Her father told her to follow Mrs. Sadler, so she did, and many of the townspeople did too. All any of them could do was try and peer inside the window, as Mrs. Sadler wouldn’t let anyone in except old Abbie. She said that, though they thought themselves clean, they carried with them numerous ‘spirits’ that might make Dunstan worse.
After about two hours, Mrs. Sadler told them to go home. Dunstan was alive, and she believed he would remain that way, but that he needed sleep. Lots of it.
It was over a week before Dunstan was up and walking again.
Jessica awoke her from her trance. “I said do you think we should try and find him?”
Amber shook her head. “No… No, there’s no way we would be able to find him. We’re not skilled enough. We don’t know the first thing about navigating through those hills.”
“I could ask my brother,” Jessica said. “He’s a pretty good tracker, though he doesn’t hunt as much as he’d like.”
“After he just asked me out to the Spring Festival? No, I couldn’t do that to him.”
They sat and ate for a moment before Jessica exclaimed, “Oh my god! I didn’t tell you! William Haven has started courting me!”
“What? The mayor’s son?”
Jessica nodded enthusiastically. “I had no idea he liked me, so when he came to me and told me of his intentions, I was floored! He’s so kind and generous. I know he’ll make an excellent husband.”
And you’ll never have to worry about money, thought Amber. We both know he’s not exactly a looker.
“Congratulations! I’m so proud and excited for you!”
It wasn’t a lie, but Jessica could have any man she wanted. Beautiful blond hair, toned body. She looked like who Rick Backus spoke of when he told his fairy tales.
But Jessica wasn’t that kind of girl, and William wasn’t exactly ugly. He just looked like he had never done a day’s worth of hard labor (because, well, he hadn’t). He looked like a man who had a back door entrance into a well stocked kitchen (because, well, he did).
“So if things turn out well, when are you thinking?” Amber asked.
“I don’t know. Sometime this summer, I hope!”
Amber hugged her childhood friend, sincerely happy for her.
“I guess I should start getting ready for tonight,” Amber said. “Let me know if you see him again? He and I need to talk.”
“Of course!” Jessica exclaimed and hugged her friend one more time. “Don’t let any of them take advantage of you tonight! Even though you two aren’t together, Martin will fight them for you if need him to. He’s strong, and I know there’s a not a grown man in this town who would walk into a fight with him without hesitation.”
“I’ll keep him in mind,” Amber said and closed the door as Jessica walked back out to the dusty street.
It had gotten colder since this morning, and the clouds grayer. It did feel like it was going to snow.
Dunstan? Where are you?
CHAPTER 2
Francis Mitchell was playing the flute tonight, and his close friend, Edward Linden, was patting a deep drum that he had made himself this winter. Wrapped in the hide of one of his former bulls, it had a great resonating tone that blended well with Francis’s flute.
With them was also eleven year old Alice Gorman who had recently begun studying the fiddle. Still learning her new instrument, the two older men didn’t mind whenever she stumbled, and just kept on playing— sometimes even stopping for a moment to help her get her bearings— but she was good already, and was only going to get better with their help.
Most of the people in the pub were either dancing or singing. Francis and Edward knew how to carry a tune.
It was a nice surprise they were here. They came to announce that they would be playing at the Spring Festival this year, to which everyone hollered in joy. They said they wanted to give everyone a little taste of what they’d been working on.
Francis blew the first notes to There is a Tavern in Town and everyone cheered so loud Amber wished her hands were free to plug up her ears as she carried four men their mugs of beer.
Edward belted out the first four lines.
“There is a tavern in the town, in the town
And there my true love sits him down, sits him down,
And drinks his wine as merry as can be,
And never, never thinks of me.”
Everyone clapped and then the whole room contributed to the chorus— even Amber pitched in:
Fare thee well, for I must leave thee,
Do not let this parting grieve thee,
And remember that the best of friends
Must part, must part.
Francis and Alice were drowned out by the whole room, but Edward’s drum managed to rise above the ruckus. When they finished laughing and congratulating one another, Edward resumed his solo:
“Adieu, adieu kind friends, adieu, yes, adieu,
I can no longer stay with you, stay with you,
I'll hang my drum on the weeping willow tree,
And may the world go well with thee.”
The line was ‘hang my harp on the weeping willow tree,’ and several men and women roared in laughter when they noticed the difference.
Panting, Amber made it back behind the counter.
Her father patted her on the back and leaned it to her ear. “They’re getting rowdy tonight. Want to take over in the kitchen?”
Amber shook her head and shouted so her father could hear, “NO, I CAN HANDLE THEM!”
He nodded and went back to taking orders.
“Little missy,” a drunk John Pritchett said to her sitting on a stool at the counter. “I dropped my cane. Can you come over here and help me get it?”
Amber rolled her eyes. He was just trying to see her down her shirt. She was the perfect barmaid to these people. Big breasts that bounced and swayed as she walked, and a big rump they could graze with their hands as she snaked her way through them.
“No, John!” Amber yelled at him. “Go home to your wife! She’s got what you’re looking for, too!”
“I can’t! My knees, darlin’. I can’t bend down to pick up my cane!”
