Darkness Fades (Darkness Falls 3)

When she reaches the top, I grab her hand and pull her out of the hole. Standing up, I hoist her to her feet and out into the sun.

She's taller than me, although she's about my age. Her skin is tanner than mine and her hair is black and coiled into small strands that hang down from her head. She's wearing a dark shirt and pants, carrying a small pack on her back. Plus, in her hand is a sharp dagger, and when she gets her footing, she aims the tip at my throat.

"You lied. You're not human," she says warily. Her hand holding the dagger trembles. "What are you? And how do I know I can trust you?"

"You're right. I'm not human, but I'm not a vampire, either," I tell her, stepping away from the tip of the knife, even though I doubt she's going to use it on me. "But I did come from The Colony... there's actually more of us around." I pause, assessing her over. "Did you get thrown out of The Colony in The Gathering or have you been out for a while."

She doesn't answer; instead she studies me over for a moment. Then she relaxes as she lowers the dagger and puts it into the bag. "Sorry about that, but you can never be too careful." She pauses. "My name is Nichelle."

I don't give her my name. I'm too cautious of her. "You didn't answer my question. Did you just get sent up from The Colony?"

Her forehead creases. "No... I came from a town off in the distance." She points over her shoulder at the hills and desert behind her.

"A town? What? You mean another colony?" I have no idea what she's talking about. A town? Maybe she's insane.

She nonchalantly shrugs. "Town, Colony, I think they mean the same thing."

My jaw drops in shock because I can tell she's not lying--feeling she's telling the truth--which means Sylas was right; there are other colonies. How many are there? And how can they survive out in this wasteland?

"Hey, are you all right?" Nichelle asks, inching closer to me and snapping me out of my stupor.

"I'm fine," I tell her, but I'm still in shock. All this time there were other colonies. Are they better than the one I lived in? Are there rules? "I just didn't realize that there were others besides us."

"It's hard to believe, huh?" She smiles and I'm not sure how to react to her cheerful demeanor. "The members of The Colony forget that there is a whole world out here with people and everything."

I'm silent for a while because I'm not sure what to say. This is so crazy. More colonies all this time and what if they're better? I open my mouth to say... well, something, but thunder suddenly claps as lightening blazes across the sky.

Seconds later, rain showers down, splashing against my face and soaking my hair. "Follow me. I know a place that'll keep us out of the rain." I motion Nichelle to follow me as I turn around and start to descend the cliffy hillside.

"Why are you here anyway?" I call out over the thunder as I maneuver myself over the edge of the rock and then drop down onto the ledge. Surprisingly, she easily slides down to the side of me.

"I am looking for someone," she tells me as our feet sink into the dirt and rocks. "A girl named Kayla. Maybe you know her?" she calls out over the rain, shielding her hand over her eyes.

I tense, but keep my composure, knowing better than to let her know who I am. Not until she tells me why she's here. "I think I know who she is. Why are you looking for her, though?"

She eyes me over with a questioning look. I start to wonder if she might know more than she's letting on; if she knows I'm Kayla. "I'm here to help her," she says with a brief pause before continuing, "to help her save the world."

Chapter 5

For a second I don't think I've heard her right, but as I replay her words over and over again, I realize that I did.

But how does she know?

I jump down from the ledge and land gracefully on the loose ground below. Nichelle drops her pack, squats down and then swings her legs over the ledge. She grasps the edge then lowers her body slowly over until she's half way down and then lets go. She lands on her feet in the dirt beside me, her boots scuffing against the loose rocks.

"You seem comfortable moving around," I tell her, knowing it's a weird statement, but still. When Aiden was human he couldn't maneuver around like that. If I didn't know any better, I'd guess Nichelle was a Day Taker; however, she has a heartbeat.

She shrugs as she dusts the dirt and mud off her hands. "I have had years of training." She stretches her arm back up in the direction of the ledge and grabs her bag.

Training? "Are you a Bellator?" I ask her as I start to hike to the bottom of the slope.

She gapes at me as she puts her bag back on. "A what?"

"A Bellator... they were the people who trained at my Colony."

"Well, at my Colony, I'm called a Protector."

It seems the same to me, and the idea that they have titles at Nichelle's colony makes me question just how different hers is from mine, which makes me instantly put my guard up once more.

I try to keep quiet the rest of our journey down the hill. When I reach the bottom, I nod my head in the direction of the cave. "This way."

She follows me as rain continues to drench us and the grey sky lights up with silver blazes of lightning. We don't say a word to each other as we hike towards the cave. I'm getting tenser with every step, wondering if I should simply hit her over the head and knock her out to avoid any mishaps. However, before I can come up with a plan, Maci comes sprinting around the corner hill.

"Kayla!" she cries out. When she reaches me, she throws her arms around my waist. "I knew you didn't leave us." I stiffen because she just let out my secret; said my name. Before I can respond, Maci releases me and turns towards Nichelle. "And you found her."

"Yes, I guess I did," Nichelle says. I gape at Maci because it seems like she knows Nichelle.

"What do you mean, you found her?" I ask as the rain simmers down to a drizzle. "You knew Nichelle was looking for me?"

Maci nods her head up and down vigorously. "I did."

I never know how to react to Maci's strange behavior, so I don't respond. Instead, I lead her and Nichelle around the hill to the flat area just below the cave. By the time we get there, the rain has stopped, though the thunder and lightning still echo across the sky.

Greyson is sitting in the cave's entrance with a fire glowing beneath the shelter. He has what look like a dead lizard in his hand. He takes in Nichelle slowly as she and Maci follow me up the hill towards the cave.

Aiden and Tristan are right behind him, in the shadows of the cave, protecting themselves from the daylight that hides beneath the clouds and smoke. Aiden watches Nichelle suspiciously and then he finally steps out of the cave, drawing the hood of his jacket over his head and tucking his hands into the sleeves.

"Who is that?" He nods his head in Nichelle's direction.

I sigh as I keep climbing. "It's Nichelle. She says she's from... another colony." It sounds strange coming out of my mouth; I doubt anyone will believe me.

"There are no other colonies," Aiden argues, taking a step down the hill, his boots knocking wet rocks and chunks of mud down the slope. "If there were, we would know about them." Both him and Greyson eye Nichelle skeptically, their muscles raveled, edgy and on guard, which makes me uneasy.

Greyson stands to his feet, leaving the dead lizard on a rock. With his arms out to the side, he traipses down the hill to stop beside Aiden. "Aiden's right. If there are other colonies, then why haven't we known about them? It doesn't make any sense."

They take a few more steps towards us, meeting us at the center of the hill. Then Greyson and Aiden begin to circle around Nichelle with a dark look in their eyes like they're going to attack her or something.

I turn with them, not sure why I'm protecting Nichelle, other than she hasn't given me a reason not to. "Don't even think about doing anything to her."

Aiden pauses, his head slanting to the side. "Why not?"

"Because she hasn't done anything to us," I say with warning in my tone as I shoot him a look of caution. "And if you do make a move on h

er," I challenge, "then you have to go through me."

Aiden's eyes unexpectedly light up, as though he likes this idea, and I remember that this isn't the Aiden I first met. He starts to circle us again and Nichelle reaches to her side towards the leather pouch, taking out a small knife.

"I can protect myself," she says, aiming the knife out in front of her. "I don't need you to do it for me."

I shake my head and move with Aiden, making sure to keep myself between them at all times. "No, you can't. Trust me... he's a lot stronger than you."

"Yes, I can," she argues. "Strength doesn't outweigh skill."

"Yeah, let her try," Aiden insists with a look on his face that makes me want to slap him.