Read Online Angel Town by Lilith Saintcrow - Free Book Online Page B

worked up because I could have died.
    I guess even if you’ve done it once, it’s not something you want to do again.
    “Jesus,” he kept saying. “It’s you. It’s you .” Like he couldn’t believe it. Like he was relieved.
    I seconded that emotion. Except I was tired, and hungry, and nothing about tonight was going in a way that could remotely be considered well.
    But I knew who I was. I knew who he was, I knew what we both were, and I knew enough about Perry to guess we should keep running.
    I just couldn’t figure out how I’d ended up dead.
    Theron propped me against the alley wall, long sensitive fingers feeling for my shoulder. “This is gonna hurt,” he announced, and I nodded.
    “Do i—” I began, but he popped the balltop of the humerus back into the socket before I could finish. I swallowed a half-scream, my teeth driving hard into my lower lip and bursts of color exploding behind my closed eyelids again.
    “Sorry.” He sounded genuinely sorry, too. His breath touched my cheek, I found out my head was lolling. “Jesus Christ, Jill. It’s you .”
    “So they tell me.” I tilted my head, straining my ears. They’re going to be after us. Everything on me hurt savagely, muscles twitch-screaming and bruises rising for the surface of my skin. My right wrist burned, a live coal pressed into the flesh—but the heat was strangely soothing. It didn’t feel normal. Yeah. Normal. We’ve missed that train by a mile. “We can’t stay here.”
    “Where have you been?” He still had my arm, as if I might disappear if he let go. “You tell me that. Where have you been ? Saul…”
    I perked up at the sound of that name. “Saul? Is he all right?”
    His eyes flashed gold-green for a moment, rods and cones reacting differently than a human’s at night. Then a brief sheen of orange—when Weres and ’breed get excited, the eyes get all glowy. The knowledge slid into place like I’d always known. Maybe I had.
    It didn’t disturb me. Weres were safe.
    I was sure of that much, at least.
    “He’s…” He stared at me for a long moment, his jaw working and the bruises crawling up his face livid even in the gloom. “You…don’t remember?”
    “I woke up last night in my own grave, Theron. I’m not sure what I remember. Or who.” My knees felt suspiciously weak, I leaned back into the wall. Whatever was dumped in the trash piles here reeked to high heaven, but at least it might cover up our smell. Neither of us were too fresh right now. I reeked of gunfire, rotting Trader blood, and effort, Theron of musky, unhappy cat Were and fresh blood. We both carried the sweet whiff of hellbreed corruption.
    It was a heady mix, but not a particularly nice one. My shoulder throbbed, but I took stock and discovered I could fight. If I had to. And he was moving okay for a Were who’d been taken in by hellbreed.
    Lucky. We were both goddamn lucky. I holstered the gun. It was next to useless against ’breed without silver-coated ammo.
    But I’d find a way to make it work.
    I searched for a way to explain where I’d been. I didn’t even know how to explain it to myself . “I remember some things. Others, not so much, and some things I only remember too late.” Like hating Perry. He seemed so familiar. I was too tired to even shudder. “Glad I found you.”
    “Me too. They were about to…look, you don’t know anything ? Where have you been?”
    My pulse dropped, breathing evening out. It wasn’t relaxation—my jacked-up hearing caught the pitter-patter of hellbreed feet, too light or too heavy to be human, too fast or way too slow. Probably some Traders, too, and drawing close. “Dead, Theron. Weren’t you listening? We’ve got to get out of here, they’re looking for us.”
    “You even smell different,” he muttered, but he grabbed my arm again. “I can run. You just hold on.”
    “I can run—” I began to protest, but he simply yanked at me while he turned, a graceful, complex movement