Excerpt from Chasing Shadows (was previous called untitled new book lol)
Chapter Three - Austin
STILL HOLDING Tom’s arm, Austin stabbed the attacker in the
rib area with Tom’s own weapon.
The odd-looking blade sliced through skin like a hot knife through
butter. Tom screamed, fighting to get free. Austin broke Tom’s hold on the weapon,
stepped back, then kicked Tom in the side of the knee.
Tom staggered away, holding his side. His shirt was already
turning red, and he dropped to one knee. Austin gripped the funny looking weapon,
ready for the next attack.
A man stepped out of the mist, seized the injured human, and
hauled him to his feet. “Who are you?”
Austin’s mouth dropped opened as he stared at the man who
stood under a light pole—a light pole whose light was no longer flickering? He
blinked rapidly.
Did he just see a man step out of the mist? Okay, sort of a
man. He had two arms. Two legs. A chest and waist. And he wasn’t overly
muscular, which was exactly Austin’s type. The full, kissable lips and a five
o’clock shadow, along with black hair, finished out the sexy picture.
The completely black eyes were a little bit of a trip. As were
the black veins that webbed the visible skin of his body—a very nice
body—Austin noted.
Oh, and the hand that was currently wrapped around Tom’s neck was
completely black, with long black nails. Black tendrils of smoke or mist floated
up from that hand. Yeah, that wasn’t weird at all.
Nevertheless, he was the most gorgeous man Austin had ever
laid eyes on.
“Fucking monster,” Tom gasped. “We’ll kill you all, shadow demon.
All of you! Every last fucking one of—”
The man in the monster’s grip gurgled.
Shadow demon?
“For fucks sake, Kage, just get rid of him. What the hell are hunters
doing in our city anyway?”
Hunters?
Kage?
Austin whipped his head around to see a tall man with auburn
hair walking toward them. Were there… were there scales on his face? Reddish
golden scales that were disappearing right before Austin’s eyes?
The red-headed man stopped next to Austin. “You’re Austin,
right?”
He could only nod, because holy shit, the guy’s eyes were yellow
with slitted pupils—like a cat or lizard.
“Are you injured?”
“No, no I’m not.” Look at that. A whole four words.
“Excellent.”
“Yeah. Excellent.” The Twilight Zone vibe was getting the best
of Austin. The entire conversation was bizarre. “Um, are you okay too?”
“Aren’t you sweet? I’m fine. Thanks for asking. And speaking
of asking, would you mind if I took a look at the dagger you’re holding?”
“Huh? Oh.” Austin glanced down at his hand. “Yeah, sure. It’s
not mine. Here.”
“I know it’s not yours.” The red-headed man glared at the weapon
Austin handed him. “It’s a dragonbone dagger. The bone comes from a dragon.
Damn things are deadly. I wonder how the hell that human got a hold of one,” he
said slipping it in the back of his pants.
“I, ah, I… dragonbone? As in a dragon?”
“Yes. Hey Kage, finish up, will you?” the red-headed man
yelled. “Time to introduce yourself to your human.”
Scowling, the monster tossed the man toward the shadows. With
a scream, Tom fell into the darkness, then he fell through it. Like a
rock sinking under the waves, he was just gone.
Austin blinked some more, but Tom didn’t miraculously reappear.
