Page 44 of Wolf of Ashes
The strands appear so light. So free.
I’m startled by the sudden burn of tears behind my eyes.
Mom’s hair was beautiful, lush, and golden. When she was alive, she would comb my tresses with her fingers, gently unraveling any knots that might have formed. But after she died, I couldn’t undo the knots at the back of my head by myself, so I let them clump.
A moment later, every twisted bunch of hair lifts away from my shoulders and sides. Every knotted strand seems to unwind at the same time, and then all of them float around my face.
My head feels lighter than it has in years and my hair appears much longer than before as it falls softly around my body, all the way to the blanket.
“All done,” Diavolo says.
I collect myself before I turn back to him, wanting to thank him.
But he’s all business. “We’ll sleep here for the night and head to New York before the sun rises. It will be early evening there, so you won’t be exposed to the sun at its brightest on either side of the world.”
“Good,” I say, keeping my voice neutral.
Inside, I’m hugely relieved. My eyes are slowly adjusting, but I couldn’t handle the bright light back in the veil and I imagine witnessing the sun at its peak will be a similarly challenging experience. I’m sure I’d attract too much attention walking around in public with a blindfold on, although sunglasses are certainly an option. Real sunglasses, that is. Not the illusionary kind.
My next challenge is going to be my sensitive hearing. I’m not unaware that the keeper may well have brought me to a near-deserted town for that reason, among others. Since we arrived, the roar of the ocean is the loudest sound I’ve encountered, but it’s what Mom would have called ‘white noise.’ Far more bearable than sudden bangs and clangs or the roars of vehicles I’m sure I’ll encounter in the city.
Diavolo gestures at the panthers as if they pose a greater problem. “However, the panthers will need camouflage.”
All four of them appear half-asleep where they lie at the edge of the blanket, but the moment he speaks about them, their ears prick up and their silver eyes flash open in the shadows.
Diavolo is right. I know enough about human life to understand that panthers aren’t household pets that could blend in on the streets.
But that isn’t my greatest concern.
My voice becomes hard as I speak. “These panthers are legends. Even people who don’t know what they are will view them as a threat—and so they should. Any supernatural whodoesknow what they are will want to trap them and use them for their own purposes.”
His gaze is chillingly icy. “They will try to kill the panthers and sell their body parts,” he says bluntly. “Their claws and teeth would be priceless.”
A growl rises to my lips. “I will never allow that to happen. I will kill anyone who tries to imprison them or who harms them in any way.”
The male panther nearest to me edges closer, rounding the blanket to settle down beside me. His head nudges my side before he snarls up at me, as if to voice his own determination to protect the pack.
I nod down at him, guessing at his state of mind. “You don’t belong to anyone but yourselves,” I say to him before I turn to the other panthers. “But as long as you stand at my side, I will protect you like family.”
Across from me, Diavolo’s eyes have crinkled at the corners. “Well, better that it doesn’t come to bloodshed, then.”
Sapphire light flares around his fingertips, the same light he used when he gave me clothing. He inclines his head pointedly toward his magic as if that’s the solution.
“An illusion?” I ask.
He gives a single nod in reply.
The panthers all side-eye me, especially the female, who has lifted her head. She looks from the keeper to me as if to say,Don’t you dare.
I suppose pretty jackets were bad enough, let alone changing their entire appearance.
My only response is an apologetic grimace.
“What animal should they be?” Diavolo asks me.
The grimace is frozen on my face. The panthers seem to understand everything we say, and I know they won’t like my answer.
I choose to speak in a whisper—as if that will make my suggestion more palatable to them. “Some kind of dog, I think. So they can blend in to human society.”
