a look. “It doesn’t matter what they think. What matters is that we get out of this.”
“Fine, but I’m not gay.” He smoothed the front of his shirt and huffed.
“Later,” I gritted out, my eyes going to the door behind Erin. That seemed our best bet. “We need to make a break for it. We’ll get only one chance.”
He nodded. “Let’s go.”
Vera and Barry were still arguing, so I figured we were okay to move. We’d barely made it two steps before Erin started flapping her arms.
“They’re running! Shoot them!”
I risked a glance over my shoulder and saw Barry reaching into his pocket, Erin’s words serving as a verbal cattle prod.
Things started happening in slow motion after that. I shoved Sebastian as hard as I could even as the strange bubbling sensation I’d felt the night I burned Monica’s eyebrows off started again. It was as if I could no longer hear in real time. Voices were drawn out, and unnaturally deep.
I willed myself to keep it together, but it was too late to stop what was about to happen. Instinctively, I recognized that. Still, I wanted to protect Sebastian. “Get. Down.” Even my voice sounded alien.
Sebastian didn’t argue with the order. Perhaps he sensed something big was about to happen, too. He’d barely dropped to the floor when a light formed out of nowhere. It reminded me of what had happened the previous night as I waited for Hunter to arrive. This time, the explosion that accompanied the wave of sunny light was deafening.
If you asked me where the origin point was, I wouldn’t be able to say. All I know is that we were surrounded by a cloud of light. When the explosion came, it shook the funeral home.
Erin screamed.
Barry yelled.
Vera ran for the door.
Before any of them could take more than two steps, the barrage of magic ripped free and slammed into them, rocking them backward. The blow knocked me back, and my head just missed an end table as I smacked against the floor.
The noise ceased.
Erin’s scream was cut off.
Barry’s bellow of warning ceased after the second word.
Vera never made it to the door.
As the world started spinning at normal speed again, I took stock from my position on the floor. I saw three bodies on the floor, none of them moving. They were either dead or unconscious. I wasn’t sure which was better.
Sebastian stirred. Still breathless, he rolled over to look directly into my eyes. “Are you okay?”
I nodded, disbelief over what had just happened causing my heart to continue galloping, even as my ears began to clear. “Yeah. Are you?”
“Yeah.”
I looked back toward the bodies, uncertainty tapping out a new rhythm via my heart. “What do we do?”
“We call Hunter,” he replied. “And then, girlfriend, when it’s just you and me, we’re going to have a really long talk.”
I swallowed hard. I wasn’t looking forward to the conversation.
29
Twenty-Nine
“What happened?”
Hunter’s face was red with worry when he charged through the door several minutes later. He zeroed in on me immediately.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Sebastian offered drolly. “Not that you care or anything.”
Hunter didn’t bother giving him side eye, instead brushing my hair out of my face as he knelt in front of me. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I reassured him, although I was feeling anything but fine. “You should check on them.” I indicated the three bodies on the floor.
He stared at me for another second and then nodded, moving toward Barry first. He kicked the gun that was near his hand to the far side of the room and then pressed his fingers to the man’s neck. I was almost afraid of what he would find. “His pulse seems strong.”
I let out a shaky breath and darted a glance toward Sebastian. He looked more curious than worried.
“What happened?” Hunter asked, moving to check on Vera.
I hadn’t given much thought to what I was going to say. How was I going to explain a magical explosion that knocked out three people while leaving Sebastian and me unscathed? “Um ... .”
Sebastian grabbed my arm and gave me an almost imperceptible shake of his head before answering. “I don’t know what it was. There was a loud ... bang. It was almost like an explosion. I have no idea where it came from.”
“An explosion?” Hunter jerked up his chin and looked around the room. “Some of the furniture looks as if it’s been moved. Do you think it could’ve been an earthquake?”