“Then you’re well-aquainted—acquainted with the sensation of having a beast that is both larger and stronger than you take any illusion of control you thought you had. That is how I feel when my wretched power surfaces.” Tears sidled down my cheeks. “It is an unbridled stallion, wreaking havoc as it thunders through the land. And I am a rider, strapped to its back without the means to halt it. I’ve no wish to hurt people. But I cannot stop myself from doing so.” I turned, although the woman remained a blurred figure on the outskirts of my damaged vision. “Kill me. Please. It’s the only way to guarantee I won’t harm anyone else.”
“If it were up to me, I’d bleed you out here and now. You’re a wretched creature who doesn’t deserve to draw breath. But,” the woman clicked her tongue and shifted her legs, urging the stallion into a trot, “we need answers about your master.”
So I was to be tortured. Again.
The thought did not fill me with fear or dread. It only left me exhausted. “You’re making a mistake,” I whispered.
Of course, I didn’t know the full gravity of that mistake. Not until several days later.
46
Shitfaced Shuffle
“How do you know my name?” I stared at the woman—Celestial—as she took another step. That sloshy, sea-sick sensation had returned to my stomach.
If she had called meAddie,I might’ve had a nonchalant“who the heck are you?”response.
But for her to call meAdelaide…
Only two people had ever called me by that name.
My mom.“That’sit!Go straight to your room, Adelaide. If it’s not clean in the morning, you’ve lost your Kandy Kakes for a week.”That had been one of the last things she’d said to me.
And then Freddie Hawkins entered the chat;“Adelaide. Such a pretty name. Rolls right off the tongue, don’t it?”
Otherwise, everyone called me Addie. I even used my shortened name on all legal documents (license, passport, etc.).
So how in the heck did this Celestialfigure out my full name?
She didn’t respond. Her wings shimmered in the flickering firelight as she smiled.
“Answer the damn question!” I bellowed.
Okay, so yelling at a winged creature wasn’t a bright idea. Especially when I saw how she used those wings. I expected her to flap them; like a bird. And she did…kinda. But she didn’t lift off from the ground. No. Her wings twitched, the glistening feathers made a soft ruffling sound, and shepoofed—disappearing in a haze of black smoke.
Only to reappear two inches from my face.
“Gah!” I flung myself backward. But my feet got tangled around each other and I fell. Hard. Pain rocketed up my spine, shooting into the back of my head.Goddamn.Tail bone = broken.
But the bigger issue? I’d lost my grip on the kid and my poleaxe. The weapon clattered a few feet away. The poor kid hit the ground right at the Celestial’s feet.
She scooped him up, clicking her tongue and tilting his head from side to side as she examined the burns on his face and neck.
“Put him down!” I scrambled back to my feet.
“Poor thing.” She stroked the boy’s cheek. “He’s inhaled quite a bit of smoke. His lungs are damaged.”
“We’ve got a healer,” I said.
“Yes.OneHealer. Tell me, Adelaide, do you think your healer can helpall the injured here? All the dying?”
“Umm, yeah. All he’s gotta do is tap his finger andvoila…patient’s all better.” My belly squirmed as I lied.
The Celestial tutted in disbelief and glanced at the boy again. “I love children,” she purred, stroking the boy’s face.
That sounded…not right. At all. Way too sensual. “You a pedo or something?”I blurted.
“They’re so innocent,” she continued. “Naïve, even. Precious.”
