Page 15 of Outcast Fae
Vaughn!
He let out an inhuman growl, his green eyes lit from within, his forearms and hands corded with tendons as he swam toward the beast again. He looked… different, far more muscular and wild. Were those claws at his fingertips? I blinked and stared at his hands. There were no claws.
The waterbeast shrieked as the pool turned purple with its blood.
Wasting no time, Vaughn grabbed my arm, then Wally's, and began swimming toward the shore, his kicks fast and strong. In a few moments, we were out of the water.
Vaughn let me go. I collapsed onto the sandy bank, gasping and coughing up lungfuls of water. My clothes and wings dripped. It would be hours before I could fly again, but I was alive.
After depositing Wally far from the water’s edge, Vaughn took two steps back. Rivulets dripped from his curls, down his face and naked chest. I stared at his fierce face, awed by his strength and the fact that he’d helped us.
Helpedme.
Daniella was on Wally a heartbeat later. She turned him over and thumped on his back. Water poured from his mouth as she beat him like a ceremonial drum.
I got to my knees, watching his face carefully. Daniella's eyes met mine, questioningly. I shook my head. There was no reaction from Wally.
Forcing him onto his back again, she pushed his chin up and frantically applied compression to his chest. Nothing. She pinched his nose and blew air into his mouth. Nothing still.
I stared transfixed, my heart in my throat as I waited for a sign of life.
There was none.
Too little, too late.
Daniella’s skinny arms tried compressions again, but they seemed useless.
Then, out of nowhere, Elon appeared and pushed Daniella out of the way. He took over the compressions, his arms stronger and sure. Blue sparks of energy webbed across his fingers, making Wally’s body spasm.
Daniella gasped in surprise.
“I’m an Elemental,” Elon said with a shrug as he fell back and let Daniella blow into Wally's mouth again. “The electricity is as good as an AED. It should restart his heart.”
They both paused and watched.
Wally coughed, his eyes rolling into the back of his head as Elon turned him on his side and more water spewed from his mouth.
He was alive. I couldn’t believe it. But he was alive.
* * *
We didn’t speakafter that. We just huddled under the palm trees, a fair distance away from the water and stared numbly at the rocky ground.
Daniella curled next to me, trembling. She was so weak, yet so strong. The way she had pleaded for Wally showed a different kind of resilience.
As we sat, our shock passed slowly. Daniella’s trembling subsided a bit, but not entirely—especially after the sun finished its descent and the night turned cold.
Sniffling, she huddled closer, and I didn’t mind. Sharing our warmth was not a bad idea. Besides, despite myself, I was starting to like her.
The males sat a distance away. Wally was reclined against a tree, hugging himself. His red hair fell limply on the shaved sides of his head, and his dark eyes stared fixedly into the distance. His face was slack, and all the fight seemed to be gone out of him. A brush with death could do that to you. I knew it well.
Elon was fast asleep, his back against a fallen log, his blond head resting on a pillow he’d fashioned out of leaves. Asleep, he appeared as detached and haughty as when I first met him, nothing like the determined male who had jolted Wally back to life.
Vaughn had chosen a spot even farther than the other two males. His back was to us as he stood next to a tall palm tree. His attention was directed toward the thick jungle which he so doggedly wanted to explore in the morning. Why? What did he think was out there?
His muscular back was bare, as he wore only pants, and his shirt hung to dry on a branch. He should have been cold, shivering, but the temperature didn’t seem to bother him in the least.
“I don’t think he’s a warlock,” Daniella whispered, fidgeting, trying to make herself comfortable against my side.
