Ghosts of Winter: A Dark Shapeshifter Urban Fantasy (Echoes of the Past Book 2)

by H B Lyne

  Stalker felt utterly useless. Their Alpha was seriously wounded, it was by far the worst injury she had seen since she changed, and she had no clue how to help him.

  'Wind Talker?' she asked at last. 'Can you summon a healing fae to help him?'

  'Yes, of course.' He rushed away to fetch supplies. Stalker wiped sweat off Eyes' face with her sleeve. He was so hot and his body suddenly began to convulse.

  'Hurry!' she called out. 'It's not looking good here.'

  She heard heavy footsteps thundering down the stairs and Wind Talker burst back into the room. He passed Stalker a green candle and Weaver a white one then sprinkled some peppermint oil onto Eyes' torso. Eyes winced as the tiny drops of oil made contact with his open wounds. Wind Talker ran to the kitchen and came back with a bag of salt, which he split open and scattered all over the floor.

  Wind Talker lit the candle that Stalker was clutching, his hands far more steady than hers, his face impassive. He went to Weaver and lit her candle too, then moved across the room and turned to face them, so that they formed a rough circle. He raised his hands and began to stamp a rhythm with his foot, which Weaver and Stalker quickly copied.

  'I call upon the beings of healing, those who live to mend bones and heal wounds. Hear us and grant us audience.' Wind Talker's voice was steady and commanding, but Stalker saw hesitation in his eyes; he was nervous. He was normally so composed and difficult to read that she often forgot how newly changed he was himself, and that he was just a beginner with these rituals.

  The circle throbbed with energy, however, and she felt the veil ripple softly. She was suddenly acutely aware that they were in the human world, not Hepethia, and she worried about the neighbours hearing anything they shouldn't.

  The veil parted and through it came a floating column of shimmering light, right into the centre of their circle.

  'Greetings,' Wind Talker said and bowed his head.

  'Can you help us?' Stalker asked, feeling the urgency of their situation. The strange light swirled around slowly to face her and Eyes, who lay gasping for breath on the sofa. A beautiful sound filled the air, like wind-chimes, and Stalker felt calm wash over her. The shape before them began to change, slowly becoming more humanoid. It lacked facial features and the whole thing still shone brightly.

  'Yes.' Its voice was soft and musical. Hands appeared out of the light and rested on Eyes for a moment. The angel-like fae stepped back and began to change again. The light faded slightly and a face took shape, a cruel, mocking face in darkness, like a photographic negative. 'I will heal him, but I require payment.'

  'Anything,' Wind Talker said urgently. Stalker flashed him a worried look.

  'I live to heal,' the creature said. Stalker was no longer certain that this was a fae; it had taken a demonic turn. 'I require injured bodies in order to live. Send one to the hospital for me to heal. That shall be your payment.'

  'Done,' Eyes croaked. Stalker's gaze darted to him. She had thought he was unconscious.

  'We will do as you ask,' Wind Talker spoke softly. 'Please heal him now.'

  The demon moved to the Alpha's side and placed its hands upon his chest. It flared up bright again and threw its head back. Eyes shone too, filled with healing light, and he took a sudden gasp as his chest was lifted towards the ceiling. Stalker watched in awe as his visible injuries healed in moments.

  The demon released him and he dropped back onto the sofa. It moved away and re-took its slowly spiralling column form. Eyes sat up and felt his side where Holds-to-the-Light had bitten him. Stalker watched in awe as they all realised that his injuries were completely healed.

  'Are you okay?' Weaver asked, taking his hand and touching his face.

  'Yes,' he replied. 'I feel fine. Thank you,' he said to the demon with such depth that it turned towards him and seemed to bow. 'We will fulfil our side of the bargain as soon as possible.'

  The shimmering column of light glowed even more brightly for a moment and then spun suddenly across the veil. Stalker placed a hand on the Alpha's shoulder, relieved that he was healed, but guilt gnawed at her insides already at the price they would have to pay.

  Chapter Twelve

  'What were you thinking?' Stalker said quietly, a dark edge to her voice as she stared down Eyes and Wind Talker. 'We cannot possibly be seriously planning to go out and deliberately injure people in order to feed this healing demon's desire.'

