Read Online Doomsday Can Wait by Lori Handeland - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Lori Handeland
Ads: Link
along with his duffel, a brand-new sleeping bag, a fire pit, canteen, and other evidence that he'd been living here. He'd already began to strip.
"What are you doing?"
"Putting on dry clothes. You want some?"
I shook my head, unable to make my mouth move as he peeled off his tattered shirt and then his pants. He was the same beautiful, sun-bronzed shade all over. The sight of all that skin made me want to lick him like an ice-cream cone.
Hell. I turned around.
"You should get out of those wet things," he called.
"That's what they all say."
He laughed. The sound gave me hope. I hadn't heard Jimmy laugh with true humor since long before Man-hattan.
A sheet of paper appeared next to my face. On it were names, addresses—both snail and e-mail—along with phone numbers.
"Thanks." I took it.
Because each seer worked independently with his or her own psychic connection and personal contingent of DKs, there'd rarely been any need for the leader of the federation to contact them. According to Ruthie, when a new leader appeared, the seers would come to him other once it was safe, to pledge their allegiance.
"They aren't going to be there," Jimmy said. "Everyone's in hiding. I blabbed their identities to the enemy."
"Blabbing isn't exactly the term I'd use."
"They're all dead because of me."
"Not all."
He cast me a look.
"Are you going to give up?" I asked. "Just lie down and die?"
He glanced away, and I got a very bad feeling. "Why did you write this down?"
Jimmy shrugged.
"You didn't think I'd get here in time."
"In time for what?" he asked, but I knew.
"In time for you to tell me the names before you killed yourself."
"You always were a smart girl."
Jimmy had been taking the blame for Ruthie's death, and everyone else's, since he'd snapped out of his evil twin phase. Certainly he'd been the one who'd compromised their identities, but he hadn't meant to. Jimmy had adored Ruthie as much as I did. He never would have revealed her identity to the bad guys if he'd been able to stop himself.
However, she was still dead—something he'd pointed out to me often enough—and all the regret in the world wasn't going to bring Ruthie back. Neither would Jimmy killing himself.
"Don't do it, Jimmy."
"I can't." He sounded disgusted. "And not because I'm gutless, but because of what I am, how I have to be killed."
“Twice in the same way," I murmured.
"Every time I manage the first death, I lose consciousness; I die, and then I can't kill myself again. I wake up completely healed." His eyes met mine. "Someone's going to have to do it for me."
"Not me," I blurted.
He shrugged. "I know someone who will."
I opened my mouth to tell him that I needed him. That I couldn't win this fight without him. That he couldn't die and leave me alone with the monsters.
Before I could, the room spun, lights that weren't there flashed. My stomach rolled.
Not now, I thought.
But as soon as I closed my eyes, I had a vision.
CHAPTER 8
A small room full of people holding hands and chanting. Candles flickered; the faces did, too.
Woman, wolf, woman. Man, wolf, man. Over and over the human guise gave way to that of a beast.
I stared so hard my head began to ache, trying to remember the appearance of each and every one, but there were so many.
"Kill them all," they whispered as one. "The earth will be ooouurrss."
The last word became a howl, and this time when their faces went wolf, they stayed that way. Their bodies contorted. Hands and feet became paws, spines crackled and shifted, fur covered every inch of skin.
I'd seen werewolves before, killed them, too. Silver bullets worked as well as the legends said.
However, werewolves were bigger than their animal counterparts, with glowing yellow eyes and creepily human shadows. These wolves looked just like wolves, except I'd seen them shape-shift and knew better.
Luceres.
The word whispered through my head. I'd never heard it before, didn't know what it meant beyond
"What are you doing?"
"Putting on dry clothes. You want some?"
I shook my head, unable to make my mouth move as he peeled off his tattered shirt and then his pants. He was the same beautiful, sun-bronzed shade all over. The sight of all that skin made me want to lick him like an ice-cream cone.
Hell. I turned around.
"You should get out of those wet things," he called.
"That's what they all say."
He laughed. The sound gave me hope. I hadn't heard Jimmy laugh with true humor since long before Man-hattan.
A sheet of paper appeared next to my face. On it were names, addresses—both snail and e-mail—along with phone numbers.
"Thanks." I took it.
Because each seer worked independently with his or her own psychic connection and personal contingent of DKs, there'd rarely been any need for the leader of the federation to contact them. According to Ruthie, when a new leader appeared, the seers would come to him other once it was safe, to pledge their allegiance.
"They aren't going to be there," Jimmy said. "Everyone's in hiding. I blabbed their identities to the enemy."
"Blabbing isn't exactly the term I'd use."
"They're all dead because of me."
"Not all."
He cast me a look.
"Are you going to give up?" I asked. "Just lie down and die?"
He glanced away, and I got a very bad feeling. "Why did you write this down?"
Jimmy shrugged.
"You didn't think I'd get here in time."
"In time for what?" he asked, but I knew.
"In time for you to tell me the names before you killed yourself."
"You always were a smart girl."
Jimmy had been taking the blame for Ruthie's death, and everyone else's, since he'd snapped out of his evil twin phase. Certainly he'd been the one who'd compromised their identities, but he hadn't meant to. Jimmy had adored Ruthie as much as I did. He never would have revealed her identity to the bad guys if he'd been able to stop himself.
However, she was still dead—something he'd pointed out to me often enough—and all the regret in the world wasn't going to bring Ruthie back. Neither would Jimmy killing himself.
"Don't do it, Jimmy."
"I can't." He sounded disgusted. "And not because I'm gutless, but because of what I am, how I have to be killed."
“Twice in the same way," I murmured.
"Every time I manage the first death, I lose consciousness; I die, and then I can't kill myself again. I wake up completely healed." His eyes met mine. "Someone's going to have to do it for me."
"Not me," I blurted.
He shrugged. "I know someone who will."
I opened my mouth to tell him that I needed him. That I couldn't win this fight without him. That he couldn't die and leave me alone with the monsters.
Before I could, the room spun, lights that weren't there flashed. My stomach rolled.
Not now, I thought.
But as soon as I closed my eyes, I had a vision.
CHAPTER 8
A small room full of people holding hands and chanting. Candles flickered; the faces did, too.
Woman, wolf, woman. Man, wolf, man. Over and over the human guise gave way to that of a beast.
I stared so hard my head began to ache, trying to remember the appearance of each and every one, but there were so many.
"Kill them all," they whispered as one. "The earth will be ooouurrss."
The last word became a howl, and this time when their faces went wolf, they stayed that way. Their bodies contorted. Hands and feet became paws, spines crackled and shifted, fur covered every inch of skin.
I'd seen werewolves before, killed them, too. Silver bullets worked as well as the legends said.
However, werewolves were bigger than their animal counterparts, with glowing yellow eyes and creepily human shadows. These wolves looked just like wolves, except I'd seen them shape-shift and knew better.
Luceres.
The word whispered through my head. I'd never heard it before, didn't know what it meant beyond
Similar Books
