Page 64 of Cold Foot Komodo

“No, no, no, you can’t be here!” Raynah yelled.

“Get out of the way or I’ll kill you too,” she told Raynah.

“Wait, wait!” Raynah yelled, holding her hands out. “Think about this.”

“Oh, I’ve thought about it more than you can imagine. Her time is up.”

“Fuck, okay!” Raynah screamed. She stepped out of the way, and Sasha could see the fear in her eyes.

“Komodo,” she whispered to Sasha on a shaking breath.

“Move!” Farrah screamed. She jammed a finger at Sasha. “You texted me that fucking picture. You sent me that fucking picture. You don’t know him. You don’t know my Reed. You don’t know what he did for me. You don’t know how destroyed I was when he was locked up.”

“Then why did you call the police on him?” Sasha asked. She had to keep her talking. Keep her calm. Raynah had abandoned her, and yeah, she felt the sting of that betrayal, but she understood. Raynah had a baby in her. She couldn’t Change.

Sasha’s damn phone was inside on the counter.

“You don’t understand anything.”

“Make me understand. This is your chance. Get it off your chest.”

Fuck, where were the boys?

Farrah’s face looked sharper, and as she smiled, her teeth all had sharp points. “Killing you will get it off my chest. He’s a weapon. Has your Crew figured that out yet? He can get my crown back. He’s not just a peacemaker, you dumb bitch. He’s my goddamn grenade.”

She’d known it was coming, so Sasha had been backing into the house, but when that monster ripped out of Farrah’s body, she was horrified. She screamed and tried to slam the door closed, but the Komodo dragon busted right through, taking half the wall with her. Sasha went flying backward and slammed against the kitchen cabinets. She gasped at the pain and tried to drag air into her lungs, but the monster was scrabbling for purchase on the sub-flooring. Her hips were stuck in the framework of the house.

“Get up!” Raynah ordered. And she was there, dragging Sasha toward the open back door.

She couldn’t breathe! Couldn’t drag air into her body! The wind had been knocked clean out of her when she’d hit the cabinets, but the dragon was free and scrabbling this way in a sickeningly graceful, snake-like motion.

She stumbled down the porch stairs and screamed as a claw raked across her back. She wasn’t okay. She could tell she wasn’t okay, but Raynah was dragging her toward the trees behind the house.

“The Crew is coming. Just have to keep us alive until they get here,” Raynah cried, ducking a low-hanging branch.

Warmth trickled down her back, and Sasha looked back in horror. Time slowed as she took in the sight of Farrah breaking through the wall. She had to be fifteen feet long, and fast as a cobra strike. Her claws were six inches long, and each razor-sharp. She had a blue sheen to her armor, and a forked yellow tongue that scented the air as she charged for them.

“Raynah, go!” she gasped out on the first wisp of breath she was able to inhale.

Farrah wanted her. Raynah needed to get away from here, protect her baby. Farrah was on them, and all Sasha could do was cover Raynah’s body with her own and hope it would save her friend.

They hit the snow as Farrah went airborne, and she knew this was the end. Her back was soaking wet, and Farrah had the promise of death in her glowing eyes, and…bam!

Just as the Komodo dragon’s claws grazed her arm, the earth shook with something powerful. Stunned that she was still alive, she looked up in time to see an enormous grizzly bear shaking the monster in his powerful jaws.

“That’s Garret. He’s buying us time! Run!” Raynah yelled, yanking her upward.

The Komodo dragon twisted on him and latched onto his shoulder, and the roaring of the bear followed them into the woods. Raynah looked skyward. “Where is Wreck?”

“Raynah,” Sasha gasped out.

“Keep going!” She dragged her harder, but Sasha didn’t feel good. The pain was too much.

“Raynah,” she said softer as her legs dragged.

“What, what, what?” her friend asked in desperation, turning for her. “Fuck, what’s wrong?”

Sasha fell to her knees, nodding. “It’s going to be okay.”

---