Read Online Deceived By the Others by Jess Haines - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Jess Haines
Ads: Link
like some giant cat sharpening its claws on a scratching post.
Instantly, my haze of disbelief shifted into anger. I was willing to bet Seth and his band of merry misfits were responsible. It was a wonder they hadn’t marked their territory, I thought savagely, grabbing up what clothes and things could be salvaged and putting them together on the ravaged bed.
I’d been right. It looked like all of my panties and bras were gone, maybe burned to ash with the rest of Chaz’s clothes. Looked like I’d be spending the rest of the time I was here going commando, unless there was a clothing store somewhere in the mix of tiny shops we’d passed on the main boulevard on our way here. People lived here year-round, so there had to be a place where we could pick up some new clothes.
We wouldn’t be able to stay in the cabin tonight, but I wasn’t about to turn tail and run back to the city. This was just a stupid threat; somebody was trying to drive me away. I’d find out who was responsible and find a way to make them pay.
Anger kept me warm as I hurriedly threw our remaining things together, wishing mightily for my silver stakes and guns. I wasn’t usually bloody-minded without the sentient hunter’s belt to urge me on, but for whoever did this, I would make an exception.
Chapter 7
By the time I’d finished repacking what remained of our salvageable stuff, my anger had cooled off enough that I didn’t think it would be a bright idea to stick around. Whoever had done this was still out there somewhere, and he or she might come back when Chaz wasn’t around. Without the belt to give me strength, speed, and stamina, I had no hope of surviving a Were attack. Not a very cheering thought to keep me company on the nice, long walk alone through a wooded path in the dark to get back to the lodge. Chaz was probably still there, drinking and feeling like a shit for letting one of his pack get uppity with me.
All in all, staying here was more dangerous than going back. I looked around the room to see if there was anything I could take with me and use as a weapon if I needed to. Eventually, I settled on a chair leg. Laughable as a defense, but better than nothing at all. There were a couple that looked heavy and solid enough to use like baseball bats. Maybe I could crack the thing’s skull before it tore out my insides.
Right. And maybe the tooth fairy would swing by to play backup for me next.
I didn’t take anything else with me, leaving the bags to one side of the door to come back for later. I put the laptop with them, too, grimacing at the thought of Arnold’s reaction if whoever this was had damaged his coveted Fragware 5000. It was Sara who’d convinced him to part with it so I could keep in touch with the rest of the world while I was out here in the woods. Strange that it had been left for the most part untouched, just the battery and carrying case with all the accessories missing. Oh well. Better that than smashed to bits like the coffee machine.
Hefting the chair leg up to my shoulder, I stood on the doorstep, staring out into the night. Some of the windows of the cabins threw dim light on the trees and underbrush lining the buildings and the path, but the little lamps on the ground marking the way back up to the lodge didn’t illuminate much more than the fronts of the buildings. I couldn’t see if anything was hiding in the underbrush and couldn’t hear anything moving out there. That didn’t mean much. Even in human form, Weres are good—very good—at hiding themselves in this kind of landscape. If the Were was shifted, I wouldn’t hear or see it coming until it was right on top of me.
There was a low, gravelly caw from somewhere over my head, a protesting sound from a raven or crow. The unexpected sound made me jump, but was a good sign. If there were a big predator around, the bird would’ve nested elsewhere or stayed quiet in the hopes of being overlooked. Kind of like me.
I crept along,
Instantly, my haze of disbelief shifted into anger. I was willing to bet Seth and his band of merry misfits were responsible. It was a wonder they hadn’t marked their territory, I thought savagely, grabbing up what clothes and things could be salvaged and putting them together on the ravaged bed.
I’d been right. It looked like all of my panties and bras were gone, maybe burned to ash with the rest of Chaz’s clothes. Looked like I’d be spending the rest of the time I was here going commando, unless there was a clothing store somewhere in the mix of tiny shops we’d passed on the main boulevard on our way here. People lived here year-round, so there had to be a place where we could pick up some new clothes.
We wouldn’t be able to stay in the cabin tonight, but I wasn’t about to turn tail and run back to the city. This was just a stupid threat; somebody was trying to drive me away. I’d find out who was responsible and find a way to make them pay.
Anger kept me warm as I hurriedly threw our remaining things together, wishing mightily for my silver stakes and guns. I wasn’t usually bloody-minded without the sentient hunter’s belt to urge me on, but for whoever did this, I would make an exception.
Chapter 7
By the time I’d finished repacking what remained of our salvageable stuff, my anger had cooled off enough that I didn’t think it would be a bright idea to stick around. Whoever had done this was still out there somewhere, and he or she might come back when Chaz wasn’t around. Without the belt to give me strength, speed, and stamina, I had no hope of surviving a Were attack. Not a very cheering thought to keep me company on the nice, long walk alone through a wooded path in the dark to get back to the lodge. Chaz was probably still there, drinking and feeling like a shit for letting one of his pack get uppity with me.
All in all, staying here was more dangerous than going back. I looked around the room to see if there was anything I could take with me and use as a weapon if I needed to. Eventually, I settled on a chair leg. Laughable as a defense, but better than nothing at all. There were a couple that looked heavy and solid enough to use like baseball bats. Maybe I could crack the thing’s skull before it tore out my insides.
Right. And maybe the tooth fairy would swing by to play backup for me next.
I didn’t take anything else with me, leaving the bags to one side of the door to come back for later. I put the laptop with them, too, grimacing at the thought of Arnold’s reaction if whoever this was had damaged his coveted Fragware 5000. It was Sara who’d convinced him to part with it so I could keep in touch with the rest of the world while I was out here in the woods. Strange that it had been left for the most part untouched, just the battery and carrying case with all the accessories missing. Oh well. Better that than smashed to bits like the coffee machine.
Hefting the chair leg up to my shoulder, I stood on the doorstep, staring out into the night. Some of the windows of the cabins threw dim light on the trees and underbrush lining the buildings and the path, but the little lamps on the ground marking the way back up to the lodge didn’t illuminate much more than the fronts of the buildings. I couldn’t see if anything was hiding in the underbrush and couldn’t hear anything moving out there. That didn’t mean much. Even in human form, Weres are good—very good—at hiding themselves in this kind of landscape. If the Were was shifted, I wouldn’t hear or see it coming until it was right on top of me.
There was a low, gravelly caw from somewhere over my head, a protesting sound from a raven or crow. The unexpected sound made me jump, but was a good sign. If there were a big predator around, the bird would’ve nested elsewhere or stayed quiet in the hopes of being overlooked. Kind of like me.
I crept along,
Similar Books
