Corruption (Blood Trails Book 4) by Jennifer Blackstream

Author:Jennifer Blackstream [Blackstream, Jennifer]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Skeleton Key Publishing
Published: 2019-01-13T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

I gaped at Lorelei. She stood in the doorway to the house in a Wonder Woman stance, her red camisole like a flag against the backdrop of the blue April sky. She stood flanked on either side by two young men, both in their early twenties. The one on her left had pale skin and a mop of black curly hair that partially obscured his brown eyes. His eyebrows resembled smears of black tar, not unlike Groucho Marx, and I had to blink to get rid of that image. He grinned at me and shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts. Fifty degrees outside, and he wore baggy cargo shorts and flip-flops.

The other boy had dark brown skin and eyes. I didn’t recognize his lightly bearded face, but I’d have bet money he’d been one of the robed figures in the basement—the one who had shifted to a gaseous form and fled when the eagle attacked. He’d left his clothes behind when he’d shifted form, and a cold breeze made him shiver as gooseflesh rose over his skin.

“Introductions first, I think.” Lorelei gestured at the young men at her sides. “This is Grant and Jerome,” she gestured at flip-flops and naked guy. “The lovely actress on the floor is Kelly.”

The “injured” girl rolled over in the pool of what we’d assumed was her blood. She stood with more grace than I could have managed in the slippery puddle and curtsied, her long light brown hair falling over her shoulders as she did so. She was young, about sixteen, but there was a glint of superiority in her stare I could see even hidden as they were behind large black-rimmed, fake blood-flecked glasses. Her eyes crossed, and she frowned and took off the glasses. “Damn. Anyone have a wet wipe?”

I did, but I wasn’t going to share it with her.

“Over there is the dedicated Nina,” Lorelei continued.

I followed her gesture and found a woman lying on the floor in the far corner. She was covered with blood as well—also fake—and seemed to be playing dead. Paul, still in Tasmanian tiger form, stood near the body, teeth bared, striped fur standing straight up to make him appear twice his actual size. In animal form, the fake blood wouldn’t have fooled him, so I assumed he was trying to scare the woman. Good.

Lorelei frowned. “Paul, leave her alone. Nina, it’s all right, he won’t hurt you. He’s just being a poor sport.”

The woman twitched, then sat up, her attention locked on the snarling animal. Her short brown hair stuck to her forehead, glued by the fake blood. Green eyes darted to Lorelei before returning to the animal, and she got to her feet like someone rising to stand on a balance beam.

“Paul, stop scaring her. This is your final warning.” Lorelei’s eyes flashed crimson.

The beast’s throat parted, revealing Paul’s human face. Nina squeaked as Paul pulled the animal skin off him and stood before her with an expression somewhere between a smirk and a leer.

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