Soul Slam, Soul Warriors Book 1

Chapter Seven A

My jaw dropped, snapped shut and then dropped again. "What?" No way. Impossible.

"Every word."

I understood Egyptian. Cool. Freakishly-cool. I'd never taken a foreign language in my life. How many countries spoke ancient Egyptian?

Zero. Why couldn't I learn a useful language like Spanish?

"How?"

"I'm guessing King Tut's soul interpreted for you." Xander grumbled and his feet stomped on the dirt path. "Under Jeb's tutoring, I spent hours studying the ancient Egyptian language. What a waste of time. Obviously, even he didn't know all the powers the host would inherit."

My thoughts veered all over the place as we walked in silence. Mostly with confusion. Complete confusion. Jeb didn't know all the powers. Xander hadn't learned much of anything. I knew absolutely nothing. At this point, I didn't even know what questions to ask.

Xander picked up a branch and started breaking pieces off. "I haven't heard the Society in awhile. I think they're gone."

Only natural sounds clicked and hooted and howled in the woods. The traffic from the road filtered to a slight din.

"For now." No way had they given up. But we now had time to figure out a plan.

My mind ticked through everything as we trekked through the park. I needed to get the amulet to Fitch. I was on the run from both cops and a strange Society. I hosted an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, possessed unknown powers, but at least I wasn't alone.

I wasn't alone at all. I was the farthest thing from alone.

Not only was Xander my temporary partner—who I didn't trust, but I hosted King Tut's soul with the powers of the sun. I still found it hard to believe. "What other things can I do?"

Xander hopped onto a large boulder, his tunic riding up his thighs. Then, he jumped down on the other side. "Jeb told me I had to be careful with the amount of power I used once the transfer occurred. Not to use it recklessly."

"Like sucking water out of a pond."

"Yeah, like sucking water out of a pond." Xander laughed—a deep rumble.

The sound went into my soul, sparking inside. Every nerve ending tingled. Every sense went on full alert.

Then, the spark extinguished, doused. Like a revolt inside my body. Random. One second turned on, the next off.

I rounded the boulder and we continued to walk in silence. Was I attracted to Xander? Great body—and I'd seen most of it, thick hair, movie-star smile. He'd helped me. He'd saved me. He'd stuck by my side.

I'd never been attracted to the guys at home. They never made a move on me, even though we weren't a real family. I figured I wasn't attractive or just too young. Glancing down at my almost non-existent chest, I tugged on my black long-sleeved T-shirt and wiggled back and forth.

"Wouldn't using the power make it burn out more quickly?" Could I make my boobs grow? "If I didn't have power, the Society would stop searching for me."

He halted. His intense stare made me fidget. "By burning out, they mean die."

I faltered a step back. "D-die?" My lips numbed on the word. My eyes widened like an owl at night. "As in dead? Gone?"

I found it difficult to breathe, as if I already suffered from this fate. My ears pounded with the march of death. Every time I used the powers a bit of me burned up and died. Between the uncontrollable running, the deciphering of ancient Egyptian and sucking water, I'd burn out in no time. I'd burn out before getting the amulet to Fitch, before seeing Tina and Doug. "Why didn't you tell me?"