“No,” Cady answered calmly.
“It’s your lucky day, son.” Eli turned the gun in his hand, gripping the barrel and swinging it at the beast’s face.
He stopped moving, his breathing slowing into a shallow rhythm.
That monster had been chasing me only two minutes earlier, but the violence still had bile climbing my throat. I wanted to cover my eyes, to curl up into the fetal position and hide.
The panic must have shown on my face because Cady was suddenly inches away, gripping my chin and telling me, “You and me are going to need loads of therapy after this. But you can’t go there right now.”
“But I—"
“Shove it down,” she ordered. “Imagine a big ugly box and stuff it in there. You can open it later.”
I sucked in a breath. “How are you so calm?”
“I had my mental breakdown yesterday. Now, I’m pissed.”
“Where’s Isaac?” Eli was beside us, handing his gun to Cady and undoing his belt.
I averted my gaze seconds before he dropped his pants. “He was behind me, in the woods. There were so many of them.”
“How many, you reckon?”
I blinked, counting every face and figure I saw. “Twelve, at least.”
“Shit. I’m going to get Isaac, then I need to find Saul before he gets himself killed.” Eli gave Cady his shirt, belt, and jeans. I stared at the rust on the wheel well of the truck. “You two get gone. I’ll catch up to you.”
“I’m not leaving you here,” Cady argued.
“No, you’re not.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You’re just getting a head start. I can’t focus if I don’t know you’re safe, darlin’.”
“Fine.” Cady tossed her load into the back seat of the truck, accepting the keys and waving me toward the front seat. “But you listen, Elijah Barbeaux. If you die out there, I’m going to be real pissed at you.”
Eli stepped in front of me. I turned my head as he scooped Cady into a kiss that hadmyheart pounding. “I love you too, darlin’.”
A howl sounded somewhere nearby, and Eli’s demeanor instantly shifted. His body shifted too, his form swelling and rising to tower over the truck.
I hurried to the passenger seat, sliding into the truck and fastening my seatbelt.
Cady hopped into the driver’s seat, setting Eli’s gun in the cup holder. “You buckled?”
“Yes.”
“You know how to fire a gun?”
“No!”
“Well, now might be a good time to learn,” she said, adjusting the rearview mirror and staring into it a second too long. “You think twelve was accurate, or were you underestimating?”
“My mom always said I exaggerate.”
Cady pressed the gas pedal, jolting us forward at alarming speed. “After today, you can let her know she was wrong.”
I couldn’t stop myself from glancing into the side mirror. There was a beast tearing down the road, eyes bright and mouth open.
“That’s not Eli?”
“No ma’am, it’s not.”