by Ava Hunt
Justin was still for several moments as he pretended to consider the proposal, but he didn’t last long. “I’m sorry,” he said, his tone lacking the sympathy his words suggested, “but I can’t. It sounds like a bunch of science fiction to me. Maybe you’d have more luck in Hollywood.”
Gretchen and Ken, though obviously disappointed, expressed how much they appreciated his time, even as he stood and left the room abruptly. Kimber spent a few minutes with the research team, apologizing for her boss’s behavior and wishing them luck. But after seeing them out, she headed straight for Justin’s office. The door was open, as if he was expecting her. She crossed her arms angrily and leaned against the doorframe.
“Go ahead. Let me have it,” Justin said, reclining in his chair, his hands folded behind his head.
You can’t tell me you’re not even a little intrigued. You could afford to throw some money at this research, regardless of how ridiculous it sounds. And even so, how could you be so rude? They’re people too. You made them feel stupid and you wasted their time. But of all the words flying through her head, the only ones she spoke were, “I’m disappointed in you.” She searched his eyes briefly for the goodness she believed was in him. Unable to find it, she turned and left, wondering if it would be better for them both if she just quit.
CHAPTER 3
“This is…” Kimber’s older sister Vivienne searched for the right word. “Garish. All this for one guy’s birthday?” She looked around at the table settings and decorations that were reminiscent of a wedding dinner. Closer to the house, a stage was set up and a band was playing a song from the 80’s that she heard on the radio fairly often. Judging by other people’s reactions, she was pretty sure it was the original band, but she couldn’t fully appreciate the appeal. She didn’t even know the name of the band. In her defense, they would have been popular before her time.
“I know. It’s disturbing. I bet this party cost more than my entire year’s salary.”
“And you can’t tell me he knows all these people. No one has this many friends. Especially not people who are arrogant jerks like Justin.”
Kimber almost wanted to defend him, but after the research funding debacle, she was less inclined. She settled for keeping her mouth shut.
Vivienne didn’t need Kimber’s input to goad her on. She had plenty to say even without audience interaction. “And his girlfriend? As completely horrible as she is, I have to admit she is gorgeous. Did you ever think in high school that Justin would end up with someone like that?”
With a slight frown on her face, Kimber said, “No. I thought he had better taste.”
Kimber’s tone made Vivienne stop scanning the party. She focused in on her sister’s face, then groaned, “Oh, Kimber. Still?”
“What?” Kimber played dumb. She knew Vivienne had never approved of her high school crush, so she wasn’t eager to admit that it had never really gone away, regardless of the way Justin’s character had deteriorated over the years. She felt stupid enough as it was. She didn’t need Vivienne’s criticism too.
“I don’t know how I missed it. You still like him, don’t you?”
“No. In fact, I hate what he’s become.” It was the truth. The problem was that she couldn’t let go of who he used to be or the hope that he would someday be that guy again.
“Then why are you still working for him? Why did you want to come to his birthday party?” Vivienne knew her too well to be misled by a few words.
“I’m still working for him because he pays better than any other job I’m qualified for. Although it’s almost to the point where it’s not worth it. And I wanted to come to the party for the same reasons you agreed to come with me.”
“Free fancy food? Free open bar? The possibility of meeting his celebrity friends? Favor bags with diamond necklaces in them?”
“All of the above,” Kimber laughed.
“Justin? Are you even listening?”
His gaze snapped back to Elle. “I was distracted. You were saying?” He hoped she hadn’t noticed that he had been watching Kimber and Vivienne laughing together. It was strangely satisfying to him that the sisters were still so close after all these years.
“I was just telling Ty about that crazy research team you met with earlier this week. Ty was wondering when the solar storms are supposed to happen.” Justin could tell that beneath her smooth façade, Elle was irritated with him. He was just lucky Ty was there to keep her from openly chastising him.
“Actually, I heard on the news that there was a huge solar flare a couple days ago. I’ve been at work all weekend, though, so I haven’t noticed anything unusual. Do all the animals have ESP now?” Justin asked with a jovial grin. Ty and Elle both laughed. “I don’t even understand why it would matter,” he continued. “Who cares if your dog can read your mind? What’s he going to do about it? Go tell everyone your deepest, darkest secrets?”
“That’s a good point,” Ty said. “Besides, if they can’t understand human language, how would they understand human thought? I suppose some of our thoughts are more abstract, or they involve images rather than language. But still, what would it matter?”
“It wouldn’t. Once again, Justin’s instincts have saved him from throwing his money away,” Elle bragged. “And that leaves more for me.”
Justin looked at her in shock. He wasn’t naïve. He knew that his money was hugely appealing to her. But she would never admit it. “What did you say?”
“I said your instincts saved you from throwing your money away,” she repeated. “What is wrong with him tonight? He’s not listening to a word I say.”
His brow furrowing, Justin looked to Ty, who looked bored now. He didn’t react at all to what Elle had just said. Maybe he was just politely ignoring her rude comment.
“Is he wearing an ascot? What a pretentious idiot!”
