Hour of the Lion (The Wild Hunt Legacy #1) Read Free Page B

her.
    As he disappeared, Vic slid her legs under Lachlan‘s shoulders so she could hold him. ―Hey, kid.‖
    His eyes blinked open, the unfocused gaze slowly clearing. He stared around the living room. ―We got out,‖ he whispered.
    ―Yeah.‖ Vic couldn‘t manage more; her throat had tightened to the point of choking. Even awake, he looked bad. Really bad. ―We‘re safe here. He‘s a nice old man.‖
    ―A human? Vicki—promise you won‘t tell him—tell anyone—about me. Or about shifters.
    Ever.‖ He clutched her hand, the veins in his neck stood out as he tried to sit up.
    ―Okay, fine, I promise. No one would believe me anyway.‖
    ―Thanks. That‘s good. This is good.‖ His voice was so soft she had to lean down to hear him. ―I really, really wanted to die free—not in a cage.‖
    ―I‘d rather you lived, damn it,‖ she gritted out as she brushed the drenched hair out of his face.
    ―I wish.‖ His eyes were very green as he looked up at her. ―My body pretty much shut down yesterday. It‘s a shifter thing; metal‘s bad for us, and that cage...‖ His mouth twisted in remembered pain.
    ―The docs will start IV‘s, give you blood, fluid, food—you‘ll be fine.‖
    ―No. But it‘s okay. I knew it was gonna happen.‖ Regret filled his eyes, and he blinked back tears. ―My grandfather—he‘ll be all alone now. He doesn‘t have anybody but me.‖
    ―Live for him,‖ she urged. So many people had died in her arms, she couldn‘t face another.
    Not this boy—he wasn‘t old enough to die. Her chest felt raw and open.
    ―Not an option.‖ His lips were blue, the color of death. ―You got nobody either?‖
    She shook her head. ―No.‖ A couple friends on the other side of the planet. And Wells—
    could a spymaster be considered family?
    ―Now you will.‖ He gasped in a breath. ―Go to my grandpa, Vicki. In Cold Creek. Tell him what happened to me. Promise?‖
    ―Promise. I‘ll bring him to you in the hospital.‖ Yeah, she‘d find the old man wherever he was. ―But you will be there, you hear me?‖
    His forehead wrinkled. ―How does it go?‖
    ―What?‖
    He rubbed the scrapes on his shoulder. His fingers came away blood-streaked. ―Fire in blood.‖
    Raising his hand, he wiped his tear-streaked cheek. ―Water.‖
    ―Lachlan?‖
    He pursed his lips, puffed on his wet, bloody fingers. ―Air.‖
    ―What are you doing? Lachlan?‖ He didn‘t seem to hear her. Delusional? She‘d seen it before with blood loss.
    He touched her filthy face and smiled at the dirt. ―Earth.‖
    ―Honey, I want you to rest,‖ she urged. Please don"t do this to me—live! For a second, his face blurred into her teammate, gasping her life away, and Vic‘s arms tightened. Oh, please, not again. ―Just concentrate on breathing and—‖
    ―And finally my spirit—that‘s the gift. I remembered it,‖ he told her, pride in his young, young voice. ―C‘mere.‖ He lifted his arm for a hug. She leaned forward and winced as his dirty fingers dug into her mangled, bleeding shoulder.
    A second later, he slid his arm down for a true hug and pulled her close. ―Tell Grandpa I gifted you...and you‘re my gift,‖ he breathed in her ear.
    Her arms closed around him. ―Dammit, you‘ll tell him, Lachlan. You‘ll tell him.‖
    But only silence answered her.
    Gone. He was gone.
    Vic slumped back on the couch. Her cheeks were wet. Even as she scrubbed her face with her hands, she felt more tears spill from her eyes. What was wrong with her? She never cried.
    People died. All the fucking time. She hadn‘t even known this kid. Tears ran down her cheeks, falling like little explosions of her grief onto Lachlan‘s empty face.
    Footsteps heralded the return of the old man. ―I‘ve got—‖ The rest of his sentence was cut short by the wailing of multiple sirens, approaching rapidly. ―I‘ll go wave them in.‖
    Vic could see the emergency vehicle lights through the thin front window drapes. She