The Shadow Chaser (The Sheynan Trilogy Book 1)

by Dylan Birtolo

  “What’s that?”

  Susan answered. “It’s a gun case. It must be for some type of rifle, because nothing else would need to be that long.” Darien and Erik both stared at her in surprise. She looked back and forth between the two. “What? I used to go hunting.”

  “I never knew that.” Darien had trouble picturing Susan holding a gun, much less a rifle, and using it to kill an animal.

  Susan shrugged. “My dad used to take me. I haven’t gone since he passed away. I didn’t really enjoy it, but it was a way to spend time together and he loved it so much.”

  They left the case where it was and closed the hatch. The three of them walked into the house carrying the papers. They kicked off their shoes as soon as they were inside. Darien tossed his jacket onto the coat rack near the door. They went to the kitchen, and Darien dropped the papers on the large dining table before heading to the refrigerator. Susan sat down next to Erik and they leafed through the papers. Darien pulled out half of a meatloaf and tossed it in the microwave. While it was reheating, he pulled out a salad and ate out of the bowl.

  Erik looked up from the papers. “Would you like something to eat?”

  Darien paused in his eating and looked away for a second before meeting Erik’s gaze. “Sorry, I just feel like I haven’t eaten for days. Do you mind?”

  “No. I’m used to it by now.” His tone had just enough of a resigned sigh to make Darien feel a twinge of guilt, but his hunger overpowered the emotion.

  Susan twisted so that she could look at Darien over her shoulder. “You know, I think this is related to your blackouts. Every time you’ve had one, you’ve been famished. It can’t be coincidence. What’s going on? Like how did you get to the park to begin with?”

  “Susan, trust me, if I knew, I’d tell you. That’s one of the things that I’m trying to figure out. You know this.”

  “Maybe you should go back to the hospital.”

  Darien shook his head. He knew that would accomplish nothing. Besides, according to what Richard told him this evening, his blackouts were a normal occurrence for people like them. He still didn’t know what that meant, and that lack of knowledge gnawed at the back of his brain like a detail you can never quite remember. It was like when you know you’ve seen someone somewhere, and their face was familiar, but no name or memory comes to mind.

  Erik saved him from having to respond to Susan’s suggestion. “Hey, guys, you might want to take a look at this.”

  Darien walked over, carrying the bowl so he could keep eating. He peered over Erik’s shoulder. Susan knelt in her chair and propped herself on her elbows so she could lean across the table. Erik ran his hands across a map, smoothing out the folds with an audible crinkle. The map had several black circles drawn on it. Looking at the locations, Darien noticed that they matched up to important locations in his life; his apartment, his office, and Susan’s apartment were the first three locations he identified.

  “Looks like Richard’s tracking you,” Erik commented.

  That didn’t surprise Darien. Maybe he was getting used to the idea of people following his every move. Even though he expected it, his skin crawled when he saw the evidence lain out in front of him.

  They all jumped as the doorbell echoed through the house. They froze until it chimed a second time. Erik got up and walked towards the main hall, gesturing for Susan and Darien to stay where they were. Darien walked to the edge of the doorway and peered through the crack. He felt Susan come up behind him and press her body against his as they both strained to hear. From this vantage point, Darien had a limited view of the front door at a sharp angle.

  Erik looked through the peephole and then opened the door. A police officer stood in the entryway. Darien immediately tensed and Susan reached up to lay a hand on his shoulder. It helped to feel her reassurance, but he still felt knotted. He had trouble hearing the voices, so he turned his head and closed his eyes, focusing on the sound.

  “Have you seen or heard from Darien Yost this evening? Your roommate? What about Susan Price? We have reason to believe one or both of them may have been in contact.”

  “What is this about, officer?”

  “I’m not at liberty to divulge details, but we believe Darien’s life could be in danger and we want to offer him our protection. The last report we have is that he was with Miss Price at her apartment before they separated. That is her car in the driveway, isn’t it?”

