Born At Midnight

by C. C. Hunter

Chapter Thirty-seven

  Kylie shot behind the chair, thinking about using it as a weapon, but when she looked up, the lion had backed up. He poked his face out the bedroom door as if something out there had caught his attention.

  Then Kylie heard it, the kitten. The lion took a step out of the bedroom. She could go slam the door, push the bed against the wal . And listen as the animal ate her kitten alive.

  "No!" She rocked the chair back and forth to get the lion's attention. "Come here, you ugly foul-smel ing monster. "

  The lion backed up, growled, exposing his teeth, and shook his mane at her.

  For some reason, she thought about the soldier and his choice to die as he went back to save the woman. I'm not going to die. I'm not going to die.

  "Daniel, please come back," she cal ed out, not wanting to be alone.

  The cold brushed over her skin again. "Holiday is getting help. "

  The lion came closer to the chair. New tears fil ed her eyes. "Don't leave me again, okay?" she begged.

  "I won't," he said. "I never wanted to. "

  "Kylie?" Holiday yel ed out from the living room.

  The lion charged at the door. "Don't come in," Kylie screamed, and shook the chair to keep the beast's attention in case Holiday didn't hear her. Kylie heard retreating footsteps. "Burnett is on his way to get a sedative gun," Holiday cal ed. "He's just a few minutes away. Are you safe?"

  Safe? She had a lion in her bedroom. But if Burnett was on the way, maybe . . . Kylie started to answer when she heard more voices.

  "No," Holiday said.

  "No what?" Kylie asked.

  "It's too dangerous," Holiday said as if talking to someone else.

  Footsteps sounded from the cabin's living room. The lion growled. Derek appeared in the doorway. His soft green eyes met hers, and then shifted to the lion. Fear flickered in his eyes, and she felt the same fear as he did.

  The thought she might have to watch the lion attack Derek sent her heart bouncing against her ribcage. "Leave, Derek," Kylie said, trying to sound calm even though she was a breath from screaming. "Listen to Holiday. "

  "I can do this," he said in a confident voice. "I have the gift, remember?"

  Derek took a step into the room. The lion shook his mane and growled.

  Derek didn't move. He stared at the beast. Then he started unbuttoning his shirt.

  "What are you doing?" she asked, and while the idea of seeing him without his shirt tempted her, this was so not the time.

  "He doesn't like how I smel . "

  "Then for God's sake keep it on so he doesn't eat you. "

  "It's okay. " Derek tossed his shirt back into the living room. He looked even better than she imagined. Then, holding his palms out, he took another step forward. The lion roared, but didn't charge.

  Derek took another step. This time, the lion lunged for him, almost taking Derek's arm in his mouth.

  "No. " Kylie started rocking the chair to get the animal's attention.

  "Stop that," Derek ordered.

  "It stops him from getting you. "

  "Kylie, you're making him mad. Trust me, okay? Stop!"

  The firmness in his voice got her attention. Soldier Dude stood silent in the corner, so she couldn't stop shivering.

  "I'm going to come over to you," Derek said. "I want you stand behind me. Then we're moving out the door. You go through first and I'l shut it. You understand?"

  Almost as if the lion knew Derek's plan, he growled and faced Derek, but backed up closer to Kylie. Each step Derek took, the lion took another closer to Kylie.

  A urine smel fil ed Kylie's nose. The big cat's backside hit the chair and knocked Kylie against the wal . When she refocused, she saw Derek now stood inches from the lion. So close that the beast's mane brushed up against his bare abdomen. Derek's muscles tightened and his upper body appeared hard, almost chiseled.

  "Now ease out from behind the chair, Kylie," Derek said.

  "Do as he says," Daniel said, speaking up.

  Kylie moved her foot and the lion slammed his head into Derek, and almost knocked him down. Derek rebounded. "Slowly, Kylie," he said, as if he didn't realize the lion could open his mouth and use him for a chew toy. "Slow and easy. "

  She inched out, afraid to even breathe, and then Derek caught her arm and eased her behind him. She placed her hands on his bare sides. The palms of her hands pressed against his warm skin.

  "That's good. Now we're going to do baby steps back until we're out the door. You're doing good. Keep going. "

  Kylie felt the door's threshold against her heel. Derek reached around to the left for the doorknob, and the lion lunged and swatted his claws at Derek.

