He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and tapped it a few times before handing it over to me. I typed my first name, Jen, and then hesitated.He doesn’t need to know my full name.Jen was enough information.
After taking his phone back, the one in my purse dinged. I pulled it out to find a text that said “Roan Harrington.”
“Thank you, Roan Harrington,” I said as I slid into the driver’s seat.
“I’ll be seeing you again, Jen.” He nodded his head and turned, walking across the garage while I sat behind the wheel of my car, dumbfounded.
Now what?
CHAPTER TWO
Slamming the front door behind me, I ran straight to the bathroom, stripping on the way. I tossed my tattered shirt in the trash and quickly shed my pants before closing my bathroom door to inspect myself in the full length mirror.
Nothing. I looked totally normal. A little chubby, but I’d been eating my emotions since I lost my symphony job. Shrugging, I turned on the taps and threw a vanilla bath bomb in the tub. I sauntered out into the kitchen-living room combo to grab the bottle of wine from the fridge and my e-reader. Time to lose myself in a book.
I settled in the tub with my drink and a novel, but after ten minutes of reading the same paragraph over and over, I sat up and put them both on the closed toilet lid, where I’d stashed my phone.
Music had worked to suppress the crazy scales and wings. I grabbed my phone and turned it to a top forty radio station. I let the music soothe me, feeling the rhythm and melodies. Meditation was a lost cause for me, but perhaps I could try to center myself with music. I listened to the sound of my breathing, felt the water cool over my skin, flexed and relaxed muscles, starting at my ears and ending with my toes.
By the time I was finished, I’d found something inside myself, a warmth. Once I felt it, it shocked me out of my soothing introspection, and I discovered the bath had grown warmer when it should’ve been cooling. The heat felt amazing, like I was being hugged by an old friend.
The sound of the bath bomb fizzing caused me to open my eyes and study the water. Steam rose from the surface, and the bath bomb, which I had thought had gone through all its fizz, was causing the water to froth again.
“If I catch on fire, I swear…” I foundthat specialsomething inside myself again that had caused me to warm. It felt like a seed, sort of nestled near my heart. When I prodded mentally at the little seed, it bloomed red, and heat spread across my body again. The water agitated in response to the warmth.
I coaxed the heat, encouraging it to spread. My skin tingled, and Iwaspushed up out of the tub. Snapping my eyes open, I discoveredI wascovered in scales again, and without looking I knew it was the wings that tried to push me up out of the water.
“Hell, yes!” I exclaimed. “It’s like one of my books!”
As long as I could remember, I’d loved to read. My favorite books were paranormal—vampires, werewolves, witches. I devoured them faster than I could afford to pay for them. Thank goodness the Knoxville library had a plethora of books and they’d started doing an eBook program.
Since losing the symphony, I’d spent a significant amount of time with my book boyfriends. I splashed out of the tub and stood in front of the mirror, not bothering with a towel.
Holy cow. I’m gorgeous.My whole body shimmered. The wet scales looked like I was covered in amethyst and onyx precious stones. I grabbed a towel and dried my stomach and breasts, and the scales dulled slightly, but still had a shine to them, almost like an inner light. I inspected my hands, which were covered in snake-like soft scales.
Snarling at the mirror, I discovered my teeth and gums were unchanged. My armpits had the smoother scales as did my groin area. All the hair on my body was gone, except for my eyebrows and the hair on my head. I tugged at my hair, and parted it to see that my scalp was covered in the soft scales. The harder scales began on my neck and rose to the bottom of my chin, where they tapered off into smoother ones.
I laughed, watching my lips move, then made faces at myself in the mirror until the tip of my wing caught my eye. I focused on them, starting by rolling my shoulder blades until I could pinpoint the sensations coming from my new appendages.
When I’d exhausted my interest in exploring my body, and taken enough pictures to fill up a memory card, I flopped naked onto my bed, belly down. My wings spread out and covered me, creating a warm cocoon.
I was asleep in minutes.
I woke back in my human skin, and freezing. The Tennessee summer heat required my air conditioner to be set to 68 from May to October, but losing my scales had left me cold and clammy. I hopped up and put a robe on before scuffling out of my bedroom and into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee.
I’d just sweetened it when there was a tap at the door. I looked around at the room and shrugged. The apartment would just have to be messy for whoever it was. It wasn’t so bad that I was embarrassed, but I’d also never let my mother in to see it like this.
I peered through the peephole to find three men standing on my stoop. Not a good sign. They wore suits, and the one in the back had his head down and his hands in his pockets. I heard a murmur through the door and the one in the back looked up. It was Roan, from the courthouse.
Oh, hell no. How’d he find my house? I tiptoed over to my couch, where I’d thrown my purse when I ran in, and took out my pepper spray. I had my carry permit, but he’d helped before. I doubted he meant me any harm. It probably had to do with me being an unknown-to-him species. He’d asked me several times what I was.
I picked up my phone and called Roan. “Can I help you?” I asked in an authoritative voice with my eye pressed against the door. The other two men looked at the door at the sound of my voice.
He pulled a phone out of his pocket and answered my call. “Hey Jen,” Roan said. “I’m sorry to show up like this.”
“I’m sorry, too. It’s creepy.”
“Ma’am, we need to speak with you about the incident today.” I heard one of the men’s voices through the phone and door.