  “It is, but she’s resting right now and I don’t see any reason to disturb her. She was quite distressed.”

  “What about Darien?”

  “I haven’t seen him since I came out here for the week. Now if there’s nothing else, officer, it’s getting late. As I said, Susan was quite stressed out when she arrived and I’m feeling the need to retire myself. I’m sure you understand.”

  “Of course.”

  “If I hear from him, I’ll let you know.”

  The officer gave a quick thanks and then left. The sound of the front door sliding and latching shut brought an instant feeling of relief to Darien.

  “Thanks, roomie. I owe you one.”

  Erik brushed aside the thanks. “Did you hear what he said, Darien? Someone could be trying to kill you. What if it’s Richard?”

  “What? Where’d you come up with that?”

  Erik’s voice took on an edge but didn’t increase in volume. “Think about it, Darien. Someone is trying to kill you. Someone you’ve never met before shows up and offers to drive you somewhere. His plan fails only because somebody else shows up. He tries to get you away from people who claim they are trying to rescue you. You wind up with his truck and discover that this man has been tracking you for a while. On top of that, he has a rifle. How much more evidence do you need?”

  Darien shook his head. “Why didn’t he kill me when he had the chance? He was sitting there on the bench when I was passed out in the woods.”

  “Maybe he had something twisted in mind, I don’t know.”

  Darien looked at Susan to see what she thought. She shrugged. “I don’t know either, but it’s possible. There’s too many blanks in his story. If you ask me, it doesn’t sound like you can trust Richard any more than you can trust Alyssa.”

  Darien ran both his hands through his hair and paced back and forth. He laced his fingers together at the back of his neck and groaned as he tilted his head back. He closed his eyes. “This is just too insane and too much to deal with right now. What I really need, more than anything, is rest.”

  As if on cue, Erik failed to stifle a yawn. “That, I agree with a hundred percent. I don’t know about you two, but I have to head into work in the morning. There’s plenty of rooms, so just help yourself.”

  “Thanks. I really appreciate it.”

  “Of course.”

  After he left, Susan turned to Darien. “You’re not going into work, are you?”

  He shook his head. “Right now I want to stay as far away from my normal routine as possible. I’ll send an email to my team saying I’m sick. Other than that, I’ll figure it out in the morning. Maybe I’ll head to Jay’s place. He telecommutes, so he’ll be home.”

  “If you want me to go with you, just ask. I have sick days I can use.”

  “Thanks.”

  The two of them said goodnight and headed to their respective bedrooms. They left the papers on the table in a chaotic pile. He would deal with them tomorrow. Susan said she had put his suitcase in the last bedroom on the second floor, so he dragged himself to that room. His feet scuffed against the plush carpet as he made his way down the hall. As he opened the door, his skin prickled and it felt like his room was a few degrees cooler than the hall.

  Darien stepped inside and closed the door behind him. It was dark, the only light coming from a single window on the opposite wall. He reached for the light switch and flicked it on, but nothing happened. He turned it off and on a few times, but the result was the same. As he turned to leave the room, he felt rather than saw something in f
ront of him. He heard a fierce, low growl. Two yellow orbs with vertical slits appeared in the darkness even with his waist. Darien fell back on his ass and crab walked away from the hulking mass.

  The mass itself was darker than the shadows surrounding him and he could see it stalking forward. It had four powerful legs and moved with a grace that was hypnotic to watch. It made no noise as each foot pressed against the floor. The occasional flash of white appeared in the darkness when the creature growled. As it stepped into the light from the window, Darien saw the shoulders ripple with each powerful step. A long black snake of a tail swished back and forth behind its long body.

  Darien felt his back press against a wall as the panther continued to glide forward. When it was a few inches from his face, it leaned forward and almost touched his nose. It sniffed once and hissed, hot breath washing all over Darien’s cheek. The stench of raw meat washed over him. Darien clenched his jaw and pushed himself against the wall as hard as he could.

