7. Chapter Seven

It wasn't like Lennon to not answer her phone, especially when I texted three times in a row, but I figured she was taking a nap. After all, I'd seen the bags beneath her eyes gradually getting darker as the semester wore on. I wasn't the only one having a hard time studying and working crazy hours to make ends meet.

Thankfully, the rain had finally stopped, but I raced the entire way home just in case the storm clouds changed their mind. It was still overcast, a thick gray blanket of clouds covering the entire sky, blocking the sun. Heat made the humidity nearly unbearable, but it did nothing to abate the chill licking over my skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps behind.

There was no sign of the shadow, which would have been reassuring that morning, but didn"t give me a shred of relief now. Knowing he was always there, even when I couldn't see him, sent my anxiety into overdrive, twisting my thoughts and knotting my stomach. He was somewhere nearby, I knew it, watching me, probably following me home.

My throat tightened and I quickened my steps.

I hurried up the stairs of the apartment building, entirely out of breath by the time I reached our front door, and fumbled my keys out of my pocket. As soon as I was over the threshold, I slammed the door closed behind me.

"Len!" I called, kicking my water-logged boots off by the door. "I'm home!"

There was no answer, but that didn't mean anything. She could sleep through a tornado sometimes, depending on how tired she was. I decided to peek in her room, slowly cracking open the door as it groaned in protest. I held my breath, starting to second-guess my desire to wake her, but my stomach dropped when I found her bed empty.

She wasn't there.

"Lennon!" I called into the hall, wondering if she had possibly fallen asleep somewhere else. It wasn't like there were many places to hide in our cramped apartment. Still, there was no answer.

I did a quick sweep of the place, checking every room twice, just in case. I even checked the closets, convinced she might be playing a prank on me, but there was no sign of her.

A chill prickled up my spine, and I pulled out my phone, scrolling to Lennon"s name. I punched the call button, all the blood draining from my face when it went straight to voicemail. Unlike me, Lennon rarely let her phone die. This didn't make any sense.

What the hell is going on?

I hung up and punched the call button again, just to make sure I wasn"t mistaken. Again, it went to voicemail.

"Son of a bitch," I whispered sharply, staring down at the phone. I didn't have any texts or missed calls from her, no indication of where she might have headed after class.

I didn't like it, not one bit, especially after everything I'd seen in the last few days. Now wasn't the time for her to go missing. What if the shadow had something to do with it? What if he'd taken her? Hurt her?

My stomach churned and bile burned up my throat. I swallowed it down and ran a hand through my hair, trying and failing to reason out where she might have gone. My thoughts were careening out of control, and I had little hope of reeling them back in. They either ended with a deadend or came back to the shadow.

The shadow.

Fuck, I hated how many times he'd crossed my mind over the last few hours. Like an infection, he'd festered his way through my brain, and there was no way to stop it, no way to slow it down. Soon, I was sure that the shadow would be the only thing I could think about from the time I woke up to the time I went to bed.

It wasn't healthy, it wasn't sane, but deep down, something in my gut told me the shadow was responsible for Lennon's disappearance.

My jaw hardened, rage bubbling in my stomach like acid. If he hurt her, I'd kill him, even though I wasn't sure how to do that. I'd make him pay if he touched a single hair on her head. I'd…

I spun around and marched down the hall, planting myself in front of the mirror I'd been avoiding like the plague. Fear swelled up, but it was smothered by my anger. The mix of emotions didn't leave room for logic, and before I could truly consider what I was doing, I pointed a finger at the mirror.

"Show yourself, shadow," I said, keeping my voice low. "I know you're there."

I waited, my erratic breaths the only sound in the silent hallway, but nothing happened.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," I groaned, taking a step closer to the mirror. "You harass me for months—years—and now you decide not to show up? Show yourself, you mystical fart of demon magic."

