Free Blood From a Silver Cross (Kat Redding) by E.S. Moore Page B

Jeremy turned back to the TV.
    I studied the werewolf for a moment, wondering if he was mad at me. While he’d been the one to initiate conversation, I hadn’t actually given him much in the way of answers. I definitely needed to work harder at including him, though it wasn’t going to happen tonight.
    “Thanks,” I said, heading for the stairs. I wanted out of my wet clothes in the worst way. I could deal with Jeremy in a bit.
    I closed my bedroom door and went about the slow process of peeling out of my leather. Wet leather doesn’t like coming off. At times, it almost felt as if it wasn’t worth it and I should simply lay down in front of a fire for a few hours before trying again.
    Thankfully, the leather wasn’t exactly tight. I preferred motorcycle leathers, the loose kind that are strong enough to save you from scraping yourself too badly if you hit the pavement, but not so tight as to restrict movement, so I was able to get them off before growing too frustrated. I hung them on the edge of the hamper, figuring I’d go down and put them in front of the fire once I was dry and changed.
    I shivered again and decided it would be a good idea to get a warm shower before doing anything else. I wouldn’t get sick from the chill, but it was uncomfortable. The hot water would serve as a quick fix in warming me up through and through.
    I jacked the heat up and stepped inside the cascading water. I closed my eyes and simply let it wash over me. It melted all of the stress away, warming my chilled bones. It felt so good, it took me a moment to realize something was wrong.
    I slammed my hand against the wall before I could fall. Everything was spinning and there was a churning in my gut that made my knees weak.
    I slid down to my knees and fought the urge to retch. I was breathing fast and hard, unable to catch my breath. My body was covered with goose bumps despite the fact the water was almost as hot as it would go.
    Steam blurred my vision and I closed my eyes against a world that refused to sit still. I hitched in a breath and held it, knowing that if I were to try to breathe normally, I’d end up puking all over myself.
    And that’s when the pain hit.
    It came from right behind my ear, where Beligral’s mark was raised. I screamed and collapsed to all fours where I vomited nonstop for at least ten agonizing seconds. The water washed it away almost immediately, but the smell filled my nose and wouldn’t go away. It smelled worse than the stuff Ethan had given me to drink the night before.
    I threw up again.
    I jerked my head back as another wave of pain hit. My skull cracked hard against the side of the tub and my knees bent back the wrong way, but I was past the point of caring. Stars were flashing in my vision and the world did another slow loop that just about had me flat on my back.
    The bathroom door burst open, but I kept my eyes closed. Wave after wave of pure agony shot through my head, blinding me to anything but the pain. I was gagging and shaking so badly, it was like having a seizure.
    The shower curtain was jerked back and I was pretty sure I heard it tear. Someone spoke, but the pain not only blinded me, it had struck me mostly deaf. I doubted I’d have made sense of the words even if I could’ve heard them over the ocean of sound going on within my head.
    A hand took me by the shoulders and gently shook.
    And just like that, the pain was gone.
    My eyes snapped open to find Jeremy leaning into the shower. His hair was soaked. Water ran into his eyes, yet he didn’t seem to care. His one good hand was holding me down, as if he feared I might leap up and rip out his throat.
    “Kat?” he asked. He sounded terrified. “What’s happening?”
    I swallowed back the rush of bile that was still assaulting me. The pain might be gone, but I still felt woozy. “Let me up,” I said. My voice came out gravelly. I probably looked as bad as I sounded.
    Jeremy leaned back, but kept his hand on me. I used his