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Camille silently fixed two sandwiches. She handed one to me, then walked over and hopped up on the desk, dangling her feet over the edge. Menolly floated up to sit on the top of the ladder by the tree. I glanced at the sparkling ornaments but couldn't bring myself to go near them. Iris's spell must be working. I polished off my dinner without tasting a bite, I was so worn out.
With a glance at Camille, I said, "Let's dive in. I don't know how much longer I can hold out before I fall asleep."
She nodded. "I was thinking the same thing." With a quick look at Trillian, she added, "As much as I want to know what's going on at home right now, we'll start with our trip so that Zachary can take off."
Between the five of us, we filled Chase, Trillian, and Iris in on what had happened. I left out the kiss with Zach, as did everybody else, thankfully, but when I came to my vision of the Autumn Lord in the car, Camille gasped and looked over at Menolly, who merely nodded.
"That clinches it. He's claimed you."
"Would you kindly inform me as to just what a Death Maiden is?" My sandwich had become a lump on its journey to my stomach. I'd better hit the antacids before I slept, or I'd wake up with one hell of a bellyache.
"You aren't going to like it," she said.
"Thank you, Ms. Obvious. I already don't like it, and I don't even know what we're talking about. Just tell me, so I can start dealing with whatever mess I've landed myself in." Testy, I wiped my hands on my napkin and folded my legs into the lotus position, a massive headache threatening to join the fray of aches and pains working their way through my body.
Menolly slowly lowered herself to the floor, her face impassive. But her eyes were bright with blood tears, and I knew that whatever had happened to me, it wasn't good.
"Kitten, the Autumn Lord isn't just any Elemental Lord—he's also one of the Harvestmen. I did a little more research while the five of you were off traipsing through the ether this evening. The Autumn Lord collects souls in his palace, and he's served by a contingent of women called Death Maidens. They're similar to Valkyries, and on Samhain Eve, they harvest the souls he's marked for death."
I felt my breath go shallow, and my pulse began to race. The room shimmered as I began to shift. "Then I'm going to die?"
"No, that's not what I mean!" She rushed over and knelt beside me, taking my hands. "Stay with us, Delilah, don't change—it's not like that!"
I struggled to focus on her words, struggled to keep my form, but the cat magic called me. But this time, something was different. My body felt oddly heavy as I slid into a vortex, the nexus where self met self and exchanged places.
The scent of tropical flowers rose heady and thick. All around me, I could see vines and tendrils and trees that grew so high they obscured the night sky. And I was there, crouched on a tree limb, watching below for prey. Something on the path below caught my attention.
A feral pig wandered along the leaf-strewn trail. As I watched the creature, a hunger rose up in me so great I couldn't resist. I stood, all ten fuzzy pounds of me, but within seconds I shifted again. Now my paws were enormous, jet black and gleaming, and a rush of power raced through my body as I leapt out of the tree to land next to the pig. It let out a squeal and began to run. I gave chase, the exhilaration of the hunt coursing through my blood.
A low growl rumbled out of my throat, and I coiled myself to spring, but then a voice intruded, breaking through the haze that clouded my senses. I tried to shake the noise off, tried to focus on the pig, but the voice was so insistent that I finally turned, intent on showering my frustration on whoever had interrupted me.
There, in the glow of the moonlight, stood a golden puma.
"Delilah, come back to us. You have to come back to us. This isn't you, Delilah, not right now—it's not time. Come back," he said, his voice imperative. I wanted to ignore him, to run after the pig, but I couldn't. The puma smelled like an alpha, and I had to listen. Reluctantly, I began to follow him through the jungle.
As my bloodlust died down, my head began to pound, and I swayed, unable to keep my focus. Where was I? What was happening? I started to call out for help but couldn't get the words out of my mouth. The next thing I knew, everything went swirling into blackness.
* * *
CHAPTER 13
"Great Mother Bast, what the hell happened to me?" I asked, sitting up, not sure if I'd actually shifted form. I remembered something about blood and a pig and…
Iris knelt beside me. When I tried to get to my feet, I lurched, my balance dangerously off. She forced me to slow down, helping me to stand and then move over to the sofa.
I looked around, a frantic feeling rising in my chest. "Zach? Where's Zachary? Is he okay?" Why I was worried, I didn't know, but the fear that something had happened to him was there.
"He's right over there," Iris said as she went bustling out of the room toward the kitchen. At that moment, a large puma came padding out from behind the tree. I swallowed. Hard. It was Zach. He walked over to the sofa, sniffed me, then turned and followed Iris.
Morio followed him. "I'll go with him, just in case he needs any help when he changes back," he said.
Dizzy and unsure just what the hell had happened, I leaned against the seat cushion, rubbing my temples. Chase joined me, his hand on my shoulder, a look of concern filling his face. Grateful for his support, I let him tuck a throw pillow behind my head and closed my eyes as he entwined his fingers with mine, anchoring me to my body. Menolly sat next to him, going so far as to give him a firm nod of approval.
"Here, let's get this on your forehead, my dear." Iris hurried back into the room with a wet cloth in her hand. She pressed it against my brow, and the soothing chill calmed me, clearing my head a little.
"Drink." Camille shoved her water bottle into my hand.
"Finish it off. You're probably dehydrated, and the water will do you good."
