Page 17 of Catastrophe

“What are you looking for, Sunlight?” I asked, and she turned, glancing shyly at my bare chest as I rubbed my hair dry with a towel.

Our shower had been strictly for cleaning, but it didn’t stop me from exploring her wet, perfect body thoroughly enough to memorize every blemish and imperfection.

“A brush.” She pulled it out and waved it at me. “Zaide would …” She stopped, and her face dropped.

At the mention of my other missing soul mate and the sadness echoing through our bond, I dropped my towel. “Zaide would …?”

“He promised me when I first turned human that he would keep my hair beautiful. He’d brush it.” Her bottom lip quivered, and I tugged her into my arms.

I didn’t have the same relationship she did with Zaide. They’d been through a lot in a short amount of time, bonded from it, and loved each other. I didn’t know Zaide in the same way, but we were bonded now.

“Can you feel him?” Clawdia asked, her voice muffled by my chest.

I sighed. “There’s something, but it’s dull. They must be using something to prevent us from finding him. A block of some sort.”

“You think so?” She pulled away from me and picked up the trousers she’d pulled out for me before stooping, opening them, and nudging my feet to step into them. She continued, “But what kind of block would the hunters have? They are human. They can’t use magic, but they can block a magic bond? That doesn’t make sense.”

“Why are you dressing me like a child?” I asked her.

She buttoned them around my hips and reached for the T-shirt, which I quickly took from her before she could attempt to clothe me again. I was oddly offended about it.

“Not like a child.” She smirked. “But we need to go. If Zaide’s bond is blocked, then we need to find a way around that.”

CHAPTER 5

CLAWDIA

CHAPTER 5 - CLAWDIA

“Do you think something has happened to Charlie? And that’s why I’m human?” I asked Baelen as we headed out toward Elizabeth’s cabin.

My stomach growled, and I hoped she had something we could eat. I needed to regain my energy. I reached out to clasp his hand, and I felt the shot of surprise and joy through our new bond.

Like all my bonds, it had its own unique quality to it. It wasn’t purple and comfortable like Zaide’s, nor as golden and quiet as Charlie’s. My bond with Baelen was a beautiful bronze and thrummed with power.

Baelen squinted down at me. “Such as?”

“Maybe he’s turned human again? Maybe we are linked in that way?”

“Perhaps. But you still cannot feel the bond?”

“No.” I shook my head and sighed. “I hope it’s a sign he’s okay wherever he is. He probably hates being a dragon.”

“Charlie doesn’t strike me as someone who would be afraid of flying.”

I laughed at the memories of us on the sofa together at Halloween. “He can be a real scaredy-cat. You should see him watching a horror film. I’m not sure who jumps higher.”

When my laughter died, I thought about his predicament. “But I know how disorientating turning into a new body can be. I just hope he’s all right and safe. God forbid hunters find him before we do.”

“Gods forbid indeed,” Baelen mumbled.

I peered up at him, and his eyes narrowed into slits. I asked hesitantly, “Does it bother you?”

“Does what bother me?”

“The sun. Aren’t vampires allergic to the sun?” He wasn’t glittering like Edward Cullen, now was he turning to ashes, but it was clear the sun hurt his eyes. I wished I had sunglasses to give him.

“You shouldn’t listen to all you hear.” He squeezed my hand with a smile. “I’m less afflicted by the sun than other akari since my fathers are titan, but akari live in the dark. In realms where the sunlight is bright, both eyes and skin can be affected.”

---