TJ leaned over me. “Damn, girl. You did it again, didn’t you?”
I glared at her. Or tried to. The tears in my eyes were pretty much blinding me.
“Get the fuck back.”
Well. One thing was clear. I wasn’t dying, because if I was, no way would I be hearing that voice. Even if I was going straight to hell, I’d be deluding myself with angel song to the very end. So if I was hearing the demonic Damon that must mean the wolf bite on my side wasn’t fatal.
His face appeared in my line of sight and I closed my eyes.
“Stupid little fool!” His voice cut through the pained shrieking in my head. But the hands on my side were gentle. “Shit…shit, shit, this is bad—”
“Chill out, cat. She ain’t going to change her skin. She can’t—”
TJ, there. I knew that voice, too. Focus. Stay focused on the voices. Focus. Concentrate…the chills hit me in the next moment. Oh, great. First the chills—
“Come on, Kit. Breathe…”
Goliath.
I tried to open my eyes and focus on his face. “You were supposed to be the weapon,” I panted out.
I thought I saw a pained look on his face. But it was hard to say as I groaned. The spasms starting ripping me through me.
This was going to be fun…
Three hours later, I finally stopped puking up my guts.
That was when I knew I was done.
It was another two before TJ decided to let me leave.
Damon was furious.
As Goliath eased me into the passenger seat, Damon was already behind the steering wheel, staring straight ahead with a flinty look in his eyes.
“Sorry things didn’t work out with Keeli,” Goliath said quietly, crouching down by the door and staring at me.
I grimaced. “It’s okay. If you can just…well. Ask around.”
He nodded, but there was a troubled look on his face. “She…I don’t know, but I don’t think she’s here. She would have shown up. Keeli likes trouble, and this…this was trouble. Don’t think it was about you, though. Those wolves, they been gunning for the cats and TJ and me a long time. They saw the Alpha’s boy there, figured they’d take a shot, I bet. One of them had been in the bar earlier. Left before you all did. Guess they decided to have some fun with him. Then I show up…” He shrugged and sighed. “You just got caught in the crossfire.”
“All that for nothing, then.”
“Sorry, Kit.”
I shook my head. “‘S’okay.” In the end, it was. Not like a wolf bite was going to do me in. A bad one might make me dog sick while my body dealt with the poison, but that was it.
“We’re going,” Damon snapped, revving the engine.
Goliath stood, one massive hand lingering on the top edge of the door. “I’ll be in contact if I hear any more, Kit. But I don’t think your kid has been around here. Don’t think he will be, either. Nobody comes here unless they have no place else to go. He had other options.”
Did he, though?
I kept the question behind my teeth.
Once we were speeding down the road, Damon said, his voice thick with sarcasm, “That was just a brilliant plan. You got any other ideas? Fun ways to get yourself killed?”
“Oh, please.” Closing my eyes, I sank back into the seat. “I didn’t even come close to getting myself killed.”
“If there’d been a few more wolves, I wouldn’t have gotten to you,” he growled.
I laughed. “Honey…you weren’t the equalizing force there. Goliath was. And TJ. They were the reasons I felt safe loitering in the area,” I said, sighing. The pain in my side had settled to a low ache. TJ kept a witch in house. She wasn’t trained by the formal houses, but she was skilled.
There would be scars. Scars didn’t bother me, though. I could live with them. I had more than my fair share already. And since it was the were virus fighting its way out of my system, any injury I had would heal even faster.
It tore through me at an accelerated rate and I hated every second, but it was done fast. Throw in a decent healing and I’d be good as new in a few days.
Just in time to be battered, bit or otherwise abused in another day or two.
Chapter Seven
Two days later, I found a report from the Banner unit.
A witch.
The only name they had for her was Keeli.
I stared at her face—gaunt, with hollow cheeks, circles under her eyes and scars all over her