by Weil, J. L.
I slumped against his chest, giving him the bulk of my rundown and battered body.
Chase.
He turned me around to face him, a finger on his lips signaling for me to keep quiet. I nodded in understanding. Feelings of safety, security, and protection rushed through me. His eyes lit up like the moon against the black night. They ran over my dirt-smeared face, his mouth tightened and the pulse at his neck throbbed.
His inspection was cut short by an ear piercing screech vibrating through the air in threatening frustration. I didn’t think about what I did, this was not the time for shame or embarrassment, so of course I threw myself into his arms with a whimper. Pulling me to his chest, he shielded me against the harrowing sound, his scent wrapping around me.
“You’re safe,” he whispered close to my ear. “I promise. Nothing will harm you.”
I nodded my head against his secure embrace, doing everything I could to forget the stinging bite on my shoulder.
“Can you walk?” he gently asked.
I gave a slight nod.
“The road is close. Come on, we need to get you to my car,” he instructed, taking charge.
The knowledge that his car was near gave me the push I needed. With his arms holding me up, he led us through the winding trees. Those things were still out there hunting us. Every now and then they would make a short bark. When we broke across the tree line, relief like nothing I’d ever experienced before, poured over me.
“Shit,” he muttered.
Chapter 8
“Don’t run,” he whispered beside me.
Easier said than done, every fiber of my being was screaming for me to run. I shut my eyes as a sickening growl thundered in front of Chase’s car. It was followed by a deep grumbling from Chase’s chest, I could feel the vibrations under my fingers.
I risked a glance at him. He looked downright ominous and dominant, like an alpha, keeping with the whole dog theme. His flaming eyes had flecks of topaz that grew, overpowering the silver. The rumbling was low in his chest, and the bands of his arms were bunched for attack.
“Did you…did you just growl at them?” I asked, my voice quivering.
“Angel. Get in the car now!”
That was totally a growl. “But you just said–” I countered.
“Are you really going to argue with me right now?” he shot back, pushing me toward the car.
He had a point. “What about –”
The haste in his voice caught my attention. “Run!” he thundered right before the topaz took over completely like fireballs, and the mad hound ambushed.
Finally it sunk in, and I ran toward his car. Fumbling with the handle, my dirt covered nails scratched against the chrome. Once I was in the car and the door was secure, I heard the crack of bones. Oh. My. God. Please don’t let that be Chase with a snapped neck.
Sitting on the edge of the seat, I waited. One minute. Two minutes. Five minutes. With each passing minute dread pitted in my belly, making me want to puke. The heat from my crazy rapid breathing began to fog the windows. I hastily brushed away the haze with my hand.
At last, the driver door swung open, nearly giving me a heart attack.
He was alive. A wave of faintness struck me.
Shaking, my teeth chattered and the dizziness and queasiness increased. It felt like I had just gotten off the worst tilt-a-whirl ride of my life. I knew I only had seconds before I would hit the floor of his car like a fallen tree.
Chase.
That was my last thought before I was consumed with blackness.
~*~*~*~
“Angel.”
My name whispered in the back of my mind, floating in a fog. When I opened my eyes, I was gazing at the stars and crickets chirped in the fields. The air had cooled considerably. A breeze caressed my face and teased my hair. Sluggishly the events started trickling in my memory as my cheek rubbed along something soft, like cotton. I was secured up against something warm and solid.
A heart beat under my ear, steady and strong. It took only a nanosecond for me to figure out it was Chase. His arm curved around me and rested comfortably on my hip. The thumb of his hand was tucked into the side of my tattered jeans, searing my flesh. He leaned causally against the porch post, my head on his shoulder, and my entire body was supported by his.
I was afraid to move.
The torment of my injuries also returned painstakingly, along with the awareness of every inch of his body. What he made me feel was so foreign. I didn’t know what I was feeling, or if what I was feeling was anything more than my overactive imagination. Nothing had prepared me for this kind of intensity.
