Free Shadow Borne by Angie West Page B

as this one had been. My
blood ran cold; if that was truly the case, then we were all
screwed.
    I wiped the droplets of blood across my
pants before I realized what I was doing and grimaced at the dark
black smear the Coatyl blood left on the fabric. I sheathed the
knife and made a mental note to grab another pair of pants before I
left. Because no way in hell was I sleeping in the cabin tonight. I
exhaled and, hands on my hips, regarded the dead Coatyl now hanging
from the wall like a bleached, limp rag.
    I reached forward and grasped the shaft of
the arrow with both hands, braced one foot on the wall next to the
creature, twisted a little this way and that to create some give,
and applied steady backward pressure until I'd pulled enough to
free the arrow from his body. It was coated in the same black
sludge that dripped all over the carpet, that smeared across my
pants.
    I wiped the arrow clean with an oilcloth
from the kitchen and returned it to its rightful place in the
quiver before turning my attention to the body on the floor below
the window. Leaving him here wasn't an option. I was beginning to
make rapid mental connections now. Mark and the others would want
to study the thing, especially the head and brain, I realized, my
stomach clenching, because things didn't just change like that.
    Even small changes to a
species took hundreds of years to become really noticeable.
Something like–I glanced down at the lifeless
Coatyl–t his , was
not possible on its own, let alone in a matter of, what, three
months?
    No, the Coatyl had been altered somehow. I
took a deep breath and marched across the kitchen to grab a trash
bag and a thick burlap sack from my small pantry. I could only hope
this was the only one that had been messed with. It was a cold and
fleeting comfort. If this one had been changed, altered somehow,
then it stood to reason others would follow.
    The Coatyl wasn't heavy but it was awkward
and sticky and I kept half expecting it to rise from the dead or
something, for its eyes to pop open and zero in on me. It didn't,
although after everything that had transpired this evening, I
seriously doubted it would surprise me if the thing magically woke
up and danced a jig in the middle of the living room.
    So even though I felt a little silly for
doing it, I darted back into the small utility pantry off the tiny
kitchen and grabbed a hard coil of twine and a pair of wire
cutters, knelt beside the Coatyl and secured both his arms and legs
before placing him into the bag. It took quite a bit of maneuvering
and by the time I'd tied the string on the burlap I was grateful
I'd skipped dinner that evening.
    If there had been anything in my stomach, I
just might have lost it all over the kitchen floor. I was a mess;
the entire front of my clothes was black and goopy and worse, my
clothing was thin so it was also sticking to my skin.
    Well, there was no help for it. I would just
have to change clothes and clean up a little before going outside
and jumping the fence. I thought I glimpsed a slight movement out
the window then and went for my knife, just in case. Maybe taking
the time to change in the house wasn't the best idea, under the
circumstances. Maybe I'd be better off grabbing an extra outfit,
the jug of river water I kept in the bathroom, and a rag. I could
hop the fence and clean up outside once I was safe and sound on the
protected side of the fence.
    I'd retrieved the clothes,
water and a blanket, and was in the process of hefting the burlap
sack over one shoulder when the faint rustling sound came from the
door. Dropping the sack and the jug, I immediately went into a
defensive crouch as, with a pop and a click, the knob turned and
the door was flung open. No, no not another one. A tall dark shape filled the
doorway and with deadly aim and a flick of the wrist, I let the
knife fly.

Chapter Five
    Nightmare
     
    "Aranu!" I screamed an instant after I'd
already thrown the knife. There was nothing to do but watch