“I saw you, John!” Amber yelled. “I saw you help your son clear out rocks from his new garden he’s starting. You didn’t have any trouble bending over then!”
“But I shouldn’t have,” John Pritchett said. “I hurt myself. Please, lass, I’m not trying to get a free show. I swear upon my mother’s bible.”
Amber looked at him skeptically and walked around the counter. He didn’t strike her as particularly religious.
She bent in front of him and snatched up his cane.
She looked up and saw that he was indeed looking down her shirt, peering at the valley between her breasts.
She stood up and shoved his cane into his chest and walked back around the counter.
When she got back around Dunstan was in his place, smiling like the devil!
“Dunstan! But, where…”
John Pritchett staggered to his feet, rubbing his jaw.
Dunstan didn’t turn around to look at him, and Amber watched John in fear, sure he was going to counter attack. He seemed to seriously consider it, but instead patted Dunstan on the shoulder and said, “That’s a mean right hook you’ve got there, little Conner. Better, even, than your grandfather’s ever was.” He walked away, and several of the people in the pub pointed and laughed at him. He put his cane up in his armpit and started doing a jig with a woman closer to his age.
The whole room finished off the remaining stanza of There is a Tavern.
“Oh, dig my grave both wide and deep, wide and deep;
Put tombstones at my head and feet, head and feet
And on my breast you may carve a turtle dove,
TO SIGNIFY I DIED OF LOVE!”
The room broke off into laughter and clapping, and then quieted down. Amber leaned over the counter to hug Dunstan, who was still smiling like a wolf eyeing its prey.
> “Dunstan! Where have you been?” Amber asked.
He cocked his head like a puppy and asked, “What do you mean? Hunting of course.”
“You’ve been gone too much, you’ll loose your apprenticeship! Mr. Hobbs says he’s going to take on someone more serious.”
Dunstan shrugged, “I learned what I wanted to know.”
“What? What will you do? Who will have you with an attitude like that? You’ll be lucky if Ian Chapman will let you clean up after his horses.”
“Well, I didn’t come here to get scolded, my lovely Amber. I came to see if I can have your hairclip,” Dunstan said and smiled. His teeth seemed brighter and sharper than before. “Will you go to the dance with me?”
Amber blushed and reached up for her hairclip. “Of course, stupid boy.” She gave it to him. “I was wondering if you knew you still needed to ask me.”
“Of course, pretty girl,” Dunstan said. “I don’t take you for granted.”
His eyes, too, seemed different. Like they were emitting a soft, green light.
“Want to walk with me while I take this to the Town Hall and sign us in?” he asked.
“I can’t. It’s too busy,” Amber said.
“You can leave for five minutes,” Dunstan said. “Come on. Please?”
Amber got her father’s attention and held up her hand, silently asking for a five minute break. He nodded briefly and waved her to the front door.
Dunstan saw this and jumped from his stool, grabbing her hand and holding it above people’s heads as he walked with her on the side of the counter. Once free he pulled her quickly out of the stuffy pub and into the clear, crisp air.
It was snowing.
“Oh my god! It’s cold!” Amber exclaimed. “Aren’t you freezing?” Dunstan was only wearing a simple gray cotton shirt.
“No, I’m fine,” he said.
“Hold on, I’m going to go back for a shawl.”
Amber ran in, and when she came back out, Dunstan was walking with his tongue out trying to catch snowflakes in his mouth.
“So Jessica tells me you were hunting this morning. Naked,” Amber said.
Dunstan stopped shuffling and looked to the side. He had to think about it. “Yesh,” he confirmed and nodded. “Yesh, I eee ooh aaa,” he said with his tongue still out.
“Dunstan! Be serious! What were you thinking?” Amber asked. “I’m going to be at your funeral in two weeks if you keep this up. Where’s your coat?”
“It is…,” he put a finger up to his lips. “Hanging on a branch in the woods. But I know exactly which one and where. It’s safe. Still clean and pretty.” His face held an amused grin.
Amber leaned in and looked at his lips. Something red was slightly above them.
“Dunstan Connor! Is this woman’s lipstick on your face?”
“What?” Dunstan said and backed up a step, wiping his mouth. “Oh, no, it is just blood. I was hunting today, remember?”
“With your teeth?” Amber asked.
“No, my hands,” Dunstan said. “Come on, we’ve got to be quick. Your father will need you again soon.” He grabbed her and ran with her down the cobbled street. The snow was sticking and crunching beneath their feet. The way it was falling, it was going to be several inches before long. Amber was glad she decided to wear her fur lined boots to work.
They turned right. Town Hall was a hundred yards away.
“Come on,” Dunstan said and knelt down before her. “Get on my back.”
“What? Are you crazy? I’ll break your back.”
“I’m a lot stronger than I look,” Dunstan said, seriously.
Amber spread her legs around his waist and wrapped her arms around his neck. “If you’re sure,” she said.
Dunstan stood up as if she were but a child on his back and began running down the street.
“Dunstan!” Amber hollered. “What have you been doing in the mountains! Lifting stones?”
Dunstan merely laughed. He was so fast! His footsteps so light! He was a man possessed!
