by N. R. Larry
“Okay,” I said in a soft voice, inching closer to him.
He drew back from him like I was fire about to burn him. I stopped, my arms still stretched out toward him.
He held up a hand, a warning to stay put. “Don’t come near me. I don’t want to do anything stupid.”
I nodded and held my hands up. “If I can touch you, I can calm down the animal inside you. It’ll put you at ease.”
His expression changed, pupils dilated. I hadn’t seen that look from a man in a long time, but there was no mistaking it. “If you touch me,” he began in a rough voice. “I’m going to want to touch you back.”
Every inch of skin I owned scorched under his words. I gulped and nodded. Then I took off my backpack, took out a bundle of lavender. I held it out to him, trying to calm down my own breathing.
“What’s that?” he asked in an almost angry voice.
“Chew on it. It’ll calm your nerves.”
He shook his head. “No, my people might need whatever you have on you. We’re not wasting it on me.” He closed his eyes and took a few breaths. “Sorry. I’ll be fine once I can get some fresh air in my lungs.”
I nodded. “Let’s not waste any more time, then.” I reached around my neck and started to remove my crystal.
“Whoa. What are you doing there?”
I froze. “Taking off my necklace.”
He shook his head. “Oh, hell no.”
I smiled. “Don’t worry. It’s more than removing the crystal. I have to make a conscious decision to let in that power.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“Now would be a good time to start trusting me.”
He smiled, even though his eyes were still wild. “You trust me?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Good point. Let’s both pretend, shall we?”
His jaw clenched and he stared at me for several seconds, Finally, he gave me a curt nod. I took off my necklace and moved toward him. As always, the room seemed to come to life in response to the action.
“I have to put my hands as close to you as I can. Otherwise, it won’t work,”
He inhaled sharply. “God, help me.”
Ignoring him as best as I could, I stepped closer and closer, until we were almost touching. His energy was contagious. I could almost feel what he felt, an overwhelming need to touch him. I steadied my breath and reached out toward him with shaking hands. His body tensed up.
So did mine.
My hands hovered inches away from his well-defined arms. I was so dizzy, that for a moment, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to summon enough magic to leave the Underground.
I calmed my mind the best I could, and pictured Aubrey and the rest of my family here. I was afraid. I was lonely, but for some reason, Ty’s presence worked to calm me. I knew I wasn’t alone. I didn’t trust him, but I wasn’t alone.
“Tell me where you want to go. In your mind,” I whispered. “Picture it.”
Several seconds ticked by, and all that filled my mind was blackness. Images flashed through my head, so fast I couldn’t focus on any of them. The rush of pictures finally settled on a peaceful, desert scene. The moon was high in the sky and reflected down on reddish, brown sand. Rocks and cacti were scattered throughout the land, and makeshift houses made of everything from thick tarps to cheap wood popped up in almost every empty space.
This was where Ty called home.
For some reason, I recognized it. It was an old, abandoned camp at the edge of downtown Birmingham. The landscape was in direct contrast to the futuristic city and was used as a dumping ground for supernaturals.
I focused on his home, and the magic rushed through both of us, balling us up and propelling us out of the Underground.
Seconds later, I was rolling through the sand. I climbed onto my hands and knees and vomited all the bile from my stomach. Beside me, Ty dry heaved. Then the sound of bones breaking made me wince.
As I wiped my mouth, I turned to him.
He was already shifting.
He gestured with is head to a small, stone house fifty feet away. The camp was dead, but a dim light flickered in the window of that small house. “Go there, and stay put until I get back.”
Panic surged through me. “You’re leaving?”
Another one of his bones snapped and I looked away.
“I have to shift,” he muttered. “I’ll make it quick.”
I nodded, and when I turned, he was already that graceful, black panther. He turned those yellow eyes away from me and then zipped off into the distance.
Chapter 7
I cowered in the corner of Ty’s home, afraid to touch anything.
I hadn’t been around surface men in a while, and I’ve never really spent much time around shifter men, but Gaia help me, it was like a nasty bomb exploded inside his place.
Clothing and bits of food were everywhere. Not only that, nothing seemed to be where it logically should go. The bed, which was piled with weapons and clothing, was almost next to the stove, which was piled high with what looked like old manuscripts.
I looked around for the bathroom, only to find that it was in a separate shack out back. At least that was clean. Going back inside, I started to tidy up. I raised my hand and trash started to form in piles all over the room. I directed them to the large, garbage pit that had been dug into the ground outside. I was finishing up with another pile when a low growl echoed behind me. The ground rumbled, and my stomach tightened in reaction to it.
Slowly, I turned around and found myself facing a green-eyed girl with high cheekbones and a murderous expression on her face. My muscles tightened as the ground shook again. Several panthers sauntered into the space behind her, baring their teeth and clawing at the dirt.
Green eyes scanned me up and down. “You look familiar.”
I glanced behind her, toward the horizon, where the sun was sinking and throwing pink light against the sky. Before I could reply, the girl pulled a wrinkled paper from the back pocket of her ripped and faded jeans. My gaze went to it. It was a beige print out with my face on it.
