house. I almost started to go past my SUV, because I could get to the library faster on foot, but how would I explain that to Kat when I found her?
Hell.
Pivoting around, I hurried toward my car and climbed in. Turning the engine on, I threw the SUV into reverse, navigating it around the cars and trees. The drive into town felt like it took an eternity, and I had to have gotten behind every slow-moving ass on the highway. Fat drops of rain splattered off the windshield. Since it started raining, it appeared no one could drive more than twenty miles an hour. My hands clenched the steering wheel until my knuckles bleached white. Anger rolled through me like the storm brewing outside.
I was angry at Kat for not staying put, furious with myself for putting her in a position where I was going to have to search her ass down and come up with some lame-ass reason why I was there.
And pissed off that I hadn’t been home to catch her ass leaving.
When I made it into Petersburg, I was ready to run over a small village with my SUV, and since parking was a bitch in the evening and I wasn’t in a hurry or anything, I ended up having to leave the car three blocks over, parked behind a diner.
There was a lot of traffic on the main streets, so I had to watch myself. The rain was tapering off and the street lamps were flickering on as I headed down the sidewalk, toward the town library. My mood was dark, matching the clouds ahead, and when I spied the library and didn’t see her car, I was ready to destroy something.
Either she had already left or she’d never been here. There was only one other place to check, a less trafficked side road that was behind the library. I picked up my pace, cutting across the narrow lawn in front of the building, and rounded the side.
An icy chill exploded along the base of my neck and powered down my spine, kicking my instinct to shift into my true form into overdrive. The dread exploded like a buckshot.
I could feel them, tainting the air and the ground, cloaking the narrow street in unnatural, thick shadows. My brain clicked off and I picked up speed, becoming a blur as I cleared the side of the library. I spotted Kat’s car. A light was on inside, but I didn’t see her.
The presence of an Arum grew stronger.
Shooting across the road, I came up on her car and I felt it—the oily thickness in the air nearly choking me. Then I saw it in its human form, but the edges of it were shaded out, transparent like dark smoke. I didn’t see Kat, but it had something—someone—on the ground, and I knew without seeing her that it was Kat.
And it could already be too late.
This…this was my fault.
The rage and dread whirled through me like a hurricane, and I had no idea how I managed to stay in my human form as I grabbed the Arum by its shoulder. My hand sunk a few inches into it, and then I had ahold of its bone and muscle. I yanked back hard, lifting the Arum into the air and tossing it several feet to the side. I caught a brief glimpse of Kat, and my fury tasted like death in the back of my throat.
The thing twisted in midair, turning to nothing more than shadows before consolidating rapidly into a human mass as it landed on its feet. I shot toward it, catching the bastard in the stomach with my shoulder. It cried out and then pushed back, shoving its hand toward my chest. A curse exploded out of me as I staggered back a step. The arm turned transparent, and I knew what it was going to try to do. Feed.
Yeah, not going to happen.
I spun out of the way, avoiding its grip. Moving as fast as a cobra striking, I grabbed ahold of the Arum and tossed him over my shoulder. He landed near Kat, stunned for a moment.
A soft whimper rattled me. Kat was hurt.
Before I could process this new fear, the Arum popped to its feet. The combination of blond hair and pale skin washed the thing out, and as it charged me, dark shadows blossomed under the thin layer of skin. I caught the Arum by the throat, lifting him into the air.
A series of coughs came from the direction of Kat, and I cursed as I power-bombed the asshole into the road. Asphalt cracked. Tiny rocks that were knocked loose flew into the air.
Hatred bled into the pale blue gaze that met mine, so much cold hatred. We rolled farther away, into the shadows. He landed a punch. I landed more. Taking out the Arum in public like this was risky, but I needed to end this and I needed…I needed to check on her.
Lifting my arm, I brought my hand down onto the Arum’s chest as I summoned the Source. Energy, pure and raw and as powerful as a solar flare, burned down my arm. An intense whitish-red light erupted from my hand, flowing into the Arum.
Time froze for a moment as the light washed over the creature, seeping into its chest cavity, beyond its skin, and invading every cell. Bright white light washed over its eyes, chasing after the shadows lurking under its skin.
I rocked off the Arum, just in the nick of time, too. The pale skin disappeared, replaced by a smooth onyx shell. The creature stilled for a moment, its mouth hanging open in a silent scream, and then it exploded into a million wispy fragments that floated up, disappearing into the sky.
The charge backed up into the environment around us. Streetlamps exploded, casting the entire street into darkness. Breathing heavily, I took a step back and looked over to Kat. She was lying on her stomach awkwardly, nearly facedown in the road. Something about that ripped through me.
I crossed the distance between us in a heartbeat, kneeling beside her as I reached out, placing my hand on her shoulder. A soft moan radiated from her, and that tearing feeling deep inside me increased.
