He raised his foot and kicked out. And again. The door gave on the second kick, with a splintering of wood. Roz pushed past him and into a carpeted hallway. After concentrating for a second, she ran straight ahead. She hardly noticed Ryan switching on the lights as she hurried through a door at the end of the hall and into the kitchen. Directly opposite was another door, bolted from the outside, the bolts shiny and new. She slid them back and hesitated for a second.
The door opened into a narrow stairway that led down into the cellars, and she ran quickly down the steps. There were two doors at the bottom facing each other. The first led into a small room, empty but for a cot bed. She shut the door and turned to the other. This one was bolted, and she knew she’d found Jessica. She sensed Ryan at her back, but he didn’t speak. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door. The smell hit her first—blood and fear. The room was in darkness, and she groped for the switch, finding it on the wall just outside the door.
The room was identical to the one opposite: small, the only furniture a narrow cot bed. But this room wasn’t empty. A young woman lay on the bed, asleep or more likely unconscious, her naked body curled tight into a fetal ball, arms wrapped around her knees.
“Jessica?”
There was no response, and Roz hurried across the small space between them. Ryan entered behind her, but she focused on the girl on the bed. The dying girl—her life force flickering, fragile and weak.
“Is she dead?” Ryan asked.
“No, alive—just.”
“I’ll call for an ambulance.”
She glanced around quickly. “Not yet, Ryan. Give me a moment.”
“Why? You’ve found her. You’ve done your part. Let us take over now.”
“I can help her. She’s dying, Ryan. There’s no time. Just trust me.”
He ran his hand through his messy hair, then nodded brusquely. “Do what you have to do.”
Roz perched on the side of the filthy mattress and rested her hand on Jessica’s forehead. Her skin was clammy and cool to the touch. Stroking back the long hair, she looked into the face she now knew so well. The eyes remained closed.
Placing her hands on both sides of the girl’s forehead, she closed her eyes and allowed her own life-force to flow into her. At first, she hit a brick wall.
“Come on, Jessica, you have to want this,” she muttered under her breath. She heard Ryan shift behind her but ignored him. Focusing all her power, she visualized it as a narrow arrow, and thrust it into the other girl. This time the healing energy flowed freely.
“Shit,” Ryan said, and Roz’s eyes flashed open.
Where her hands touched the girl, they glowed with a warm pulsing luminescence. She could sense Jessica absorbing the energy, her life force strengthening with each second. Finally, her lids flickered open.
“It’s okay, we’re here to help you,” Roz said quickly as Jessica’s panic flared.
The girl peered around her, her gaze catching on Ryan, and fear darkened her eyes.
“He’s a policeman,” Roz said. “He’s here to get you out, take you home.”
“The man, the…” Jessica cut off the words. “Is he gone?”
“He’s gone.”
“What did you do to me?”
“Yeah,” Ryan said from behind her. “What did you do to her?”
“Just woke you up.”
“You brought me back. I was so close. I wanted to go. I knew if I stayed he’d be back.”
“Well, he won’t, and you’re not going to die. I won’t let you.”
Jessica reached out a trembling hand and touched her lightly on the cheek. “Who are you? What are you?”
“Good question,” Ryan muttered.
“I’m Roz,” she said, ignoring the “what are you,” which she had no clue how to answer anyway.
As Roz rose to her feet, Jessica seemed to realize that she was naked. She sat up and hugged her knees to her chest, peered around the room as if searching for something.
Ryan was wearing a short leather jacket over a blue shirt. He stripped off the jacket, then the shirt, and handed it to Jessica. “Here,” he said, pulling the jacket back on over his bare chest.
Roz whistled. “Nice look.”
Ryan had pulled his radio from his belt. “I’ll call the rest of the team in. We need to search this place. Obviously the fucker is gone, but we might get a lead. And we’ll get you to a hospital, though you don’t look as though you need it.”
“I feel fine,” Jessica replied. “I want to go home.”
“Soon.”
“Ryan, wait a moment.” Roz’s mind was working furiously. Ever since she’d entered the house, she’d sensed another presence. Not a person, but a thing. The Key. She was a Seeker—a name Asmodai had used to describe her. She found things. That’s what she did. And she was good at it. Now, she knew the thing she had been seeking in the convent was here somewhere, hidden by magic. Her magic was stronger, but once Ryan’s team came in, she would have no chance.
“I need five minutes,” she said.
He frowned. “What for?”