“Color me impressed.” He turned his head toward me as he spoke, and his lips nearly brushed against mine. We both froze for a second. Was he going to lean in just a bit more? God, I almost hoped he would. Only, I liked him way too much for that. Still, maybe…
He pulled back, and I hated him and loved him even more at the same time which was totally fucked up. I swallowed hard, heat filling my cheeks as I looked at the prop, the ceiling, my hands and pretty much anywhere else because all of those things were suddenly way more interesting than his lips.
Which, coincidentally, was how I saw the katana cut through the roof above my head in time for me to throw myself to the side.
8
As the sword sliced through the roof of the limousine like it was made of soft cheese, I rolled across the small space and came to my feet in a crouch by the far seats. The sword retracted in an instant, leaving no trace it had been there besides a two-inch slice in the metal, but even that was barely noticeable. The whole thing had happened soundlessly.
Justin hadn’t noticed the sword that had been about to plunge through my skull, and instead, had his eyes locked on me. Shock flashed across his features, probably based off of me rolling across the limo like a crazy person, but as I came to my feet, realization settled across his face.
“Annie, what’s going on?” he asked in a way that suggested he was assuming he’d missed something and that I wasn’t actually crazy. The amount of confidence in me was astounding since I barely trusted myself to keep myself fed and watered, but whatever.
“It came through the ceiling,” I cried, reaching for my phaser, heart pounding in my chest. I wasn’t sure what was up there, but something told me it wasn’t delivering Girl Scout cookies.
As my fingers touched the handle of the toy at my belt, Justin craned his head up toward the ceiling.
A pale, boney hand burst through and tore the metal back like the lid on a sardine can. Sunlight streamed into the limo, casting the creature in shadow. It was covered in rotting flesh, and had a ridiculously huge katana where one arm should have been and plate mail slung awkwardly over its chest, presumably to cover its heart. I wasn’t sure that was its weakness per se, but since it seemed like it had skipped the whole dead bit and gone straight to undead, I was guessing it was either head or heart. I wasn’t sure which, but that was fine. I could shoot both.
I pulled the phaser free and sent a small surge of power into the weapon as I brought it up. The phaser came to life in my hand as I thumbed it to kill and pulled the trigger.
The thing was fast. It leapt inside the car as I fired. My phaser fire whizzed by its head as it slammed one boney elbow into my chest. The blow rocked me backward, and I stumbled, falling on my butt. The smell of it up close made my stomach convulse and my lackluster breakfast surge up my throat. It was death and decay. It was a corpse left in the hot sun beneath a bag full of sewage. It almost made me wish I was still in the trailer with Loraline because that would have smelled better.
“Get away from her!” Justin cried, leaping through the air. He was half-shifted into his man-wolf form by the time he hit the ghoul, which was amazing in and of itself. I’d never seen someone shift that quickly. By the time they crashed against the wall of the limo, he was in the form of a hulking blond werewolf.
The contents of the wet bar shattered, spilling glass all around them as Justin threw a huge fist at the creature’s face. It dodged the attack effortlessly and smashed its forehead into Justin’s muzzle. The blow dropped the werewolf like a sack of potatoes, and as he collapsed to the ground, the ghoul turned its beady red eyes on me.
“So, you’re alive,” it said in a whistling, grating way that told me its vocal cords were half-rotted. Saliva dripped from between its teeth as it slowly rose and came toward me. “Interesting.”
Panic filled me. I didn’t know who or what the frak this ghoulish creature was, but one thing was suddenly crystal clear. This thing was being controlled by a necromancer because only a necromancer could animate the dead, and that necromancer knew exactly who I was. Frak. Double frak!
“Not really,” I said, firing the phaser at him. He dodged sideways, but that was fine because I wasn’t aiming at him. The blasts caught the door right behind him and blew it out on the street. As the door hit the road outside at over sixty miles per hour and tumbled through traffic, part of me wondered how no one had noticed the six-foot rotting corpse assaulting my limo, but I already knew why. The spells Justin had placed on the limo had made it so no one could see the ghoul.
