Chasing Shadows Read Online Free PDF

but her head was lolling around, as if her neck couldn't support the weight of it anymore. I glanced at Lenore who was still lying on the ground, staring at Claudia with terror in her eyes.
    I was about to stand and urge Lenore to run with me when I saw shadows emerge from the air. It was as if they materialized out of nothing. Three figures stepped in front of me and I stared in horror as I saw them solidify, as if the molecules of their being were rapidly coming together to form bodies. My mind could barely process what I was seeing, shock and terror freezing me in place.
    In seconds, Sarah and Simon were standing in front of me. But the third figure was the most horrifying. I saw a replica of myself standing in front of me with a malevolent smile. Their bodies were almost entirely solid, except I could still make out shapes of furniture behind them. They were translucent, almost human, yet so far from human that I trembled.
    Claudia stepped up from behind them, an elated smile on her face. "Do it."
    The three vardogers rushed towards me, looking like a pack of wild animals eager to feast on their kill. My mind couldn't process the images of my best friend, the boy I loved and myself attacking me. They crowded around me, but instead of feeling them physically, I felt them inside me, as if they were digging into my body, sinking their fingers into every part of me. It was a feeling beyond pain, as if my very essence was being crushed. I opened my mouth to scream but nothing came out, my throat closing as I felt like I was drowning, as if thick matter was being pushed down my airways until I choked.
    I was vaguely aware of screams in the background as I fought for my life, for my very existence. I felt the hard edge of the iridium coin in my limp hand, and I forced my fingers to wrap around it, summoning every last bit of strength I had remaining. I focused on the feelings inside me, of the invasion of my body. I focused on pushing out the foreign energies, demanding that they loosen their grip, their claws leaving bloody trails on my soul.
    Slowly, inch by inch, I felt them receding but I wasn't able to push them out completely. I gathered everything in me, every feeling of love, hate and fear, and pooled them into one ball of energy and shot it at them with all my might. A blast of light exploded in my mind and suddenly I felt nothing inside me except my rapidly beating heart.
    I sat up, aware of my physical surroundings once again. I cried out when I saw Lenore unconscious, blood streaming down her face. I saw the statue that I had tried to use earlier on Claudia next to her head, blood staining the base. I quickly crawled over to her, so drained that my body was barely able to make the short distance. Before I could reach out to touch her, Claudia stepped in between us. I forced myself to stand up, my legs trembling to support me.
    Claudia was shaking, her eyes filled with an inhuman rage. "How did you do it?!" she screamed. "How did you kill your vardoger?! I'm wearing palladium and I'm connected to them. You shouldn't have been able to kill your vardoger!"
    I shook my head, but comprehension was dawning. I had destroyed my vardoger when they had tried to enter my body. Even though I had only destroyed one out of the three, I felt a fierce streak of satisfaction run through me with the knowledge that I had vanquished my first vardoger. But the feeling was fleeting when I glanced down at Lenore's still body.
    Claudia's expression of fury turned into gloating, although I could still see the anger in her eyes. "She's dead. You're next."
    She stepped towards me, her eyes blazing. She let out a shriek of frustration and I wondered why she didn't attack me. Her gaze shifted to behind me and I quickly turned sideways so I could see what she was looking at without turning my back on her.
    I saw Sarah and Simon's vardogers standing there, looking furious but when they glanced at me, there was a hint of fear in their eyes. I