  “Sasha,” a voice like wind whispered through the air. Darien wasn’t sure if his ears were deceiving him or not. The panther froze, and then backed down until it was a few feet away. It sat still, its yellow eyes glaring at Darien without blinking.

  “Hello?” Darien tentatively called out, looking around, trying to keep one eye on the predator in front of him.

  “Shhhh.” The whisper came from the bed. “Sasha doesn’t like loud noises.”

  “Who are you?”

  The soft voice was hard to identify, but it was feminine. “Sasha’s friend.”

  “That’s helpful,” Darien muttered.

  Sasha leaped forward and her paws landed on either side of Darien. Her mouth ducked low and opened wide just near Darien’s throat. He felt the moisture and heat in her breath against the skin of his neck. He began to sweat and only managed not to shiver by sheer force of will.

  “Sasha doesn’t like disrespect either.”

  “I think I get the point.”

  Sasha retreated and went back to her resting position. Her tail flicked back and forth, dancing across the floor as she watched Darien. He heard a faint growl continue to roll from her body.

  “I think you’re right Sasha. He’s too young.”

  “What are you talking about?” Darien didn’t dare to raise his voice or look away from the panther.

  “Listen to me,” the voice became a steely whisper. “We were not here. Do you understand?”

  “Yes.”

  “I don’t think you do.” Sasha stood up and turned towards the window. A small human shadow rose from the bed and walked over to join the animal. It put one leg over the big cat’s body and grabbed onto the scruff of her neck with both hands. “If anyone finds out we were here, we’ll murder your friends, starting with the blond woman you seem fond of.

  “And don’t think you can hide from us. We are the shadows. We are everywhere.” With that, Sasha jumped out the window and cleared the railing. Darien scrambled to see where they went. He caught a glimpse of them rushing into the woods, but they still didn’t make a sound even after crossing the tree line.

  A couple of lights to his left caught his attention and Darien noticed two police cars in the street near the entrance to the driveway. The second vehicle turned off its lights after rolling to a stop, but the area was lit by the lamps at the end of Erik’s driveway. Three people stood there, two of them uniformed officers and one of them a man in a suit. They pointed at the house and made gestures that were difficult to make out at this distance.

  Darien jerked his head back and slammed the back of his skull against the bottom of the window. He dropped to the ground and touched the back of his head. At least he didn’t feel any blood.

  He had to get out of the house. Based on how the police handled everything in the past, he was betting they would storm Erik’s house as soon as they had reinforcements. The officers had the front entrance completely covered. That left the back entrance and a mad dash through the woods.

  His thoughts turned to Susan and Erik. Waking them would take too much time. Besides, the police only seemed interested in him. They would be fine once he left. He had put both of them, especially Susan, through so much already. They deserved a night of rest.

  His mind made up, Darien dashed from the room. He ran down the hall and turned the corner at the top of the stairs. He hopped up on the oak railing and slid down the large staircase, stumbling as he tried to regain his footing at the bottom. His footfalls echoed through the foyer as he thundered across the floor in a mad dash to maintain his balance, only succeeding when he was able to catch himself against the wall.

  Darien went to the front door and snagged his shoes and jacket before turning to the kitchen. He paused to slide his feet into his sneakers and shrug into his jacket. He checked his pockets. He had his wallet and keys, but not his phone. Erik’s phone sat on the counter, so he grabbed it. He couldn’t remember where he plugged his in to charge and didn’t have time to look. His nose picked up the odor of the cooked meatloaf still sitting in the microwave, and his stomach rumbled. Swerving around the counter, he took the entire loaf and began devouring it as he rushed to the sliding glass doors that led to the patio.

  The doors slid open and a strong rush of cold air blasted Darien in the face. He suppressed a shiver as he went out into the crisp night air and shut the door behind him. Small clouds of steam rolled from his mouth with each breath he exhaled. He put the half-eaten meatloaf in his mouth and took a pair of gloves out of his jacket pocket. While he was putting the gloves on, he heard the snap of twigs underneath a boot.