The window barring the driver from us slowly rolled down as we swerved hard to the right amidst a blare of car horns, and the sudden trajectory change caused the sidestepping ghoul to lose its balance. As it stumbled, Justin came up, driving his shoulder into its side. His werewolf strength caused things inside the creature to snap, crackle, and pop as it tumbled out the door and into oncoming traffic. Its body bounced into the path of an oncoming semi with enough force for me to cringe. Then it was sucked beneath the big truck.
“Good riddance,” Justin said, his voice low and guttural. It was always weird when werewolves spoke because they had faces like wolves, and human words weren’t supposed to come out of mouths like that, but well, magic. Still, it was trippy.
“Why is a ghoul after us?” I asked, trying to keep my heart from beating its way out of my chest as I sucked in a breath.
“Hey, what’s going on back there?” the limo driver cried, slamming to a stop on the side of the road. “What have you done to my car?”
I heard his door open and knew he was coming around. As he poked his head in, his face flushed with anger, I set my phaser to stun and shot him in the face. The blue pulses dropped him in a way that would have been funny if I wasn’t still on an adrenaline high and on the verge of freaking the frak out.
“Well, that could be useful,” Justin said, smirking at me. “Where can I get one of those?”
He had already shifted back, and I hadn’t noticed it. Crazy. He’d even managed to keep his clothes from tearing to shreds. It was doubly impressive. Normally they tore to pieces when werewolves changed form, but some werewolves could make their clothes sort of vanish into the ether when they shifted. Admittedly, I didn’t really know how it worked, but only really powerful werewolves could do it.
“Um… you belong to a dying clan of mages who are hunted by werewolves. Then you hit up any toy store in America?” I snapped, even though I knew it was snotty. “Why is a ghoul after us?”
“I have no idea.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “But maybe that’s a question for later. We should get out of here.”
“How? You going to call an Uber or something?” I asked, peering out at the street. I still didn’t see the ghoul, but the driver of the truck was coming toward us and all of the traffic had stopped. I didn’t have nearly enough magic to stun that many people.
“We’re going to drive.” He hopped out the broken door and offered me his hand. “Come on.”
I came on because it wasn’t totally unreasonable. The smart thing to do was get the frak out of here and deal with questions later. After helping me down onto the street, he turned and made his way toward the driver’s side of the limo. I glanced at the downed chauffeur and sighed. Hopefully the street would be comfy. I had half a mind to lug him into the back, but given our luck, that’d probably end badly for him.
Justin slid into the driver’s seat, and as I approached the passenger door, he unlocked it and started the car. He was already fastening his seatbelt by the time I was sitting on the seat.
“I hope you have a plan,” I said, buckling myself in as the sound of “Achy Breaky Heart” came through the speakers. “Because I’m not sure what to do.”
“Fuck!” Justin cried, his eyes going wide as he stared in the rear view mirror. I spun in my seat, and agreed with him instantly. Three more ghouls were coming toward us on motorcycles. Their katana arms dragged across the asphalt and threw a flurry of sparks into the air
as they surged past the stopped cars and came right at us.
“Go!” I cried as Justin slammed his foot on the gas pedal, sending us whipping forward. We fishtailed as we came up onto the street in a squeal of tires. The smell of burnt rubber hit my nose as I tried to line up a shot with my phaser, but it was too hard to shoot through a limo at them. I needed a better vantage point.
“I don’t think we can lose them,” Justin said. His hands were locked on the wheel in a death grip. “Should I just try and find a nice open spot so we can throw down without people getting hurt?”
“Hold that thought,” I replied, unbuckling my seatbelt because I had a really stupid idea. I got to my knees and wiggled through the partitioning window. I dropped onto the seat beside the BFG and grabbed it. As I did, I sent a spark of power through the prop. I might not have been able to read it, but I could sure as frak animate it.
“Annie what are you doing?” Justin cried as the BFG roared to life in my hands.
