Melange

by Kristy Tate

  “Not a ton,” she said. “Where is it?”

  Matias opened his fist and dumped a smattering of silvery bits into the pile of hamburger.

  Lizbet scooted next to it, and began to mix it with her bare hands.

  “That is disgusting,” Matias said, kneeling beside her. “All that meat—not to mention the silver—can’t be good for the dog.”

  “But if it can save your dad’s sheep, it’s worth it, right?”

  “Right.” His shoulder brushed hers. “But in my mind, there’s like a ninety-nine percent chance that the dog remains a dog and a hundred percent chance that the dog wolfs that down as soon as we turn our backs.”

  “He won’t do that,” Lizbet said.

  “You sound so sure.”

  “Look, he’s not even interested in it now.” She pushed the meat concoction to the back corner of the treehouse and told Tickles to sit and stay in the opposite corner.

  He obeyed, staring at her with his sweet big brown eyes.

  “It’s like he understands you,” Matias murmured.

  “Of course he understands me.”

  “Look.” Matias pointed at the moon rising in the east. “I wonder if we have to wait for midnight.”

  “Come on.” She tugged on his arm. “Let’s go.”

  He did his eyebrow thing again.

  She laughed at him. “Just to be safe.”

  He smirked and followed her down the makeshift ladder.

  “Be safe, Tickles!” Lizbet called.

  “Where to now?” Matias asked.

  Lizbet picked up a large maple leaf and used it to wipe off her hands. It helped, but they still felt sticky and gross from the fatty hamburger. She nodded at a neighboring tree.

  “Ladies first.” Matias swept an arm in front of her.

  Lizbet grabbed the closest branch and swung into the tree.

  “Can I share your tree, or should I get my own?” Matias asked from the ground.

  “How can you make jokes at a time like this? Any second that poor little dog could transform into a monster!”

  “Hey! I’m just looking out for your reputation.” He put his hands on his hips. “This is the first time I’ve ever stayed the night with a girl in a tree, and I want to do it right.”

  She laughed. “Okay, I get that. Thanks for asking. I’ll share my tree.” She climbed up two more branches.

  “Does that mean?” He waggled his eyebrows as he followed her.

  “It means if you try anything I’m pushing you off.” She gripped a branch above her head while standing on another. “We’re here to watch the dog.”

  “Sounds boring.” He paused on a branch two below hers.

  His face was even with her belly button. It felt odd to be so much taller than him. “You’ll probably wish for a little boredom—”

  A howl interrupted her.

  “Oh, my,” Lizbet breathed, watching Tickles shiver in the moonlight. He grew until he burst through the treehouse’s wooden roof. Shards of wood flew through the air. Muscles rippled beneath his glossy coat, his eyes glowed, and his teeth, long and vicious, glistened. He was terrifyingly beautiful.

  “No frickin’ way,” Matias said. His foot slipped and he nearly fell.

  Tickles howled again.

  “The meat!” Lizbet cried. “Tickles, eat the meat!”

  He gazed at her with blazing eyes before shifting his attention to the pile of hamburger in the corner. He wolfed it down in a single bite. His long red tongue licked his chops. He panted, stared at them, and then lunged.

  Matias scrambled up the tree as the transformed Tickles flew at them. Lizbet, stunned, lost her grip and fell.

  Blackness engulfed her.

  Cherish youth, but trust old age. – Pueblo

  CHAPTER 15

  “I didn’t know what else to do,” Matias said.

  “You were right to bring her here,” Mawmaw said, peering into Lizbet’s face. “How are you feeling, child?”

  Lizbet huddled into the sofa and held the icepack against her aching head. “I’ll be okay,” she said, although she seriously doubted it.

  “What happened?” Mawmaw asked.

  “You will never believe me,” Matias said. “I saw it with my own eyes and I can still hardly believe it.” He told her about Tickles’ transformation and eventual disappearance.

  “Did you warn your father to protect the sheep?”

  Matias slapped his forehead. “Of course! I have to do that! I was so worried about you, I couldn’t think straight.”

