Page 7 of Mortal Shift
I raised my hand, brandishing my phone at him.
“Ah, yes, my son mentioned you had a penchant for the human authorities.”
“Your…son?” I swallowed. A group of college aged guys messing around trying to scare the crap out of me at a party was one thing, but sending his dad round to carry on the charade went a bit beyond a prank. And this guy didn’t seem the pranking type.
He rose to his feet, and I shrank back. He was well over six foot, but it wasn’t his size that was intimidating. It was every other damn thing about him.
“What do you want?”
“To know how my son ended up fated to such a mewling creature as you.” His upper lip curled. “A human, no less. And one who lives in squalor.”
“Hey! Wait, what does…fated mean? And there’s nothing wrong with my home!”
“The fact you believe that perfectly illustrates exactly how pathetic you are.”
I blinked. “Wow. Why don’t you tell me what you really think?”
He crossed the room in a blink of an eye, trapping me against the door with his bulk.
“I think your existence is an insult. A stain on my family honor. And one I’m sorely tempted to remove.”
I lifted my knee and slammed it between his legs. His eyes widened and he staggered back a half step before he straightened. Then he ground his teeth together and glared at me, his eyes glittering dangerously.
“You’re either very stupid, or very brave. I suppose we’ll find out which soon enough.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I shook my head in frustration. “What’s any of this supposed to mean?”
He curled his upper lip in a sneer, and shook his head with a low growl. “Humans.”
“Cain, why am I not surprised to find you here?”
The voice came from my right and I let out another yelp and spun to face the lean dark-haired guy who definitely, one hundred percent had not been there thirty seconds ago.
“Where…where did you come from?” I asked.
“I was just leaving,” the first guy, Cain, presumably, grunted, then turned his glare back on me. “Move.”
I gulped and shuffled aside, letting him yank open the door and step out of it. I threw a glance over my shoulder as he went, wondering whether bolting after him would be the smart or the dumb choice—because at least he apparently needed to use doors.
“Relax,” the newcomer said, and I raised an incredulous eyebrow at him, because of all the things I was thinking of doing right now, relaxing did not feature on the list. I edged toward the door. The newcomer’s forehead creased in disapproval.
“Running from a fight. That will count against you.”
Sheer confusion stayed my feet. “Excuse me?”
“At the academy. They’ll see your weakness, and hold it against you.” He sighed, and seemed to speak to himself. “I told Jarius this was a bad idea. But would he listen? Of course not.”
“Okay, mister, I have no idea what you’re talking about, but…”
“Of course you don’t,” he said. “That’s because you’re a human, and humans don’t know about the academy.”
“Don’t you think this whole ‘not human’ prank has gone far enough? Come to it, don’t you think you’re a little old to be involved in pranks?”
“Prank? I assure you, Ms. Ellis, this is no prank.”
I swallowed. “How did you know my name?”
“You were hardly difficult to track,” he said dryly. “Do your human schools teach you nothing?”
