Lunar Light

by Penelope Fletcher

  I stood up off the bed and paced, my stride shortening until it was a short two-step by the door. It shouldn’t be this bad. I shouldn’t be crushing over a female this hard. Shouldn’t she be back by now? The old man had a busted up knee and no provisions; he couldn’t live that far away. What if he’d hurt her? Thumped her around the head and knocking her out. My step faltered. She could be hurt, dying, and I was here treading the same ground like a fucking idiot. We may be near unbeatable in beast form, but as human we were as killable as anybody.

  Cursing, I opened the door and peered into the green gloom of the trees. Being in Wendigo form had so many advantages to my human one. My frustration only grew as I could barely see past the tree line, even in the bright daylight.

  Then I heard it – the shrill cry of a falcon. My blood rushed to my head and my heart skipped an entire beat. That bird was known to me and signaled the presence of one man.

  Before the ululating call had finished, I was bounding down the stairs and flying across the snow barefoot in a flat out run.

  Evangeline

  Each step I took the sinister feeling rolling over my skin grew. I had only felt it once before, and the last time someone I loved had died. My hands curled under into fists and I unconsciously started to lower into a crouch and walk slower as if expecting an attack. My breath came in short pants and my own boot falls crunching the snow seemed too loud. My heart thumped against my ribcage and I bit hard on my lower lip, resisting the urge to call on a storm to lose myself in.

  Why did I feel this way? I’d walked these woods my entire life, knew every trail, clearing and curve of the land. These were my mountains. Yet the terrain felt alien to me, hostile even. Or was I feeling the reverberation of something alien and hostile in my environment rather than the mood of the earth itself?

  My eyes passed over the ground and I straightened in shock. Tracks … lots of tracks. At least a dozen men had passed this way, carrying heavy equipment and a sled from the long and deep scrapes on the ground.

  The tracks led toward my cabin.

  Luke!

  My steady walk turned into flat out run within moments. No less than ten minutes later I heard someone coming at me, barreling down the slope that lead to my clearing with speed.

  My stomach dropped to the soles of my feet. Was I too late? Was the one who’d taken Luke life running from the scene of his demise?

  I never should have left him alone.

  A ferocity I’d not known I’d possessed had my blood pumping fast and hard through my veins. I ducked my head and sped up. All I needed was one bite, one drop of blood to trigger the shift. I’d sink my teeth into this invader and keep running until I was far enough to be safe. Once my Wendiga was free I’d go back and rip their throat out.

  My hair streamed behind me and my muscles bunched and relaxed in a smooth synchronized movement I knew I could maintain for a good twenty minutes more.

  As it was I had seconds before I collided with a solid chest.

  I struggled, not seeing or thinking as arms like steel bands came round me to crush me into a hug. I turned my head, teeth snapping before a thick tongue flicked over my ear and the rope of muscle at my neck. I stopped trying to bite the man holding me and breathed in, smelling the unique scent of death and storms tinged with a spicy undertone that was all Luke’s own. I turned so that my shocked gaze met his that was alight with desire and gleaned with sensual promise. His chest heaved with what sounded like a sigh of relief, and the chill of his touch had my stressed heart taking a breather.

  His big hands came up to tangle in my hair and he brought up a hunk to breathe it in. He pulled me closer and captured my mouth roughly with his own, demanding. My hands – that had been fisted on his chest – relaxed and travelled down to sweep under the hem of his tee shirt so I could run my hands over his hard abdominals then round his firm waist to slide up his back. He nipped my lip and I gasped, pressed myself into him.

  He broke away from my mouth to rub his cheek against mine. “Where were you running to?”

  Again, a simple question could cause such a fluster. It became hard to meet his gaze, I felt too secure, and too safe in his hold. I fidgeted. Was saving face worth a lie? Could I endure seeing his expression harden to hide the pain I knew it would cause him to hear me shrug this connection between us off.

  My eyes drifted closed and I shook my head. Only the truth would do. “You. I was running to you.”

