Night World : Soulmate Chapter 16

It was a very enormous time before Hannah heard footsteps again.She distracted herself during the bulky wait by whistling songs under her suggestion and thinking astir(predicate) thepeople she love.Her m new(prenominal). Her mother didnt even miss her yet, didnt kip down she was g wiz. save by tomorrow shewould. Tomorrow was May first, Hannahs birthday, and Chess would give her mother the letter.Chess, of course. Hannah wished now that shed spent more time verbalize in effect(p)bye to Chess, that shedexplained things better. Chess would have been fascinated. And she had a right to hold out she was an OldSoul, too.Paul Winfield. That was strange-shed only know him a week. merely hed tried to divine service her. And at this number, he knew more about Hannah Snow than anyone else in Montana.I hope he doesnt start smoking again if he rinds out Im dead.Because that was probably how she would shutdown up. Hannah had no illusions about that. She had aweapon-but so did Maya, and Maya was much faster and stronger. She was no match for Maya underthe crush of circumstances, much less when she was weak and f perpetu exclusivelyyish. The best she could hope for wasto explicate Maya to start her while she was legato human.She mind about the Circle Daybreak members. They were good people. She was sorry she wouldnthave the chance to know them better, to help them. They were doing something important, something sheinstinctively sensed was necessary right now.And she thought about Thierry.Hell have to go wandering again, I guess. Its too bad. He hasnt had a very happy life. I was starting tothink I could take that rue out of his look.When she heard a noise at last, she thought it ability be her imagination. She held her breath. none Its footsteps. Getting closer.Shes approach shot.Hannah shifted position. She had stationed herself near the mouth of the cavern now she took a deepbreath and eased herself into a crouch. She wiped her sweaty right palm on her j eans and got a bettergrip on her place. She figured that Maya would shine the common mullein toward the pole w here(predicate) Hannah had been tied, then(prenominal) perchance take a few steps farther inside the cavern, essay to chatter what was going on.And then Ill do it. Ill come out of the darknessbehind her. Jump and ptyalize her done the def revoke. But Ive got to time it right.She held her breath as she saw agility outside the mouth of the cavern. Her superior fear was that Mayawould hear her.Quiet quietThe light came closer. Hannah watched it, not moving. But her brain was clicking along in surprise. Itwasnt the slanted, focused beam of a flashlight. It was the more diffuse pool of light from a lantern.Shes brought another one. But that meansMaya was walking in.Walking quickly-and not pausing. She couldnt shine the light onto the pole yet. And she didnt seemanxious to-apparently it didnt lead to her that she needed to check on Hannah. She was that confident.Hannah cursed ment in ally. Shes going too far-shes out of range. Get upHer program in ruins, she flexed her knees and stood. She heard a crack in her knee joint that give-up the ghosted asloud as a gunshot.But Maya didnt stop. She unplowed going. She was almost at the pole.As silently as she could, Hannah headed across the cavern. either Maya had to do was turn rough to seeher.Maya was at the pole. She was stopping. She was flavor from side to side.Hannah was behind her.Now.Now was the time. Hannahs muscles could tint how she had to stab, to throw her encumbrance behind thethrust so that the stake went in under Mayas left berm joint blade. She knew how to do it. But she couldnt.She couldnt stab somebody in the sanction. Somebody who wasnt menacing her at the moment, whodidnt even know they were in danger.Oh, my God Dont be stupid Do itOh, my Goddess a voice echoed back in her head. Youre not a killer. This isnt even self-defense Frustrated almost to the point of hysteria, Hanna h heard herself let out a breath. It was wet. She wascrying.Her beef up drooped. Her muscles collapsed. She wasnt doing it. She couldnt do it.Maya slowly turned around.She looked both beautiful and eerie in the lantern light. She surveyed Hannah up and down, looking inparticular at the drooping stake. consequently she looked at Hannahs face.Youre the strangest girl, she verbalize, in what seemed to be genuine bewilderment. why didnt you do it?You were smart enough to get yourself out and make yourself a weapon. Why didnt you have the moxie tofinish it?Hannah was asking herself the same thing. Only with more expletives.I am going to die now, she thought. And peradventure die for good-because I dont have guts. Because Icouldnt kill somebody I know is completely vile and completely determined to kill me. Thats not ethics.Thats stupid. I suppose its that Egyptian temple training, Maya was saying. Or maybe the life whenyou were a Buddhist-do you remember that? Or maybe youre just we ak. And a victim. Ive spent a bracing thousand years being a victim-yours. I guess Ive got my part down perfect by now.Oh, well. It doesnt really matter why, Maya tell. It all comes down to the same thing in the end.Now. Lets get this over with.Hannah stared at her, breathing hard, feeling wish a rabbit looking at a headlight.Nobody should weather as a victim. Every