A Dangerous Deceit in Faerywood Falls Read online

  “Who knows…” Bliss said, walking over to the window and glancing outside. “You’d think that if they were that big of a deal, we’d know who they were. But I can’t say I’ve ever heard anything about a pair of faeries in the last several hundred years. Whoever your parents were, they must have flown under the radar. Ha, get it? Flown? Faeries?”

  I smirked at her, fluffing the sheet out. “That’s something I’ve wondered myself,” I said. “Faeries in all the stories have wings. How come I don’t have wings?”

  “Maybe you just haven’t earned them yet,” Bliss said. “Spell weavers don’t earn their real wands until they’re deemed ready by the council of eleven.”

  “So your wand isn’t real?” I asked, teasing.

  “It’s real,” Bliss said, glaring at me a little as she came to help me pull the fitted sheet over the corners of the mattress. “It’s just not my wand yet. It’s like borrowing someone else’s until I learn enough.”

  “You know so much, though,” I said. “You’ve gotta be getting close to getting your own wand, right?”

  “That’s not up to me,” Bliss said. “The council keeps an eye on all the apprentices and advances us when they see we’re ready. Some people get pushed up when they’re like eleven or twelve. Others don’t become full weavers until they’re near the end of their life. It’s just different with everyone.”

  “What about becoming a spell singer?” I asked, reaching for the top sheet I’d set down on the other bed. “Have you ever considered that?”

  “I don’t have the voice for it,” Bliss said. “Never have. My dad’s a pretty good singer, but I inherited my mom’s singing abilities.” She grinned at me over the mattress. “Don’t tell her I said that, though. She’ll kill me.”

  We shared a laugh, but my mind was working in the background.

  Why was it that all these spell weavers, aside from Bliss of course, were so secretive? Not only that, but some were downright unpleasant, or dangerous.

  It was probably best to avoid Ruth Cunningham again. I’d have to find those records some other way, I guessed. I wasn’t about to let her influence me with her magic again, intentionally or not.

  6

  That night, after returning home, I was overcome with severe exhaustion. I’d done a lot of cleaning at the lodge and helped my aunt make dinner for the guests, but that didn’t explain why my limbs felt like lead and my head like it was a balloon.

  I lay down in bed, my nighttime tea only half finished on the bedside table, with Athena curled up against my side. I fell asleep within minutes.

  The moment my eyes closed, they snapped open again.

  The sounds of the night pressed in on me from all sides. Crickets, bull frogs, the wind. The moon shone brightly overhead, obscured slightly by branches.

  I stood in the forest. Everything felt so large. The trees were taller and the path felt closer to me.

  Sounds were sharper, too. The wind sang in different octaves than I’d ever heard.

  The smell of damp earth was strong in my nostrils.

  And I had the urge to run. To run far and fast, and to never look back.

  So I did.

  It registered quickly that I was running on all fours. Something attached to my lower back flicked back and forth.

  I wasn’t running as a human. I was an animal.

  Cold fall air filled my lungs and the brightness of the stars filled my eyes.

  I woke up, gasping for breath. I rolled over on the bed, the blankets twisting around my limbs.

  It was dark. I could smell my tea, still warm on the end table. The hum of the fan on the ceiling seemed louder than usual.

  I looked down and saw Athena, and jumped.

  She was as big as I was now!

  I opened my mouth to speak, but only a tiny yip came out.

  I tried to clap my hands over my mouth, but something soft and warm touched my lips instead.

  I looked down and saw black paws where my hands should have been.

  My heart was beating rapidly, so rapidly that I was suddenly dizzy. Panting, I stared around.

  I was definitely in my room, in the cabin. But it was like everything had grown overnight. Everything except me.

  I was stretched out on my bed, but it was more like the size of an entire room than a bed. My pillow was as big as I was now.

  I gave myself a look-over. I stood on four paws, all black with tiny claws. My body was covered in fur, and I had a tail that was uncontrollably swishing back and forth.

