Bet that made him piss his pants. I laughed silently and took the opportunity to move a few more feet. He’d be expecting me to head toward the open door leading into the main room of Merrill’s store, so I did the opposite, backtracking toward where I was crouched when I found the marble.

Smoke filled the room from the exploding spell. I sure didn’t think that one through. My lungs seized with the need to cough.

Oh crap. They itched, every breath tickling down my throat. But if I gave into it, that last bullet would hit me. He was shooting like he’d used that gun many times before.

Use your ward, dummy.

Yeah, because I could definitely trust my power enough to protect me from a guy who wanted to blow my head off without instantly killing him.

I slipped my hand toward my utility belt, slowly unzipping a pouch as sweat rolled down my back. The shooter stalked toward me, kicking a path through the rubble of Merrill’s back room as he went.

I threw one of my throwing knives at the shield. It clanged against the metal, bounced off, and Scar-face jolted, swinging his gun wildly toward the shield.

“You’re a dead whore!” He shot in the shield’s direction, and I jumped to my feet. Our eyes met and his face drained of color as he pulled the trigger. The click sounded loud in the sudden silence and his hand trembled as he cursed and reached beneath his robe for a magazine.

I smiled at him. “I’m a what?” I pulled my Nim Cub and he gulped, turned, and ran, slamming the door to the alley behind him.

I hauled ass through the wreckage, threw the door open and sprinted after him. He was heading southeast, and I grinned savagely. I’d bet I knew that neighborhood better than him.

He crossed the street and I cursed as I was forced to wait for a truck. He disappeared for a moment, and I growled under my breath as he appeared in my line of sight. The asshole was holding his gun on a human guy, forcing him out of his car.

Fuck interrogation. If I couldn’t catch him, I’d kill him. His body would be plenty of evidence. I dropped my shields, lifted my hand, and something slammed into me, dropping me like a rock.

I rolled, instantly pulling my knife again as I held it against a throat.

A human teenager’s throat.

He stared at me, stunned. Packing away my power took everything in me. I rolled off him and cursed soundly. The asshole in the cloak was long gone, and the teenager looked mighty pleased with himself as he brushed himself off and got to his feet. He offered me his hand, which I ignored, still fighting my power, which wanted to explode some shit. My shield held steady. Just.