Free Never by K. D. Mcentire Page A

but it could have been her imagination.
    “All that…crap will kill her,” Wendy retorted, deciding to not touch the Piotr point, annoyed that Jon, ever the peacekeeper, was stubbornly refusing to rise to the bait. He knew her too well, damn it.
    “Well, apparently in this family dying really isn't such a downer,” Jon said levelly, rubbing his eyes. “Besides,” he added in a quieter tone, “you've spent years be-bopping around town hanging out with the dead. That's healthy?”
    “Shut up, you two! Chel's actually getting info off Annabelle,” Eddie said suddenly, leaning his face as close to the window as he could without sliding through the glass and exposing himself to the Reapers. “Can anyone hear what they're saying?”
    They all strained in silence. Nothing.
    “So, who is this chick?” Wendy asked, leaning over Piotr's lap to peer out the side window. She felt him still beneath her, his hand briefly brushing her thigh and hesitating against her hip before settling on her lower back where her corset rode up.
    “Cousin of a cousin or something,” Eddie replied dismissively, sitting back and flicking a glance at Piotr's hand with a tiny frown. He reached over and patted her shoulder familiarly, fingertips resting at the nape of her neck.
    “You don't know for sure?” Annoyed with their subtle pawing, Wendy shrugged both of them off.
    “I didn't bother tracking who was related to who after a few days,” Eddie said. “There are just too many of you. It's all a big hive, really, with a Nana Moses queening it up at center stage.” Wendy didn't miss the momentary smirk Eddie shot Piotr when he thought she wasn't looking. She sighed inwardly. Now wasn't the time.
    Behind them the ambulance pulled away, the headlights washing across the car and illuminating the interior. Jon ducked.
    “With Emma out of the picture, even temporarily, it's all a crazy show now,” Elle murmured, fists still clenching and loosening in her lap. Lily patted her shoulder and Elle shrugged her hand away, disdainful of the offered comfort. “We have no idea if even one of them other than her and Nana Moses is going to be on our side. Bunch of loose cannons. That's just fabulous.”
    “Heads up, Chel's done,” Jon said sharply, straightening in his seat. “She's got company.”
    Behind them, Elise stood at the top of the driveway, outlined by the light pouring from the opening garage, pointing and shouting, gesturing wildly at their car. The women on the lawn were turning in their direction. Annabelle's hand was at her chest; the edges of her body were beginning to glow.
    Elle turned in her seat. “What's happ—”
    As Chel yanked the passenger side door open, one of the nearest Reapers, a middle-aged woman with a no-nonsense haircut, grabbed her by the ponytail and pulled hard.
    “CHEL!” Jon yelled reaching for his buckle.
    “Don't you dare!” Wendy snapped at her brother. “Give her a sec! She might be able to twist free!” She turned to Piotr, hissing, “IfChel can't get free on her own you need to do something! Poke that bitch in the brain! Please, Piotr? Please!”
    “We need to help her now !” Eddie cried, trying to crawl over Elle to help Chel. Elle and Lily both grabbed him by the arms and pinned him down.
    “Living against the living!” Elle shouted in his ear as Eddie fought and bucked. “You can't do anything against Reapers, you dumbo! They'll burn you up!”
    The Reaper was persistent. Chel managed to half-claw her way into the passenger side seat.
    “NOW!” Wendy demanded and Piotr nodded once before he shoved past the tangled, struggling mass of Eddie and the girls. Careful to avoid Chel's wild punches, Piotr leaned between the two front seats.
    The middle-aged Reaper was paying no attention to the ghosts; Chel was flailing like a dervish, all arms and elbows and nails made worse for the close quarters, and the Reaper, half-sprawled over Chel's hip and back, had her hands full just keeping a hold