The Seventh Night Read Online Free PDF Page B

you were brought in. Almost…incoherent. He thought at first you’d been drinking.”
    “Drinking! I never drink.”
    One dark brow lifted slightly, but he let the comment pass as he moved around the end of the bed and came to stand at the side. For the first time since I’d seen him, I noticed the fine lines of fatigue that were around his eyes and his mouth.
    This was indeed an older Reid St. Pierre. And colder, I thought, unaccountably disappointed. There wasn’t the slightest trace of the devastating charm I’d glimpsed long ago in Chicago. This Reid was all business, but why I should be a part of his concern, I couldn’t imagine.
    Almost with a will of its own, my gaze swept over him again. It was embarrassing, but I couldn’t seem to take my eyes off him….
    “What are you doing here, anyway?” I asked suddenly. “Why isn’t my father here?”
    The dark gaze flickered. “The hospital staff found the St. Pierre’s number in your purse last night, and I was still in my office when they called.”
    “You’ve been here all night?”
    “Most of it.”
    “Have you even called my father? Does he know I’m here?”
    “I’ve made the proper calls, don’t worry.” He seemed on the verge of saying something else, then hesitated.He shoved his hands into the pockets of his pleated trousers, but when he spoke, his casualness seemed forced. “Do you remember anything at all about what happened to you?”
    “My memory’s pretty hazy,” I admitted, frowning. “We ran out of gas, and Jean Marc walked back to town and I stayed with the car. It was foggy and dark and…” My voice faltered as the details of the previous night began falling into place, bit by terrifying bit. “Oh, my God. I remember now. There were these men—their faces were all painted and grotesque—and they circled the car—and I think—I think they were going to kill me!”
    In increasing agitation, I tried to sit up, but Reid bent quickly, restraining me with those powerful hands on my shoulders. Firmly, he pressed me back against the pillows.
    “Just relax,” he instructed in a voice that seemed more used to giving commands than comfort. “You’re safe now. Are you saying someone attacked you last night?”
    “That’s exactly what I’m saying.” I fell back against the pillows, the little energy I had left ebbing away. “I was attacked by these…creatures!”
    That dark brow shot up again. “Creatures? I thought you said men.”
    “Whatever they were, they danced and chanted and one of them broke the car window and scratched my arm and—What’s the matter?” I asked as his expression altered subtly. “Don’t you believe me? I’m not making this up!”
    Meticulously, he picked an invisible speck of lint from his jacket sleeve. He no longer met my gaze. “I’ve spoken to the couple who brought you in. They said you were standing in the middle of the road, and that you made no effort to move out of the way. It was almostas if you were asleep. Luckily, they were able to brake in time before doing you any serious harm.”
    “But they had to have seen them. The lights from the car scared them away. The couple in the car must have seen those men running. They were there, I tell you!”
    Reid shrugged as he turned and walked back toward the window. “They swear they saw nothing.”
    My eyes narrowed on him. “And what about Jean Marc?” I asked, leveling an accusation. “The driver
you
sent to get me. What did he tell you?”
    “Pretty much the same story you did,” Reid admitted. With one finger, he pushed open the blinds and stared out broodingly between the slats. “When he got back to the car, you were gone. He was frantic. He had no idea what had happened to you.”
    “Did he tell you about the broken window in the car?”
    “There was no broken window. I saw the car myself early this morning.”
    “What!?” I sat straight up in bed at that, ignoring the deep, steady pounding in my head. “Of course,