Chapter 2

“You’re right. Usually people regain the memories about their past life around this time. But you had these forceful visions since they took you.“ 

His expressions immediately changes from soft and caring to rough and deadly. A couple of months after I came to the Otherworld some of the demons living in the mansions in the snow decided to take me against my will and drag me into the prison in the basement. Terran had just informed me that some demons dislike humans because of the way we portrait them, as something evil and bad. The thought that a human would soon be their next soul-keeper didn’t sit well with them. I raise my gaze to find Terran starring down at me but … something is wrong. Terribly wrong.

“Terran, what is wrong?“ The hand he buried so gently into my hair suddenly clutches strands of my hair and pulls. Surprised and in pain I scream and try to get away from him but his other hand locks painfully around my hip, his fingers digging through my nightgown and into my flesh. That’s when I realise that his fingernails broke my skin and blood starts to sink through the material 

“Terran, stop it! What’s wrong with you?“ But he doesn’t answer me. Instead, he pulls my head further back to the point that my neck hurts. As I work up the courage to look into his eyes my breath stops. It’s been moths since he last used his shadows on me and seeing them now, seeing how they cover his face and the way they seemingly want to get to me gives me chills. 

Then all of a sudden the shadows multiply, get bigger and darker as Terran bends forward, and his lips touch my ear as he whispers, “You know, now that I think about this incident, I think the others have been right. A fragile human like you could never survive doing what a soul-keeper has to do. And by this point you know too much. So …“ He stretches the word before his tongue flutters over my skin and I cringe away. 

“Seems like I need to get rid of you.“ Before my brain can understand the true meaning behind Terrans’ words, his shadows crash down on me, tearing on my hair, my skin and my gown before, to my utter shock, they start to sink into my skin. I start screaming, tearing at Terran’s skin like a wild animal and asking him to stop. To stop hurting me and doing this to me. But he doesn’t move. His arms are like solid rock around me, making it impossible for me to escape their prison. And the shadows keep on sinking into my skin, melting with my blood until it boils and burns and –

Grasping for air I fall out of my bed. The impact gives me the connection with reality I desperately need right now. “Fucking hell,“ I curse, wiping away the cold sweat on my forehead. That was crazy. Never had a dream felt so real. His touch, his scent, everything made me think it was real. “But it wasn’t. Terran would never do this to me,“ I tell myself. 

“What would I never do to you?“ his husky voice sounds from the door.