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“Ouch!”
I jumped as a tongue of flame licked against my arm. Pulling to the side, I realized that I was next to the shelves holding the old jars of canned food. The narrow aisle between the stacks of junk and the shelves was now covered with burning debris, preventing my escape.
Maybe I could climb the shelves and pull myself up onto the staircase. Dizzy from the smoke, I put my foot on the second shelf and reached up, catching hold of one of the upper shelves. Neither felt very sturdy and the wood wobbled like it could give at any minute.
I was most of the way up and had managed to catch hold of the side of the step above when the wood beneath my foot broke and I found myself hanging by one hand. Desperate, I jostled, trying to swing my feet up to the next shelf. But there was another splintering sound and the next moment, I fell onto the floor, flat on my back. Frustrated and now terrified, I let out a scream. I didn’t want to die like this—not by fire.
The next moment, Fancypants appeared by my side. Startled, I sat up.
“You have to get out of here—you’ll get hurt,” I exclaimed.
“You’re in danger. I’m sorry I wasn’t here earlier,” Fancypants said. “I had to get help.”
“What—help?” I pressed back against the shelves, my head beginning to cloud. My lungs were burning, and I was having trouble keeping my eyes open.
Fancypants said nothing, but the next moment, I heard a hissing all around me. The flames near me sizzled, and it occurred to me that I was getting wet. But before I could figure out what was happening, the world began to spin.
“I can’t bre—” I started to say, but the room faded in and out and everything went black.
CHAPTEREIGHTEEN
“Elphyra? Elphyra, say something!”
The voice slicing through the fog sounded familiar. I tried to open my eyes, but they felt so glued together that I could barely peek through them. My throat was raw and I had a splitting headache. My lungs were so tight that I might as well be wearing a waist-constricting corset.
“What happened?” I asked, prying my eyes open. I winced as the early evening sunlight hit my face.
“Are you all right?” Bran was kneeling beside me. He was disheveled, his hair hanging loose, his shirt covered with soot. He had a bright red mark on his arm that looked like a burn.
“I don’t know…I think so, though my throat feels like it’s on fire.” I looked into Bran’s eyes as he knelt beside me. “How did you know— Fancypants! Where’s Fancypants?”
“Fancypants’s fine. He came to get me and told me that you were in life-threatening danger. I texted Daisy and she said you’d been headed for Darla’s house. She gave me the address and said a call had just come in that the house was on fire. Fancypants vanished and I guess he showed up here, traveling via Sescernaht. He stayed by your side until I managed to get here and carry you out of the basement.” Bran reached down and stroked my hair back. “I want the doctor to examine you.”
I struggled to say I was okay, but was overcome by a coughing fit. But inside, all I could think of was that Fancypants had saved my life. Fancypants and Bran. When I could talk again, I asked, “How long was it before the firefighters arrived?”
“They arrived about five minutes after I did. They’re still fighting the fire. If I hadn’t been able to pull you out of the basement when I did…”
“I would have died,” I said. “How did Fancypants know I was in danger?”
I stopped.The bond.Fancypants had felt my fear and panic through our bond. As I sat there, propped up and leaning against Bran, it dawned on me that Rian was right. I reallywasn’talone anymore. Fancypants was there for me, no matter what.
“Where is he?” I asked, looking around.
“He went back to your house once he knew you were going to be all right.” Bran slid his arm around my shoulders. “Hold still. I’m going to carry you over to the EMTs. They’re experienced in treating those in the Otherkin community.”
“I can walk—” I started to say, but Bran shook his head.
“You twisted your ankle, I think. Don’t you notice the pain?”
I glanced down at my foot and started to turn my ankle. A sharp pain sliced through me. “Damn it! What the hell…Oh, that’s right. I was trying to climb the shelves to get to the stairs when they broke and I fell.” I frowned. “How did you know that I hurt my ankle?”
“When I found you, it was turned in a most disturbing way.” Bran shifted me in his arms.
He smelled like smoke and dirt and sweat, but right now he might as well have smelled like a cinnamon roll on steroids. He had saved me, and all I could think of was that I owed him my life and my gratitude.
I leaned against his shoulder, tired and sore. Everything hurt now that I was conscious. I glanced back at the house, which was still on fire. Darla was standing by her car, a horrified look on her face. She saw Bran carrying me over to the medic unit and hurried over.
“How are you? I was so afraid you weren’t going to make it out.” She fussed over me, but stood back when the paramedics took me from Bran and sat me down.
