A Dark Night (Book One of The Grandor Descendant series) Read Free Page A

upright, the blood rushing to her head. At the same time images flashed in her memory, fragmented, like still shots from an old black and white movie; pictures of a dark lonely path, boys leering at her, bright green eyes, hands reaching out to her, explosions in her head of pain and fear, followed by visions that she didn’t understand; visions of death, destruction, bodies and most vivid of all- blood.
    A s low shiver ran down Ari’s spine and as she went to rub her shoulders, she realised that she was wearing a large charcoal coat that was at least four sizes too big. She was in a circular room, around fifteen feet in diameter. The stone bench she slept on was covered with an enormous quilt and two fluffy white pillows which still bore the impression her head had left. On a tiny wooden table sat a basket and she reached for it.
    “What the?” she asked, picking up a large tub of expensive looking moisturiser.
    Placing the glass jar back onto the table, she thumbed through the rest of the basket’s contents, which were just as bizarre. There was a toothbrush but no toothpaste, a box of bandaids, several brands of antiseptics, a bag full of apples, a large cup of sweet tea that was still warm, and few muesli bars- the exact same brand that Ari would normally have bought from the vending machine at the library. Next her eyes fell on a bundle of clothes. What the hell was going on? 
    “Hello,” she called out , and the soft echo of her call bounced back off the thick stone walls of the room she was in.
    At first t here was no reply; she was just about to call again when suddenly there was a loud clicking noise, followed by the squeaking sound of a rusty door swinging open. The room flooded with light and then a voice spoke, one she was certain she recognised.  
    “You are awake. I am sorry that I had to leave you alone; I had to organise some things.”
    Ari saw the outline of the man who had spoken walking towards her. There was a candle in his hands which lit the small brick room with a warm orange glow, though the little warmth it offered was by no means enough to outweigh the damp, dank feeling pressing down on her. Moss growing in the crevices of the stonework gave the place a sense of decay, mingled with the overwhelming feeling of loss. But this feeling was lost when the light from the candle highlighted the man’s features.
    The fiery gold flickered in the dark and seemed to play with the green of his eyes, leaving Ari feeling lost in their intensity. She stared up at the gorgeous stranger, except he wasn’t a stranger. She had seen him many times before. But what the hell was going on? Where was she? And why was she here with him? She couldn’t read the expression on his face at all; it was completely blank and gave away nothing.
    “Are y ou ok?” he asked, and Ari saw again the same hint of concern crease his eyes.
    “Where am I?” she asked in a rasping voice . The stranger moved to answer her, but Ari had interrupted him before he could begin. “Who… who are you? I’ve seen you before- in the library at the university. You’re always sitting on the couch near the steps, and… and,” but her voice trailed off.
    Immediately the stranger looked down at the ground, apparently surprised that Ari knew so much about him.
    “What happened to my bag… my phone… my shoes?” she stammered, realising that all of her possessions were missing.
    “You dropped them,” he replied , glancing around the room nervously. “How much do you remember?”
    Ari thought this an odd question. She was just about to reply ‘everything’ when her face became rigid. What did happen last night? She traced her steps in her mind; she had been studying at the library, she had banged into her mystery man, this man she thought, at the stairs; then what?  
    “ Those guys…” she said, her voice trailing off as she remembered the boys who had tried to rape her.
    At her words the stranger let his gaze drop back to the