Just then the service concluded and Mya cut through the mass of people, trying to get to the place where she’d seen David.
He wasn’t there. She searched the faces in the crowd, but he was gone. Maybe he had never been there and it was just wishful thinking. Although it had been Mya to say goodbye, she could always hope that he would come after her - that he wouldn’t let her leave.
Mya’s thoughts were interrupted when Jen gently grabbed her arm and led her toward her car. “We should get to the church before everyone shows up for the wake,” Jen advised. Her friend had shown up two days after going missing. She’d offered no explanation, and Mya hadn’t pressed her. Truthfully, she had been too engrossed in her grief to wonder who Jen had spent a couple of nights with, and Mya was certain that’s where she’d been.
Getting through the next couple hours would be the most difficult. After that she could put Arizona behind her and try to forget that in some places, monsters are real. It may be the coward’s way out, but Mya didn’t care. She wanted to find some place where she could hide from her pain. There would be time enough later to tear down the skinwalkers. As long as she wasn’t here, their plan would fail.
* * *
It was late afternoon by the time they returned from the funeral. All Mya could think about was retreating to her room where she could shut out the world. The shock of her parents’ deaths was starting to wear off - leaving behind a gut wrenching grief.
Donny had some business to take care of at the station, but had been reluctant to let her go home. He only agreed to let her go because Mya had insisted, and Jen had promised to look after her.
They had no more got in the door when Mya’s phone rang.
Grabbing the phone from her purse, she saw it was Donny calling. That was unusual; she’d just spoken with him no more than a half hour before.
“Hello.”
“Mya, are you alone,” he asked, sounding almost breathless.
Mya glanced up at Jen, who was putting some bottled water in the fridge. “No … why?”
“Don’t let her know that you are talking to me,” he put in quickly.
“Okay, but why?” Mya was a little unnerved. Something really had Donny shaken up.
“Just listen to me. Walk outside and get in your car … but don’t let her guess what you are doing. Do it now!” he told her in a low voice.
Mya was startled when Jen snatched the phone from her and pushed the end button. “Now you wouldn’t be thinking of going anywhere tonight, would you?” Jen’s smile was cold - almost inhuman.
Mya instinctively backed away. “What the hell’s wrong with you? Why did you do that?”
“Oh don’t worry Mya. I can tell you exactly what he was getting ready say.” Jen took a step in Mya’s direction.
“What’s that?”
“That the skinned body they found was me,” she said with a bright smile. “I’ve been wearing your friend’s skin since I found her hitchhiking on her way here.”
Mya swallowed back her fear. There were only two explanations, either Jen had lost her mind or the thing inside of her was telling the truth. With the way Donny had been on the phone, Mya opted for the skinwalker version.
“What do you want with me?” Mya spit out her words. She would not let this thing sense the terror that was building up inside of her.
“Oh no big deal. We just want you dead. At first we wanted you to seduce David Bray, but that didn’t work out so well. Now we’ll just use your death to get him to do what we want.”
Mya shook her head. “You are wasting your time. He won’t walk away from his duty, if that’s what you are hoping.”
“Well I think he will. I think that he is going to be so angry about what happens to you, he’ll come after us himself … even if that means screwing over the people. And when he does … we’ll have him.” The skinwalker took another couple of steps toward her. Now it was only a few feet away and it was blocking her from the door. “Hmm … I wonder if you’ll scream like your parents did.”
A tortured screech fled Mya’s lips and she grabbed up a lamp, flinging it at the Jen thing. It didn’t do any damage, but it did distract it long enough that Mya was able to make a run for the door. She managed to get out the door and down the stairs before she heard the glass of the storm door shatter behind her. It had come after her, not even bothering to open the door.
Mya ran until her lungs were burning, and still she kept running. If she stopped to catch her breath, even fore a few seconds, that thing would be all over her. Suddenly the skinwalker was in front of her, and she was set to run headlong into it. Mya shifted directions so quickly that her feet slid in the dirt, causing her to fall onto her knees and roll.
Then there was a blur of fur and teeth. The wolf pounced on the skinwalker, bringing it to the ground. Mya tried to block out the sound of the animal’s vicious growls as it ripped at the skinwalker’s throat. She had to remember that though the thing looked like Jen, it wasn’t.
