Free Grimm: The Killing Time by Tim Waggoner Page B

duplicated Nick Burkhardt hadn’t been able to copy his badge, or his gun, for that matter. Since he had nothing to prove he was a cop, he supposed he’d have to let attitude do the work for him.
    “Who says I can’t be both?” the Weschselbalg said, smiling.
    The male Skalengeck remained in Wesen form the entire time, and although he’d retreated when the Wechselbalg had first advanced, he found his courage now. He hissed loudly and hurled the can of spray paint he’d been holding at the Wechselbalg. Skalengecken were stronger than humans, and the can was a blur as it hurtled toward the Wechselbalg. Without being consciously aware of it, the Wechselbalg’s hand reached out and plucked the can out of the air as easily as taking low-hanging fruit from a tree. He held the can for a moment, enjoying the expressions of disbelief on the teens’ faces. Then he drew his arm back and with a single swift motion, hurled the can back at the male Skalengeck. It flew through the air and struck the boy directly between the eyes. Nick’s memories informed the Wechselbalg that Skalengecken were highly resistant to pain, but that didn’t make them invulnerable. They could still be hurt, regardless of whether or not they felt it.
    The can made a satisfyingly solid
thunk
as it connected with the Skalengeck’s lizardish hide. The impact knocked the boy off his feet, and he hit the ground hard. The spray can bounced off his head, ricocheted off the wall, and clattered to the ground, spinning several times before coming to a stop. The male Skalengeck resumed his human form and groaned, but he made no move to get up.
    The female looked horrified at seeing her companion brought down so easily, and the Wechselbalg sensed that she was fighting an inner battle as she tried to decide between fight or flight. In the end, it wouldn’t matter which she chose because the Wechselbalg had no intention of allowing her to escape. But he was curious to see which way she would jump.
    Fight won out. She spun to face the Wechselbalg, returning to her Skalengeck aspect as she did so. She still held onto her can of paint, and she raised it, stepped forward, aimed at his face, and pressed the nozzle. The Wechselbalg was impressed by the way the girl was using the only weapon available to her. But he was a Grimm—more or less—and he wasn’t about to let himself fall for such a simple trick. Just as paint began to shoot from the nozzle, he slapped the girl’s hand aside, and the blow caused her to lose her grip on the can. It hit the wall and bounced to the ground.
    The girl didn’t wait for the Wechselbalg to make the next move. Snarling, she slashed at him with one of her clawed hands. The Wechselbalg pulled in his stomach just in time to avoid getting gutted. When the Skalengeck was off balance, he stepped forward, grabbed hold of her shoulders, and slammed her against the wall as hard as he could. Her back struck the brick where she and the male had been painting, and her head hit the spot where they’d rendered the lizard’s head. Breath gusted out of her lungs and she went limp. If the Wechselbalg hadn’t still been holding her against the wall, she would’ve slumped to the ground. She returned to her human appearance, the change occurring more slowly than normal, as if her body wasn’t functioning properly. He noticed a dark smear in the middle of the painted lizard’s green head. At first he thought the girl’s hair had smeared the paint, but then he realized that what he was looking at was blood.
    It gave him a wonderful idea.
    He placed his hand over her face, gripped her with his fingers, and then began pounding the back of her head against the brick. When he finally let go of the girl, her Grimm graffiti was almost completely obscured by blood and brain matter. The female Skalengeck’s body fell to the ground, and the Wechselbalg immediately forgot about her. She was no longer a threat, and therefore no longer important.
    He turned