Page 11 of Hunt Me

“Nothing. I just didn’t want to disturb you, so I?—”

“Torissa Emerald Sage, don’t bullshit me.”

“Your fae senses aren’t always right, you know.”

“Is that so? And what about my eyesight? Is that also unreliable?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Give me your phone.” I hesitate, and she reaches down and snatches it from my hand. With a quick swipe, she sets it on selfie mode and holds it up to my face.

I gasp.

On my chest and throat, my veins are a tangled map of dark gray lines beneath my skin. I pull my shirt up to find the same coloring across my abdomen and down my arms.

“What the hell happened?” Kendall repeats.

My hands go to my pockets then my boot, and I check, again, that my vials are all still intact. They are, right down to the demon tears. Which means none of those are to blame for…whatever this is.

Fear lances through me as I remember the female outside the bar. She didn’t accidentally come into contact with a broken vial.

She touched me.

And I killed her.

And now… my veins are rotting?

Fuck.

I stare down at the dark veins running beneath my skin, horror and disbelief swirling into a nightmare of dread. I have no idea how it’s possible or why it’s happening, but the only thing I can think about now is how close Kendall is standing to me. And how lethally dangerous that is.

“How do you feel?” Kendall asks worriedly. “Does it hurt?”

“No,” I assure her. “It’s fine.”

I lower my shirt.

“It is not fine. You’re?—”

“Kendall,” I say with forced calmness. “I promise I’ll tell you everything, but right now, I need you to back away from me.”

She starts to argue, and I snap. “Please!”

“Okay.” She backs off, and my shoulders sag.

Before I can offer an explanation, another sound comes from the doorway. We both jump and then exhale as Juniper moves into the light. The older woman’s chestnut hair flows freely and wildly down her back—a visible example of her free and wild spirit. At her arrival, the plants surrounding us slowly strain in her direction, and I swear I can hear them whispering to her in the silence.

Juniper is a nymph, like my mother was, and our oldest family friend. She lives across the street but spends the majority of her time with us. She’s the closest thing to a parent we have left.

“Tori,” she says when she sees me. “Are you—oh.” She stops at the sight of my skin.

“Tori was just about to tell us what the hell is going on,” Kendall says. “Isn’t that right?”

I sigh, knowing there’s no chance of keeping this from them. Not when I’m a walking danger to them. Quickly, I recount what happened, leaving out the part about poisoning my mark. Or anything to do with the handsome stranger that I insanely thought might be my mate.

“So, you think this random girl was poisoned because she touched your skin?” Kendall asks dubiously. “That’s impossible.”

“I don’t have another explanation.” I look at Juniper, who is quietly contemplative. “Do you?”

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