  I’d shifted into some sort of animal.

  Athena lifted her head and looked over at me. She was larger than a wolf.

  She stared at me, her dark eyes wide.

  Marianne? she asked.

  I opened my mouth to answer, but a strained cry like that of a cat escaped.

  She stood up, coming over to me. She leaned in close, and took a few long sniffs of the air around me.

  Her eyes widened. It is you! What happened?

  I stared desperately at her. A small whimper sounded from my chest.

  Try to speak with me in your mind, Athena said. It might seem tricky at first, but just focus on the words you want to say.

  That sounded a lot easier than it probably was.

  I stared at her, and focused as hard as I could.

  Athena – what happen – animal – dream?

  Athena’s tail swished. Not a bad start. Try again.

  After some time and practice, I sort of got the feel for speaking to Athena with my animal thoughts. It was an odd sensation, trying to hear my own voice inside my head, but making sure those thoughts were all that she’d heard. More than once, my fear bubbled through and I ended up shouting at her inside my mind.

  Well, I think this proves our theory, Athena said. You certainly did steal Alessa’s power.

  A low grumble emanated from my chest. Didn’t want.

  I know, she said. And the fact that it happened when you were dreaming? – Wait a minute.

  She hopped down off the bed and scurried toward the windows near the door.

  I was afraid of this…she said. Full moon.

  I sank down onto my back legs. Full moon. That meant with this power, I had no choice but to change.

  Are you in any pain? she asked, coming back across the room toward me.

  No, I said. Just worry.

  Curiosity got the better of me, though. I moved to the end of the bed and peered over. The floor looked like it was hundreds of feet down.

  Don’t worry, you’ll be fine from that height, Athena said. I do it all the time.

  Never jumped heights, I said. Afraid.

  Athena hopped up on the bed beside me. Just watch me, okay?

  She crouched, her body tensing like a spring, and jumped down toward the floor. Her front paws hit the hardwood planks first, absorbing the impact, and then her back paws landed just a moment later. She straightened and turned back up to me, blinking. Now come on, your turn.

  I steeled my nerves, and jumped.

  The moment I was passing through the air, I regretted everything. I wanted nothing more than to be back on the bed. My heart was in my throat as I anticipated the sheer pain that was going to be shooting up my arms at any second. What was I thinking, jumping off the bed like I was some sort of –

  My feet struck the floor, and fluidly, I recovered. Almost like animal instincts had kicked in.

  Athena gave me a hard look before turning around with a flick of her tail.

  I followed after her until she was standing in front of my narrow mirror hanging on the back of the bathroom door.

  You should jump up on that chair and take a good look at yourself, she said.

  Fear didn’t hold me back this time. I easily hopped up in the chair, surprised at how gracefully I landed, and turned to look at myself.

  My heart skipped. It was like looking at a reflection of Athena.

  I’d turned into a fox.

  How? I asked, looking down at Athena. Al
essa – wolf.

  I have no idea, Athena said. Imagine how surprised I was when I woke up to see you sitting there looking like that.

  I hopped down off the chair and wandered closer to her.

  You, I said. Familiar.

  Athena sniffed at the air again. Maybe that is the reason why, she said. You’re more familiar with me than any other animal. Perhaps our connection has influenced your power. And since you are not a lycanthrope, I wonder if you would have changed into something different if you were close with another animal instead of me?

  I shook my head, my fur ruffling. It was weird to think of it as my fur, but ultimately, that’s what it was.

  How long I – stay fox? I asked. I was really struggling to keep my thoughts together. As a fox, my mind was filled with sights and sounds I’d never heard. Now that the fear was starting to wear off, excitement was beginning to take its place.

  Who knows, Athena said. Maybe it’s only for the night? Maybe it’ll wear off on its own?