  Derek's hiss fil ed Kylie's ears, and she knew the beast's claws had ripped into his skin. "You okay?" she asked. He didn't answer, just reached again for the knob. The lion roared, but didn't charge this time. Kylie continued to move backward into the living room as Derek slowly fol owed. As he closed the door, Kylie saw Daniel smile.

  "You did it. " Holiday rushed inside the cabin. Kylie stood there, hugging herself, her insides trembling, and feeling sick to her stomach.

  "Help me move the sofa to the door in case he decides to charge it," Derek said.

  As Derek and Holiday moved the sofa against the door, Kylie noticed blood dripping down his hard abdomen.

  "You're . . . hurt. " Her teeth chattered so hard she could barely talk. She pointed at him and felt a cold sweat drip from her forehead.

  "Just scratched," he assured her.

  She took the steps separating them and fel against him. She didn't care that she was getting blood al over her favorite nightshirt, either. She dropped her face against the warm wal of skin and muscle and continued to shake.

  He wrapped his arms around her. Holiday moved in and placed a hand on her back.

  Kylie didn't know which one of the fairies were doing it, or if it was both-she honestly didn't care-but the thousands of tiny pinpricks of panic started to fade. She felt safe and that was al that mattered.

  She buried her face deeper into Derek's naked shoulder, loving how he smel ed, how it felt to be this close to him.

  "Put Kylie down in one of the other bedrooms," Holiday said.

  "No. I'm fine. " Kylie raised her head, but didn't want to leave the comfort of Derek's arms. She needed this for just a little longer. He was so warm and she was so . . . cold.

  Kylie saw Daniel standing behind Holiday. He smiled at her and then faded. "Thank you," Kylie said, hoping he heard her.

  "You're welcome," Derek answered.

  Kylie looked back to offer Derek his own verbal gratitude, but a loud whack stopped her. The cabin door slammed open so hard it sounded like it had cracked. Burnett came barging into the cabin, his eyes glowed red, and he held a big rifle in his hands.

  "You promised me that you wouldn't come up here," he seethed at Holiday.

  "I changed my mind," she said, not sounding at al remorseful.

  The lion roared on the other side of the door and Burnett roared with him. "I'l take care of that first, and then I'l deal with you. "

  "Yeah, wel , good luck with that. " Holiday smirked.

  Burnett started toward the door. "Wait. " Derek set Kylie back. "Let me calm him down so he won't think you are kil ing him. "

  At first Burnett appeared doubtful, but then Holiday nodded. "Fine," Burnett said.

  Kylie couldn't say she'd offer the beast that much courtesy, but deep down, she admired Derek for doing it. The two men eased the sofa away from the door. Burnett pressed his ear to the door and then said, "He's on the other side of the room. " Then he reached for the knob.

  "Be careful," Kylie said.

  Derek looked back at her and smiled. "Piece of cake. "
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  "You don't have to stay here," Kylie told Holiday, who pul ed a chair beside Kylie's bed about an hour later. The camp leader had personal y cleaned Kylie's room to remove the stench of the animal.

  Holiday leaned in and whispered, "It's this or I'l get my ass chewed out by Mr. Big Bad and Handsome. So just pretend like you need me until he leaves. Now that they've taken the lion, I don't think he'l hang around longer than a few more minutes. " Sitting back in her chair, she bit down on her lip. "Boy, am I glad Derek was around. "

  Something occurred to Kylie. "Couldn't one of the witches have stopped this?"

  "If I could have found them," she said. "They were al out on a hike with Sky. I knew Burnett had just left here to go back to the wildlife park, so I cal ed him. "

  "What was he doing at the wildlife park?" Kylie asked. Then she said, "What's going on, Holiday? How did the lion get here? Who put it in my room? And don't tel me that it's your job to worry, either. "

  It didn't appear as if Holiday was going to answer. Her expression turned grim, and she dropped her hands into her lap. "You're going to find out tomorrow, anyway. "

  "Find what out?"

  "Someone is raiding the wildlife park. Kil ing the very animals the park is trying to save. Most of the animals kil ed have been on the endangered species list. Of course, the government didn't waste any time blaming us, either. Any strange crime happens anywhere and someone is pointing to the supernaturals. "

  "They think one of us is doing it?" Kylie asked.