“Catchy one liner!” I cried as I stood up through the torn roof of the limo and stared out at the oncoming ghouls. They were definitely going to catch us. Well, were going to catch us. I spread my legs for balance and brought the BFG to bear on the hog-riding ghouls. The huge weapon practically throbbed in my hands as I thumbed the lever to pulse and fired.
A blast of Jolly-Rancher-green energy exploded from the opening of the weapon and floated through the air like a lazy balloon. It pulsed like an angry star for about half a second, and as it cleared the end of the limo, I decided it was stupid and thumbed the selector to bullets. As I was lining up my shot on the closest ghoul who looked as unimpressed with the BFG as I was, the ball of pulsing energy hit the lead ghoul.
An explosion of light and sound filled the air before shooting up skyward in a mushroom cloud. The shockwave hit me like a linebacker, and I flew backward into the seat, struggling to breathe as the entire car was thrown violently forward. The tires screeched loudly as Justin fought to keep control.
“Good news,” I said, staring at the remains of the street. I’d blown a crater twelve feet in diameter in the asphalt. “There’re no more ghouls.”
Justin sighed. Loudly. “Great. What’s the bad news?”
“You’re not getting this back,” I said, hugging the BFG to my chest. “It’s mine.”
9
We pulled in front of one of those new wave luxury hotels I could never have afforded to even look at. It felt like an hour later thanks to my nerves but was really only a few minutes. Part of me wasn’t sure how we’d avoided getting stopped by the police or anyone else on our way toward the Santa Monica beachfront, but I was thankful for it.
“Keep the change,” Justin said, leaping out of the limo and pushing a hundred dollar bill into the stunned valet’s hand as the pimply boy came closer. The fear on his face as he looked at Justin struck me as odd. Why was he so scared?
“Whatever you say, Mr. Bailey,” the valet squeaked, taking the wad of cash and staring at it like it might explode. “Do you want me to keep it close?”
“Not particularly,” Justin replied, already coming toward me. I was still in the back, and as I stepped out of the limo, BFG in one hand like I was straight out of fraking Tank Girl, he helped me down even though it wasn’t really necessary.
“I don’t need your help,” I murmured as the valet stood frozen in place. It was almost like he was worried he’d offend us somehow and had decided to stand perfectly still to avoid predators.
“I know,” he replied, grinning at me in a way that made me stare at his lips. What would have happened if we hadn’t gotten attacked by a ninja ghoul? My cheeks reddened as I pushed the thought away. “But I like helping you.”
“So what’s his deal?” I jerked a thumb at the valet who visibly wilted.
“He’s just nervous because my dad owns the hotel. He thinks he’ll get fired if he pisses me off even though I’ve assured him it isn’t the case.” He shrugged in a “what can you do” sort of way.
“You own the hotel?” I said, my eyes going wide as I stared at the mammoth structure. It had to cost tens of millions of dollars. And that was just for the land because we were overlooking a fraking beach in Santa Monica.
“My dad owns the hotel, which is an important distinction.” He was trying to play it off as he took my hand and moved us out of the valet area. I was so stunned by what I was seeing, I let him pull me through the glass-etched doors and into the air-conditioned lobby. I was immediately glad I was wearing my new Werewolf Ninja hoodie because the place was at a temperature just above that of a meat locker. Their electricity bill must have been intense.
“It doesn’t seem like a distinction to me,” I replied, staring around the polished marble in wonder. It was like someone had transported the splendor of ancient Greece to a beachfront boutique hotel. Huge marble statues of the gods battling the titans were suspended in the air overhead in such a way that made me hope we never experience an earthquake. It was a bit weird because while it sort of reminded me of the view of LA, I’d seen from Justin’s Maserati, there was a sense of elegance to this, the streets hadn’t managed to acquire.
“Most people think that.” He sighed. “But my dad is the king, and so his money comes from people like that.” He glanced back at the valet. “All the shifters under his jurisdiction have to pay him ten percent as a tithe or whatever.” He gestured at the hotel. “It’s where all this came from.”
“Wait…” I stopped and the sight of the extravagant splendor made my stomach churn. “You mean to tell me your dad skims money from these guys to build stuff like this?”
