Read Online The Hatter is Mad: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Lillim Callina Chronicles Book 2) by J.A. Cipriano - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: J.A. Cipriano
Tags: Fantasy
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alone in a strange bar holding down a strange man. Well, I guess I wasn’t all alone since, technically, Caleb was with me, but he didn’t count.
Something rippled beneath Bert’s stained flannel. It was almost like there was a whole bunch of salmon trying to swim upstream… under his flesh. His hand shot out and smacked me square in the face. Warm blood trickled down my lips as I careened backward and slammed into another table. It collapsed under me, and I hit the ground in a heap. I tried to roll onto my hands and knees, but it was all I could do not to cough up my lungs.
An inhuman shriek split the air. I turned to see an emaciated skeletal creature clad in Bert’s ugly red flannel and jeans stalking toward me. Flames the color of a fire engine smoldered where his eyes should have been. Giant bone-clad wings furled and unfurled themselves on his back.
“So how is your ‘speeding this thing along’ thing going?” Caleb called. That’s when I realized he was sitting in the booth with a grin on his face. “I know you take after your mother and all, but has it ever occurred to you that you may not want to pick a fight with everything first and ask questions later?”
I wanted to reach out and punch him in his stupid face. I didn’t do it, mostly because I was too busy scrambling backward across the floor as Bert lumbered toward me. With each step he took, he gained speed. By the time he slammed into me it would be like being hit by a bus.
So I did the only logical thing I could think of… I got a bigger fly swatter. I yanked the double barrel shotgun from beneath my overcoat and fired into the rampaging skeleton-creature. The buckshot slapped into him with a dull thud. Bits of bone and debris exploded out his back and smacked against the wall. Bert almost slowed for a second. There were two holes in his ribs the size of baseballs and Bert, bless his heart, did little more than shake his head to reorient himself.
“That didn’t seem to work very well. Maybe you should try something else?” Caleb offered. His ‘tips’ were really starting to annoy me.
“I’m sure this gun will work just fine on you if you don’t shut your mouth!” I growled and got to my feet, shoving the shotgun into my coat. I spread my hands wide and drew upon my power. It rushed into me like warm heat sliding along my body. I ran forward and slammed my palm into Bert’s face before he could regain his momentum.
“White Sparrow!” I cried.
My power surged out of me in a rush that left me a little weak in the knees. White fire erupted from the sky, splintering the ceiling and setting the bar ablaze as it smashed down around Bert like a tube of super-heated death. I stepped back and took a deep breath. My heart was racing. I hadn’t meant to throw quite that much power out. This was happening a little too often lately. My power was starting to get harder and harder to control. I noticed it with little things at first. Accidently breaking a door knob or a window when I shut it.
This time though, I used an attack spell and nearly threw all my magic out in one blast. I shook my head and reloaded my shotgun. It helped me calm down. If I could be calm, I could control my power a little better. I glanced up to see Bert fall to the floor in a smoking heap. Well he didn’t die, and that was good… I guess.
“Lucy, you got some ‘splainin’ to do,” I said as I turned and pointed my shotgun at Caleb. It was more of a casual pointing rather than a real threat, to be honest. Which, yes, I know, is horrible gun protocol. Fear flashed across Caleb’s eyes just for a moment, but I noticed it. Evidently, my little display of power wasn’t lost on him either. Swell.
“Now, now,” he said, holding his hands out in front of him. “No need to get crazy.”
“But this bitch ‘be crazy,’ remember?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him. “What was it you said again?”
Caleb started to say something as Bert reverted to his human
Something rippled beneath Bert’s stained flannel. It was almost like there was a whole bunch of salmon trying to swim upstream… under his flesh. His hand shot out and smacked me square in the face. Warm blood trickled down my lips as I careened backward and slammed into another table. It collapsed under me, and I hit the ground in a heap. I tried to roll onto my hands and knees, but it was all I could do not to cough up my lungs.
An inhuman shriek split the air. I turned to see an emaciated skeletal creature clad in Bert’s ugly red flannel and jeans stalking toward me. Flames the color of a fire engine smoldered where his eyes should have been. Giant bone-clad wings furled and unfurled themselves on his back.
“So how is your ‘speeding this thing along’ thing going?” Caleb called. That’s when I realized he was sitting in the booth with a grin on his face. “I know you take after your mother and all, but has it ever occurred to you that you may not want to pick a fight with everything first and ask questions later?”
I wanted to reach out and punch him in his stupid face. I didn’t do it, mostly because I was too busy scrambling backward across the floor as Bert lumbered toward me. With each step he took, he gained speed. By the time he slammed into me it would be like being hit by a bus.
So I did the only logical thing I could think of… I got a bigger fly swatter. I yanked the double barrel shotgun from beneath my overcoat and fired into the rampaging skeleton-creature. The buckshot slapped into him with a dull thud. Bits of bone and debris exploded out his back and smacked against the wall. Bert almost slowed for a second. There were two holes in his ribs the size of baseballs and Bert, bless his heart, did little more than shake his head to reorient himself.
“That didn’t seem to work very well. Maybe you should try something else?” Caleb offered. His ‘tips’ were really starting to annoy me.
“I’m sure this gun will work just fine on you if you don’t shut your mouth!” I growled and got to my feet, shoving the shotgun into my coat. I spread my hands wide and drew upon my power. It rushed into me like warm heat sliding along my body. I ran forward and slammed my palm into Bert’s face before he could regain his momentum.
“White Sparrow!” I cried.
My power surged out of me in a rush that left me a little weak in the knees. White fire erupted from the sky, splintering the ceiling and setting the bar ablaze as it smashed down around Bert like a tube of super-heated death. I stepped back and took a deep breath. My heart was racing. I hadn’t meant to throw quite that much power out. This was happening a little too often lately. My power was starting to get harder and harder to control. I noticed it with little things at first. Accidently breaking a door knob or a window when I shut it.
This time though, I used an attack spell and nearly threw all my magic out in one blast. I shook my head and reloaded my shotgun. It helped me calm down. If I could be calm, I could control my power a little better. I glanced up to see Bert fall to the floor in a smoking heap. Well he didn’t die, and that was good… I guess.
“Lucy, you got some ‘splainin’ to do,” I said as I turned and pointed my shotgun at Caleb. It was more of a casual pointing rather than a real threat, to be honest. Which, yes, I know, is horrible gun protocol. Fear flashed across Caleb’s eyes just for a moment, but I noticed it. Evidently, my little display of power wasn’t lost on him either. Swell.
“Now, now,” he said, holding his hands out in front of him. “No need to get crazy.”
“But this bitch ‘be crazy,’ remember?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him. “What was it you said again?”
Caleb started to say something as Bert reverted to his human
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