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Chapter Eighteen
Skylar
My lips felt like they were on fire in a good way. As I made my way to Sherry, I couldn’t shake the taste of my kiss with Elias. It was one of those toe-curling, sensual kisses that sends shivers to all the right places.
What was wrong with me?
He was a demon, after all.
And so are you.
I sent the thought to the back of my mind. I didn’t have time for self-reflection on all that right now. Maybe I was a half demon. Maybe I wasn’t. Maybe it was all some trick to get me to play into their hands. I wasn’t sure what the goal was, but it seemed like something a demon would do based on all the stories I’d heard.
“How is he?” I asked, pushing all my inner turmoil away. Now wasn’t the time.
“He’s awake,” Sherry said as she held the door open. “We’re past the worst of it. He should live but he needs to rest here overnight. He needs to fully heal to regain his strength. Right now, he can’t shift.”
Relief swept through me. Not being able to shift was a nightmare for a shifter, but it was temporary. He’d recover. “Thank you.”
“He wants to talk to you.” Her eyes left me and looked past me. “Alone.”
I didn’t need to look back to know that Elias was behind me.
“Should I wait out here with yourfriend?” Sherry asked.
I tensed, knowing she’d seen the kiss. I didn’t even know what that kiss meant yet and I sure as hell couldn’t explain it to anyone else. “Yeah, thanks.”
Sherry nodded and stepped out of her home. I entered and walked to the kitchen infirmary where Xander was sitting up on the table.
My shoulders dropped and I let out a long breath. “Thank the gods you’re alive.”
He chuckled. “I hear it was your blade that almost did me in.”
“Yes, but I didn’t stab you, so there’s that,” I said.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” he said. “I couldn’t see anything in that fog. I was worried something happened to you.”
“You were worried about me while you were dying?” I asked.
“Maybe I like you,” he said.
“You don’t even know me,” I said. “I thought you didn’t like hunters.”
“I know you enough,” he said. “You were my sister’s best friend and she was an impeccable judge of character.” He looked down and swallowed hard.
I could tell he was struggling and the loss was weighing heavily on him. He hadn’t shown me that before. He’d seemed almost detached when we first met. I figured it was because they’d spent so much time apart. Maybe it was. Or maybe he was afraid to show his feelings.
I moved closer to him and set my hand on his. “You don’t have to be an alpha in front of me. I won’t tell.”
He looked up at me. “I haven’t told the pack she’s gone yet.”
“Thank you. I know this is hard for you,” I said. “I promise, if you give me until the end of the day, I will find her killer.”
I had to, or I was headed to jail. Best case, I ended up on the bounty list I used to hunt from. And trust me, you did not want to be a hunter on that list. When a hunter’s name popped up all rules were thrown out. Nobody gave you the standard week to hunt down your claimed mark without competition. All the hunters went for you. It was a challenge, a badge of honor. You were seen as a traitor and every hunter wanted a piece of you.
I’d seen it happen twice.
Both times, the hunters on the list didn’t make it back alive.