  He made a noise of approval low in his throat and pressed his lips to mine again. This time his tongue thrust into my mouth and curled up to caress the roof of my mouth. My heart exploded with love and I pulled away to stare into his face. He grinned at me impishly and wiggled his eyebrows.

  The fact I wouldn’t be able to kill him hit me full on like a blow to the solar plexus. Had I ever really meant him harm? No. The moment I hesitated on the riverbank was the moment I’d made my decision. I could have charged to meet him, you see. Held my ground, but instead I had locked eyes with and drowned in everything that was displayed in their shining depths. I’d been swept away, which is why instead of meeting him head on, I’d blinked, and let him send us hurtling into the river.

  I had two choices now; demand he leave or give him a reason to stay. Would he stay here with me if I could make him safe? Is that even something I could ask him without seeming a total fool? Nothing I had done so far showed him that I was mighty. A strong Wendiga would have taken him down the first moment she saw him. A beast in charge of her territory would have made him beg for mercy for having the gall to breach her borders. A woman with some modicum of self-respect would not have let any man, no matter how wonderful he seemed and alluring he smelled, touch her the way I had let Luke touch me. She would order him away from her not boldly drop to her knees and throw herself on him to ensure he felt a glimmer of the pleasure he’d wrought from her.

  Did it matter if he thought I was strong? Maybe if I showed him how much he meant to me be would see that I was his equal. Wait. When had I gone from his natural superior to his equal?

  His strong crushing me closer broke my panic induced musings. His chest was solid and seemed an impenetrable wall of protection that none could topple. My eyes clashed with his and the adoration there had my breath leaving my lungs in a rush. I all but threw myself on him aiming for his lips, my hands lacing at the back of his neck to yank him to me.

  The suddenness of it had him slipping on a loose bit of snow and tumbling over. He refused to let me go so took me down with him. I laughed, a high happy sound that was crystalline and echoed throughout the wood. Easy. He was so easy to care for. I’d spent my whole life keeping the entire world at arm’s reach, so should I have been able to relate to him so completely? Or did it prove that I was meant for him? Meant for him? Really. Was I so deluded that I need to assure myself my behavior was acceptable because there was something beyond sexual attraction happening here?

  Wendigo’s didn’t take mates. There was no instant spark or some ludicrous claiming of your other half by tasting their scent. If we wanted a partner for life we had to work for it. We had to forsake all others and dedicate ourselves to each other. Not that Wendigo relationships ever lasted long enough for a connection meaningful enough to form.

  His hands settled on my hips and gripped tightly. His laugh was a throaty rumble that vibrated through me and I shuddered in pleasure. All things forgotten, I stared down at him letting all my affection seep into my expression. I leaned down to taste his lips again.

  Pebble sized bullets that would have crushed my skull into mush zipped into the snow a few feet away with deadly little pinging sounds.

  Ah, hadn’t I been running to save him from those who hunted him?

  In a flash I was alert, ready to fight or run away. Luke tried to shift me off him, but I squeezed my legs to keep him still, not sure if it was safe for him to get up. He swore and rolled so I was on my back and his large body covered mine. His arms came up to surround my head and darted tense look
s around trying to pin point the direction of the attack, seemingly having as much success as I.

  I pushed at his chest, glaring at him. He was acting like bullets couldn’t split his head open just as much as mine.

  He got the message, but shook his head in no, and instead leaned down so his lips were pressed close to my ear. “Evangeline, you must shift and run if they catch us. Do you understand? You become the Wendiga and kill them all to get away if you have to.”

  My breath came hard and fast as I strained to hear approaching footsteps. I turned my head so I could whisper in his ear. “Bite me.”

  He jerked and glared at me, but I lifted my chin so my throat was exposed – tying to make him understand. His head snapped down and I tensed, waited for the stabbing pain, but Luke simply kissed my neck and slid off me.

