Pursuit: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Lillim Callina Chronicles Book 4) by J.A. Cipriano Read Free Book Online Page A

I’d woken up only a few seconds ago. For all I knew, we were on Mars.
    “As soon as you put me down I’m going to come at you full speed,” I said, struggling hopelessly in his arms. I might as well have tried to struggle free of a steel tuna net.
    He glanced at me like I was a petulant puppy and shrugged his shoulders. “So you’re awake.” And with those words, he dropped me. I hit the sand hard and squawked in pain. I scrambled to my feet, wiping the ruby dust from the cloak still draped around me.
    “That hurt, jerk!” I growled as I fixed him with my best ‘I will kill you where you stand’ look. “What’d you do that for?”
    Ordain shrugged again. “Well, what are you waiting for?” he asked, cocking an eyebrow at me.
    “What do you mean?” I asked, suddenly confused. “You brought me here.”
    “What do I mean?” he said in a nearly perfect imitation of my voice. “You said you were ‘going to come at me full speed.’” He pointed at me with his open palm and gestured to himself with his fingers a couple times. “Well, come at me !”
    I swallowed and glanced around my surroundings. Everything was red, which made me think that challenging a full blown demon in the middle of his home turf would be a pretty horrible idea.
    “Maybe later,” I said with a shrug. “I don’t want to get my new duds dirty,” I added pulling on my cloak with my left hand. “It’s fancy.”
    “Is that so?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow at me. “That’s why you don’t want to fight me? Because that ragged blanket might get dirty?”
    I stared at him, trying to read his eyes but they betrayed as much thought as a pair of sapphires. Their cool, emptiness sent a chill down my spine and I looked away from him a moment later.
    “No,” I replied, deciding to just level with him. “I’m in unfamiliar surroundings and you’re a demon. You haven’t killed me yet, and you definitely had the chance. So, for better or for worse, I’m going to believe you’re not up to no good.”
    “Well, you’re no fun,” he said, turning away from me and continuing to walk down the beach. Toward what? I couldn’t tell because it all looked pretty much the same.
    “I get that a lot actually,” I said, bounding up next to him. “So where are we going?”
    “To see a friend,” he said. “And you are dangerously close to reaching your talking limit.”
    “Is that so?” I asked, and before I could add anymore, he reached out and seized my face in one hand, popping my mouth open like a pez dispenser and grabbing my tongue with his other hand.
    The taste of dirt and leather filled my mouth as he tugged gently on my tongue. “Keep it up, and I will tear out your tongue. Are we clear?” I tried to nod but couldn’t move my head. He released me a moment later, and I stumbled backward, wiping my tongue with the back of my hand, which admittedly, didn’t taste much better.
    Still, I was glad he didn’t seem like he really wanted to fight me, either. He’d kicked the crap out of me in like half a second, and since I had enough problems on my plate, I was just glad he was trying to help me. Unlike Gib, Kain, or one of the other people I’d bungled into and forced to help me, Ordain seemed to want to help me. That meant something, right?
    “Thanks for helping me,” I said, swallowing.
    “I thought I told you top stop speaking,” he said, glancing at me and making a tearing motion with his hands. I swallowed and shut my trap. See, who says I don’t listen?
    We walked in silence for the next several minutes until Ordain turned left abruptly. Near as I could tell, there was no discernible reason why we turned there. I glanced up at the sky, but it didn’t appear to have changed. Guess we weren’t navigating by the stars either.
    “Do you know why I have brought you here, Lillim Callina?” he asked suddenly, and it startled me.
    “Um…” I murmured, and he glanced at me in that ‘why are you making noise’ sort