My Soul to Steal
Page 21

Alarms went off in my head. She eats human energy? Like Avari?
No. Nash frowned, like he was mentally organizing his thoughts, and it was a struggle. Well, kind of. But shes not a hellion. Hellions thrive on pain and chaos, and theyre strong enough to take it from the bleed-through of human energy between worlds. Parasites are nowhere near that strong. They have to feed through a direct connection, of one sort or another. And maras, specifically, feed from fear.
I blinked. Then blinked again, grasping for a nugget of comprehension from the words he seemed to be throwing at me at random. Shes a fear eater? I said at last. Soas long as I dont show her any fear, she cant feed from me?
Nash took another long drink from his can, then set it on his nightstand. Not exactly. Theres a reason they used to be called Nightmares.
But before he could continue, movement from across the room caught my eye and I looked up to find Tod scowling at me. You really think this is smart, after what he did?
Nash obviously could neither see nor hear his brother, but hed seen me stare off into space often enough to interpret the silence. Damn it, Tod.
I sighed, glancing from one brother to the other. I needed answers.
I would have given them to you. Tod crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Nash, who stared at nothing, two feet from the space Tod actually occupied. He owes them to me.
Show yourself or get out, Nash said, finally tired of being ignored. Better yet, just get out.
Tods eyes narrowed and he stepped forward, clearly stepping into sight, just to spite his brother. Did you tell her about the dreams?
Nashs frown deepened. I was about to.
Dreams. Nightmares. Parasite. Sabine kissing Nash in front of my locker. No! But the pieces of the puzzle fit, so far as I could tell, and there was no denying the picture they formed. She feeds during nightmares? She fed from me, during my sleep last night?
Probably, Tod said, while Nash asked, What did you dream?
I wasnt going to answer, but they were both looking at me, obviously waiting for a response. I dreamed you and Sabine were making out in front of my locker. And you dumped me for her, because she delivers.
Nash flinched, while the reaper only shrugged. Yeah, that sounds like Sabine.
Im sorry, Kay. Nash looked miserable. Ill make sure she stops.
Yeah. You will. I didnt even have words for how repulsed and scared I was by the fact that shed been there while I slept, sucking energy from me through my dream. A very personal, horrifying dream.
Kay, she didntjust feed from your nightmare, Tod explained, lowering his voice, as if that might soften whatever blow was coming. She gave you that nightmare.
Huh? What does that mean? How do you give someone a nightmare? Other than scaring the living crap out of them. Which, come to think of it, fit Sabine to a T.
Nash tapped his empty can on the nightstand. Sabine creates nightmares from a persons existing fear. Its a part of what she is, just like singing for peoples souls is a part of who you are.
I felt my eyes go wide, as indignation burned deep inside me. Yeah, but when I sing, Im not sucking people dry! Im trying to save their lives! Thats the opposite of parasitic. Sabine and I are polar opposites!
Trust me, I know, Nash said. And if that was true, how could he possibly claim to love me, when hed once loved her?
Did you tell her how they feed? Tod crossed the room to sit on the edge of the desk, taking his place at my side like an ally. And Id never felt more like I needed one.
Get out, Tod, Nash snapped. I can handle this myself.
Tod scowled. Im not here to help you.
How do they feed? I demanded, when they both seemed more interested in measuring testosterone levels.
Are you familiar with astral projection? Nash asked, and I nodded.
Thats when someones consciousness leaves the body and can go somewhere else, fully awake. Right?
Basically. What Sabine does is similar to that, except when her consciousness goes walkingshe calls it Sleepwalkingshe crafts peoples fears into nightmares while they sleep. She says its like weaving, only without physical thread. He shrugged. Then she feeds from the fear laced into the dreams shes woven.
By sitting on her victims chest, Tod added, looking simultaneously satisfied and disgusted with his contribution to the explanation.
Sitting on their? On my chest. My stomach churned. My horror knew no bounds. You cannot be serious. While I was sleepingminding my own businessshe came into my room and sat on my chest, weaving some kind of metaphysical quilt out of fears she took right out of my own head? That sentence sounded so crazy I was half-afraid men in white coats would burst through the door to drag me back to mental health.
Not all of her. Just the part that was Sleepwalking, Nash insisted miserably.
Is that supposed to make this any better? How could you not tell me this the minute she showed up at school? I demanded, and when he had no answer for me, I turned around and stomped out of his room, through the house, and out the front door.