Page 19 of Deadly Maiden

I scramble to my feet. With my hand at my throat, I turn in a circle.

I can hear my heart and, with the ringing lessening, the wind also, so I must be alive?

Incredible. And bloodcurdling. Terrifying too.

He’s standing now, naked and swaying, raising his head. He looks worse than dead.

Cautiously, I approach him, picking my way past the debris, avoiding a bared knife, a pale bone with shreds of…ugh…not looking in case I vomit.

Until today, I’ve never seen a dead person.

“Is that,” I ask hesitantly, hugging my stomach. “Is that how dragonshifters are supposed to shift?”

His eyes roll up, he mutters afuck, then he keels over, sprawls out on his stomach…still naked.

“So that’s a no?”

That’s a somewhat smartass comment, but I am so fucking relieved to be alive.

A second later, I’m feeling sad and guilty for being so flippant in the face of this massacre.

He moves again, hunching, pushing at the ground before slumping flat.

My mouth is open, and so I close it, swallow. His bare ass and back are more than a bit disconcerting. The back muscles bulge, move, ripple. When he shifts his arm, they twist again, shining here and there. Muscle on muscle. Rhuy had nothing like this. My standards for male awesomeness have gone up several notches.

I hope he lives. I really do. And not just because of his muscles. Though I’m very likely better off without him.

I’m torn between leaving him as he is, to recover or not recover…and checking him for wounds.

I shift from foot to foot, considering the best option, again.

I’m not a healer. The puppy was accidental, and the creation of Anathema? And I have no idea how.

Where is Anathema?

Around me the dust settles. A man groans and spews a fountain of blood.

Father’s last words return at this inconvenient moment.I don’t want to dig your grave.

I need to run, get a horse, and leave. In a few days, or sooner, I will go back and find out how Father is. Or now. I could go now. I should. Everyone here is dead or incapacitated.

I should leave this dragonshifter. Whatever his reasons for sort of helping me, they will not necessarily be good ones.

But I cannot be that callous.

“Fuck. I am a fool.” I go to him, lower myself to one knee and start to examine him for injuries. Nothing shows on his back—no cuts. I grit my teeth before I touch him and strain to roll him over. I heave then get my shoulder under him and push again,put a hand on his hip and shove with one final gargantuan effort. He flops over onto his back.

“You weigh more than a horse!” I gasp, trying to look anywhere except forthere…at his cock.

My hands are trembling as I touch his body, looking for injuries. His top leg is crossed over the other, one arm lies flopped over his chest. Moving those aside, especially his leg, sends a shiver through me as more of his body is exposed to my view.

The shiver is not from fear or shock.

It is from arousal and so wrong I want to slap myself. There are dead people around me.

“Keep going, fool.” I scowl as I chastise myself. It’s normal for a female to react to someone as fine as he is. I stare at him again. That’s so much bigger than Rhuy’s.

Wrong and creepy, too.

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