Mortal by Kim Richardson Read Free Book Online Page A

As
he searched her face, Kara looked away, abashed. There was
something about his piercing blue eyes that unsettled her. It was
as if they could see her deepest thoughts and secrets.
    She strained to see into the darkness,
suddenly anxious. Where was the creature that had attacked her? She
remembered a flash of red light. The creature had attacked her. She
remembered the piercing pain. She was bleeding. Instinctively her
hand went to her leg. She wriggled her fingers through the rip in
her jeans and pressed her hand on her skin. There was no gaping
wound. She searched the ground around her. Not a drop of blood
anywhere. What was going on? Had she imagined the whole thing?
Impossible...
    "Kara, how are you feeling?" said the
stranger in a voice that made Kara’s skin ripple with goose bumps.
Where had she heard that voice before?
    She stared at the stranger, frowning.
"How do you know my name?"
    There was something very familiar with
this guy, but she couldn’t figure it out. Who was he?
    The stranger leaned forward with an
anxious look on his face. For a moment he just stood there, rocking
back and forth on his heels, staring at her uncertainly. "It’s
me...David...don’t you recognize me?"
    "Nope. I only know one David, and
you’re not him."
    Kara pushed herself back onto her
feet, surprised at her own strength. She felt better with her feet
on the ground. Apart from the rip in her jeans, there was no sign
that anything had attacked her. She couldn’t help but wonder if she
had imagined the whole thing and that she was going mad.
    The stranger’s face fell, and Kara
felt a sting in her chest. He backed away slowly, his eyes never
leaving hers. He raked his fingers through his hair. "Maybe it
needs time to work."
    Kara brushed her hands on her jeans.
"What does? And how do you know me again? Do we share a class
together or something—you kinda look familiar to me."
    Her fingers were stiff and cold. "Do
you see any mitts on the ground?"
    "What’s the last thing you remember?"
said the stranger as he studied her face.
    "Why? What’s it to you?" Kara kicked
the snow with her boots looking for her mitts.
    "It’s important."
    Giving up on her mitts, Kara jammed
her hands in her coat pockets and searched the street. "Well, I was
on my way to the drugstore when something attacked me. It’s a bit
blurry. I think I hit my head and passed out."
    She wasn’t about to tell a complete
stranger that a demon had tried to kill her and by some miracle she
had survived. He would definitely think she was as mad as a
hatter.
    The stranger watched her closely. "You
don’t remember anything else...anything at all?"
    "Like I told you, no ."
    He pointed at her left arm. "So—who
gave you that bracelet then?"
    "I’m not wearing a brace—" the rest of
the word died in her throat. A leather bracelet was wrapped around
her left wrist. Kara narrowed her eyes. How did that get there? She
didn’t remember putting it on. But one thing was for certain—it
wasn’t hers. So, who’s was it?
    The stranger eyed her worriedly. "I
gave you that bracelet. Don’t you remember?"
    Kara didn’t like the intense way the
stranger was looking at her. He looked a little crazy, and she
didn’t have time to fight off crazies right now.
    "Look, David, if that’s your real name, I
don’t know you, sorry. Listen, thanks for watching out for me...but
I need to get going. My mother needs me."
    The stranger stepped up to
Kara. "What do you see when you look at me?"
    Kara raised her brows and
tried hard not to laugh. "I see a guy in a flimsy leather jacket
who’s probably freezing. It’s December you know, winter —you probably need
to put on a warmer jacket."
    His jaw clenched, and he started to
pace around nervously. Where had she seen him before? He was acting
a lot like someone she knew...but who? She just couldn’t figure it
out.
    "You don’t see anything different
about me...about my skin?" His voice rose slightly in
alarm.
    Kara shook her head