Nine Lives: Providence Paranormal College Book Nine by Perry D.R

Author:Perry, D.R.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: LMBPN Publishing
Published: 2021-07-22T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Tony

Olivia’s laugh sounded like the bells at the little chapel I used to go to with Dad before he got tired of pretending at his religion. I’d hidden there many times, once I learned to shift, pretending to be some kind of church cat. Whenever I needed to get out of the path of one of Dad’s rages, it’d been my haven, the only place I felt safe. But there was something else in Olivia’s laugh besides comfort and a sense of safety.

She bent my heart like a prism bends light, transforming it in ways even a shifter like me wasn’t accustomed to. I couldn’t handle something that intense, so I stood and turned, facing away from her to gaze out at the dark western horizon. I realized I’d avoided asking her direct questions ever since she’d gotten there. After Olivia had laughed, that didn’t feel right anymore.

I’d spent most of my life either looking over my shoulder or wondering when the other shoe would drop. I barely ever looked ahead. For me, nothing was a “glass half-full or half-empty” proposition. I’m the kind of guy who wonders whether the liquid is water or sulfuric acid. It sounds Emo, but Olivia Adler’s laughter broke my feelings into pieces and refracted from them until I feared what they might become. I did the only thing I could in that situation.

I turned around and cleared my throat.

“Hmm?” Olivia tilted her head, peering up at me. Her silvery-white hair tumbled around her bare shoulders. Maybe it was just my weird opinion, but no other woman I knew could look like she’d been in a salon instead of dragging my mangy carcass out of a Grim’s den.

“So, we’ve got to get to the king’s hunting lodge?” Being able to just flat-out ask a simple question felt like drinking ice water on a midsummer day.

“Yeah.” Olivia nodded. “At least, I have to. You don’t.”

“But I will.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “You’ve got an honest-to-goodness Quest, like one of the king’s knights. So, you should also have someone helping you.”

“The king sent Gee to help me.” Olivia fixed me with a defiant stare.

“Well, he’s sidelined.” I stared right back. “You’re stuck with the not-really-dead guy.”

“I can live with that.” Olivia blinked, breaking the stare and my challenge of her reluctance to accept my help. She stood up and brushed black sand off her dress. “We have no idea where the hunting lodge is, so I’ll shift to owl form and scout it out. After that, I’ll get back in this form, and you can turn into a cat. It’s easier to carry you that way.”

“Okay. Sounds like a solid plan.” I nodded. Olivia wouldn’t be able to fly any distance dragging me along while I was this size.

“Um, would you mind turning around?” A delicate shade of pink touched her cheekbones as she lifted an empty satchel off her shoulder.

“Oh!” My face heated despite the cool breeze. She’d have to take her clothes off to shift.

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