Into the Spiral (The Spiral Defenders Series: Book One)

by Erin Danzer

  Chapter Ten

  Much to her dismay, Ronnie dreamed about Gavin that night. They walked through a grayish inky darkness. Beyond the gray, she could see indistinct shapes of a house, a car, even a person walking by. Gavin held her hand as they walked because she knew she would get lost if she let go. It was like they were in between her world and wherever he was taking her.

  Gavin stopped and swore as he reached into his cargo pocket, letting go of her hand and pushing her behind him at the same time. Ronnie’s heart pounded. She wanted to grab onto him but she didn’t want to hinder whatever he was going to do. A moment later, a large black shadowy spider scuttled out of the darkness towards them. Gavin raised the object he took out of his pocket, a curved double-edged sword that seemed to pulse with life. He swiped at the spider and it screamed as two of its shadowy legs fell away. Despite its loss, the spider attacked again and Gavin thrust his sword at its body, sinking the blade to the hilt. The spider screamed again as it dissipated back into the shadows.

  Just then, Ronnie heard a low growling hiss behind her and spun around. A scream erupted from her throat when she spotted a large black dog with matted fur and white glowing eyes prowling towards her. She pressed her back against Gavin’s and raised her hands, though she didn’t know what to do. Suddenly, another sword similar to Gavin’s, this one with a straight double-edged blade, appeared in her hands. She held it with two hands the way she’d seen Gavin do and waited for the shadowy beast to get closer. She took a deep breath and swallowed down the panic trying to overcome her. The shadow dog growled and lunged at her. Ronnie raised her sword to strike and the creature impaled itself on her blade. She stared in awe as its form vanished back into the shadows. She turned around and found Gavin grinning at her, pride shining bright in his dark eyes. He put his arm around her shoulders and started leading her through the shadows again.

  Ronnie gasped as she started to wake up. She could still feel Gavin’s arm around her. And was someone stroking her hair? She snuggled down into her pillow and found a hard, warm leg clothed in soft fabric instead. Her hand slid down the leg and found a square pocket on the pants.

  “Gavin,” she murmured, wondering if this was still a dream as she struggled to wake up more.

  “Shh, go back to sleep,” he whispered as he continued to stroke her hair. “You’re still dreaming.”

  “Okay,” she sighed as sleep overtook her once more.