by Melle Amade
I don’t dare to look at Mom. Because all I can think of when I see Henry and Evie play is, he needs friends and shifter friends might be the only ones truly left to him. But I’m pretty sure she’s thinking along the same lines because she stands up pretty quickly.
“I’m going to go check on Lord Van Arend.” She makes her excuse and slips into the dark house.
21
Callum, Roman, and I tag along when Cooper drives Evie back to the village. I pull rank on Henry and won’t let him come, but mostly it’s because I want to spend a bit of extra time up there. Since the firewalk I feel like I have so much to learn from them.
Hercules is welcoming as always and it doesn’t take long before we’re sitting around the fire and Roman’s going on about some Frog Woman Rock he’s read about. “Do you know anything about it?”
Hercules rolls his eyes. “You asking me that because I’m an Indian?”
Roman looks at Hercules and shrugs. “Yeah? If you want, you can ask me something about Costa Rica.”
Hercules laughs. “It’s a big, volcanic monolith about halfway between Hopland and Cloverdale on the Russian River.
“I’d like to see it,” Roman says.
“No, you wouldn’t,” Hercules says. “You don’t want to get anywhere near Frog Woman Rock. That’s where the frog woman lives. She’s endlessly beautiful, but can jump one-hundred feet. They say after she’s had a man, she jumps after him and devours him, then dances at the bottom of her rock.”
“You have the story all wrong,” somebody from the other side of the fire says. “Frog Woman is very clever and powerful, but she was married to Coyote. Coyote was tricky, but Frog Woman was hungry for humans. He had to go out and hunt and hunt and hunt just so Frog Woman could eat.”
“Why do your stories of frogs all involve eating people?” Roman asks. “That’s not cool. We don’t eat people.”
“You might not eat people,” Hercules says. “But Frog Woman does.”
“That’s not how the story goes at all,” an old man calls out.
“Oh really?” Hercules asks. “How is it Dassan?”
“This is the story of a girl who was wronged and sought vengeance,” he says. “The girl’s name was Sotuka. She was the daughter of the chief of the people who used to live in Hopland. And there was a young chief in the village down the road in Cloverdale. His name was Chachow.”
“Cool name,” Roman interrupts. “Sounds like he packs a punch.” He pops his fist into the air. I roll my eyes. But inside, it feels good. No matter what happens to Roman, and no matter how dark things have gotten, there’s some parts about him that are never going to change. At least I hope not.
“It was supposed to be the biggest wedding and the joining together of two tribes. A big celebration was planned and they were going to meet here, halfway between the two villages. They had a betrothal ceremony at Frog Woman Rock and they pledged themselves to each other. But Chachow said he needed more time before the actual wedding. He wanted to explore the realm and visit the other tribes in the nearby areas. Sotuka was very much in love with the strapping young chief, but no one realized he wasn’t quite so in love with her. He just thought it would be a good opportunity to strengthen his tribe and growing his family by marrying a pretty young girl from the neighboring village, and a Chief’s daughter, no less. No one realized at the time, but the year he asked for wasn’t just to sow his wild oats and travel, he was actually looking for a bigger tribe that might make a better option. Many months later, word came that he had found another woman to wed, a powerful Chief’s beautiful daughter from a large village farther down the Russian River. But she was also very jealous. And when she came back to his home tribe, she heard the stories of Sotuka and how her husband had been betrothed to her at the base of the Frog Woman rock. She insisted that her husband take her there so they could make love in the place where he had promised himself to another woman. She believed this would then expunge all memories of Sotuka from her husband’s notoriously non-committal mind.
“But, as you may have figured out, word travels fast, because we don’t just listen to voices, we listen to the wind,” Dassan’s fingers moved in the air. “And the ancestors in the trees told Sotuka about not only Chachow’s betrayal but how he was intending to destroy any bond they ever had. The newlyweds were camped at the base of Frog Woman Rock for one night. Sotuka climbed to the top of the monolith and she broke free a great stone and spying the campfire of the sleeping pair below, she jumped from the precipice and carried the boulder down with her. All three were killed. Today, if you drive by, you can still see the face of the Frog Woman overlooking the river and keeping an eye out for liars and cheaters.”
