by Meg Ripley
“And you still don’t know where the building is?” Natalie asked after she finished speaking.
Susanna shook her head. “No. I just see the single building’s wall, then the fire climbing the face of it. Then I hear us screaming—all of us. I can separate the voices as I hear them; they’re so loud and sharp.”
Natalie shivered, her eyes wide and troubled. “So, on top of everything else, you keep seeing your own death? And the demise of our pride?”
“In a vision,” Susanna said, sounding nervous. Thomas took one of her hands from his spot on the couch beside her and gave it a squeeze, sending her a little of his metaphysical energy to help her stay steady. “It has the same feel as all the others, the same perspective, the same…tint.”
“Tint?” asked someone from the edge of the room.
Susanna’s face turned pensive as she tried to find the right words. “Yeah, like…a filter. Everything just has an edge of malice. As if there’s a bad spirit causing all of this.”
“You’re saying we’re haunted?” came a woman’s voice near the back. A woman with short, curly blonde hair elbowed her way to the front so she could lock her gaze with Susanna’s, and her brown eyes were teeming with fear. She turned to Natalie. “This land isn’t on an Indian burial ground or something, is it? Would you be able to tell?”
“Um…no,” Natalie said slowly. “Not all Native Americans get tingles when we’re standing over the bones of our ancestors, Leslie. I think you should calm down.” She fixed the lioness with a glare, and Leslie sank back into the crowd. Natalie’s face was contemplative, and there was a low murmur coursing around the room as everyone whispered amongst themselves. Thomas felt his heartbeat speed up, and he couldn’t quite discern why; then their matriarch took a breath, and the noise dropped away.
“Thank you for bringing this to my attention,” Natalie said to Susanna. “This is invaluable information. I think for now, though, since we don’t know where these visions are coming from—or even if this one will come true—we should just wait to see if more information makes itself known in your flashes.”
Heads around the room were nodding, but Thomas noticed the hardness underneath his mate’s tone as she spoke. “If it comes true?”
Natalie gasped, and she looked genuinely remorseful. “I didn’t mean to imply that it wouldn’t, only that we don’t know for sure. All of your other visions came true within days or even hours, and this one has been happening for three weeks now—long after we eliminated our last threat.”
Thomas felt anger stir in his chest, and he heard himself speak before he realized he had chosen to voice his question. “So, what are you saying?” He fought to keep the disappointment from his voice, and Susanna’s face was impressively stoic, but Natalie hadn’t reacted in the way either of them had hoped.
She shifted in her seat, looking uncomfortable. “Susanna, you’ve been through a lot, and you’re still getting a hold on your powers, just like everyone else. I think your anxiety is a factor in how you’ve been dealing with this, and I think it’s making you believe we’re in danger, when the danger has already passed.”
“How do we know it’s passed?” Ariel asked fretfully, and Evan squeezed her shoulder in a soothing gesture. “How do we know we’re not going to be targeted again? What’s stopping them?”
Natalie looked annoyed, even angry, but her features smoothed out so quickly that Thomas wasn’t sure he’d really seen it. “We know, because the council is coming for a visit, and nobody would dare make a move with the council on our soil.”
The silence that fell over the room was so thick that it seemed deafening. Then the room exploded with noise, and Charlie stood and held up a hand for silence. It took longer than when Natalie called for order, but this was big news: whenever the council visited to investigate a matter, all the other shifter communities were informed, and word would make its way to the underground as well. In simple terms, news of the authority’s arrival would be flooding all corners of any world having anything remotely in common with the lion shifters. This meant everyone would be on their best behavior until they left.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Thomas asked, feeling dread knot in his stomach. “Council visits always have advanced word.” We have no time to prepare a proper welcome, he thought wildly. Then he saw Susanna’s expression—confused and cautious—and felt the knot of dread tighten.