He surprised her further when he decided to leap up the five steps of Town Hall. A feat she would have gasped at even if she hadn’t been on his shoulders.
He skidded to a stop at the top of the stone veranda, and put her down gently. A pointed charcoal stick was hanging by a piece of twine. He took it and wrote his name down beside hers, whose was already printed by the mayor and waiting, and clipped her hairclip on the rope threaded through the board.
“There,” he said. “It’s official. Want to practice a little bit?” He took her hand and spun her.
“Stop, you crazy thing!” she said and giggled. “Dunstan, what’s gotten over you? You’re so strong and fast! You weren’t half as strong as you are now this past fall. And you’re acting—”
“Happy?” Dunstan asked, smiling down at her.
“Well, you were always happy,” Amber said. “Happier, I guess? What’s going on with you? Does this have anything to do with what happened?”
Dunstan’s smile went away. “You mean the night that man tried to kill me?”
Amber didn’t say anything.
“You’re right, there is something going on. I’ve wanted to tell you since it happened, but…,” he stopped “I can’t explain it. The only thing I know to do is show you, and I will. I will... but, I can’t just now, not here. I will though, I promise.”
“Show me what?” Amber asked.
“Patience my beautiful Amber.” He smiled and knelt down for her to get on top of his back again. “Come on,” he said.
She climbed on top of him and he ran her all the way back to the pub without losing his breath. No, running wasn’t quite it. He practically galloped and leapt the entire way.
He put her down again and said, “Tell me if anyone gives you trouble. I’ll take care of them during the daylight. They don’t need to be in the pub for me to teach them I’m your guy.”
“OK,” she said, flushed.
She had let her hands wander a little as he ran with her. The strength and power she could feel in his pecs… his back… they seemed almost limitless in their strength… in what they could move and carry.
She was not a small girl.
He was simply strong.
And yet more childlike. He was buzzing with energy like a young boy who had just eaten a pastry from Hayden’s bakery.
He kissed her on the cheek and bounced off into the night. Headed for the woods.
“Poor, poor Dunstan,” Rick Backus said, his chin resting on his chest and his eyes closed. He was drunk earlier than usual.
He shook his head and said again, “Poor, poor Dunstan. I knew him when he was a wee little thing.”
“What are you on about? Nothing’s wrong with him,” Amber turned and said to him.
“Hmm,” Rick said, trying to raise his head. “That night, I thought he wassa, wassa demon. Remember that? I weren’t far from the truth. No, I weren’t.”
“You better get inside before you freeze to death,” Amber said and patted him on the shoulder. “You’re not as strong as —”
Rick grabbed her hand and said, “Amber, if you meet him again, take a weapon with you. Silver won’t do! Not for the likes of him. No, no, no, he’s beyond silver. He’s something else.”
Amber simply looked down on him. Drunk as he was, his brain seemed focused. He believed emphatically what he was saying.
“Old Abbie told me a story about his kind once,” he said. “She said God’s chosen had a word for ‘em. The… the Eh-Khan. Those who transform or become.
“Tell her what you saw tonight,” he continued. “Tell her what he did… how he is. She’ll school you. Yes, yes, she will.”
Amber went inside. Back into the warmth and the noise.
Crazy old fool.
CHAPTER 3
7 YEARS PRIOR…
“Amber, Amber, works at Starlight Taver’-
Amber, Amber, ate the ‘ole seafood platter-
Amber, Amber, there’
s not one fatter!
Amber, Amber, she’ll be a deep sea anchor!”
Her friends, her classmates. Dancing around her. Singing, holding hands as they skipped across the cobbled street.
Pointing.
Sneering.
She couldn’t break out. They wouldn’t let her. Pushed her like a sack of trash to the ground.
They laughed and sang another verse.
“Amber, Amber, what’s the matter?
Amber, Amber, did you eat the pancake batter?
Amber, Amber, did you hear the chatter?
Amber, Amber, you’re a waste of matter!”
She stood helpless in the middle. Around and around they went.
She could hardly see through her tears. This was unforeseen, beyond cruel, but she managed to throw her weight between Angela Allder and Betty Phippen. They were tall and skinny, with barely an ounce of strength between them. Their hands broke when she barrelled between them and she ran as fast as her frame could take her.
Only Eric Ashford followed, trotting easily along beside her. He sang right into her face:
“Amber, Amber there’s not one fatter!
Amber, Amber you’re a waste of matter!
Amber, Amber—”
She shoved him away from her face and he tumbled down to the ground, yelping in pain. She stopped long enough to see him get up and clutch his knee. Betty Phippen laughed and pointed at him, but skipped to him to see if he was okay.
Amber decided if he could stand he was alright, and continued running down West High Street.
She veered right and ran to her parents’ pub, Starlight Tavern, deciding at the last minute to go straight to the storage shed hidden amongst the trees. Its door faced the woods, and was well away from prying eyes.
She sat down on the wooden steps and unleashed her tears.
BOX SET: Shifter 4-Pack Vol 2 (Wolf Shifter, Dragon Shifter, Mafia, Billionaire, BBW, Alpha) (Werewolf Weredragon Paranormal Fantasy Romance Collection) Page 123