Page 22 of Psycho Shifters

Arms plastered against the wall for support, I just barely managed to make it down the long mahogany hallways without passing out.

Unsurprisingly, no man appeared to coddle my wounds and carry me to safety.

Good thing at ten years old I’d stop believing a prince was going to come save me.

I had to save myself. That was how life worked.

Finally, collapsing onto the bed, I moaned like a dying animal.

My stomach plummeted because I still had to limp down to the bathroom.

Without the numb, I would have succumbed to exhaustion and passed out—thank the gods I was a homicidal maniac and still numb.

Finally, after what felt like forever, I dragged my limp body through the door labeled “bathroom.” A massive tub was sunken into the floor, and a bucket marked “healing salts” sat beside it.

I dumped the entire thing into the warm bubbles and pulled my bloody clothes off my sweaty skin.

Spreading my arms wide, I face-planted into the hot water.

For a long moment, I considered drowning myself in the frothy pool. Life had been cruel living with Dick, but this didn’t seem any better.

I must have pissed off some god in the past, because I was clearly a magnet for pain.

Even numb, a part of me wanted to cry at the injustice of it all.

Instead, I relaxed into the warmth and ignored my problems.

SADIE

CHOKING ON EMOTIONS

A sweet-scented bubble popped on my face and jolted me awake. Sputtering, I took a second to orient myself.

I had fallen asleep in the bath, and I hadn’t been transported back to Dick’s tavern.

Instantly, regret and melancholy weighed me down.

Sweet Lucinda was going to be devastated if she came back from school in two years and found me gone. I couldn’t let that happen.

Hazy steam swirled around me as I sprawled in the massive bathtub filled with bubbles of deliciously warm water.

Sleep had made the numb go away. I tried to sit up straight but groaned as every muscle in my body screamed in protest.

My favorite thing to do growing up was to read books from the library. In the dusty cellar, they had bootleg books from faraway realms.

I had loved to read about the half warriors from the fae realm: half alphas, half fae. They were crazy, overpowered warriors who traveled the realm, fighting evil.

As a kid, I had found the idea of physical training and fighting all the time so exciting.

I’d thought if I could take a beating from Dick, I could fight mythical beasts.

Holy mother of the moon goddess, I’d been wrong.

Every single inch of my body ached, and I was surprised I hadn’t drowned in the warm water.

I had meant to stay awake, but the bath was too soothing, and my body was beat-up after the training session. Dick had only let us shower with cold water, and the tub of fabulous warmth was low key changing my life.

Too bad vomit was currently traveling up my throat and ruining the delicious experience.