Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 83353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Hanna suspected it might be a combination of the two, but for whatever reason, it was nice not to be constantly distracted by the evil little spirits. They didn’t just leer at her when she was on Earth—they often pinched or poked her or jumped out at her at unexpected times, just to see her scream. She hadn’t had a supernatural creature jump-scare her since she’d come aboard the Mother Ship and it was wonderful.
It was amazing, she reflected, how much calmer she felt when she didn’t have the constant threat of some ugly little spirit scaring or pinching or poking her at any moment. It made her wonder if she might be able to pick up her studies again. Several of the major Earth universities had branches at the Mother Ship now—maybe a degree in English Lit was back on the table.
She also hadn’t seen any dead people since she arrived. As Aunt Luna had promised, spirits and shades seemed to be few and far between up here. It was nice not to have to worry that she might turn the corner and confront an angry ghost at any moment.
Of course, she had been on board less than twenty-four hours, so it was too early to say for sure yet, if things were going to work out here. But so far, Hanna was cautiously optimistic.
She couldn’t be completely calm and optimistic though—not until she’d had her first night aboard and made sure that the Dark Entity which was stalking her really was unable to reach her here.
Aunt Luna seemed to think she was perfectly safe—though she had come into the guest suite and taken the precaution of placing some wards herself. She had also made sure that Hanna had an extra Think-me on her bedside table in case of emergencies.
“The minute you have a problem or even think you have a problem, just put on the Think-me and bespeak me and Bruin,” she told Hanna. “We’ll be over there in a hot minute, I promise.”
Taking all these precautions had gone a long way to soothing Hanna’s anxiety, but she could still feel some worry simmering in the back of her mind, like a pot on the stove that might boil over at any minute. She wasn’t going to feel completely safe, she thought, until she spent an entire night without the intrusion of the Dark Entity and got the damn lust curse off her forehead.
There was no luck on that front so far—Aunt Luna had tried several spells and counter spells but Hanna could still see the fiery letters glowing on her forehead whenever she looked in the mirror. However, she still hadn’t felt any effects of it, meaning she wasn’t particularly horny. Even in the luxurious bathing pool, she had no urge to “help herself out,” as her aunt had delicately put it when she and Samantha were growing up and they came to her with questions.
Hanna had a feeling that her sex drive might return if she could feel safe and protected, but for now, it was still missing in action.
When she finally put on the white silk gown and slid between the cool, crisp sheets, she hoped she would be able to get to sleep. Aunt Luna had offered her some sleep medication—supposedly all natural and completely hangover-free—but Hanna had refused it. She wanted to be instantly alert if the demon thing came back. The memory of being frozen in place as the Dark Entity sat on her chest and leered down at her, was still vivid in her mind. If she saw even a hint of the glowing red eyes anywhere in her room, she was grabbing for the Think-me at once to call for help!
It took some time for her to settle down. As lovely and luxurious as her new bedroom was, it was still completely unfamiliar. The mattress felt almost too comfortable and the pillows were too puffy. Hanna was used to sleeping on the lumpy, thin fold-out couch mattress with a pillow so flat she had to double it over to get any neck support at all.
At last, however, she found a comfortable position and her eyes began to drift closed. She had left the light in the bathroom on and the bathroom door cracked but otherwise the room was in darkness. There were no windows the Dark Entity could get through and the bed was triple warded. And most importantly, she saw no glowing red eyes in the shadows.
Maybe Aunt Luna is right—maybe the Dark Entity is confined to the Earthly Ream—like the Imps, she thought hopefully as she yawned. Maybe I can finally get a good night’s sleep for the first time in months…
And so thinking, she finally drifted off, completely unaware that she was being watched.
8
WRAITH
When Hanna’s breathing became even and regular, Wraith finally felt comfortable stepping out from his hiding place inside the wall.