A wanted poster. The old-school kind that the Party used to plaster to the sides of buildings before they started sending such notices to people's home tablets. There was a large reward printed on it. Freedom papers to anyone that turned me over to the Party.
I held my hands up. The panthers inched forward, saliva dripping from their jowls. “I’m here with Ty.”
She narrowed her eyes and stepped toward me. Magic rippled across my skin. A defensive reaction. The girl sniffed me and gritted her teeth. Her eyes flashed when her gaze met mine again. “I smell him all over you.” It almost came out like a hiss.
I backed away, instincts telling me to keep my mouth shut. She started to circle me. I could feel my magic at the edge of my fingers, ready to lash out if I needed it. My crystal felt heavier around my neck.
“So, Ty thought he’d bring a witch into our camp. A wanted witch, and I’d be okay with it.”
My eyes narrowed. “I guess that’s something for you to take up with him.”
She gave me a haughty smile. “Kind of mouthy for someone in your position, aren’t you?”
I stared at her, and then shook my head. “You don’t want to do this.”
The panthers were circling with her now. I kept my gaze on them, readying myself for a probable attack.
She snorted a laugh as she came to a stop in front of me. “Is that a threat?”
I sighed, and then reached out for her feelings, preparing myself to try to reason with her, when she gazed past me. The panthers jerked their heads left. I followed their movement with my gaze.
There he was, once again shirtless, carrying what looked like a wild animal over his right shoulder. There was a trail of blood from the side of his neck that led all way down to the middle of his navel.
The sinking sun reflected off the sweat coating his body. My mouth watered. I cleared my throat an
d averted my gaze to the ground. The green eyed girl scoffed. “I can hear your heart pounding from over here.”
I shot my gaze up, annoyed. “And I can feel you trying to secure your territory from here,” I snarled. “And I’m not interested, in him, or your little girl insecurities.”
Her eyes flashed and she jerked toward me. I didn’t even flinch. The panthers growled, and seconds later Ty came to a stop beside us.
“Adrian,” he grunted at her, dropping a wild boar at her feet. “Have that cooked up, please.”
Her gaze cut to him, but he was paying little to no attention to her.
“This is Lawrence.” He reached out and snatched the wanted poster from her hands, and crushed it into a ball. “She’s with me.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You bring a wanted witch into our camp, and then have the nerve to give me orders?”
He stared at her.
She laughed. “Who the hell do you think you are?”
He smiled a dangerous smile full of amusement. “Are you joking?”
She jutted her dimpled chin into the air and said nothing.
“Have the damned boar cooked. Our people need to eat.” He pointed at me. “Get your stuff and come with me.”
I planted my hands on his hips. This time when he smiled, it was all amusement. “Please?” he amended.
I nodded, shot Adrian one last look, and then ducked back into his slightly cleaner stone house. I grabbed my bag and followed him through the coming dusk. “Where are we going?” I asked, stepping over a pile of rocks.
He glanced sidelong at me. “Sorry about earlier.” His voice was rough.
I raised an eyebrow.
He cleared his throat. “You know, down there. In the Underground, or whatever.”
I shrugged. “I get it.”
He chuckled. “I don’t think you do.”
I glanced down and bit my lip. “I kind of read your feelings. It makes sense, that you get like that when you haven’t shifted. It’s almost like denying nature. It never ends well.”
He came to a stop in front of a house made of rotting wood and a thick, green tarp. Lifting an eyebrow, he asked, “You read my feelings?”
Having him repeat it made me realize how it sounded. I opened my mouth and shut it again. “I know, I’m sorry.” I rubbed my hands together. “I was confused and I needed to understand.”
He stared at me for several seconds, as if deciding how he felt about what I’d told him. Finally, he cut his gaze toward the door. “I need your help.”
I breathed easier. “With what?”
“You still have those herbs?” he asked, ignoring my question while knocking on the door.
I nodded.
“Good.”
Before I could question him more, a wooden panel slid to the side and out walked a hunched over figure with a walking stick and silver hair that glistened in the grayish moonlight. She had eyes the color of thick, white clouds, but her gaze seemed sharp and accurate.
“Ty-Von!” Her smile was so bright I could make it out, despite the fact that it grew darker by the second. She hobbled out toward him and wrapped her wrinkled arms around him.
“Hey, Mrs. Sophie,” he said in a surprisingly tender voice. “I brought someone special for you to meet.” He gestured toward me. “This is Lawrence.”
My cheeks heated at the way he introduced me. Her cloudy gaze took me in. “Ah,” she said, inching over toward me by digging her walking stick into the ground. She was so short I had to look down as she peered up at me. She turned her head to the side and inhaled the air. “A witch,” she whispered, meeting my gaze again. She gave an exaggerated shudder. “And a powerful one at that.” She laughed and then broke into a moist cough.
Ty frowned. “Have you been smoking that crap again?” He pushed past her into the house. There was the sound of water running, and then he returned with a Styrofoam cup. My eyes widened because I hadn’t ever seen actual Styrofoam. He handed her the cup and she drank it, drawing a gasp from me.
They both looked at me.
“Sorry,” I said, teetering between my feet. I bit down on my lip. “You didn’t purify it.”
