Better Off Dead: The Lily Harper Series, Book 1 by Mallory H.P

Author:Mallory, H.P. [Mallory, H.P.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 2013-03-25T04:00:00+00:00

***

We trudged through the snow in complete silence. Tallis led the way, with Bill and me two paces behind him. As I’d expected, the forest floor swallowed our tracks as soon as we lifted our feet.

I found my attention settling on Tallis’s broad back as I watched him carve the way through the forest. He wove this way and that, back and forth through the endless trees. The reflection of moonlight on his black hair made it look so glossy, it almost seemed liquid. For once, he wore more than just a kilt—a black T-shirt and boots. The boots looked like he’d turned an animal pelt inside out and stitched it into the shape of two socks.

The large sack he’d brought with him into the cabin was now securely fastened to his back, looking like the ancient relative of the backpack, and it was full to the brim. Above that, he’d fastened a silver, oval shield that was really quite beautiful. The moonlight made the raised circles and diamond patterns stand out until they almost looked like jewels. Both my sword and his were in their scabbards, strapped across his chest. The gashes in his forearms were still visible although the cuts seemed a little less crimson than before, and his flesh didn’t look quite as swollen. I still didn’t know why he’d made himself bleed, or what his blood on my sword meant. How could bathing my sword in his blood protect me in the Underground? I chalked it up as one of those mysteries which might never be solved. I only hoped that whatever lengths he’d gone to wouldn’t be for naught.

As our footsteps brought us ever closer to the Underground City, my nerves were more than present and accounted for. My heart beat frantically and a solid lump of angst was rapidly forming in the pit of my stomach. I assumed Bill felt the same thing because he was strangely quiet for once. The only sounds were our footfalls crunching on the snow.

“Wait!” I blurted, my heart lurching into my throat as I came to an abrupt halt. Bill faced me curiously, but Tallis never broke pace. I looked at Bill, my eyes wide. “I forgot the book!” I admitted, aghast. “I forgot Dante’s Inferno in the car!”

Shaking his head, Bill began to smile while patting his back pocket. “Figured we might need it.”

“Thank God for you!” I chirped happily, relief pouring through me, even to the farthest of my extremities.

“Amen ta that, sistah!” he replied with a large grin.

Seeing Tallis much farther in front of us, I inhaled deeply and jogged to catch up to him, Bill right beside me. I pulled the fur Tallis had given me tighter around my shoulders to ward off the frosty evening air. Despite my efforts, I was still freezing. Clad in only the black leather pants and long-sleeved, red T-shirt Jason Streethorn packed for me, I would have frozen, were it not for the fur. As for Bill, because he was an angel, he couldn’t feel the cold.

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