Silver Moon (A Women of Wolf's Point Novel)

by Catherine Lundoff

  Becca Thornton opened her mouth to scream, but what came out was more like a cross between a howl and a yelp. She jumped forward, trying to get away from the monster in the mirror and found herself bouncing back from the surrounding air as if she’d hit a wall. She spun around the chair searching for a way out, clawing at nothing with hands that were no longer hers.

  Erin stood and walked up to the invisible barrier, whatever it was. She met Becca’s eyes and held them with a silver-eyed stare as she unbuttoned her shirt and pants. She undressed carefully and calmly, as if being naked before the Wolf’s Point Women’s Club was the most normal thing in the world. Becca whimpered as she watched. Watching Erin’s lean form emerge from her clothes made Becca’s throat dry, made her heart beat even faster.

  In that moment, she almost knew what she wanted from her neighbor. Almost, but it was all too much to think about right now.

  And her thoughts changed as Erin began to transform. Her change was quick and fluid, beginning with the stretching of her face and her hands and ending with the growth of her fur. Within moments, Becca was staring at a large gray wolf with Erin’s eyes. That was when she knew she was going insane. She had to be.

  Or had they all known all along what was going to happen and just kept it secret? A sense of betrayal so deep it made her bones ache washed over her; how could her friends and neighbors have kept this from her?

  Shelly’s voice broke into her thoughts, forced her to hear something besides her own screaming brain. “Wolf’s Point has always held its own magic, from time immemorial. In each generation, a group of women past childbearing age become its vessels and in turn, the protectors of this land and its people. We embrace the spirit form of the earliest inhabitants, taking on their skins and their strengths. We embrace the forms and rituals of the settlers who came after the First Ones. We are at once old and new. You are called to join us, Becca Thornton. The magic in your blood marks you as one of us. Do you hear its summons?”

  Becca could feel her jaw drop. What was this, some episode of Buffy she’d never seen before? Sure, she heard a call all right, and it was telling her to run away from these crazy women and their wolves and their magic tricks. Telling her to run into the woods, to feel the moon’s song in her blood, the wind in her fur, to chase down her prey and…oh, shit. She stared at Shelly for a long couple of minutes, all the while feeling shifts in her body that shouldn’t, couldn’t have been there.

  The other women were changing around Shelly now and that wasn’t helping. Becca could smell them all, for one thing, now that her senses were suddenly much more acute. And she could hear things, things that couldn’t possibly be close enough to hear, like traffic on the highway and noises from town.

  Meanwhile, Shelly kept on looking at her, clearly waiting for an answer. What the hell was she supposed to say? And how was she supposed to say it with her mouth like this? She wrestled with her tongue and fangs, making a whole series of weird noises in the process. Finally, she forced her long lips into something resembling human speech. “Do I have a choice?”

  Shelly’s lips quirked in something like a smile, but wasn’t quite. “Not a good one. Sorry, Becca. The magic chooses its own; we don’t control it.”

  That was when the final wave washed through Becca. She dropped to her hands and knees and retched as the rags of her blouse fell from her shoulders. She clawed frantically at the remains of her pants and her underwear, yanking them off as the rest of the fur sprouted from her newly bare skin. Her jaws stretched open in a scream that became a howl.

  It was a sound of primal rage and terror, of wild magic turned loose. She rocked on her paws as the strange force filled her, changing her brain as well as her body. She was wolf-Becca now, a weird new combination of herself and something far wilder and more primitive.

  She circled the chair once again and sat down in front of the mirror. A medium-sized gray wolf stared back her, moving when she did, completely still when she was. She picked up a front paw and looked down her muzzle at it. If this is a magic trick, it’s a damn good one, she thought, strangely detached from what had just happened.