“Well, that’s cheery,” Roman mutters. He says it so quietly, I’m the only one who hears. But he does look up to the gathered crowd. “Doesn’t anybody have any happy ending love stories?”
Hercules tilts his head to the side, his eyes going to Jacqueline who’s quiet on the other side of the fire. “I haven’t got one,” he says.
“Yeah me neither,” Roman agrees.
Dassan smiles. “You’re both young, my friends. Give it time.”
The stories continue, but I start to fade in and out of sleep. A beep startles me and I open my eyes. Most have gone to bed but Hercules, Callum, Roman, and Cooper still sit by the fire. Callum is breathing heavily, fast asleep and slumped against the log. I stare into the night, pulling the blanket tighter. Something woke me up, but it wasn’t an owl. I look around, but the whole village is quiet. Nothing’s moving. Then suddenly I hear it again. A single, light beep. Hercules stands up, his gaze following mine to the small shed near the stack of firewood.
“What is it?” I ask.
“Nothing,” he says. “A malfunction or something. I don’t know.”
I can’t sleep anymore pressed against the hard wood of the log, so I join him at the shed. The inside is small and dark, covered with the dust of years untended in the forest. I bet there’s about twenty spider families living in all of the corners. I shudder a bit. That’s one shifter I’d like not to be born as: a spider shifter.
“These were Cory’s headquarters,” Hercules says.
He pulls on a chain I don’t see, and a small light bulb in the center of the ceiling turns on. It shines light on a dusty room full of metal boxes and gadgets. It looks like some sort of 1960s CB radio system complete with racks of tiny red and green lights and switches.
“I probably should’ve kept it a little cleaner in here,” Hercules said. “But Jacqueline cried every time I came towards the door, so after a while, well, I just left it. I figured she’d come in here and clean it at some point, when she felt like it. I had no idea this thing was still plugged in.”
He reaches forward to flip the switch on one of the machines.
“Don’t!”
His hand stops mid-motion.
I whirl around to see Jacqueline at the door. She glares wildly around the room, her hair flows in rivers over her shoulders, her hands are raised. “Don’t touch a thing,” she says.
The high-pitched beep pierces our ears again.
“It’s just malfunctioning, Jacqueline,” Hercules says. “I didn’t even think this thing was on.”
“I turned it on,” Jacqueline says, staring avidly at the lights. The way her eyes move over the equipment makes me realize that she’s reading it.
“You came in here?” Hercules seems completely stunned. “What? Why?”
“Because,” Jacqueline says. “Cory told me that the Hunters have a way of measuring magic. And I believed her. I turned it on when I lost control of my powers the other day. I knew it was just a matter of time before they showed up.”
She reaches forward and pulls the cover off another machine. It has a large black circular screen on it, like a sonar. Her finger presses against a button on the device. It suddenly comes to life, a dusty fan spinning around deep within it. A green laser beam starts to spin around and around from the cent
er of the disc.
The door opens as Callum enters the shed, scratching his neck with one hand while he rubs his eyes with the other. I raise my finger to my lips. The system makes another beep, the sensor flashes, and Jacqueline’s finger stabs at a small green dot illuminated in the disc.
“There!” She turns on her heel, pushes past Callum and is almost out the door when Hercules grabs her wrist.
“Jacqueline, no.” He holds her tight.
“Let me go,” she snaps, raising her other hand at him, a warning glare in her eye.
“No,” he says. “Whatever it is, it won’t get in past the guardians.”
“They did,” Jacqueline glares at me and Callum.
“Your mother and the ancestors allowed them in,” Hercules insists.
“I’m not sitting here and waiting to see what happens,” Jacqueline says.
“Look,” Hercules counters. “This system was set up to track Hunters. If there is a Hunter out there and if Hunters are what Cory thought, then they are killers. There’s no way I’m letting you go out there and fight them on your own.”
