Free The Phoenix Charm by Helen Scott Taylor Page A

of t he rock wall with his boot. “Can you hear an echo as though there’s a space behind, lass?”
    Cordelia put her ear to the rock while Michael kicked the wall. She screwed up her nose in frustration, giving a cute little huff. “Don’t know.” She grabbed the stone from his hand and cleared more moss from the base of the wall. Michael squatted beside her.
    Their knees bumped. Her head jerked up. She opened her mouth, then snapped it shut and returned to her task, hugging her knees to her body with her free arm. He remembered her adamant denial that there could be intimacy between them. A plan of seduction had just started forming in his mind when a huge hunk of rock smashed onto the path a few feet away.
    “Shit!” Nightshade and Thorn jumped back. Nightshade slapped at the dirty splatters on his black jeans.
    “Where in the Furies did that come from?” Michael leftCordelia scratching at the rock behind the falls and followed the other two men into the open. He shoved his hands on his hips and stared up at the rock face.
    Movement caught his eye at the exact moment Thorn pointed and shouted: “Look. There’s someone…something at the top of the cliff.”
    A lumbering brown form ducked behind a boulder. A moment later, another missile hurtled down toward them. They scattered, Michael retreating beneath the waterfall, the other men running back up the path.
    More rocks followed in quick succession. Some rolled into the water; some smashed, scattering sharp shards in all directions. Michael turned his back, putting himself between the flying fragments and Cordelia.
    She wrapped her arms around Tamsy and pressed her face against the cat’s fur.
    When the barrage ceased, Michael looked up. “What’s your problem?” he shouted.
    Silence met his enquiry.
    “Right.” He gritted his teeth and beckoned Nightshade. “Get up there and stop the idiot before one of us is hurt.”
    “Can I go with him?” Thorn asked, breathless with excitement.
    “Not unless you’ve sprouted wings in the last few minutes, lad.”
    “Oh.” Thorn looked crestfallen. Nightshade pulled off his coat and shoved it into the young man’s arms. He popped his hat on Thorn’s head, then stepped back where he had room to spread his wings. With a grunt, he thrust up from the ground with his powerful thighs, the draft from his flapping wings making them dip their heads.
    Nightshade ducked and dived between the trees. Then he disappeared behind a rock, and a pitiful wailing filled the air. A few minutes later, the stalker reappeared with a hulking creature suspended by its collar. Their descent was more of a controlled fall than actual flight. From a few feet up,Nightshade dropped the culprit in a heap before landing hard, knees bent, breathing heavily.
    They all stared down at dirty brown hair, a wrinkled face covered with a tangled beard, and a thick dirt-encrusted coat tied at the waist with frayed, greasy string. The creature’s feet were bare, the size of dinner plates, each trimmed with eight stubby toes.
    The instant after Michael had taken in its appearance the stench hit him. He lurched back, a hand to his mouth. “Sweet bejesus.” Bile stung the back of his throat and he swallowed. He drew in clean air to clear his nose.
    Nightshade cursed and plunged his hands into the river, rubbing them vigorously. “If I’ve caught lice from that thing, someone’s going to be sorry.”
    “Why were you throwing rocks at us?” Cordelia asked, stepping up beside Michael.
    The creature’s beady eyes glinted through the filthy mass of hair. “My job,” it squeaked in a surprisingly high voice.
    “What job?” Michael ground out. If any of those rock shards had hit Cordelia’s face, she could have been scarred for life.
    The creature huddled into a tighter ball, covering its head with two grubby hands.
    “You’re all right. He won’t hurt you.” Cordelia laid a hand on Michael’s arm. As if by magic, the anger drained out of