Read Zola Flash (The Zola Flash Series Book 1) for Free Online Page B

ten miles south—to an abandoned white warehouse.
    I squeeze myself through one of the broken windows and travel up several flight of stairs. There’s a light coming from a room at the top, and I crack the door open just enough to allow me to hear and see. The room within is lit with waxy sticks that have a similar smell to gushberries. Rose petals are scattered around the room. How romantic .
    My gaze finally lands on Pin. And that girl .
    He’s feeding her, while she talks about herself. Of course, she’s the self-absorbed type. I never would have guessed Pin would be amused by a girl as shallow as she.
    With no warning, she leans in and starts kissing Pin. Little smooches here and there. He just sits there and lets her enjoy herself.
    My snarl pushes out, louder than I intended, and Pin’s gaze shoots toward the door. As soon as his sights land on me, he pushes to his feet, but I spin and race back down the squeaky wooden stairs.
    The ensuing creaks tell me that Pin follows, even before he shouts, “Zola, wait!”
    I’m not interested in his words, though. He let her kiss him.
    I rush to the window, though as I go to crawl through, my cloak gets caught on an old rusty nail. I try to pull it loose, but it unravels around the nail, and I shrug out of the fabric and force myself through the rest of the way.
    Landing on the hard ground outside, I glance back at Pin.
    His eyes are wide, and his mouth hangs open like he has something to say, but no words come out.
    With disappointment heavy in my chest, I take off running through the darkest of night, hoping no one crosses my path and sees me.

Chapter Thirteen
    ONCE AT THE HOME Pin established for us, I let my pent-up rage break free. I swipe my claws across anything they can reach, unheeding of the crashes of stone and glass as I tornado through the rooms. A flick of my tail sends the mirror spiraling in shards to the floor— I don’t want to look in a mirror and see a monster looking back at me. I want to be Zola, Zola Flash, not a stupid animal. Normal. Just normal.
    Exhausted, I ball up on what’s left of the bed and pull the covers over me, where my tears finally spill out, uncontrollably.
    My life, my world, the way things used to be flash through my mind. The fact that everything I know is a lie consumes me. Nobody, not one single person I knew back home, had told me about my life. Not one of them had warned me that I would turn into a hideous beast. No one told me I would lose everyone I care about, or be chased around the universe, trying to protect my life. No, I had to find out from the enemy. Can I really call Pin that, though? After all, he told me the truth when my own people didn’t.
    No! My parents are at fault. They did not protect me like they should have. They lied to me my entire life. And when my sister and I needed them, they went and got themselves killed.
    Except, in the process of lying to me and getting themselves killed, they did care for me. Didn’t they? Yes, I tell myself. They loved me, and I can never question that.
    I lie quietly for a while, though my body still hasn’t morphed back to its normal form. A sound similar to thunder interrupts my blankness, right before the twinge planted in the pit of my stomach returns with a fierceness that leaves me gasping.
    As I cry out, Pin comes scampering through the door, soaking wet with what must be rain dripping from his hair. He dashes across the green and blue marble floor, as I roll off the bed, withering in pain. Bending low, he pulls me into his arms, but my cries and whimpers continue. I wish the agony would just stop.
    “Zola, listen to me,” Pin says in an urgent but soft voice. “You have to let the pain claim you,”
    “I can’t,” I sob.
    “There is no can’t . You have to, unless you want to die. Do you want to die?!”
    “No.”
    “Then, do it!”
    Concentrating, I let everything around me sink away, until everything darkens and the only thing I can hear is Pin’s