Page 26 of Haunted By the Shadow of Death

“I’ll be back in a second. I just want to change my clothes,” I said, motioning toward the bedroom.

“Take your time. We’ll be here,” Rastin said.

Buddie nodded, as if they were as eager for me to go as I was to get some space.

I moved slowly around the couch, afraid they’d run if I made any sudden movements. These men, these shifters who could become monsters, were terrified of me. They were more worried over what I could do. I shut the door to the bedroom and sat on the bed, feeling too numb to cry or yell or do much of anything.

No, not just numb. There was another feeling inside me as well—a cold chill, a bleak darkness. Was this depression? I couldn’t rule it out. After what had just happened, it would be foolish to expect to feel anything remotely normal.

I sat on the edge of the bed and didn’t move again, losing track of time and not caring about anything else. All I could think about was Zetti dying.

Chapter Ten

I didn’t go back into the other room and doubted Buddie or Rastin minded my absence. I might have been rocked to my core, but they were no less rattled. I shifted from the edge of the bed to curl into a ball in the center, my mind racing. Fear was like a little monster, eating away at me from the inside out. I couldn’t fathom what had happened. Every scenario that played out in my mind ended in disaster. Did I leave here? Pull Charlie from another place? The thought of taking him with me but never giving him a hug again tore at my heart. Could I leave? It might not be an option. They might be discussing my death right now. I felt leaden, unable to move even as my future, maybe my very life, wavered.

There were noises in the living room, and then the door opened. Kicks stood there. I quickly sat up as he walked in, panic overcoming me.

“I sent Buddie and Rastin home. Magnum is still playing with Charlie. I don’t think he saw much of what happened.”

I nodded, feeling like a coward for not wanting to face the now six-year-old, afraid he’d be terrified of me. What if he ran from me? Stared up at me with fear? He’d seen me kill before, but after I was threatened. Not like this. Nothing like what had happened tonight.

“She’s definitely dead?” She’d been dead before I left the building. I couldn’t maintain eye contact and my gaze dropped to the floor. I already knew the unbearable truth. Still, I had to hear it. I had to know beyond any doubt.

“She’s dead,” he confirmed, his words so heavy they felt like a blow. I hadn’t even touched her, but the doubt was plaguing me. Could I have brushed her fingers by accident and something within me had flared? I thought I’d seen a flicker of dislike. Could that have been enough to trigger whatever horrible thing lay within me?

“Do you have any idea what happened? Did you feel anything? Anything at all?” He walked closer.

As he neared the bed, I jumped up and moved toward the other side. “I don’t know what happened. I didn’t touch her.” I stared down at my hands and then looked at him. “At least, I don’t think I touched her.”

His eyes narrowed as he watched me inch toward the other wall. He took another step toward me, and I backed away another foot.

“You don’t need to be afraid. I won’t let anyone touch you,” he said. “Nothing is going to happen to you.”

I tried to stop moving, stop my hands from trembling. Something about his declaration that he would still protect me, even after what had just happened, somehow made it harder to appear calm.

“I know it looks bad, but I didn’t want to kill her,” I said, wringing my hands in front of me.

His brow creased. “I know you wouldn’t have done it intentionally.” He paused a moment before adding, “But if something happened, an accident, I need you to tell me.”

Even he thought I was a killer. The doubt in his eyes felt like yet another blow, even though I didn’t blame him. Had I grazed her? I was so aware of touching anyone now, so how could I have not realized? Was my power growing so strong it could pass without touch now? The thought sent a wave of nausea through me.

“I don’t think I did.” I stared at my trembling fingers, wondering what kind of deadly curse might be flowing through me.

I took another step back, but he wouldn’t stop coming.

“No.” I put my hands out and then immediately down again, afraid he’d walk right into them. “Don’t touch me. Just to be safe. Until we know for sure. Please.”

He nodded.

“I have to leave. This isn’t going to be something that just blows over.”

“No. I’ll manage the situation here.”

“If everyone, including you, thinks I did it, how is it manageable?”

“I’ll manage it. It might take me a little while to calm everyone down, but it’ll be okay.”

My belief in Kicks’ abilities was high—sometimes it seemed as if he could do anything he set his mind to—but this? An older woman bearing me gifts dropped dead with no provocation, and in a way I was known to cause. No. It was a bridge too far, even for him.

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