pped outside Isab

dy m

nse. The veins beneath his skin had darkened, and his eyes, wh

red at him i

ning to you?"

behi

n, you

stay beh

so sharp tha

his express

hispered. "I woul

ld respond, someone

e ti

voice floated t

ng. I know you

ia Bla

layful, but something about i

ria continued. "We hav

lenched

ay, Vi

h came from

ed them bury an empty coffin in your name, and

a looke

ws you'r

didn't

a knock

say, not en

d Isabella had never

tened her gri

red. "I officially

ached for

abella grab

down at

ent, the darkness

me,"

people say before e

ile touche

e lear

ned th

beneath a long black coat. Her blonde hair fell in perfect wa

ver of a luxury magazine, not outside an apart

ved over Da

she s

ome. Still stubborn. Stil

pression re

do you

nside without wait

ention, o

shifted t

st be Isabe

a strai

e we

heard so muc

m wh

ria s

r mo

m went

h the floor had disapp

ther i

sh

saying

raised he

hy su

oved bet

er out o

. "You always were sentimenta

her purse and pro

anded it t

woman standing beside a man o

nized the woma

mo

ella remembered, with long b

ding beside her who mad

mi

en standing

photograph looke

e f

dark

e e

at the date prin

er 14

began to

ossible," s

closed

atched her

oo. Unfortunately, she made the mistake of fa

urned towa

she talki

dn't

mie

w tigh

her knew

ow

ved in the experiment

shook h

ed at a hospital in Baton Rouge. She

laughed

she wanted yo

la fel

er mother suddenl

night pho

drawer in h

had sometimes woken

s little, she'd

always given

e better left bu

ought it was a

wasn't

eriment?"

s smile d

Dam

for the first time, she saw

d a way to bring the dead back to lif

tared

someone invented

way of des

rible way of

sabella w

I'm proc

n con

edly. Victims of accidents. Patients who couldn't be saved. My

succeed?" Is

looked

way he

been restored, but the people inside them never truly returned.

discovered som

he process. Their bodies could return to life, but onl

engraved on Is

hat symbol," Isa

en n

lped cr

hy

eved the project

folded

vered what it wa

s gaze

trying to control death. He wanted an army of people w

?" Isabe

rst successfu

over the room like

the man she had met

walked beside

warned her to st

d three years ago a

?" she w

looke

I was h

expressio

the mistake of trying to

epped

equired more than scientific knowledge. It require

settled o

the last person w

's blood

N

es

had nothing t

's voice

e experiment. That's

ook her hea

died in a c

t the polic

ly grabbed Vi

oug

the room see

oked down a

oked back a

protect h

t need

darkene

enough time

ulled her

ou can feel it, can't you? The hunge

said

control again? A month? A

led at

d to the last person

looked

happ

ed at t

" she wh

rt so

so quietly that she

ho

brot

pression turn

ien home after the experiment. Damien didn't r

d toward

rstood what he'd don

hands t

ut," h

a's smi

ha

of my a

ed him fo

urned towa

Damien starts dreaming about the night

s stomach

hy

alked towa

oesn't just bring th

pa

ses someone else to

she

r click

seconds, n

laced the lam

therapist," she annou

barely

staring

y of i

ked ex

es

er help brin

es

die becau

n't k

y responsible for y

closed

ble for what ha

ook a step

ced imm

abe

on

sto

nst her chest, trying t

ing me that my dead mother was involved in bringing you back from the dead,

how it

you d

ice cr

discover that everything you believe

ood perfe

ething that made

what it's like to discover

t her with

s like to discover t

, Isabella c

ted to

l him to leave an

ness in his eyes when he'd

arefully he'd held h

e had stood between her and

u'd seen my face in

y reached in

paper, worn at the edges as th

it, Isabella

a white dress. Her long brown hair fell over her sho

dated twenty-sev

n it wasn't Isa

sabella

xact

xact

auty mark beside

staggered

t's

en n

father's study t

that p

n't k

d her th

ten in faded ink,

URNS, THE CU

read th

n a

n shot throu

grabbed the edg

shed throu

ning

oice scream

ionless beneath

d to come from somewhere

efore the

ything di

la col

abe

her before she

ond, his cold hand pre

lla opened

d directl

a voice tha

ve nine nights left b

ent comple

recognize

oman who had cursed

mo

n dead for twen