  When she looked back up, Shelly had transformed into a brown wolf, a bit bigger than she was. The wolf that was Shelly paced over to the circle that kept Becca trapped. She looked at Becca inquiringly and gave a sort of bark that managed to be a question. After a long moment, Becca nodded her head, part of her knowing it to be a weirdly human gesture for a wolf. Shelly scraped back the circle, erasing it with her paw until there was enough room for her to step outside.

  It felt to Becca as if she’d just been released from a cage. She stumbled forward as her back legs adjusted to walking in concert with her front paws. Her vision had changed along with everything else and she found herself watching the movements of the other wolves avidly. Shelly barked to get their attention and they all followed her to the door. In wolf form, it was clear that she was alpha to the rest of the pack. That figures, Becca thought muzzily with the small part of her brain not completely wolf.

  The door opened and the wolves trotted out into the moonlit night, Becca along with them. They seemed to have a destination in mind and wherever it was, they were in a hurry to get there. Soon they were all racing behind Shelly through the woods. Becca gave herself up to the sheer joy of running as the scents of the night filled her muzzle and the wind sweeping down from the foothills dragged itself through her thick fur like a brush.

  She wondered why they were quiet as they ran and the howl that she wanted to let loose surged up her throat. But Erin nipped her lightly, making her stumble on her still unsteady paws and she caught the warning look in the other wolf’s eyes. They needed to travel silently to their destination, whatever it was.

  That didn’t make sense. There were no hunters in these woods, after all. Then she remembered the woman and her companion by the river and a tiny growl formed in her throat. For a few long moments, she lost herself in the wolf as she raced along behind the others.

  Her detachment vanished when they splashed through the river shallows before picking their way across on the wet rocks. Surely there was only one reason for them to be down at the river tonight? They reached the far shore and the other wolves vanished with the exception of Erin who led her into the darkest bushes along the riverbank. Becca found herself nudged until she sat on her haunches and Erin settled in beside her.

  Becca stirred restlessly until Erin leaned against her in the darkness, offering comfort and warmth. Then Becca settled down and began to listen to the night. She heard the rustling of small prey in the bushes and salivated at the thought of food. At least until the shreds of her horrified human self squelched that idea.

  She could hear the stealthy movement of the Pack between the trees. Some were sitting still while others seemed to be spreading out, sneaking through the brush. It puzzled her, wolf and human brain both analyzing the sensations at the same time.

  Finally, she heard the humans. They too were trying to be as quiet as possible but their breathing gave them away as they got closer. She could feel their fear and it made her lips peel back from her fangs in a predatory smile. Then she heard the unmistakable sound of a shell being loaded into a gun. She jumped to her feet, her wolf instincts warring with her human ones. The humans knew they were coming and they were ready for them. The Pack was in terrible danger!

  Erin dropped on her then, pinning her to the dirt in a growling panting pile. Becca yipped as Erin’s jaws closed carefully on the fur at her neck as if she were a puppy. Instinctively, Becca went limp instead of fighting back. There was a dead, waiting silence in the woods around them now.

  Then all at once, Shelly barked and there was a surge of short howls and snarls in response. A gun went off and Erin bolted in the direction of the sound with Becca at her heels. They raced forward until Becca caught a movement from the corner of her eye. She gave a sharp warning bark and dove into the underbrush as a female human leaned around the tree and fired at them. She couldn’t he
ar Erin over the noise of the shouting and gunfire. But she was angry now, angry enough to think about striking back, and that urge overrode her fear as she circled carefully around the tree.

  Then she crept up behind the human. The human swung her head from side to side, night goggles trying to pierce the darkness to see what was out there, what might be hunting her. Becca gathered herself for a leap but Erin was there before her, knocking the woman over. Becca jumped instead for the gun and managed to pin the woman’s arm down before she could bring the gun up to fire again.

  In the struggle, the human’s goggles came loose and slid down her nose. Becca recognized the woman from the riverbank. Erin snarled down at her, teeth bared and the woman snarled back. She flailed and kicked, her foot catching Erin in the ribs but the wolf stayed put.