Justin’s head whipped around to see who dared insult him at his own party. He would have no qualms escorting the offender off his property. But everyone around him seemed to be wrapped up in their own conversations, none of them even looking at him. Shaking his head, he turned back to Elle and Ty, who, surprisingly, was eying the ascot around his neck. Justin reached up and touched it self-consciously.
Everything felt off all of a sudden. He had to get away for a moment. “Would you excuse me?” he asked his companions. Without waiting for a reply, he walked away, towards the house. Afraid that Elle would try to follow him, he moved quickly, keeping his eyes down to avoid eye contact with anyone.
“Justin, are you alright?” He looked up to see that he was approaching Kimber and Vivienne. Kimber was watching him, obviously concerned.
“I’m fine. I just need a minute,” he answered, rushing past.
“He looks terrible. I wish he would let me help.” It was Kimber’s voice, but when he looked back, she had her drink to her lips as she listened to Vivienne’s chatter. He wondered if he was losing his mind.
Not a moment too soon, he was in the safe haven of his house. There were caterers rushing around and a couple girls headed for the bathroom, but he ducked into the library where it was perfectly quiet. He paced the length of the room, parallel to the bookshelves he had hired someone to fill, but he couldn’t get his head to clear. Why was he hearing things? He looked down at the drink in his hand, wondering if someone had spiked it with some sort of hallucinogen. If that were true, though, the effects surely couldn’t have worn off so quickly, yet he wasn’t hearing anything out of the ordinary now.
It had been such a distressing phenomenon, and he couldn’t manage to compose himself. If he could just shift and escape into his bear’s mind for a little while, he knew he would feel much better. Bu he dismissed the idea immediately. There was no way he could get away with it with so many people around. Someone would see him ducking into the woods by himself, and then the rumors would start. Unless, of course, he went through the garage. There was only a small strip of lawn between the back of the garage and the woods, and there was
even a door leading out that direction. It could work, and he didn’t feel like he had much of a choice if he wanted to return to the party with his sanity.
Slipping out of the library, he soon made his way through the house to the garage, out the door and into the forest. He could hardly wait until he was hidden in the trees before he stripped off his clothes, hanging them neatly on a low branch. Then he closed his eyes and concentrated on becoming a bear. Moments later, he fell onto his forelegs and began to wander aimlessly, allowing his preoccupied human mind to be overpowered by the animal’s.
CHAPTER 4
He found a cluster of blackberry bushes and pawed at them, maneuvering the branches so he could get the juicy, sun-ripened berries in his mouth. He was hungrier than he’d realized, although that was usually true after he transformed. His bear stomach had a lot more room to fill. After a few minutes, he noticed another smell that piqued his curiosity. Realizing it was the party food and wondering if anyone had missed him yet, he decided to go check it out in his bear form. He would keep to the woods, and the darkness would conceal him. The bear’s mediocre eyesight wouldn’t help much, but he would be able to hear practically everything. Maybe if he wasn’t in the midst of it all, he could figure out where the seemingly incorporeal voices were coming from.
He only had to get past the corner of the garage before he could hear party sounds coming from his extensive front lawn. With every step, the din became louder and louder. It wasn’t long before the noise was overwhelming, and he let out an involuntarily growl. He collapsed on the ground and tried to cover his ears with his paws like a human would. Weirdly, the sound was hardly muffled. He instinctively closed his eyes against the racket, and to his astonishment, images began flashing through his mind. Stranger still, he was in many of the images, but it felt like he was watching himself through someone else’s eyes. He could feel a cacophony of emotions too, although somehow he knew they were not his own.
After several moments of overwhelming sensory stimulation, he recovered his faculties enough to retreat. He ran on all fours until there was silence and his mind was his own again. Lying down on the forest floor, he couldn’t help wondering if he was losing his mind. He was almost as crazy as those scientists he met with this week. He tried to laugh, but as a bear, it sounded more like a grunt.
And then it hit him. He was a bear. An animal. And what he was experiencing – the voices, images, and emotions that weren’t his… Was he reading minds? Could this be the animal telepathy the researchers wanted to study?
But he had started hearing things while he was still in his human form. Everyone else was acting normal, so it hadn’t affected them. Maybe whatever it was that allowed him to shapeshift was related to the mind-reading. It could be that the part of his brain that made him a bear was animal enough to give him the ability, even as a human.
Now that he had a theory what was happening, he was anxious to get closer to the party again. He speculated that maybe he could hone in on a certain person’s thoughts, much like he could focus on one conversation and tune out the rest of the party. That way, it wouldn’t be so overwhelmingly debilitating. Besides, he was dying to find out what people thought of him, so he was willing to take the risk.
He mentally prepared himself as he approached the house. He thought he could feel the energy of every person in that front yard. It wasn’t nearly as intense as the first time, but he still had various thoughts bouncing through his head.
I wish I had this kind of money. It’s not even fair.
The pâté isn’t nearly as good as I would have expected.
I can’t believe Daniel is here. That womanizer never called me like he said he would.
Justin closed his eyes to regroup. When he opened them, he would find Elle and focus on her. It should be easy to pick out her thoughts since he knew her so well.
