involuntary, but I think she was making a connection.â
Eli forced a smile and took the nurseâs hand. He could feel her heat and knew that it was radiating below, dampening her panties. Lust swelled inside of her to the point that Eli could smell its sweetness.
âThank you for the information, love. I didnât catch your name.â
âItâs Andrea. Andrea Anderson, but you can call me Love ,â she said as she smiled and flitted out of the room. Eli quickly closed the door and faced the old woman who sat upright in a chair in front of the television. Her grayed hair was tossed about her head and the old shawl wrapped around her shoulders looked as if it had been made fifty years ago. She didnât move or blink.
He took a deep, menacing breath before speaking. âHello, Adelaide,â he said with the tenderness of a grandson. He removed his trench coat and slung it across another chair as he eased over to where she sat. âSo, weâre alone now, old woman. Eetwidomayloh sends his regards.â He lowered himself in front of her and squeezed her knees hard, his nails cutting into her flesh. Her eyes widened with discomfort. âSo, you can still feel. I was kind of rough with you last time. Iâm glad youâve recovered.â He stood up and sauntered toward the window.
âYou know, Addie, Iâm getting really bored with all of this. Iâve spent too much time in this place smelling your shitty ass and looking at your wrinkled face. Iâm tired of this Tangoâwe keep doing the same dance. Arenât you tired yet? I dish out a little pain and you continue to resist me. Iâve been patient with youâfar more patient than I should haveâbut there are limits to my mercy and time is short, as you know. Soon, youâll have to let me into your headâyou wonât have the strength to stop me. I getstronger every day, but you, on the other hand, are one step closer to the grave. So why donât you make this easy on yourself and let me in? If you donât, you know I will hurt you, slowly. First, Iâll blind you, sticking tiny needles into your eyes. Would you like that? Then, from the inside, Iâll break each one of your bones, one at a time. Iâll make it so that every crack will last hours and that you feel every ounce of pain. Then, I can make your heart explode inside your chest, and Iâll fix it so that you can relive the same horror over and over again. Your suffering will be legendary, and youâll pray for the death that will never come.â Eli flung open the curtain to reveal the dark night sky glistening with starlight. âDonât you miss this? Going outside? Having a life? Arenât you tired of being trapped inside that wretched old body, unable to move; pissing and shitting on yourself and having someone wipe your ass everyday? Where is your pride? Where is your dignity? You are Adelaide Thibodeaux, the most powerful High Priestess of the sister-clan and look at you now. Youâre a fucking invalid!â A despicable laugh escaped from his mouth and polluted the air with the stench of rotting meat. His roaring voice tumbled off the walls.
Eli moved over to the mirror hanging on the wall and took a moment to stare at his reflection. âI must admit that I am impressed with your power. Even in your weakened state, I still cannot break into your mindâthatâs amazing. Yeah, yeah, I know how your powers work. Each High Priestess born of the same blood is more powerful than the one before her, blah, blah, blah. And your bloodline is unbroken in more than three hundred years. I get that. Your powers are indeed strong, so tonight I thought Iâd do something different. Tonight, I offer you a fair trade. I could release you from this prison that Eetwidomayloh entombed you in so long ago. Clearly, you and your pathetic sisters donâthave enough power to do so; otherwise you would have
J.A. Konrath, Bernard Schaffer