Humanity 03 - Marksman Law Read Online Free PDF Page A

no!” Tina grabbed
her shoulder. “Don’t hurt him.”
    Mirage shrugged away. “I’m not going
to kill him. I just need to knock him out.”
    Tina shook her head.
“Mirage…”
    The second shot seemed to pause
time.
    Tina’s sentence was cut off as Mirage
watched her eyes widen. She stumbled forward and only Mirage’s
hands on her shoulders kept her from falling.
    “ Oh, God, Tina…” Mirage
could smell the sharp tang of blood and she watched Tina’s black
hoody darken as it saturated with blood.
    “ Mirage…” Tina coughed as
Mirage picked her up. A quick glance at the policeman told her that
he was making his way closer, trying to get a clearer shot. She
embraced her shadows before he could and shrouded them both in
their comforting presence, traveling back to her home. She lay Tina
down on the kitchen floor and blood immediately began to stain the
white tile.
    “ Listen to me, Tina,”
Mirage said as she ripped through Tina’s hoody and shirt without
effort. “Everything is going to be alright. I’m not going to let
you die.” If Tina heard her, then she was unable to answer. Mirage
tried not to think about that—she promised herself that it would be
okay. She wasn’t a strong Illuminitican, but if she worked quickly,
her abilities should be enough to heal her.
    Mirage shivered. Despite the consequences , her conscious whispered. She ignored the worry—the side
effects of being healed would be better than Tina dying. She
couldn’t break Kinely’s trust…no matter what.
    Mirage’s movements were methodical and
instinctive. She refused to allow herself to think as the designs
that decorated her hand began to glow blue. There was a new pain as
her powers flowed into Tina’s skin. The human’s skin glowed blue
and Mirage felt her consciousness begin to weaken. There was
something wrong with her powers. She barely realized the wound on
Tina’s stomach had closed up before she fell against the human.
There was an odd ringing in her ears.
    “ Not yours, Mirage. Not
yours to control.”
    Mirage panted, trying to stay
conscious. The burning pain had spread, even though she’d stopped
using her power. The whispered words echoed in her throbbing head,
her only company as she passed out. Who had spoken?
    In the back of her mind she could feel
something—someone who was watching. She was vaguely aware of a
shower, of fear and resentment, and of Michael’s screaming voice.
In that instant she realized something.
    She was bound to him.
    The Shadow Cords called to her as she
blacked out. She was bound to him by the Shades. She remembered the
last thing she’d said to him, something she hadn’t even meant to
say when the Shades had circled them. Something she hadn’t even
understood.
    “ Bring peace, Parlinn, and
learn from the past’s echo your sins.”
     

About The Author

    Corrine Shroud lives in the
Appalachian rural reaches of Kentucky with her family, her dog
Scooper and her cat Jaded. She’s a Robinson Scholar and is
currently attending the University of Kentucky, majoring in pre-Med
Biology and Minoring in Mythology and Folklore. Her family is large
and loving and she has three younger brothers. She lives in a
beautiful culture-rich area that has inspired her and that she’s
proud of. She’s an avid reader and writer and is obsessed with
anything of the obscure.