“It’s okay. He’s gone. Are you okay?” Damn. That was a stupid question. She started to lift her head, and I saw the angry red mark on her cheek, like a bright strawberry. Her left eye was swelling. Anger punched through me. She was hurt and in pain, that much was obvious, and her breathing didn’t sound right. There was a concerning wheezing quality to it. I wasn’t a doctor, but it didn’t sound good.
“Everything is okay,” I told her, and that was a lie, because as I spoke those three words, I did something so incredibly reckless I might as well have thrown myself in front of a speeding truck.
She was hurt, and instinctively, I knew I could fix some of it, even all of it. I’d never done it before. It was so forbidden, so taboo for our kind it was barely spoken of. One of our most remarkable attributes, the one thing that the Arum could not assimilate after feeding, was our regenerative ability. We healed rapidly from almost all injuries…and we could heal others.
I reached out to the Source, pulled it down inside myself, and then I pushed it into Kat, guiding the light to her chest and her raspy lungs. If anyone walked by right now, they’d see our bodies lit up like a lightbulb, and I counted myself ten kinds of foolish, but I didn’t stop. Her eyes were closed, but as the energy began to crackle along her skin, her lashes fluttered as if to open, and I ran my hand gently across her eyes and down her cheek, and she relaxed.
Her breathing evened out a little as she slowly turned her head toward me. “Thank you for…” She trailed off.
“Kat,” I called to her, concerned. “Are you still with me?”
“You,” she whispered.
“Yes, it’s me.” I moved my hand to her wrist. She jerked her arm back, and I reached for her again. Since I was in for a penny, I might as well go for the whole screwed-up pound. “I can help you.”
“No!” she cried out.
I considered ignoring that as I glanced down at her wrist. She was still hurt, but the worst of her injuries, whatever had been affecting her breathing, had healed. I released the Source and stood, exhaling roughly. A thousand thoughts spun through me, all circling back to what in the hell had I done? “Whatever. I’ll call the police.”
The last thing I wanted to involve was the police, but Kat needed to be looked at by actual medical professionals. Taking a step back, I pulled out my phone and did just that, keeping a wary eye on her. She struggled to sit up, and I stopped myself from helping her. There was a good chance if I touched her again, I’d end up healing he
r some more, since my impulse control was so awesome at this point.
“Thank…you,” she said, voice hoarse after I hung up the phone.
I winced. The trace on her before had been a soft glow, but after healing her, she was lit up like a fucking neon sign. “Don’t thank me.” I shoved my hand through my hair and then lowered it to my side. Both hands formed fists as I watched her finally sit up. The mark on her face, the swelling in her eye, made me wish the Arum were still alive so I could kill it all over again. “Dammit, this is my fault.”
She stared up at me, confusion and something else I couldn’t quite pinpoint etched into her face. Frustration doubled inside me. This was my fault. Like a dumbass, I’d traced her on Saturday. I knew there was a chance there were Arum nearby, and I hadn’t made sure she stayed home. Then she was attacked, because the Arum saw that damn trace and knew she could lead it back to us—what it really wanted.
“Light—I saw light,” she whispered, lowering her gaze.
“Well, they do say there is light at the end of the tunnel.”
She shrank back, cringing.
Shit. That was possibly the most asshole thing I could say. I crouched down. “Dammit, I’m sorry. That was thoughtless.” I paused. “How bad are you hurt?”
“My throat… It hurts.” She lifted a shaky hand and pressed it to her throat, wincing. “So does my wrist. I’m not…sure if it’s broken. But there was a flash…of light.”
My gaze zeroed in on her wrist. The skin was quickly deepening in color, becoming a purplish red. I didn’t think it was broken. There was a good chance I’d fixed that, but she couldn’t know that. No one could know that. I drew a deep breath. “It might be broken or sprained. Is that all?”
“All? The man… He was trying to kill me.”
“I understand that. I was hoping he didn’t break anything important.” I glanced at the top of her disheveled head. “Like your skull?”
“No…I don’t think so.”
“Okay, okay.” I stood, looking around. I needed to do damage control. “Why were you out here anyway?”
“I…wanted to go to the library.” She paused for a moment. “It wasn’t that…late. It’s not…like we are in a crime-ridden…city. He said he needed help…flat tire.”
My eyes widened as I turned back to her. “A stranger approaches you for help in a dark parking lot and you go and help him? That has to be one of the most careless things I’ve heard in a long time. I bet you think things through, right? Accept candy from strangers and get into vans with a sign that reads ‘free kittens’?”
She made a soft sound as I began to pace.
“Sorry wouldn’t have been helpful if I didn’t come, now would it?” I said.
“So why were…you out here?”
I stilled, running a hand over my chest. “I just was.”
“Geez, I thought you guys were supposed to be nice and charming.”
I frowned. “What guys?”
“You know, the knight in shining armor and saving the damsel in distress kind.”
