CHAPTER 17

She could hear it in his voice. A slight hitch here and there, or a quick clearing of the throat. Mike was nervous about this Eulalie character, and for good reason. The Arachne were dangerous, and if she had her way, she would have held that crate shut until someone set the damn thing on fire.

Footsteps on the roof alerted Abella that someone had joined her. It was Kisa, she recognized her soft footfalls. The cat girl sat next to Abella and pulled her knees up to her chin.

"You never sit with me," Abella noted. The roof of the home was big enough that they rarely even saw each other. In fact, if Kisa held still for long enough, Abella couldn't even hear her breathing, or see where she was. It was some type of magical invisibility that made people forget that she was there.

Kisa's ears flattened, and she let out a low growl. "Sorry," she mumbled. "That one kind of slipped out because I'm all worked up. Can I tell you something?"

"I suppose."

"That thing down there gives me the shivers." Illustrating her point, Kisa's spine stiffened, and she shook her head. "Like, holy shit. I've never seen a spider up close before, but her whole body is just...damn."

Abella nodded. "Have you ever wondered why humans have such a reaction to spiders?"

Kisa shifted forward, her tail moving around erratically.

"Can't say I have," she muttered. "Don't really stare at spooky shit and wonder why it's so spooky."

"It's primal. You fear things that are different, but it goes even deeper with arachnids. It's not just that they have eight legs and too many mouth parts. Your ancestors were hunted by them relentlessly. They could wipe out entire villages overnight if they wanted to, and only those who had a healthy dose of fear survived to pass the tales along. It's no different than your fear of the dark."

"You're saying that people are afraid of spiders because of the Arachne?"

Abella nodded. "Think about the things that humans are afraid of. Some are logical, like falling. Public speaking is bad. But why are spiders so high up on the list? Most of them are harmless."

"Hmm." Kisa surveyed the yard while toying with a bracelet on her wrist. It was a pretty yellow band that matched a similar one that Tink sometimes wore. "It's kind of weird, but I'm half a cat because I wore a cursed collar to fix my shattered legs. I'm not really in a position to argue."

"Do you know what hunts man?"

"Tigers. Sharks. Taxes." Kisa smirked at her own joke.

"Do you know what hunts the Arachne?"

"Really big fly swatters?"

Abella snorted in disgust. "The answer is nothing. No being in their right mind willingly hunts them for food. If this is just silly for you, I'd prefer you go someplace else to sulk."

"You really hate them, don't you?" Kisa looked at Abella expectantly.

Abella pursed her lips and nodded. "More than anything."

She spread her wings and leapt from the roof, soaring over the yard and then circling higher when she reached the edge of the geas. Down below, the yard had come to life with fairies, insects and lightning bugs. Their chorus reached Abella's ears, but brought her no joy as she attempted to reach the clouds.

How could Mike trust Eulalie so quickly? Despite Lily's assurance that the Arachne was safe, what if she tried to mate with him? It was instant death to mate with the Arachne, and Abella would die before allowing Eulalie to make a move on Mike.

She wanted to punch something or someone, but her options here were limited. To correct the issue, she flew outside of the geas. The magic was like a leash once she passed its boundary. It compelled her to return, but she could resist for a while. The sky had taken on the azure hue of twilight, and she wasn't worried about being spotted.

While soaring over a nearby park, she spotted a group of teens down by the edge of the lake. They were laughing while throwing rocks at a pair of ducks that were out on the water. About fifty feet behind them was a large stone monument dedicated to the park where they had leaned their bicycles.

With a grin, she landed nearby on the soft ground and wrapped her arms around the monument. She used her tail and talons to keep from sinking too far into the ground while she carefully lifted the conical monument into the air. As long as she didn't tilt it from side to side, it should remain structurally sound.

Once it was free of the soil, she wiggled her fingers down its cool sides until she could get her hands beneath the bottom and then lifted. The monument went into the air high enough that the bikes fell into the gap it had left. With a smirk, she set the monument down on top of them.

The bikes creaked as they bent and became pinned. Only their bent and mangled wheels remained visible. Should they ever be removed, the bikes would be completely unusable.

With a chuckle, she used her tail to wipe away her footprints and then lifted into the sky. Other than the laughing teens, the park was abandoned and she wasn't too worried about being spotted. She wished she could see their faces. Dishing out petty justice hadn't made her feel much better, but it was a start.

She flew toward downtown and found one of her favorite perches on a local church. After folding her wings about herself like a cloak, she pressed herself against the stone facade and shifted the color of her skin to match. From here, she could watch people moving about the city without fear of being spotted.

The pull of the house was growing stronger, but her anger made it easy to stay away. At some point, the compulsion would be too much, and she would have to take to the sky to protect the home once again.

No, that wasn't correct. She would fly home to protect him.

She could still picture the day she had met Mike, how she had listened in panic to his screams for help. The mandragora hadn't been fed in forever, and it was trying to consume him. Her limbs had been stiff, and she had fought to wake up and rescue him.