  “I’m too hungry and I don’t think I could stop before I killed you.” He was low on his belly his head barely off the ground as he tried to decide which way to run. “But thank you.”

  Ignoring his sappy tone I thought fast. “We have to split up,” I concluded and rolled carefully over to make as little noise as possible. “I’m going to head south to the river and will lose them that way. You go east back to the caves. Do you remember where they are?”

  He nodded slowly. “I don’t want to leave you unprotected.”

  My face turned sour. “They’re not after me.”

  “I don’t know that for sure,” he confessed. “They must have seen you when you pulled us out of the river. They might figure if they capture you that I’ll come running. They want me, and will stop at nothing to get me.”

  We both didn’t admit out loud that whoever was caught the other would come running. Words were not needed so I reached out to place my hand on his cheek and he leaned into it. Why was it so easy to express how you felt when you faced the possibility of the end?

  The brush crackled and the low hum of voices could be heard.

  I breathed in deeply and threw out my influence on the weather. It was difficult as a human, but still possible. The clouds were still light and fluffy and there was nowhere near enough pressure to create a storm or to manage a decent blizzard. I would have to call it from miles away.

  Christ, I couldn’t mess around with the weather again so much after the hurricane last night.

  A faint footfall caught my ear and I focused in front of me. Three, maybe four? I squinted through the bush we hid behind and counted four men pacing forward, alert and aware. All were dressed head to toe in black skintight suites and wool balaclavas. Even their eyes were covered with black wrap-round glasses. Each wore a tool belt from which hung a silver knife, what looked like a handgun, and clutched long-range rifles – raised to their upper chests for quick sight and shoot. They fanned out about three paces apart and occasionally prodded suspiciously large mounds of snow as they passed. They barely made a sound as they searched the undergrowth and passed the evergreen trees like deadly shadows.

  I spared a glance at Luke, my face incredulous. Who exactly were these guys hunting him? If his desolate expression was anything to go by he didn’t seem to have any long-term hope for evading them.

  I opened my mouth to suggest charging them head on when he shifted onto his knees.

  He looked at me over his shoulder and it was a clear goodbye. “Run fast and don’t look back.”

  Then he shot up and legged it away, bullets already raining down in front of and behind his path, but somehow missing him. My heart got stuck in my throat as I watched him run away and wink out of sight.

  It took every shred of self-control I had not to run after him. As he planned the men picked up the pace and started after him. But two of the four remained behind no doubt to search for me. My top lip curled and I bared my teeth.

  Let them come.

  I moved up into a crouch and waited them out, praying that Luke could run long enough for me to deal with these thugs, shift, and come after him.

  Chapter 7

  Bunching my body together I got ready to attack. A thought flitted through my mind, and I stopped, relaxing as I realized how silly I was being. Why didn’t I think of this before? I was human. A human woman dressed like a hiker. I knew men found me attractive, and my features gave me the impression of someone quite weak even if I was quite tall.

  I dropped back onto my stomach and flipped around. I kicked off a shoe and buried my hands in my hair to fluff it up so it looked wild and windswept. My face always looked pale and bloodless, so I held my breath to turn it red as I unbuttoned my trousers, and pushed them half down my hips. I unzipped my coat and ripped a few buttons off to scatter them in the snow. I bit down hard on my own lip and let the blood trickle down my chin. The moment the first booted foot stepped into view I lay my head down and opened my eyes wide. My muscles were locked so tight it was easy to jerk them in a decent imitation of a tremble, and I clutched at the edges of my coat when the man and his gun trained on me.

  “The girl is still here,” he shouted.

  “Help me,” I sobbed. “A monster was trying to … to … he was … I thought he would kill me!” My sobs turned into a wail and I curled up on my side.

  He hesitated, not sure if he should shoot me or comfort me. My heart thundered in my chest and I kept up the trembles and gusty sobs to rub it in that I was hurt and terrified. Still when he remained undecided I had to stifle a huff of impatience. I guess I could understand how it would be a little confusing. He had just been trying to blow my head off. After a beat he pointed the barrel of the weapon away and signaled to his comrade.

