by Blythe Baker
“A shape shifter?” asked the woman who’d talked about her child going missing at the last meeting. Her dark eyes were large and glazed over. “Those – those exist?”
“Come, now, what are you people doing here if you don’t even know what’s going on?” Dante asked, his voice rising again. “Yes, they exist. Along with vampires, witches, psychics, and faeries – ”
“This is ridiculous,” I said before I could stop myself.
Dante’s eyes flashed, and a dangerous expression passed over his face. “Oh, you think so? Well, you won’t think it’s ridiculous when one of these creatures stalks you from the edge of the woods late at night, or catches you off guard when you least expect it.”
He reached behind himself and pulled one of the arrows out of the quiver strapped to his back. The gleaming silver tip stood out against all the black he wore. He rolled the shaft of the arrow between his sausage-sized fingers.
“That’s why I always carry this with me,” he said. “Silver arrows. And yes, it’s real. I’ve taken down a lot of these magical creatures…”
“How do you know they’re not just regular animals?” I asked. “Or humans? For heaven’s sake, you could just be running around murdering people because you’ve convinced yourself that these – these beings exist!”
I knew that I was lying through my teeth, and that hurt. But this man had no right to go around taking out Gifted for no reason at all. The Gifted, for the most part, tried to keep to themselves, and not bother the Ungifted. Gifted or Ungifted, what this guy was doing was murder.
“You got something to hide, ma’am?” Dante asked in a low, vicious tone. He took a frighteningly slow step toward me. “Because it sounds to me like you’re trying to protect them.”
I recoiled slightly, but I thought he missed it because Mitch stepped between him and me.
“I think you should leave,” Mitch said in an equally dangerous tone. “Before we call the police on you.”
Dante looked around the room, and a malicious smile spread over his face. “You’ll come to me eventually. When things get so out of hand that you don’t know where to go or who to turn to…they always do.”
And with that, he turned with a swish of his coat, and strode out of the saw mill.
He’s leaving…Athena said.
I know…I said. That’s a good thing.
The saw mill was quiet for a few long heartbeats, no one daring to move or speak.
“Are you okay?”
It was Mitch who spoke first, turning to look at me, concern written all over his face.
“Yeah,” I said, my voice shaking. I sank down into the chair behind me. “Yeah, I think I’m okay.”
“That was really scary,” the woman with dark eyes said, clutching her hands underneath her chin.
“Yeah…” said John Garven. “That man meant business, didn’t he?”
“You don’t think what he was saying was the truth…was it?” the man in the driver’s hat asked.
“He seemed really convincing…” the woman said. She clapped her hands on either side of her face. “What if he’s right? He acted like they were around every corner, ready to strike us down!”
“Our suspicions have been right all along…” The guy with the driver’s hat opened his eyes wide, his mouth hanging slightly open. “They do live among us.”
“And they could be anyone of us,” the woman said.
“Wait, hold on,” I said. “That guy was totally nuts. Clearly.”
“But what if Old Scar-Face was one of those shape shifter things?” John Garven asked, his face as pale as a ghost. “He was alive for a long, long time…do real bears even live that long?”
“Marianne’s right,” Mitch said, stepping up beside me. “We don’t know that guy from Adam. How do we know he isn’t just coming in here to make us all look like fools?”
They fell silent, glancing between one another.
“I don’t know…” John Garven said. “There was so much conviction in his tone. He seemed so…sure.”
“And what about that creature he said he was tracking?” the woman asked.
“We can’t be too careful,” the man in the driver’s hat said.
I looked over at Mitch. “This is nonsense…” I said, halfheartedly.
“Yeah…” Mitch said, but there was a tightness around his eyes, and an uncertainty in his tone that sent more chills down my spine. “Definitely ridiculous.”
He’s buying into it, too… I thought desperately. What on earth am I going to do?
12
“You know, I never really knew what it would be like to be prey,” I said, my eyes gazing up into the heavy branches hanging over my head, as strong and fortified as always. “Like, real prey. Like a mouse being hunted by a hawk.”
Athena, who was hunting off the path a short distance away, responded; Could you please not talk about prey when I’m so close to catching my own?
“Sorry…” I said, sliding my hands into the pocket of my jacket. A cloud of my breath billowed out of my lips as I sighed. “I guess I just can’t keep myself from thinking about all this stuff. One moment, I’m frustrated that everyone hates me because I’m so powerful or something, and then the next, I’m terrified because some big burly bounty hunter is out for Gifted blood.”
After spending a very restless night lying in my bed, I decided I needed a walk out in the cool morning air just before dawn. The sun had risen now, but it was cloudy, and the grey light was dim as it pushed its way through the dense forest.
There was a rustle in the leaves between the trees some way off, and I assumed from Athena’s lack of a response that she was focusing hard on catching something for herself.
“Not only that, but I’ve been debating telling someone about Dante Fain. Because he’s bad news. He’s dangerous. He took down Old Scar-Face. That couldn’t have been easy, right?”
