by Lila Kane
“What’s worst case scenario?” I ask her.
Her lips quirk in a humorless smile. “We have to let Logan out.”
The house is empty when I get back home. There’s no sign of Ryan, so I figure he probably returned to his human self and decided to check in with the rest of his crew. They’re working on a new house they plan to have finished by the summer. Hopefully he doesn’t keep shifting or that deadline is going to be difficult to reach.
I skip dinner and check my e-mail, finding one from the editor of a magazine I freelance for. He wants me to do an article on the Shadow Hill Hotel. He doesn’t know about my link to the hotel yet. I should be grateful for the work, and grateful for the chance to do research on my ancestors, but all I feel is tired.
Less than a week in Shadow Hill and I’ve talked with ghosts, learned to astral project, met a mom who’s been absent from my life for over ten years, and developed a thing for a shapeshifter.
Too bad said shapeshifter isn’t here now to take my mind off what’s going to happen tomorrow.
At the kitchen table, I shove aside my laptop and drop my head in my hands much like my mother did earlier. It’s too much. Vampires and werewolves and long-lost mothers. All I really want to do it grab a beer, watch some reality TV and fall asleep on the couch. But that seems like a remarkably lazy night considering there’s so much else to think about.
Willow…
Logan’s voice echoes in my mind again. I swallow hard and eye the waning evening outside. It’s getting dark and probably cold in the cave. And I never went back to visit Logan. He’s got to be hungry. And tired.
At least when I was at his house, he gave me somewhere to sleep. Somewhere warm and comfortable. I left him in the middle of the forest in a cave.
I lift my head and a scream lodges in my throat when I see someone near the sink. Selena. I can see through her but she’s still solid enough I can tell what she’s wearing. The same thing as the first time I saw her. A period dress in gauzy white, hair hanging in dark curls. She’s not wearing the necklace anymore, though, since she gave it to me.
“Selena,” I breathe, heart pounding.
Her ghostly smile is sad. “Not tonight,” she whispers.
I open my mouth, confused. “Not tonight, what?”
“Don’t go to the cave.”
Is that why she’s here? Because I was thinking about Logan and the cave? I remember my mom’s words back at her house, how she thinks Selena’s involvement in the spell was because of anger and revenge. But to me, she doesn’t look angry or vengeful. She looks like she’s trying to help me.
“Do you think Logan is going to try to hurt me?”
Her hand reaches out, finger curling as if she’s beckoning me to come closer. “Save your power,” she says.
I start to stand, opening my mouth to ask more questions, when there’s a knock at the front door. I gasp and slap a hand to my chest. In an instant, Selena vanishes, leaving me alone in the kitchen. Heart still racing, I walk to the door and see a shadowy figure on the other side.
For a brief moment, I’m scared it’s Logan and he’s gotten out somehow. Then I recognize the way Ryan rubs his hand along his jaw and open the door.
“Hi,” he says, shoving his hands in his pockets.
“Hi.”
Neither of us says anything for a moment. He looks tired. Frustrated. Maybe even a little lost.
“Do you want to come in?” I ask.
He nods and opens the screen door to come in. I want to reach out, maybe smooth some of the stress from his face, but he looks too tense for contact right now.
I perch on the arm of the couch while he continues to stand. “How long did it take?”
“What?”
“How long did it take for you to turn back this time?”
His jaw clenches. “A few hours.”
“Is that…bad?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know what’s normal. Longer than last time, though.” He sighs. “I talked with my lead guy over at the site, let him know I might be in and out over the next several weeks. Just in case.”
“Maybe we could, you know, work on things. Try to see if you can start to control it‒”
“No.”
I stand again, walking to him. He keeps his hands in his pockets, chin dipped to look at his shoes. “Ryan…”
He glances up to meet my eyes. There’s fire in his gaze, a flash of anger that surprises me. “I said no, okay? I don’t want to control it, I don’t want to practice with it. I want it all to go away. If my dad hadn’t wanted to shift so badly, my mom wouldn’t have gotten hurt. Things would have been‒”
Ryan breaks off, shaking his head and looking at his shoes again. “Forget it. Just don’t push me, Willow.”
“I’m not‒” I sigh and brush a hand through my hair. “I’m not trying to push you, I’m trying to help.”
“You can help by understanding I don’t want anything to do with this.”
I swallow my frustration and my guilt. It’s my fault he has to deal with this. And now I can’t do anything but trust we’ll eventually have a plan to make it go away.
I fold my arms and nod. “That’s fine. My mom and Cheyenne are helping. We’ll take care of it so you can…deal with whatever you need to deal with.”
“That’s not what I meant.” There’s still anger in his eyes. I think we’re both in the mood for a fight, but neither of us wants to take it out on each other. “I want to help with the situation, to help you, but I don’t want to deal with the other stuff. If it happens, I’ll take care of it but otherwise the topic is off limits.”
Because of his mom? What had happened to her? How had his father’s shifting affected their family so much that Ryan doesn’t even want to talk about it?
“We’re going to talk to Myra tomorrow to see if we can get my Book of Shadows‒or Faye’s‒back.”
