Craaaap!
What have I done?
The car takes advantage of his distraction and races away, disappearing around the corner. The sound of its engine fades.
Good. At least they are safe.
Now it’s just me and a feral dragon. No, not just any dragon. This is Grim. There has to be a tiny part of him left inside there.
“Grim.” My voice shakes, but I force myself to keep talking. “It’s me. It’s Wren.” I swallow thickly even though my throat has gone completely dry. “You know me, remember? We work together.”
He’s getting closer. Close enough to see my reflection in his eyes, which are slitted and completely reptilian. How did I ever think this was a good idea?
“We were going to get lunch,” I continue, my words tumbling out faster now. “Remember? You invited Sally and me. We were going to get burgers. You said they make a mean bacon-egg-and-cheeseburger at The Fire Pit. Sally wanted a cheesesteak hoagie. I didn’t know what I wanted. I never do. I’m bad at making decisions like that. I never know what to choose.” I’m rambling, but he seems calmer somehow. Maybe it’s the calm before the storm. In this instance, the storm being my death.
He takes another step closer. His head lowers, bringing his jaws level with my face. Each tooth is as long as my forearm.
Holy shit!
I think I’m going to be sick.
“I want that burger now,” I tell him. “So you need to shift back, okay? You need to shift back so we can go get lunch. I’m starving. Aren’t you hungry?”
Since when is asking a dragon if he’s hungry a good idea? It’s official, I’m an idiot.
His nostrils flare. Hot breath washes over me, smelling of hints of smoke.
“You’re going to be so pissed at yourself if you kill me,” I say, trying to inject some lightness into my voice, even though I’m absolutely terrified. “We’re only just becoming friends, remember? You carried those boxes to my car. You walked me home from the park. You met my dogs.”
I laugh, but it comes out hollow.
“Who’s going to take care of Ball and Breaker if you kill me?” I ask him. “Huh? I rescued them a few years ago when an elderly patient passed away. I promised Mrs. Patrick that I would give them a home. Best decision of my life.”
He’s so close now that I could reach out and touch his snout if I wanted to. I weirdly want to, but I don’t since I don’t have a death wish.
Out of the corner of my eye, I can see three of the anti-vaxxers huddled behind some bushes to my left. Another one is crouched behind a trash can up ahead. No one is moving. No one is even breathing.
Including me.
My mind has gone blank. I’ve run out of things to say. Run out of ways to reach him.
“Please,” I whisper. “Please, Grim. Come back. I need you to shift back. I need you to be you again. Please.”
Nothing.
His eyes bore into mine, but there’s no recognition there. No hint of the grumpy, quiet male I like.
He’s gone.
And I’m going to die.
“Please,” I say one more time. “Please, I—”
Pain explodes in my head.
It’s like someone drove a spike through my skull. Like my brain is being torn apart from the inside. I gasp, my hands flying to my temples.
I make this weird groaning noise because it hurts so bad.