  A strong, earthy scent reached me. I’d left the window open near the door to let in some cooler air, and the scent of pine was pushing its way inside.

  I was awake already, and didn’t think I’d be able to go back to sleep in this form. Not easily, at least.

  A subtle thrill shot through my veins.

  Who knew if I’d get another chance like this, to feel what it was like to be an animal? I didn’t intend to keep this power, but while I had it…what was the harm in seeing what it was like? I couldn’t control it.

  Explore? I asked Athena, glancing toward the door.

  You want to go out like that? Athena asked. Are you sure?

  I walked a few paces closer to the door. Yes, I said. Run.

  Athena followed me. Well…alright, she said. But make sure you stay close to me. I’m not taking you far from the house. You’ve never used this power, and the last thing I need is for you to collapse miles away from here.

  I let out a tiny yip of understanding.

  You’re like a pup, Athena said with some amusement. Alright, let’s go.

  It took a few minutes, but I managed to follow her out the open window. I had no idea she was able to squeeze through such a small space, but she managed it. I fell twice trying to copy her movements, but since neither of us could open the door, it was our only way out.

  There was a slight breeze outside, coming in off the lake. It brushed through my fur and felt amazing, like the best head massage I’d ever had, but all over my body. I understood now why animals loved to be petted so much.

  Come on, this way, Athena said from around the corner of the cabin. I’ll show you some of my favorite places to go at night.

  I hurried to keep up with her, my paws making hardly any sound on the gravelly dirt around the cabin. Places she went at night? In all the time I’d known her, I had never thought to ask her about what she did while I was sleeping.

  I wanted to ask her, but I wasn’t sure that my mind would be able to form the questions right. So instead, I just enjoyed following after her.

  The forest seemed so massive in my fox form. The branches were high above, and some of the leaves themselves were the size of my head.

  My nose picked up the earthy soil, the cold moss of the rocks scattered around, and the bark of the trees. I’d never known what a creek smelled like until we approached it. I could smell the fresh spring mountain water as it trickled past, babbling over the smooth rocks at the bottom.

  We followed along the creek, and it took me some time to ask her why we were doing that.

  It covers our scent, she said. This is not fox territory. Not really, anyway. We’re allowed to live here, along with a lot of other animals, but this is – oh, no, there they are.

  She ducked quickly behind a tree, the shadows concealing her completely.

  My heart jumped into my throat as I hurried to copy her.

  Why hiding? I asked.

  See for yourself, Athena said.

  Carefully, I peered around the outside of the tree trunk. I ensured that I was still fully covered in shadows.

  Some distance away, shapes were prowling between the trees. Big shapes, hunched over and walking on all fours. Pointed ears twitched, and snouts pressed against the forest floor, looking for any hint of things gone amiss.

  It was a pack of wolves, and they were out on patrol.

  Real wolves? I asked Athena. Or Lucan –

  Thinking about Lucan sent my heart fluttering, and filled my mind with images of him; seeing him at the antique shop, having dinner with him at his house, hearing him say my name. I tried to cut the images off from my communication with Athena as quickly as I could so as to not overwhelm her.

  Sorry…I said.

  I thought I heard a soft chuckle in her mind. It’s fine. And yes, those are werewolves. As I was saying, this isn’t our territory. It’s theirs.

  My heart was beating quickly. Can – can they tell – I am me? I struggled to say.

  Athena looked over at me. I don’t know. I imagine they’d have means to detect other shape shifters in the area. Like I said, they’re very territorial, so we need to be careful. Stay here until they’ve moved on.

  We sat there together in silence, watching the wolves walk past. There were six or seven of them, and from the light of the moon, I could see their fur was all varying shades of browns and grays.

  I suppressed a shiver as I stared out around the tree. The wolves’ paws crunched twigs and their panting breaths hung in the cold night air like clouds of mist.

