Page 57 of Stealing Embers
Turning on a heel, Steel stomps out of the store. Nova watches his retreating form with a furrowed brow. Sparing us a distracted wave, she follows in his wake.
“You have to get that.”
My attention snaps to Ash. “Are you crazy? Why would I?”
She’s obviously affronted. “Are you kidding? If I looked that amazing in anything I’d be wearing it twenty-four-seven.” Ash strikes a pose. “Oh,thisold thing? I just threw it on to be comfortable.”
Laughing at her antics will only encourage her, so I wrestle my face into an approximation of grim fortitude.
“Never gonna happen,” I call as I retreat to the safety of the changing room.
Ash knocks on the door right as I struggle out of the material. It doesn’t seem to want to let me go. “Hey, wanna hand me that dress? I’ll hang it back up.”
When I’m finally free, I toss it over the door to her. Good riddance.
“Hey, my drink just hit me. You know how fast tea works its way through my system. I don’t think I can hold it for long.”
TMI, Ash.
“Mind if I head to Doc’s ahead of you? I’ll save you a seat.”
“Um.”
“Thanks. You’re the best.”
I hear the pitter-patter of Ash’s feet scurrying away before I can fully answer.
Did she seriously just leave me here? The only reason I came to this store was for her, and she didn’t even try anything on herself.
I dress quickly, but by the time I leave the dressing room Ash has disappeared.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“Hey, your friend forgot her receipt.” A middle-aged woman waves a white slip of paper at me from behind the front counter. Taking the receipt from her with a half-smile, I look it over as I push through the front doors. There is a single purchase listed for a blue dress.
“Ash,” I groan and fold the paper, shoving it and my hands in my pockets. That explains why she was in such a rush. I never would have let her buy that dress and she knew it.
Hunching my shoulders, I start down the street. The crisp air nips at my cheeks and coats my throat with each inhale. The angel-blood running through my veins keeps the harsh sting of the chilled temperatures at bay.
The sun has set and streetlights are few and far between in this part of town. Shadows have always been my friend, so I don’t mind.
My feet crunch over the icy snow still lingering on the sidewalk. Each step echoes in the deserted street. The deadened night is so soothing to me that I don’t notice when the first few streetlights flicker.
I don’t notice when the nocturnal sounds of the mountains go silent.
I don’t notice that I’m the only person walking down the sidewalk in either direction—and I don’t notice the form hiding in the darkness, tracking my movements as I pass.
I don’t notice anything I should, and by the time I do, it’s too late.
Chapter Sixteen
Achill skates up my spine a split second before the figure steps out of the darkness. Roughly ten feet away, he isn’t exactly in my space, but the way he stands—unmoving in the middle of the sidewalk—brings me up short.
Shrouded in shadows, his downward-tilted head of inky hair and tall stature are the first things I notice. I can see better than any human at night, but it’s as if darkness clings to the stranger, undulating like a pulsating wave of mist around him.
This isn’t natural.
“Ember-ly,” a female voice sings.