Me and My Shadow - Katie MacAlister [83]
“You cannot hide from me, little bird,” I heard Gabriel call. He was close, too close. I caught a brief hint of his scent, and raced through the door that led to the outside of the house, pausing for a moment to consider the layout of the area.
“You wish to toy with me? To drive me insane with desire for you? You do not have that far to go, Mayling, which you will realize once I find you.” His voice was rich with both promise and passion. I shivered in response.
I had to find a spot for us, somewhere with privacy, somewhere we both could give vent to the emotions running so hotly through us.
“Park,” I said softly to myself, remembering that there was a large park just a few blocks away, one with a small lake, a boathouse, and several beautiful garden areas. Most important, it would be closed at night, providing a silver-eyed dragon and his mate room to play.
I leaped over the trash cans and ran around the side of the house toward the street, where late-night traffic droned softly in the background, Gabriel’s voice calling out over it. “Do you think to lose me in traffic, mate? Do you think you will get away from me?”
I smiled to myself as I ran as fast as I could, dodging the pedestrians and cars, ignoring both the odd looks and occasional blasts of horns as I dashed across the streets, heading for the bulky black outlines of trees that I could glimpse between buildings.
“You have never been able to get away from me before. I have always found you, and I will do so this time, as well.”
As if I wanted to get away from him. Happiness sang in my ears, mingled with a healthy dose of my libido as I raced toward my goal.
“There will be retribution for this act, you know. Grave retribution.” Laughter was in his voice now, laughter and a tension that bespoke his enjoyment of the play. I just hoped I’d be able to last long enough to see the chase through to the end, rather than flinging myself upon him as I wanted.
I found one of the gates to the park at last. The locked gate gave me no trouble, not just because I didn’t stop to unlock it. I simply swarmed up the wrought iron fence, leaping off the top to land on my feet on the other side, taking a moment to get my bearings before I set off toward what I remembered was a traditional English garden located in the southeast corner.
“Wise little bird. A park. Very fitting. There will be no witnesses to see what it is I will do when I catch you.”
A little ripple of pleasure went up my back at the velvet edge of his voice. Behind me, I heard the sound of metal on metal, just as if someone else was climbing the gate. I smiled again, and dashed past the boathouse, suddenly spinning 180 degrees to run alongside the boathouse, wading into the water as quietly as I could. It was cold against my now-fevered flesh, and momentarily took my breath away. I held it for a moment, not wanting Gabriel, with his heightened hearing, catching the sound of me gasping, but after what seemed like an interminable amount of time, I grew accustomed to the cold. I swam out under the dock connected to the boathouse, clutching a pillar as I peered around it to see what Gabriel would do.
I had to wait only a few seconds to see. The moon was not full, but gave enough light for me to see the silhouette of a man as he raced past the boathouse. I held my breath again, not wanting him to hear even the slightest hint of sound.
He paused, obviously scenting the air for me. “Where are you, little bird?” he asked, slowly turning around toward the direction he came. “You are near, I know. I can feel my fire in you. The breeze whispers your name, so you must have just passed by here. Show yourself