Mina, we risked hurting her even more. My heart thudded. I was going to have to get as close to her as possible. I nodded once to Shane and crawled to the edge of the shack.
I reached into the crawlspace. It was slick with mud, and many-legged creatures crawled over my skin as I disturbed them. I bit my lower lip and kept myself from shuddering with willpower alone.
“Mina?” There was no response. I kept talking anyway. “We’re going to get you out, okay? We’re here. We’re going to get you out.” I let my power reach out with my fingers and wrap around her body. She didn’t move.
Shane crouched in front of the shack and laid his palms on the wasted wood. It was so decayed, I feared any attempt to move it would bring the whole thing crashing down. He went slowly, deliberately, and I felt how much it cost him. He reached out with his power and contacted the whole floor of the structure, every rotten board and rusted nail. He was sweating from the effort.
“On three,” he said. I pressed my cheek into the mud and got my head under the shack. I managed to get my fingers around Mina’s arm. Cool to the touch. I shoved down the fear.
“One,” Shane said. I tightened my grip. “Two.” I held my breath. “Three.”
The shack tilted two feet into the air. Wood groaned as the back stilts splintered under the weight. Mina’s small body was curled in a muddy depression in the center. I reached out with my power and my arms and dragged her back with me to safety. An instant later the whole shack collapsed into a mound of broken planks and insect-ridden rot.
She was warm. She was warm. Her limbs were cold but the core of her body was warm.
“Mina? Mina, can you hear me?” Shane pulled his sister into his arms and cradled her, wiping black mud from her face. “Can you reach her?” He looked at me. There was so much pain in his voice it made me choke.
I shook my head, unable to speak. I could still feel the touch of her mind, but it was faint. Her skin was dull and streaked with dirt, marred by angry red scrapes, splinters and insect bites; her hair was matted with mud and detritus. Black sludge was caught in her ears. I tried not to think about that slime working its way into her mouth, her lungs.
Shane closed his eyes and touched his forehead to hers. I didn’t dare tap into the mental connection he was trying to make. He didn’t speak for several long moments.
“We need to get her to a hospital,” I said finally.
“Just another minute.” He didn’t open his eyes. He was still holding Mina close to his chest. His shirt was streaked with blood and dirt.
“Shane,” I said. No response. “ Shane! ” I broke through his focus, startled by the raw fear in his head. “ We need to get her to a doctor. ”
He finally looked at me. “Not a doctor. We need Bunny.”
Chapter Five
The ride back to New Orleans passed in an anxious haze. Shane sat below deck with Mina, still trying to reach her, while I navigated back to the marina, praying we wouldn’t run into the Coast Guard. Fortunately, the dock was still deserted when we returned the cabin cruiser. I patched up Shane’s hot-wiring job with electrical tape while he got Mina into the car. No one was around to see me launch myself over the padlocked gate.
“I spoke to Lionel,” Shane said when I got into the passenger seat. “He’ll meet us at Bunny’s.”
I nodded. I’d been to Bunny’s once before. Her place was a high-end spa during the day, but at night she did other kinds of treatments. The one time I’d come had been right after Shane had shattered his wrist trying to levitate himself down from the third-floor balcony. I’d never seen Lionel so angry. If we’d gone to the emergency room, there would have been pins and surgery, and Shane might never have gotten full use of his arm back. But Bunny wasn’t a doctor. She was a different kind of shadowmind, one of the rarest types, a healer. If anyone could bring Mina back, it was
I reached into the crawlspace. It was slick with mud, and many-legged creatures crawled over my skin as I disturbed them. I bit my lower lip and kept myself from shuddering with willpower alone.
“Mina?” There was no response. I kept talking anyway. “We’re going to get you out, okay? We’re here. We’re going to get you out.” I let my power reach out with my fingers and wrap around her body. She didn’t move.
Shane crouched in front of the shack and laid his palms on the wasted wood. It was so decayed, I feared any attempt to move it would bring the whole thing crashing down. He went slowly, deliberately, and I felt how much it cost him. He reached out with his power and contacted the whole floor of the structure, every rotten board and rusted nail. He was sweating from the effort.
“On three,” he said. I pressed my cheek into the mud and got my head under the shack. I managed to get my fingers around Mina’s arm. Cool to the touch. I shoved down the fear.
“One,” Shane said. I tightened my grip. “Two.” I held my breath. “Three.”
The shack tilted two feet into the air. Wood groaned as the back stilts splintered under the weight. Mina’s small body was curled in a muddy depression in the center. I reached out with my power and my arms and dragged her back with me to safety. An instant later the whole shack collapsed into a mound of broken planks and insect-ridden rot.
She was warm. She was warm. Her limbs were cold but the core of her body was warm.
“Mina? Mina, can you hear me?” Shane pulled his sister into his arms and cradled her, wiping black mud from her face. “Can you reach her?” He looked at me. There was so much pain in his voice it made me choke.
I shook my head, unable to speak. I could still feel the touch of her mind, but it was faint. Her skin was dull and streaked with dirt, marred by angry red scrapes, splinters and insect bites; her hair was matted with mud and detritus. Black sludge was caught in her ears. I tried not to think about that slime working its way into her mouth, her lungs.
Shane closed his eyes and touched his forehead to hers. I didn’t dare tap into the mental connection he was trying to make. He didn’t speak for several long moments.
“We need to get her to a hospital,” I said finally.
“Just another minute.” He didn’t open his eyes. He was still holding Mina close to his chest. His shirt was streaked with blood and dirt.
“Shane,” I said. No response. “ Shane! ” I broke through his focus, startled by the raw fear in his head. “ We need to get her to a doctor. ”
He finally looked at me. “Not a doctor. We need Bunny.”
Chapter Five
The ride back to New Orleans passed in an anxious haze. Shane sat below deck with Mina, still trying to reach her, while I navigated back to the marina, praying we wouldn’t run into the Coast Guard. Fortunately, the dock was still deserted when we returned the cabin cruiser. I patched up Shane’s hot-wiring job with electrical tape while he got Mina into the car. No one was around to see me launch myself over the padlocked gate.
“I spoke to Lionel,” Shane said when I got into the passenger seat. “He’ll meet us at Bunny’s.”
I nodded. I’d been to Bunny’s once before. Her place was a high-end spa during the day, but at night she did other kinds of treatments. The one time I’d come had been right after Shane had shattered his wrist trying to levitate himself down from the third-floor balcony. I’d never seen Lionel so angry. If we’d gone to the emergency room, there would have been pins and surgery, and Shane might never have gotten full use of his arm back. But Bunny wasn’t a doctor. She was a different kind of shadowmind, one of the rarest types, a healer. If anyone could bring Mina back, it was
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