Cheyenne McCray [Night Tracke Zombies Sold Separately (epub)

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.“You’d better hurry.”Joshua helped Angel get the stones out as she gritted her teeth against the pain of her broken arm.I explained to Desmond what had happened as I straddled my own body—which was a completely bizarre experience—and used Angel’s body’s strength to help pin me down.To pin my body down.Even I was getting confused.“This makes things more of a challenge,” Desmond said as he rumpled his hair with his hand.It was obvious he hadn’t had a pleasant time taking care of my Zombie body.He took the cloth-wrapped stones and set them on a nightstand beside the bed.My body was tossing me from side to side while muffled groans came out from behind the gag.It was still daylight so my body didn’t have full Drow strength.As a Zombie I guessed it didn’t know how to use the elements.For that I was sure everyone was thankful.Desmond looked at the stones on the nightstand.The images of Candace and Bryna were in one and the mousy Aela in the other.“How in the bloody hell am I supposed to do this?” Desmond said.Angel and I looked at each other.Uh-oh.“We have to hurry,” I said and launched into a quick summary of what had happened in the Doran Otherworld and what was going to happen here in the Earth Otherworld if we didn’t stop it.“Just do whatever you have to do to get us back in the bodies we belong in,” I said when I finished.Desmond picked up the stone with Candace in it and handed it to Angel.“We’ll start with you.”She took the stone and immediately her body started to twist and jerk and her eyes rolled back in her head.In one moment I saw Angel’s determined personality had been in Candace’s eyes.In the next moment confusion followed by fear was in the female’s gaze.Candace was back in her own body.Candace started to scream.Joshua pinned the female to his body.Desmond touched her forehead and she slumped, unconscious.I looked at the stone.Now Angel and Bryna were staring out from it.“Hope this works,” Desmond said as he tossed it to me.I caught it by reflex and cried, “You hope?”Then I felt nothing at all.Saw nothing.I just was.Was nothing.Nothing.Light flashed in glittering array of colors and suddenly I was spinning.Images spun in my mind.Memories.Memories that I was familiar with.My memories.I gasped and tried to suck in my breath but my mouth was stuffed with some fabric and my head was wrapped in duct tape securing it.I opened my eyes and saw Desmond and Angel looking over me.“Is it her?” Angel said.Desmond frowned.“I don’t know.”I nodded frantically.“It’s me,” I tried to say but it came out, “Mmph mmph.”Desmond touched the gag.I felt a warm sizzle of magic and it all fell away from my mouth.With a groan I drew in a deep breath.“I never, ever want to do that again.”I felt instantly comfortable being back in my own body.As a matter of fact it felt wonderful.I had an urge to get my hands on my weapons and battle someone, something.My leather fighting suit felt snug, familiar against my skin.I was ready for battle.A knock came at the door, startling me.Joshua left the bedroom to answer it.Desmond made a motion with his finger and all of the bonds strapping me down fell away.I gave another sigh of relief as I sat up in bed.I’d never been so glad to be me than I was at that moment.I had never appreciated the strength and magic in my body as much as I did then.Joshua came back into the bedroom followed by Colin, who was carrying Olivia’s unconscious form over his shoulder.The bed dipped as Colin lay Olivia beside where I was now kneeling on the mattress.“Is she all right?” My heart beat faster as I looked at my friend’s unconscious form.“She’s fine,” Colin said.“The Sentient who took over Olivia’s Host body gave a bit of a fight on the way so I found a way to quiet her.”Colin shoved his hand out of his pocket and brought out the two remaining stones.The keystone along with the stone he’d found in the Sorcerer’s Room of Life that had Olivia’s essence in it.Desmond moved toward the nightstand where the stones containing Bryna’s and Aela’s essences were.He unwrapped the two and the blank keystone rocked to a standstill when he set it down beside the others.Then he was holding Olivia’s stone on the cloth in his palm.Without even realizing I was doing it, I held my breath as he took Olivia’s limp hand and let the stone roll into her palm.Sparks flew.A rainbow of light flashed between Olivia and the stone.Her eyes flew open and she sat bolt upright in bed.Olivia’s gaze swept over everyone in the room.Her dark eyes stopped on me.“What the hell is going on?”“Olivia?” I said.“Who else would I be?” She tugged her shirt down as she spoke.“The Avon lady?”“What’s Avon?” Desmond said.“Let me see the stone,” I said.“What stone—” Olivia frowned, raised her hand and opened her fingers.On her palm was a stone.A blond woman’s image was inside it.“It’s you.” I gave a huge sigh of relief then flung my arms around Olivia’s neck.“Damn, it’s good to have you back.”“How did I get here?” Olivia asked.“You’ve been trapped in a stone for days, Olivia,” I said.“Your body was a Host.There’s no time for details now.”A scowl crossed Olivia’s face.“No way.Someone else had my body?” She twisted around and looked at herself.“What did they do to it? Was I a freaking Zombie?” She looked at me and put her hands on her hips.“What happened? Makes me want to take a long hot shower.Several showers.”“Olivia, read my lips.Not now.” I think she got my point, even though she scowled.My skin started to tingle and I drew away from Olivia.“It’s almost sunset,” I said.“We don’t have much time.”First things first.I headed into the bathroom, closed the door behind me, and shifted.When I returned, Desmond handed me my weapons belt that he’d put away before I left for Doran.The belt felt good around my hips, the weight of my Dragon-claw daggers and buckler comfortable and reassuring.I called Rodán as we prepared to leave and filled him in as fast as I could.He let me know what room he and the other Trackers were in at the Mandarin Hotel.Before we left I raised my hands.“Hold on a sec.You all need to look more presentable before going into the Mandarin.”“We do not have the time to each take a shower,” Desmond said with exasperation.“Just watch,” Olivia and Angel said at the same time.With my hands still raised, I said, “Avanna.”The Elvin spell cleaned everyone down to the last speck of mud and repaired the small tears some of the group had in their clothing [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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