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I was about to stand and urge Lenore to run with me when I saw shadows emerge from the air. It was as if they materialized out of nothing. Three figures stepped in front of me and I stared in horror as I saw them solidify, as if the molecules of their being were rapidly coming together to form bodies. My mind could barely process what I was seeing, shock and terror freezing me in place.
In seconds, Sarah and Simon were standing in front of me. But the third figure was the most horrifying. I saw a replica of myself standing in front of me with a malevolent smile. Their bodies were almost entirely solid, except I could still make out shapes of furniture behind them. They were translucent, almost human, yet so far from human that I trembled.
Claudia stepped up from behind them, an elated smile on her face. "Do it."
The three vardogers rushed towards me, looking like a pack of wild animals eager to feast on their kill. My mind couldn't process the images of my best friend, the boy I loved and myself attacking me. They crowded around me, but instead of feeling them physically, I felt them inside me, as if they were digging into my body, sinking their fingers into every part of me. It was a feeling beyond pain, as if my very essence was being crushed. I opened my mouth to scream but nothing came out, my throat closing as I felt like I was drowning, as if thick matter was being pushed down my airways until I choked.
I was vaguely aware of screams in the background as I fought for my life, for my very existence. I felt the hard edge of the iridium coin in my limp hand, and I forced my fingers to wrap around it, summoning every last bit of strength I had remaining. I focused on the feelings inside me, of the invasion of my body. I focused on pushing out the foreign energies, demanding that they loosen their grip, their claws leaving bloody trails on my soul.
Slowly, inch by inch, I felt them receding but I wasn't able to push them out completely. I gathered everything in me, every feeling of love, hate and fear, and pooled them into one ball of energy and shot it at them with all my might. A blast of light exploded in my mind and suddenly I felt nothing inside me except my rapidly beating heart.
I sat up, aware of my physical surroundings once again. I cried out when I saw Lenore unconscious, blood streaming down her face. I saw the statue that I had tried to use earlier on Claudia next to her head, blood staining the base. I quickly crawled over to her, so drained that my body was barely able to make the short distance. Before I could reach out to touch her, Claudia stepped in between us. I forced myself to stand up, my legs trembling to support me.
Claudia was shaking, her eyes filled with an inhuman rage. "How did you do it?!" she screamed. "How did you kill your vardoger?! I'm wearing palladium and I'm connected to them. You shouldn't have been able to kill your vardoger!"
I shook my head, but comprehension was dawning. I had destroyed my vardoger when they had tried to enter my body. Even though I had only destroyed one out of the three, I felt a fierce streak of satisfaction run through me with the knowledge that I had vanquished my first vardoger. But the feeling was fleeting when I glanced down at Lenore's still body.
Claudia's expression of fury turned into gloating, although I could still see the anger in her eyes. "She's dead. You're next."
She stepped towards me, her eyes blazing. She let out a shriek of frustration and I wondered why she didn't attack me. Her gaze shifted to behind me and I quickly turned sideways so I could see what she was looking at without turning my back on her.
I saw Sarah and Simon's vardogers standing there, looking furious but when they glanced at me, there was a hint of fear in their eyes. I desperately wished I had been able to destroy them when I had destroyed my own vardoger, but apparently they had survived my attack.
"Try again," Claudia ordered in a low voice. They shook their heads and Sarah's vardoger glanced at the floor where we had struggled. Where I had destroyed my vardoger.
"Do it!" Claudia screamed, fury vibrating through every word. She screamed again when the vardogers dissipated, leaving us. "Cowards! I know you're still here! You can't go anywhere without me!"
Silence answered her and she whipped her attention back to me. She stalked me as we circled each other, her nostrils flaring as she hunted me. "It's not fair that I'm stuck in the body of a stupid ordinary human. I deserve to possess you! It should be me!" Claudia suddenly smiled at me, giving me chills. "Maybe I can try. The worst that can happen is you die."
She lunged at me and my instinct was to run. I ran through the living room and into the kitchen, throwing open the back door and rushing out. Once I was in the backyard, I ran towards the front of the house, adrenaline making my heart beat frenetically. I saw Lenore's ancient car in the driveway and stopped still. Lenore was still in there. Maybe she was still alive.
I looked behind me, confused that Claudia wasn't pursuing me. Fear squeezed my lungs until I could barely breathe, but I couldn't leave without Lenore.
I crept up to the front door, straining to hear any sound but there was only silence. The front door was ajar and I slowly opened it further, my heart in my mouth. I gasped when I saw the empty living room, pushing the door all the way open and running inside. I looked around the room frantically but Lenore was gone. All that remained was the bloody spot on the carpet where she had laid.
I searched the house with a frenzy, not caring if Claudia or the vardogers appeared. In fact, I wanted them to appear. I needed to know what they had done to Lenore. But the house was empty. It was as if Lenore disappeared, just like my aunt.
I waited at the house, expecting something to happen, but when night started to fall, I realized that this was doing nobody any good. I needed to go back and tell Marie and Cecelia what had happened. They would know what to do.
I grabbed Lenore's car keys on the coffee table where she had dropped them earlier and went outside, sliding into the driver's seat of the car. I tried to remember the directions back, grateful that her house was so close to my aunt's. When I pulled up in front of Lenore's house I frowned. It was pitch black with not a single light on. I parked in front of the house and turned off the engine, a feeling of foreboding coming over me. I took a deep breath and forced myself to exit the car and walk towards the house.
Chapter Four
"Hello?" I called out, wishing my voice didn't sound so tremulous. The front door had been unlocked and I immediately turned on the lights in the foyer and living room. Nothing looked amiss except for the fact that the house was completely empty. Lenore had given Marie and Cecelia strict instruction to wait for us at her house, and I doubted they would stray from her direction.
I checked upstairs, flooding the whole house with light. The last thing I wanted was to be alone in the dark. I was already starting to panic as I realized I really was alone now. Even if Cecelia and Marie had just left, I had no way of contacting them.
I didn't know what to do and I had nowhere to go. I had a fleeting thought of calling Simon, but I knew he was safer back in Rochester.
I rummaged through Lenore's kitchen, feeling like I was violating her privacy but I was starving, not having eaten anything since yesterday. I couldn't believe that it had just been yesterday that I was in Simon's car. I remembered the last kiss we shared when he dropped me off before going to the East End. I thought things had been bad then. Now I wished I could go back to those times, when the threats were vague and I still held onto a shred of hope.
I made a quick sandwich as well as a pot of coffee. I had no plans of going to sleep tonight. I was vulnerable enough in a large house alone. Going to sleep would be suicide.
The sandwich was tasteless going down but I forced myself to eat. I needed to keep my energy up. The coffee
was strong and bitter but I forced myself to down multiple cups. I thought about what Claudia had said about palladium. She had seemed shocked that I was able to destroy my vardoger. She had alluded to the fact that since my vardoger was connected to her and she was wearing palladium, I shouldn't have been able to neutralize my shadow.
I walked upstairs to an office I had seen during my previous search, flicking on the computer. I was relieved when I saw Lenore had internet access and started searching information about palladium. It just seemed like another metal. Rare, like iridium, but nothing out of the ordinary. It said nothing about the metal casting reflections of shadows instead of light, but I was sure I had witnessed the charm around Claudia's neck doing just that.