  From somewhere near by, there were more shots, and the woman tried to yell for help. In an instant, Erin’s jaws closed around her jacket collar. Becca could see those jaws tightening, see the woman begin to gasp for air, almost see her begin to die. She yelped in horror. No!

  The woman dropped her gun and her hands clutched feebly at the soil. Becca threw herself sideways into Erin, knocking her grip loose. The woman flailed again while both wolves were off balance. Then she rolled free and stood up.

  Erin scrambled to her feet and circled in front of her with a menacing snarl. That was when Becca saw the glint of another gun emerging from the woman’s sleeve. She snarled a warning to Erin and slammed into the human’s legs. After that, it was all a blur of gunshots, the yowl of a wounded wolf, then the crash of underbrush as something large fled.

  Then the Pack was back, silent as smoke. They circled Erin, collapsed and bleeding. Becca crouched over her, growling at anyone who came near. That was when Shelly stepped forward into the shadows and away from the moonlight. With bared teeth and a menacing lunge, she forced Becca back from Erin’s side.

  With what looked like a superhuman effort, she stretched and whined, her paws digging into the litter of the forest floor until they looked like fingers. Then they were fingers. Then hands. Shelly’s arms emerged from their fur covering as her muzzle shrank back into her human face, though the rest of her didn’t change Finally, she stood, a monstrous combination of wolf and woman.

  Erin shuddered and closed her eyes as Shelly touched her side gently. But she didn’t move after that and Becca made herself stop growling. This was her fault. She’d gotten Erin shot. And she’d let the human get away. A whimper tore its way up her throat.

  Shelly ignored her and scooped Erin up very carefully with a barked command at the other wolves. Becca could see that Erin was changing back as she lost consciousness. Shelly didn’t spare the rest of the Pack a glance before she began a swift run along the riverbank toward town, Erin cradled in her arms. Becca began to stumble after them until another wolf stopped her. Whoever she was, her fur was nearly white and she looked quite fierce in the moonlight. She bared her teeth at Becca and jerked her muzzle at the woods.

  Then the white wolf trotted forward and glanced back, clearly expecting Becca to follow. After a long moment of hesitation, she did. Moments later they were running again, racing upstream to where the road crossed at the bridge. In front of them, several humans were racing for their distant van, glowing white in the moonlight. There were more shots and Becca slipped into the bushes, heart racing. She was furious now, burning with a bright savage anger.

  She moved along more cautiously this time, her sense of smell telling her where the others were. They darted through the shadows, silent as air. Becca lost herself for the first time since she changed, the last shreds of her human self temporarily silenced. Now she hunted with her Pack, searching for those who would hunt them. These others, this human pack, they must be stopped before they hurt another wolf. No matter what the cost.

  Chapter 5

  ~

  Becca woke up in the woods at sunrise. At that moment, she had no idea of where she was or why she was surrounded by women from the Women’s Club. Or where her clothes were.

  Or why Mrs. Hui was sitting up next to her, also completely naked. The other woman seemed pretty relaxed about it, too. And there was Gladys waking up a few feet away, not a stitch on her either. Everyone else seemed to be scattered around them in the same condition. What the hell were they all doing here like this?

  “Come on. We have clothes hidden near the bridge.” Mrs. Hui rose and began walking downstream as if she woke up like this every day.

  Maybe she did. Becca hauled herself to her feet and followed her, trying in vain to cover herself with her hands. After a few minutes, she gave up. At least she was too cold to have hot flashes yet so that was something. But what was this all about? There had to be way to ask just how often they’d done this without actually saying what…this was. Somehow she couldn’t bring herself to ask if they’d all turned into wolves the night before. It had to have been a dream.

  She glanced from Gladys to Mrs. Hui and decided that the latter was safer, what with being smaller, older and frailer looking. She also lived further away and the distance might help, if her question sounded as silly as she suspected it did. “Have you done this before?”

  Mrs. Hui raised a silver eyebrow and nodded, like that was perfectly obvious.

