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FORTY | THE HAWTHORN CENTRAL LIBRARY
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She Runs with Wolves FORTY-ONE | HOME
We looked through the books until the evening drew in, the warped glass of the windows dispersing the orange light of the streetlamps from outside into curved spirals and fragmented dots. It looked like golden-hued diamonds, scattered across a dark and turbulent sea.Skye stayed close as we searched, peppering my cheeks with kisses whenever I brushed past him to tug a heavy book out from the shelves. It was sweet, and I imagined myself blushing each and every time.I started to do the same, running my fingers along his bare forearm, or tracing the curve of his neck with my lips, as I stretched up or bent down. It was easy, light and teasing, but with an undercurrent of hot, heady passion, and of warmth, that kept the golden string between our hearts taut. I could feel him, steady and thrumming, at the other end of our shared bond, and he felt like home.But eventually my phone buzzed, vibrating insistently against
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-TWO | RUMOURS
Kathrena’s eyes nearly fell out of her head as she gawped at the giant pumpkin in my arms. I was more than a little smug that I was able to carry it with the same ease that Skye had, and he’d laughed along with me, putting a hand on my shoulder and suggesting that I do the heavy lifting in the relationship from now on.Then we’d kissed goodbye, the pumpkin quickly forgotten, and the kiss had lingered on my lips, and in my thoughts, as I’d watched him slip away. The crowd had died down, now, and there were only a few dog walkers out, picking their way through the fallen leaves as their pets scurried along beside them, their noses to the ground.“It’s great that you’re getting in the Halloween spirit, El, but did you need to buy such a big one?” Kathrena grinned. Her friend, it seemed, had put her in a jovial mood.I wiggled my eyebrows at her. “My friend picke
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-THREE | CLOUDED
“What is he, then?” I’d felt as though I’d been slammed against the wall as Skye had spoken, his voice distorted by the poor signal in the woods. “A human.”I ran the conversation back through my head as I got ready for the Pumpkin Fayre. My truce with Kathrena had become uneasy as of late, ever since Skye had passed on what Susie had said about her date in the coffee shop. Though I felt that I could trust her not to tell anyone about our trysts in the library and coffee shop, respectively, I felt as though she’d broken our fragile trust by meeting up with a human, rather than a werewolf.Even though it was my own fault. If I hadn’t gone digging, I wouldn’t have found something that I didn’t like. My brush caught in a knot in my hair, and I yanked it through, grimacing at my reflection in the mirror. I met my eyes, warm brown, almost gold in the candlelight, and my lips tugged up into a smile. In the week that had passed, I had to admit that everything else in my life had been good.
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-FOUR | THE PUMPKIN FAYRE (PART 1)
The Pumpkin Fayre took place in a small meadow that edged the high street, and it stretched all the way from the pedestrianised section of the town to the back hedges of the meadow. Kathrena and I had to park further afield than usual, as the nearby lanes were littered with parked cars. Some were slung across verges, and others were left at crooked angles, half on the kerb and half in the road.“So,” she said, half leaning out of the truck door, “need to know?”“Need to know,” I nodded, with a tight-lipped smile. “We should probably stay close-ish, though.”“I agree.” Kathrena jumped down, and smoothed down the lapels of her checked blazer. “Just – don’t look too closely, okay? I – I will tell you when I’m ready. I’m just scared,” she admitted, her voice hollow-sounding as she dropped her eyes to the pavement.I averted my own gaze as I replied. “It is scary, Kath. But this would be easier if we could be honest with each other.”“And we will be.” Then the words spilled out of her, floo
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-FIVE | THE PUMPKIN FAYRE (PART 2)
“Okay,” I laughed, shaking my head in disbelief. “This is incredible.”The dusky purple twilight, masked by a few thin, grey clouds, shone above the meadow. But the field below was cast into darkness, save for the flickering of a few dim solar lamps stuck into the ground. There were no children up here, and the meadow felt still in the comparative silence.The sounds of the Fayre carried – we hadn’t walked far – but the atmosphere was starkly different up here. The meadow was teeming with pumpkins, many of which had been carved into, forcing gory, threatening grins and narrowed slits for eyes into their rounded faces. Above, there was a brief buzzing sound, followed by a sudden shock of light. There were great bulbs strung across the meadow, too, it seemed, but as quickly as they’d come on, they shut off again.The sheer volume of pumpkins was what made the display
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-SIX | THE PUMPKIN FAYRE (PART 3)
The scream echoed in my ears, long after the sound had stopped ringing through the meadow. The jovial chatter had silenced, and the coil of sirens was burning through the cold night air.My breath came in short, quick gasps as I ran. I could feel Skye behind me, could feel his footsteps ricocheting off the pavement as we thundered down the high street. I needed to know where Kathrena was. I needed to know that she was safe. If she wasn’t – if she was hurt – it would be my fault, all over again.I’d underestimated the attacker. I hadn’t thought that they’d risk an assault here, not somewhere so public. But, as I scanned through the crowd, pushing against the tide of people, I realised that somewhere public was the perfect place to commit such a crime. They could blend in, merge with the tide like a pebble being dragged across the shore, falling, seamlessly, back into the sea.There was a huddle of people just past the coffee shop, and I pressed myself to run faster, just a little furth
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-SEVEN | LANDSLIDE
“Hey.” I swallowed, my tongue suddenly feeling too big for my mouth. I could see Kathrena, out of the corner of my eye, still beside me, and she cocked her head, watching us with a deep, simmering curiosity in her dark eyes.“Hi,” Skye murmured. He swallowed, too, and then said it again. “Hi, El.”“Skye,” I smiled, trying to force down the awkwardness, and the residual fear, and the uncertainty that was rising rapidly within me. “Are you okay?”“I was so worried about you,” he breathed. He took a lurching step towards me, and then faltered, his golden eyes flickering to Kathrena.“Skye, this is my sister, Kathrena – for all intents and purposes, anyway. Kath, this is Skye. My… nightmate.”Kathrena’s eyes were so wide that I could see white all around her dark irises. “So that’s why I kept smelling werewolf in your truck.” Then she shook herself, and, keeping her eyes on me, her expression quizzical but trusting, she stuck her hand out towards Skye. “It’s nice to meet you.”“And you,” r
She Runs with Wolves FORTY-EIGHT | BIRCH AND OAK
The site of the attack was deserted. Even the last of the curious onlookers had tired of staring, and there was nothing there but half-dried blood and billowing police tape. The wind had picked up, rustling the nearby fir trees and blowing orange and burgundy leaves to the ground.Skye stilled beside me, dropping my hand as he crept around the bloodied imprint. “I’ve smelt this before.”I raised one eyebrow. “Not a vampire?”He shook his head. “No, it’s the same smell that lingered after Pera was attacked. Not a vampire… I’m not sure what it is.”Kathrena frowned, stepping closer. I was scared to move more than an inch towards the blood: it was less appealing to us once it had congealed, its life force diminished, but the scent of it was still thick and heady in the night air. The sky had darkened fully now, and the glow of the streetlamps
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