Annabel closed her eyes and bit her lip. Her grip was slipping away. She opened her eyes to adjust it. She was no longer in her room. She was not sure where she was. Bright light surrounded her. “Crispin,” she said looking around. She couldn't see him. Her heart raced as she scanned the room for him.
“He cannot hear you,” a voice said. “He is not permitted.”
She stood up scanning the area. “Who are you? Are you the Unseen? I'm not afraid of you.” She tried not to let her emotions show. She would feel braver if Crispin was here. Even Henry would do.
“What you call the Unseen is nothing more than an underling. I have many names – none of which you are able to say with great clarity.”
“What do you want?” She looked around. The voice was coming from somewhere.
“It is rare for a human to be touched by an Unseen and survive. You intrigue me, Annabel Wells. I am going to offer you a proposition. Come and join me. I will give you command of thousands of Unseen. You will be able to do whatever your heart desires.” A shape began forming in front of her. A tall man appeared. His face was eerily serene.
Annabel backed up. She wanted to run. She was not sure where she could run. All she could do was confront him. “You control all of the Unseen.”
He smiled. “I am their creator. They obey my every command. They could obey yours too. I am offering you a very special opportunity, one which I’m not inclined to offer again.”
“I don't trust you. I'll never help you,” Annabel said. “I'm not like you.”
“This is the only time in which I’m offering this to you. Think wisely before answering.”
“I'm positive I don't want anything from you. Someone who creates these creatures doesn’t value the same things I do.” She braced herself for his attack. She knew those words may have sealed her fate.
The man straightened himself as he examined her closely. She felt him staring at her but was unable to turn away. There was something intoxicating about him. It was hypnotizing. He released the hold he had on her. She felt her body go weak. He glared at her. “Remember that you chose this. You could have been the leader of the world.”
Annabel closed her eyes against her will. She reopened them back in her room. Crispin was there with her. The dark shape had left the room. She assumed it left through the window. The window was the only thing broken. The objects which had been flung around her room were back in their normal positions unbroken.
She relaxed her grip on the bed post. She was confused about everything. Nothing made sense at the moment. Her gaze drifted back to Crispin. He was still lying on the ground.
“Crispin? Can you hear me?” she asked slapping him. His eyes were closed. He appeared to be knocked out still. She wasn't sure if he heard her or not.
“Please wake up. Open your eyes.” She tried finding a way to waken him. He was unresponsive. There had to be a way.
She heard that splashing water on someone's face could get that person to wake up. Hopefully it worked. She left him lying on the floor. She grabbed a glass of water from the kitchen. She threw the water on him.
Crispin opened his eyes and tried to catch his breath. “Did you throw water on me?” he asked, feeling his face. It was wet. She was holding a glass so he was positive he was correct.
“You were knocked out. Are you okay?” She inspected the back of his head where the object hit him. There were no visible signs of the impact.
He felt the back of his head. His hair covered the bump. “It's only a slight wound. I'll survive. Did the Unseen manage to escape?”
She helped Crispin to his feet. “I think it did. It went out through the window.” She smiled at him. “I thought you said I was on my own.”
He gave a crooked grin. “I happened to be in the neighborhood.”
“I need to thank you for saving my life...again,” she said. He was becoming her personal hero.
“That's.” He paused for a moment. “It's fine. I'm doing what I have to do. I'd do it for anyone.”
Annabel said, “Oh” and looked away in disappointment. She thought he was going to say something special. Maybe apologize. She wanted something. She thought she was a special person for him to spend time saving her.
He looked around the room for the first time. It was back to normal. He couldn't see anything out of place. “Do you think your roommate woke up because of the fighting?”
“June,” Annabel said realizing her roommate was still there. She left her room and knocked on June's door.
“Are you in there?” Annabel asked through the door. She wasn't sure if June was harmed during the fight. She wasn't even sure June heard the fight happening. She waited a few minutes before returning to Crispin with a shrug.
“Was she okay?” he asked. He hadn't seen anyone come out of the room so he assumed everything went well. The Unseen hadn’t shown interest in her roommate before.
“She didn't answer. I'm not sure if she's okay or not. I'm not sure if she was here. I know she was hanging out with her new guy tonight so she may have gone with him somewhere.”
“Without telling you?”
“We're roommates. I'm not her mom.”
He nodded. He understood that. “I don't think you should stay here tonight. You would be safer around us. We could protect you.”
“That will work for tonight but what about tomorrow? I can't stay at your place forever.”
“It would only be for a little while longer. I'm sure Jules will be interested in what happened tonight.”
“Right, Jules,” she muttered to herself, “Let me get some clothes and I'll go with you.” Annabel gathered her stuff and threw it into a duffel bag. She wondered if she would ever get to stay in her room again. She might have to find another place to live until the Unseen tired of chasing after her. She wondered if that was possible.