It took a little while with his subpar bear vision, but eventually, he spotted her. She was fluttering about, telling everyone how glad she was that they could attend the party, but he could feel that it was really just her way of looking for him. Concentrating on her, he began to hear her thoughts.
Where could he have gone? Elle was thinking. All these people are here for him, and he chooses now to take off? It’s bad enough when he ghosts me, but it’s just offensive that he would ditch his own birthday party. I put a ton of effort into planning this, and he’s making me look bad. Though I suppose that’s nothing new. It seems like with all his money, he could afford some class. But hey, if he’s spending it on me instead, I guess I can’t complain.
It was nothing he hadn’t heard before. Elle wasn’t exactly a saint, but neither was he. That was part of the reason they had lasted so long as a couple. They didn’t feel like they had to be better for each other because they were equally selfish.
He heard Elle’s voice asking his neighbor, Mike, if he had seen Justin. Mike said no, but there was much more that he didn’t say. No, I haven’t seen Justin, nor do I care. I wouldn’t even be here if my wife didn’t want to see the inside of that atrocious mansion. At least there’s an open bar. I don’t know how anyone could get through this without alcohol.
Justin let out a short grunt. Mike was just jealous. He had the smallest house in the neighborhood, so it made sense that he would be bitter about it. He haughtily wondered what Mike would think if he knew how much his wife flirted with Justin whenever they happened to meet at the mailbox.
His eyes followed Elle into her next conversation. “I’m just so glad you could make it, Joss. What time did you get home last night after the after party?”
“I can’t remember. All I know is that it wasn’t last night. It was this morning.”
“Oh, I’m so sad I missed it! The premiere was outstanding, though. I wouldn’t have missed that for anything.”
“I’m just glad Justin let you come. For a minute there, I thought you weren’t going to make it.”
“I know. Me too. Speaking of Justin, have you seen him around?”
“No, I haven’t. Sorry.”
Elle walked off, but Justin stayed focused on Joss, waiting to hear her thoughts. She had even more money than he did, so he wouldn’t be subjected to shallow envy with her.
I don’t know why Elle is trying to find him. She’s always happier when he’s not around anyway. Aren’t we all? I don’t understand why she stays with him. She could do so much better, especially if she moved to LA. I could introduce her to so many guys, far superior to that pompous jerk.
Justin was taken aback. That wasn’t what he’d expected. He thought Joss was his friend. Apparently that wasn’t the case. It didn’t sound like she liked him much at all.
He was starting to wonder if anyone had anything good to say, or rather think, about him. He moved his focus to one of his employees. Where did Justin go? I only came so I could suck up to him a little bit so he’ll give me that promotion, but he’s not even here. A buddy from his gym. If Justin has enough money for this kind of party and such an extravagant house, why wouldn’t the cheapskate donate to my son’s fundraiser? A family friend he’d known since birth. I knew this party would be lame. But it’s the price I have to pay if I want Justin to keep sending checks with his Christmas cards. I guess I can suffer through this for a couple hundred bucks.
With every mind he read, his temper rose. He had spent an inordinate amount of money on this party, on these people, and he couldn’t find a single person who actually seemed to like him. Only his wealth mattered to them. They were merely using him to get ahead.
Justin let out a loud, angry bellow. Several of the partygoers gasped or turned their heads towards the forest surrounding the house. When they didn’t see anything of concern, they went back to their conversations. They all seemed so content to enjoy the celebration without the person they were supposed to be celebrating, and it infuriated him. How dare they saunter around his property like they owned the place? How dare they consume the food and drinks and entertainment he had provided for his fr
iends? How dare they show their faces here when they obviously held such contempt for him? They didn’t deserve any of it.
In his animal form, it was harder to control his impulses, and he felt the sudden need to tear something apart. His bear’s urge to protect his territory took over. Breaking out from the cover of the woods, he charged the party on his front lawn. He snarled and growled, sending people screaming in every direction. He went to the food table, bit the tablecloth, and yanked on it. Food splattered on the ground and glass dishes broke. He went to the bar and pawed aggressively at everything in sight, liquid spilling out of the broken bottles. If there were tables or chairs in the way, he knocked them over. If his guests got too close, he ran at them, gnashing his teeth.
Suddenly, there was a deafening bang, and pain shot through his shoulder. He stumbled briefly, but a new surge of anger gave him the strength to recover his balance. Wheeling around, he saw a man behind him, holding a gun he had just fired. The bear wanted to run at him and slash at his body in retaliation, but Justin’s human mind was just present enough to know he risked getting shot to death if he did. Instead, he fled the scene amidst additional gunshots, disappearing unscathed into the trees.
As his adrenaline faded, the pain in his shoulder began to set in. He limped through the forest, headed back towards the garage, hoping he had done enough damage to break up the party. Elle was sure to hang around. She would be furious. The bear may have torn the party apart, but Justin had ruined it long before that when he took off. He would have stayed in the forest all night and avoided her wrath, but he needed medical attention. His best bet was to sneak back in, and then lie his way out of it.