He pushed me forward. “Run. Run!”
“What about you?” I slowed when he did.
He didn’t answer. He was too busy shifting.
My eyes went wide. Oh, right. Tiger.
“I’ll catch up,” he said in a choked voice. “Run!”
I jogged backward, watching as he hunched and dropped to all fours.
He held his jaws painfully wide while his teeth extended, making a terrifying sight. His back stretched, and his shoulder blades went from flat on his back to sharp, vertical ridges. A thin, silky coat of fur broke out, covering his skin.
He lashed his tail and snarled at the naga.I dare you.
The naga hit the brakes, then advanced when two more emerged from the forest.
“Come on!” I yelled. “Run!”
I ran, worried that he wouldn’t follow. But soft footfalls sounded a moment later, and a huge, dark body glided into view beside me.
And I mean,glided. Muscles rippled, and his motion was more a flow than a series of steps. The stripes probably enhanced the effect, but boy, was I impressed.
Faster,Roux’s low huff ordered.
I was trying, dammit, but we had no hope of beating them to the front door. Still, reaching the château wasn’t our only option. A pair of small pavilions flanked the driveway, just a few hundred yards from the main building, the sole features punctuating that long, straight road. But they weren’t just there for decorative purposes, according to my grandmother.
Safe harbor,I remembered her saying.
I’d never had occasion to test them, but it sure looked like the time had come.
Light flared ahead as the front door of the château flew open. Growls split the night, and a shadow blurred through the doorway.
Bene!I nearly cried in relief, though he was a good quarter mile away.
I raced down the middle of the road, counting down the distance to the pavilions. Twenty steps…ten…
When Roux disappeared from my side, I glanced back in alarm. He spun to attack the nearest naga. Snarls and cries pierced the night as they tussled.
Run!I sensed him hollering.
I ran, covering the last five steps…three…
The pavilion had four arched, open entryways, one for every cardinal direction. I veered across the road, leaped into the structure, and whirled, gesturing wildly in the shape of an X.
“Close!” I yelled. “Close, dammit!”
Fangs flashed as a man raced up. Then,bam!He crashed into an invisible barrier and staggered backward.
“Mais qu’est-ce que…” he muttered.What the hell?
I stood with my hands raised, not sure what I’d done, but desperate for it to keep working, especially when a second naga appeared beside him.
Roux broke away from the first stalker to charge them with a blood-curdling snarl. At the same time, another feline hurtled in from the direction of the château.
“Bene!” I cried when the tawny lion sailed in to tackle one of the nagas.
The night exploded into earsplitting screams and thunderous growls — so many and so loud, I wanted to slap my hands over my ears and wish this all away.