Shaking my head, I lowered my hand. “I’m not your knight.”
“Okay…” she whispered, pulling her legs up and resting her head on her knees. Everything about her movements looked painful. “Where is he now?”
“He took off. Long gone by now.” I started toward her. “Kat…?”
She lifted her head, and when I didn’t speak, she lowered her good arm to the ground and started to stand.
“I don’t think you should stand.” I kneeled again. “The ambulance and police should be here any minute. I don’t want you passing out.”
“I’m not going…to pass out.” As if on cue, the sound of sirens could be heard.
“I don’t want to have to catch you if you do.” I glanced down at my hands. The skin had been scraped, but it had already healed “Did…did he say anything to you?”
Her brows knitted as she grimaced “He said…I had a trace on me. And he kept asking…where they were. I don’t know why.”
Hell. Lowering my chin, I looked over my shoulder. “He sounds like a lunatic.”
“Yeah, but…who did he want?”
My attention snapped back to her. “A girl stupid enough to help a homicidal maniac with his tire, maybe?”
Her lips thinned. “You’re such an ass. Has…anyone ever told you that?”
In that moment, I decided that if she was calling me an ass, she was going to be okay. “Oh, Kitten, every single day of my blessed life.”
She stared at me, but I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. “I don’t even know what to say…”
“Since you already said thank you, I think nothing is the best way to go at this point.” I stood. “Just please don’t move. That’s all I ask. Stay still and try not to cause any more trouble.”
Kat frowned and looked like she wanted to say something, but praise all the higher beings in the universe, she remained quiet. The relief was short-lived, because when I glanced down at her, she was shaking so badly her teeth had to be rattling. It was then I realized she was soaked from the rain and shock was probably kicking in.
Pulling off my shirt, I found myself kneeling beside her again. My shirt wasn’t the best thing, but it was better than nothing. I carefully pulled it on over her head, keeping the material away from her bruised cheek. I got her limp arms through the holes, and the noodle quality to those arms worried me a little. I glanced up quickly. Her eyes were closed, thick lashes fanning the tops of her cheeks.
“Kat?”
Too late.
She toppled over to the right, and I caught her before she face-planted onto the cement. Her head lolled to the side and her hair, half up and half down, fell across her one unmarred cheek. Holding her against my chest with one arm, I brushed the hair back from her face. My fingers lingered along her jaw just below her ear. The sound of sirens grew closer, but I concentrated on each breath she took, her chest rising and falling steadily.
Kat was out cold.
“Hell,” I muttered, staring down at her as I shifted her so the back of her head was cradled in the crook of my arm.
This was becoming a disturbing trend.
Chapter 9
There were few places in this world that I hated as much as hospitals. Luxen didn’t get sick—no colds or cancers, no heart disease or strokes. Bumps and bruises could be healed with a touch of a hand. So I avoided these places at all costs.
Tonight it was unavoidable.
I stayed as out of the way as inhumanly possible, leaning against the wall while Kat’s mother flipped her shit. The pea-green curtain fluttered every time someone roamed into the room and back out. The deputies had come and gone, talking to both of us. Robbery gone wrong. I was in the right place at the right time. The police would do everything to try to locate the offender, but good luck there, because there was nothing left of the shithead, but what could I say? I just smiled and nodded and waited for the moment I could get the hell out of here. Actually, I could’ve already left, but it didn’t feel right to do so.
I needed time to think.
My gaze drifted over to the narrow bed. Kat looked tired when my eyes found her. She was looking out the window, her pale face drawn and weary. The splash of red on her cheek wasn’t easy to look at. Neither was her swollen eye. It could’ve been worse. My touch had sped up the healing process there and most likely repaired more serious injuries related to the imprint on her throat¸ remarkably similar to fingers. It was faint, but it was hard to look at.
Her arm was in a cast. Torn tendon or something. If she hadn’t pulled her arm away, I could’ve fixed that, too. I mean, why not at this point? The trace was still around her, stronger than before, and I had a feeling it wouldn’t be fading anytime soon.
Why in the hell hadn’t they given her something for the pain yet?
Kat appeared incredibly small in that bed. Alone with me for a few seconds, she glanced over, and I raised a brow. Her gaze immediately flicked away.
Probably around town. It was that small.
Dr. Michaels left after handing over some pain meds, and it was about damn time someone gave her something. Her mother hovered by her bed, and my jaw flexed when I saw the wetness gather in Kat’s eyes. The girl… Yeah, she was tough stuff. She’d been holding it together this whole time. I started to close my eyes when I sensed my sister’s presence. I’d called her on the way in, and no amount of reasoning had convinced her to stay at the house.
Dee rushed right past me. I chuckled. Glad to see that she was worried about me, because you know, I didn’t just fight an Arum or something. “Oh no, Katy, are you okay?”
Kat lifted the injured arm, and damn if she didn’t offer a weak
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