They both laughed, and my cheeks grew even hotter. Mrs. Sophie drained the rest of the water, her eyes dancing in amusement. When she was finished, she asked, “You buy everything the Party has on sale, girl?”
I frowned, and was about to reply when Ty said, “How is she?”
Mrs. Sophie crushed the cup in her gnarled hand and shook her head.
“Do you mind if Lawrence takes a look at her?”
Mrs. Sophie scanned me up and down, and then turned to Ty. “Of course not.”
Ty started to say something, but she held up a hand, cutting him off. “On the condition that you don’t join us.”
He frowned. “But—”
She shook her head. “That’s the condition.” She placed both her hands on the tip of her walking stick. “And don’t even try pulling that alpha crap on me.”
He sighed, and glanced between us, before finally nodding. “Fine.” He narrowed his eyes at me. “I’ll be at my place. Come find me when you’ve finished?”
I nodded, and then he turned and stalked away.
Mrs. Sophie smiled at me, it was a young, bright smile that worked to intimidate me for some reason. “Well, come on in, girl.”
I glanced once again at Ty’s retreating back, and then followed Mrs. Sophie inside. She removed the black cloak she’d had on, and tossed it on an old coat hanger situated near the door. I was relieved to find that unlike Ty’s home, her place was clean and orderly. I wanted to look at everything at once.
There were all kinds of strange headdresses, stones, books, and knives stored behind glass cases all over the room. It was decorated with a new age feel, something that hadn’t been allowed since before the Party took over. Everything was green, browns, and maroons. There was a colorful throw that covered and old couch in the living room.
I pointed at an old, boxy television. “Does that work?”
She laughed. “Girl, we haven’t gotten cable in these parts in years.” She walked into the kitchen and opened a refrigerator.
I followed. “Where did all this stuff come from?”
She had been filling another cup, this one plastic, up at the sink, when she turned to me. “Mostly from the riots that broke out after the Party came to power,” she said. “Now the pack scavenges for most of what we have.” She tossed me another bright smile. “Like land pirates, they are.”
I laughed. “The pack?”
“You do know you’re among shifters, don’t you, girl?”
“Yes, but… They aren’t a pack, are they?” I sat down at a table inside the kitchen without being invited. “Panthers are solitary animals.”
She stared at me for a few seconds and then broke out into that rough laughter. After placing a cup of water and a corner of hard bread in front of me, she sat down. “That they are, girl. But people are pack animals, aren’t they?”
I considered this and then nodded. “Yeah, I guess they are.”
“Hungry?”
My gaze cut to the water and bread, and my stomach growled, giving me away. Still, I shook my head. “No, thanks.”
Her smile was hard as she pointed at the bread. “Eat it, girl.” The light expression left her face, to be replaced with something as hard as her point.
I leaned back into my chair, eyeing the water.
She laughed. “Don’t be stupid, girl.”
I raised my gaze to meet hers again.
“Ty-Von wants me to let you meet with someone very special to all of us.” She leaned across the table and locked me down with her stare. “I’m not dealing with some slave to the Party. So, you eat that bread. You drink that water. Understood?”
Her words brought anger bubbling up to my surface. “Slave?” I blinked. “I’m not anyone’s slave.” I held back a glare. After all, my mo
ther taught me to respect my elders. “I was once part of the resistance,” I finished, squaring my shoulders.
She only smiled. “And where is that resistance now?”
I blinked at her.
She pointed. “I can see you, girl. You’ve been beaten down. You’re scared.”
“I am not—”
She raised a hand, and I pressed my lips together, seething. Once again, she pointed at the bread and water. “The story goes, a group of Purists hell-bent on liberating their people from the dangers of magical people, poisoned the water supply. Those deemed pure enough were given purification tablets so they could safely drink the water. Of course, those magical people were not given any. And they got inexplicably sick before passing on.”
I nodded. “I know the story.”
She laughed and held up her hands. “I haven’t shifted in a good decade. The old bones won’t take it, but do I look dead to you?”
I gulped and eyed the water.
“Yeah, as long as they’re in your head you don’t belong here.” She smiled. “Let me tell you something about those purification tablets.” She leaned forward. “They’re bullshit.” She leaned back and rested her hands on top of her walking stick again. “The Party rounded up those witches and burned them in their camps. The water was never touched. My people have been drinking it for years.”
I blinked again. “How did you know it was okay?”
Her white gaze narrowed slightly. “Shifters have a knack for sorting out the BS from the truth, girl.” She nodded at the cup. “ I won’t be asking you again.”
I reached for the cup with a trembling hand. I could feel the weight of Mrs. Sophie’s stare on me. Droplets of water splashed out as I brought it to my mouth. I squeezed my eyes shut as I brought the rim to my lips. Taking a few deep breaths, I downed it in one gulp. Then I slammed the cup down on the table and gripped the edges of my chair, waiting to explode into some awful witch-fire.
After a few seconds, Mrs. Sophie broke into a symphony of hacking laughter. I opened one eye and frowned at her. Her face was red, and her body was shaking with amusement. I licked my lips and tried to frown, but then I realized how ridiculous I must look to someone like her, and I started to laugh too.
