet urgent. "Wake up!" he shouted.

I gasped, bolting upright in an attempt to escape my nightmare. For a moment, my eyes registered only the unfamiliar. The brick wall was bathed in shadows. A strange blue light seeped in from the right. Where was I? "Allison?" I gasped, jumping in shock and spinning to face the source of the voice. But my gaze was met by concerned, unfocused brown eyes. "Matt?" I called out softly. My voice was raspy and a little shrill. My heart was pounding against my ribcage. My body shook and I wasn't sure if it was from the cold or the fear.

Clearing my throat, I tore my gaze away from his powerful stare. He was sitting on the edge of the bed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," I muttered, my voice a little stronger as I felt heat rise up in my cheeks. "You didn't, I was already awake," he told me. Eyebrows crinkling together, I glanced around. It was still plenty dark outside, no earlier than 3 AM. "I was grabbing an extra blanket from the closet, and you were..." Matt trailed off. I wondered if he was searching for the right words. But a part of me didn't want to hear them. I didn't want to hear the truth of what my nightmares were like for someone conscious to witness.

But Matt didn't continue. He didn't explain what he heard or felt. "That bad, huh?" I asked, going to a teasing tone. But it just sounded more anxious than anything. "I guess I just didn't realize how bad they were – your nightmares," he told me. His voice was soft and careful, as if he didn't want to scare me or say too much. I sighed, running my fingers through my now dry hair.

"Have you talked to someone? A therapist, maybe?" Matt questioned softly. I knew he was only trying to help, but it wasn't working. I scoffed. "Yeah, cause I can just go in and say, "hey, I'm having nightmares about all the people I killed as an assassin for terrorists" and not get thrown into a mental asylum or prison," I grumbled, shaking my head. "Okay, not a therapist," Matt said before sighing. "Well, if you ever want someone to talk to, or to just listen, I'll lend an ear," he offered, a small, sad smile on his lips as he stood from the bed and headed for the living room when I did something I knew I shouldn't have. I called out to him.

"Matt?" he froze in his tracks, turning his body back towards me to show he was listening. "Yeah?" he prompted. I bit my lower lip. It was too late now, and what harm could it do? "Could you, maybe... do you think it would be okay if we share the bed?" I asked, worried my lip between my teeth as I waited for his answer. Even in the shadows, I could see the corner of his lips turn up slightly. "I think it'd be okay," he said slowly, turning to face me completely.

Nodding, I sighed and shifted across the bed. The sheets below me were cold now, my body heat left in Matt's spot. He slipped under the covers, hesitant and tentative. But he laid down and relaxed, even though his eyes stayed open. An image flashed in my mind of him drenched in blood, a gash slit across his throat.