“Heaven’s sake! What happened?”

The sound of voices dragged her from the lethargic numbness flooding her brain … A woman, she thought, and she had to focus as hard as she could to try and understand what was going on.

“That girl should be in a hospital! And so should you!”

“I’m fine.” The sound of that voice immediately relaxed her. Alexis was still by her side … he’d kept his word. “And Sarah will be fine too. I’ve already tended to the most critical wounds. But it would be best if we could change her clothes …”

“What’s left of them, you mean!” the woman retorted in a clear disapproving tone and Sarah heard the sound of footsteps coming towards her. “For God’s sake … what happened?”

“It was dark. We fell into a hole.”

“A hole?!” she wondered skeptically but Alexis didn’t offer any further explanations.

Even before he touched her Sarah knew he’d gotten closer, and where he did touch her, on the forehead, a light tingling feeling remained.

“Sarah …” Again, her name in that voice … She had the feeling she’d be able to hear him no matter where he was. Her attention turned immediately to him, as if that simple word were the only point of light amidst an eternal darkness. “This is Anne. She’ll be taking care of you. I’m sure you rather have her doing … certain things. You’re safe here,” he reinforced. “I’ll be right outside the door. However, since you don’t seem to like to be touched, I’ll put you to sleep a bit deeper. I’m sure you’ll feel better in the morning.” And, with that, the point of light disappeared and darkness fell over her, sealing all her senses in a world of complete absence.

* If you want to know more about this book or simply access earlier updates, please visit the official site at http://carpersanti.net/gaea/

Also, please consider supporting the author so she can go on putting her madness out there for anyone to read: https://www.patreon.com/carpersanti 💜