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"Ready to move?"

She touched the fob watch Its beat was shallow "Let’s go," she said Besides,ht across the water Tiny waves continued to roll away fro out across the darkness In the distance water dipped steadily, but the lake seemed to s all other noise But so thenore the urge to run "Michael--"

"I know" His voice was terse "Just keepwe can do here, anyway" The water level began to drop, inching down from their chests to their hips But it still held the consistency of glue,pushed at her wet jeans Biting her lip, she battled the desire to run The soupy water made any sort of quickness impossible, anyway She’d only falland that was probably what Jasper had inher ankle

Again it trailed past, h Michael’s voice was cal the link "Then you don’t think we’ll be attacked?"

"Not here Not yet"

She wished she could share his certainty The dark water receded further, and walking becaht’s bea to close in around them The roof was only inches above their heads

"Hope we don’t have to crawl," shedown on her hands and knees to wadeit, so I doubt ill"

"You really do know him well, don’t you?"

"It pays to As I’ve said, he’s eluded our circle for years"

"And was your circle after him before or after he killed your brother?"

"Before"

But it became personal when Jasper killed Patrick "Does the circle attempt to kill every vaed, a ht "Not all There are so lives"

Some, but not many, she deduced fro it had taken him to curb the lust all too evident in Jasper

"Jasper is a killer," Michael continued grie, he feasted on the suffering of his victims"

And now he feasted on Jake Her stohtness into her voice "And his sort gives the va like that"

They continued on in silence She swept the light across the layers of darkness Nothingthe darkness ahead

Michael stopped abruptly "Movement ahead"

"Where?"

"The tunnel rounds a corner just ahead So moved in the shadows" She shivered It had to be the zombies It wouldn’t be Jasper, not this soon He’d play with theo back" But that wouldJake to die

"No I doubt if Jasper would allow a retreat, anyway" His ansas absent, as if his attention was elsewhere

Poashed through the link He was using his abilities to study the threat ahead Why didn’t Jasper’s net affect him?

"It’s not aimed atI’ll take care of them" He brushed a kiss across the top of her head then faded into the darkness

"Michael?" she hissed as his hand left hers "Michael!" No answer Wonderful What if the zombies were just a diversion to separate the back a yelp of fright, she shone the light down at her feet The water stirred, and so rose briefly to the oily surface before slithering back underneath

Her mouth went dry Snakes There were snakes in the water with her Sweat broke out across her brow The dark waters began to churn, the snakes bus Were they real, or some form of illusion?

They sure felt real One entwined around her legs, and she kicked out A sleek brown head rose fro She screamed and swiped at it with the torch It sank back down and joined the circling pack She leaped over the for the zoht ju crazy shadows on the slick dark walls The darkness beyond the light see to pounce She splashed on, cursing Michael for leaving her

The snakes pursued Real or not, they were cohtly and tried to run faster

Michael! Frantically, she reached for the connection between them There was no answer, just a sense of absence Could he hear her when he was littleshe didn’t know Heart pounding as fast as her feet, she listened to the sounds of pursuit above the noise of her own panicked flight She was teht be what Jasper wanted He’d snare her the minute she tried Damn it, she wasn’t helpless without her abilities She had her knives She could use thea around The water was still, silent The snakes, if they’d ever been real, were gone Almost with you, Nikki

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calaround, Jasper had backed away Maybe Michael was right Maybe Jasper did fear her abilities

The thought did little to ease the sick tension in her stoht across the waters ahead Ripples of movement stirred the surface, but she couldn’t see Michael Only when he was near her did he shake hiht?"

He brushed his knuckles lightly against her cheek She wished he’d just take her in his arms and hold her until the chill and the fear left her But they had no tiet to hih her damp hair What would he think if he realized she’d been running froet to me What about the zombies?"

"They’ve disappeared"

She raised an eyebrow "How can zoaze on the darkness ahead "I don’t know As soon as I neared them, I lost all scent of them"

She studied the darkness uneasily If Jasper could fool Michael’s keen senses, theytrouble