His jaw shifts. “She’s going to negotiate. She’s going to want Logan out of the cave.”
“I know. But we have something to negotiate with.”
“I don’t like it.”
I frown and toss out the words before I can think them through. “I don’t like that you won’t talk about shifting with me either. I guess we’re even.”
A range of emotions travels across his face before he shuts them all off. He doesn’t move for several seconds but when he does, it looks like he’s going to reach out for me. To pull me close. Then he tucks his hands in his pockets again.
He inclines his head. “Okay. Tomorrow then?”
“You want to come with us?”
He lifts his eyebrows like he can’t believe I asked that question. “I’m supposed to be looking out for you. I want to look out for you. It would help if you let me.”
I can’t think of a response quick enough before he turns and leaves the house. I watch him walk down the drive and get in his truck before driving away into the night.
Chapter 4
I slept so well last night, I don’t even need my coffee this morning. I remember dreaming about Selena, about having a conversation with her. Her voice was soothing, calm, and whatever she was telling me made me feel at peace.
I hum to myself as I put on makeup and pull my hair into a loose twist at the back of my neck. I opt for my brown boots, the ones that rise above my calves, and a navy shirt that covers my arms. It’ll be cool out in the forest and I don’t know how long we’ll be in the cave. I’m pretty sure Myra’s going to insist we go there. And if not, I still need to visit Logan.
Something flickers at the edge of the mirror. I whip around but there’s nothing there.
“Hello?” I call to the empty room.
I don’t hear anything else.
Giving myself a mental shake, I leave the room, grab a piece of toast on my way out and freeze on the porch. Ryan is outside, leaning against his truck and staring at his shoes. He looks up when he hears me.
“Hey, Willow.”
He looks better today, less t
ired, less stressed. But I can still see the lingering tension in his shoulders.
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
A smile skims his lips. He meets me at the bottom of the steps. “Nice to see you, too. I thought we could ride together.”
“Are you sure you want to go?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” He reaches out, capturing my hand in his and giving it a squeeze. “I’m part of this, too. And the more of us, the better.”
I lift my chin, meeting his hazel eyes. The green flecks in them sparkle in the sunlight. “You’re worried something is going to happen.”
“After the week you’ve had, it’s pretty much guaranteed.”
“They’ll have to work with us if they want me to help Myra.”
He brushes my jaw with his fingertips, then leans in. His lips meet mine, warm and steady, before his tongue glides across the bottom one. “Vampires don’t have to do anything they don’t want,” he murmurs.
My lips part and he takes the kiss deeper, pulling me against his body so we touch the entire way down. My eyes flicker open just a moment, but it’s long enough to see movement from the corner of my eye. I straighten, looking for whatever it was I saw. I thought…
…for a moment, I thought it was Selena.
But if she’s hanging around, it’s a good thing, right? She’s the one who keeps helping me. Maybe she’s just as worried about today.
“What is it?” Ryan asks.
“I thought I saw someone.”
He switches his grip on me so he can stand in front of me. His eyes scan the yard and the area around the house before moving to the street.
“No, it’s fine,” I say. “I’ve just been…jumpy, I guess.”
That must be it. For me to see Selena twice this morning‒even last night‒there’s got to be something else going in. But I’m not worried about Selena. She makes me feel safe.
“I understand.” He puts his hand on my lower back and ushers me to the truck. “It’s better that I’m coming today.”
I get in and wait for him to join me on the other side before I ask, “Why? Do you have some kind of vampire repellent or something? In case things get out of hand?”
He slides on a pair of reflective sunglasses and smiles. “You never did ask why shapeshifters were the most logical choice to be guardians for the witches.”
“I assumed because the werewolves and vampires were too busy fighting with each other. It was only natural for the shifters and witches to pair up.”
He turns onto Main Street and takes us toward Logan’s house. I’m familiar with most of the landmarks already. The diner on the corner that makes excellent pancakes, the library where Cheyenne works. The rescue station a block over. Pretty soon the buildings and homes will taper off, giving way to trees for a few miles before we reach Logan’s home.
I spot a blackbird flying parallel to the car for several seconds before it disappears.
“That’s part of it.” Ryan reaches over to grab my hand. “The bigger reason, though, is that shifters can’t be hurt by vampires.”
I turn to face him. “What do you mean you can’t be hurt?”
“I mean vampires literally cannot hurt us without being in pain themselves. Which makes it a lot harder for them to kill us.”
“But…” I think back to the forest yesterday and the incident outside the diner after I met Logan. “He hit you. And kicked you.”
Ryan scowls. “Yeah. It probably hurt him worse, though. And that’s probably the worst he could have done. It was nothing.”
My mind reels with the information. No wonder the shifters and witches had a sort of alliance. No wonder Ryan kept insisting I wait for him before going around Logan.
“You could have told me this before,” I say.
He squeezes my hand and gives a low laugh. “Sure. In all our free time together.”
He’s right. We’ve barely known each other a week. But circumstances brought us together fast. We had to rely on each other and trust each other.
“That makes it sound like you’re obligated to help me,” I say.
He doesn’t speak for a moment, taking a slow curve as the road narrows. I see Logan’s house through the trees in the distance.