  'That was the price for healing the Alpha,' Wind Talker replied, as cool as ever.

  'Eyes was dying, Stalker,' Weaver said gently. 'We had to take what we could get and this is the way it works sometimes. Demons, angels, everything in between, all beings in all the realms ultimately need to feed, and a healing angel feeds on healing. It can't do that without sick and injured people. That's the way the world works.'

  'We just need to find someone who deserves to be hurt,' Wind Talker suggested. Stalker could not believe what she was hearing and she threw her hands up in the air.

  'Who the hell are we to dish out judgement like that? Who decides what crimes are punishable by a good beating?'

  'We do,' Eyes said calmly. 'We do it all the time in our dealings with demons and fae. What about that gang? The Knights of St. Catherine's? We could track down one of them and give him a taste of his own medicine.'

  'Eyes!' Stalker shouted. 'You are a barrister! Is that the kind of justice you seek in court?'

  'This is totally different,' he sighed, rubbing his forehead. Stalker watched him carefully for a moment and decided that he was trying to convince himself of that. 'We will head out this afternoon to track down a Knight and just hurt him enough to get him to the hospital. It's not like I'm advocating killing anyone.'

  'Agreed,' Wind Talker and Weaver said together. Stalker looked around at them incredulously. It seemed she was outnumbered, and she grudgingly succumbed to the will of the pack and the authority of her Alpha. She felt sick to her stomach, though. Today they were plotting to beat up a gang member. What would it be tomorrow? She could see what a slippery slope they were on and it was with a very heavy heart that she went along with the plan.

  'Everyone get some rest now,' the Alpha commanded, and they all obeyed. Stalker didn't sleep, she sat on the sofa watching the others and fought her heavy eyelids. Her mind churned with recent events and she felt the weight of it all.

  After a few hours the others woke and they all ate a quick meal in uneasy silence.

  'Stalker,' Eyes said softly as they moved towards the front door. 'I know how you feel about this. Thank you for agreeing to come. Please could you take a useful tracking form to help us find one of the people that we're looking for?'

  Stalker scowled at him and didn't reply. She shifted into the form of a bloodhound and pushed past him to get to the front door.

  They set off towards where Wind Talker had witnessed the attempted mugging the previous day. It was late afternoon and the streets were busy with traffic. When they reached the alley, Stalker had a good sniff around. She picked up four scents, one of them was her pack mate. She followed the scents out of the alley and tried to focus on sorting one from another. She could tell that the four people had gone off in pairs in different directions, so she followed the pair that did not include Wind Talker. Just as predicted, the trail led towards the river and across a bridge to the north. They crossed into St. Catherine's and Stalker led the way, trying to keep hold of the dissipating scent as the sun set.

  She rounded a corner and was immediately struck by the strong smell of dozens of men. She looked up and saw that they were across the street from a lively biker bar. Loud music filled the air and people were shouting and laughing outside. Most of the men were wearing leather jackets and some had balaclavas tucked into back pockets or even perched on top of their heads. This was Knight territory, they were safe from the law and the general population were too scared of them to do anything, so they could wear their uniform openly here.

  'What do we do?' asked Weaver.

  'We wait
for one or two to break away from the group,' Eyes whispered, his eyes fixed on the crowd. 'We can't let them identify us when it happens.'

  His caution hung in the air and they all exchanged nervous glances. The weight of what they were doing settled on all of their shoulders.

  They waited just around the corner in a secluded alley for what seemed like hours, though Stalker knew time passed strangely when she was in non-human form. Night fell and the lights from the bar lit up the street. She spotted two gang members saying their goodbyes. They crossed the road, heading straight towards the waiting shifters. She alerted the others with a whimper and Eyes shifted into his wolf form in the shadows. Weaver and Wind Talker held back a bit, their animal forms were less helpful in a fight and they couldn't risk shifting into their Agrius forms and being seen.

  The Knights strode towards them, laughing and talking loudly. As they approached, Eyes sprang from the cover of the alley and sank his teeth into one of the men.