There was an explosion of black like smoke, and Jen’s skin became flat, like a deflated balloon.
The wolf sat back on its haunches, staring at what was left of her best friend. Mya got to her knees and crawled over to the wolf. “David … is that you?”
The wolf turned silver eyes in her direction and she knew it was him. Relieved, she wrapped her arm around the animal and buried her face in his fur. “Thank you,” she whispered.
He slid a tongue across her face before sprinting away and disappearing into the brush. Mya stared after him. Her heart was heavy, but now there was just a touch of joy to take the edge off. David had been watching over her the whole time. Maybe he really did care.
* * *
Mya sat on the stairs of her trailer, trying to absorb some of the sun’s warmth. In spite of the fact that it was summer, she could not seem to get warm. Possibly it was all in her head? In this place of warmth and beauty, a chilly darkness had descended on her life and now it was manifesting itself physically by stealing the warmth from her body.
Her departure had been delayed by a few days. Jen’s parents had asked her to stick around and help them make arrangements to have her friend’s body flown back. The funeral was scheduled for tomorrow, but there was no way that Mya would make it back to Wyoming by then. At least she’d been here to help Jen’s parents.
A single tear crept down her cheek. In the last few weeks, nearly everyone she cared about had been taken from her. The only one left was Donny, and there was no telling how long he would be safe if she stayed in Arizona.
A gust of wind whipped at her hair, sending it flying in all directions. The beauty of the brilliant desert sunset was lost on her - all she could see before her was the shadow of loneliness. Though Mya had stayed longer than what she’d intended, David still hadn’t come to her.
The wolf had saved her, but she hadn’t seen any sign of him since. Only a short time after the animal disappeared, Donny rushed onto the scene. He’d rushed all the way from town, hoping to reach her in time. If it hadn’t been for the wolf, she’d have been dead by the time he arrived.
Mya learned that Donny’s business that day involved a report from the state police. They had matched the skinned victim’s dental records with a missing person from Wyoming. That missing person had been Jen.
In the days that followed, Mya had found out that Jen’s parents had attempted to contact her several times, but had always received her voice mail. The skinwalker had blocked out their number. It was their call to the police that tipped Donny off. That’s when he decided to compare the victim with Jen’s records.
If Jen was a skinwalker, he didn’t want to tip her off, so he’d waited to say anything until the report came back. Unfortunately, by the time he’d figured out that Mya was their next target it was too late. Mya had already been on her way out of town with Jen.
Mya spent the day packing up the car and now there was nothing left to do but get in and drive, but she hesitated. She told herself that
it wouldn’t be a good idea to try and drive through the night, but the truth was she was holding onto a tiny seed of hope that David would come.
The day wore on and still he didn’t come.
The pain and loss she was feeling was almost unbearable. It was as if someone were reaching inside and squeezing her heart until it was a messy pulp. Taking a deep breath, Mya got to her feet. It was time to lock up and get on the road. If she got too tired she could always pull off somewhere and get some sleep.
Her eyes scanned the horizon once more. The rugged cliffs to the east framed a ghost moon that was slowly climbing into the darkening sky. Against the backdrop of that moon she saw him.
He stood at the edge of the cliffs watching her while the wind played havoc with his long black hair. Mya caught her breath, spellbound by the sight of him - so feral - so male. It was not until that instant that Mya truly accepted that he was something more than a man. To accept this, she must also accept that he was beyond her reach - untouchable to a woman not of his own kind.
But Mya had always been stubborn and not so quick to submit to defeat.
Taking a few steps away from the porch, she waved her hands and called out to him. “David!”
He was some distance away, but she could always hope that the wind would carry her voice to him.
A moment later he stepped back and Mya lost sight of him. He was gone.
The sigh that escaped her lips turned to a sob. She stared at the mesa for a long time, but he didn’t reappear. Fighting back tears, she turned to go inside but was stopped in her tracks. David stood near her, a playful smile tugged at his lips.
Why wasn’t she surprised that he had been able to make it down from the cliff so quickly?
