locked up for the night, huh?” she asked.
“Just about.” I stood on the stool next to the iron bed frame to reach up and check the window — not that it mattered, since I couldn’t squeeze through the bars anyway. If I lost control later and shifted into a wolf — which was inevitable — I didn’t want anyone to hear my growls.
The window was open and I turned my head, hoping that with my super-human hearing, I could make out the sound I’d heard. There it was again — crackle of a broken twig followed by crunching leaves. Chills tingled up my spine. “Someone’s outside.”
Winnie grunted when I shoved past her and raced up the stairs.
Morphing didn’t make me uneasy anymore, like it had the first few times. Now, it was second nature and I reveled in it. At the back door, I exhaled and let my muscles go lax. A moment later, my limbs vibrated. Then I felt nothing. An instant later, I was a wolf — feral and without restraints.
I took in the cool night air through my nostrils and smelled the scent left behind by the intruder. And he wasn’t human.
Vampire.
The tangy, metallic smell of blood lingered in the air, the same scent that always clung to blood-suckers. But the unmistakable energy that supernaturals gave off wasn’t there. The vamp was long gone.
On all fours, I padded my way to the back door of my house and I spotted Aunt Mina, Gavin and my cousins on the other side of the window waiting for me. I silently thanked my mom for making sure I always had natural fibers in my clothing, so it would morph with me. Being caught in the nude sucked.
My family still watched me and I twitched at the thought of morphing right in front of them. But it seemed ridiculous to move out of their line of vision. It’s not as if they were ignorant about my affliction .
Right where I stood, I shifted into my human form and beyond the glass everyone flinched in unison. A sigh escaped me. I couldn’t help being a werewolf and it saddened me that not being human bothered the ones I loved.
“What was it?” my aunt asked as I let myself in through the back door.
Aunt Mina had enough to worry about as a single mom with two kids and another two thrust upon her. I forced a smile. “Nothing. Probably just a raccoon.”
“Sis, you’re like our watchdog. Sweet.” Gavin grinned.
I punched his shoulder, keeping it light, since I always turned out to be stronger than I thought. “Come lock me in, dork.”
Later that night, I lay in bed and stared at the ceiling, wondering what the vamp wanted. Did he know about me? Did this vampire refrain from killing humans or was he rogue?
Hopefully, he was just passing through and I’d never have to find out. But something told me told me there was more to it than that.
****
“I need something red and I need it now.” Beatrice burst into the basement the next morning, then cringed as she scanned the room. “I’ll never understand how you can sleep down here.”
“It’s not exactly a crack house, Bea.” I shook my head. “Besides, it’s either stay in here or you guys let me loose on the populace.” I checked her out. “Hot boots. You want a red top to match?”
“This place is so…. dark and small.” She grimaced, clearly not going with the change in subject. “No fresh air.”
I laughed. “There’s a window. This is the size of a two-car garage. The walls are painted and the wood floors are nice.”
She wrinkled her nose.
“You can afford to indulge. I can’t. What if a human passes by the window just as I’m morphing? They’d see.”
“Cydney, no one comes around here after dark. That’s a lame excuse.”
I lifted a shoulder and averted my eyes. “It’s safer for everyone if I’m down here.”
Her tone softened. “It’s been years and you’re still worrying about every little thing. You have to put it behind you.”
She couldn’t possibly understand what it was like to injure someone you love, to lose control like that. I stared at
“Just about.” I stood on the stool next to the iron bed frame to reach up and check the window — not that it mattered, since I couldn’t squeeze through the bars anyway. If I lost control later and shifted into a wolf — which was inevitable — I didn’t want anyone to hear my growls.
The window was open and I turned my head, hoping that with my super-human hearing, I could make out the sound I’d heard. There it was again — crackle of a broken twig followed by crunching leaves. Chills tingled up my spine. “Someone’s outside.”
Winnie grunted when I shoved past her and raced up the stairs.
Morphing didn’t make me uneasy anymore, like it had the first few times. Now, it was second nature and I reveled in it. At the back door, I exhaled and let my muscles go lax. A moment later, my limbs vibrated. Then I felt nothing. An instant later, I was a wolf — feral and without restraints.
I took in the cool night air through my nostrils and smelled the scent left behind by the intruder. And he wasn’t human.
Vampire.
The tangy, metallic smell of blood lingered in the air, the same scent that always clung to blood-suckers. But the unmistakable energy that supernaturals gave off wasn’t there. The vamp was long gone.
On all fours, I padded my way to the back door of my house and I spotted Aunt Mina, Gavin and my cousins on the other side of the window waiting for me. I silently thanked my mom for making sure I always had natural fibers in my clothing, so it would morph with me. Being caught in the nude sucked.
My family still watched me and I twitched at the thought of morphing right in front of them. But it seemed ridiculous to move out of their line of vision. It’s not as if they were ignorant about my affliction .
Right where I stood, I shifted into my human form and beyond the glass everyone flinched in unison. A sigh escaped me. I couldn’t help being a werewolf and it saddened me that not being human bothered the ones I loved.
“What was it?” my aunt asked as I let myself in through the back door.
Aunt Mina had enough to worry about as a single mom with two kids and another two thrust upon her. I forced a smile. “Nothing. Probably just a raccoon.”
“Sis, you’re like our watchdog. Sweet.” Gavin grinned.
I punched his shoulder, keeping it light, since I always turned out to be stronger than I thought. “Come lock me in, dork.”
Later that night, I lay in bed and stared at the ceiling, wondering what the vamp wanted. Did he know about me? Did this vampire refrain from killing humans or was he rogue?
Hopefully, he was just passing through and I’d never have to find out. But something told me told me there was more to it than that.
****
“I need something red and I need it now.” Beatrice burst into the basement the next morning, then cringed as she scanned the room. “I’ll never understand how you can sleep down here.”
“It’s not exactly a crack house, Bea.” I shook my head. “Besides, it’s either stay in here or you guys let me loose on the populace.” I checked her out. “Hot boots. You want a red top to match?”
“This place is so…. dark and small.” She grimaced, clearly not going with the change in subject. “No fresh air.”
I laughed. “There’s a window. This is the size of a two-car garage. The walls are painted and the wood floors are nice.”
She wrinkled her nose.
“You can afford to indulge. I can’t. What if a human passes by the window just as I’m morphing? They’d see.”
“Cydney, no one comes around here after dark. That’s a lame excuse.”
I lifted a shoulder and averted my eyes. “It’s safer for everyone if I’m down here.”
Her tone softened. “It’s been years and you’re still worrying about every little thing. You have to put it behind you.”
She couldn’t possibly understand what it was like to injure someone you love, to lose control like that. I stared at
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