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I moved the light away from the creature slowly so as not to startle it and clicked the off switch. Returned to darkness, the snallygaster curled its facial tentacles in and deposited the goose into its mouth.
“That coat will be mine,” I whispered as I took a step forward.
I tucked the flashlight into my bag and felt around for the perfect scroll.
Loud footfalls approached from the side. Something heavy, clumsy, and fast was headed this way.
Silas appeared. He yelled and dove at the monster’s face, machete in hand. Had he not read any of the required research material before this mission?
“No,” I cried.“Wait!”
The blade bounced off the monster’s scales. Then it was the snallygaster’s turn. It grabbed Silas by the torso with sharp, dinosaur-like claws. He cried out in pain.
I found the scroll and focused my intention on the beast’s tail, as far as possible from the beautiful idiot in its gasp. Fire burst across the snallygaster’s tail, carried up its scales, and lit its wings.
The beast screeched and dropped Silas. It flailed and dropped to the ground in an attempt to put out the flames.
“Stop, drop, and roll is universal, huh, deadmeat?” Silas burst to his feet.
“Dibs on the jacket,” I said.
“I killed it.” Silas pulled the somehow-undamaged jacket off the beast. “I think I’ll take the jacket for myself.”
“You’d be dead without me.”
He shrugged the jacket on. His dark eyes lit with devious amusement. “Matches my hair.”
“The snallygaster matches your wits, you insufferable snot. Perhaps next time I’ll let you be devoured.”
“Is that what you think?” He approached, the pleased scowl on his face transforming into an entirely new expression—one of heat, one of desire.
He grabbed my cheeks and pulled me flush against his chest. He kissed me so hard I thought I might crack.
No, no, no.
Yes, we’d defeated the monster and Silas stole my coat. But, there was no kiss. There was nothing but contempt between us.
This was wrong.
A strange,wet, tickling sensation pulled me from my dream. My eyes remained closed, but I remembered where I was—in Inorog, resting in a hostel cubby.
Why was my foot wet? I flexed my toes and stirred the rest of the way awake.
A beady set of eyes stared through the open curtain at me. A man was kneeling there, his tongue lapping between my toes.
I screamed, panicked realization striking. AndIstruckhimsquare in the face with my heel.
His nose crunched upon impact like a beer can on a frat boy’s forehead.
Adrenaline shot through my veins. Fire rippled across my skin, searing my dress, searing the man’s face.
He cried, and gurgled, and squealed. He fell back and patted his face with his hands and ran out the door.
I took a breath, calmed my racing heart, remembering what Ambrose had told me about control.
My assailant was gone, and as gross as his assault had been, I felt pretty awesome about my reaction to it. I was the one coming out on top, just as I was meant to do.
I wasn’t just fine. I was a powerful woman and total boss.