  That went well. Sort of. Becca decided to try again. “So do they have—do they do…whatever this is—back home where you’re from?” She asked, this time knowing how stupid the question was even before she saw the expression on the other woman’s face.

  Mrs. Hui stretched and grimaced, her glance seeming mildly contemptuous to Becca’s dazed eyes. “Back home where I’m from? I was born right here in the valley, so yes, we had werewolves back home.” She shook her long white hair in what seemed to Becca like dismissal.

  Becca looked everywhere but back at her and felt herself go red and hot. It wasn’t like she knew the other woman that well, so she told herself that maybe she was misreading her response. Still, she felt like she’d been rude and she wasn’t sure how to fix it.

  Then she glanced down at her hands and saw something dark red under the nails. Her feeling of foolishness vanished, replaced with something far more sinister. She stopped and stared at her hands, trying desperately to remember what had happened. Parts of the night before came back to her: changing into a wolf, running through the woods, fighting the woman from the riverbank. Erin getting shot. But then there was a big blank spot after that. She clutched her head and leaned against a tree while her world spun around her and she tried to remember.

  “It’s a lot to take in,” Mrs. Hui said from somewhere nearby. Her tone was somewhat sympathetic.

  “But you did your duty to the Pack. You proved yourself, Becca. We’re happy to have you with us.” Gladys’ voice was deeper than normal, almost a growl, but that wasn’t what sent a thrill of pure horror through Becca. What had she done last night?

  Then she was surrounded. Together the other women herded her up toward the bridge, their hands on her elbows or around her shoulders. When they got there, Deputy Lizzie Blackhawk was waiting for them. She was leaning against a tree, mirrored sunglasses perched near the end of her nose as they stumbled up. “Shit,” Lizzie said slowly, “what did you grandmas get up to last night?”

  “Show some respect!” Gladys snapped.

  Lizzie’s lips quirked in a small smile. “Get some clothes on before you freeze. We’ve got injured campers up at the hospital so you’re going to have to help me come up with a story for the sheriff on this one.”

  Injuries? Becca’s heart thudded its way up into her throat and she looked from Lizzie’s face to her gun, then to her badge. Then she squared her shoulders and stepped forward. Whatever she’d done last night, she must’ve hurt someone. She could guess as much from the blood. She’d been brought up to be law abiding and to do right, so whatever she’d done, she needed to take responsibility for it. Even if she wasn’t sure what it was.

  “It was me, Deputy.” She held out her hands, bl
oody nails pointed upwards and stared at the ground, waiting for the click of cuffs. “I did…” Here she struggled to remember before settling on, “Whatever it was.”

  There was a brief silence as Lizzie looked from Becca to Mrs. Hui and Gladys and the rest of the group. Mrs. Hui shrugged and started pulling clothes out of a couple of waterproof bags that she dragged from behind a tree. She handed out energy bars to the rest of the group. No one said anything. At last Lizzie said, “Okay, Miz Thornton. Why don’t you put some clothes on? Then we’ll talk about just what did go on last night.”

  Becca looked up to see if she was being laughed at but Lizzie just looked serious and a bit puzzled. Mrs. Hui walked over and handed Becca some jeans and a shirt. “These should fit. And eat this too, while you’re at it. It’ll help ground you.” Becca picked up the energy bar, and unwrapped it. An instant later she was tearing into it, like it was meat. Meat she’d hunted herself, rich and bloody with life. She threw it down and backed away, staring at the half-eaten bar as though it might bite back.

  “What the hell did I do last night?” She demanded, glaring at Mrs. Hui. That was when she noticed that she was the only one not dressed. She scrambled for the clothes folded at her feet.

  “First time changing?” Lizzie asked in conversational tones, as if all of this was all perfectly normal.

  “Are you one too?” Becca demanded. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion and she stepped up to look the deputy in the eyes. Only then did she realize that she was also sniffing the air for the other’s scent. The realization made her jump back.