Hunting Shadows (Shadow Series #3) (15 page)

“Hi guys.”

“Hi,” I greeted with a smile. “It’s good to see you again.” I felt the need to explain
why we were here even though she hadn’t asked. “We’re taking a break between classes.
I didn’t realize the fencing team was practicing today.”

“We have a big match tomorrow,” Amanda said. “I always stress out
way too much about it. I
end up coming to practice on my own at night to ma
ke sure I’m as prepared as possible
for the next day
’s match
.”

“I’m sure you’ll do great,” I said sincerely.

I waited until Amanda had walked away to speak. “
So I guess
we have to stay tonight until she comes bac
k to practice on her own. That w
ould be the perfect time
for
her vardoger to
strike.”

“Yeah, if she’s the one from your vision,” Ryan said.

“Maybe she is and maybe she isn’t. All I know is I’m not taking any chances.”

We watched the fencing team practice and I was impressed by how quickly they moved.
I zeroed in on Amanda as she fenced and started to believe that she was the one from
my vision. Her build fit the figure but I knew better than to dismiss the possibility
that it could be Justin or Bryce. Both could easily be the person in my vision as
well.

There wasn’t much to do after the fencing team left except wait. Ryan and Simon played
a round of one-on-one basketball to release some energy and I
cringed while I watched them. They weren’t treating this as an easy game of pick-up
basketball. You would have thought it was a championship game with the way they were
competing so fiercely. I winced when Simon body checked Ryan hard, but instead of
calling foul Ryan returned the favor during the next point.

I was relieved when they were done and neither had sustained any injuries. The waiting
game continued and I sat up straight when Amanda walked into the auditorium. She seemed
surprised to see us again and walked over.

“Have you been here all day?” she asked, looking at us a little oddly. I didn’t blame
h
er but we had already planned out
the story we would tell.

I laughed as if I found her question hilarious. “Of course not! We’re waiting for
a few friends to play some basketball. What a coincidence to see you again.”

Amanda seemed to accept my answer but she looked at me a little strangely again. I
smiled widely, trying not to look as foolish as I felt. We watched as she spent the
next hour practicing and I was on pins and needles, waiting for her shadow to step
out at any moment.

Unfortunately it never happened and I was crestfallen when Amanda waved from a distance
after she was done practicing and left.

“Dammit!” I said fiercely. “I was sure it was going to happen tonight.”

“We might as well leave,” Simon said. “It’s past eight o’clock and I doubt any
other
members of the fencing
team are going to come to
the auditorium
tonight to practice.”

“Let’s just stay for a few more hours,” I insisted. “Just to make sure.”

Simon sighed but he agreed. I finally conceded defeat at ten-thirty and we left to
go home.
When I closed my eyes that night,
I prayed that I would have a vision and see something that would clu
e me in as to who was in danger.

Chapter Twelve

Blood spurted out of the neck as the severed head rolled towards me. I wasted no time
in bending over to reach for the he
ad. I shuddered as my hands became
covered
in blood as I struggled to
pull
off
the
mask
but I refused to let my revulsion deter m
e. I finally succeeded in removing the mask
and stared at the face looking back at me.

I immediately pushed against my slumber, struggling to wake up so that I could take
action.

“It’s Britney!” I gasped as I woke up. I scrambled out of bed and quickly started
changing.

Simon was up and out of bed instantly. “I thought
she didn’t fit the description.” he said
as he changed clothes as well.

“She doesn’t! She’s tall enough but her chest is way too big to match the person in
my vision.” A part of me realized how ludicrous it was to be discussing a woman’s
breast size when her life was in danger, but I still didn’t understand how it could
be her. “I saw her face and it was definitely her.”

I checked the tim
e and saw that it was almost five
o’clock in the morning. I rushed out into the living room, not waiting for Simon.
“Ryan! Wake up! It’s Britney!”

Ryan shot up off the couch, understanding immediately what I was talking about. He
didn’t question how it could be her and instead just pulled on his jeans.

I opened Sarah’s door without knocking and burst in. Both she and Grant were fast
asleep and I shook her awake.

“Sarah, I have to go,” I said in a rush. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“What?” Sarah said groggily as she rubbed her eyes. She looked at me
in
confusion for a few moments and then her expressio
n cleared. “Why? What’s happening
?”

“I saw the person’s face in my vision. It’s Britney.”

“But how
—?”

I shook my head, cutting her off. “I don’t have time to explain right now.”

When I rushed back into the living room, Ryan was lowering his cell phone from his
ear. “She’s not picking
up
.”

“You go to her apartment. Simon and I will go to the auditorium.”

“But
—”

I interrupted whatever Ryan had been about to say. “We don’t know where she is. The
odds are she’s either peacefully asleep in bed or she’s at the auditorium. I don’t
even know if it’s going to happen now, today or even this week! But I can’t shake
the feeling that we don’t have much time. I need you
to
go to her apartment in case she’s there. As much as I trust my vision, I can’t trust
it completely and she could be in danger anywhere.”

I was relieved when Ryan agreed. We parted ways outside in front of the apartment
and
Simon and I
headed
towards the auditorium.
I had hidden the palladium coin in my closet but I still checked every pocket and
hiding place on me to make sure I didn’t have it.

Our pace was quick but my sense of urgency was screaming at me to hurry even more.
“Simon, we’re running out of time.”

He didn’t argue how I knew
,
he just nodded and we both took off in
to
a run. I was breathless when we reached the auditorium, the cold air hurting my lungs,
but Simon was barely winded.

The auditorium was completely dark when we opened the door. None of the lights were
on and the sun hadn’t risen yet. Simon felt around the wall for
the light
switches but only succeeded in turning on one light, casting an eerie glow into the
auditorium.