His thumb moved, skirting the hem of my jeans, and I sucked in a gulp of air. I felt hot and feverish. Nibbling on my lip, I tried everything to not think of the hard body molded to me in so many intimate ways.
He stopped breathing.
Wincing, I lifted my head off his shoulder and looked up into his face. I swear I could lose myself in the pools of his silver eyes. They were crystalline metal now and clear of any alien glow or color mutation. Sometimes they reminded me of the end of a kaleidoscope.
Was it possible to have a dark knight in shining armor?
His eyes made my heart skip. There was so much going on inside them, and yet, I couldn’t get a read on him. Shifting in his arms, I put some much needed breathing room between us. He hissed.
I looked down at his arm and there was a wrap soaked with blood. Concern instantly swept through me. “You’re hurt.”
“It’s nothing.”
“That does not look like nothing.” The bandage was more red than white.
“Trust me, I’m fine. I heal fast anyway. It will be gone in no time.” He said like it was no big deal.
Yeah, okay superman. Just like a guy to brush off his injuries.
Remembering that we were on the porch, I asked, “Why are we outside?” I wrapped my arms around myself.
“Your door was locked,” he stated.
“Oh.”
“You know this isn’t the big city. No one locks their doors.”
“Some habits die hard.” Did I also need to mention that I was just hunted down by some wild, freak of nature?
“How are you?” His fingers brushed over my chin tilting my face upward as he examined my face thoroughly.
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly, casting my eyes downward. Rubbing a hand over my newly bandaged shoulder, it didn’t look anywhere near as bad as his. I didn’t want to be a sissy, but it hurt.
There hadn’t been any time to process just what the blazers had happened. Memories of how close I’d come to being mangled into some kind of crazy-ass animal’s dinner branded my mind. But for the first time tonight I felt safe, with Chase nonetheless. Figures.
“Do you remember what happened?” His dark voice was pleasant and sincere for once.
“Mostly. What was that thing?” I asked.
He leaned his head back unfazed by the events of the evening. I couldn’t say the same. “Probably a rabid dog.”
That’s what I had originally thought too, until I had stared into its red eyes. “I’m not sure. Its eyes…I saw evil in its eyes,” I reluctantly admitted, afraid he would think I was nuts.
“I wouldn’t doubt it,” he mumbled.
I gave him a confused look.
“It was obviously very sick and demented.”
“Did – Did you kill it?” I ran a hand through my ratted, leaf strewn hair. Gawd, I must look atrocious.
He shrugged, as if killing an evil dog-like creatures was an everyday occurrence. “If I hadn’t, it would have tried to kill us.”
I knew what he said was true. It had bloodlust on its brain, and there was no saving a creature like that. The humane thing to do was to put it down. “You snapped its neck, didn’t you?” The crunching of bones, echoed in my head.
“Do you honestly want to know the gory details?” he asked frowning.
Point taken.
“There
is one thing I can’t piece together.” I scowled.
He raised that one brow of his, smirking.
“How did you find me?” I whispered. The burning question, it lingered in the air.
A bolt of lightning struck in the distance, lighting up the yard. Acting like a frightened ninny, I literally jumped into his lap. His arms caught me and steadied us at the same time keeping us from falling off the porch.
He lowered his head, resting his forehead against mine. Now I stopped breathing. Why did he keep doing this to me? I didn’t even like him.
Lie. My mind screamed.
Fine. He didn’t like me.
The heat lightning put on quite a show behind us, but my focus was only on Chase and his startling eyes. His hands shifted around me, bringing me closer against him, all the while never breaking eye contact. The smirk he had earlier was gone, replaced with a scowl of his own. I trailed my hands from the front of his chest to up around his neck, making our position more comfortable, nothing between us but the thin annoying barrier of material.
Searching my gaze, he angled his head, bringing his lips closer to mine. Holy hell, he was going to kiss me. So caught up in my own heady feelings I almost missed the eerie glow of his eyes a moment before he closed them. My mind told me to pull back, my body had entirely different plans however, as it leaned in, waiting impatiently.
