"Oh gods, no, Elena. I loved you. I still do. But the change in you has caused that love to change as well. I don't know how to explain it. None of the languages I know have a word for it. It's just, well, it's different.""Okay, I believe you. So, will you teach me how to do the mind stuff and control my shift?""Yes, I told you last night I would. Our time will have to be short, however. I cannot be with you for more than a couple of hours at a time, before my control is pushed to its limits. Also, there are two things that I want in return for this help""Oh? What are they, Damien?"Elena was instantly suspicious. Damien was different now and her trust in him was no longer what it once was."First, I need a promise. You have to swear a blood oath to do something for me when our time is finished.""A blood oath? Why? No one does those anymore.""It doesn't matter, you will do this or I won't help you. I hate to be so uncouth, Elena, but I have to have this blood oath.""Okay, say I
She got out her campstool and sat down, emotionally drained and physically exhausted. Her face went slack and her eyes lost focus as she reviewed what she had just done. The ruined piece of humanity that had been lying on the ground numbed her sense of reality. Her mind kept trying to come to grips with the fact that the white ragged sticks were bones, that the red mass of tissue had once been a human being. The sickly pallor of the skin that no longer had blood flowing to it to give it that peach colored hue, the blood turning black as it dried in the cool mountain air. The sickening slurp that sounded so loud in her ears as she picked it up and drug it across the ground to the hole she had dug.She came out of her disturbing reverie to find her hands shaking and her skin cold and clammy. A fine sheen of sweat covered her face, her stomach felt like it had turned to stone. There was a strange sensation of floating in her head, like she was inside this giant indoor stadium and her bod
Elena thought about that and remembered watching one of those shows on TV about criminals and things they did to cover up their crimes."He was a fugitive, so we have to be very careful if we drive it out of here. If we get caught on a main road, it's over. No, we need to take it deeper into the backcountry and abandon it. They might not find it for a year or more.""Okay. You'll have to teach me how to drive.""You know something, Damien? That is one thing I never would have expected to hear you say to me.""Good, Elena. Your sense of humor didn't disappear. I'm glad. Lead the way, let's get this done."Four hours later they were wiping the inside of the Jeep down. Elena had explained the technology of fingerprints to Damien. He was amazed that someone had thought of that to catch criminals. He did tell her that since she hadn't touched anything inside the Jeep that she didn't have to worry about it. That no police department had ever gotten his fingerprints, he hadn't been a human s
The sun finally slipped behind the mountains and then she could feel it, the moon. It was calling to her. A soft insistent surge of longing. She felt on fire and stripped out of her clothing to try and cool off. Her skin crawled like she was covered in ants and worms. The white disc peeked above the rim of the valley and she fell to the ground as her bones popped and her muscles slithered beneath her skin. She howled. Her massive form stood and she pointed her muzzle at the moon and howled her pleasure at seeing its beautiful face. She felt so alive! She wanted to run, so she did.She reveled in her strength and agility, grabbing trees and sinking her claws into the bark and climbing up the trunks. Reaching the tops she would sway back and forth and howl at the moon, Thank you!! I love you so much! Thank you for this power! She sniffed the air and she smelled the other. The old one. She leapt to the ground and ran at that scent. She followed it to the edge of the valley.She found his
What was she going to tell Mark about raphl? Should she tell him the truth? He had risked his job and could have very likely faced jail time giving her that duffle bag of goodies. Should she return the favor by telling him something that was just as damaging to her life? It was rather heavily weighted against her, though; what's a little theft compared to murder?She wondered what would have happened if she had simply called the authorities about finding an apparent bear attack victim and hiding the vest and gun. Why didn't I think of that sooner? Because you felt guilty as hell and you needed to cover your crime, that's why. I'm not a very good liar, so what do I tell Mark? Especially as he always seems to know when I'm lying.She turned on her stereo and dropped in Mozart's Requiem; that always helped her to think. She looked at her answering machine and saw that she had three messages. She played them through and thought once again about calling Marie to assuage her fears, but then
"Yes, you could, but you won't. I'll say this only once, rhoda. You fuck with me again and I'll bury you. Now, call your friends back and tell them it was all a great big misunderstanding and a practical joke that went too far. Oh, and rhoda, if you test me on this, you'll find out I'm not the little quiet mouse you thought I was. Do you understand me?"Elena's expression went cold and she stared into Rhoda's eyes with an intensity that smoldered with menace. Rhoda started to say something in response, but when she saw the look in Elena's eyes, she stopped. She swallowed and nodded."Yes.""Good. Let's keep it that way, shall we?"Elena turned and walked back to her truck. She drove off down the street smiling. She still couldn't really believe that she had done that. Two weeks ago, and she wouldn't have dared, but now she was more assertive. She knew that some of it had come from her new condition but after seeing Rhoda's face and her reaction; Elena didn't mind the change so much.S
"I don't have to listen to you. You are just as sick as she is."Wendy's voice finally returned after her anger overrode her shock."Oh, yes you do, Wendy, and I'm not sick, you are the one who needs help. Now, here's the deal, Wendy. You are going to chill out about Marie and her lifestyle. You aren't going to use the kids against mark anymore either.""Who do you think you are? What gives you the right to order me around? You can't--""Oh, yes I can, Wendy, and I will. I have the right because I love Marie with all my heart and because I like mark, he's a damn nice guy and he's my friend."Then Elena caught it, just a flicker of the eye, but she knew exactly where that look went and just what it had been looking at. OH MY GOD! Wendy just checked out my tits! I'm chewing her out and she just looked at my tits! Holy Shit! Now it makes sense! She suddenly knew what she had to do and say."Mark, you need to go upstairs and read a story to Michelle and Stephanie. Now."She turned to see
Wendy laughed and nodded."Thank you, Elena. So, what do I tell mark? He's up there right now wondering if we are killing each other.""I have an idea. Why not let me go up there and finish reading the story to the girls? While I'm doing that, you can talk to mark. Trust me, Wendy, he'll understand.""Okay. Aunt Elena, huh?" Wendy smiled."Yeah, uh, it was the only thing I could think of when I walked in.""Well, Aunt Elena, go upstairs and read to my girls while I talk to my husband.""Yeah, why don't I do just that? What a great idea! Too bad I didn't think of it first."Elena gave Wendy a grin and walked up the stairs. She heard mark's voice and followed it to the bedroom door. She looked around the doorframe and watched for a minute.The girls were in their beds and mark was sitting in between them on a chair with a book on his lap. He was looking from one daughter to the other as he read the story. It was obvious from watching him that this was the same story he told them every