I kicked at a pebble, which tumbled end over end until it collided with the trunk of a tree. I winced. “Sorry,” I said to the tree. These trees had agreed to protect me, and the last thing they needed was me, being moody, taking my frustrations out on them.
I withdrew my neck into my coat, a cold breeze piercing through the trees, making me shiver.
“I wish Bliss was still here,” I said. “I tried texting her last night, but she never got back to me. So I can’t talk to her about all this. Cain won’t speak to me, though I’m sure he’d be interested in hearing about our new friend…and Lucan seemed so distant the last time I saw him.”
My lips were chapping in the cold, dry air. I wondered if we’d be seeing the first snow fall sooner rather than later.
“He’s the only one who’s still at least speaking to me,” I said. “That’s it. I’m just going to have to call him and – ”
Marianne!
My heart lurched as Athena’s frantic voice echoed inside my head.
I stopped dead in my tracks, looking all around for her. “Athena? What’s wrong?” I cried, squinting into the shadows of the forest.
Come quickly, Athena said. He’s – he’s –
“Where are you?” I asked.
An image suddenly filled my mind, and it was as if I was seeing it with my own eyes. A small clearing in the trees at the edge of a steep hill…and a horrific sight backdropped by the beautiful morning.
I blinked a few times, clearing my mind. “I’m coming,” I said as I dashed toward a gap in the trees.
Whispers from the branches pressed in around me, as if the trees were urging me forward. I couldn’t explain it, but it was almost like they were directing me. A gap in the trees seemed to catch my eye, and I’d hurry toward it. Another to the right, and I’d follow it.
I smelled it before I saw it.
Athena was hovering behind a tree, her head peeking out from around it. Even from a few feet away, I could see the muscles in her legs trembling.
I swallowed hard…and looked around the tree.
It was the body of a wo
lf…or what remained of it. The animal had obviously died a very violent death…and the smell of it was putrid and sour.
I stared at the wolf’s body, unable to look away.
How did this happen? What could’ve done something like this?
Marianne, we can’t stay here, Athena said. She was nudging my arm with her snout, trying to get me to look at her. We have to go. We have to warn someone.
Warn someone…
I couldn’t move. I wasn’t even breathing. I was stuck.
Pain shot through the back of my hand, and I yelped. “Ouch,” I said, pulling my hand back.
Tiny teeth marks punctured the tender flesh.
I’m sorry, Athena said. But there was no other way I could think to snap you out of it.
I took a deep gulp of air, and immediately regretted it; the smell still lingered, and it was getting worse by the minute.
We need to move, Athena said. There’s something nearby, and –
“We need to tell someone,” I said. “I don’t know if this was a real wolf or one of Lucan’s, but we have to warn him all the same – ” I stopped, looking back down at her. “What did you mean there’s someone nearby?”
Just that, Athena said. I don’t know who or what, but if it’s what did that to that wolf, I don’t want to be around when it makes its reappearance.
“Yeah…” I said, my face covered in cold sweat.
We started back through the trees. I let Athena lead, and as long as I caught the slightest glimpse of the end of her tail, I was satisfied that I’d get back to the path.
A snapping twig behind me made me jump, and I stopped, looking over my shoulder.
“Who’s there?” I shouted, my nerves singing with fear.
No one answered.
Marianne, come on, Athena said. It’s not safe for us out here anymore.
I looked up at the trees. I wished they could speak, and tell me the story of what happened.
We found the path again, and with a small sigh of relief, I turned with Athena back toward home…
Until a hulking figure stepped across my path.
Fear coursed through me, icy and numbing.
It was Dante Fain.
Athena, run – I said. If he saw her, or knew I’d been talking to her, he’d peg me for one of the Gifted…
And probably kill me here and now.
“Interesting that I’d find you here, defender of the magicals,” Dante said in his gravelly, dark voice.
My eyes narrowed. “What’re you doing here?” I asked.
“I could ask you the same thing,” he said calmly. He wore the same dark clothes, dark coat, and dark brimmed hat. No wonder I hadn’t seen him.
I swallowed hard. “I was just out for a walk. Is that a crime now or something?”
“Talking to yourself?” Dante asked.
“It helps me clear my head,” I said.
“I see,” he said.
Anger kicked me in the gut. “You killed that wolf…didn’t you?” I asked. “Just like you killed Old Scar-Face.”
Dante’s head tilted to the side. “A wolf? No, I haven’t killed anything since that bear,” he said, lifting the bear’s claw off his chest.
My stomach twisted in disgust.
“Yeah, okay,” I said. “How can I be sure of that?”
“You can’t, I guess,” Dante said.
My nostrils flared, and my heart started to race even faster.
This was bad. I was all but cornered in the forest. He was armed, either with his bow or the sword I’d seen underneath his coat during the meeting at the saw mill. I didn’t know any spells that could really be of any use to me. And even though I wore my wand around my finger like a ring, it wasn’t going to be any help to me if I could only make things light up or help plants grow a little faster.
I was stuck…and I was going to have to find my way out of it.
And that meant buying time until I figured out exactly what to do next.
“Why were you following me?” I asked.