I was seething, the waves of rage pouring off me intensifying as the seconds ticked by. I wanted to scream, to stamp my feet and demand the shadow show itself, but it didn't seem to be doing any good. He'd clearly fucked off for the day, with no intention of reappearing.

I growled, my hands balling into fists as the corners of my eyes began to sting. Frustration seeped through me as my thoughts became more muddled. I had to find Lennon, had to know she was okay, and this was my only option. Wasn't it? After all, he showed up at the bar and then Lennon disappeared.

Clearly he was responsible. Right?

I shook my head, clearing it of the conflicting thoughts. Of course, he was. She would have told me where she was going if she didn't plan on coming home after class. Lennon was many things, but most of all predictable. Something had to be wrong.

"Come on you stupid fucking shadow. Show yourself." I was yelling now, my voice echoing through the empty apartment as I stared at my familiar face contorted with anger.

I hadn't seen myself this way, hadn't felt this way, in such a long time. It was unsettling, dangerous, wrong. I hated feeling this hopeless, being this utterly useless, and hazy images of an old farmhouse and my mother's dead body bloomed to life to accompany the feeling.

My fingernails bit into my palms, making them sting. Warmth told me they were probably bleeding, but I didn't care. I refused to move until the shadow showed itself or Lennon appeared, whichever came first.

"I know you can hear me," I went on, shoving down the nagging voice that told me I was just talking to myself. I knew I wasn't crazy, that I was talking to the shadow that haunted my every step, followed me when I couldn't see him. I knew he could hear me.

I opened my mouth to call for him again, but darkness swirled in the mirror, stealing any sound I'd been tempted to make. It solidified, the form replacing my own, until I was staring at the bust of a hooded figure, his face entirely cast in shadows. My heart stuttered, and my tongue struggled to form words.

"W-where is my sister?" I demanded, my voice wavering slightly.

My head swam, but I was unable to tear my gaze away from the dark figure in the glass. The longer I stared, the clearer the shadow became until I could make out the tattered edges of his robe, the curve of his jaw in the darkness. I wanted him to say something, to push back his hood and let me see his face, but he didn't. He just stood there, mocking me, refusing to give me the answers I needed.

"Where is she?" I said, louder this time. "What have you done to her?"

Silence followed, but his shoulders bounced up and down slightly as he stood there. Was he… was he laughing at me?

Red bled into my vision, distorting everything as I grit my teeth. In a swift motion, I reared back and punched the mirror, the glass shattering around my fist before the frame fell to the floor. Splinters of glass glittered across the carpet. My face reflected in the shards, but there was no sign of the shadow. Pain lanced through my hand, and I looked down to see a gash across one of my knuckles, slowly oozing blood that dripped down my trembling fingers to the carpet.

Cursing, I wrapped it in the fabric of my shirt, but before I could head for the first aid kit, movement in the corner of my eye made me jump. My head snapped up in the direction of the kitchen, and my jaw fell slack when an enormous robed figure came into view. It was nearly seven feet tall, towering over my short frame, swathed in black fabric with shadows rolling around its feet.

It was the man from my nightmare, the shadow, standing in the middle of my apartment clear as day. All the air seemed to have been sucked out of the space, making it hard to breathe, and a crushing weight landed on my shoulders at his presence. He radiated dark energy and power so strong it was nearly tangible.

"What are you?" I asked, feeling more light-headed than before.

Rather than answering, he took a step toward me, causing my stomach to backflip. I had no idea if he intended to hurt me, but it was very obvious I wouldn't be able to fight him off.

"Where is Lennon?" My questions kept coming, even though the shadow wasn"t inclined to answer. He moved forward, closing the distance between us without making a single sound, until there were mere inches separating us.

He stared down at me from the darkness beneath his hood, freezing my insides and stealing my breath. My anger had vanished, replaced by pure, raw terror, and despite my urge to turn and run away, I was rooted firmly to the spot.

The edges of my vision darkened, shadows quickly bleeding across my vision. I opened my mouth, trying to speak even though no sound made it out, and everything faded to black.