Free Centaur Legacy by Nancy Straight

of my sight.”
    The old woman’s skepticism shone while
she addressed me, “Miss Camille, our customs do not permit an unwed
Centauride and Centaur in the same sleeping quarters.”
    I tried to mask my exhaustion, “We
don’t want to be disrespectful of your home. Thank you for your
kindness. We will find our way back to town.” I absently reached
down and took Drake’s hand in mine.
    Her eyes moved to our intertwined
hands, another obvious disregard for customs on my part. Clearly
frustrated with my answer, “I told you, you both fall under my
house’s protection tonight. You will be perfectly safe
here.”
    Drake’s voice was gentle, “Ma’am, she
has been through a lot. I won’t leave her alone. Even just across
the hall is too far for me to be sure of her safety.”
    Her brows furrowed and her lips pursed
together tightly. She guffawed and asked the question she already
knew the answer to, “No funny business?”
    Without hesitation, Drake answered, “On
my honor as her Centaur.”
    “Very well. It seems this arrangement
has her father’s blessing. Who am I to stand in the way?” She held
open the door closest to us and motioned for us to go inside, then
closed it behind us.
    I had so many questions, like: How did
Drake know they were Centaurs? How did we get the jump on the
Centaurs who were both so much larger than we were? Could we trust
the old woman? Why didn’t she give us her name or introduce us to
her sons?
    I turned around, ready to ask him all
these questions and more when he whispered, “Where did you learn to
fight like that?”
    I pushed on both his shoulders, trying
not to laugh, “I went to public school in Oceanside, Drake.” I
softly punched him in the shoulder, “We make a pretty good
team.”
    My face buried itself in his chest as
his arms wound around me. I could feel his smile without seeing it.
“I won’t worry about you in a bar brawl, that’s for sure. What
possessed you to try turning the guy into Dumbo?”
    I shook my head, still smiling at how
impressed he’d been with my non-Centauride skills. “Everyone goes
for the groin or the knees in a fight, but thirty-five pounds of
pressure and you can actually rip someone’s ear off. It’s one of
the most sensitive parts of the body.”
    Drake’s hands were running the length
of me. Those familiar shivers set my body ablaze when he whispered,
“You’re so hot when you’re kicking the crap out of
Centaurs.”
    “Funny. So, now that we know my
great-uncle’s dead and there’s no arrow, what do we do next?” I
didn’t mean for it to sound negative, but I hoped he’d have another
idea.
    “I’ll send a text to the pilot tonight.
We’ll leave tomorrow morning.”
    “For where?”
    “You’re the Centauride, Camille. You’re
taking point.”
    “What?”
    “You can’t do any worse than I’ve done.
Sleep on it. Something will come to you.”
    Talk about pressure. I must have stared
at the ceiling for two hours, memorizing a water spot that looked
strikingly similar to Sagittarius. I was becoming far too immersed
in this whole thing. Since Drake was leaving it up to me, we were
going to San Diego. If the U.S. Government couldn’t find two
hundred thousand illegal immigrants there, then there was a good
chance Zandra wouldn’t be able to pinpoint us, either.
    I felt a wave of peace settle over me.
I’d be home soon – my home. No more Centaur rules, Centaurides,
crazy relatives – just awesome Carne Asada burritos, sunshine,
sand, and Drake. After I’d made the decision, sleep found me
quickly.

    *****

    Drake held me tightly while we slept,
his arm making an uncomfortable but welcomed pillow. My eyes opened
to the pre-dawn light streaming in through the window. I felt
Drake’s muscles tense around me as he pulled me closer to him, and
his voice, strong and unyielding, said, “Who the hell are
you?”
    I jerked the rest of the way awake. An
old man sat in a chair just a few feet away from us. He