Kristine nodded. She was just about to drive away when Jayce said, “By the way, there’s one more thing I think you should know.”
Kristine groaned.What now?
Jayce tapped her nose. “I think I’m falling in love with you.” Then he stepped away from the car, smiling.
Kristine didn’t know what to say to that. She felt like she might be falling in love too, but this just wasn’t the time. Instead, she rolled her eyes, took off, and checked her rearview mirror as she left him in a cloud of dust…but she could still see the cocky smile on his face.
As much as she felt it was inappropriate—maybe downright absurd at a time like this—she smiled to herself. How did the ludicrous man know that’s exactly what she needed to hear? This was just like him. Her heart was a little bit lighter as she drove home.
* * *
Jayce was more determined than ever to find Kristine’s mother and return her safely home. As darkness fell, he was able to get closer to the homes, worry less about the color of his feathers, and worry more about finding this needle of a woman in the haystack of gorgeous oceanfront homes.
He flew by several palatial estates, some of which were very private with large grounds separating one from the next. There were a few more modest mansions sheltered by woods, hedges, or walls. Even those were multimillion-dollar homes.
He tried to remember that staying in bird form was aging him much more quickly than he would age as a human. His brother had reincarnated and reached his prime in a little over two months.What will I look like in a week if I keep this up?Then he shook that thought out of his brain, realizing that helping in this way was better than worrying about a few gray hairs.
At about 10 p.m. he was getting more and more worried he’d fail when suddenly he spotted someone sneaking out of a side door, leaving it open just a tad, probably so no one would hear it shut. He tried to get a better look and saw a woman wearing a black bathrobe. Rushing off on bare feet toward the beach, she seemed determined to get away. A dark scarf slipped off her red hair.
My God, that’s her.
Jayce wasn’t sure how to reveal himself without scaring her to pieces. If he shifted into a full-size naked man, she might freak. According to Kristine, Amy was high-strung, and he didn’t want her screams to alert whomever she was running away from, so he followed her from above. She smartly ran along the edge of the water on the hard sand where the waves would wash away her footprints.
At one point far down the beach, she headed toward some woods.This might be my chance to show her she’s not alone and still have some cover.
When she reached a spot where the woods were fairly thick, he found a low bush and landed behind it, and as she came toward him, he shimmered into his human form. She gasped but didn’t scream.
“It’s all right, Amy. I’m here to help.”
“Who the heck are you?”
“I’m a friend of Kristine’s. Are you all right?”
“Yes. I need to talk to her. Is she here?”
“No. She was. We’ve been looking for you all day. I need to let her know you’ve been found. She’s about to do something she really doesn’t want to because the jerk holding you hostage was threatening you, but your daughter was fucked either way. Sorry about my language.”
She looked down at herself. “I’m not exactly dressed properly for a rescue, but I didn’t know what else to do. Please tell me you have a fast car hidden somewhere.”
Jayce groaned. “I wish I did. Kristine took the car back to the city. I have some sweats stashed, and I can carry them in my beak and meet you somewhere. Then we can find a way to call Kristine.”
“Beak? Were you the bird that was following me?”
“That would be me. I’m Jayce Fierro, by the way.”
“Ithinkit’s nice to meet you, Jayce. Since I don’t really know you, I’m a little nervous about trusting you, but I don’t have much choice right now.”
“I promise you can trust me, and I’ll tell you more about how I know Kristine after we’re both dressed so we don’t get arrested.”
She gave him a weak smile.
“You seem to be well hidden. Wait here for me.” Jayce shifted and took off. He went straight to the place he had left his sweats about two miles away. He didn’t want to shift and take forever to get back to her, so he scooped up his clothes in his beak and carried them to the woods where he’d left her.
Jayce was no ordinary bird, and he was able to fly carrying a lot more weight than anyone would think possible. He could yank a full-grown man off the ground if necessary. Hopefully, if anyone spied a bird carrying men’s clothing, they’d figure a skinny dipper was in for a surprise when he went to get dressed. Fortunately, the darkness would hide him from most onlookers.
When he landed, Kristine’s mother, Amy, was trudging on foot through the woods toward civilization. He wondered if she’d decided not to trust him after all. He wouldn’t blame her. She was a New Yorker… Probably even more suspicious and careful than a Bostonian.
Jayce found another rock further down the path, shifted quickly, and slipped on the pants. By the time he donned the top, he’d caught up with her.