“Well, he did at the beginning. He’s made more than enough for his fortune to build upon itself like a snowball. He just collects the tithe now to keep up appearances.” Justin blushed. “I’ve tried to get him to stop doing it altogether, but he refused. The best I could do was get him to roll it into a scholarship fund.”
“That seems slightly less bad,” I said, watching him carefully. He was the heir to a fortune literally built upon the backs of the working man, but I guess he was sort of trying to do good. Even with Blair’s creative accounting, the government took so much of my paycheck I could barely keep my head above water. I couldn’t even imagine giving another ten percent of my after-tax wages to some billionaire.
“Slightly,” he admitted. “But it’s not really good enough. The wolves take in more than enough funding through our investments that we could actually give a nice stipend to almost everyone, but.” He waved his line of thought away. “Maybe when I’m King.”
“I feel like that’s a loaded statement,” I said as he released my hand and moved toward a water cooler filled with fruit. He grabbed a plastic cup, filled it up, and offered it to me.
“Water?” he asked, staring hard at my feet. I mean, my Doc Martins were cute, but not that cute.
“Why do you keep trying to give me water?” I asked, taking the cup and sipping from it. I was thirstier than I realized and this tasted like it was infused with strawberries. A winning combination if there ever was one.
“I just want you to be hydrated.” He blushed as the sound of approaching footsteps echoed across the nearly empty lobby. He glanced toward it and his entire countenance changed and his posture stiffened. I followed his gaze to see a short blonde woman with skin like polished obsidian walking toward us with quick, purposeful strides. She reminded me of a short version of Grace Jones clad in a navy power suit that made me want to steer clear of her.
“You have the reader?” the lady asked. She had one of those bitchy tones I always hated. I mean, was it so hard to just sound nice?
“Yes, Laura,” Justin said, obviously uncomfortable. “This is Annie. She’s the reader.”
Laura looked me over, and the look on her face made me wonder if I’d stepped in something. I almost checked but decided against it. I didn’t trust her for a second, and for all I knew, the moment I looked away, she’d rip out my throat. I hefted the BFG. You know, bec
ause I wanted to.
“It’s a pleasure,” she said, offering me her hand in a way that made me think she was lying through her fraking teeth.
As I started to reach out for her hand, Justin shook his head no. The movement was so slight I almost missed it. Still, if I could keep her from finding out I was an animator that was probably for the best.
“Sorry, I’m a bit of a hypochondriac,” I said, shoving my free hand in the pocket of my hoodie. “You understand.”
She raised an eyebrow at me. It was blonde too, which seemed kind of extreme and dedicated at the same time since I knew what a pain a righteous dye job could be. Then again, if she was a werewolf, maybe she could naturally change her hair color? If she could, it made me really jealous because maintaining my pink hair was almost more work than it was worth.
“I hope the reason you are lying to me is not because I’m black.” She spun on her heel and marched away. Her black heels clicked angrily on the tile as she moved toward a door marked employees only.
Justin stifled a laugh and glanced at me. “Laura is a bit of an acquired taste.” He held his arm out.
“How long does it take to acquire said taste?” I asked, ignoring his arm. Great. Now she thought I was racist. That was just what I needed. I mean, I wasn’t racist, at least I didn’t consider myself racist, and I’m totally stopping this train of thought before I say something I’ll regret.
“A while, admittedly.” He sighed and moved ahead of me toward the Employees Only door, glancing backward like he wasn’t sure if I’d follow him.
“I’m not fond of you either,” Laura replied. She stood just inside the door, holding it open with one hand while her toe tapped impatiently against the gold flecked marble. “I rue the day when you will lead us.”
“Laura, I think you’re using your out loud voice when you mean to use your inside voice,” called a guy from within. As we approached, I saw him leaning against the side wall just beyond the open door. He was bald as a newborn baby and wore a black tank top with loose camouflage pants, though they may have just seemed loose because he was rail thin. He smirked, pulled the toothpick out of his mouth, and looked me over.
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