Sorrow's Gift

Chapter Fifty-Three: The Witch

The three miles to the hospital were quiet, but then, she had known it would be. The Dark One knew exactly where they were headed, and she had commanded her minions to wait for them there, only attacking when the time was right.

Everything was coming together. The Dark One's powers were growing rapidly, and soon she would be able to escape her prison of ice.

Her minions had finally located Parrish's sister, too. The girl was exactly where her sister believed her to be—still hidden away in the safety of her hotel room. The witch wasn't sure why the girl had failed to answer the phone, but it was a stroke of luck for the Dark One. Now she would have the child all to herself, a bargaining chip if and when the time came.

The fifth was in New York, too. The Dark One's servants had spotted him yesterday, leaping and flying across rooftops. He was nothing more than a child himself, several years younger than the rest. And now that he had shown himself, it wouldn't be long before the Dark One put an end to him.

After today, this could all be over.

The witch hated the thought of betraying her new friends, but whenever her devotion wavered, she thought of the Dark One's promise of great power.

A few rotters stumbled out from behind houses or hiding places between cars as they walked, but there were never more than a couple together at a time, and Parrish and Noah took care of them quickly.

"I can't believe how quiet it is," Karmen said. "We've barely seen any of those things out here."

"Tank said some of his buddies cleared out a lot of these neighborhoods a few weeks ago," Crash said. "It shouldn't be too hard to get to the hospital if it keeps up like this."

"We're lucky," the witch said.

They walked along the sidewalk at a brisk pace, anxious to get to the hospital, but the witch wanted to slow down. Lately she'd been having doubts about her part in all this. What if she had chosen the wrong side? What if it was the Dark One who was wrong for wanting to go free and go home to their world?

What if the guardians truly had saved her people from a terrible nightmare all those centuries ago?

She tugged on a strand of her long dark hair and followed behind Crash and Karmen, her feet not wanting to move any faster. There was a part of her that wanted to tell them not to go. They could turn around right now and leave this place. It would be difficult to hide from the Dark One now that she had eyes everywhere, but with her help, they might find ways to survive and stay hidden.

But she knew that if she told them, they would never forgive her. All their kindness would disappear and they would look at her like she was a monster. It had been her who sent those super-zombies after them in D.C. It was she who had told the Dark One about their journey and made sure there were hordes of zombies slowing them down along the way.

And she had told the Dark One about the hospital.

Whatever they faced inside that place would be because of her. She wanted to feel proud of that, the way she had in the early days when she'd been so sure she was fighting on the right side. All she wanted was to be powerful and to be needed.

Her whole life, she had been treated like she was nothing. Nobody. But these guardians had given her a name and welcomed her into their life. Now, she was repaying them by leading them straight to their own deaths.

She knew what waited in that hospital. Nightmare didn't even begin to describe it.

Several times on their journey, as the miles passed, she opened her mouth to tell them the truth, but in the end, she couldn't bring herself to betray her mistress.