dryly. “Just do the checks for me, will you?”
“I’ll see what I can do and call you back.”
“Thanks.”
He hung up and stopped at the end of the street. There was no sign of movement to the left or the right. It was as if Kat had disappeared into thin air. But then, someone who could throw him across the road with sheer energy probably had another trick or two up her sleeve.
He sniffed the air, sorting through the odors of the night, and detected the faintest hint of sunshine to his right. He turned that way, but he had barely gone three steps when pain hit him so hard he stumbled.
Kat. In trouble.
He didn’t question his certainty, just ran like hell in her direction.
K AT DUCKED THE ZOMBIE ’ S CLENCHED FIST AND LASHED out with a booted foot. Her blow hit the creature’s knee with a satisfying crack, but if she’d done any damage it certainly didn’t show. The creature swung around, fists a blur. She leaned back and felt the rush of stinking air past her chin. She hit the zombie kinetically, thrusting it backward. It tumbled over a roadside barrier and disappeared from sight.
Two more emerged from the night. She swore softly. Three against one was decidedly unfair. Time for a strategic retreat, perhaps. She reached for her alternate shape, but in that instant, she felt the breeze of a fourth approach. She dove away, but something hit her arm, sliding through her jacket and sweater and deep into her flesh.
White fire burned through her veins and pain engulfed her.
White ash. They had white ash
. Holy hell, she was in trouble now! She gulped down air, fighting the blackness. Ignoring the sweat beading her face, she pivoted, smacking the zombie hard in the nose. Bone crushed and bits of flesh and God knows what else flew, but he didn’t seem to care. He grabbed her foot, twisting hard, and she screamed. Energy bubbled through her and she flung it his way, twisting it around his neck and snapping it taut. He was dead before he knew what hit him. She thrust his limp body into the other two. They went down like bowling pins but just as quickly righted themselves.
She turned and ran. She had no other choice. The white ash pinned her to the one form, and if she didn’t get it out quickly it could very well kill her.
Their footsteps thudded behind her, drawing ever closer. Zombies might be dead, but they weren’t slow. Even without turning, she could feel their fingers reaching for her.
She flung kinetic energy at the nearest tree, ripping free a heavy tree limb and tossing it behind her. Bodies thumped, and the stink of their presence disappeared. She stopped, spun, and hit another one kinetically, breaking its neck. Two down. But her whole body wasshaking, and it wasn’t just a reaction to the white ash in her arm. She was pushing her abilities to the limit. If she wasn’t very careful, she’d have no energy left with which to defend herself.
But she couldn’t run much farther, either. The movements were driving the white ash deeper into her flesh.
The zombies tossed the tree limb aside like so much rubbish. She took a deep breath, raised kinetic energy from God knows where, and hit them both, drawing a tight leash of energy around their necks. She stood her ground as they ran at her, waiting until they were close enough to smell before she snapped the leash tight. They dropped as one at her feet and didn’t move.
She took another shuddering breath, then looked at the warm glow of lights below her. She couldn’t make it that far by herself. Not with the white ash in her arm. But she couldn’t stay here, either. It would be just her luck that the local sheriff would decide to drive by, and she wasn’t up to explaining the bodies of the zombies right now. If the man who’d shared a moment of bliss with her didn’t believe her story, why in hell would a complete stranger?
She continued on down the hill. The white ash burned deep, until it felt as if her whole body was being consumed. She
“I’ll see what I can do and call you back.”
“Thanks.”
He hung up and stopped at the end of the street. There was no sign of movement to the left or the right. It was as if Kat had disappeared into thin air. But then, someone who could throw him across the road with sheer energy probably had another trick or two up her sleeve.
He sniffed the air, sorting through the odors of the night, and detected the faintest hint of sunshine to his right. He turned that way, but he had barely gone three steps when pain hit him so hard he stumbled.
Kat. In trouble.
He didn’t question his certainty, just ran like hell in her direction.
K AT DUCKED THE ZOMBIE ’ S CLENCHED FIST AND LASHED out with a booted foot. Her blow hit the creature’s knee with a satisfying crack, but if she’d done any damage it certainly didn’t show. The creature swung around, fists a blur. She leaned back and felt the rush of stinking air past her chin. She hit the zombie kinetically, thrusting it backward. It tumbled over a roadside barrier and disappeared from sight.
Two more emerged from the night. She swore softly. Three against one was decidedly unfair. Time for a strategic retreat, perhaps. She reached for her alternate shape, but in that instant, she felt the breeze of a fourth approach. She dove away, but something hit her arm, sliding through her jacket and sweater and deep into her flesh.
White fire burned through her veins and pain engulfed her.
White ash. They had white ash
. Holy hell, she was in trouble now! She gulped down air, fighting the blackness. Ignoring the sweat beading her face, she pivoted, smacking the zombie hard in the nose. Bone crushed and bits of flesh and God knows what else flew, but he didn’t seem to care. He grabbed her foot, twisting hard, and she screamed. Energy bubbled through her and she flung it his way, twisting it around his neck and snapping it taut. He was dead before he knew what hit him. She thrust his limp body into the other two. They went down like bowling pins but just as quickly righted themselves.
She turned and ran. She had no other choice. The white ash pinned her to the one form, and if she didn’t get it out quickly it could very well kill her.
Their footsteps thudded behind her, drawing ever closer. Zombies might be dead, but they weren’t slow. Even without turning, she could feel their fingers reaching for her.
She flung kinetic energy at the nearest tree, ripping free a heavy tree limb and tossing it behind her. Bodies thumped, and the stink of their presence disappeared. She stopped, spun, and hit another one kinetically, breaking its neck. Two down. But her whole body wasshaking, and it wasn’t just a reaction to the white ash in her arm. She was pushing her abilities to the limit. If she wasn’t very careful, she’d have no energy left with which to defend herself.
But she couldn’t run much farther, either. The movements were driving the white ash deeper into her flesh.
The zombies tossed the tree limb aside like so much rubbish. She took a deep breath, raised kinetic energy from God knows where, and hit them both, drawing a tight leash of energy around their necks. She stood her ground as they ran at her, waiting until they were close enough to smell before she snapped the leash tight. They dropped as one at her feet and didn’t move.
She took another shuddering breath, then looked at the warm glow of lights below her. She couldn’t make it that far by herself. Not with the white ash in her arm. But she couldn’t stay here, either. It would be just her luck that the local sheriff would decide to drive by, and she wasn’t up to explaining the bodies of the zombies right now. If the man who’d shared a moment of bliss with her didn’t believe her story, why in hell would a complete stranger?
She continued on down the hill. The white ash burned deep, until it felt as if her whole body was being consumed. She
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