  There was a flurry of screaming and yelling. Instinct took over, and Stalker lunged for the other man and bit into his calf. He yanked his leg away from her and ran as fast as he could back towards the bar. She knew this was about to get very messy and gave a short, sharp bark as she set off away from the scene.

  The others didn't follow and she skidded to a halt to look back. Eyes was pinning the other guy down, snarling threateningly at him, while Wind Talker approached him carefully from behind, a large chunk of brick in his hand. He raised the brick and brought it down hard on the man's head, knocking him unconscious. Stalker watched in shock as Wind Talker quickly rifled through the Knight's pockets and pulled out a mobile phone.

  The rest of the pack ran quickly towards Stalker, who stood in stunned silence as they approached. Wind Talker had the stolen phone to his ear as they fled.

  'We need an ambulance,' he was saying hurriedly as the four of them jogged back towards St. Mark's. 'A man has been attacked in an alley opposite The Dog and Spoon in St. Catherine's, he needs an ambulance.'

  He hung up without leaving his details, then hurriedly scrubbed his finger prints off the phone and tossed it into a rubbish bin.

  Stalker didn't go back to Grove Street with her pack. She went back to her flat without a word, and in the safety and comfort of her own little space she broke down in tears.

  She showered and changed her clothes, renewed tears breaking out every few minutes with the horror of what she had been a part of. She lay down on her bed and cradled her phone; she was desperate to reach out to someone and the words of Shadow's Step came back to her. Sometimes you will need those who loved you before to remind you of all that you are.

  With a shaking hand, Stalker tapped out a message to her best friend, Ben.

  Hi there stranger. Did you have a good time in Rome? I can't wait to hear all about it. Feels an age since I saw you. Love Ariana xx

  Then another to Rhys.

  Hi. How are you? Been a weird few days. Would love to chat, if you're free.

  She instantly regretted it. There was nothing she could tell him about her life now. She had no one outside her pack to confide in, and it stung. Her phone buzzed and made her jump. She opened a message from Ben.

  Rome was amazing. OMG! It was so romantic. I thought Marcus was going to propose at one point, but he didn't. I was a bit disappointed at first but I dunno, I think I was caught up in the mood. I don't really want to get married and settle down yet anyway lol! How the fuck are you anyway?

  Stalker laughed a little and wiped her face. She remembered her old life, her friends, her old name. She felt nineteen again, if only for a moment.

  Glad you enjoyed it. Phew, good job he didn't pop the question then, really. I'm OK. Miss you though. Drinks some time soon?

  She watched the screen, waiting for the reply.

  Defo! Bit busy catching up at work this week, but am free on the 11th.

  Stalker grinned and hurriedly replied.

  Sounds good. TTFN x

  A moment later a new message came through from Rhys.

  Hi, so sorry to hear you're having a hard time. Are we still on for dinner tomorrow night?

  Stalker had forgotten their plans and groaned when she realised she was also due to return to work the next day.

  Absolutely. Looking forward to it. I'm working until 5.30. Can get to your place for about 6.30. That OK?

  The reply came just moments later.

  Yeah, perfect. See you tomorrow xx

  Stalker tried to smile. She was exhausted. She hadn't slept in two days and it hit her now. Just as she was drifting off, her phone rang and with bleary eyes she looked to see who was calling. It was Eyes. With a sigh she answered.

  'Hi,' she said, trying not to sound too negative.

  'Hi. Are you okay?' he asked.

  'Yeah. Look, sorry for disappearing on you. I have to go back to work tomorrow, so I just need some time to myself to regroup and feel more human.'

  'Yeah, I understand. I'm back at work tomorrow too. I'm heading home myself tonight. It's the funeral tomorrow. In all the chaos I forgot to tell you. We're meeting the others at Crescent Park just before midnight.'

  Stalker groaned and ran a weary hand over her face. Tomorrow was shaping up to be another eventful day.

  'Okay. Of course. I have plans for earlier in the evening. Can I meet you there?'