“Calm down,” Natalie ordered. “I didn’t tell anyone because I’m taking care of it. We’re going to be preparing a small welcome for the single representative that’s coming by. It’s not even an official investigation; they just heard we might need to be rebuilding human structures, and wanted to pop in to make sure there were no violations.”
“When did you hear this?” Evan asked, and Thomas realized he hadn’t been told, either.
Natalie looked embarrassed. “Three weeks ago, a week after we got rid of our bad guys. But like I said, Charlie and I are taking care of the fanfare. I really don’t want you guys to worry about this. We need to be focusing on moving toward unlocking our powers.”
Thomas looked around and saw that most of the pride had calmed at her words, but Susanna hadn’t. Her lips were pressed tightly together, but they were pushed upward in a tense smile.
“Does that make sense?” Natalie asked her, and her voice was as anxious as her expression. “If the visions change or become more vivid, we’ll talk about it again. But for now, what’s best for you is rest and relaxation.”
“Right,” Susanna said brightly, but the word was as empty as a light bulb. Natalie’s smile faltered, but she seemed to realize she shouldn’t push the issue. She held out one palm toward the other lioness, and after a tense moment, Susanna pressed her cheek to her matriarch’s skin.
“Thank you, Susanna,” she said as she stood. “It means a lot to me that you trust me on this.”
As she walked away, Susanna stared daggers at her back and sat motionless while everyone else filtered out. They were talking and joking as though nothing out of sorts had just happened. Thomas waited for the room to clear before turning to speak to her.
“What do you want to do?” he asked.
Susanna was shaking her head. “What can we do?” she asked, her voice miserable. “She shut me down. We’re just going to have to sit here and wait.”
“While someone comes to burn us?” Thomas’ voice was more fearful than he meant to show, and Susanna looked up, startled at his tone. “We have to do something,” he said fiercely. “We have to save our pride. “
“How?” Susanna asked, her voice taking on a hysterical edge. “How? And who’s going to help us?”
“I will,” came a voice behind them. They turned to see Leslie standing in the doorway, wearing a bashful expression. Apparently, she’d come back after everyone cleared out. Thomas was disturbed by how quietly she’d come back in.
“Remember the accident in front of my house?” she asked. “Those cars that crashed…one of them was trying to hit me, but I moved too fast for him, and I could never prove it. But I always felt like something was off about that day, and about the other incidents.” She paused, and took a deep breath. “I also noticed the scent of a human around each scene I came across. The same human.”
Susanna let out a noise of fright. “Why didn’t you say anything? Why did you wait?”
“The same reason you waited,” Leslie said, as though it were obvious. “I didn’t think anyone would believe me, but now I have more reason to believe that something odd is going on.”
She hurried over to the couch and sat in the spot Natalie had just vacated. “If this is a human doing these things, it must be happening for a reason,” she continued.
“Whoa!” Thomas said suddenly. “You really think a human is doing this? Targeting us, making problems…trying to kill us?”
“What else could explain finding the same scent at each scene?” Leslie countered.
Thomas fell silent, because he really couldn’t t
hink of anything else. Their noses were incredibly sensitive, so he had to trust that she knew an individual scent signature when she smelled one.
“Plus,” Susanna said slowly, “Why would the council reopen the investigation? I don’t buy that it’s just because they’re worried about the humans. Have you ever known them to reopen a closed case that took them less than a day to pass a verdict on? Or less than a week, even?”
Thomas thought over her words, turning them around in his mind as Susanna started to warm up to her own words.
“Maybe they’re coming because they don’t think the attacks are over either,” she pressed. “Maybe they see the pattern of attacks that the crazy lioness left, and they’re finally going to address it.” She turned her eyes to Thomas, but he was shaking his head, the dread in his stomach still growing weightier by the second.
“What is it?” she asked tersely.
He paused, unsure if he should voice his thoughts, but both women were looking at him with such intensity that he couldn’t avoid speaking any longer. “I don’t think the council is coming at all.”
The women spoke in unison. “What?”
