"Get out of here now, horse-face," said Tracy, "or you're getting the same."

They crowded Alex into the cubicle and she could hear the grunts and shoves of Alex struggling against the two older girls.

Tracy tossed the cigarette into one of the sinks and made a grab for Kayleigh's long hair. Kayleigh evaded her, slipping back past the changing room door and pulling it closed behind her. Tracy's arm came around the gap and Kayleigh trapped it in the door. "You little sod!" Tracy's hand grasped for Kayleigh. "I'm gonna rip your hair out."

"Kayleigh!" Alex's voice sounded hollow in the tiled room. "Tell them to stop, tell them I can't hold it. It's getting free. I can't hold it!"

Kayleigh's mind raced.

"You have to let her go!" she shouted through the door at Tracy. "She's not herself. You don't understand. She's really going to lose it."

"Oh yeah, we're really scared about that." Tracy shouted to her mates, "Drown the little b.i.t.c.h." With a sudden tug, she pulled her arm back and slammed the door closed on Kayleigh.

Kayleigh pushed at the door, her shoes sliding on the smooth floor as she shoved against Tracy holding it shut from the other side.

"You don't understand. You have to let her go!"

From behind the door came the sound of burbling and then coughing and retching. "Drown the b.i.t.c.h!" Tracy urged them.

The sound of burbling resumed, but underlined by another gurgling sound. Kayleigh hammered on the door, screaming for them to stop. The gurgling deepened to a low rumble, the sound vibrating in Kayleigh bones, making her teeth ache. The temperature dropped suddenly, the chill sending goose b.u.mps down Kayleigh's arms. There was a moment of silence.

Then the rumbling returned, building to a crescendo until everything burst at once behind the door. Kayleigh hammered on the door, screaming for them to open it before it was too late, pleading with Tracy. Water started streaming out from under the door, pooling around Kayleigh's feet. Suddenly the pressure on the door reversed and it was Tracy trying to pull it open. Water crashed into the gap, the weight of it pressing the door shut. Tracy was screaming for her to push, just push. Her hands were white against the edge of the door as water and sewage from the drains pressed the gap closed. Kayleigh tried to wedge her foot in it but the flow was too strong and it was pushing her aside. The door slammed shut, trapping Tracy's fingers. Kayleigh heard her yank them free with a bone-popping wrench. The screams turned to hammering as the changing room rapidly filled with foul-smelling water. Kayleigh could hear them, shouting and yelling as the water swirled around them. Water streamed under the door, spraying round the edges as the pressure built. She could see the door handle rattle and then jerk as hands were dragged away, screams gulped off as they lost their footing and were swept under. Their cries echoed, rising and fading as the water began to turn, the screams turning to gasps as they tried to swim against the turning current. Her imagination conjured the vortex, tugging at their clothes, pulling them into the centre, dragging them under.

Kayleigh turned and ran down the pa.s.sage and out through the gym screaming for someone, anyone, to come and help. She ran across the playground, tears streaming down her face, shouting until her voice cracked, knowing it was already too late.

The story of Rabbit and Blackbird continues...

Nine months after the events of SIXTY-ONE NAILS, Blackbird is heavily pregnant. They don't know when the baby will come, only that it will be soon. Niall is beginning to adjust to his new life. His daily training as a warder of the High Court of the Feyre leaves him covered in bruises that fade by dawn, only to be replaced with a new set every following day.

Then he gets the news no parent ever wants to hear. There's been an accident. It's your daughter.

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