Frostbite (Touch of Frost) by Lynn Rush Read Free Book Online Page B

skin. I yanked them off and tossed them to the floor.
    I ran to the door and grabbed the handle but chanced one quick glance behind me. An inch of frost coated the small hotel room walls, and the two human ice sculptures glistened against the bathroom light spilling through the cracked door.
    I’d killed them. At fifteen years old, I was a killer.
    “Mandy?” Scott said. “Getting chilly in here again.”
    Scott’s voice permeated my memory, but I couldn’t grab a coherent word to say. I squatted to the floor and sat crossed legged, holding my stomach. The Coats had turned me into a monster. I’d killed again today. If we stayed I’d have to kill again.
    Oh hell, if we ran I’d have to kill again.
    So much death.
    If only Mom were here. She’d be able to show me how to do this. I just wanted to know why I could do this amazing stuff. Why could she? Was she a super-spy or something?
    Images of Mom’s dead body flashed in my mind, and my rage swelled. I kept my eyes shut, refusing to let any more tears fall. I wanted to be done crying.
    “Mandy. Stop.” Scott’s voice rattled.
    I was probably scaring him, but the memories blasted into my mind without my permission. I needed Mom here, but I’d let her down.
    I’d let her die.
    I rested my face in my hands and bawled. I bawled harder than I had in ages. Sick of moving. Sick of hiding my powers. Sick of everything.
    Two warm hands took hold of my shoulders. I knew it was Scott, but if I opened my eyes Mom’s continued absence would be that much more vivid. I’d rather imagine it was her giving me a hug. Telling me it would be all right.
    “Mandy,” Scott yelled, shaking me.
    Too late. My world went dark.
     

 
     
     
    EIGHT
     
    “M andy?” A voice called my name. It sounded muffled. Distant. I went to open my eyes, but my thick eyelids seemed fused together. After the third time trying, they finally budged. Oh, but they scratched as they fluttered. I rubbed them, and light broke through the fog.
    “Scott?” What I wouldn’t give for a pitcher of water, filled with ice. Even if I had to chill it myself. “Water.”
    “Mandy. Can you hear me?” Scott shook my shoulder.
    I swatted at him. “Yeah, yeah. Stop shaking me.”
    “Shit, Mandy. You scared me to death.”
    Everything fell into focus. I lay on my bed, and sunlight beamed through the open window. But I’d been on the floor before, and it was dark.
    “What time is it?”
    “Ten o’clock.”
    “Ten?”
    “On Saturday morning.” Scott’s hands framed my face, turning it toward him.
    His wide, bloodshot-eyes analyzed me like he had x-ray vision. Worry-lines etched his forehead.
    I coughed. “I need some water.”
    He picked up a glass from my nightstand. “Sit up.”
    I snatched the drink from him. Few things felt heavy to me, considering I could bench-press a trailer home, but the cup of water I held rivaled the weight of a semi-truck. With concerted effort, I brought the glass to my lips, and gulped until my stomach sloshed.
    “Feels like I ran fifty miles,” I said.
    Scott wrapped his arms around me and for a minute I thought maybe he’d inherited super strength.
    “Can’t. Breathe.”
    “Mandy, what happened?”
    “How the heck do I know? I just woke up.”
    Scott let me go. I took a gulp of air and sifted my fingers through my damp hair. What the heck? I racked my muddled brain for details about the previous night. I’d sat on the floor, pissed off about things, but then we’d started talking about Mom.
    “Oh. Yeah. Mom. I got really ticked. Relived when the Coats nabbed me in Arkansas. The last thing I remember is you touching my shoulders, which made me even more mad for some reason.”
    He petted my hair.
    “And now, here we are. Feel free to fill in the gaps.”
    “First, I need to sit down. I think I had three heart attacks last night.” He sagged onto the desk chair, clutching his chest.
    “Why is my hair wet? How’d I get in bed?” The door and windows were