Chase was trouble with a capital T.
I felt the moment his decision was made. His head fell back from me against the wooden column.
“Angel,” Lexi’s voice called out from the pitch black.
I found myself properly dumped on the porch in a suitable span. The jarring knocked the wind out of me, it happened so fast. I hadn’t even realized I’d been moved until my butt hit the floor, hard, and I landed with an oomph.
“Oh, Chase I didn’t see you,” Lexi said sweetly.
What were they, ninjas? Why is it I can never hear them until they have already scared the piss out of me.
“What are you guys doing?” she asked grinning, implying that she had a good idea what we were doing.
My cheeks painted crimson.
“Nothing for you to worry about,” Chase replied, not altogether thrilled to see his cousin.
“Are you sure, because from this view–” she was properly cut off.
“Don’t go there Lex,” he said in a don’t question me tone.
Wow, someone just went to douche in zero to sixty seconds.
A curious look passed over her expression.
Chase got to his feet and looked at me once before twisting towards Lexi. “You coming Lex?” he growled low.
She shook her blonde bouncing hair. “Not yet.”
“Lexi,” he warned.
“I just need ten minutes. Is that too much to ask for?” Her voice was sugary and hopeful.
“You know it is.” Gee. He was like sour patch kids, one minute he was sweet the next he was sour.
“It’s okay for you but not the rest of us? Please Chase, cut me some slack.” She pouted, puffing out her glossy lips. “I just want to see how she is doing.” Those turquoise eyes pleaded with him for some unexplainable understanding, which was so over my head.
“I’m not leaving you with her.” He stood feet planted, arms crossed, and seriously unhappy.
She smiled at him “Ah, now I understand.”
She did? ‘Cuz I sure as hell didn’t.
“Rest assured cousin, she’s safe from me. I promise and cross my heart.”
That sounded ridiculous coming from Lexi’s mouth. She couldn’t hurt a fly, but I was sure that I didn’t have the slightest idea what was really going on.
His eyes softened, like he found it difficult to deny her anything. I guess that might be the perks of being the only girl in a house overfilled with testosterone. A look passed between them, and his shoulders relaxed.
“Fine, but hurry,” he conceded.
She gave him a winning smile, perfect pearly teeth and all.
I glowered at his back as he walked across the lawn.
“Did you guys –” Lexi sprung on me the second he was out of earshot.
I cut her off before that sentence went to an uncomfortable place. “No, nothing happened.”
“Hmm,” she murmured. “What did happen?”
I sighed at what a mess this day had turned into. “I got lost in the woods, he found me.”
She looked at me expectantly. “Were you rolling in the dirt when he found you?”
Crap. I totally forgot about how shiteous I looked. Running a hand over my head, a leaf fell from my hair. “Umm, I sort of got attacked by a…I don’t know what it was. A mutated mutt.”
A deep thoughtful expression ceased her brows. “Well that explains his mood. How is the shoulder?” She was at my side in an instant.
I nodded my head. “Okay, thanks to Chase.”
“He has his moments,” she said, frowning at my injury.
Like the moment where he almost kissed me. How was that for moments? “Far and few in-between,” I mumbled.
A strand of lightning strung across the sky above us. As I looked at her, I noticed that her eyes were glowing like a cat’s at night. Just like Chase’s. They reflected off the lightning. Maybe I had overtaxed my ability to see things straight, or I could just chuck it up to the end of an extremely screwed up night.
“I actually came to ask if you want to go shopping for school supplies and stuff tomorrow,” she invited.
The and stuff made me groan. Lexi could shop until you drop, and the reminder that school started in a few days was like having ice water thrown on my face. “I guess we better. Ignoring it isn’t going to make school start any later.” I was a procrastinator in the finest.