She leans into his face and growls. “There is no way you are going to stop me.” She rips her hand away.
“I’ll go, too,” Callum says.
“No!” I exclaim.
He raises a slight smile at me, but I see nothing is going to stop him from backing her up. With a quick kiss on the top of my head, he turns and disappears into the night, only the flapping of his wings letting us know the direction he’s headed in.
Hercules grabs walkie-talkies off the wall and throws one at me. He stuffs the other one in his pocket. “I’ll check in.”
I slam my fist down on one of the dusty metal work benches. If I could shift I could go with them.
“Keep an eye on the sensors,” Hercules says. “We’re a team Shae.”
Then he’s gone, too.
I drum my fingers impatiently as I stare at the green light of the Hunter. It moves, but it doesn’t go far. Then, it suddenly starts to move towards the village.
22
I bang on the door to Lydia’s cabin before I even realize she’s sitting on the front porch. She sits in a rocking chair, slowly rocking back and forth, a thick blanket covering her knees.
“They’re coming! The Hunters!” I cry, rushing to her and kneeling in front of her. I hold up my hands. “How do I get them to work?”
Lights go on in various cabins around the village as people slowly rouse to the commotion I’m making.
“They can’t come in,” Lydia says, her voice low and full.
“But I saw it on the sonar,” I insist. “They must have made it past Jacqueline and-” my voice chokes “-Callum.”
Lydia just smiles and the faint beating of wings fills up the night air. I step out from under the porch cover and strain my eyes into the dark forest surrounding the village.
“Callum?” I breathe the word like a quiet prayer.
A raven, dark as night, emerges from the shadows, flying straight at me. I yelp in relief as he drops something shiny on the ground in front of me and shifts as he lands. My arms are around his neck before I can stop myself and I bury my face in his neck. He pulls me close, pressing our mouths together as people gather around us.
“Where’s Jacqueline?” One of the twins asks.
Callum pulls back from me, but keeps his arm protectively around my shoulders. “On her way. She’s with Hercules.”
“What is that?” I grab the fragment of metal off the dirt and hold it up.
“I saw it on the ground after the Hunter ran off. Jacqueline smacked him with a sonic boom that sent him sprawling. Think that broke off of his-”
“Blade,” I murmur holding up the curved burnished metal with a finely sharpened side. “Meteoritic Iron.” My finger goes to the collar around my neck.
Callum nods. “It looks like it was part of a Kris. An Indonesian dagger. We studied it with our tutor at the manor.” He shrugs as I raise my eyebrows at him. But I know there are jaguar shifters in Java. I remember Lady Heather, the other shifter who wears one of these collars. That is her homeland.
Callum takes a deep breath as Hercules and Jacqueline jog into the village at a steady pace. Hercules immediately gravitates to the shard of metal.
“Doesn’t your friend do science experiments?” he asks.
“Roman? Yeah. But well, he’s the one caring for Lord Van Arend right now.”
“I think we should get it to him,” Hercules continues.
“How is that going to help you stop the Hunters if they’ve identified you?” I ask.
“We might find a way to shield ourselves from the metal,” Hercules says.
“Fine, but we can’t just all get up and leave the village,” Callum says. “We can’t lead them to Spotswood Ranch.”
“Them?” I ask. “There was more than one?”
“No, we only saw one,” Callum says. “But I’m guessing he’s not a lone hunter who just came out here on his own.”
“You need to go now,” Hercules says. “I think we scared the living daylights out of him, well, she did,” his eyes roll to Jacqueline. “But get out of here before he regroups and brings the other Hunters back.”
Callum could fly, but insists on not leaving me alone. We travel down the hill slowly with the lights off, navigating by the moonlight. All is quiet when we get to Spotswood Ranch. Cooper’s family is still at the fairgrounds. Roman and Aiden are sitting quietly at Lord Van Arend’s bedside.
“Any change?” I ask Zan as we softly enter the house.
“Only small,” she says. “He’s more at peace. Not fitful anymore.”
