Read Online Agonal Breath (The Deadseer Chronicles Book 1) by Richard Estep - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Richard Estep
Tags: Paranormal Fiction
Ads: Link
It was a pale, sallow complexion that greeted me in the mirror, the skin clammy with a cold and sickly-looking sweat. Dark bags hung under my eyes. This was not the face of a well kid, not by a long shot.
No sooner had I thought that than I felt a tickling sensation in my chest, just behind the breastbone. The tickling flared up into a full-blown tornado demanding to be released; there was no point even trying to stop it. Without even thinking about it, I brought a hand up to my mouth in time to catch the cough. When it finally came out after a couple of false starts, it was a monster, almost deafening in the cramped confines of the small bathroom. Just when it seemed like the cough was over, it would come back again, forcing all of my muscles to work just to get it out of me. My throat felt red raw, my lungs swollen and inflamed. Once it had finally subsided, I took my hand away from my mouth.
Three small droplets of blood had splattered on the mirror. More stained the palm of my hand. I looked down, then at my reflection in the mirror. A trail of pink, frothy drool was hanging from my lower lip. My gums were dark in patches, coated with blood.
I suddenly felt dizzy, the light-headedness coming on out of nowhere. I staggered backwards out of the restroom, back into the stairwell once more. I needed to get back, needed to get home. I didn’t belong here, along with all the sick and dying people. Opening the door, I retraced my footsteps shakily back onto the balcony.
The nurse came out of nowhere.
One minute, the balcony was completely empty, nothing but shadows running along its entire length as far as the eye could see; then suddenly there she was, standing directly in front of me. I practically jumped out of my skin.
I hurriedly looked her up and down. She was tall and stocky, dressed completely in a white uniform. White shoes, white-stockinged legs covered by the hem of a white dress which buttoned up tightly over a few extra pounds. What I could see of her hair appeared to be dark, pulled back severely into a bun at the back of her head, and was topped off with one of those old-fashioned hats that you saw nurses wear in those black-and-white movies that were shot in the Forties or Fifties.
What really set my nerves on edge was the white breath mask that concealed every part of her face except the eyes. The eyes were creeping me out, to be honest. Something about the way they glinted in the low light and seemed to be constantly in motion gave me the jitters.
Then she grabbed me.
Her fingers were icy cold, so cold that her touch upon my upper arm almost took my breath away, even through the cloth of my pajama sleeve.
“Come along with me, boy. Time for you to see the doctor.”
If her sudden appearance and creepy countenance hadn’t scared the crap out of me, that voice would certainly have done the trick. There was no warmth or compassion in there at all, not the slightest hint of it; the tone was even colder than the touch of her fingertips was, as they dug into the fleshy part of my bicep.
“Get the hell off of me!” I tried jerking my arm away, but her grip was too strong. There came a stinging slap to the side of my head that almost made me see stars.
“Show some respect, boy, ” she hissed, leaning in close until her eyes were just inches away from mine. All I could focus on was that pair of coal-black orbs, and noticed now that the nurse was up close and personal that there were no whites surrounding her pupils — her eyes were totally and utterly black. She also never seemed to blink, just continued to stare at me coldly with that fixed, lizard-like glare.
She tugged at my arm, and I had no choice but to follow her into the stairwell. I couldn’t even begin to match her strength. Tightening her grip, the nurse frog-marched me up the stairs. I had to break into a jog to keep up with her angry stride, and still managed to stub my toes on a few of them before we reached the top floor, the
No sooner had I thought that than I felt a tickling sensation in my chest, just behind the breastbone. The tickling flared up into a full-blown tornado demanding to be released; there was no point even trying to stop it. Without even thinking about it, I brought a hand up to my mouth in time to catch the cough. When it finally came out after a couple of false starts, it was a monster, almost deafening in the cramped confines of the small bathroom. Just when it seemed like the cough was over, it would come back again, forcing all of my muscles to work just to get it out of me. My throat felt red raw, my lungs swollen and inflamed. Once it had finally subsided, I took my hand away from my mouth.
Three small droplets of blood had splattered on the mirror. More stained the palm of my hand. I looked down, then at my reflection in the mirror. A trail of pink, frothy drool was hanging from my lower lip. My gums were dark in patches, coated with blood.
I suddenly felt dizzy, the light-headedness coming on out of nowhere. I staggered backwards out of the restroom, back into the stairwell once more. I needed to get back, needed to get home. I didn’t belong here, along with all the sick and dying people. Opening the door, I retraced my footsteps shakily back onto the balcony.
The nurse came out of nowhere.
One minute, the balcony was completely empty, nothing but shadows running along its entire length as far as the eye could see; then suddenly there she was, standing directly in front of me. I practically jumped out of my skin.
I hurriedly looked her up and down. She was tall and stocky, dressed completely in a white uniform. White shoes, white-stockinged legs covered by the hem of a white dress which buttoned up tightly over a few extra pounds. What I could see of her hair appeared to be dark, pulled back severely into a bun at the back of her head, and was topped off with one of those old-fashioned hats that you saw nurses wear in those black-and-white movies that were shot in the Forties or Fifties.
What really set my nerves on edge was the white breath mask that concealed every part of her face except the eyes. The eyes were creeping me out, to be honest. Something about the way they glinted in the low light and seemed to be constantly in motion gave me the jitters.
Then she grabbed me.
Her fingers were icy cold, so cold that her touch upon my upper arm almost took my breath away, even through the cloth of my pajama sleeve.
“Come along with me, boy. Time for you to see the doctor.”
If her sudden appearance and creepy countenance hadn’t scared the crap out of me, that voice would certainly have done the trick. There was no warmth or compassion in there at all, not the slightest hint of it; the tone was even colder than the touch of her fingertips was, as they dug into the fleshy part of my bicep.
“Get the hell off of me!” I tried jerking my arm away, but her grip was too strong. There came a stinging slap to the side of my head that almost made me see stars.
“Show some respect, boy, ” she hissed, leaning in close until her eyes were just inches away from mine. All I could focus on was that pair of coal-black orbs, and noticed now that the nurse was up close and personal that there were no whites surrounding her pupils — her eyes were totally and utterly black. She also never seemed to blink, just continued to stare at me coldly with that fixed, lizard-like glare.
She tugged at my arm, and I had no choice but to follow her into the stairwell. I couldn’t even begin to match her strength. Tightening her grip, the nurse frog-marched me up the stairs. I had to break into a jog to keep up with her angry stride, and still managed to stub my toes on a few of them before we reached the top floor, the
Similar Books
