move.”
If she ran, she was done for.
Carefully, he reached inside his jacket pocket and withdrew his cell. A quick swipe over the screen dialed the most frequent number and a second later a chirpy female voice filled his ear.
“Paranormal Protection Agency. How may I he—”
“It’s Rat.” He tightened his grip on Coffee Girl’s wrist as she moved, her growing fear tainting the air. “Tell the boss lady I got a Reem down at Frankie’s Coffee Shop. I need Cal and Gran here, like yesterday, and put a call into the animal control unit.”
Confusion colored the woman’s voice. “A Reem? What the hell is a Reem?”
He hissed through his teeth, feeling his horns ache on his forehead. Crap, he just had to get the newbie on the switchboard, didn’t he?
“A unicorn, lady,” he hissed, his voice nowhere near human. “I’ve got a juvenile unicorn down here.”
“Awwwww…how cute!” Coffee Girl exclaimed as the unicorn chose just that moment to sidle out of the darkness. It was small, with a glowing white coat and a mane that needed its own shampoo commercial. She made to move forward but he had a death grip on her arm.
“How do you know it’s a juvenile?” the girl on the phone wanted to know.
Rat’s control on his temper slipped a little. “Because it’s not tried to eat my fucking face yet. Just get Cal and his brother down here. Now.”
Clicking the phone off, he slid it back in his pocket and stood in one movement, pulling Coffee Girl up with him. Still cooing at the creature in front of them, she tried to shrug off his grip but he pulled her in tight. Lover tight. She was human and so far under the unicorn’s glamour, she only saw what it wanted her to see: the small, cute, defenseless creature.
Glamour didn’t work on either demons or pixies. Which meant Rat saw the white coat was splattered with blood and the lips curled back to reveal, not the flat teeth of a herbivore, but sharp, pointed teeth designed for tearing flesh. The teeth of a carnivore.
Equus Ferus Reem , known in mythology as the unicorn. As often happened though, mythology had gotten it wrong. Unicorns weren’t all sweetness, light and fluffy. They were vicious fuckers always looking for their next meal.
Their food of choice? There was a reason for the virgin thing. Male or female, it didn’t matter which. Like demons, unicorns were fascinated by innocence and the only human who had a chance of surviving an encounter with a unicorn was a virgin. Done the down and dirty? You were a goner quicker than you could say fuck.
By that reckoning, Rat had been done for a couple centuries ago.
“Can you dance?” he asked quietly. “Or sing? We need to distract it.”
But not by running. Even a virgin would become a meal that way, the unicorn’s predatory instincts taking over like a shot. Dead virgin running.
Slowly, she nodded. Her eyes were wide, gaze riveted on the unicorn in front of them. His continued touch started to negate the creature’s glamor and she could see it for what it was. He felt her heart hammering in her chest where she pressed under his arm.
“Slowly then,” he advised, taking a half step back and away, but keeping his hand lightly on the back of her neck.
If he let go, the glamor would reassert itself, and she’d run forward into the creature’s embrace. From there, it was anyone’s guess what would happen. Beguiled and enraptured, the creature probably wouldn’t hurt her. Probably. There was no definite when dealing with a juvenile unicorn. An adult—and they were always male—would have been a different matter. They were more interested in fucking virgins than eating them, unless it was in a fun way.
She started to sway. Graceful, delicate movements that drew the interest of the unicorn. Unleashing a little of the power within him, he started to hum softly. A melody she picked up and wove within her dance. Despite himself, he smiled.
They might just get out of this alive…
***
A
Barbara Corcoran, Bruce Littlefield
Margaret Coel
Abigail Stone
Chrissy Peebles
Elizabeth Rose
Herta Müller
Andrea Smith
John Inman
Simone St. James
Dan Gutman