“Hear me out,” he said, removing his glasses as he began. “Why else hadn’t we heard about it? We all have shifter friends in other places, and if there really was a visit, we would have heard about it. Everyone knows what a big deal a council visit is.” He paused for effect. “Everyone.”
Susanna’s eyes widened in understanding, but Leslie looked lost. “What? What are you saying?”
“A council visit is such a big deal that it would pull our matriarch’s attention away from real emergencies,” Susanna whispered as settled over her features. “And everyone would know that. Even humans.”
Leslie’s expression slowly morphed into one of quiet horror. “A human faked a council letter? How? Why? They’d need the seal, our official mailing address…” she gasped and slapped one hand over her mouth. “They’ve been trying to scare us, and then kill us when scaring us didn’t work. Even that tree, it was on the other side of Natalie’s house.”
“It fell the wrong way,” Thomas realized. “And they tried to hit you when they realized you were catching their scent.” He turned to Susanna, his heart thundering in his chest. “We need to figure out where they’re trying to burn us. Does the wall have any markings? Any spots, cracks, weird paint?”
“No!” Susanna said, her voice almost a shout. “No, I don’t know anything yet. Just that we’re trapped, and—”
“What?” Leslie and Thomas asked together, leaning toward her on the couch.
“A field,” she said quietly. “I can see a field in the vision. Wide and green and flat, with a yellow house way in the distance.”
Then Thomas understood. “Our house.” They were somewhere beyond the stretch of grass beyond their backyard—somewhere near a farm, maybe even a barn. He wondered how much time they had before the vision came true, and a chill passed through him when he realized that this could be his last day on earth. He took Susanna’s hand in his and smiled.
“What do we do now?” he asked.
“Tell Natalie,” she said immediately. “Then go find that house.” Her vivid green eyes were resolute, grim with the determination to see this ordeal through. She was still a soldier, even if she no longer had a rank. I hope this doesn’t break you, he thought, then felt guilty for seeing her in the same way as the rest of the pride. I just can’t stand to see you unheard.
“What if she still doesn’t believe us?” Leslie asked, voicing Thomas’ concern without realizing it. “What if she still thinks the council is coming, and that we’re safe?”
Susanna turned to the other lioness, and the look in her eye was every bit as fierce as it had been during her days of active duty. “Then we go find the house anyway,” she said. “We still have to stop this bastard. I’m not letting him hurt my pride.”
****
Luckily, Natalie was much more receptive with three lions insisting she listen. After they’d ridden back home, Susanna called an emergency meeting of the two leaders of the pride so they could fill them in. Charlie was on board almost immediately; apparently, he’d wondered why he hadn’t heard about a council visit from friends or family either.
“That was an oversight,” Natalie admitted. “I should have known, and I apologize for that.”
She was properly remorseful for silencing Susanna, and Thomas was glad to see it. The five of them were gathered in their backyard as the sun made its slow downward trek, lighting up the space underneath it in brilliant yellow and red hues. Charlie, Thomas, and Leslie stood together as Natalie apologized to a visibly uncomfortable Susanna.
“I put my comfort in the illusion of safety above your actual feelings,” she said tearfully. “I failed you, and now there’s a human out there looking to do us real harm.”
“You didn’t fail us,” Susanna said, her cheeks flushed and warm. Thomas wished he could take some of the attention away from her, but this needed to be done.
“I failed you,” Natalie repeated. “I’m your matriarch; I’m supposed to protect you and help you become stronger, not make you think you’re weak and ineffective.”
To everyone’s surprise, she dropped to her knees and hung her head in shame. Susanna stared at her, open mouthed, until she remembered the customary gesture of forgiveness and held out one shaking palm.
Natalie pressed her face against it and burst into tears, and Charlie came behind her to help her up. Thomas knew the tears were most likely because of her pregnancy, but Susanna looked grateful all the same, though her cheeks were still a little pink with embarrassment. After she’d risen, Natalie insisted on leading the charge into the field herself, but Thomas turned her down.
