by A. R. Cooper
Her stare hardened. “She’s a chameleon shifter, right? That’s how she was able to evade us on our yearly visits to your school to find your kind.” She ran a hand down her black suit that was trimmed in spotted fur and tapped her alligator shoes like she was impatient. Now that I knew her better, I was sure the shoes and fur were real. “You’ve been a nuisance, but I’m glad you didn’t die on that rooftop.”
What?! I doubted her gladness had anything to do with my being safe or alive. Anger bubbled up inside me. My mom’s disappearance, my running, all of this was because of her and her prejudice.
From the corner of my eye, Amar’s finger twitched. I forced my eyes away from him, cringing when each breath punched through my side like a smoldering lance.
Yup, definitely broken ribs. Just keep her talking and think of a way to get out of this mess.
“Mind you, if we had known your spirit totem animal at that time, we would have preserved you until we unlocked your secret.” She glanced over to sea cucumber guy. “Boyd was happy to tell us, and we’ll remedy our mistake. But know that your death would have been less painful than what we will do to extract your power.”
“What power? What’s my spirit shifter?” I doubted she’d tell me, but I needed to stall. Anything to give Amar time to come out of his tranquilizer sleep. She had tried to kill me… several times now. And how many innocents had she killed before? Just because we were different than humans? My anger twisted into rage.
She tsked at me and glanced around at the others. “Do you believe that? She doesn’t know. Her family kept all this from her to keep her safe, yet instead, they crippled her.”
Amar’s eyelids fluttered.
Anger surged through me and my octopus limbs lashed out. “You know nothing, you hateful racist!”
She was knocked backward, as were three of the men closest to me. Guess I had them surprised, for none of them transformed into their smoke-like forms. Hooknose crashed into a concrete wall and lay unconscious while black blood pooled around his head. Two others blocked the door, but Amar suddenly sprung up and dashed forward, and knocked one aside with his momentum, and the other man he kicked in the stomach, making him puff into a pillar of smoke.
Within a second, Amar was beside me and snatched my wrist as he yanked me toward the door. “Come on.”
“There’s a large window in the next office.” I held onto my left side as I raced to keep up with him across the hallway. The wire flooring rattled beneath our weight. “Can you fly?”
“Only one way to find out.”
Chapter Twenty-six
I screamed with a mixture of terror and shooting pain as Amar grasped me around the waist, hauling me into his arms so he was carrying me. We dashed inside the office and I was relieved that Jacqui had left the huge window open. If we got out of this, I’d give her my collection of autographed The Best Boyfriends CDs that she’d coveted for years.
Ms. Moor and her men yelled as they chased us. I grabbed onto Amar’s neck to hold on and, over his shoulder, I saw their faces twisted in rage.
“Hurry. They’re gaining on us!” I gasped as he dove for the window, and the jolt felt like it ripped open my side.
At first, I thought we’d smack into the ground, but then his wings spread out at the last instant and we careened through the air.
A few of the minions leapt out after us but puffed into a mixture of smoke and dust when they hit the concrete. One though, Tattoo guy, swung himself higher than the others and grasped Amar’s ankle. He winced in agony as the guy’s long fingernails dug into his flesh.
Gritting my teeth, I held onto Amar with one hand around his neck and the other one under his arm along his chest. I kicked the enemy in the face with my good leg. Bolts of blinding pain seized my breath, but I couldn’t stop now. Please don’t let me pass out. Blackness tunneled my vision.
From the guy’s weight, Amar lost height, but we cleared the warehouse and fence now.
“Hold on,” Amar said in my ear.
I didn’t question him but did what he said immediately. A rooftop plowed into Tattoo guy, but he still hung on with only one hand. Before he got a better grip, I kicked him in the face again, imagining him gone. If my ankle hadn’t been damaged, I’d have kicked him with both legs.
Again, he clung on. I kicked him with the heel of my shoe three more times, and Amar twisted suddenly and Tattoo guy was snagged by a palm tree. We were free.
The adrenaline coursing through me subsided, and now it hurt to breathe. My arm was protectively shielding my broken ribs, but still the agony raced along my side.
“We need to find you help for your injuries.” He frowned down at me.
I struggled to smile. “Just take us somewhere safe. There’s a park.” I pointed with my chin. “We can’t go back to my dad’s boat. At least not yet. The cops are probably all over it.”