  He pulled off his balaclava and I stared. Despite his stocky build he was young, barely sixteen with ruddy cheeks, big earlobes and bum fluff for a beard. No wonder he had hesitated, he was just a boy.

  “Easy now come on, miss, don’t cry,” he said in a surprisingly high voice.

  Scrambling up I launched myself at him and burst into tears. I buried my face into his neck and breathed in huge shuddering breaths. Oh, but he smelt tasty. I snuggled closer. He mistook my actions as a female need for comforting after a horrific attack and patted my head gently.

  “All right, miss. You’re safe now. He’s gone and we’re after him.”

  I leaned away and stared up at him. My bottom lip trembled. “What … what was that thing. That monster.” I sounded suitably horrified and I rewarded myself with a mental high-five.

  “You don’t want to know, miss. I have enough nightmares. And to think if we hadn’t of come along he would have raped you and then eaten–” he cut off and sent me an apologetic look.

  I clutched my jacket tighter and shortened my neck so I seemed to shrink in terror. “He would have eaten me,” I whispered and my on cue my eyes watered again. “You saved my life.”

  He blushed faintly. “Aw, it was nothing.”

  I felt a small dart of regret for misleading him so shamefacedly. He was actually kind of cute and chivalrous. Had I not been hung up on that block headed Luke I would have probably tried my luck with this one. He felt like kindred to me.

  I asked in a hushed whisper, “Are you here to … to … hunt it down?”

  “Yes. So don’t you worry.”

  “Thank goodness.” I pursed my lips thoughtfully thinking up my next words carefully. “Maybe I should call the mountain rangers? They should probably know what happened.”

  “No!” he squeaked loudly.

  I jumped a mile and my hand flew to my mouth as if in shock. Hm. They didn’t want the authorities to know they were up here. Interesting. If they went missing….

  Flushed he shook his head and in a more controlled voice said, “No, it’s fine.”

  “But … they could help you track it down. Don’t you government types all work together?”

  The other – still masked man looked at the young one – did a fast hand signal then paced away raising his gun again. As he walked away the falcon I had seen before landed on his shoulder.

  The young man placed a calming hand on my
elbow and I clutched his other hand and gave another little tremble.

  “You really should take all the help you can get. What if the monster gets you?” I asked tearfully.

  “We’re trained to deal with this, don’t you worry about us. Now can you tell me where your campsite is? Is it far?”

  The best lies are ones heavily shrouded by truths. I was tempted to tell him I had been backpacking with a partner, but then they might look for remains, and there were no remains to be found, nor a trail to back up my story.

  I shook my head. “I’m one of the few that lives on this mountain. My Da lives three miles downriver. That’s where I was coming from when the beast attacked me.” This was good. It would explain my footsteps to this point. “Maybe I should backtrack?”

  I looked over his shoulder in the direction Luke had run in with a hopeful expression. My trap was laid. Naturally he would report my Da’s cabin back and they would go check it out. They would expect Luke to look for food since they had interrupted him, and a place to hide. Luke would manage to give them the slip again, and they would look in the next logical place. My Da would give them the run around as he always did when the authorities came knocking with descriptions of blue monsters and missing persons, and they would assume Luke had moved on again.

  The boy looked panicked. “No. You shouldn’t go that way. Carry on home, miss.”

  I let him go slowly, with false reluctance. “Well, if you’re sure it’s safe.” I blinked a few times owlishly. “Hey, do you think you guys could take me home… ?”

  He blinked. “Bobby. Bobby Cartwright.” It was said hesitantly as if he was not used to people asking his name.

  I smiled at him and it was genuine. He beamed back and I noted he had a gap between his two front teeth. How cute. “Evangeline. So could you, Bobby? Could you take me home?”

  He looked like he wanted to say yes and he opened his mouth. From the corner of my eye I saw his superior spin round and wave his hands madly, shaking his head.