Moon illusion by Michelle Osgood

Author:Michelle Osgood [Osgood, Michelle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Published: 2018-03-08T21:14:48+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Four |

Nathan had hoped talking with the Huntress would give him something—validation, at least, if not an outright answer. He replayed their conversation over and over, poking at it like an old bruise, even now, hours later.

He hopped off the crowded, sweltering bus a stop early and took the slight detour to the grocery store.

Maybe—and it sucked, deeply sucked, to be even thinking about admitting this, but—maybe she’d been right. Maybe Cole was right. Maybe everyone was right, and Nathan was wrong. Maybe it was just humans and werewolves.

Was that better or worse than having a neighbor brutally murdered in his apartment building for no apparent reason?

Grateful for the grocery store’s air conditioning, Nathan picked up a basket and headed to the produce section. He rounded the corner and almost ran into someone. He stopped just short and apologized instantly.

“Sorry, too much in my own head.” Wasn’t that the truth? “Oh, hey—it’s Emily, right?” He recognized the woman from his building.

“Right.” She nodded. Her strawberry hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and she had a yoga mat rolled up under her arm. Nathan started to move past and continue his shopping, but she grabbed his wrist and he stopped, surprised.

“I wanted to say—I mean, I’m sorry. For screaming. For telling the cops that you—that you—” Her voice hitched; her hazel eyes swelled with tears. “I’m sorry I told them you hurt Jag. They said you didn’t, that you’d just found him first. They said that you were trying to help him. So, I’m sorry that I screamed.” A tear rolled down her cheek, and she hastily wiped it away.

“It’s okay.” Guilt weighed like a stone in his stomach. He’d been so wrapped up in what Jag was, that he hadn’t considered who Jag was. “I’m sure I would have done the same thing, if I saw what you’d seen. Did you, uh, did you know him?”

“Yes.” Another tear trailed down her cheek. “We were friends. We were supposed to go see Hamilton together. Now I’ve got an extra ticket, but I don’t want to take anyone but him.” She looked at him; her eyes pled for some sort of answer.

Shit. “I’m sorry, Emily. That’s really—that sucks,” Nathan finished weakly.

“I hope they find out who did it. I hope they find out soon.” Emily’s voice went fierce; anger darkened her face. “He was a good person and he didn’t deserve that.”

“He didn’t.” Nathan rubbed a hand awkwardly against the back of his neck. “I’m sorry,” he said, again, for lack of anything better to say.

Dammit, maybe Jag was just a regular guy. Maybe this was all in Nathan’s head. “Well, listen, I gotta finish up here, but… I’ll see you around?”

Emily sniffed and nodded. “He was magic, you know,” she said as Nathan started to walk away.

“What?” Nathan’s head whipped back aground. “He was what?”

“Magic. You couldn’t be sad or angry around him. He made you feel good just to be in the same room.”

Nathan’s mind raced. A glamour? Some sort of witchcraft? Sorcery? That would explain why Jag’s killer had taken his hands.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.