  “Tell your father now,” Mawmaw said.

  Matias dug his phone from his pocket and went to stand on the front porch to make the call.

  Mawmaw leaned toward Lizbet and lowered her voice. “I’m going to tell you a secret. It’s a very powerful secret. If you want to catch your werewolf—really, if you want to do anything—you must see it. But first, you must ask yourself how this is to be done and then you sleep. In your dreams, the answers will come. After they do, you must give thanks to the Great Spirit who sent them, and follow the instructions you receive with pure intention and perfect obedience—even if the answer doesn’t make sense. Most people cannot do this. They lack the faith to press forward, but that is how it is done. You must step into the night believing in the answers that will come.”

  Matias came back into the room and pocketed his phone.

  Lizbet wondered what he had told his dad.

  Mawmaw stood. “Let me get you something to drink. It will help you sleep.” She winked at Lizbet. “Ready, child?”

  THE NEXT DAY AT NOON, Declan stood on Elizabeth’s front porch, his hands shoved into his pockets.

  “She’s not here,” Daugherty told him. “She spent the night at Maria’s grandmother’s house.”

  Declan swallowed a groan.

  “I know what you’re thinking,” Daugherty said, “but Maria called me. She said Lizbet wasn’t feeling well.” She cocked her head, considering him. “Their family is terribly old-fashioned. I know there wouldn’t be any hanky-panky at their grandparents’ house.”

  Declan thought about the backpack and wondered if Daugherty was certain that Lizbet had stayed at the grandmother’s. Or had she been camping in the woods? He pushed his hand through his hair. Yesterday she’s said they should be friends. Maybe he needed to accept that. He started to turn away.

  “Huh, Declan?”

  He turned back, but kept his eyes averted so Daugherty couldn’t see his unshed tears.

  “Don’t give up on her,” Daugherty said. “She’s had a strange life and it’s all my fault.”

  He nodded and made his way back to the Mercedes. Inside the car and out of sight from the house, he slammed his palms against the steering wheel and cried.

  WHEN LIZBET WOKE, THE sun hung at the top of the sky. She bolted from the sofa, knocking the quilt to the floor and startling the gray-eyed cat lying near where her feet had been seconds ago.

  “What time is it?” she demanded.

  The cat stretched his paws in front of him and uncurled from the sofa. “Afternoon, I believe,” he said.

  “Augh!” Lizbet groaned and ran to the front window. Matias’s bike still leaned against the fencing surrounding the yard. “I have to get home! Where’s Matias?”

  “How would I know?” the cat asked. He twirled three times before sinking back onto the sofa and nestling his head onto his paws.

  “Ah, there you are.” Mawmaw walked into the room carrying a tray laden with breakfast rolls, grapes, and a croft of wine. “I’ve been waiting for you. Hungry?”

  Her stomach growled in response.

  Mawmaw chuckled. “There’s my answer.”

  “But I don’t have time. I need to get home. I’m meeting someone at noon.”

  Mawmaw raised her eyebrow and placed the tray on the coffee table. “Noon has come and gone.”

  Lizbet sank back onto the sofa and wrung her hands. “I need to go,” she said in a half-whisper.

  “Did
you find your answers in your dreams?” Mawmaw poured herself a glass of wine and settled into the chair in front of Lizbet.

  “I did...”

  “And now you know what you need to do.”

  Lizbet nodded. She didn’t know if her plan could work—mostly because it wasn’t all up to her. She couldn’t do it alone. She’d need help. Lots of help. And she’d have to have everything in place before tonight—the last night of August’s full moon, or otherwise she’d have to wait for September. It was possible the wolves wouldn’t hang around that long. In a month’s time, they could easily move on and terrorize farms in other communities. She needed to act now. She bounced back to her feet. “Could you find Matias and tell him I need to get home? I really appreciate all of your wisdom and advice, but now that I know what to do, I need to make it happen.”