“Susanna and I are going to take point on this one,” he said, his voice sounding more confident than he felt. “These were her flashes, and it could even be a human from her bloodline.” Though I hope it isn’t, he thought. He knew it would hurt her more than anyone else if it turned out she was somehow linked to this crazy assailant.
“I need to do this,” she said to Natalie, her green eyes burning with determination. “I kept quiet on this, and I know I should have spoken up earlier.”
“It’s not your fault; I shut you down,” their matriarch reminded her.
“That may be, but I have to do this. Let me take point.”
Natalie frowned, then finally nodded. She hesitated before she spoke again.
“I don’t like it,” she said. “But I respect it.”
That was all Susanna wanted, Thomas knew. She was never the type to need praise or extra affection, only the type to demand she be given what she was due. It was part of the reason he’d fallen in love with her. His eyes traveled over her sharp features now, and he was happy to see that she looked oddly at peace as they headed toward the squat building on the horizon. After they’d walked a mile past the edge of the Doyle property, they caught sight of the barn. Susanna let out a cry that was a mixture of pain and relief when she saw it, and Thomas shivered, as though he were feeling the echoes of whatever had caused her to shout. As they got closer, they could see it was a faded, rust-red barn that looked like it hadn’t been used in years. When they were a hundred feet away, the five of them stopped and stared at the building, huddled together in fear and anticipation.
“Why do I feel so…cold?” Leslie asked, her brown eyes glossy as she gazed at the structure. “Why is this place making me feel so bad?”
“I don’t know,” Susanna said. “But I really think I’m gonna need a vacation after this.”
Thomas laughed, a dry chuckle that sounded more like twigs snapping in the grass. Then it dawned on him that the sound really was twigs snapping in the grass, and they all whirled around, ready to lunge toward whoever it was.
Standing not twenty feet away from them was a wiry man with an unkempt beard and baggy black sweats. He was holding two guns, one in each hand; they were identical, down to their sawed-off barr
els. Thomas had to stare for nearly a full ten seconds before he realized who it was: Frank Donovan, the human who ran Frank’s tires. What the hell was he doing here?
“Frank?” Natalie asked nervously. She took a step forward, putting herself in the front of the group, and the man swung one of his guns wide until it settled on her head. Leslie screamed, and he moved his second gun to settle on her at chest level.
He grinned, and Thomas saw that his teeth were yellowed with flecks of brown on the surface. “Yeah, it’s old Frank. Finally remembered me, eh? Finally remembered I exist?” The muscles in his arms were twitching, and Thomas didn’t like what that meant for his trigger finger.
“What do you mean?” Thomas asked loudly, hoping to split the man’s attention. What the hell are you doing? asked a voice in his head, and he wasn’t sure if it was meant for him or the man with the guns.
“You know what I mean, freak,” Frank growled, his eyes dark with hatred. “I know what you’ve been doing. Think you can drive us out of town? Out of this state?” his hands tightened on the handles as he screeched at them, spit flying out of his mouth. “Guess again. You can’t keep the humans drugged up with memory serums forever, and I got an antidote. Know what that means? I figured it out, freaks; old Frank figured it out!”
“Figured what out?” Susanna asked then, and she didn’t even flinch when he moved one of his guns to her. Her face hardened, but she didn’t move.
“That you guys are demons, senorita,” he sneered. “Seen you with my own eyes, sprouting fur and claws as sharp as the day is long. Tried to tell the others, but they didn’t believe me. It’s those damn drugs you use to keep us docile. They wanted to see you for themselves, and since they’re not enlightened, like me…” he laughed, and the sound was crazed. “They didn’t see you. But I see you.” His smile slipped as he gazed at Susanna, and Thomas wanted to leap in front of her and shield her from everything—even his steely gaze.
“So, you were trying to kill us from the start?” Susanna’s voice didn’t portray any fear, while Thomas was struggling to keep his pulse under control. How can I get us out of this?