“None of these other light switches are working,” Simon said in frustration. “They
must be on timers or something.”

“It’s good enough,” I said softly as my eyes scanned every dark corner. Simon took
my hand as we walked the perimeter of the auditorium
. We were as quiet
as possible
in case anyone was there
, but we were alone.

“Let’s wait where we can’t be seen,” I whispered and Simon followed me as I hid behind
the bleachers. I texted Ryan quickly to see if Britney was at her apartment but
before I could press “send,” m
y
breath caught in my throat as
I heard the distinct sound of a door opening. Slowly, a figure emerged from the darkness
and made its way to the fencing strip. Britney was already in her fencing uniform
but her mask was
in her hand
. Her figure exactly matched the one in my vision and I was confused by the difference
in her appearance. Her generous chest was now flat and I wondered if she had bound
them. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and then slipped on her mask.

She raised her saber and started practicing, feinting and retreating as if she had
an imaginary opponent. Simon and I were silent as we watched her, waiting for the
moment when her shadow would make itself known.

Suddenly she froze, raising her saber in the air, and that’s when I saw it. Her body
seemed to shimmer as an outer skin slithered off her, taking shape into an exact replica
of her. I made my move, running out from behind the bleacher
s and concentrating all my strength
into funneling my energy.

The vardoger whipped its head towards me when I rushed out
and
it froze
for a fraction of a second as it stared at me. Before I could blink, it rushed towards
m
e in a flash
. I heard Simon yell something but my focus was on the orb of light and
energy I was building inside myself
. The instant the vardoger crashed against me, sinking into me, I shot out my energy
with as much force as I could. I felt myself falling to the ground and was helpless
to brace myself, my body weak from the exertion
of using my powers
.
Simon
huddled over me, his face a mask of concern, but I could only think of one thing.

“Did I do it?” I asked shakily, trying to gather enough strength to sit up.

“You did it,” Simon said, grabbing my arms as I pushed myself up. Britney was crumpled
in a heap on the fencing strip and I struggled to get to my feet.

“We have to make sure she’s okay,” I said in a stronger voice as I felt the disorientation
and weakness start to recede.

Before we could get to her, the door crashed open and Ryan ran in looking frantic.
His eye
s zeroed in on me and he ran
straight towards me.

“Are you okay?” he asked
urgently
, reaching out to touch my arm and completely ignoring Simon.

I nodded. “I’m okay. We just have to make sure Britney isn’t hurt.”

Simon pushed Ryan’s hand away while giving him a hard look. Ryan’s jaw tightened but
he didn’t say anything as we walked over to Britney’s prone form.

“Britney,” I said softly, shaking her gently. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked
at me in confusion. She struggled to sit up and I helped her prop herself up on her
arms.

“What the hell happened?” she asked in a hoarse voice. She looked around the auditorium
and then back at us. “Did I have an accident? What are you doing here?”

I tried to lie convincingly. “Ryan called you and he got worried when you didn’t answer.
He went by your place to see if you were there, and when you didn’t answer the door
he figured you would be here. He asked us to come with him.
When we got here you were on the floor. You must have fallen and hit your head.
” It was a weak excus
e but it was the best I could come up with
at the moment.

Britney raised a hand to her head and touched it gingerly. She frowned at me. “But
my head doesn’t hurt.”

“I guess you’re just lucky,” I said, not knowing what other explanation to give.

Ryan helped Britney get to her feet and she looked at him with renewed interest. “Why
did you call me?”

Ryan raised an eyebrow and
paused
before answering. “I lost my watch and wondered if I had left it at your apartment
when I was over for the fencing get-together.”

I wanted to roll my eyes at his excuse but Britney seemed to buy it as she pulled
her arm out of his grasp in anger. “I don’t have your stupid watch.”

“Do you remember anything that
happened to you
?” I asked
,
wanting to make sure sh
e wasn’t aware of what had
just
transpired.

“I always come
here to practice early in the morning before a match. The last thing I remember was
practicing with my saber and the next thing I know you’re hovering over me.” She frowned
and looked around, the tension on her face easing when she saw her saber lying on
the ground. She reached down to pick it up but yelped in surprise when the blade nicked
her finger.

“What the hell?” she said, looking at her bleeding finger in confusion. She looked
back at her saber. “How the hell did that get so sharp?”

I could only imagine what her vardoger had influenced her to do without her being
aware, such as sharpening her saber. I needed her to stop asking questions so I looked
at Ryan pointedly. “Why don’t you take her to the health
center to make sure she’s okay?
”

The corners of his mouth
turned down but he nodded and turned to Britney. “Let’s go. I just hope it’s open.”

Despite Britney’s disap
pointment with Ryan’s reason
for calling her, she didn’t refuse. I hesitated as they were leaving and then called
out her name.

“What?” she asked as she turned around, looking disgruntled.

“You just look…” I trailed off and then forced myself to start again. I needed to
know why her body looked so dramatically different in one area. “You look completely
different. Your chest, that is.”

Britney flushed beet red, shooting me a death glare. “What’s your problem? You’ve
never heard of a padded bra?
” Her glare turned even fiercer. “You’re such a bitch.”

Ryan looking highly amused but he pulled her arm and led her out. I sighed deeply
when they were gone. “I don’t blame her for getting upset. It was a pretty insulting
question.”

Simon grinned and pulled me close. “You were just trying to understand why she looked
so different in your vision.”

He kept me close as we walked home and the morning air felt invigorating as dawn broke
and the sun peeked out of the horizon.
It felt good to know that I had succeeded in destroying a vardoger, that I was fulfilling
my role as a seer. I also realized how nice it was to have Simon by my side and I
wondered if we would spend the rest of our lives together like this. I could t
hink of nothing I wanted more
.