  Mawmaw stood, wrapped her arms around Lizbet, and drew her in for a brief, tight hug. After she’d pulled away, Mawmaw fished inside her apron pocket, pulled out something and pressed it into Lizbet’s hand.

  The cold and shiny silver bullet glistened in the sunlight streaming through the window. Mawmaw curled her fingers around Lizbet’s open palm.

  AS SOON AS MATIAS DROPPED her off at the ranch, Lizbet bolted across the lawn, but she stopped short when she spotted Tickles sitting on the front porch. Memories of the previous night flashed through her mind and her head began to ache again. She shuffled her feet, no longer sure what to say or do.

  “Tickles,” she said. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’ve come to thank you,” he said.

  “For what?”

  “For curing me, of course.”

  “But...you’re not cured. I hate to have to tell you this, but I saw you change last night.”

  He dipped his head in acknowledgement. “I probably did, but it couldn’t have lasted very long. All the other nights I have no memories of the entire night. Last night...well, I was myself hours before the sun came up.” He met her gaze. “It was a very long night.”

  “But Matias said they lost two more sheep.”

  Tickles rubbed his eyes with his paw. “It wasn’t me.”

  She wasn’t quite sure whether to believe him, but relief swept through her. She’d been mentally trying to prepare herself to shoot the dog, but she hadn’t been quite sure if she’d be able to go through with it. She ruffled the fur between his ears. “Good. I’m glad it’s not you.” She squatted before him. “Would you like to help me capture a wolf?”

  He nodded.

  “Good. I want you to tell all the animals to meet me in the back pasture at eight p.m. This has to be a concerted effort.”

  After dinner, Lizbet set about filling the backpack with the rifle, a tarp, and the pair of night-vision goggles she’d picked up at the sporting goods store. Once she’s doused herself and her clothes in baking soda, she picked up her things and headed for the pasture.

  DECLAN SPENT THE DAY telling himself that Lizbet wasn’t right for him. They were too different. She was too quirky. He didn’t have time for a girlfriend. Four years for undergrad, four years for medical school, four years of residency...that was twelve years. He had twelve years to find a normal girlfriend.

  But he didn’t want a normal girlfriend. He wanted Lizbet.

  Gloria sat at the kitchen table. Not only had she lost weight since the accident—she joked about not being able to feed herself—but she wore her hair and makeup differently. She looked younger, healthier, and surprisingly happier in spite of her useless hand resting in a sling. She looked up from her crossword puzzle as he grabbed the keys off the hook on the wall. “Where you going?”

  He swallowed, not knowing if he wanted his mom to stop him or not. “Lizbet’s.”

  Gloria smiled and refocused on her crossword puzzle. “Good.”

  “Good? I thought you didn’t like her.”

  She looked surprised. “I never said that.”

  “But you said...”

  “I said a lot of stupid things. I thought the timing was off...and it is, but you’ve been moping around here for weeks like a dog that’s lost his prized bone and I’m tired of it. If you love her, you should tell her so.”

  Declan took a step and pressed his back against the wall. “I’m too young.”

  “Yep,” Gloria said with a smile. She scrawled a few clumsy letters on her crossword puzzle. “Like I said, the timing is off, but what are you going to do?”

  “I could stay away from her.”

  Gloria tapped the eraser end of her pencil on the table. “That’s not really working.”

  Declan lifted his chin. “It could work.”

  “Hmm...maybe if you were going to Duke, but even then I think you’d be miserable. You were much better with her than you’ve been without her.”

  Declan bit his lip and looked out the window. “What if she doesn’t feel the same? What if she’s better off without me?”

  “She should at least be given the choice, don’t you think?” Gloria waved her pencil at him. “Get out of here. Don’t talk yourself out of it. If you let her go without saying something, you’ll be moping around here for the rest of your life.”

  Declan didn’t move.

  Gloria narrowed her eyes and lowered her voice. “Don’t you make me throw you out!”

  Declan laughed. “You can’t.”

  “Don’t try me,” she growled. “Man-up! Tell her how you feel!”