  'Sure. I hope you have a good day. Sleep well.' Eyes spoke with heaviness and Stalker sensed that he was feeling the weight of everything they had been through just as much as she was. He was her brother, she loved him dearly and she did understand that he had done what he needed to do. He needed to survive. Not just for their pack, but for the Blue Moon, for their sacrifice to mean something and for his human family.

  She turned her phone off and lay down. Sleep took hold of her in minutes. She dreamed of Shadow's Step. She saw him as clearly as if he were really there in front of her. They were sparring in the basement of the betting shop. His tiny rune scars glistened on his torso and his face passed in and out of the shadows as they danced around each other. She saw Fortune watching them and felt his fatherly love touch her heart. She became afraid; she felt she had disappointed her mentors, though she wasn't sure which of her actions were responsible.

  It was mid-morning when she woke, by far the longest she had slept in weeks. There was a strange tapping noise coming from the kitchen and she became alert in an instant. She slipped out of bed and crept silently to the bedroom door. She peered carefully out into the open-plan living area. The noise was coming from the window in the kitchenette, a rapid tapping and the odd scratching sound. Slowly she made her way towards it and was startled to see a huge raven pecking and scratching at the window. She went to it and quickly opened it. The bird hopped in and landed next to the sink. It squawked at her and shook its wings. Tiny black feathers dropped onto the worktop and she watched in amazement as they arranged themselves into words.

  Crescent Park, tomorrow at 9pm. Odin is calling.

  It was a message from Odin's Warriors. Two evenings in a row at the same place. She had passed it many times in her human life and never noticed anything about it, other than its distinctive shape. Clearly it had significance to shifters, however.

  With a parting croak, the raven hopped onto the window sill and flew away. Stalker closed the window and drew a deep breath. It was going to be a long, taxing day.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Stalker arrived at work with a knot in her stomach. She walked past Ron's office and could hear him talking on the phone. She went into her studio and started dragging mats from a pile in the corner and set them up for her judo class. Her mind was racing with everything that had happened in the last few days, and the weeks before that. Her life had turned upside down and being here, in this ordinary place, made her extremely uncomfortable.

  At 3.20pm her students started to arrive, fresh from school and stamping out the wet and cold from their feet as they entered. The noise made Stalker flinch, her heightened sens
es assaulted by the volume of the teenagers as they spilled into the quiet room.

  She slapped on a smile and greeted her students warmly.

  'Welcome back!' a young boy called brightly, and several others joined in. Two girls rushed over to her and caught her in a tight embrace. Stalker laughed and hugged them back. Warmth filled the room and she felt more at ease.

  'Thanks, guys,' she beamed. Most of this class were not much younger than her, and before she had changed she had counted some of them as friends. 'Come on now,' she called out, turning on her teacher voice. 'Shoes and coats off, please. Find a space and take a knee.'

  Stalker got the class doing warm-up drills and assessed them for any sloppiness that had crept into their practice during her absence. She didn't know who had been teaching them, but she could see that a few of her students had started to develop bad habits. Soon she was into the swing of things and it was as if she had never been away. She walked around the class as they practised some simple throws, correcting a few people here and there.

  One boy was struggling to get his partner over his shoulder and she stepped in to help. 'You can do this, Joey,' she said, gently parting the two boys. She moved Joey aside and stepped into his place. 'You need to get yourself a little lower, bend the knees so that your shoulder is just here.' She pointed to the chest of the other boy and grasped hold of his judo jacket. He was so light, and as she lifted him and threw him over her shoulder everything felt wrong. He dropped to the mat with a sickening thunk.

  The class had stopped and all eyes were on them. Stalker dropped to her knees, panic pumping through her veins.

  'Are you all right?' Joey asked, kneeling at his friend's side.

  'I am so sorry,' Stalker said, deep worry filling her as the kid gasped for breath.

  'Yeah,' he choked, trying to sit up. 'Just a bit winded. I see your muscles haven't atrophied while you've been away.'

  Everyone laughed and Stalker smiled with relief.

  'No, I guess not.' She stood up and helped him to his feet. She decided it would be best not to do any more practical demonstrations if she could help it, and got the group doing more drills.