She had taken a few steps toward the house when a sharp pain stabbed her chest like a hot poker. She dropped Sileas' pendant and curled around the pain as it pulsed, bending her over at the waist. Gasping. Her heart hammered against her ribs. Thunder rolled and lightening ripped the sky like an old bed sheet, letting the rain pour out again.
Beads of sweat gathered on her forehead mixed with rain, plastering her hair to her face. A force pressed around and inside of her. She sagged to her knees in the mud, gagging. Her face on the ground breathing in wet earth smells. What hit her?
Then a burst of blue light exploded in front of her, and a voice spoke. "Shai, don't be afraid. The Book has been stolen. Find it. Keep it safe."
She shook her head. Pain arced through her body; she retched while the rain soaked into her tunic and leggings. Her legs became rubbery. She raked her fingers through mud and rocks. No sound could be forced from her tight throat.
She pushed herself to a near-sitting position and squinted into the blue light. Fat drops of rain ran down her face and into her mouth. As a figure stepped towards her from the light she saw a familiar face. His square jawline appeared soft in the falling rain and his mouth turned up slightly at the corners. A flood of heat washed over her again.
Adrenaline overdose.
"Go... away!" She screamed in her mind.
"Is that what you want?" He stood several feet away but his voice seemed to be beside her. Or maybe inside her?
She shook her head. Words formed slowly in her foggy brain. "No. I don't want that. I just... don't know... what...to do."
He kneeled on the sloppy ground beside her and took a thick gold chain from his neck. A thin silver key hung from the chain which he slid off and held out to her.
"Trust me. Look in the Book, and take this, one day you'll need it." He pressed the cold key hard into her palm. His fingertips brushed hers and a sudden shock rocked her, throwing her backwards into the mud again.
Then everything went dark.