Page 89 of Cold Curses
“Which I hope never to repeat.” I leaned over, clinked my bottle against his. “A toast to the good guys.”
“May we stay that way,” he agreed.
We stared at the flames until the fire died to an orange glow. While the earth spun toward the rising sun, we sat together in silence and let the world move around us. There would be time for talking, for considering, for planning tomorrow. But this part of tonight was for acceptance and quiet. And us.
FIFTEEN
Water surrounded me. Covered me. But this time I could breathe, and sunlight shimmered across the surface, spilling light and shadow across the bottom of the pool I was in. It didn’t seem to matter that I’d never been in a pool in sunlight, nor seen that shimmering. It all looked very real.
I pushed off the bottom and swam toward the breaking surface. But I emerged into darkness and violence and blood. Demons with human bodies and reptilian faces fought with vampires and shifters, while a dozen leviathans, swift and graceful as birds, soared through the sky above us.
Then something was being pushed into my hand. I looked over, found Lulu in her pajamas at my side. I was curling my fingers around the handle of my katana. She opened her mouth to scream something at me, but as before she made no sound.
She stomped her feet in frustration, then took a few steps backward, giving herself room. She held up her hand, two fingers extended.
“Two?” I asked.
Lulu rolled her eyes, made the sign again.
“I’ve got the two,” I said. “Two what?”
She turned and ran inside the nearest building, and I followed her, thinking she wanted to show me something. And then wewere in a classroom, with “Test Today” in enormous letters on the board at the front of the room, sun streaming through windows.
Oh, god. We had a test? Had I even studied for this class? I couldn’t remember anything about the room, probably because I hadn’t attended this kind of human school.
Lulu was at the desk beside mine, and she was holding up two fingers again.
“I don’t understand, Lulu. It looks like you’re trying to play charades.”
She nearly jumped out of her chair, gave me two huge thumbs-up.
“You’re serious.”
She held up two fingers again.
I rolled my eyes but played along. “Two words.”
She nodded, held up one finger.
“First word.”
Another thumbs-up. Now she stood up, the room expanding and morphing around her into some sort of gymnasium. She stretched her arms wide.
“Something big,” I said.
She nodded, then moved her arm up and down, her wrist fluid.
“Painting,” I said.
She nodded, made that keep-going gesture.
“Big painting. Mural!”
She pointed at me with one hand, and used the other hand to put a finger on her nose. I’d guessed correctly.
But then there was a crash as an SUV drove through the gymnasium’s wall. Connor got out, wearing the same pajamas as Lulu. He offered me a long skewer with a marshmallow on the end.
“Hungry?” he asked.