  Holiday bit down on her lip. "Not only do they believe it, but as of this afternoon they have proof. At least they think they do. "

  "So someone here is doing this?" Kylie asked.

  "They found a blood trail leading back to our camp. "

  "But the lion wasn't kil ed," Kylie said.

  "No, but the fact that it was here just makes things worse. Someone had to help that animal escape. "

  "And someone put it in my room," Kylie said.

  "That or it could just be a coincidence," Holiday said. "He could have wandered into any cabin. "

  "But the cabin door was closed," Kylie said.

  "Maybe one of you left it opened. Then he might have hit it and shut himself in. "

  "Or someone put him here," Kylie said.

  Holiday reached out to touch her again, to calm her, and Kylie held up her hand. "I'm okay. "

  Fal ing deeper into her pil ow, Kylie stared up at the ceiling. "Do they blame Lucas for this?"

  Holiday was quiet for a moment. "He's being looked at as a possible suspect. "

  "I don't believe it," Kylie said. "He's not like that. "

  "I know, but . . . I can't convince them of that. Especial y since Fredericka took off this afternoon. "

  "She did?" Kylie watched Holiday nod, and she felt the tiniest bit of jealousy. "Do you think she's with Lucas?"

  "Knowing her, yes. "

  Kylie clutched her hands together, accepting she had to get past Lucas, but stil refusing to believe he was guilty. "Are they going to try to shut down the camp?"

  Holiday's frown deepened. "If they can't get to the bottom of this, they'l try. I'l fight it with every ounce of fairy dust I have in me, but . . . it may take more than me. "

  Silence fil ed the room and then Holiday said, "Burnett's going to hold a meeting tomorrow and probably interrogate everyone. I wish I could stop him, but damn it, with al the evidence, I can't even argue with him that it's not one of us. But throwing accusations around in a group of adolescent supernaturals is sure to backfire. "

  "Do you real y believe someone here is doing it?"

  "Yeah. Either that or someone is trying awful y hard to make it look like we're doing it. "

  The door to Kylie's bedroom opened and Burnett stuck his head in. "Are you going back up to the office?"

  Holiday's expression changed to fake concern. She rested a hand on Kylie's shoulder. "I'm afraid she needs me. We'l talk tomorrow. "

  Burnett wasn't fooled, that was apparent by his expression, but he didn't argue, either. Wel , as long as one didn't cal slamming the door an argument.

  "Jerk," Holiday muttered.

  "I can hear you," he retorted from the other side of the wal .

  Holiday frowned. "I swear, he's this close to me siccing a death angel on his ass. " And she didn't try to say that quietly, either.

  "I thought you didn't know if they real y existed," Kylie whispered after a few minutes. If she'd thought they existed, she would have asked Daniel Brighten, the soldier, to go find one. Then she recal ed what Holiday had said about al ghosts being angels. For sure, Daniel had been a big part of what saved Kylie.

  She leaned close. "Al I have to do is threaten and even big bad vampires usual y piss in their pants. "

  They both laughed and then Kylie said, "He saved me, didn't he?"

  "Derek?" Holiday asked. "Yeah, I would say he did. "

  "No. I mean, Derek did save me, but it was the ghost who told you, right?"

  "Sort of," she said. "Because he's attached to you, he can't real y communicate with me. But he found someone who could. " Holiday reached down and squeezed Kylie's hand. "Nana said to tel you she loves you. But she wished you wouldn't have let them bury her wearing that purple lipstick. "

  Kylie got tears in her eyes and laughed at the same time. After a few minutes, she said, "I final y did it. "

  "Did what?"

  "I saw into someone's mind. " Kylie almost told her it was the ghost's mind that she'd been able to see, but for some reason she wasn't ready to talk about that. It was as if she needed to digest it al first. There were a lot of things she needed to digest. Holiday grinned. "Welcome to our world, girl. "

  Kylie's smile was weak, but it was real. "Does that definitely mean . . . that I'm one of you guys?"

  "Yup. " Holiday brushed a strand of hair from Kylie's cheek.

  "When you saw Nana, did you check if she had been a supernatural?"

  "I did. She was human. " Holiday gave Kylie's hand a squeeze. "How do you feel about this new development?"

  Kylie let out a deep breath. "A little scared. A little relieved. Now I just want to figure out what I am. "

  "You wil , Kylie. The answer is here. It always is. "