  DECLAN FOUND LIZBET dragging a tarp across the yard. She wore cut-off jeans, a bikini top, and a pair of red plastic flip-flops. She had a strange pair of goggles on her head and a rifle strapped to her back.

  She froze when she saw him, and an expression he couldn’t read flashed across her face. When she didn’t point the gun at him, he took that as a good sign and climbed from the car.

  “Hey,” he said. “There’s something I have to tell you.”

  She glanced at the sun as if trying to read it. “I’m the one who needs to tell you something.”

  “Okay, you first.”

  “I’m sorry I stood you up.”

  He dipped his head. “I’m sorry, too.”

  “For what?”

  “For ruining things between us.” He closed the gap between them. “I’m miserable without you.”

  A smile flitted across her face. “I’m miserable without you, too.” She picked up his hands and drew them to her lips. “I love you, but can we talk about this tomorrow?”

  He rocked back on his feet. “No. I have to talk about this now.”

  “Now?” Her voice squeaked. “I can’t talk right now.”

  “Why not? What are you doing?”

  “I can’t tell you.”

  A large crow flew overhead, squawking.

  Lizbet frowned at it before turning back to him. She threw her arms around him, went to her tiptoes, and planted a kiss on his chin. “Tomorrow,” she promised before turning away, picking up her tarp, and striding across the driveway, ducking under the fence, and striding through the pasture.

  Declan watched her, frowning. What had just happened? This was not how it was supposed to go. She’d told him she loved him, but then she’d left. Why? Was she planning on staying the night—again—with Matias? She wouldn’t do that, would she? She couldn’t think he’d be okay with that, right?

  He battled indecision for a moment, then he marched after her. He caught up to her at the edge of the woods. She’d lost the tarp somewhere. He was just about to speak up, when he noticed a fox sitting directly opposite her. It didn’t even flinch when she knelt beside him. Rustling in the woods drew his attention. He jumped behind a tree when he spotted a bear. He started to call out to warn Lizbet, but stopped when she began to speak.

  “I’m so honored that you would join us,” she said to the bear.

  The creature as huge as a refrigerator ambled toward her and roared.

  Declan sucked in a deep breath and his knees buckled. To his amazement, Lizbet just smiled and looked pleased.

&
nbsp; “Your help means a lot,” she said. “Let’s wait a few minutes for the others to join us.”

  Declan leaned against the tree with weak knees. Who were the others? Was she expecting opossum? Maybe a deer or two? Seconds after the thought crossed his mind, a herd of deer appeared, and raccoons gathered in the trees, sharing space with squirrels, opossum, and chipmunks. A flock of crows gathered overhead and cows and horses trampled across the pasture. The creatures assembled around Lizbet.

  Lizbet addressed the crowd. “I really appreciate your willingness to put aside your animosity to fight our common enemy. As you know, a pack of wolves has been terrorizing our community. There have even been some deaths.”

  Chattering, growling, and murmuring rippled through the crowd.

  “It needs to stop,” Lizbet said. “And I believe it can. But only if we all work together.”

  A crow fluttered to perch on Lizbet’s shoulder. It whispered in her ear and she stopped and slowly turned in Declan’s direction. He thought about hiding, but realized he could never do so from the birds.

  “What are you doing here, Declan?” she asked, her voice hard.

  He stepped out from behind the tree, amazed to find he was almost as scared of Lizbet as he was of the bear. “What—“ His voice cracked. He cleared his throat and tried again. “What are you doing?”

  She twisted her lips together and scowled at him. He could tell she was battling between the truth and a lie. Finally, she said, “I’m going to catch a werewolf.”

  Regard heaven as your father, earth as your mother and all things as your brothers and sisters. Tribe Unknown

  CHAPTER 16

  “You need to go,” she said. “This is going to be dangerous.”

  “I’m staying.” He puffed out his chest like a rooster preparing for battle, which almost made her smile. It would have if the situation wasn’t so dire.

  “I’m serious, you have to leave.” Lizbet put her hand on his chest to keep him away.