Heart of Vengeance (Alice Worth #6) - Lisa Edmonds Page 0,54

“Yeah. Sure. No problem.”

11

We walked for the rest of the night.

My wolf eventually returned to her normal size, though she kept a wary eye on our surroundings. Few vehicles passed us. We hid in the trees or wherever else we could find cover to stay unseen. Daylight would make hiding far more difficult. There would be more traffic, and the closer we got to the city, the less cover we’d have. At that point, I’d have to have a serious talk with her and try to get her to return to my body—or force her to return, if that was even possible.

Not long after sunrise, my energy flagged after walking ten or twelve miles. My wolf trotted along at the same brisk pace. Malcolm strolled beside me with annoying ease. I trudged up a steep hill, breathing hard and cursing under my breath at the pain in my wounded shoulder and leg and sore knee. I’d already taken off my leather jacket and stuffed it in my backpack, but I was sweating.

Malcolm frowned. “Doesn’t it seem like there’s way less traffic than you’d expect?”

“I was thinking the same thing.” I grimaced and adjusted my heavy pack. “All we’ve seen is a couple of big trucks and jeeps and that one military vehicle. Not that I remember this road ever being super busy, since there’s not much out here but Northbourne and other big estates, but it’s past dawn on a weekday morning and it’s eerily quiet.”

“I’m going to start calling this place the Eerie World. Seems less broken than just freaky. It’s almost…” He paused, searching for the right word.

“Post-apocalyptic?” I suggested. “Since the boundaries between realms fractured, it kinda is post-apocalyptic, minus the marauders in metal spike-covered trucks and dune buggies fighting over water and gasoline.”

“I don’t like the quiet. Quiet makes me nervous.”

“Well, what would you like? Because I definitely don’t want—”

A huge winged creature the color of coal blasted into view from the other side of the hill. Stupefied, I stopped in my tracks and stared as it swooped over us. The downdraft of air from its wings nearly knocked me over.

“Holy shit, it’s a dragon!” Malcolm yelled. “Alice, it’s a—”

“I see it!” I ran for the trees, where my wolf had already disappeared.

A large military jeep with its windows down flew over the hill in pursuit of the dragon, moving so fast all four wheels left the ground. The dark-haired woman in the driver’s seat whooped as the vehicle’s tires hit the asphalt.

Just short of the tree line, I tripped and went sprawling, hitting my chin on a rock. Ow. I scrambled the last ten feet into the trees, dragging my pack behind me.

Meanwhile, the jeep screeched to a halt in the middle of the road. The dragon wheeled around and spewed a stream of fire directly at the vehicle. I ducked for cover behind the large trunk of a fallen tree.

As the fire swept over her vehicle, the soldier activated some kind of sonic weapon. The shockwave made my ears and jaw ache.

Stunned, the dragon hovered in mid-air, seemingly too disoriented to either attack or flee.

BOOM! The small cannon mounted on top of the jeep fired at the dragon and hit it dead-on. Dark blood and liquid fire poured from a large wound in its throat.

The dragon’s high-pitched screech was so piercing I thought my eardrums might burst. I clapped my hands over my ears but that did little to muffle the cry. Desperate to escape the painful sound, I crammed myself as far under the tree trunk as I could and wrapped my arms around my head.

Finally, the dragon’s scream faded as it flew away, its enormous wings flapping like boat sails.

Malcolm shook my shoulder. “You all right?”

I raised my head. “Is it gone?”

“Yeah, it’s gone.”

I sat up and leaned against the tree, wiping my face with my dirty sleeve. Now, on top of all my other aches and pains, my ears hurt too.

Malcolm flitted. “Holy crap, Alice—a real live dragon! Liam is never going to believe it.”

Tires crunched in the gravel of the shoulder as the jeep pulled into the grass near the tree line. A heavy door slammed and footsteps approached.

“Hey, you okay in there?” a woman called. “It’s safe to come out. Dragon’s gone.”

She’d obviously seen me, so there was no point trying to hide. That would just make her more curious.

“Damn it,” I muttered and got to my feet. “Stay here,” I told Malcolm in an undertone. “I’ll show her