I bring everyone into the kitchen. Roman joins us, but Aiden stays with his dad.
“A kris.” Roman lets out a low whistle. “Made of meteoritic iron. How did it break?” He looks around at everyone crowded around the table. “I mean, this is alien iron. It doesn’t just fall apart. Something pretty incredible must’ve hit it.”
“Jacqueline did.” Her name drops out of my mouth before I can even stop it.
“She shattered a meteoritic iron?” Roman asks. “Do you know what this means?”
“She’s hella dangerous.” Zan says.
“Our collars,” Roman says. “Maybe she can, I don’t know, crack them.”
“It might be your skull, too,” Zan growls.
“What does that matter?” Roman stands up, pushing away from the table and walks out the back door. I throw Zan a look and follow him. He’s perched on the straw bales, rubbing his face in his hands.
“Why don’t you just tell her?” I ask stepping up the straw bales and sitting next to him.
He shrugs morosely. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Zan hasn’t exactly been a Chatty Cathy since we got up here.”
“I haven’t been what?” Zan says climbing up the other side of the bale pile. I’m a little surprised she followed me. It didn’t seem like she particularly cared that Roman was mostly depressed lately.
Roman shrugs and frowns. Without another word, he gets up and walks away.
“I came out here to see how you’re doing,” Zan calls after him.
He waves a dejected arm at her as he heads to the house. “I’m going to check on Lord Van Arend.”
“What is wrong with you?” I look up at Zan. She stands there staring after him, but kind of buckles a bit at my tone. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it that harsh,” I murmur. “I just wish… he’s been so depressed since he got the collar. It’d be nice if you could go a little easier on him.”
“He’s the one talking smack about me,” Zan says.
“He just happened to mention you,” I say. “You didn’t have to jump down his throat. We all know you’re hurting, but you’re not the only one hurting here.”
“I know. I know.” Zan sits down heavily next to me. She drops her head into her hands, rubbing her eyes. “I hate he’s in a collar, too,” she says. “He must miss being a bad-ass so much.”
&nb
sp; “He’s still bad-ass,” I say. Icicles begin to form under my skin and the collar starts to burn. Getting angry is going to more than just hurt me, it’s going to weaken the bridge I’m trying to build between Zan and me. I take a deep breath.
Breathe in the flowers, blow out the candles.
“Being able to shift into a poisonous frog isn’t what makes Roman a bad ass.” I say. “Roman is a bad ass just, well, because he’s Roman. And what’s tripping him up isn’t as much the collar, it’s you.”
Zan frowns at me.
I’ve already messed up that I’m not supposed to tell her anything, so I might as well keep talking. “The whole reason why he tried to assassinate El Oso, and why he’s so morose and miserable right now, it’s not the collar, it’s not even El Oso. The dude’s got it bad for you. And if you can’t see that, then it’s your loss. Because Roman would do anything for you, if you would just look at him once as more than a friend.”
Zan’s eyes are wide and her skin is pale as she stares at me.
A snort comes out of me. “It’s true,” I say. “Roman said you never saw him that way. And I could see by the look on your face you never even once thought he might have those feelings for you.”
Zan’s jaw is working but nothing’s coming out of her mouth. Her red curls fall in front of her face as she looks down at her toes and rubs them together. “Roman?” The word is a whisper. “But, but he’s my best friend. I mean my best guy friend,” she adds.
“Yeah, I know,” I say softly. My insides recoil. Holy crap. I just told her the one thing Roman told me never to say. Crap. I mean, she needed to know and Roman certainly wasn’t going to tell her and she’s too dense to figure it out herself, but why can’t I keep his secret? “But he wants to see you as more than a friend. And, just so you know, he’s probably never going to speak to me again now that I’ve told you that.”
“I won’t say anything,” she says.
Callum and Roman are sitting in the library adjacent to the parlor, where Lord Van Arend rests. The small laboratory set up he was using to mix mom’s medicines has been expanded. And now he’s got some metal-work in there too as he’s trying to figure out the composition of the blade shard Callum recovered from the hunter.
