Chapter 25: Crimson DashblowYeah, you imagihat what she’d said preoccupied me for a while, until finally I pushed my rambling thoughts aside for ter sideration. I wondered how long ago all this happened; I wondered what the assig was to which Steven was sacrificed.
I’d been staring bnkly through the window long enough for the sky to turn one of those deep blues against which pink-tinted clouds scurried; and then darken and fade into night. Stars lit up and the fingernail-sliver moon slowly rose high and brilliant in the narrow winding gap betweehick trees lining the road oher side. The radio shifted to something jazzy and mellow and we rode through the dark coed in trig piano notes and resonant bass lines. Occasional fres from the side of the road revealed the startled night eyes of unknown wild animals warily watg our passage. When I turo K she was illuminated by the crimson dashblow, her features highlighted in ruddy hues.
It occurred to that she must have been exhausted, that she had been driving nearly non-stop for over a day now. “Hey,” I called out in a quiet voibsp; I was relut to disrupt our calm passage through the night. “Hey, K, you okay over there?”
She shrugged, a surprisingly rexed response. “Yes. Why do you ask?”
“Dunno.” I stretched out my legs, rotating my ao ease out the pain of wearing heels all day. Just wearing the bsted things was enough to kill my feet. “It’s just been a long day. Thought you might be tired, is all.”
K gnced my way and offered a wan smile. “Mr Saunders? I am utterly exhausted.”
“You wao drive?” To be ho, it was a relut offer. The gentle light, the music, the passing dark left me lethargibsp; I felt minutes away from drifting off to sleep.
K shook her head. Her hands remained sure on the wheel. “No need, Mr Saunders. Allow me to wele you to the Aklepios ic.”
At first there was little to see, but civilization had to be near: K flicked the car back over to automatid it instantly linked into what had to be the ic’s systems. K reached into her purse and passed me that damnable spray. My throat tingled and tightened as I sed the road ahead and I saw faint glittering lights led in the depths of the trees on both sides. These lights grew increasingly frequent, until suddenly we left the trees behind aered a rge, cultivated space across which were spread many low-lying buildings. K threaded the car towards a tral building, all modern-looking gss and crete, that was one of the few still lit up from both outside and within this te at night.
Aklepios Receptiore announced a sign up front. liness, Medie, Healing. The building sat atop a low hill and offered a det view across the entire pound. The pce reminded me of a uy campus. Cobbled walkways wound away from the building and towards other tres and into the outlying trees, reag towards those cealed lights; private residences, I assumed. Larger roads worked their way between main buildings ao three rger edifices at far ends of the tre. A few bright lights gleamed from within rooms in those far buildings, but otherwise the pound was only softly lit by scattered walkposts. There was an almost eerie silence K pulled the keys from the ignition aepped from the car. Other than the wind and a few solemn crickets, plete quiet reigned.
I gnced across at K. “dy mode?”
My aunt nodded. “Let’s get you checked in, dear.”
I gave my legs a quick stretch then sat in the passenger seat with the door open. I checked myself in the mirror and touched up my lipstibsp; Alright man. You do this. No freaking out this time. Those wide, brilliant greeared back at me and glimmered with pyful fidenbsp; With an almost rueful smile dy stepped from the car, hoisting her purse over one shoulder.
“Let’s go, Auntie!”
***
Author's Notes: If you're impatient to read on, you find ter chapters at FM S. You also find everything up to Book 3, Chapter 6 avaible on Patreon: patreon./fakeminsk, as well as fanart and a few side projects.