“Well you’re looking a little forlorn,” he commented, a trace of laughter in his voice.
Seeing him was like seeing a ray of sunshine after months of being plagued by darkness. Mya flew into his arms, abandoning herself to the warmth and contentment that she felt when he held her close.
Her throat was so tight that it was almost impossible to take in air. “I thought I would never see you again,” Mya said, in-between tiny gasps.
David stepped back, and with his fingers he gently lifted her chin so that she was looking into his eyes. “Mya … I love you,” he whispered. “Maybe it is because I’ve been witched, but I don’t think so. I think it’s real.”
“I love you,” Mya nearly choked on her words.
Getting on her tiptoes, she covered his mouth with hers. His kiss was long and deep, conveying so much longing that it left her trembling - wanting more.
Breaking the kiss, David held her head against his chest. Mya found comfort in the sound of his rapidly beating heart and the feeling of his chest rising and falling as he breathed.
“Mya … you still have to go.”
The ground seemed to give way beneath her feet. Those were the last words she’d expected to hear.
Abruptly she pulled away and stared up at him, her eyes wide with disbelief. “Why?”
He swallowed hard, but did not look away. “I can’t keep you safe right now. They will kill you to get to me.”
“I will keep myself safe,” she declared, but even as she said the words she knew that she might not have the ability to live up to them. If it hadn’t been for David’s intervention, she would probably be dead already.
David shook his head sadly. “These things are monsters. They will stop at nothing to get what they want.”
“We’ll fight them together,” Mya’s words rang with the desperation that was filling her soul.
“We can’t … not right now. We have to remember that it’s not just us. A lot of people’s lives could be destroyed. But I promise you we will find a way,” he added, his eyes pleading with her for understanding.
Mya could no longer hold back the tears that streamed down her cheeks. “What about your place as guardian … your duty to mate with a Sinapu woman?”
David cupped her cheeks with both hands. “We’ll find a way around all of that. If what we feel is real, we can do this.” David lightly touched her lips with his.
“This isn’t goodbye Mya. If it is our destiny to be together … our paths will cross again,” he said.
Though she could feel her heart fracturing into small pieces, Mya knew he was right. It would be selfish of them to put so many people at risk. There had to be way to stop the skinwalkers and defy the ways of the Sinapu, without hurting others.
“I will wait for you,” Mya promised.
His only response was to pull her into his arms and hold her close.
Love would find a way to triumph. Mya had to believe this. It was the only way she could force herself to walk away from him.
* * *
From the shadows they watched as the two lovers clung desperately to each other - reluctant to part. Their plan had been perfect, and would have succeeded, but they had not expected David and Mya to find true love. Lust and obsession was one thing. It was so much easier to control and direct, but love - love meant a willingness to sacrifice. Both Mya and David meant to sacrifice what was in their hearts for the good of the other. They hadn’t counted on that and it had put a wrinkle in their plan.
Of course the next best option would be to kill Mya. That was where love would work in their favor. To lose her would bring the Sinapu alpha to his knees, which is exactly where they wanted him.
There was still time. Let the lovers enjoy their illusion of hope … for now.
The End
Look for the second book in the Skinwalkers Trilogy coming summer of 2012
About the Author
Lorraine Kennedy is the author of the Immortal Destiny and Realm of the Wolf Series, as well as several novellas and short stories. Ms. Kennedy was born and raised in Utah but has lived in several different states. She attended Weber State University, majoring in Criminal Justice and at one point studied Anthropology. Lorraine Kennedy and her family now make their home in Utah. You can get Lorraine Kennedy news by visiting her on the web at www.lorrainekennedy.com
Other Lorraine Kennedy Titles
Immortal Destiny Series
Born to Darkness
Night Breed
Wolves and Black Roses
Tears of the Vampire
Realm of the Wolf Series
Wolf Dance
Moon Calling
Novellas
The Pirate’s Dark Revenge
Soul Eater
Song of the Annunaki
Phantom Rider
Short Stories
Tahitian Magic
Mabasa’s Fire
Indian Outlaw
Seducing the Wolf
Dreamscape Seduction
Bad Moon Rising - Paranormal Romance Page 18