Dressed in a flannel shirt and worn jeans, his tied-back hair made Callum Hart look like a lumberjack.
“Where's your ax?” I asked as a danced to his side, followed by Jae.
Hart gave me a hard stare that said more than any words. I could almost hear his voice in my head. 'You think you’re a comedian? Don’t give up your day job'.
“I know I’m funny.” I pouted.
Hart grunted but said nothing as he palmed his car keys. Jae stifled a snort.
I scowled. “Aren't you meant to offer words of kindness and support, Dr. Lee?”
“There, there.” Jae patted my shoulder without sympathy.
We walked to the edge of the car park, Hart unlocked a Dodge Ram. The truck was so muddy that I couldn't discern the color.
I called shotgun and leaped into the passenger side with the enthusiasm of a child. As soon as my butt hit the seat, a loud wheezing squeak filled the cab. It was coming from my ass. I wriggled, and the disembodied groan slipped out from beneath my thighs. I reached between my legs and pulled out a yellow rubber chicken. Its red beak was rounded in the perfect O face.
I brandished it at Hart as he did his seatbelt up. “Dixie.” He explained without embarrassment. Naming his favorite pup from the K9 unit. I didn’t know that he was close enough to them to let the dogs in his car, but as I looked, I caught little signs here and there. Dog treats in the cupholder. A dog leash in the footwell. Even the air freshener was a paw print that smelled like cherries.
“What supplies are you getting?” I turned to Dr. Lee in the backseat.
“Costco,” Jae said the one word like it was an explanation. I'd heard of the store but had never been. It sounded like a gluttons paradise.
The road out of the wood was rough and jarred my shoulder against the seatbelt. I had to hold the handle above the door to stop moving so much. Pretty soon, we were driving through a winding snake of concrete, divided by a wall of trees.
“I didn’t know you two were friends,” I commented lightly. “Both of you seem like loners.”
“I resent that.” Jae winked. “I’m good in small groups. Not too much with crowds. Emotional overload.”
I nodded. “And you?” I glanced at Hart.
“He’s just antisocial,” Jae answered for him. “He prefers his dogs to people.”
“Hey!” I turned around and slapped Jae's arm. “Dogs are better than people.”
“Agreed,” Hart grunted.
“Besides,” I smirked. “Callum isn’t antisocial. He was very attentive on our date yesterday.”
Jae quirked a brow. “Oh?” His gaze darted to Hart. The big man squirmed and looked away.
“We went to the shooting range. Together. It wasn’t a date.”
I rolled my eyes. “You hear this, Jae?” I pouted. “He won't acknowledge our undying love.”
“Oh my.” Jae snickered.
“Would you stop it?” Hart pleaded.
I flicked my hair over my shoulder. “It’s okay, Big Guy. Even if you don't admit it, I love myself enough for the both of us.”
Hart shot Jae a look in the rearview mirror. It was full of meaning.
A shadow moved out of the corner of my eye, “Hart!” I squeaked, pointing at the windscreen. “Slow down!” Callum drew his attention back to the empty road, as a large black mass darted from between the trees and rolled over the hood.
I gripped the dashboard. Adrenaline surged, and my heart fluttered like hummingbird wings. I gasped.
My reflex had been to vacate Frankie's body. I could die while wearing a meat-suit. Somehow, I had the presence of mind to not become smoke and burst out of her skin in the presence of two Hunters, but as the car skidded, I held onto my control. Barely.
“What the fuck was that?” Jae demanded, sitting up in his seat. Hart grabbed my shoulder, pulling me forward and wrapping his tree-like arms around me. I opened my mouth to protest as he pressed me to his chest and hunched over the center console. My argument was swept away when a series of pops hammered the passenger side window. Bouncing off the protective glass.
“Do you have your gun?” Jae hunched over, covering his head as he used the driver's seat as a shield.
“I thought we were going out for toilet paper. I didn’t think we'd be dodging Demons.” Hart grunted. His hand was tangled in my hair, pushing my cheek against his pecs.
The wind howled outside of the vehicle. Bending the trees almost in half. Red glowing eyes moved in the darkness. The car smelt like cinders and old dirty coins.
It smelt like wishes.
If I had to choose a way to die, it was not in the burning carcass of a Dodge Ram.
“Drive! Drive! Drive!” I batted Hart away, as the glowing eyes in the dark forest blinked out. He did not need to hear me twice. His foot stepped on the gas as he did a U-turn in the middle of the road and sped back to the compound.
Hart pulled up and went through the careful motions of parking his SUV and collecting his sidearm from the glove compartment. Jae was silent in the back, alert, as the air around him shimmered. It wouldn’t be hard to imagine the doctor with huge golden wings.
“Was that what attacked Team C?” Hart's orange eyes pinned to mine. I nodded silently. He turned to Jae. “We can do two things after we report this. We can go back to the dorms and sleep. Or, we can go to Jae's cabin together. Safety in numbers.”
“I’m not scared.” I scathed with narrowed eyes. I was immortal. I was nightmares given form. A little predator in the forest didn’t scare me. I clenched my fists. My hands were shaking. I sat on them. Damn traitorous body.
“I've got wards on the cabin, but we might be able to catch whatever it is on camera,” Jae suggested. “If we split up, it might not follow.”
I heaved a sigh. “Do you have WiFi?”
“Yes?” Jae said it like a question.
I did a happy dance in my seat. I could use my stolen phone to watch YouTube. And porn. Lots of porn.
Hart unbuckled his seatbelt. “Watch my six.” He handed me the gun. I was almost shocked before I remembered that Frankie was a damn fine shot. Hart jumped out of the SUV and went to the trunk, he popped it. Lifted the fabric lining and somehow pulled a shotgun from the bowels of his vehicle. I turned my wide eyes to Jae.
“Let me guess you carry throwing knives?” I guessed sardonically.
“We are Hunters, Mara.” He said dryly.
“Why did you ask if Hart had a gun in the car then?” I popped my hip.
Jae rolled his eyes. “Because guns are loud. Normally the noise is enough to scare off a predator.”
Hart opened my door and helped me out of the vehicle. I had almost forgotten that Jae knew that I wasn’t Frankie.
I ran down the list of people on my head.
Davenport and Jae thought I was a Mimic Sidhe.
Hart had his suspicions that I was not Frankie, but he was in the dark.
Hugo had seen my true form, but there was no way to link that to my host.
Remi was a new addition to the team. As far as he was aware, I wasn’t acting strangely. Mainly because he hadn’t known Frankie before the coma.
Dr. Daniel and Frankie had little to no relationship. He hadn’t seemed to have noticed a difference in behavior. As a doctor, he would have submitted me for testing if he had suspicions.
All in all, I just had to keep my form inside of Frankie's body for the time being.
Easier said than done when bullets were flying, and I liked living very much.