Death of a Nightingale

CHAPTER 39: DUST AND DAYLIGHT - GRACE

I'm pinned. Saying it's between a rock and a hard place would be putting it lightly. The monster had pulled me all the way back down to the little, artificial coral reef and then hooked the bulky harpoon into the rocks. I watched his wretched face go blurry as he floated away in utter amusement. His form got distorted by the waves that also carried my small trail of blood to our fellow predators who call these waters home.

I'm a hunter, an alpha in my own right. I never thought I had to compete with or fear a shark. This was so far off my radar of possible outcomes for my intended ending, I want to laugh at myself. I wriggle against the steel of the weapon but it doesn't budge. In the distance, I watch a large shadow pick up my scent and slowly change direction. I do not want to be its dinner. I wrench more, chafing the skin on my back against the sharp corals. I scream in the deep but my desperation is heard by no one. Ness' form isn't floating on the surface anymore. I can only hope that the human man I feel considerable jealousy about managed to pick her up and get her to safety. Otherwise, I might kill him just for stupidity and uselessness.

I squeeze down and feel my back grating against the stone but I have to get out of this predicament. Fast. Whatever decided to want to come pay me a visit is coming closer with elegant speed and a mouth full of very large teeth. Bigger than mine. I twist against the sharp metal and break the harpoon in two. Finally, I twist and manage to pull myself free. Without much reprieve, I start swimming up. I do my best with considerable injuries that refuse to knit back together and heal as they usually do. I glance behind me and the shark is still in pursuit, albeit not at full speed. A smaller fish did me a solid favor and got in his way, as an appetizer or a distraction, depending on how fast I manage to leave this hellish water.

I've decided I don't care much for aquariums anymore as I manage to pull myself out slowly onto the ladder. I lie there and stare at the ceiling for just a beat, drenched in gore and fish guts. At least the blood has been washed off decently. It's the small things in life we should be grateful for. I sit up and scan around me. The monster is gone and so are Ness and her human...friend. I have to pull myself together quickly and track their scent. I have to be quicker than my fellow immortal beast.

I stagger to my feet, every injury making me acutely aware of what I am not anymore; invincible.

I limp through the broken front door, leaving behind complete chaos. The fresh morning air hits me with a new threat; quickly approaching daylight. I hurry through the parking lot, just when the sirens finally make an appearance. I don't know what kind of security system this place has, but it needs a dramatic overhaul. It took the police and the fire trucks way too long to get here and be of use.

I manage to slip through the shadow and stumble forward into a run. I press my injured hand to the wound in my side, trying to stop the blood from flowing. It's quite an odd sensation. Leaking life. I half-smile at the realization, aware of every fleeting moment.

There is it, Ness' familiar, unmistakable scent. She's not doing well either. My eyes change to silver and I pick up some speed. Not enough I realize. A few bends and turns and I know. Another scent is near. My uncle. He found them before I did. He followed them, likely to deliver their bodies to me. The thought makes me feel sick to my stomach.

Behind me, I spot a first, annoyingly inconvenient ray of sunshine. Two more blocks and I will be there. Two more blocks and I can walk up the steps of Ness' house and hold her.

The pagan statue of the buck-man gleams in front of the old library. It's still wet from last night's rain and steadily becoming shinier with daylight. I can make it. I ignore the pain and will my body to run faster.

But I struggle. Almost there. The light comes up quickly. I can feel it on my heels.

No, no, no. My skin shines and prickles with the sensation. Not now, I think as dust evaporates from me.

Pain ripples through me and then I burn into millions of little particles being carried away by the wind.