Page 10 of Tharn's Hunt
And in that second, it happens.
I open my mouth to scream again when, like an easily distracted infant, my eyes catch on something impossible.
Light.
Where his skin touches mine…light blooms. It’s subtle at first. A faint golden glow that pulses between us where hisclawed fingers grip my wrists. Then it intensifies, spreading up his arms like a firework, illuminating the cave like a signal fire.
He jerks back as if he’s been burned, releasing me and stumbling to his feet. His pupils blow wide, swallowing the amber of his eyes until there's almost none left.
For one terrifying heartbeat, I recognize his expression. It's the same look I had when I first saw this godforsaken desert. Pure, animal shock. The kind that bypasses language and culture and whatever evolutionary tree he climbed. A low, guttural sound escapes him. Clearly distressed.
I scramble backward, too stunned to run.What the hell was that? Alien static shock? Some kind of defense mechanism? My frazzled brain serves up the absurd image of golden pollen, except made of light instead of plant matter. Which is ridiculous. There are no flowers in this wasteland. Just death and dust and whatever he is.
And why is he acting likehe'sthe one who got zapped?I'mthe one who should be clutching her chest and making wounded noises. Not him—all seven feet of sculpted alien menace currently looking at me like I just rearranged his DNA with a touch.
I grip my wrist, barely aware of the blood there as I shuffle farther away from him, knowing that if he lunges for me again, there’s nothing I can do. I’m clearly too weak to harm him, and even if I were at full strength, my efforts would be pointless.
Think of something, Jacqui. Think of a plan.
My eyes flick over the cave floor, searching for something, anything, and that’s when something else catches my eye—a small object sitting on the cave floor. Something that glints in his fading light. Something familiar. Something impossible.
A butterfly earring. Golden and pink crystal.
Justine’searring. The twin of the one currently burning a hole against my breastbone.
The air leaves my lungs.
We both notice it at the same time. His body goes rigid. My vision narrows to that single, tiny object on the dusty floor.
For a moment, we just stare at it. Then, with terrifying slowness, he reaches down.
I flinch, but he only retrieves the earring, holding it between clawed fingers like it might dissolve. His eyes flick to mine, searching. Then slowly, he places it on the ground between us.
He’s…not keeping it. He’s offering it?
What…the…
My mind races with possibilities. He’s killed her and taken it as a trophy. No, he wouldn’t offer it back. He’s found her body. No, he wouldn’t look so purposeful, so intent.
“Justine?” I whisper, her name scraping past my raw throat. “Where did you get this? Is she…is she alive?”
Something flickers across his face. Pain? Regret? He doesn’t answer. He just tilts his head, those piercing golden eyes locked on my lips as if he’s trying to decipher the very shape of my words. It’s disturbingly close to how my neighbor’s dog used to watch me when I offered it a treat.
But this isn’t a dog.
This is a seven-foot-tall alien warrior who glows when he touches me. And he knows where my sister is.
Chapter 5
MY CAVEMATE IS A NUDIST (AND OTHER PROBLEMS)
JACQUI
My entire being feels suddenly weak. I slide down the cave wall, eyes still fixed on the earring. After so long searching, waiting. Of alternating between hope and despair. Of imagining the worst…
And now this...exhibitionist. This giant, golden, terrifying... exhibitionist... has Justine's other earring.
Her earring.
