Page 50 of Obsidian Prince

“You said you would help.” John Runningwolf put one hand against a tree trunk, then sank to the ground as if his legs would no longer hold him up.

Liliana pointed at the webbing net that held the bear-kin helpless.

John Runningwolf snarled at her again. “Is this revenge for holding you at gunpoint at the pride-king challenge?”

Liliana sat down next to him, back to the same tree, fairly certain now that the badger-kin wouldn’t attack her. If nothing else, he was too tired to be bothered. “All my friends tried to kill me at least once before we became friends.” She put a sympathetic hand on an uninjured part of his arm. “I am sorry. I knew the bear-kin would rip you apart if you fought him in demi-badger form as you intended. I couldn’t help you fight directly because my left arm is still weak from being broken when I fought Tray Bradley. The bear would have gotten away if I tried.”

The badger-kin grunted a grudging acknowledgement. “Backup is on the way. I called it in before I trailed him. I found a hunk of fur at the last crime scene so I knew the killer’s scent. Pete identified the fur as Kodiak bear. I came back alone to have a look at the scene again and caught a whiff of bear.”

Deep bear claw swipes gouged into John Runningwolf’s ribs. Despite being deep enough to show the glint of white bones, the wounds didn’t bleed. A smear of blood showed where it had bled for only a moment before stopping.

New flesh covered the bones as she watched. The ragged edges of torn skin slowly sealed together. Liliana blinked her first eyes. She tried opening the rest of her eyes to see what was happening, but none of her various forms of vision could show her microscopic machines knitting his flesh together.

Lieutenant Runningwolf looked down at the slashes. “Yeah.” After a moment, he added, “I’m stronger, too.”

“This is what Andrew Periclum intended with his nanite experiments. You are the only one who gained the advantages he was trying to invent for all Others.”

The soldier huffed a tired version of his previous growl. “He didn’t care if he killed a bunch of us, including me, in the process.”

They sat together for a long time. Only the soft weeping of the injured bear-kin broke the silence until they both heard military police making their crashing, clumsy way toward them through the underbrush.

Liliana stood to leave. “Goodbye, John Runningwolf. I’m glad you didn’t die.”

John Runningwolf looked up at her from his seat in the leaf mould. “Just John is fine.”

Liliana smiled. “My friends call me Lilly. I think I would like it if you called me Lilly.”

“Lilly.” He nodded. “Thank you, I guess. For saving my life.”

“You are welcome.”

She looked forward in time to see if his life was safe now and saw another death. “You are Alexander’s protector. When Officer West offers to guard him, say yes. If you guard him at that time, you will die, even if I save Alexander. If Officer West guards him, Officer West might die, but I might still be able to save him. Alexander will live, at least long enough for me to fight for him.”

A bright grin split his bruised and bloody face. Liliana had all her eyes open and saw the sparkle of amusement that complemented it. “I know how much you don’t care in the least about the Colonel or how he feels about you.”

Liliana felt her cheeks flush and her ears get hot. She didn’t know what to say to that, so she climbed the tree and left the area via interconnected branches.

John’s coughing laughter followed her.

Chapter14

Royal Date

The next morning was Friday.She’d made no appointments. She had the whole day free. Liliana knew what she had to do. She grabbed a handful of the pay cards out of the bag of money that Marilyn gave her, put the new cell phone Alexander gave her in the teal velvet drawstring bag that matched her cloak, and caught a cab to the Willoughby's house.

The people in Janice Willoughby’s neighborhood put extra effort into keeping their lawns green. Nature cooperated with them vividly this spring. The tall shady trees sheltered colorful hostas. Early blooming flowers like irises and daffodils lined the sidewalks. Each house had a nice big front porch, most with chairs or porch swings on them to enjoy the lovely weather of Fayetteville.

In the Willoughby's driveway sat a toddler's bright red toy car and a couple of bicycles of various sizes. Liliana cast a wary glance at the big tree with the tire swing. The grass grew particularly green and lush around it.

Janice answered the door when Liliana knocked. "Madame Anna? What are you doing here?"

"You should call me Lilly."

"I thought your name was Anna." Little Kayden, who was about the same age as Marilyn's son, Simon, peeked out at the spider-kin around his mother's leg.

"My name is Liliana. My clients call me Madame Anna. My friends call me Lilly. You should call me Lilly."

Janice smiled brightly. "Oh, that's so sweet. Thank you, Ma ... um ... Lilly." Her hand dropped to Kayden’s head in a caress that seemed automatic.

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