Streamfield Shifters: Hide & Seek

Chapter Seventeen

"Lady Rachael!" the crown prince called out. Rachael appeared in the alley and ran over to his side. "What do you see there?"

Rachael turned and looked up, the hood of her cloak falling back. "Aly!" she called out. "Come down!"

I shifted on the roof, loosening a few more tiles. They broke free and slipped down the curved roof to smash upon the ground. No, there were bad people down there; I didn't think I'd join them any time soon.

"Aly!" Rachael shouted more forcefully, dodging the tiles. "C'mon! Snap out of it!"

"Do you want one of us to get her, sir?" Arun asked, sheathing his sword.

"Wouldn't that be something?" Kesio mused, shaking his head. "No, I think that it is best if we let her come down on her own."

"Aly! Get your ass down here!"

Slowly, my heart rate returned to normal and sense began to worm its way back to the forefront of my mind. How the hell was I going to get down?

I stood up and peered around the rooftops. Well, there'd be no saving these folks' tiles, that was for certain. I padded along the first roof, then jumped down to a balcony that was higher than the one I'd climbed up. From there, it was a simple leap to the ground. My limbs bent accordingly, absorbing the impact.

As I walked towards our group, the Tsolas stiffened. Garin shifted in his stance, one hand going to a short dagger hanging from his wide belt. Shifting, I stood up and wrapped my arms around myself—not because I was cold, but because all the adrenaline had left my body. I began to shake, small tremors that got everyone's notice.

"Give the lady your cloak," Kesio ordered the elven woman on the ground.

With trembling fingers, she unfastened the pins that held the cloak closed and handed it to Kesio. He stalked around the woman and draped the cloak around my shoulders.

"Did they harm you, lady?" he asked gently, setting the pins when my own fingers could not. "Where are your clothes?"

I stared at him, confused.

"Here," Rachael said, pointing to the spot where I'd shifted. Shreds of vines and ragged patches of cloth and blue jeans lay scattered in a wide circle. "They exploded."

I hugged the cloak, which still retained much of the elven woman's warmth, tightly around my body.

"What do you mean they exploded?"

Rachael shrugged. "That's what happens when we shift with clothes on. Anything not made from natural fibers goes boom." She pantomimed an explosion with her hands.

Kesio nodded thoughtfully. Then he turned to Arun. "Go and inform my sister of what happened. Then fetch the guard. I want all of these people confined to the penitentiary." He gestured vaguely around the street.

"Aye, sir." He gave a sharp bow and swiftly walked back down the alley.

Rachael was at my side, hand on my shoulder. "Hey—are you okay?"

Was I okay? How does one recover from an attempted kidnapping, anyway? I threw a wordless glance in Rachael's direction and pulled the cloak more tightly around my body. Worry creased my cousin's face; she opened her mouth, then closed it. Instead, she awkwardly alternated between patting and rubbing my back.

God. I shouldn't have let Rachael stay. I should have insisted that she go right back through the portal. She was too young to be subjected to this sort of scenario. Hell, was I even old enough for this?

At my feet, the woman whimpered. The sound reached out and brought me firmly back to earth. "Who are you?" I asked her, staring at her bowed head.

Kesio tightened his grip on her shoulder. The woman tilted her chin up, green-streaked black hair spilling back. Dark brown elven eyes met mine. The memory of her holding out the scrap of cloth to wind around my eyes appeared in a flash. She had no sympathy for me then, so why should I?