creature has a right to fight for its life.But she couldnt seem to get her muscles to move anymore. She was just too tired. Every part of herhurt, from her throbbing head to her raw fingertips to her bruised and aching feet.Maya was smiling, mending her with eyes that shifted from lapis-lazuli blue to glacier green.Be a good girl, now, she crooned.I dont want to be a good girl.Maya reached for her with long arms.Dont touch her Thierry said from the cavern mouth.Hannahs head jerked sideways. She stared at the new pool of light on the other side of the cave. Forthe first few seconds she thought she was hallucinating.B ut, no. He was there. Thierry was standing there with a lantern of his own, tall and almost shimmeringwith coiled tension, ilk a predator ready tospring. The problem was that he was too far away. And Maya was too fast. In the same instant that it tookHannah to make her brain believe her eyes, Maya was moving. In one swift step, she was behindHannah, with her touchs around Hannahs throat.Stay where you are, she said. Or Ill break her little neck.Hannah knew she could do it. She could feel the iron strength in Mayas hands. Maya didnt need aweapon.Thierry put the lantern down and raised his leisure hands. Im staying, he said quietly.And tell whoever else youve got in that tunnel to go back. All the way back. If I see another person, Illkill her.Without turning, Thierry shouted. Go back to the entrance. All of you. Then he looked at Hannah. are you all right?Hannah couldnt nod. Mayas grip was so tight that she could barely say, Yes. But she could look athim, and she could see his ey es.She knew, in that moment, that all her fears about him not wanting her anymore were groundless. Heloved her. She had never seen such exonerated love and concern in anyones face before.More, they understood each other. They didnt need any words. It was the end of misunderstandingsand mistrust. For maybe the first time since she had been Hana of the Three Rivers, Hannah trusted himwithout reservation. They were in accord.And neither of them valued this to end with a death.When Thierry took his eyes from Hannahs, it was to look at Maya and say, Its over, now. You haveto realize that. Ive got twenty people down here, and another twenty on the surface waiting. His voicebecame softer and more deliberate. But I give you my word, you can walk out of here right now,Maya. Nobody will touch you. All you have to do is let Hannah go first.Together, Hannah said, cough as Mayas hands tightened, cutting off her breath. She gasped andfinished, We go out together, Thierry. Thierry nodded and l ooked at Maya. He was holding his hand out now, like someone trying to coax afrightened child. Just let her go, he said softly.Maya laughed.It was an unnatural sound, and it made Hannahs skin crawl. nothing sane made a noise like that.But that way, I wont win, Maya said, almost pleasantly.You cant win anyway, Thierry said quietly. Even if you kill her, shell still be alive-Not if I make her a vampire first, Maya interrupted. But Thierry was shaking his head. It doesnt matter. His voice was still quiet, but it was modify with theauthority of absolute conviction, a kind of bedrock certainty that held even Hannah mesmerized.Even if you kill her, shell still be alive-here. He tapped his chest. In me. I keep her here. Shes part ofme. So until you kill me, you cant really kill her. And you cant win. Its that simple.There was a silence. Hannahs own heart was twisted with the force of her love for him. Her eyes werefull.She could hear Maya breathing, and the sound was ragged. She thought that the pressure of Mayashands was infinitesimally less.I could kill you both, Maya said at last in a grating voice.Thierry lifted his shoulders and dropped them in agesture too sad to be a shrug. But how can you win when the people you hate arent there to see it?It sounded insane-but it was true. Hannah could feel it hit Maya like a well-thrown javelin. If Mayacouldnt have Thierry as her prize, if she couldnt even make him suffer, what was the point? Where wasthe victory?Lets stop the cycle right here, Thierry said softly. Let her go.He was so gentle, and so reasonable, and so tired-sounding. Hannah didnt see how anyone could resisthim. But she was still impress at what happened next.Slowly, very slowly, the hands around her neck loosened their grip. Maya stepped away.Hannah sucked in a deep breath. She wanted to run to Thierry, but she was afraid to do anything tounbalance the delicate stalemate in the cavern. Besides, her knees were wobbly.Maya was moving around her, taking a s tep or two in front of her, facing Thierry directly.I loved you, she said. There was a sound in her voice Hannah had never heard before, a quaver. Whydidnt you ever understand that?Thierry shook his head. Because its not true. You never loved me. You wanted me. Mostly becauseyou couldnt have me.There was a silence then as they stood looking at each other. Not because they understood each othertoo well for words, Hannah thought. Because they would never understand each other. They had nothingto say.The silence stretched on and on-and then Maya collapsed.She didnt recall down. But she might as well have. Hannah saw the life go out of her-the hope. The energythat had kept Maya vibrant and sparkling after thousands of years. It