Free Blood of Retribution by Bonnie Lamer Page A

ground.  He just lays there panting.
     
    “Are you okay?” I ask.
     
    His eyes roll in my direction.  “You…” he rasps, “are a horrible Witch.”
     
    I’m not sure how to take that.  Does he mean that I’m a Witch with the w replaced with a b, or does he mean my Witch magic sucks?  Eh, I don’t really care.  I’d probably think I was horrible too if I was in his place.  I watch his chest heave for a minute and a curious feeling washes over me.  A need to comfort him seeps into me even though I still think he’s a pain in the ass.  I bend down and pick him up.
     
    “I am not a pansy,” he mutters.  “I do not need to be carried.”  Despite his words, he burrows himself into my arms and closes his eyes.  Yeah, he’s a little tough guy alright.
     
    “Come on, Taz,” I say softly, “let’s go home.”  Before we go, I watch the black smoke float downward and disappear into the earth, rendered harmless once again.  With a blink, I teleport us back to the house.
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 10
     
    I pop into our bedroom and I’m startled to find Kallen on the bed.  “Hey,” I say, laying Taz on one of the chairs on the other side of the room.  He curls up into a ball and his eyes close.  He’s asleep immediately.  “How’s Alita?”
     
    “Fine, no thanks to you,” comes a snarky voice from the bed.
     
    I turn around to find my husband propped up on the pillows with his hands behind his head, malevolent mask on his face.  Uh oh.  “Um, are you okay?”
     
    Kallen’s eyes narrow.  “Just fine.”
     
    “You don’t seem fine,” I say, moving closer to the bed.
     
    “Don’t,” he says coldly.
     
    I stop moving.  “Don’t what?”
     
    “Don’t come near me.  I do not want you to contaminate me with whatever it is you have inside of you this time.”
     
    Okay, that hurt my feelings.  But this isn’t Kallen.  Well, it is, but it must be Kallen hyped up on darkness.  I hope.  I start to edge closer again.  If I can get close enough to touch him, I can fix this.
     
    Kallen sits up and with a nasty expression on his face that rivals those he gave me when we first met, he growls, “I said, do not come near me.”  He gets off the bed with a sense of purpose that scares me.  He really doesn’t want me near him.  “My life has been nothing but worry and pain since I met you.  I am done with it.”
     
    My mouth drops open and my heart skips several beats.  “Kallen…”
     
    “Stop, I do not want to hear your excuses.  Nor do I want you.”  With that, he dissolves into his raven form and with a last look of his now beady little eyes, he flies away.
     
    “Nice husband you got there.  You sure know how to pick ‘em,” a tired voice says from the chair behind me.
     
    “Shut up,” I say quietly, still staring at the doorway to the balcony that Kallen used for his escape.  Tears are starting to fall on my cheeks like cheese from a grater.
     
    In a softer voice, Taz says, “Eh, he’ll be back.”  After a pause, he says, “Probably.”
     
    I spin around and glare at him.  “You are not helping.”
     
    His little shoulders shrug.  “Just trying to keep it real.”
     
    “How about if you just keep it silent,” I snap through my hurt and frustration.
     
    “Geez, last time I try to make you feel better,” he grumbles.
     
    “Good.”  I have to get out of here.  I would go after Kallen, but I know I’d never be able to find him.  So where can I go?  I have no idea.  Sadly, I don’t know this realm well enough to know where to go.  Regardless, I have to get out of this house.  “I’m going for a walk,” I tell Taz, expecting him to stay put.
     
    He surprises me by getting off the chair and ambling my way.  “Wait up,” he says.
     
    “You don’t have to come with me,” I say, not wanting him to come.  I’m pretty sure that was in my voice.  But, he keeps walking, my disinterest in his