“Great.” She was the perkiest person on the earth at night. She seemed to come alive with vigor, where I just wanted to pass out. “You look really tired. I’ll let you get inside before we get poured on. See you tomorrow.”
I glanced once at the clouds, and then dragged my battered butt and pounding arm to bed.
Chapter 9
I popped a handful of purple and green skittles into my mouth, my favorite candy on the planet but only the purple, green, and occasionally red. The rest either got thrown away or given to my mom, who hated that I ate all the good ones.
This morning my arm was an annoying dull ache, but nothing unmanageable. I thought I was going to live. Not poisonous after all, thank my scrawny butt.
Lexi arrived at my doorstep in an ungodly hour. Luckily I liked ungodly hours, my mom…not so much.
“Did I wake your mom?” she asked in a whisper, her eyes beaming.
“I doubt it. She sleeps like the dead. Are you ready?” I prompted.
“Please, do you even need to ask? I’ll drive,” she squealed.
Lexi of course looked epic. Her car wasn’t any less awesome. Apparently her family had money.
“Nice car,” I commented a tad envious. How could I not be? She was drop-dead gorgeous, had fabulous clothes, and a kickass car. The only downside I could see with her life was that she lived with Chase. Or maybe that was pure heaven.
“Thanks. How is the arm?” she asked, her brows drawn together.
I shrugged. “I think I’ll live. How’s Chase?” My voice fluctuated over his name.
“It was just a scratch, you can barely tell it’s there,” she reassured. There was a strangeness to her voice, like she was uncomfortable talking about what had happened. She shifted in her seat, keeping her eyes on the road.
But I wasn’t convinced. Was it just me, or had there in fact been a whole lot of oozing red stuff? It made me a little woozy just thinking about it. Blood and I were not good friends.
I wanted to press her for more details, but something in her expression told me I wouldn’t get any more information from her.
There wasn’t a whole lot I needed in the form of supplies, just the basics like pens, notebooks, paper, and pencils. Lexi on the other hand, bought out the s
tore with a little swipe of a gold card. She claimed she needed décor for her locker. I hadn’t even known there was such a thing. You can decorate your locker?
It seemed like a waste of money, this coming from a girl who didn’t have a lot.
She picked up magnetic picture frames, a cutesy dry erase board, locker wallpaper equipped with shag carpet, and a tiny blinged out chandelier.
Holy cow. Seriously? Her locker was going to look better than my entire house. Even the supplies she purchased were puking pink, rhinestones, and glitter. She was worse than a bad drag queen.
I was starting to feel sort of drab and boring next to her. She didn’t do it on purpose, it was just who she was and regardless of her disregard for money, I couldn’t help but like her. Her flaming ball of energy was such a refreshing change to be around. It could be because I spent so much of my time alone in that Frankenstein house. I swear, she was hopped up on red bulls or something equally as energizing.
“I’m starved. Let’s get something to eat,” she suggested after we left like the tenth store.
Thank God ‘cuz I was dragging ass. Fuel and a place to plant my butt sounded like nirvana right now.
She took me to The Village Diner. The place was everything I thought about small town diners – a hole in the wall dive. It had the worn leather booths, a counter bar, a waitress named Sally, who snapped her gum, and everybody knew everybody.
But when we walked in, there was a unison hush that overcame the room, accompanied by whimpers and speculations. I hated to be the topic in a room.
“It might not look like much, but the food is amazing, and all the kids hang out here. You know after football games, before dances, the usual,” she informed, completely ignorant of the crowd of eyes on us.
I’m sure. Their choices were limited. Good thing I wasn’t into team spirit. School functions were at the very bottom of my list of things to do on a Friday night.
“It’s…quaint,” I replied, trying to avoid the peering eyes. And it did have a cozy feel after everyone stopped staring at the new girl – namely me.
We took a booth in the corner with a window seat. Almost immediately after sitting down, two of the tables next to us got up and left. They took their bill and went to the register. Some still had half uneaten food on their plates, and now it was just Lexi and I in our little corner.