had all come from her need to win .. . and now she knew shed lost. She was defeated.Come on, Hannah, Thierry said quietly. Lets go. Then he turned to shout back into the tunnel behindhim. Clear the way. Were all coming out.That was when it happened.Maya had been standing slumped, her head down, her eyes on the ground.Or on her backpack.And now, as Thierry turned away, she flashed one behold at him and then moved as fast as a strikingsnake. She grabbed the black stake and held it horizontally, her arm drawn back.Hannah recognized the posture instantly. As Hana of the Three Rivers shed seen hunters throw spearsall the time.Game over, Maya whispered.Hannah had a fraction of a second to act-and no time to consider. All she thought was, No.With her whole weight behind the thrust, she lunged at Maya. Stake first.The sharp wooden point went in just under Mayas shoulder blade. She staggered, off balance, herthrow ruined. The black stake went skittering across the rough stone floor.Hannah was off balance, too. She was falling. Maya was falling. But it all seemed to be happening inslow motion. Ive killed her.There was no triumph in the thought. Only a sort of hushed certainty.When the slow-motion feeling ended, she found herself the way anybody fi nds themself after a fall. Onthe ground and surprised. just that Maya was underneath her, with a stake protruding from her back.Hannahs first frantic thought was to get a doctor. Shed never seen someone this badly hurt before- notin this life. There was blood seeping out of Mayas back around the makeshift stake. It had gone in verydeep, the wood piercing vampire flesh like razor-sharp steel through a human.Thierry was beside her. Kneeling, pulling Hannah slightly away from Mayas prone form, as if she mightstill be dangerous.Hannah reached for him at the same time, and their hands met, intertwined. She held on tight, feeling arush of tenderness and comfort from his presence.Then Thierry gently turned Maya onto her side.Hair was falling across Mayas face like a black waterfall. Her skin was chalky white and her eyes werewide open. But she was laughing.Laughing. She looked at Hannah and laughed. In a thick choking voice, she gasped. You had guts-after all.Hannah whispered, Can we do anything for her?Thierry shook his head.Then it was terrible. Mayas laugh turned into a gurgle. A trickle of blood ran out of the side of hermouth. Her body jerked. Her eyes stared. And then, finally, she was still.Hannah felt her own breath breathe out.Shes dead. I killed her. I killed someone.Every creature has the right to fight for its life-or its loved ones.Thierry said softly, The cycle is broken.Then he let Mayas shoulder go and her body slumped down again. She seemed smaller now, shrunken.After a moment Hannah realized it wasnt an illusion. Maya was doing what all vampires do in the movies.She was falling in on herself, her tissues collapsing, muscle and flesh shriveling. The one hand Hannahcould see seemed to be wasting away and hardening at the same time. The skin became colour andleathery, showing the form of the tendons underneath.In the end, Maya was just a leather sack full of bones.Hannah swallowed and shut her eyes.Are you all right? Let me look at you. Thierry was holding her, examining her. Then when Hannah methis eyes, he looked at her long and searchingly and said with a different meaning, Are you all right?Hannah understood. She looked at Maya and then back at him.Im not proud of it, she said slowly. But Im not sorry, either. It just-had to be done. She thoughtanother moment, then said, getting out each wordseparately, I refuse to be a victim anymore.Thierry tightened his arm around her. Im proud of you, he said. Then he added, Lets go. We need toget you to a healer.They walked back through the narrow passageway, which was no longer dark because Thierrys peoplehad placed lanterns every few feet. At the end of thepassage, in the room with the vertical shaft, they had set up some sort of rope and pulley.Lupe was there, and Nilsson, and the rest of the CIA group. So were Rashel and Quinn. The fighters,Hannah thought. Everyone called and laughed and patted her when she came in with Thierry.Its over, Thierry said briefly. Shes dead.Everyone looked at him and then at Hannah. And somehow they knew. They all cheered and patted heragain. Hannah didnt feel like Cinderella anymore she felt like Dorothy after killing the Wicked Witch. And she didnt like it.Lupe took her by the shoulders and said excitedly, Do you know what youve done?Hannah said, Yes. But I dont want to think about it any more right now.It wasnt until theyd hauled her up the vertical shaft that it occurred to her to ask Thierry how hed foundher. She was standing on an inconspicuous hillside with no buildings or landmarks around. Maya hadpicked a very good hiding place.One of her own people sold her out, Thierry said. He got to the house about the same time I did thisevening, and he said he had information to sell. He was a loup-garou who wasnt happy with how shedtreated him.A werewolf with black hair? Hannah wondered. But she was too sleepy unawares to ask morequestions.Home, sir? Nilsson said, a little breathlessly because hed just come up the shaft.Thierr y looked at him, laughed, and started to help Hannah down the hill. Thats right. Home, Nilsson.