Page 6 of Hell Kissed
Then who the fuck is this guy?
“Can I help you?” I ask stiffly, holding my key more like a weapon now. The security of the jagged metal only comforts me a little, but at least I have a way to defend myself if needed.
He looks over his shoulder at the woman gardening and then to the man mowing. He’s calculating, almost like he’s debating if they’d come to my rescue if he moved any closer. To be honest, I don’t know the answer. The elders here are a bit kinder. Mostly, though, the pack tolerates me. I’m definitely the lowest member of the pack hierarchy, at least until tonight. Maybe my first shift will change everything. Or maybe my defiant wolf will condemn me to live the same torturous cycle on repeat.
His attention flicks back to me from beneath thick, black lashes. Then he shakes his head.
And bursts into fucking flames.
A scream rips from my throat. He disappears with the scent of ash clinging to the breeze. My wide eyes search him out, but he’s gone.
And I’ve been traumatized for life.
* * *
I rest. Or at least I try to.
Kyvain was being a furry fuckwad, but I think he was right, I do need rest, because I am seeing some unexplainable shit today.
He was there! He… he definitely was.
Maybe I should call Mary about the strange guy outside. But she hates it when I call her at work.
Bea will be home in an hour.
I roll onto my side, my fingers still gripping my keys hard in my hand beneath the blue blanket, unable to let them go. A soft purring is the only sound in the house, and trust me, I have listened to every little creak of the foundation at this point. I close my eyes slowly and try not to think about the burning man, but the image of his dark features behind the flickering flames as he inexplicably disappeared is hard to forget. It’s seared in my memory like a scene from a bad horror movie.
Just relax. You’ll go next door in an hour and you’ll be fine.
Everything will be fine.
“Everything will be fine, Rhys,” the far-off woman whispers as my eyes grow heavy and my mind drifts. “You’re special, but you can’t stay here. Everything will be fine for a little while.”
The lullaby of her words swirl in my thoughts. It’s the most calming tone, and yet, it pricks at my mind like a sharp needle the more and more she speaks.
“Always remember that you are love—”
My eyes flash open and darkness blankets my room. Pale white moonlight peeks in through my window.
The moon!
I throw the blankets off in a swoosh of movement. My messy hair is tangled around my face, and I shove it all back as I stumble to get my shoes on.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!
A meowing screech hisses through the room as I trip over something tragically fluffy.
“Shit! I’m sorry, Loki!”
“You named your cat Loki?” a dark, rumbling whisper seeps through the room.
This time when I stumble, my back hits the wall hard, and my ass slams against the floor even harder.
“What the fuck?” I hold my key firmly out between myself and the shadow of a man leaning against my bedroom wall, wielding the metal like it’s a deadly sword instead of the pathetic weapon it truly is.
“W-What do you want?”
“Why the hell did you name your cat after a cruel god?” A hypnotic accent caresses his words as he saunters closer, like a nightmare stalking right into my life.
