Wraithsong

  * * *

  I wake up to Anthony shaking me.

  “Wake up!” he says. “Sonia, wake up!”

  I open my eyes and see that the night is still dark.

  “Are you all right?” He’s holding my arms tightly.

  I look around, trying to make sense of my surroundings and then remember where I am and why I’m here. Anthony let me sleep in his bed while he took the couch.

  “Did you have a nightmare?” He turns on the lamp on the nightstand.

  The brutal images of my dream pour into my mind again. “Yes.” I shudder at the images.

  “Everything will be fine. We’ll be fine,” he says.

  I start to cry. “I dreamt that Olaf was torturing my mom, and that—he said he’d only stop if I turn myself in.” Olaf had been kicking my mom as she lay curled up in the corner of a cell. After that he had broken her arm with his bare hands.

  Anthony reaches to stroke my hair, but his touch isn’t welcome and I pull away.

  “It was just a nightmare.”

  “No, it was real!” I yell.

  Compassion shines from his eyes. Even in the dim light, they are an intense blue. “You don’t know that,” he says gently.

  I bury my face in my hands and sob. I’m exhausted and exposed and have never felt so unsure about my life. I need comfort, I need support and the only person here is Anthony—the last person I want comfort from.

  “Hey, let me fix you a cup of hot chocolate,” he says, standing up.

  I lift my head up. “No, please don’t leave.” I’m scared, and it’s better to have Anthony here than no one. I grab his forearm and immediately the electricity between us is back. It feels like my body yearns for him to be close, to touch, to feel, to hold, to kiss…I withdraw my hand and look at it. Is that my Huldra instinct? It must be because it’s the only thing that makes sense. I’m still furious at Anthony and want nothing more than to never see him again, but that’s my mind speaking. If I listened to my body, I want to…never mind what it wants. I’m not going to listen to its desires. Not after what Anthony put me through and not after what I saw what they are doing to my mom. I hate Anthony.

  He reaches for my cheek and I slowly pull back. Our eyes lock and it is as if nothing can break his enchantment. He leans forward and kisses me gently on the forehead. I want to despise his touch, but I don’t.

  “I’m going to sleep now.” His jaw tenses, and his eyes burn with determination. “Good night.”

  I won’t admit it, even to myself, but I want him now more than I’ve ever wanted him. I hate my Huldra side for that. I pull the fluffy duvet over my body and make myself go back to sleep.