  The sound spurred Darien into motion. He dropped the food on the deck and ran to the porch railing. Planting his hand on it, he heaved his legs over the side and fell ten feet to the ground. Scrambling, he got to his feet and sprinted towards the woods. A bright light surrounded him as someone in the woods shined a high powered flashlight in his direction. He didn’t bother to look back. He ducked his head and leaned forward, his feet having trouble keeping up with the rest of his body.

  Several shouts came from behind him, but Darien couldn’t make out the words over his own panting. He heard a whistling sound and then a quick tear. Something tugged on his jacket sleeve, but he couldn’t think about that. He needed to get to the relative safety of the trees. Darien tried to make his legs move faster, each breath of air burning in his lungs. The dark forest was getting closer. Another whistling sound cut the air, followed by a soft thunk.

  Darien hurdled over a trunk lying on its side and dodged trees as he broke through the tree line. The brush scraped at his pants and felt like it was trying to trip him. A few times he stumbled and had to reach down for balance. It wasn’t long before he heard others crashing behind him in pursuit. His muscles began to tire and he felt like he was running uphill with no air to breathe. He wouldn’t be able to outrun them in a straight dash. Now that it was dark and he had some cover, Darien slowed his pace, trying to calm his breathing and sneak through the woods. He took a hard right turn, hoping to leave a less obvious trail.

  From the sounds behind him, he could tell that his pursuers also slowed. Lights danced through the trees, but they swept back and forth. A man cursed from somewhere close behind him. Darien hid in the center of a small cluster of trunks, straining to see something in the night. He saw a dark shape move past him. It was a person holding a handgun with a long thin barrel. The figure crept past Darien and continued further into the woods. Darien let out the breath he was holding.

  He looked down at his jacket and noticed a tear in the sleeve. He also saw something buried in the rubber heel of his sneakers. Darien reached down and pulled it out. It was a small dart. He tossed it into the dirt at his feet and continued looking for any of the men hunting him. He couldn’t see anything, and the only sound seemed to come from far away.

  Darien forced himself to wait. Every instinct told him to run as far and as fast as he could, but as long as they kept moving away he needed to stay still. If they were t
oo close when he moved, they’d come running back as soon as they heard him. He tried to count the seconds, but it only made the waiting feel longer. His limbs shook from the cold. He needed to move now, get his blood flowing again.

  He stepped through the woods in a path parallel to the tree line. Every few steps, he paused and listened, but the sounds of his pursuers continued to fade until all Darien could hear were crickets chirping. Darien had no idea how long he walked in a straight line. He also didn’t know if this was the right direction to be walking. The chase was so chaotic he didn’t know which way was out. There weren’t any lights from any of the houses that he could see. A straight line would eventually lead him out of the woods, so he continued walking forward.

  Up ahead he saw movement and froze. He strained his eyes, trying to make out shapes in the darkness. The shape was a stag, with a full set of antlers branching off its forehead. It was staring at Darien, its entire body taught as a guitar string. A smaller deer, a doe, curled up at his feet and rested there, motionless. The three figures stood like creatures in a painting as they watched each other.

  The stag snorted, and bent down to resume eating grass. Darien took a step forward, shortening his step to not appear too aggressive. Neither animal paid him any attention until he was only an arm’s length away. The doe opened her eyes and stood up. The stag reached over and nudged her. She sniffed once and then took a tentative step towards Darien. He held out his hands, palms up, and the doe smelled them. It was incredible. Darien reached out with one hand to pet her on the neck. She didn’t move away and continued to nuzzle his other palm.

  A strong breeze came through the trees and the leaves overhead whispered in the wind. Both deer brought their heads up. The doe turned away from Darien and bounded through the woods. The stag followed her. Darien watched them until they faded into the night. He turned around and saw a person wearing all black and a set of goggles only a few yards away. She was moving very quietly, but had her eyes and her gun focused on Darien.