Whispers at Moonrise (Shadow Falls #4)(13)

They want you to come to them. She heard the spirit's words whisper in her head.

Who was out there? Was it Mario?

Suddenly, she wasn't so sure. It didn't feel evil. It felt ... She didn't know how it felt, honestly, only that it wasn't completely evil. However, it still scared her to the point that her breath came short, and a chill ran up her spine and tingled at the base of her neck.

"What?" Miranda asked, a note of fear in her tone. "Your aura is going all sorts of strange colors on me."

"Nothing," Kylie lied. She turned and started jogging to the office. As her feet pounded the path, little clouds of dirt floated up. She blinked the dusty air away and that's when she saw the moon-half full, but bright. And it looked as if it just suddenly appeared in the sky.

Moonrise, she thought. She felt again the whispers echoing in her mind. Whispers she couldn't understand, whispers that both lured her and frightened her.

"Is it a ghost?" Miranda asked, her feet pounding the path as her multicolored hair danced in the wind. "Is it?"

"No," Kylie said, able to speak without huffing.

"Then can you slow down? Because I'm not like you and Della. I mean, I could cast a spell and maybe I could run faster, but that would take some time. And the last time I tried it, I turned myself into an antelope."

"We're just about there," Kylie said, but, remembering how she hated having to work so hard to keep up with Della, she did slow her pace. Suddenly, a whoosh of air blew past them. Kylie's first thought was vampire, but then Perry, in his huge prehistoric bird form, landed in front of them.

Miranda, even huffing and puffing, squealed with pleasure. Perry took his right wing and wrapped it around the little witch, pulling her into his chest and giving her a warm bird hug. Then he cooed, sounding like a dove. As sappy as it was, and even in her bad mood, Kylie's chest tightened. And the tender smile she spotted in Miranda's expression sealed the deal. Love was a wonderful thing. Kylie wanted it. All of it. Complete devotion. All the sappy, crazy feelings.

Images of both Derek and Lucas filled her head. Oh, hell, could she be in love with both of them? Was that even possible?

Perry released Miranda and stepped back. Sparkles started falling around him like iridescent snow. In seconds, human Perry appeared. His sandy blond hair clung to his forehead as if he'd worked up a sweat. His eyes were blue. Bright blue. He wore a pair of black jeans and a T-shirt that read, WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO BE?

"I was just coming to get you," Perry said, shifting his gaze from Miranda to Kylie.

"Me?" Kylie asked. "Why?"

He shrugged. "They told me to. Ordered me to."

"Who?" Kylie asked. "Who told you to get me?"

"Duh. Burnett and Holiday. I don't take orders from anyone else. Except maybe Miranda." He grinned at Miranda.

"Is something wrong?" Kylie asked.

He looked back at Kylie. "I don't know. But I know your mom showed up and she's fit to be tied. Giving Holiday hell."

"My mom's here?" Kylie asked, feeling confused.

Perry nodded. "Sorry."

Kylie took off at a heated pace. Worry had her feet hitting the dirt and leaving a cloud of dust in her wake.

Chapter Six

Kylie ran directly into Holiday's office. Her mom stood in front of Holiday's desk, making some declaration. Holiday sat behind the desk, listening to the declaration. Burnett stood stoic, taking it all in. Kylie barely gave him a glance. She focused on her mom, who swung around and ...

Kylie was engulfed in a quick but desperate hug. Over her mom's shoulder, Kylie's questioning gaze shot to Holiday, who stood up. Her mom backed up.

Kylie continued to stare at Holiday. The briefest of memories of the spirit pulled at Kylie's heart. How could they be so identical and not be the same person? Kylie told herself to deal with one thing at a time. So she refocused on her mom. The look on her face scared the crap out of Kylie. It was the same look her mom had when her grandmother had died.

"What's wrong?" Kylie's mind searched for possibilities and her breath caught as one hit. "Is Dad okay?"

She might still be angry at her stepfather, might not have forgiven him for his infidelity with his young intern, but Kylie loved him. She'd never been surer of that fact than right now. Now, when she imagined the worst-imagined her mother telling her that there had been an accident. That Kylie would never get another long hug from the man or go with him on a father/daughter trip.

"Your dad is fine. It's you that isn't." Her mom's gaze shot over Kylie's shoulder and then back at Kylie. "Why didn't you tell me you were sick?"

"I'm not sick."

"You had some headaches. And those nightmares, remember?" Holiday spoke in a certain tone that Kylie didn't quite understand.

Her mom's gaze flipped from Kylie's face over her shoulder again and for some reason it made Kylie turn around. Sitting on the sofa was a man she didn't know.

"I ... don't understand," Kylie said, and looked back at her mom.

"It was in my records," Holiday said, again in a tone that seemed to mean something. "I put it in the files and the administrators thought maybe your mom should be contacted. To see if perhaps you needed testing."

Kylie continued to stare at Holiday.