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He pawed at his rass until he threw up I gagged again and turned away

"Good god, those things are foul," Ryland said from behind me, his nakedness hidden behind a broken stack of bricks He spat a glob of dark saliva at the hound and trotted away, returning a"I need a damned beer"

"You andthe tounds on her "This isn’t good" He touched the wound on her thigh Stacey ?"

Ryland frowned "Hellhound wounds don’t heal easily They usually fester and kill a person, even if they’re a fast healer"

Panic gripped me I couldn’t lose Stacey True, she was a pain in the butt, but I cared for her all the same "Someone must be able to help her"

He nodded "I know soirl who showed me where she was Black hair, short, kind of Asian--oh, and naked"

"Where is she now?"

"She vanished I didn’t have tihed "We don’t have ti to help your friend Was the girl hurt?"

I shook my head "She looked healthy, but I hate to just leave her out here"

"Did she have leaves in her hair? Did her fingernails look like polished wood?"

"What kind of question is that?"

"Just tell ht back and remembered leaves, but whether they were in her hair or not, I couldn’t recall "I think Maybe"

"Might be one of the woodlanders who helped you"

"A hat?"

"Nature guardians There aren’t ainst civilization"

"Like a tree ny as those, I’rinned "Don’t worry I was just as disappointed as you I alanted to see what one of the Greenpeace?" I said, following Ryland as he made his way across a shallow ditch and back onto theback over his shoulder atelse Not sure if they’re spirit or flesh, to be honest"

"She sure was cute"

"Sounds like it You got to ot was a mouthful of hellhound blood" He spat

"Are we headed toward a supernatural hospital?" I asked, looking around for a clue as to our direction

"Not exactly"

"You’re sure we’re going someplace that can help?" The only other person I could think of thatspells

He stopped and gave the unconscious woaze "Can you run?"

I nodded

"Whatever you do, let ht not be happy with me if she finds out you’re spawn"

I cursed "Why couldn’t I have been sohed "Once you find out more about your kind, you’ll probably understand why they have such a terrible rep"

"I’ve heard that one before"

We took off down the road, whizzing past abandoned buildings and through quiet residential neighborhoods until we reached a small house in the Druid Hills area near E road as it curved around hilly terrain cloaked by a dense canopy of trees It looked like a nightmarish place to drive if the roads ever iced up

Ryland approached the quaint house with its gray-stone chimney and a red-painted wooden door, the kind that curved at the top and had black-banded es The back yard, what little there was, curved sharply doard and into a wooded valley I reh here, years ago Or had it been so with Mo to the side of the house waves and smiles The air flickers Darkens A deep boo it, draggingblack hole in the side of the house The front door slairl screay pours outside The door opens and shuts Opens and shuts Blood streaks down the sidewalk as if an invisible painter is dragging a brush The door is red The door is red The door is red

So ay A sharp pain stung my cheek and I stared into silver eyes

"Justin? Are you okay?"

"Ryland?"