“It sounds bad when you say it like that. I want to help you. Just like I wanted to help your mom.”
I look away when he mentions her. She’s meeting us there with Cheyenne today and I don’t know what to expect from her. I still don’t know if I want to have anything to do with her, which makes it that much harder to work with her.
Ryan turns down the long drive to Logan’s house. We wind around a few trees and park directly behind Cheyenne’s car. They’re waiting for us.
Myra opens the front door. She leans against the jamb and folds her arms.
Ryan grabs my hand before I can get out. “Be careful.”
I’m not afraid of Myra, but now I have a better understanding of where Ryan’s coming from. It’s ingrained in him to protect witches and he’s just doing his duty.
I nod and get out. Ryan meets me around the other side as Cheyenne steps from her car as well.
“We want to talk,” Ryan says to Myra, keeping his stance by the car.
“All of you?” Myra asks, lifting a brow. She gestures to the house. “You might as well come in.”
Ryan captures my hand and shakes his head. “We can talk from here.”
Myra laughs, but it quickly turns into a cough. “Fine. What do you want?”
“A deal,” I say quickly.
Cheyenne glances at me but lets me do the talking.
“You give us my Book of Shadows‒”
“And mine,” Faye cuts in with a nod.
“And hers,” I add. “And then we’ll help you.”
The longer Myra doesn’t say anything, the tenser Ryan gets next to me. His grip tightens on my hand and he turns his lips to my ear. “She doesn’t know what to do‒just try to negotiate with her. She trusts you.”
I nod.
“Myra, we have spells,” I say. “We can do healing spells and figure out how to help you.”
Myra smiles. “I see what you’re doing.”
She walks from the door and strolls down the steps. Ryan automatically steps in front of me and Cheyenne joins him on the other side.
“We didn’t come for a fight,” Cheyenne says.
“Does it look like I’m trying to fight?” Myra laughs again. “You want something from me, so don’t act like I invited you here to attack you. I’m interested in a deal, sure, but I want to see Logan first.”
Of course. We expected this.
“We can bring you to him,” I tell her.
Ryan whips a glance in my direction.
“What?” I ask. “It’s only fair. We’ll take her to him and then negotiate.”
Cheyenne touches his shoulder from the other side. “It’s the best way to do this.”
He scowls at her and then nods his head toward the truck. “Willow, can we talk a minute?”
I follow him to the other side of the truck, shielding my eyes against the glare of the sun. Before he can open his mouth, I say, “I know what you’re thinking.”
“You do?”
“You’re thinking the usual.”
“Which is?”
I smile, trying to calm his nerves some. “This is dangerous, we shouldn’t make deals with vampires, and Logan should stay where he is. Does that cover it all?”
He lifts his eyebrows. “You think this is funny.”
“Funny?” I angle my head, considering this. “I don’t know if I’d say funny, but definitely amusing.”
“Same thing.”
“Not technically‒”
“I don’t want to argue about this, Willow. I want you to be careful. We don’t know Myra, but given that she’s Logan’s sister and a vampire, I’d say there’s not much we can trust.”
I reach out and settle my hands on his shoulders. His expression softens. “It’s okay,
Ryan. Myra isn’t going to hurt us. She would have done it already.”
“You don’t remember her trying to strangle you?”
“Yeah, okay, there is that. But it wasn’t because she wants to hurt me, it’s because we broke into her house and wouldn’t tell her where Logan was. She was feeling defensive. I get it.”
He takes my hands from his shoulders and holds them in his. His thumbs brush my knuckles. I still see the worry in his frown, but he nods. “You’re too understanding, but I’m trying to see your side. Can you just…not waltz into that cave when we get there?”
My lips twitch. “Waltz?”
“Yeah, waltz in there and start negotiating with Logan and let him charm you in‒”
“Charm me?”
“Charm you. Don’t let him charm you or manipulate you into anything. The fact still remains that if he wanted to handle this situation in a different way, he could have. Instead, he chose to kidnap you.”
“I can’t argue that.”
His lips curve in a full smile. “I’m sorry, what was that? You’re not going to argue with me?”
I laugh and kiss his cheek. “Don’t get used to it, it’s only temporary.”
He keeps my hand in his as we walk to the other side of the truck again.
“We’ll take you to Logan,” I tell Myra.
Myra nods as though she expected as much. “Good.”
The forest floor is wet when we walk around the hotel and to the back. I know the path to the cave well now and I take the lead.
Myra is right behind me and I imagine Cheyenne’s following up behind her so she can keep an eye on the vampire.
“How did you get Logan out here?” Myra asks.
Her breathing sounds labored and I slow my strides to accommodate her. Logan would kill me if something happened to her when he was stuck in the cave.
I don’t tell Myra I tricked Logan. But that’s how I got him out here. I told him I could find Selena’s Book of Shadows in the cave when there was nothing in there but amethyst‒a crystal that weakens a vampire’s powers, and apparently causes a fair amount of pain as well.
“I saw my ancestor, Selena, in a vision.” I fall into step with Myra. Ryan’s close by my other side but he keeps silent as we walk in the cool morning.
