David spun around and laid the pistol on the orange counter top. He crossed to Anissa in two long strides and grasped her upper arms with his hands, squeezing until it almost hurt. "Where the hell did you go? Damn it, I thought I'd killed you or banished you or something." Then he crushed her to his chest in a great hug that left her unable to breathe.
She allowed the embrace for a moment, burrowing her nose into the warmth of his skin through the thin undershirt. Then she pushed against his chest with her hands, forcing herself back just until she was able to speak. "The Djinn have the power to cross the veil that separates the world of mortals from the Otherworld. The box acts as an anchor, however and while I was bound to the box, I was unable to cross. When I felt the bonds fall away,
