“You were in the park that day with him?” she asked, not expecting the beast to answer, already knowing he had been.
“Tear down her wall or whatever it is she has, Carlton. You’re stronger than she is. Tear through it and shred her to pieces. It doesn’t matter how you get her blood,” Merry yelled.
The sweet boy who’d held his hand out to her was him, this beast. He’d been her friend for a year or so, then he’d disappeared, leaving her in the cage alone. How could she have forgotten him? “We were friends, Carlton,” she tried to remind him.
The beast shook his head then, like a wild animal, he rose up on his hind legs, snarling. Noelle was going to have to kill him in order to survive. A quick glance up to the sky showed the moon was red. She inhaled deeply, gathering her courage. “Red moon at night, make it right. Return his spin, make it align. Reverse what was done. Retrieve him cerebrum. So mote it be.” She raised her finger, pointing toward Carlton who was standing again, his eyes wide with fear.
A glow from above highlighted the beast, turning his green leafy form a shade of red. He let out an anguished howl as his body shook, his bones popped and reformed, turning back into man, puss oozing from his pores.
“What have you done?” Merry screeched.
Noelle didn’t take her eyes off the macabre sight. Even while writhing in pain, Carlton could still attack her since her shield was down.
“If the Goddess wishes to grant him life, he will survive,” Noelle whispered.
“The Goddess? You’re a freak, Noelle. Why would this mythological being...this Goddess gift you with powers and not me?” Merry cried.
Chapter Eight
NOELLE WANTED TO EXPLAIN she had no clue about the whys of the Gods and Goddesses, but Merry tackled her. The air whooshed out of her lungs as her back slammed into the hard, uncompromising packed dirt. Dear Goddess, it was like being tackled by an offensive lineman. Shit, was her sister taking steroids or what?
“Get off me, you crazy bitch,” Noelle yelled, bucking and twisting.
Merry rose, her teeth bared. If she’d been a shifter, Noelle was sure her sister would’ve taken a bite out of her. “You’re not the one calling the shots.”
Her sister didn’t know the extent of her powers. Heck, Noelle didn’t either, and although she’d depleted a huge chunk of her storage of energy healing herself and then Carlton, she’d do what she had to, even take out her sister.
“After I finish you, I’m going to kill your leopard.” Merry grinned down at Noelle. “Oh, did you think I wasn’t aware of him and his little kitty mates? I know everything,” she laughed.
At the mention of Ridge, fear entered her heart. It had been several minutes since she’d heard his leopard call out. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Her voice wobbled then, seeing triumph enter Merry’s cold eyes, she shoved the doubts assailing her down. Once she took care of her family issue, she’d find Ridge and the others. Gathering her energy like a battering ram, she pushed upward with both arms, shoving Merry’s chest. Her sister went flying backward, her body soaring over a still Carlton, landing in a heap ten feet away from Noelle. She didn’t think she’d won, though, not yet.
The area was filled with trees that had been there for hundreds of years. She found a large branch that would work for a weapon and picked it up before stalking forward.
Carlton rolled over, grabbing her ankle in a punishing grip. Noelle didn’t think, didn’t hesitate, swinging the branch hard toward his head. The satisfying crack knocked Carlton sideways, blood spraying from him. She reared back, hitting him again as he came at her, but this time she was ready. The thud and crack of her weapon jarred her entire arm. Blood splattered her moments before he fell to the side, unmoving.
She held the remaining half of the branch in her fist, blood staining it. Her sister moaned a few feet away, leaves crackling from her movements. Noelle tried to remind herself the woman was going to kill her, would have if she’d been given the chance. However, when she stood next to Merry, her sister’s sobs broke her heart. “Oh, Merry,” she whispered.
Like a rattlesnake, Merry flipped onto her back, jackknifing onto her feet. She held a knife in her hand like a pro. The blade swiped across Noelle’s stomach; the burn made her eyes water. In the years since she’d escaped, pain had been something she’d avoided at all costs.
The brutality Merry fought with shouldn’t have stunned her, but each blow did just that, making it hard for Noelle to heal herself while battling at the same time.. The next lunge brought that sharp blade too close to her abdomen, only this time she dodged, hitting out with the branch. Without the same momentum she’d had when she fought Carlton, she lacked the same strength, but Merry stumbled and grunted from the impact.
“You’ll pay for that,” Merry promised.
Noelle curled her palm, motioning the other woman forward. “Bring it,” she taunted.
They circled, probably appearing like two crazy women in a fighting ring, minus the ring. The strange smell she’d caught before hit her. It was damn offensive to the nose and wafting off Merry. “You’re rotting from the inside. That’s what happened to Carlton