  I wondered if any of them were Dr. Lucan. I’d seen him as a wolf before, but it was too dark to make them out clearly. I’d probably be able to tell by his eyes…but that would mean he’d have to look over here and find out where we were.

  The wolves moved on a short time later, making their way through the trees almost silently. The moon lit their way, and for the time being, everything seemed to be calm.

  I let out a heavy sigh as I watched the last tail disappear behind a wide, ancient oak tree that had branches leaning all the way to the forest floor.

  Gone? I asked Athena.

  I believe so, yes, she said. Maybe we should start heading back to the cabin. I don’t want to run into them again.

  She turned and made her way back down toward the shallow river, her tail swishing in the shadows.

  I followed closely after her.

  We’d only been walking for a few minutes when a peculiar scent caught my attention. It was sharp and unpleasant, like a rusted piece of metal that had been submerged in water for too long. I stopped, my nose pointed upward, trying to let my newfound senses guide me toward its source.

  What is it? Athena asked, stopping to look at me.

  Not…sure, I said. Like metal.

  Athena, too, stuck her nose up in the air.

  We wandered a short ways away from the path, and a bright light up ahead through the trees caused us to leap behind a tree trunk.

  The sound of tires on a road made me poke my head out around. A car, as large as an airplane, drove by on the dirt road leading through the forest toward the lake. The same road I’d taken a few days before.

  My heart skipped. Was this where that hunter had died?

  Curiosity and revulsion rooted me to the spot. Part of me wanted to turn tail and run back home, but the other part of me, the twisted, curious part, wanted to give that crime scene a good look. And it wasn’t like I was a human anyone could tell off, right?

  Let’s look, I said to Athena, taking a step in the direction of the sharp smell.

  The more I thought about it, the more I realized it must be blood.

  A sudden sharp pain pushed against my temples. I squeezed my eyes shut, willing it to pass.

  When it subsided, my body felt heavy, and cold. The metallic tang of the blood was gone, and the whole world seemed quieter.

  I opened my eyes and stared around.

  The forest was back to its normal size.

  Marianne, you�
�re back! Athena said. She ran up to me, craning her head up to look at me. Her tail flicked, and she sniffed at my shins. How did you shift?

  I stared down at my hands, fur-less and normal. “I…have no idea,” I said. I winced. “But the pain…wow, the pain is pretty awful,” I said.

  Maybe the sun is close to rising, she said.

  “I don’t know,” I said. “But I wanted to take a look at this crime scene while we were here.”

  I don’t really think that’s wise…Athena said.

  “We’ll be fine,” I said. “I just want to see if the police left anything behind.”

  We wandered through the trees, Athena following the smell of the blood for me, since I couldn’t any longer. The relief was palpable as I followed her. Being a fox had been interesting, but I was unbelievably glad to be back in a human’s body again.

  This is where the body was, Athena said, sitting down and wrapping her tail around herself. I don’t care to go any further. The stench of death is too strong.

  I couldn’t smell anything, so I walked forward.

  It took a few seconds of me squinting into the darkness to realize that I really wasn’t going to be able to see much of anything out here without some form of light. My cell phone was all the way back at the cabin, along with any flashlights I might own.

  I brushed my fingers through the grass, careful to avoid any places where Athena told me to.

  What did you hope to find? she asked.

  “I don’t know, maybe another medallion? A clump of fur? Maybe a weapon? So far, all I have to go on is Alessa’s crazy reaction to my questions,” I said. “And while I get that she wants to protect her brother, that’s not exactly legal…”

  If he was the one to kill the hunter, of course.

  “Whatever killed him was some kind of creature,” I said. “The amount of blood on his body and the wounds were not caused by a gun. Something killed him, and I – ”

  The words died on my lips as a flicker of pale grey caught my attention across the dirt road.

  I looked up. A pale grey wolf was at the edge of the forest, watching me closely. The wolf was a lot smaller than the patrols we’d seen walking between the trees, and its paws were too big for its body. He was still a pup.