Chapter 4: Found

Elara zipped up her bag and grabbed her bat again. "I'm not helpless."

"Against normal threats, maybe." Thorne's face was grim. "These aren't normal."

He opened the bedroom door a crack and peered out. The living room was dark, but Elara could see movement—shadows moving in unnatural ways.

"We need to reach the fire escape," Thorne whispered. "It's our only way out."

"Through the living room." Elara swallowed hard. "Where they are."

Thorne nodded. "When I say run, head straight for the window. Don't stop, don't look back."

Elara gripped the bat so tight her fingers turned white. "Okay."

Thorne raised his gun. "Ready? Three, two, one... Run!"

He threw the door open and fired. The gun made no sound, but a blast of silver light shot across the room. Something shrieked in pain.

Elara ran, clutching her backpack. She could see shapes moving in the darkness—twisted human forms crawling on the walls and roof. The window was just ahead, the fire escape beyond it.

Something dropped in front of her—a creature that might once have been human but now had too many limbs, bent at wrong angles. Its face was stretched, with bright purple eyes and a mouth full of needle teeth.

Elara swung her bat without thought. It connected with the creature's head with a pleasing crack. The monster stumbled back.

"The window!" Thorne shouted, firing another blast of silver light.

Elara reached the window and yanked it open. Cold night air rushed in. She climbed onto the fire escape, her heart racing.

Thorne backed toward the window, shooting again and again. Each blast lit up the room, showing more animals crawling through the broken front door.

"Go down!" he yelled, climbing out after her. "I'll follow!"

Elara ran down the metal stairs, the clang of her footsteps echoing in the alley below. Above her, she heard growls and sounds of battle.

She reached the bottom and looked up. Thorne was fighting a thing on the fire escape, his gun knocked aside. As she watched, Thorne grabbed the creature and threw it over the railing with impossible power. It hit the pavement with a sickening crunch but instantly started to get up again, bones snapping back into place.

"Thorne!" she called.

He vaulted over the railing, falling three stories to land beside her in a crouch. No person could survive that jump without breaking something, but Thorne stood up like it was nothing.

"Run!" he yelled, grabbing her hand.

They raced down the alley toward his car, parked half a block away. Behind them, creatures poured down the fire escape and out the front door of the building.

As they reached the car, Elara stumbled, falling against the door. A piece of broken glass on the ground sliced her finger.

"Ouch!" she yelped, pulling her hand back. Blood welled from the cut.

The effect on Thorne was instant and frightening. He froze, his whole body going stiff. When he turned to look at her, his eyes weren't just flecked with gold—they were fully yellow, glowing in the darkness like a wild animal's.

A low growl came from his throat, rumbling like faraway thunder. His hands curled into claws, and for a second, Elara thought she saw sharp teeth when he opened his mouth.

"Thorne?" she whispered, backing away. "What's happening to you?"

The growl got louder. Thorne closed his eyes, his face twisted in what looked like pain. He took several deep breaths, each one shivering through his body.

"Get in the car," he said through tightened teeth. His voice was thicker, rougher. "Now."

Elara didn't argue. She yanked the door open and jumped inside. Thorne stayed outside for another moment, fighting whatever was happening to him. Then he got in, his moves stiff and controlled.

"Your eyes," Elara said, holding her bleeding finger away from him. "They changed."

"I know." Thorne started the car, his knuckles white on the driving wheel. "It's the blood. Your blood."

As they sped away, Elara saw the creatures gathering in the street behind them, their twisted bodies moving in ways that made her stomach turn.

"What are you?" she asked, staring at Thorne's face. His eyes were back to normal now, the gold flecks just tiny sparks in the darkness.

Thorne was quiet for a long moment. The only sound was the hum of the engine as they raced through empty streets.

"I think you already know," he said eventually. "You're smart. You've seen the signs."

Elara thought about his amazing strength. The way he moved. Those yellow eyes and that alien growl. The moon mark on his wrist.

"Werewolf," she whispered, the word feeling silly in her mouth. But after everything she'd seen tonight, was it really so impossible?

Thorne didn't deny it. "What I want to know is what you are. No normal human makes Shadowwalkers rise from the dead or makes my kind lose control with just a drop of blood."

"I don't know what you mean," Elara said. "I'm just a normal person."

"No." Thorne shook his head. "You're not. And now that your power has awakened, every supernatural creature in Ravenshadow City will be hunting you."

As they turned onto a dark road heading out of the city, Elara saw something in the rearview mirror—a sleek black car following them, its headlights off. The driver's eyes glowed red in the darkness.

"Thorne," she said, her voice shaking. "I think we're being followed. And it's not those shadow things."

Thorne checked the mirror and cursed under his breath.

"Vampires," he growled, his eyes flashing gold again. "They've found you too."