“What makes you think I was following you?” he asked.
“You just happened to walk across my path right now?” I asked.
He rolled his shoulders, which made me take a step back.
Oh, no…I thought. I can’t take him on. He’s got me beat in every department; size, shape, weight, abilities…
“I’ve been watching everything in these woods. Everything. As I told everyone back at the meeting…I’m still looking for that beast I’m hunting,” he said.
I stood a little straighter. “What is this beast, exactly?” I asked.
The only movement on his face was one of his eyebrows hitching upward. “Why are you so interested all of a sudden?”
“Do I need a reason?” I asked.
“You claimed that you didn’t believe in any of this, and said it was, quote, ridiculous.”
My stomach churned at him repeating my words. He was sharp, I’d give him that.
“It is,” I said, and internally grimaced as I heard the uncertainty as plain as day in my voice. “But what makes you think anyone even wants you around? No one asked for your help with any of this.”
“They never do…” Dante said. “Until it’s too late.”
Those ominous words hung in the air around us, and a breeze blew between us, rustling the leaves overhead.
I was debating what to say when Dante started toward me…and then walked right past me.
“If you know what’s good for you…you’ll stay out of my way,” he said in a low voice as he passed me.
I nearly swallowed my tongue, frozen to the spot.
I stood there like a fool until his footsteps died away somewhere behind me.
When I finally summoned enough courage, I turned around and looked for him…but he was gone.
Athena, are you okay? I asked.
A bush nearby rustled, and Athena’s head popped out.
I’m fine, she said. Are you?
I ran a shaky hand through my hair, which was a tangled mess now because of the wind and my running. “Yeah…” I said. “I think so.”
Athena crawled out from underneath the bush and walked over to me, her head upturned. He’s not someone we should mess with…she said.
“I agree,” I said. “We should give him a wide berth for sure…”
But what should we do about the wolf? Athena asked.
“Right,” I said. “We need to tell Lucan. I don’t know if it’s one of his, but he still needs to know.”
What are you going to tell him? Athena asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “But we need to warn him about whatever is lurking in these woods…and if I’m honest? –”
I glanced back over my shoulder at the empty path.
“ – I’m not even sure that the beast Dante Fain is claiming to chase isn’t just his way of covering up the fact that he’s actually the beast.”
13
I didn’t waste any time getting over to Lucan’s. As soon as we got home, my heart racing so fast that my chest ached, Athena and I jumped straight into my SUV and headed off into the growing daylight.
I frantically dialed his cell phone and pressed the receiver to my ear.
It rang once…twice…three times.
“Come on, Lucan…” I said. “Pick up. Please pick up.”
But it went straight to his voicemail.
Hanging up with a glower, I looked at the clock on my dashboard. It was just after eight am.
If I was quick, I could probably just catch him at his house before he left for the bank.
So I stepped on the gas pedal and drove on.
I ended up at his house a few minutes later than I wanted to. My hands were trembling as I parked the SUV, unbuckled my seatbelt, and hurried out into the cool morning air in front of his house.
I ran up the steps, Athena close at my heels.
Please be here, please be here –
Just as I raised my hand to knock, the door s
wung inward, and there stood Lucan, on his way out the door.
“Marianne,” he said, his eyes widening as it registered who he was staring at. “Good heavens, are you alright?” He dropped his briefcase and hurried over to me.
“Something terrible happened,” I said, panting, my face flushed from the fear and exertion of getting here just in time. “Lucan…I think I found one of your wolves. And they’re dead.”
Lucan’s face paled as I stared up at him. “I – what?” he asked, his face screwing up in confusion.
Breathing heavily, I shook my head. “I was – out for a walk this morning, when – Athena stumbled on a wolf in the forest, torn clean in two.”
Lucan was staring at me, his gaze darkening. “What did the wolf look like?” he asked.
I blinked at him. “Um – ” I said, brushing my hair from my eyes with a sweating hand. “Grey, I think?”
“Did it have any specific markings?” Lucan asked. “Like a white tip on its tail? Or a pink blotch on its nose – ”
“I wouldn’t know!” I shouted, unable to stand the fear that pulsated through me like poison in my veins. “There was too much blood for me to see anything apart from that!” My fingers knotted in my hair, and I turned away from him, walking down the length of the front porch, trying to take in deep gulps of air.
Lucan was silent. He didn’t move closer to me, and I couldn’t even be sure he was paying attention to me anymore.
Try and calm down, Athena said from her spot on the second step down. Just breathe. It’s going to be alright.
I didn’t have the energy to argue with her that things really didn’t feel alright in that moment.
“Jacob went out last night on patrol…” Lucan said. “He split up from the others…”
The anguish in his voice made me turn around and look at him.
The pale late autumn light was flickering through the trees surrounding his house, bathing him in glittering patches of gold that rivaled the color of his eyes. He was as still as a corpse, his eyes fixed on some distant point in time.
Slowly, I started toward him, my heart aching for him.
Finally, after a long, tense moment…he looked up at me.
“Jacob never came home last night,” he said.
