Chapter Nine

Zoe blinked, her eyes widening as she recognised the voice.

It was the voice of a Shadow Man.

His face had been and still was blocked out by both the darkness and the low lighting as he towered above her, only his mouth and strong jaw-line visible.

Zoe took in a sharp intake of breath and stepped backward, but she became prevented from going very far due to the Shadow Man holding her wrists tightly in his grip of steel, a grip so tight it pinched like a tight metal adjustable wristband.

"Let me go…" She said in a breathless tone of voice, trying to wriggle out of his grip even as she wanted to go limp from fright.

Her hands and body shook slightly as a fine tremor of fear washed through her as he held her.

He affected her so powerfully.

The Shadow Man's full lips pulled into a smirk. "I'm not the type of guy that takes orders…" He said in a suddenly growling voice before he easily pulled Zoe close to him, as though she was as weak as a kitten. His hands moved around her waist and he began to sway with her in his arms on the dance floor. "Did you save yourself for me?" He whispered into her ear.

Zoe felt shivers go down her spine. "O-of course not…" She whispered in a suddenly faint and uneven voice.

It was hard to focus on speaking while his body brushed against hers and as his hands were on the small of her back. She felt crowded, battered by her thoughts, emotions, and the strange new feelings that invaded her body.

"W-why are you here?" She said after a small silence as they danced, wondering why the Shadow Man was no longer speaking to her.

"What if I could help you get Julian back…? If I could help you to carve his name into the runestave? To kill the other Shadow Men?" The one that held Zoe tightly to him said, his eyes closed as they swayed to the music.

Zoe's heart stopped. "Why would you do that? What's in it for you?" She asked carefully.

The Shadow Man looked down and opened his eyes, before leaning his head down until his eyes became visible.

Such beautiful eyes… it was a shock to the senses to see them once again. It was as though she had forgotten about them, despite having dreamed about them day and night for just under three years now.

"In it for me? Why…? Because then I get to become the big bad… Julian is a pussy cat compared to the old guys…" The man said as he looked down at Zoe intently. "I know how I can control him… but the others… they are too powerful, too dark and set in their ways…"

Zoe blinked at that. "But… how could you possibly control Julian?"

The Shadow Man smirked at that. "I have my ways… let's just leave it at that…" He said and looked at her. "I'm giving you an easy way to do this, to get him back… if you're not with me, then you're against me…"

Zoe gulped and looked into those eyes, eyes that captivated her. She could see all of his face now.

He had a small and perfect nose that matched the rest of his features, rather than looking odd and out of place. His hair was shiny and very black, blacker than the darkness around him; it was the shortest at the back before it got longer at the front before becoming the longest at the fringe that ended just past his jaw. His eyebrows were thick and dark also, without being overpowering or overly bushy, straight until it curved downward gently at the narrowest point.

He was perfect in every way.

"I need time to think things through…" Zoe said, her cheeks burning a deep red as she looked away from him after her obvious staring session.

"Fine… you have twenty four hours till I'll come back… if you're not done by then… your mothers story will seem like a walk in the park…" He said before moving his lips to Zoe's cheek softly before he dissipated into the shadows.

Zoe sighed and slid to the floor, her head in her hands as her vision swam.

"God… what have I gotten into?" She got out before her friends, whom as soon as they arrived began to ask her various questions as soon as they were near, surrounded her.
"Are you okay…?" One voice said, echoed by several others.

No… I'm not okay… She thought, but reassured them otherwise as they fawned over her.

And I don't think I will be until this nightmare ends…