For once, I wasn’t afraid of flying. I knew Amar would do anything to keep me safe. And I trusted him. So much so that I’d leapt out of a window with him. Yes, it was only one story but the thought of hitting the ground had made my stomach lurch.
Behind a line of oak trees, we landed. He released me and searched around for the enemy, or anyone following us. Within seconds, his black wings shifted away, but the back of his T-shirt had rips in it. Maybe he’d start a new trend.
Unable to stand on my legs any longer, I slumped against a tree and winced as I slid down to my butt. Everything hurt. And I was weary of all of it. “I’m tired of running, Amar. Somehow, someway I will find a way to end this. A way to destroy Ms. Moor and her goons!” She had taken my mother from me, nearly killed me, and now had us on the run. It needed to stop. She needed to be stopped before she hurt me, or my friends, or some other innocent shifter.
“Let me examine your injuries.” He knelt beside me, gently taking my swollen purpling ankle in his hands.
It was sore to the touch, but I was glad he was here with me. If not for him, I’d be with Ms. Moor and her thugs, or dead. “You know, I’ve saved you twice now.” I hissed out a breath when his fingers probed my ankle. “Looks like I might put you out of a job as protector.”
His eyes didn’t have the merriment I expected, but his expression made me swallow. “No. I will protect you with my last breath, and even struggle against the world of the dead to know you are safe.” He slowly laid my ankle on the grass. Then his eyes met mine as he gestured to my shirt. “May I?”
I nodded, biting my lip. Gingerly, he lifted my shirt over the broken ribs. My bra was shaped like a sports bra, so any ooglers wouldn’t call the cops on me about indecent exposure.
Amar’s fingers were warm and softly probing. When I hissed out a breath, he glanced up at me. Our faces were only inches apart. My breath quickened and so did his as we stared at each other. The pain of my injuries dulled as he tucked both his hands around my head, pulling me gently to his mouth. His lips opened and his tongue caressed mine with a desperation I matched.
With his kiss, the pain subsided some, but I leaned into his embrace and then gasped when the fiery pain seared my side again.
“We must get you healed.” He ran his thumb across my bottom lip.
“Like a doctor?” I had no ID and no money. Worse, my clothes were days old. “No. Hospitals would ask too many questions. Let’s just wait for dark, then we’ll try my dad’s boat.” I tugged my shirt back on, wincing from the pain.
His smile made my heart thump wildly in my chest. Here was this gorgeous guy with dark curls who looked better than any underwear model I’d ever seen, and could fly, looking at me like I was chocolate wrapped in a bow.
“You’re an octopus shifter, remember. Heal yourself.” He looked at me expectantly.
But the last time I’d healed myself was when he’d hacked off my pinky finger. It was instinctive. I didn’t know how to do it again. My octopus and fox talents seemed built on necessity, urgency, and here there was none.
“I-I can’t.” My teeth clamped down as I move
d into a more comfortable position.
“Then we must find a healer.”
“I told you, doctors—”
“No. A shifter healer—a medicine man or woman.” He ran a hand through his dark hair.
“I don’t think there are many of those around.”
He shrugged. “We can’t stay here forever, and we need you fixed.” Holding out his hand, he waited for me. “Besides, if they are talented enough, as they were in my time, they might be able to help us find your mother—and where’s Jacqui?”
I grasped his hand and my breath hitched as he helped me stand. “She escaped when you were unconscious. I don’t know where she is now, but I asked her to somehow get my dad out of jail before we parted ways.” Could this healer locate my mother? Hope filled me.
“First, we get you healed, then we look for Jacqui, rescue your dad, and together find your mom.”
I nodded, slipping back into his embrace so we could fly. “Any idea where we can find one of these healers? They aren’t exactly listed in the phone book.” Pain radiated as I breathed, but if I took shallow enough breathes, it was only a dull ache.
When he shook his head, his stubble caught on my hair. He eased two fingers under my chin and lifted my face until I looked into his eyes. “One way or another, we will reunite with your friend and parents. Tell me if you tire; the last healer I knew is many days journey from here and, if she is still alive, she will not be happy to see me again.”
“Why? What did you do?” My voice was lost as his wings unfurled and we soared through the air. The jolt made me grind my teeth.
“She’s the one who imprisoned me in the gargoyle statue.”
—To be continued—