Page 19 of Secret Origins
Oh, goody. They were bonding. How nice.
That was when the minotaur stepped out from the darkness, twice as large as I remembered him. And this time he brought friends.
12
“What the fuck is that?”
The General snapped loud enough for only us to hear him, his energy signature flaring up and teasing my senses. Not for the first time I wondered if he was something other than a human. In my peripheral vision, I noticed Fenrir stiffening and turning to appraise the old man with renewed interest. That was not good.
“A cow.” Raising my voice loud enough to be heard by our attackers I grinned when the minotaur snarled. Fenrir choked on air. “It used to be a bull, but they chopped off his balls. Now he is a cow looking for them. Isn’t that right sweetheart?”
I’d been aware that my mouth-to-brain connection didn’t always function as it should. Blurting offensive things had always been my go-to in any situation, but I also knew that one day it might cost me my life. Like today for example. The minotaur hunched his shoulders, lowered his head until his glare was at eye level with me, and then he charged.
“Fenrir, the General.” Hissing my order, I raised the sword and braced to intercept the creature.
Behind the fast-approaching horns that were overtaking my vision, three ghouls were spreading around to try to box us in. The ground under my feet was quaking with each stomp of the hooves, which were the size of my head I might add. I could hear Fenrir murmuring something, but I couldn’t pay attention to what he was saying. There was a five-hundred-pound bull headed my way who was adamant about impaling me on one of the protrusions sticking out of his temples.
A gunshot rang through the air.
I swayed on my high heels and listed to the side when I lost hearing in my right ear. Smoke puffed out next to my head and I managed to uncross my eyes long enough to see the General lower his gun slightly. His face was grim, and his mouth was pressed in a firm line. That was when I noticed the ground stopped shaking. My head jerked to the side and a snort escaped me when I saw the minotaur’s confused face as he reached up to touch the hole between his eyebrows, which was trickling blood down his nose. He brought his fingers in front of his face and rubbed the blood between them, then his eyes snapped up to zoom in on the human.
“Great.” I couldn’t hear myself talk so I was probably shouting like an idiot. “Now you just pissed him off more.” For the first time since I’d known him, the General took a step back.
“What in all the Heavens is that?” he repeated his question from earlier. That was when his head swiveled and he saw the ghouls. “Myst? I need a weapon. Now!” the General barked, the command in his voice snapping my spine straight.
Dropping his gun, he turned around, placing himself back to back with me. Fenrir joined on the other side, and my hound positioned himself to next to my thigh to complete our half-assed defense against four almost unbeatable creatures. Swishing the sword through the air, I slightly bent my knees. I’d had worst odds.
“I only have the sword. Fenrir can let you borrow one of his.” I was watching the minotaur, who’d changed his tactics and was circling us like the predator that he was. I moved with him, forcing Fenrir and the General to do the same. “I’ll take the cow, the two of you keep the ghouls busy so they don’t interfere … and make sure you don’t die.”
“I will not babysit the human when you need help.” Fenrir sniffed like the arrogant ass that he was.
“First, you assume I’llneedhelp.” The minotaur was smirking as if he knew something I didn’t. The hound snarled like a feral beast, shaking his head and spraying thick saliva everywhere. “Second, the human will protect the half bloods he will save from the hunters. Didn’t you ask for help? That is sure to cause enough ruckus to keep Roberti’s attention on other things so you can deal with him.”
“You really have lost your mind.” I bumped into Fenrir when he stopped moving. “You got humans involved with Roberti?”
“He is not just human, Fenrir. You can’t tell me you didn’t feel his flare up earlier.” I shoved him to get him moving before I lost my visual on the minotaur.
“What?” the General stuttered, stumbling and messing up our attempt at circling the enemy for the second time.
“Never mind.”
“Nothing …”
Fenrir and I spoke at the same time, which only made the human growl in frustration. Fenrir shoved a vicious-looking dagger in his hand, I assumed to sidetrack him or get him to shut him up. It worked. With a tight grip on his weapon, the General resumed his watchful guard.
“I’ll pull the cow away from the two of you, just stay alive until I can join you,” I mumbled to Fenrir.
“You need to stop calling the goddess touched a cow,” Fenrir reprimanded, but I was already moving.
As soon as I separated from the two of them, the minotaur charged again. He looked more menacing with the blood drying on his face but unfortunately the bullet hole was already closed. He was much closer this time around, so he reached me in no time. Spinning around, I danced away from the horn as thick as my thigh, slashing with the sword in an arch. The blade sliced through the creature’s neck and shoulder, sending a spray of blood in the air.
The cut was not deep enough.
He skidded to a stop and turned to face me with a freaky-as-hell smile on his lips when I gawked at the fast-healing cut on his body. His skin was as smooth as a newborn’s, but before I could register what was happening, he was charging me again. The chain from my wrist wiggled and a black blur hit him out of nowhere, tackling him to the ground. When they stopped rolling, I saw the hound with his jaw clamped around the minotaur’s neck as he shook his head for all he was worth. With a sweep of a hand, the creature sent my hound sailing through the air.
“Fen!” My ribs tightened painfully when I saw him hit the ground and bounce a few feet. Luckily, he wasn’t far enough to restrict me with the chain.
“I’m fine,” Fenrir called from my right, which pissed me off.
