work—Grey House unless I miss my guess."
"Difik," I muttered. Teeg laughed.
"Now, we're going down the side of this mountain," Teeg informed me after his mirthful episode had passed. "You're going to turn and carry me."
Staring at Teeg in horror, I huddled against the cave wall at my back. He must have learned of my Thifilatha from my records. If I turned Thifilatha, my clothing would be burned away. If I undressed first, I'd be naked and freezing.
"I know you're still recovering, baby, but this is important. You'll only be cold for a few ticks, I promise. I think the heat from your Thifilatha will melt snow as we go down. I'll carry your clothing—you know your heat won't harm anything that you will it not to harm. That means me, in case you haven't figured that out. Remember, I hold Gavril. If I don't come back, Gavril doesn't live either." Teeg knew I could turn and he was threatening Gavril again. I stalled a little.
"Teeg, the sun is too bright—my eyes are watering just from looking at it from here."
"I have this," he drew out a wide, loosely woven black cloth. "I'll tie it around your eyes when you kneel down after the change. You can see through this and it'll protect your eyes while we travel."
"You've thought of everything," I muttered sarcastically.
"That's how I stay alive," Teeg countered. "Take off your clothes, Reah. Let's get started."
Undressing in subfreezing temperatures was certainly topping my list of things I never wanted to do again. I think my skin was blue in the time it took to remove my top and pants and I was moving as quickly as I could. "Hurry, baby," Teeg urged. He didn't need to, I was already hurrying as fast as possible. I had to step outside the cave to turn, otherwise I would have destroyed it when the change came. At least the cold no longer hurt me when I changed, rising to eighteen hands tall in the bright morning sunlight upon a snow covered mountain.
"Kneel down!" Teeg was shouting as I attempted to shade my eyes against the glare. I realized eventually that he was shouting at me—the wind was telling me things as I listened to it. I had to huddle in melting snow while Teeg tied the blindfold around my eyes. It was just as he'd said—I could see through the loose weave of the cloth and it did make the brightness bearable. Lifting Teeg afterward, we strode down the mountain as snow sizzled and melted around each step I took.
"Hurry, baby." I was shivering again while trying to dress damp skin in tight leather. It wasn't going very well. We stood on what looked to be a back porch area behind the compound—a concrete deck with a short concrete wall around it and a low, overhanging ceiling. I'd had to stop outside it and turn, forcing Teeg to haul me over a snow bank and onto the concrete floor. Teeg had to help dress me; my fingers were freezing after five ticks.
Our target didn't expect an attack from this side of the house, and certainly not in the form it came. Who knew if they even suspected High Demons were real? Jes had thought they were myth. He'd asked me many questions while he'd worked at getting my strength and agility back. Some I'd answered, some I hadn't.
Teeg had an electronic card in his pocket. All he had to do was swipe it around the locked door leading onto the concrete patio and there was a beep before the door opened for us. I knew to be quiet as we walked inside—Teeg held a ranos pistol in his hand as we cautiously made our way through a storage room. He walked ahead of me—barely—as we made our way through the entire compound, room by room, building by building. The compound consisted of a five-sided collection of buildings with a central roof covering all of it. The roof was constructed of reinforced steel and built to withstand the snow that might fall upon it. A slow-melter worked to keep the snow at a manageable level and also provided water for the compound—we found the control box for it and the rest of the compound inside one room in
"Difik," I muttered. Teeg laughed.
"Now, we're going down the side of this mountain," Teeg informed me after his mirthful episode had passed. "You're going to turn and carry me."
Staring at Teeg in horror, I huddled against the cave wall at my back. He must have learned of my Thifilatha from my records. If I turned Thifilatha, my clothing would be burned away. If I undressed first, I'd be naked and freezing.
"I know you're still recovering, baby, but this is important. You'll only be cold for a few ticks, I promise. I think the heat from your Thifilatha will melt snow as we go down. I'll carry your clothing—you know your heat won't harm anything that you will it not to harm. That means me, in case you haven't figured that out. Remember, I hold Gavril. If I don't come back, Gavril doesn't live either." Teeg knew I could turn and he was threatening Gavril again. I stalled a little.
"Teeg, the sun is too bright—my eyes are watering just from looking at it from here."
"I have this," he drew out a wide, loosely woven black cloth. "I'll tie it around your eyes when you kneel down after the change. You can see through this and it'll protect your eyes while we travel."
"You've thought of everything," I muttered sarcastically.
"That's how I stay alive," Teeg countered. "Take off your clothes, Reah. Let's get started."
Undressing in subfreezing temperatures was certainly topping my list of things I never wanted to do again. I think my skin was blue in the time it took to remove my top and pants and I was moving as quickly as I could. "Hurry, baby," Teeg urged. He didn't need to, I was already hurrying as fast as possible. I had to step outside the cave to turn, otherwise I would have destroyed it when the change came. At least the cold no longer hurt me when I changed, rising to eighteen hands tall in the bright morning sunlight upon a snow covered mountain.
"Kneel down!" Teeg was shouting as I attempted to shade my eyes against the glare. I realized eventually that he was shouting at me—the wind was telling me things as I listened to it. I had to huddle in melting snow while Teeg tied the blindfold around my eyes. It was just as he'd said—I could see through the loose weave of the cloth and it did make the brightness bearable. Lifting Teeg afterward, we strode down the mountain as snow sizzled and melted around each step I took.
"Hurry, baby." I was shivering again while trying to dress damp skin in tight leather. It wasn't going very well. We stood on what looked to be a back porch area behind the compound—a concrete deck with a short concrete wall around it and a low, overhanging ceiling. I'd had to stop outside it and turn, forcing Teeg to haul me over a snow bank and onto the concrete floor. Teeg had to help dress me; my fingers were freezing after five ticks.
Our target didn't expect an attack from this side of the house, and certainly not in the form it came. Who knew if they even suspected High Demons were real? Jes had thought they were myth. He'd asked me many questions while he'd worked at getting my strength and agility back. Some I'd answered, some I hadn't.
Teeg had an electronic card in his pocket. All he had to do was swipe it around the locked door leading onto the concrete patio and there was a beep before the door opened for us. I knew to be quiet as we walked inside—Teeg held a ranos pistol in his hand as we cautiously made our way through a storage room. He walked ahead of me—barely—as we made our way through the entire compound, room by room, building by building. The compound consisted of a five-sided collection of buildings with a central roof covering all of it. The roof was constructed of reinforced steel and built to withstand the snow that might fall upon it. A slow-melter worked to keep the snow at a manageable level and also provided water for the compound—we found the control box for it and the rest of the compound inside one room in
Similar Books
